Almost everyone has a vision of the inquisitor—garbed in a mix of regalia and the rough-and-tumble tools of the adventurer, her word is often treated as divine law. But this is merely the most dramatic aspect of the inquisitor. Her world is filled with secret knowledge, constant danger, and strange mortal and outsider politics. The inquisitor's path has many branches and specializations, each with its own methods for rooting out and vanquishing enemies of the faith.
An inquisitor has a class ability that gives her access to one of her deity's domains; this access is one way to tune an inquisitor's abilities to fit the deity's interests. However, because an inquisitor only gets the granted powers of a domain and not its spells, some domains are poor choices for an inquisitor because they rely on cleric class abilities that inquisitors don't get. For example, the Sun domain's 1st-level granted power augments the effects of channel energy, but inquisitors don't have the channel energy ability, so they gain no benefit from their domain selection until 8th level, when they get a second granted power.
To remedy that problem, this section introduces inquisitions—new, specialized domainlike class features for inquisitors that grant abilities appropriate to their deity's portfolio. Following the inquisitions are new inquisitor archetypes.
Inquisitions
While inquisitors often take on the domains permitted to the clerics of the faith, they are privy to special lore not open to priests and other agents of their religion. These divine pursuits, called inquisitions, grant inquisitors the tools necessary for the fight against enemies of the faith. An inquisitor may select an inquisition in place of a domain.
If an inquisition's granted power calls for a saving throw, the DC of the save is equal to 10 + 1/2 the character's inquisitor level + her Wisdom modifier. Unless otherwise stated, the caster level for granted power spell-like abilities is equal to the inquisitor's class level.
Inquisitions are intended for inquisitors, not for other classes that give access to domains. While a cleric or other domain-using class can select an inquisition in place of a domain (if appropriate to the character's deity), inquisitions do not grant domain spell slots or domain spells, and therefore are much weaker choices for those classes. These other classes use the appropriate class level as their inquisitor level for the purpose of inquisition granted powers (clerics use their cleric level as their inquisitor level, and so on).
Anger Inquisition
Granted Powers
Holy (or unholy) rage, granted by your patron deity, ensures that when you fight, the battle ends with a bloody victory.
Once per day, as an immediate action after you have been hit with a melee attack, you can make a melee attack against the creature that hit you. This melee attack is at your highest attack bonus, even if you've already attacked in the round.
At 6th level, you gain the ability to rage like a barbarian. Your effective barbarian level for this ability is your inquisitor level – 3. If you have levels in barbarian, these levels stack when determining the effect of your rage. You do not gain any rage powers from this granted power, though if you have rage powers from another class, you may use them with these rages. You can rage a number of rounds per day equal to your Wisdom bonus, plus 1 round for every inquisitor level above 4th.
Conversion Inquisition
Granted Powers
You are a powerful persuader. A honeyed tongue empowered by divine argumentation sways the indifferent and adversarial to your side.
You use your Wisdom modifier instead of your Charisma modifier when making Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate checks.
At 8th level, once per day you may speak a word of divinely inspired wisdom that causes a single creature to switch its alliance to you. The target must be within line of sight and able to hear you. If he fails his Will save, he is affected by dominate person, except the duration is only 1 minute.
Fate Inquisition
Granted Powers
Fate is a powerful tool for those who dole out justice for their deity. You can read the strands of fate, and those strands guide your endeavors.
Once per day, you can use augury as a spell-like ability.
At 8th level, when you use your augury spell-like ability, you gain a benefit that lasts until the end of your next combat. If the result was "weal," all curing effects used on you cure an additional +1d10 hit points. If the result was "woe," your melee attacks deal an additional +1d6 points of damage. If the result is "weal and woe" or "nothing," you gain a +2 insight bonus to your Armor Class.
Fervor Inquisition
Granted Powers
Only a passionate and righteous will such as yours can ensure that justice will be properly done.
Fire of Belief
You can unleash a gout of holy or unholy flame that sears one target within 30 feet as a ranged touch attack. The target takes 1d6 points of fire damage plus half your inquisitor level (minimum +1). If you are good, the flames only harm nongood targets. If you are evil, the flames only harm nonevil targets. If you are neither good nor evil, when you gain this ability you must decide whether the flames harm only nongood or nonevil targets; once you make this decision, it cannot be changed (though if your alignment changes, the effect of the flames changes appropriately). You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Wisdom modifier.
At 8th level, once per day as a swift action, you can make a single melee attack at your highest attack bonus, move up to your speed, or cast a prepared inquisitor spell (of a spell level up to one lower than the highest level spell you can cast) as per Quickened Spell.
Heresy Inquisition
Granted Powers
Often it is hard to tell heretics from the faithful. You use duplicity, stealth, and the heretics' own arguments to root them out and bring them to justice.
You use your Wisdom modifier instead of your Charisma modifier when making Bluff and Intimidate checks.
At 4th level, when you make a Bluff, Diplomacy, or Stealth check, you may roll twice and take the more favorable result. You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to your Wisdom bonus.
Word of Anathema
At 8th level, once per day, you can speak a word of anathema against a single creature within 60 feet (Will negates). This acts as bestow curse and lasts for 1 minute, giving the target a –4 penalty on attack rolls, saves, ability checks, and skill checks.
Imprisonment Inquisition
Granted Powers
Sometimes it is better to capture foes than to kill them—whether your intention is to punish them for their crimes or to torture them for information.
With a devastating weapon strike, spectral chains wrap around your target for a short period of time. Whenever you confirm a critical hit with a melee or ranged weapon attack (including spells that require attack rolls), you can choose to also entangle that target for 1d4 rounds (Fortitude negates). You may use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Wisdom modifier.
Divine Prison
At 8th level, once per day upon making a successful melee attack, you can affect your target with hold monster (Will negates).
Illumination Inquisition
Granted Powers
Many times an inquisitor's greatest weapon is pure and unflinching illumination; errors are often illuminated by light and wisdom.
You cause your hand to shimmer with divine radiance, allowing you to touch a creature as a standard action and give it a bonus equal to 1/2 your inquisitor level on a single Will saving throw, Knowledge check, Perception check, or Sense Motive check. This ability lasts for 1 hour or until the creature chooses to apply the bonus to a roll. You can use this ability to grant the bonus a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Wisdom modifier.
Aura of Enlightenment
At 4th level, you can create a 30-foot-radius aura of normal light. Allies in this aura gain a +2 insight bonus on skill checks. This counts as a 2nd-level light effect for the purpose of countering or dispelling darkness effects. You can use this aura for a number of rounds per day equal to your inquisitor level. These rounds do not need to be consecutive.
Justice Inquisition
Granted Powers
Some must learn that to submit to one's fate often means submitting to your form of justice.
If you or an ally within 10 feet makes a critical threat with a melee or ranged attack, as an immediate action you may add +4 to the confirmation roll. This does not stack with the Critical Focus feat. You may use this ability a number of times per day equal to your Wisdom bonus.
At 6th level, once per day, you can bind an opponent within 60 feet to you with spectral chains (Will negates). When you take damage from an enemy, the bound target takes this damage as well. Whenever the bound target takes damage from you or one of your allies, you take this damage as well. You and the target are not physically bound to each other, and either can end the connection by breaking the line of effect or exceeding the ability's range. You may dismiss the chains as a standard action.
Oblivion Inquisition
Granted Powers
Some inquisitors believe that without faith there is only oblivion. But there are some divine servants who know enough about the darkness that lies beyond faith to use it as a tool… and a weapon.
Life Anchor
You gain a 10-foot-radius aura that helps dying creatures cling to life. Within this aura, a dying creature (including yourself) adds your Wisdom bonus to it stabilization checks (in addition to any other modifiers to stabilization checks).
At 8th level, you can use feeblemind as a gaze attack against one creature (Will negates). This effect lasts 1d4 rounds. You can use this ability once per day at 8th level, and one additional time per day for every four levels beyond 8th.
Order Inquisition
Granted Powers
Most inquisitors fight insane aberrations and demonic creatures as well as the chaos of heresy. They use the dictum and the mantles of law in order to aid their struggle.
You can use protection from chaos on yourself or another creature as a spell-like ability. You can use this ability for a number of minutes per day equal to your inquisitor level (minimum 1). This duration does not need to be consecutive, but it must be used in 1 minute increments.
At 8th level, you can use greater command, except it only affects a single target. You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Wisdom bonus.
Persistence Inquisition
Granted Powers
Your deity chose you for your persistence. You have vowed to pursue the enemies of the faith to the world's end if necessary. You receive Step Up as a bonus feat.
As a swift action, you can add 10 feet to your land speed. This increase counts as an enhancement bonus, and it affects your jumping distance as normal for increased speed. You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Wisdom bonus (minimum 1).
At 6th level, once per day, you may heal yourself as a swift action, healing 1d6 hit points for every two inquisitor levels you possess. When you use this ability, you can also remove one of the following conditions from yourself: blinded, confused, dazzled, deafened, frightened, nauseated, shaken, sickened, or staggered.
Tactics Inquisition
Granted Powers
It is the cold and tactical mind that often wins the day. A proper, carefully considered sacrifice can inspire one's allies to serve your cause.
At the start of your turn, you can choose to enter a tranquil, reflective state and forgo all actions (standard, move, swift, immediate, and free actions, including attacks of opportunity) for that round; one ally of your choice within 30 feet gains the benefit of haste for 1 round. You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to your 3 + Wisdom bonus (minimum 1).
Torture Inquisition
Inquisitor Archetypes