Inquisitor Archetypes
Some inquisitors, as they learn more about the threat of possession and the machinations of the planes, task themselves to expel possessing spirits and conniving outsiders from the world whenever possible. Eventually they learn the secret of the verdicts of exorcism, exile, and anathema.
At 8th level, an inquisitor using judgment can unleash the verdict of exorcism on a creature. When she does, her judgment ends, but the creature is dazed for 1 round (Will negates); if the creature is possessed, the possessing entity must succeed at a Will saving throw (DC 10 + 1/2 inquisitor level + inquisitor's Wisdom bonus), or be exorcised and never again allowed in that same body. This ability replaces second judgment.
At 16th level, an inquisitor using judgment can unleash the verdict of exile on a creature. When she does, her judgment ends, but the creature subject to that judgment is dazed for 1 round (Will negates, DC of 10 + 1/2 inquisitor level + Wisdom bonus). If the creature is possessed or an outsider, the possessing entity or the outsider is affected by dismissal (Will negates). This ability replaces third judgment.
An exorcist inquisitor must close off her mind to deny her enemies even a foothold. At 17th level, the inquisitor becomes immune to compulsion effects and possession attempts (including magic jar). This ability replaces slayer.
At 20th level, an inquisitor using judgment can unleash the verdict of anathema on her enemies. When she does, her judgment ends, and all enemy creatures within 10 feet are affected by her verdict of exorcism. This ability replaces true judgement.
While all inquisitors hunt the enemies of the faith, sometimes, either through political maneuvering by her enemies or an unyielding tenacity that breaks her faith's basic tenets, an inquisitor can find herself a heretic. Still unyielding in her cause, these heretics are accustomed to using guile and deception to hide themselves and their activities while they continue to hunt their enemies.
A heretic gains the following judgment in addition to the normal list of inquisitor judgments.
Each time the inquisitor using this judgment hits an opponent with a melee or ranged attack, she can use a move action attempt to create a diversion to hide (see the Stealth skill).
Lore of Escape
At 1st level, the heretic uses every trick she knows to escape those now pursuing her. She adds her Wisdom modifier on Bluff and Stealth skill checks in addition to the normal ability score modifiers. This ability replaces monster lore.
Hide Tracks
At 1st level, a heretical inquisitor is adept at hiding her tracks. Creatures attempting to track her take a –5 penalty on rolls to find or follow her tracks.
Ex-Inquisitors
An inquisitor who becomes an ex-inquisitor can, with the GM's permission, take the heretic archetype, replacing her class abilities with the appropriate archetype abilities. If the character atones or joins a different faith, she loses her heretic abilities and regains her previous inquisitor class abilities.
This inquisitor uses guile and deception to blend in among the enemies of the faith rather than confronting them head-on.
At 1st level, each day when the infiltrator prepares spells, she may choose an alignment. She detects as that alignment as if she had used misdirection on a creature with that alignment (this does not change any divination results about her other than her alignment). This power replaces stern gaze.
At 1st level, the infiltrator's will is bent toward subterfuge and deception. She adds her Wisdom modifier on Bluff and Diplomacy skill checks in addition to the normal ability score modifiers. This ability replaces monster lore.
While other inquisitors learned to track unbelievers, an infiltrator learns how to cast their spells. An infiltrator can cast spells of an alignment opposed to her or her deity (ignoring the restriction in the Chaotic, Evil, Good, and Lawful Spells class ability). This ability replaces track.
An infiltrator adds her class level on saving throws against abilities that detect lies or reveal or force the truth, such as detect lies and zone of truth. This power replaces discern lies.
Some inquisitors wander the land to spread the true word of their faith. Often they come into conflict with those hostile to their teachings or to the preacher's need to help those who cannot help themselves. The leaders of evil or aggressive religions send these preachers into new territories to win converts and hopefully allies. Often, they start uprisings against powers hostile to their religion, or defend a group of honest believers from the depredations of the unfaithful.
At 3rd level, the preacher is a person of few words on the battlefield, but those words hold great power and authority. Once per day, the inquisitor can use this ability to create one of the following effects. Each is a free action to use.
Aggression
The preacher may reroll an attack roll that she just made before the results of the roll are revealed. She must take the result of the reroll, even if it's worse than the original roll.
Defense
When the inquisitor would be hit by a melee or ranged attack, as an immediate action she may add a +4 insight bonus to her Armor Class against that attack, and if this makes the inquisitor's AC higher than the opponent's attack roll, the attack misses.
Warning
When a preacher's ally within line of sight would be hit by a melee or ranged attack, she may call out a warning to that ally, and the attacker must reroll the attack and use the results of the second roll. The ally must be able to hear the preacher and must not be helpless for this ability to have any effect.
Whenever the preacher could select a bonus teamwork feat (at 3rd, 6th, 9th, 12th, 15th, and 18th level), she can instead choose to increase her number of uses per day of this ability by one. This ability replaces solo tactics.
Sin Eater
There is a sect of inquisitors in some religions that believes it is not enough to hunt the enemies of the church—one must also devour those enemies' sins. More benign versions of the practice believe that sin, or evil, is taken out of the world when a sin is devoured, denying the enemy's soul to the enemy's god and purifying the world of its taint. Followers of malevolent churches believe that consuming the sins of good folk not only corrupts the enemy soul to keep it from the celestial planes, but also taints the souls of those who witness the sin-eating or the corpse of its victim. Consuming sins empowers the sin eater, at least for a time.
Eat Sin
At 1st level, as a free action, when the sin eater inquisitor kills an enemy, she may eat the sins of that enemy by spending 1 minute adjacent to its corpse. This provokes attacks of opportunity. The inquisitor can rush this ritual, performing it as a full-round action that provokes attacks of opportunity, but she only gains half the normal benefit (see below).
Eating the enemy's sins heals the inquisitor of a number of hit points of damage equal to 1d8 + her inquisitor level (maximum +5). The enemy must have been killed by the sin eater within the last hour, and it must have had at least as many Hit Dice as half the inquisitor's level. The inquisitor can use this ability once for each enemy she kills. This ability has no effect on mindless creatures or those with Intelligence 2 or less.
At 5th level, the healing increases to 2d8 plus her inquisitor level (maximum +10); it increases to 3d8 + her inquisitor level (maximum +15) at 9th level and to 4d8 + her inquisitor level (maximum +20) at 13th level.
In some faiths, this "eating" is a purely symbolic act, while in others, the inquisitor must eat a small amount of food and water as part of the ritual. A few extreme faiths actually require the inquisitor to eat some of the body of the slain enemy.
At 8th level, when a sin eater eats the sins of a creature that would rise as an undead (such as someone slain by a shadow, spectre, or vampire), the sin eater may choose to accept 1 temporary negative level to absorb the taint in the corpse, preventing it from rising as an undead. This negative level can be removed with the appropriate magic, though it automatically expires after 24 hours, and never becomes a permanent negative level. At the GM's discretion, this ability may prevent a ghost from using its rejuvenation ability.
This ability replaces an inquisitor's domain.
At 6th level, when the inquisitor eats an enemy's sins, within 10 minutes of doing so, she can ask the remnants of the enemy's soul questions as if using speak with dead, with a caster level equal to her inquisitor level. She does not need the enemy's corpse to use this ability (she can eat sin, move away from the corpse, then use speak with dead), though the soul gets a saving throw just as a corpse would. This ability replaces the bonus teamwork feat gained at 6th level.
At 14th level, a sin eater may spend a full-round action to transfer one harmful affliction, condition, or spell effect from another creature to herself (this includes curses, possessions, and permanent effects such as petrification, or any condition that break enchantment can end or reverse). The effect to be transferred is chosen by the sin eater and affects her as if she were the original target, continuing its duration (if any) and preventing any further effect on the original bearer. For example, the inquisitor could transfer a lethal disease to herself, or petrify herself to restore a petrified comrade. The sin eater can use this ability as often as desired, even using it multiple times on the same creature. This ability replaces exploit weakness.