Death Knight

Class Traits

Role: Defender
Power Source: Arcane
Key Abilities: Strength, Constitution, Intelligence

Armor Proficiencies: Cloth, leather, hide, chainmail, scale, plate
Weapon Proficiencies: Simple melee, military melee, simple ranged
Bonus to Defense: +1 Fortitude, +1 Will

Hit Points at 1st Level: 15 + Constitution score
Hit Points per Level Gained: 6
Healing Surges per Day: 9 + Constitution modifier

Trained Skills: Arcana. From the class skills list below, choose three trained skills at 1st level.
Class Skills: Arcana (Int), Athletics (Str), Diplomacy (Cha), Endurance (Con), History (Int), Intimidate (Cha), Religion (Int)

Build Options: Defender death knight, warrior death knight
Class Features: Death’s Challenge, Inscribed Weapon, Rune Specialization

Death knights, not to be confused with undead of the same name, are magical warriors trained in forbidden arcane arts. Death knights fight in the front lines using spells over life and death to harm and hinder enemies and protect allies. Death knights fight for honor, knowledge, or just for the thrill of battle.

Regardless of the spells you know and the weapons you employ, your goals define your enemies and your allies. You can be a noble arcane knight who protects the meek and slays evil, or you could be a cursed hero who fights to redeem his evil past.

You know that eventually everyone dies, but what will you do during your time alive?

Creating a Death Knight

You can choose any death knight spells that you fancy for your character, but death knights fall into one of two categories: the defender death knight and the warrior death knight. Death knights need either Strength, Constitution or Intelligence based on what runes your chosen spells use.

Defender Death Knight

You use the more defensive death knight build. You may or may not use a shield but your spells are going to be defensive in origin, mostly affecting you or your allies. You should either specialize in Blood Runes or Death Runes. If you specialize in Blood Runes you are going to need a high Constitution, while if you specialize in Death Runes you are going to need a good Intelligence score.
Suggested Feat: Toughness (Human feat: Human Perseverance)
Suggested Skills: Arcana, Athletics, Diplomacy, Endurance
Suggested At-Will Powers: bolstering blood, touch of death
Suggested Encounter Power: blood step
Suggested Daily Power: vampiric gaze

Warrior Death Knight

You use the more offensive death build. You are going to want a nice two-handed weapon, such as a great sword or maul. You are likely to be using spells that damage or hinder enemies. You should specialize in either Cold Runes or Death Runes. If you specialize in Cold Runes you should make Strength your highest score, and if you specialize in Death Runes you are going to want a high Intelligence score.
Suggested Feat: Power Attack (Human feat: Action Surge)
Suggested Skills: Arcana, Athletics, Endurance, Intimidate
Suggested At-Will Powers: chill, necrotic blade
Suggested Encounter Power: rain of ice
Suggested Daily Power: freezing the lifeblood

Death Knight Class Features

All death knights share these class features.

Death’s Challenge

The challenge of a death knight is also a challenge from death itself. You can use the death’s challenge power to mark foes.

Inscribed Weapon

You can inscribe magical runes into a single two-handed melee weapon of your choice, allowing you to use it as an implement for death knight and death knight paragon path spells when you wield it. You can change your inscribed weapon after an extended rest.

Rune Specialization

You inscribe runes into your weapon based on your selection of spells. There are three different runes usually used by death knight spells: Blood, Cold, and Death. You must choose to specialize in a single type of rune. Your selection determines one of your at-will spells, allows you to cast spells that use that rune with greater effect, and gives you a special boon whenever you drop a foe.
Blood: You know the bolstering blood spell as one of your at-will spells. When you kill an enemy that you have marked, you gain temporary hit points equal to your level. Spells that use Blood runes require the caster to have a healthy body.
Cold: You know the chill spell. When you kill an enemy that you have marked, one enemy within 5 squares is slowed until the start of your next turn. Spells that use Cold runes require the caster to be strong enough to shape ice.
Death: You know the touch of death spell. When you kill an enemy that you have marked, you gain a +2 bonus to AC. Spells that use Death runes require the caster to be studied in the secrets of life and death.

Overview

Characteristics: You are very tough; you have a lot of hit points, but usually do not use shields. You can fight in close combat, and you also have a few ranged spells. You have spells that weaken enemies and strengthen allies. You also have a few abilities that control the battlefield.
Religion: Death knights favor martial and magic deities, but usually death knights pledge themselves to the Raven Queen. Evil and unaligned death knights pay homage to Orcus and Bane.
Races: Death knights come from all races, but are usually humans, dwarves and tieflings.

Death Knight Powers

Your powers are necromantic spells that hold control over life, death, and the icy chill of death. Death’s Challenge: Death Knight Feature You challenge a nearby enemy to combat, draining it should it not fight.
At-Will ✦ Arcane, Necrotic
Minor Action: Close burst 5
Target: One creature in burst
Effect: You mark the target. The target remains marked until you use this power against another target, or if you fail to engage the target (see below). A creature can be subject to only one mark at a time. A new mark supersedes a mark that was already in place. While a target is marked, it takes a -2 penalty to attack rolls for any attack that does not include you as a target. Also, the target a penalty to AC equal to half your Intelligence modifier until the start of its next turn the first time it makes an attack that does not include you as a target before the start of your next turn. On your turn, you must engage the target you challenged or challenge a different target. To engage the target, you must either attack it or end your turn adjacent to it. If none of these events occur by the end of your turn, the marked condition ends and you can not use death’s challenge on your next turn. You can use death’s challenge once per turn.