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-	Protector	Defender	Guardian
Climate/Terrain:	Upper Planes	Upper Planes	Upper Planes
Frequency:	Very rare	Very rare	Very rare
Organization:	Group or Solitary	Solitary	Solitary
Activity Cycle:	Any	Any	Any
Diet:	Omnivore	Omnivore	Omnivore
Intelligence:	Exceptional(15-16)	Exceptional(15-16)	Genius (17-18)
Treasure:	Nil	Nil	Nil
Alignment:	Any good	Any good	Any good
No. Appearing:	10-100 or 1	1-10 or 1	10
Armor Class:	-1	-3	-4
Movement:	14, Fl 32 (B)	16, Fl 36 (B)	20, Fl 42 (B)
Hit Dice:	6	8	10
THAC0:	13 (see below)	10 (see below)	8/6 (see below)
No. of Attacks:	2	2	2
Damage/Attack:	1-8/1-12 (+3)	1-8/1-12 (+4)	see below
Special Attacks:	Sharpness severing	Fireball, flames	Immolation, flames
Special Defences:	see below	see below	see below
Magic Resistance:	30	40	50
Size:	M (6' tall)	M (6' tall)	M (7' tall)
Morale:	Champion (15-16)	Fanatic (17-18)	Fearless (19-20)
XP Value:	24,000	33,000	40,000

Scilds are inhabitants of the good-aligned upper outer planes; like other aasimon, they are the servants of the powers that reside in those planes. Scilds have several forms in which they appear, one for each race they deal with; not surprisingly, their most common forms are that of humans, half-elves, elves, and dwarves; in addition, scilds may appear as either male or female, although the male form is more common. A scild is able to change from one form to another whenever it wishes; when dealing with more than one race at a time, scilds usually choose to appear in their human forms. Scilds always appear as the most beautiful example of the chosen race (protectors and defenders have a charisma of 18, while guardians have a charisma of 19). Scilds have muscular bodies, and their eyes appear to glow softly. Perhaps the feature that sets them apart most from the race they choose to emulate, is their graceful wings that extend from their backs. Scilds in the form of a human male, appear much the same as a deva.

While a scild's main duty is the protection of the various good races, they are still quite capable in combat, although they will normally fight only in dire circumstances; they prefer to solve problems by more peaceful means.
In addition to those powers available to all aasimon, all scilds can use the following spell-like abilities, one at a time:

aura of protection, always active (see below)
Cure Critical Wounds, once per day
protection from evil, always active
Minor Globe of Invulnerability, three times per day
Dismissal, twice per day

The scild's aura of protection renders them invulnerable to normal, fire-based attacks, and reduces damage from magical and dragon fire attacks by half; A Magic Missile cannot penetrate the barrier, and it allows a saving throw vs. spells that do not normally grant one (i.e. Power Word, Kill). The aura will also grant certain protections to those within its radius as follows: all friendly creatures within the confines of the aura receive the equivalent of fire resistance as per the ring, and receive a bonus to their AC and magic resistance (see below). All scilds are immune to normal, non-magical weapons.
Under normal circumstances, only scilds or other aasimon may use scild weapons; however, in rare instances, a scild may bestow its weapon on a high-powered, deserving mortal (it will then forge itself a new weapon). These mortals must exibit the utmost devotion to a power of good, and may never use the weapon in any manner that would threaten the causes of good; if these guidelines are not followed, the scild will attempt to reclaim the weapon. These weapons will not maintain their aura of protection in the hands of a mortal; this special power will only work when the blade is in the hands of a scild.

On the upper planes, scilds are primarily guards for the good powers and their places of residence; however, they also have an important role to serve on the prime material plane: scilds are the primary protectors of the intelligent, good-aligned races. While movanic devas also share this responsibility, they are mostly concerned with the more prominent mortals; scilds are the guardians of all mortals, be they kings or slaves. If a lower class mortal is in dire need, and a movanic deva deems it unworthy of his attention, he will often send a scild to aid the mortal.

When protecting mortals, scilds will try parleying and defensive spells to avoid combat, if possible; if this fails, they will use all necessary means to protect themselves and their charges.

Scilds are organized in a hierarchical manner: protectors report to the defenders, while the defenders are under the command of guardians. Guardian scilds report directly to the movanic devas. Scilds are on good terms with other aasimon, especially movanic devas. These devas will often lead groups of scilds on important missions for the cause of good.

Protector

Protector scilds have tan skin, long, dark hair, and amber eyes. All protectors carry a +1 longsword that shines with a holy light; this weapon is believed to be the source of their aura of protection. Protectors have a strength of 17, which gives them a +1 to hit and damage. Their swords deliver normal longsword damage: 1-8/1-12, with a total damage bonus of +2. These swords also act as a Sword of Sharpness. A protector's aura of protection has a radius of 10'; it gives all friendly creatues within its confines +2 to AC, and a +10 bonus to magic resistance (in addition to the benefits listed above). These bonuses are not applied to the protector itself, as they are already figured into the statistics in the table above. A protector's Protection From Evil sphere has a radius of 10'. Protectors are immune to any type of life level loss, and are hit only by +1 or better weapons. Protectors are also priests of the 3rd level; they have a wisdom of 18 and have access to the protection sphere.
Protectors are by far the most common type of scild; it is thought that one exists for every good-aligned mortal who worships a good power. On the upper planes, protectors may be encountered in groups of 10-100 where they serve as sentries and guards for the powers of their planes. If the mortal a protector is assigned to protect is in great trouble, it is 100 likely to gain the attention of its protector. However, protectors cannot travel to the prime material plane of their own accord; therefore, they must gain the attention of a greater scild, or a movanic deva. The protector has a chance of doing this equal to: 25%, plus 1% per level of the creature in need. If the protector successfully attracts the attention of a superior, that superior will allow it to aid the mortal 95% of the time. However, only one protector will be allowed to aid a single group of 50 or less individuals.
If the protector itself is seriously threatened, it may call upon a defender for aid; this plea has a 30% chance of being heard and answered.

Defender

Defender scilds have white skin, dark hair, and silver eyes. Defenders carry a flaming longsword with a +2 combat bonus; the have a strength of 18 which gives them a +1 bonus to hit, and a +2 damage bonus. Their swords inflict 1-8/1-12 points of damage, with a total of +4 to damage; if the same target is struck twice in the same round with this sword, it will engulf the victim in flames for an additional 2-12 points of damage, with no save. Also, twice per day, a defender's sword may emit an 8-die Fireball as per the spell. A defender's aura of protection has a radius of 15' and imparts (among its other benefits) a +3 bonus to AC and +15 to magic resistance to all friendly creatures within its radius. The defender's Protection From Evil sphere has a radius of 20'. In addition to the powers available to all scilds, defenders may also perform the following, one at a time:
anti-magic shield, twice per day
Globe of Invulnerability, twice per day
Banishment, once per day
Defenders are immune to any form of life level loss, and are hit only by +1 or better weapons. Defenders are priests of the 5th level, and have a wisdom of 19; they may cast spells from the protection and healing spheres. Defenders are far less common than protectors; one defender exists for approximately every 100 protectors. Defenders may be encountered in groups of up to 10 on the upper planes where they serve as elite guards of the powers' residences. If a mortal in their protection is in dire need, there is a chance the defender will notice; this chance is equal to: 20, plus 1 per level of the mortal in need; if this roll fails, it indicates the defender was attending to some greater need (this percentile roll should be modified as the DM sees fit). If the defender notices the mortal in trouble, he may elect to send a protector to aid the being, or may choose to go himself, as all defenders are fully capable of travelling directly to the prime material plane on their own. A Defender may also be sent to the prime plane at the wish of a guardian or a movanic deva. Only one defender may aid a single group of mortals of 500 or less; groups larger than that may attract the attention of multiple defenders. If a defender on the prime plane is in great peril, it may either gate in 1-2 protectors, or attempt to summon the aid of a guardian; this summons has a 30% chance of being heard.

Guardian

Guardian scilds have golden skin, hair, and eyes. Guardians carry a mighty blade that is the equivalent of a Sun Blade (+2/+4 vs. evil); they have a strength of 18/50 which gives them a +1 bonus to hit, and a +3 damage bonus. A guardian's sword inflicts normal bastard sword damage (1-8/1-12, one-handed; 2-8/2-16, two-handed) with total strength and weapon damage bonuses of +5, or +7 vs. evil opponents. Anyone hit twice in the same round by a guardian's blade is engulfed in flame and suffers 2-20 points of additional damage, with no save. Additionally, three times per day, the blade allows the guardian to immolate itself; this has the affect of a Fire Storm on all unfriendly creatures (area of effect is as per the spell). This Fire storm will last for 1-4 rounds. Friendly creatures in the area of effect are not harmed by the Fire Storm. A guardian's aura of protection has a radius of 20' and gives a +4 bonus to AC and a +20 bonus to magic resistance to all friendly creatures within its confines (in addition to those benefits already listed above). A guardian's Protection From Evil sphere has a radius of 30'. Guardians have all the powers of protectors and defenders; in addition, they are able to use the following powers, one at a time:
Spell turning, three times per day
Prismatic Sphere, once per day
Blade Barrier, once per day
Guardians are immune to all forms of life level loss and death magic, and are hit only by +2 weapons or better. Guardians are priests of the 7th level; they have a wisdom of 20, and are able to access the protection, guardian, and healing spheres. Guardians are the least common type of scild; there exists a single guardian for approximately every 1000 protectors. Guardians are almost always encountered alone, whether it is on the upper planes or on the prime plane. On the upper planes, guardians serve as personal bodyguards to the various powers. A guardian has a chance of noticing a mortal in trouble equal to: 15%, plus 1% per level of the mortal. If the guardian does in fact notice the being in trouble, he may elect to send either a protector or defender, or he may choose to go to the mortal's aid himself; guardians may travel directly to the prime plane at will. A guardian may also be sent to the prime plane at the request of a movanic deva. Only one guardian may aid groups of up to 5000 in size; larger groups may gain the attention of additional guardians. A guardian in great trouble, may gate in 1 defender or 1-4 protectors, or may attempt to summon a movanic deva to his aid; this summons has a 30% chance of being heard.
Source: Allan J. Mikkola

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