[WiC] Nights Watchman Theme

Here's how to build a Nights Watchman for D&D 4E who may be guarding, say, a large wall of ice in the Winterlands from guest blogger Adam Page.
Part of the Winter Is Coming RPG Blog Festival.

The concepts herein are based on the works of George R R Martin, author of the excellent Song of Fire and Ice series of books, and are meant as a work of respect, rather than any attempt at copyright infringement, after all, you can't do a blog carnival theme like "Winter is Coming" and not be inspired by GRRM's work.

In the lands beyond human civilization, where only the foolhardy or the monstrous dare to roam, an ancient evil is stirring. Few know of its existence, even fewer believe that the threat is real, and all that stands in their way are a few individuals, bastard sons, nobles of exiled clans, children with no chance of inheriting their fathers’ wealth... They are a ragged bunch of misfits and miscreants, bound by a centuries old oath. They are the Nights Watch.

Creating a Nights Watchman
In return for a life-long oath of service and celibacy, the Nights Watch offers criminals and runaways immunity from their past crime. It offers a home to bastard sons and a place to live out the remaining years of a veteran soldiers life. You have a bed and board, years of tedious drudgery, with the occasional high risk foray into the winterlands to repel the advancing hoards of wild creatures.

A Nights Watchman wears all black, from their cloak to their armour. Some say it makes them more foreboding, others that it makes them easier to find when they inevitably break their oath and flee to safer lands. Those that do break this oath became outlaws, their lives forfeit... they know they will be executed if they are caught.

The Night Watch Oath
"Night gathers, and now my watch begins. It shall not end until my death. I shall take no wife, hold no lands, father no children. I shall wear no crowns and win no glory. I shall live and die at my post. I am the sword in the darkness. I am the watcher on the walls. I am the fire that burns against the cold, the light that brings the dawn, the horn that wakes the sleepers, the shield that guards the realms of men. I pledge my life and honour to the Night's Watch, for this night and all the nights to come."

Starting Feature
The qualities that set the Nights Watch apart from other organised armies and militias is their ability to fight coherently and with skills with a multitude of weapons in the cold environments in which they are posted.
Benefit: You gain proficiency with all simple and military ranged and melee weapons. In addition, you gain Cold Resistance equal to your Constitution modifier.

Additional Features

Level 5 Feature
Members of the Nights Watch are expected to serve long hours in the wilderness, watching for trouble.
Benefit: You gain a +2 bonus to perception checks, in addition, you only need to spend 4 hours sleeping when you take an extended rest.

Level 10 Feature
After so long in the wilderness, you have become adept at moving through it, and can track creatures and foes without hindrance.
Benefit: You ignore penalties for movement in woodland and arctic environments, and gain a +2 to nature checks to track creatures while in these environments.

Optional Powers
As you travel around the wilderness and towns of the known world on the lookout for your ancient enemy, you learn new ways to interact with creatures, humanoid or monster alike.

Level 2 Utility Power

Artwork courtesy of @symatt.
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You have learnt to quickly assess the situation and adapt to it, making sure you are ready to fight whatever creature has come south from the winterlands.

Watchman's Lore
"You rely on your training to be ready to fight at a critical moment."
Daily * Martial
Free Action * Personal
Trigger: You roll initiative
Effect: You can make a monster knowledge check as a free action with a +2 bonus to its roll. If you succeed in the roll, you gain a +4 bonus to your initiative roll, if you fail the monster knowledge check, you only gain a +2 bonus to initiative.

Level 6 Utility Power
The majority of a Nights Watchman's training leads up to one event, the day that they must travel north to hunt down and destroy their ancient enemy. Beyond the realms of humanity, a Nights Watchman must rely on their skills and endurance to survive.

Beyond Civilization
"Beyond the towns and keeps, you must endure to survive."
Daily * Martial
Free Action * Personal
Trigger: You make a skill roll and dislike the result.
Effect: You re-roll the skill check with a bonus equal to 1 + half your Endurance modifier. You must use the second result.

Level 10 Utility Power
When the tide of battle against your ancient enemies begins to turn in your favour, it's time to use their weaknesses against them.

Ancient Weakness
"You understand the true nature of your ancient enemies and unlock the key to their weakness and destruction"
Daily * Martial, Charm
Free Action * Personal
Trigger: You bloody a creature
Effect: The triggering creature gains a vulnerability to a damage type of your choosing. The vulnerability equals 1 + half your Endurance modifier.

See more entries in the Winter Is Coming RPG Blog Festival.