Dave Wood's

Campaign

Assassin of Bhaal: Deathstalker

The deathstalkers are ultimate killers, ruthless, calculating and cold-blooded. They have devoted their lives to fulfilling the wishes of their dark master, the Lord of Murder. A deathstalker adopts a rigorous training schedule to stay at the peak of their physical performance. At the core of their teachings lies a dark and twisted (despite having a profound respect for life) philosophy that allows members of their order to pick and choose who will live or die. Deathstalkers are often given the hardest assassination jobs, and they use any means necessary.

A single deathstalker is capable of wiping out a small village and escaping unnoticed. However, the goals of the clergy are varied, and deathstalkers are employed by the church of Bhaal with surgical precision. If a task is particularly difficult, they will work in small cells, groups of no more than four to accomplish their goals. A deathstalker is also incredibly resourceful and patient. They can stay away from civilization living off the land for years, waiting for the right moment to strike at their mark. They often create poisons from simple herbs, craft powerful bows from what nature gives them.

Their deadly precision and fanatical devotion to the act of murder are what make the deathstalkers so revered. They almost always deal the final killing blow in person, and use a wickedly-sharp re-curved ceremonial dagger. Their sacred order is so secretive that most low-ranking members of the clergy do not even know of their existence.

If a deathstalker is ever captured by an enemy, they are required to take their own lives - preferably with their own ceremonial dagger (which with one final twist of the wrist they are to snap the blade from the hilt - thus not allowing these blessed blades to fall into the wrong hands). If this is not possible, a contingency of deadly poison must be employed.

Fighters, Rogues, Barbarians, Monks, Clerics and evil Druids are most often found as deathstalkers.

Hit Die: d8

Requirements:

In order to become a deathstalker, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.

Skills:

The deathstalker's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are: Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Disguise (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Forgery (Int), Gather Information (Cha), Hide (Dex), Innuendo (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Intuit Direction (Wis), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Profession (Wis), Read Lips (Int, exclusive skill), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis), Swim (Str), Tumble (Dex), Use Rope (Dex) and Wilderness Lore (Wis).

Skill Points at Each Level: 6 + Int Modifier

Suggested Feats:

Shadow
Blind-Fight
Ambidexterity
Two-Weapon Fighting
Spring Attack
Weapon Specialization
Sharp-shooting

Class Features

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: (Ex) A deathstalker's weapon training focuses on weapons suitable for stealth and sneak attacks. Thus, all deathstalkers are proficient with the crossbow (hand or light), dagger (any type), dart, light mace, sap, shortbow (normal and composite), short sword, as well as Bhaal's ceremonial dagger (kukri). Medium-size deathstalkers are also proficient with certain weapons that are too big for Small deathstalkers to use and conceal easily: club, heavy crossbow, heavy mace, morningstar, quarterstaff, and rapier. Deathstalkers are proficient with medium armor and shields.

Sneak Attack: (Ex) Any time the deathstalker's target would be denied her Dexterity bonus to AC (whether she actually has a Dexterity bonus or not), the deathstalker's attack deals +1d6 points of damage. This extra damage increases by +1d6 points every other level (+2d6 at 3rd level, +3d6 at 5th level, and so on). Should the deathstalker score a critical hit with a sneak attack, this extra damage is not multiplied.
It takes precision and penetration to hit a vital spot, so ranged attacks can only count as sneak attacks if the target is 30 feet away or less.
With a sap or an unarmed strike, the deathstalker can make a sneak attack that deals subdual damage instead of normal damage. He cannot use a weapon that deals normal damage to deal subdual damage in a sneak attack, not even with the usual –4 penalty, because he must make optimal use of his weapon in order to execute the sneak attack.
A deathstalker can only sneak attack living creatures with discernible anatomies—undead, constructs, oozes, plants, and incorporeal creatures lack vital areas to attack. Additionally, any creature immune to critical hits is similarly immune to sneak attacks. Also, the deathstalker must also be able to see the target well enough to pick out a vital spot and must be able to reach a vital spot. The deathstalker cannot sneak attack while striking at a creature with concealment or by striking the limbs of a creature whose vitals are beyond reach.
If a deathstalker gets a sneak attack bonus from another source (such as rogue levels), the bonuses to damage stack.

Death Attack: (Ex) If the deathstalker studies his victim for 3 rounds and then makes a sneak attack with a melee weapon that successfully deals damage, the sneak attack has the additional effect of possibly either paralyzing or killing the target (deathstalker's choice). While studying the victim, the deathstalker can undertake other actions so long as his attention stays focused on the target and the target does not detect the deathstalker or recognize the deathstalker as an enemy. If the victim of such an attack fails her Fortitude saving throw (DC 10 + the deathstalker’s class level + the deathstalker’s Intelligence modifier) against the kill effect, she dies (subject is reduced to -10 Hit Points).
If the saving throw fails against the paralysis effect, the victim’s mind and body become enervated, rendering her completely helpless and unable to act for 1d6 rounds plus 1 round per level of the deathstalker. If the victim’s saving throw succeeds, the attack is just a normal sneak attack. Once the deathstalker has completed the 3 rounds of study, he must make the death attack within the next 3 rounds. If a death attack is attempted and fails (the victim makes her save) or if the deathstalker does not launch the attack within 3 rounds of completing the study, 3 new rounds of study are required before he can attempt another death attack.
The deathstalker's continued training in assassination makes him an even deadlier foe. At levels 5, 8 and 10 the deathstalker recieves an additional bonus to the Death Attack DC.

Poison Use: (Ex) Deathstalkers are trained in the use of poison and never risk accidentally poisoning themselves when applying poison to a blade.

Weaponblack: (Ex) Weaponblack is a dull-black, sticky organic substace made from sap and various dyes that can be rubbed into armor on applied to exposed skin. Applying weaponblack to armor grants a +5 bonus to Hide checks. Applying it to exposed skin or a shield, grants a +2 bonus. These bonuses stack, thus a character who applied weaponblack to armor, shield and exposed skin would be granted a +9 bonus to his Hide check. One application of weaponblack will typically last six hours, and then will flake off.
A jar of weaponblack typically contains 10 applications and weighs 1 lb. Material cost to produce weaponblack is 5 cp per use. The normal market price is 15 cp, but due to its highly illegal nature weaponblack usually sells for around 6 gp per jar on the black market.
The DC to craft weaponblack is 15.
Material components can be found for free after three hours of foraging with a successful Wilderness Lore check, DC 15

Weapon Specialization [Kukri]: (Ex) The deathstalker's familiarity and advanced training with the ceremonial dagger grants him a +2 bonus to damage.

Death Blow: (Ex) The deathstalker is adept a dispatching foes quickly, and gains the Death Blow feat (see Sword and Fist p.6)

Hide in Plain Sight: (Su) Deathstalkers can use the Hide skill even while being observed. As long as they are within 10 feet of some sort of shadow, deathstalkers can hide themselves from view in the open without anything to actually hide behind. They cannot, however, hide in their own shadows.

Fast Sneak: (Ex) When using Move Silently and Hide, the deathstalker can move at his normal speed without suffering a penalty to those skills.

Keen Kukri: (Ex) The deathstalker can sharpen his ceremonial dagger (Kukri) thus giving it Keen Edge as if cast by a sorcerer of level equal to the deathstalker's level. Sharpening the dagger takes 1 minute.

Opportunist: (Ex) Once per round, the deathstalker can make an attack of opportunity against an opponent who has just been struck for damage in melee by another character. This attack counts as the deathstalker's attacks of opportunity for that round. Even a deathstalker with the Combat Reflexes feat cannot use this ability more than once per round.

Arterial Strike: (Ex) The deathstalker's sneak attacks target large blood vessels, leaving wounds that cause massive blood loss. (see Song and Silence p.38)

Thousand Faces: (Su) The deathstalker gains the ability to change his appearance at will, as if using the spell alter self

Always Sneaky: (Ex) The deathstalker is always taking 10 on Move Silently and Hide.

Blindsight: (Ex) Using nonvisual senses, such as sensitivity to vibrations, scent, acute hearing or echolocation, the deathstalker maneuvers and fights just as well in darkness as in light. Invisibility and darkness are irrelevant, though the deathstalker still cannot discren ethereal beings. The deathstalker's blindsight extends for 60 feet.

Abundant Step: (Su) A deathstalker can slip magically between spaces, as per the spell dimension door, once per day. The deathstalker's effective casting level is 5.

Author's note: This class is loosely based on the real-life Gurkha.