doctorbadwolf
Heretic of The Seventh Circle
Okay, spell list. I’m thinking mostly utility spells and enemy debuffs, because Assassin’s Mark and Deadly Precision have damage locked in pretty well.
Probably change Assassin’s Mark to Something else, but it depends on what name ends up on the class itself.
Besides the Mark, the current assassin gets two important features, both less directly about damage and more about strategy.
Now, this was in a non-caster chassis, and the extra hiding cost a Mark, which is a hefty cost.
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The final low level feature is
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On a half-Caster, some of this stuff will need to be rearranged, but overall I think it’s actually roughly in the power range of the Paladin, so it’s mostly a matter of simplifying and making room for more directly “ranger” things rather than big nerfs.
And obviously the whole ritualist thing has to change to fit 2024 and be less keyed to my custom setting that has more advanced ritual rules.
The Poisoner stuff is too complex for normal 5e stuff, but I’m not sure I need a homebrew class to be as simple as baseline 5e classes.
I’d like to rework these features to lend themselves to Ranger-ness as well.
So for Predator’s Movement, I’d want to add an ability to spend an hour studying the surroundings and gain some movement and investigation/tracking benefits and the ability to Makr someone by their tracks, and you can spend a spell slot to do it as an action.
Probably change Assassin’s Mark to Something else, but it depends on what name ends up on the class itself.
Besides the Mark, the current assassin gets two important features, both less directly about damage and more about strategy.
: this feature on assassin v1 is called Shadow Movs and gives the ability to do certain manuevers as a bonus action (unless stated otherwise) and spend 1 Mark to Hide as part of the same action.
- #### Serpent Swift
Until the beginning of your next turn, you ignore difficult terrain, gain a climb speed equal to your speed, and you can use dexterity instead of strength to determine your jump distance and height. If you spend 1 Mark, you can also take the Dash action as part of this move, and your jump distance and height are doubled until the start of your next turn.
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- #### Preternatural Parry
As a reaction when you are hit by a melee attack, you can try to cause the attacker to overextend, to your advantage. Roll 1d10 + your dexterity modifier + your Assassin level and reduce the damage of the attack by the result. If you reduce the damage to 0, the attack misses you and deals no damage.
You can use a Bonus Action on your turn to set up to use this ability. If you do so, you can use this ability once before the start of your next turn without using your reaction.
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- #### Here, Hold This
Make a single weapon attack against a creature, with a light or finesse weapon, or one that can be concealed easily.
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- #### Shadow In The Crowd
While you are conscious and not encumbered, and not openly wielding any weapon, you can hide while only obscured by other living creatures or everyday objects that are normal to interact with, such as a market stall. While this effect lasts, you can make ability checks to gather rumors, overhear a conversation, or search for a creature, as a bonus action.
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- #### Serpent Swift
Until the beginning of your next turn, you ignore difficult terrain, gain a climb speed equal to your speed, and you can use dexterity instead of strength to determine your jump distance and height. If you spend 1 Mark, you can also take the Dash action as part of this move, and your jump distance and height are doubled until the start of your next turn.
:
- #### Preternatural Parry
As a reaction when you are hit by a melee attack, you can try to cause the attacker to overextend, to your advantage. Roll 1d10 + your dexterity modifier + your Assassin level and reduce the damage of the attack by the result. If you reduce the damage to 0, the attack misses you and deals no damage.
You can use a Bonus Action on your turn to set up to use this ability. If you do so, you can use this ability once before the start of your next turn without using your reaction.
:
- #### Here, Hold This
Make a single weapon attack against a creature, with a light or finesse weapon, or one that can be concealed easily.
:
- #### Shadow In The Crowd
While you are conscious and not encumbered, and not openly wielding any weapon, you can hide while only obscured by other living creatures or everyday objects that are normal to interact with, such as a market stall. While this effect lasts, you can make ability checks to gather rumors, overhear a conversation, or search for a creature, as a bonus action.
———
Now, this was in a non-caster chassis, and the extra hiding cost a Mark, which is a hefty cost.
————
The final low level feature is
Starting at 1st level, you have learned to specialize in a particular set of skills and tools, adapting them to your needs and mastering their use.
You gain expertise with one skill and one tool of your choice with which you are proficient. The tool can be one chosen as part of gaining this feature.
You can create or replace 1 basic poison or specialized poisoner's tool, disguise, or device as part of a long rest.
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##### Disguise Kit
You gain proficiency in the Disguise Kit and learn to make a number of specialized Disguises equal to your Intelligence modifier, for yourself or for another creature. You can don or drop a disguise as a bonus action. While disguised you have advantage on attacks made on your first turn in combat.
For each one, you develop a name, basic personal history, distinctive gait, stance, and mode of speech. Any creature who knows you under one of your specialized disguises does not question your identity unless you or someone else gives them specific reason to do so.
Finally, you can use intelligence for all ability checks related to your disguise, and for deception checks.
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##### Poisoner's Kit
You gain proficiency with the Poisoner's Kit, and you learn the recipe for the Basic Poison found in the PHB, and the Assassin's Sting poison. You can only learn a new poison if its cost is no more than half your Assassin level times 50, rounded down, and you pay for 1 dose, and spend 2 hours per 50 gold of the cost of the poison. You might learn a new poison formula from an apothecary, another assassin, or from a rare book, at your DM's discretion.
Your specialized poisoner's tools hidden on your person allow you to apply a poison to a weapon or to ammunition, or to apply the poison to food, drink, or an object, as a Bonus Action.
The Assassin's Sting poison has the following effects. If the target is subject to the poison, it must make a constitution saving throw or gains the poisoned condition and is either blinded, slowed, or takes 1d6 poison damage now and again when it fails a save against the poison. It can make additional saving throws to end the effect at the end of each of its turns.
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##### Tinker's Tools
You gain proficiency with Tinker's tools. Choose a weapon with which you are proficient, that is a light or finesse one-hand melee weapon, or is a blowgun, rope dart, short bow or hand crossbow, and construct a concealable version of that weapon. The weapon can be drawn or stowed as a bonus action, and you can use a bonus action to gain advantage on a melee attack with the weapon.
The weapon appears to be a mundane item, and the statistics do not change, except as described below.
### Initiate of The Lightless Flame
In the course of learning the rituals to manipulate shadow magic, you have taken the first steps down the path of The Lightless Flame, which is both a philosophical principle and a mystical reality relating to the relationship between the worlds of Life, and the World of Spirits where dwell the Dead.
As a result of your study, you have proficiency with ritualist's tools, and gain the following benefit.
You can cast the detect poison and illusory script spells and one other 1st level spell with the ritual tag, and can cast them as rituals.
You can learn rituals from the Illusion, Divination, and Necromancy, schools, from any spell list, in the course of your adventures. The spell must be equal to half your assassin level rounded down and requires 2 hours and 50 gold to inscribe into a ritualist’s grimoire. You can also choose an additional ritual spell at levels 5,9,13, and 17. The level of these later selections must be no higher than half your assassin level, rounded down, but have no cost to inscribe into your ritualist's grimoire.
You gain expertise with one skill and one tool of your choice with which you are proficient. The tool can be one chosen as part of gaining this feature.
You can create or replace 1 basic poison or specialized poisoner's tool, disguise, or device as part of a long rest.
:
##### Disguise Kit
You gain proficiency in the Disguise Kit and learn to make a number of specialized Disguises equal to your Intelligence modifier, for yourself or for another creature. You can don or drop a disguise as a bonus action. While disguised you have advantage on attacks made on your first turn in combat.
For each one, you develop a name, basic personal history, distinctive gait, stance, and mode of speech. Any creature who knows you under one of your specialized disguises does not question your identity unless you or someone else gives them specific reason to do so.
Finally, you can use intelligence for all ability checks related to your disguise, and for deception checks.
:
##### Poisoner's Kit
You gain proficiency with the Poisoner's Kit, and you learn the recipe for the Basic Poison found in the PHB, and the Assassin's Sting poison. You can only learn a new poison if its cost is no more than half your Assassin level times 50, rounded down, and you pay for 1 dose, and spend 2 hours per 50 gold of the cost of the poison. You might learn a new poison formula from an apothecary, another assassin, or from a rare book, at your DM's discretion.
Your specialized poisoner's tools hidden on your person allow you to apply a poison to a weapon or to ammunition, or to apply the poison to food, drink, or an object, as a Bonus Action.
The Assassin's Sting poison has the following effects. If the target is subject to the poison, it must make a constitution saving throw or gains the poisoned condition and is either blinded, slowed, or takes 1d6 poison damage now and again when it fails a save against the poison. It can make additional saving throws to end the effect at the end of each of its turns.
:
##### Tinker's Tools
You gain proficiency with Tinker's tools. Choose a weapon with which you are proficient, that is a light or finesse one-hand melee weapon, or is a blowgun, rope dart, short bow or hand crossbow, and construct a concealable version of that weapon. The weapon can be drawn or stowed as a bonus action, and you can use a bonus action to gain advantage on a melee attack with the weapon.
The weapon appears to be a mundane item, and the statistics do not change, except as described below.
- Any d20 test made to inspect you or your belongings for weapons has disadvantage, unless you are observed using it.
- If your Specialized Weapon is a ranged weapon, it loses the loading property, and it's short and long range is doubled.
### Initiate of The Lightless Flame
In the course of learning the rituals to manipulate shadow magic, you have taken the first steps down the path of The Lightless Flame, which is both a philosophical principle and a mystical reality relating to the relationship between the worlds of Life, and the World of Spirits where dwell the Dead.
As a result of your study, you have proficiency with ritualist's tools, and gain the following benefit.
You can cast the detect poison and illusory script spells and one other 1st level spell with the ritual tag, and can cast them as rituals.
You can learn rituals from the Illusion, Divination, and Necromancy, schools, from any spell list, in the course of your adventures. The spell must be equal to half your assassin level rounded down and requires 2 hours and 50 gold to inscribe into a ritualist’s grimoire. You can also choose an additional ritual spell at levels 5,9,13, and 17. The level of these later selections must be no higher than half your assassin level, rounded down, but have no cost to inscribe into your ritualist's grimoire.
————
On a half-Caster, some of this stuff will need to be rearranged, but overall I think it’s actually roughly in the power range of the Paladin, so it’s mostly a matter of simplifying and making room for more directly “ranger” things rather than big nerfs.
And obviously the whole ritualist thing has to change to fit 2024 and be less keyed to my custom setting that has more advanced ritual rules.
The Poisoner stuff is too complex for normal 5e stuff, but I’m not sure I need a homebrew class to be as simple as baseline 5e classes.
I’d like to rework these features to lend themselves to Ranger-ness as well.
So for Predator’s Movement, I’d want to add an ability to spend an hour studying the surroundings and gain some movement and investigation/tracking benefits and the ability to Makr someone by their tracks, and you can spend a spell slot to do it as an action.
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