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Message: <blockquote data-quote="fuindordm" data-source="post: 9876851" data-attributes="member: 5435">Regarding armor: per the PH, assassins can only wear leather; UA adds studded leather, padded and elfin chain. I'm not sure if the 1e core rules impose any explicit penalties for wearing armor not on your list, except for the penalties to thief and acrobat skills or druid magical taboos. So it's a bit of a grey area as to what happens to a thief who wears chain mail. Can they fight normally? Can they still backstab even if their stealth is crippled? In my game I make assassins explicitly proficient in all "fairly bulky" armors (adding ring, scale, and chain to their official list), and allow them to backstab (or assassinate) with surprise achieved through disguise. Thieves, on the other hand, cannot backstab if wearing armor not on their list.Regarding weapons: I've tried making a few assassin NPCs and I've always felt a bit disappointed by the wasted potential of being able to learn any weapon. A dagger and a sword are pretty much essential and both are already on the thief's list. Yes, you can get a longbow or a crossbow as your main missile weapon, but I feel like an assassin should have more exotic and concealable options as well as being able to blend in as a mercenary or guard. Darts/shuriken, garotte, pole arms, and even clubs (easily improvised) would all be great as well. Also, I'm not sure where it says that assassins can backstab with missile weapons--is that in the DMG? In fact, a literalist reading of the PH would claim that backstabbing is only possible with a club, dagger, or sword, but I've always seen it allowed for any melee weapon.Regarding disguise: you're right some players might try to stretch the limits of the skill--I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. (I did have one assassin PC in a game a few years ago, but he played it as a stealthy archer.)</blockquote>

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