The new and improved assassin

[Kerrick]

This was inspired by the PrC discussion over on the GD boards - several people said that if you removed the Death Attack ability, the assassin would collapse in on itself. I agree, so I sat down and came up with this beefed-up version of the assassin. Prereqs are all the same except as noted below. I didn't fiddle with the spells - they're pretty much an optional component that you can remove without affecting the class's balance.

[Edit: I can only save this in .rtf format, and I can't upload .rtf, so you'll have to get it off my website instead (sorry): www.geocities.com/mistmane/assassin.rtf ]

Special: Must accept (and complete) a contract given by the guildmaster for free.

Saves and BAB - same as assassin

1 Sneak attack +1d6
2 Death attack, uncanny dodge
3 Assassin path I
4 Sneak attack +2d6
5 Ranged death attack, improved uncanny dodge
6 Assassin path II
7 Sneak attack +3d6
8 Death strike, evasion
9 Assassin path III
10 Sneak attack +4d6

Sneak attack: As rogue ability.

Death attack: As assassin ability.

Uncanny dodge: As rogue ability.

Assassin Path: At 3rd level, an assassin may choose to specialize in a "path" - a series of related abilities that define the assassin's method of killing. There are three paths, though the DM could certainly create more:

The Hunter: The Hunter prefers the hands-on approach.
I: Signature weapon: The assassin may choose any one weapon. He gains proficiency with this weapon, if he did not already have it. Additionally, he gains a +2 competence bonus to attack rolls when using this weapon.
II: Death attack bonus: When the assassin uses his signature weapon for a death attack, he adds a +2 competence bonus to the DC.
III: Specialization: The assassin is so competent with his weapon that he gains the Weapon Specialization feat with that weapon.

The Poisoner: The assassin is expert in knowledge and use of all types of poisons.
I: Poison use. As the assassin ability.
II: Poison Resistance: The assassin gains the Poison Resistance feat (from Crimson Contracts; the assassin gains a +4 resistance bonus to poisons.)
III: Toxic Immunity: The assassin gains the Toxic Immunity feat (also from Crimson Contracts; the assassin can choose two poisons to which he is immune).

The Infiltrator: The assassin is a chameleon - he can appear as anyone, killing his victims and getting away without anyone even getting a glimpse of his face.
I: Mimicry: The assassin gains a +6 competence bonus to Disguise checks.
II: Hide in plain sight: As the assassin ability.
III: Aura of normalcy: If the assassin is moving at normal speed and not drawing attention to himself (i.e., making an excessive amount of noise, wearing eye-catching clothes, or drenched in blood), the eyes of those around him merely slide past him as if he weren't there. Anyone attempting to actually study the assassin must make a Will save (DC 10+1/2 assassin's level + assassin's Cha mod) or fail to see him as anything more significant than a piece of furniture. If the assassin speaks, moves faster than a walk, or makes an attack of any kind, those around can see him if they look - he must either successfully hide or move out of sight before he can use this ability against anyone in that area again.

Ranged Death attack: The assassin may make a death attack if the target is within 30 feet. All other criteria for the death attack still apply.

Improved uncanny dodge: As rogue ability.

Evasion: As rogue ability. If the character already has evasion, he gains improved evasion instead.

Death Strike: The assassin may make a death attack against a helpless target as a full-round action (i.e., in place of a coup de grace). The strike automatically hits, but the victim may still make a save to avoid the effect.

 

[Turanil]

Nice way to do the assassin! I am sold on it!

 

[Vrecknidj]

Kerrick,

Very cool. Any chance you want to write this up as a Word document and post a link?
(Nitpick: 10th level speak attack should be +4d6.)

Also, as I have characters that will be heading off into Epic territory, what would the advancement for this class look like beyond 10th level? For example, would the assassin have to pick a second path, would the path he picked improve, would he have the option of those two?

Dave

 

[Kerrick]

Nice way to do the assassin! I am sold on it!

Glad you like it!

Nitpick: 10th level speak attack should be +4d6.

Oopsie.

Very cool. Any chance you want to write this up as a Word document and post a link?

Yeah, I'll see what I can do. As for the epic progression... hadn't really thought about it. In our campaign, you can't take a PrC beyond the upper limit, so I don't bother considering epic progressions, but I'll sit down tonight and think on it.

 

[RangerWickett]

I've always been opposed 'instant death' attacks as a mechanic. The rules already have a way for determining when you die, hit points, and hit points are fairly stable. But when you let a single die roll determine a character's survival, whether he's at 200 hit points or 10, it messes with the system.

I'd much rather do the assassin so that whenever he meets the requirements for his death attack, instead of requiring a Fort save, the attack does 1 point of Constitution damage for each die of sneak attack. Or maybe it just does an extra +5d6 damage, plus an additional +1d6 for every 2 levels of assassin. That way a rogue 10/assassin 10 would do +20d6 damage on a death attack.

Your average rogue 5/assassin 1 would still dole out +9d6 sneak attack damage. An average of 35 damage, assuming he's using a shortsword. True, it won't kill a 6th level fighter, but usually the DC of the normal Death Attack Fort save wouldn't kill the fighter either.

Or how about this? For every round of observation, double the number sneak attack damage dice, to a maximum of 3 rounds observation. So a rogue 5/assassin 1 could just do a normal +4d6 sneak attack, or spend a round observing without being seen to do +8d6, or two rounds for +12d6, or three rounds for +16d6. Wait. That means a rogue 10/assassin 10 would be dealing +40d6 damage. Hrm. Might it be a bit too much? No, probably not.

 

[Malin Genie]

I've always been opposed 'instant death' attacks as a mechanic. The rules already have a way for determining when you die, hit points, and hit points are fairly stable. But when you let a single die roll determine a character's survival, whether he's at 200 hit points or 10, it messes with the system.

Actually, at higher levels save-or-die is pretty much a staple of the system, although generally it's spellcasters or monsters. Why begrudge assassins?

In response to the original post - I really like what you've done with the class! Particularly the paths. Although shouldn't evasion be replaced with improved evasion, given that you'll generally have evasion by the time you've qualified for the class?

 

[Kerrick]

I actually thought about doing improved evasion instead of normal evasion for those exact reasons, but I thought it might be too powerful (since it's a 10th+ level rogue ability). But... by the time you get it, you'd be 10th+ level anyway... good call.

I like the paths too - I like flexibility and customizability without having to choose a large number of classes (or spells - I do that with some elemental spells) to achieve the effect you want.

 

[Nifft]

I too dislike the Death Attack mechanic. IMHO, it would be better to allow an Assassin to stun, paralyze or hamstring his foe, so that the victim is made less able to avoid the Assassin's Sneak Attacks and/or Coup de Grace (which includes a free Sneak Attack, of course).

Possible replacement mechanic:

Paralyzing Sneak Attack: As a standard action when facing a foe upon whom his sneak attack dice apply, the Assassin may make a single attack at his highest attack bonus. If the attack strikes, his foe must make a Will save [DC 10 + Assassin level + Int bonus] or be paralyzed for 1d4+1 rounds.

Stunning Sneak Attack: Once per day per Assassin level, the character may make a Stunning Attack -- this is just like a Monk's Stunning Attack feature, except the Assassin may use any weapon when making the attack. The Fort DC is 10 + Assassin level + Int bonus.

Grant the Hamstring Rogue Special Ability at 2nd or 4th level.

-- N

 

[Kerrick]

Isn't there a feat that allows the assassin to do a paralyzing-type attack with a death attack? I thought I saw it somewhere - maybe in S&S...

I tried attaching the file last night, but it didn't take. I'll try to do it again later when I have more time.

Anyway, the epic progression:

1 Sneak attack +1d6
2
3 2nd Assassin path I
4 Sneak attack +2d6
5
6 2nd Assassin path II
7 Sneak attack +3d6
8
9 2nd Assassin path III
10 Sneak attack +4d6

The assassin can choose a second assassin path to follow, gaining the benefits of that path as normal. (Yeah, so I copped out a bit - I coulidn't think of how to extend the existing paths, and really, most high-level assassins are going to be good at more than one method of killing).

 

[Vrecknidj]

Kerrick,

Cool. You're right, an assassin of great power should be able to be good at multiple methods for killing. Thanks for trying to set up the link. I'll be looking for it in the future.

Dave