I spy, with my little eye... [Base Class, 3.5, PEACH]

[Kellus]

Spy

Spoiler

Show

This is kind of a strange class. It’s definitely a niche that’s missing as a base class, but it's basically useless in battle. Although that’s sort of the point of the class, I do want to post it with the addendum that the DM and the player should consider the nature of the campaign before they make use of this material.

A spy takes on the guise of a performer to witness a secret conversation between the baron and a famous mercenary.

Skulking in shadows and lurking behind locked doors, the spy uncovers what is meant to stay hidden. Although not a combattant by any stretch of the imagination, the spy in skilled in subterfuge, disguise, and matters of secrecy. Masters of disguise, spies can take on any persona, create any illusion, or commit any caper. Spies deal in information, and are adept at acquiring it.

Hit Die: d6.

Skill Points at 1st Level: 4 x (8 + Int modifier).
Skill Points: 8 + Int modifier.

Class Skills: The spy’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Appraise (Int), Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Decipher Script (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Disable Device (Int), Disguise (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Forgery (Int), Gather Information (Cha), Hide (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Knowledge (all) (Int), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Open Lock (Dex), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Cha), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Speak Language (n/a), Spot (Wis), Tumble (Dex), Use Magic Device (Cha), and Use Rope (Dex).

Spy
{table="head"]Level|BAB|Fort|Ref|Will|Special

1st|+0|+0|+0|+2|Discern weakness +1, spy’s skills, trapfinding

2nd|+1|+0|+0|+3|Master of disguise, poison use

3rd|+1|+1|+1|+3|Hasty escape (+15ft.), spy’s skills

4th|+2|+1|+1|+4|Cover of night, discern weakness +2

5th|+2|+1|+1|+4|Cover identity, spy’s skills

6th|+3|+2|+2|+5|Hasty escape (+2 AC), last resort

7th|+3|+2|+2|+5|Discern weakness +3, spy’s skills

8th|+4|+2|+2|+6|Lunge of opportunity, ventriloquist

9th|+4|+3|+3|+6|Hasty escape (+30ft.), spy’s skills

10th|+5|+3|+3|+7|Discern weakness +4, improved spy’s skills

11th|+5|+3|+3|+7|Feign arcana, spy’s skills

12th|+6/+1|+4|+4|+8|City slicker, hasty escape (+4 AC)

13th|+6/+1|+4|+4|+8|Discern weakness +5, spy’s skills

14th|+7/+2|+4|+4|+9|Eidetic memory, improved last resort

15th|+7/+2|+5|+5|+9|Hasty escape (+45ft.), spy’s skills

16th|+8/+3|+5|+5|+10|Discern weakness +6, slippery mind

17th|+8/+3|+5|+5|+10|Hide in plain sight, spy’s skills

18th|+9/+4|+6|+6|+11|Hasty escape (+6 AC)

19th|+9/+4|+6|+6|+11|Discern weakness +7, spy’s skills

20th|+10/+5|+6|+6|+12|Peerless subterfuge

[/table]

Discern Weakness (Ex): If you spend a standard action studying an opponent, you can discern its weaknesses and vulnerabilities. You must choose a target within sight or hearing, and succeed on, respectively, a Spot or Listen check against the target’s AC. Success on this check allows you to grant all of your allies that you can communicate with the listed bonus on attack and damage rolls against the target until your next turn.

Spy’s Skills (Ex): At 1st level and every two levels thereafter, select one of the spy’s class skills. You gain a +2 competence bonus on these skill checks, and can immediately learn a skill trick associated with the skill at no skill rank cost. This bonus trick doesn't count against your normal skill trick maximum. If there is no available skill trick, you gain no additional benefit. The bonus increases to +4 at level 10.

Trapfinding (Ex): As a spy, you have the ability to detect and disarm magical traps. See the rogue class feature of the same name.

Master of Disguise (Ex): Beginning at 3rd level, you can add your Intelligence modifier to your Disguise checks, and don a disguise in half the normal time (1d3 x 5 minutes).

Poison Use (Ex): Beginning at 2nd level, you never risk accidentally poisoning yourself when handling poison.

Hasty Escape (Ex): If you use all of your actions in a round to move, you get a special bonus. At 3rd level, and every 6 levels thereafter, you gain a cumulative 15ft. competence bonus to all modes of movement for that turn. At 6th level, and every 6 levels thereafter, you gain a cumulative +2 dodge bonus to AC until the start of your next turn.

Cover of Night (Ex): Beginning at 4th level, whenever you end your turn in an area of shadowy illumination or darker, you can use a swift action to activate this effect. You gain total concealment against anybody you would normally have concealment against by dint of the lighting until the end of your next turn.

Cover Identity (Ex): Beginning at 5th level, you can develop a cover identity that you can slip into like a second skin. Developing this identity requires 2d4 days of work, involving at least 8 hours of work each day during which you can undertake no other activities. If you cannot complete this period of work, you must restart the attempt. The number of days required does not change for repeat attempts at the same persona. If you decide not to adopt a specific persona, you must still wait the number of days rolled before you can attempt to create a different persona. If the persona you are attempting to create is that of a real person, you must spend at least 1 hour of each day observing this person.

Once you have succeeded at developing a persona, you gain a number of benefits. If the persona is that of a specific person, they do not gain the usual bonus on their Spot check for their familiarity. You can assume this disguise in one fifth your usual time (1d3 minutes). Divination spells of any kind, including any attempt to reveal your alignment, reveal only information appropriate to this persona.

You can possess a number of cover identities equal to your Intelligence modifier at any given time. If you want to learn more, you need to forget one you already know.

Last Resort (Ex): Fighting is always your last resort. But if it comes to that, you certainly won’t be fighting fair. Beginning at 6th level, you add half your class level to the DC of a coup de grace you make. Once you reach 10th level, you can make a coup de grace attempt as a standard action instead of a full-round action.

Lunge of Opportunity (Ex): Beginning at 8th level, you can use an attack of opportunity to make a 5ft. step (even if you have already taken one this round) and, if in an appropriate environment, make a Hide check.

Ventriloquist (Ex): Beginning at 8th level, you can cause a ventriloquism effect at will. This use of ventriloquism does not allow a saving throw if interacted with, and can be sustained indefinitely.

Feign Arcana (Ex): Beginning at 11th level, you can make a Sleight of Hand check to imitate an arcane spell. This requires a skill check of 20 + the spell level. With a successful check, you produce the same visual and audible displays normally accompanying the spell in question. A Spellcraft check that beats your Sleight of Hand check allows an observer to notice the difference. If the spell involves a visual display, this ability requires 5 gp worth of powders and chemicals to produce the appropriate effect.

City Slicker (Ex): Beginning at 12th level, you can make Hide checks in any kind of urban environment, even while observed.

Eidetic Memory (Ex): Beginning at 14th level, you have developed a perfect memory. You can call up any information you have witnessed, read, or otherwise come in contact with in the past. This means that if you request information from the DM that you have previously seen or been privy to, the DM must oblige you.

Hide in Plain Sight (Ex): Beginning at 17th level, you can attempt a Hide check even while you are observed.

Peerless Subterfuge (Ex): At 20th level, you have become a true master of subterfuge. All of your disguises gain the benefits that your cover identity has previously enjoyed. You may assume your cover identity instantaneously, requiring no effort at all to enter into it.

You are always treated as having rolled a 20 on a Disguise check to assume a cover identity.

In addition, you are aware of all Sense Motive and Spot checks made by anybody in relation to you. If someone fails a Spot or Sense Motive check against you, you may attempt an opposed Bluff check against their failed check as an immediate action in order to feed them false information of your choice. The information you choose to relay in this manner is given to the target as the result of their Spot or Sense Motive check.

This ability also works for divination effects used against you. To feed false information through divination, you must succeed on a Bluff check against the target’s caster level check.

This ability also works for the Clearsight divine salient ability. To feed false information to a deity attempting to see through a disguise with Clearsight, you must succeed on a Bluff check against a DC of 20 + 1/2 the deity’s HD + the deity’s divine rank + the deity’s Wis modifier.

[The Demented One]

Haven't taken a look at it, but I think you should probably call the Memetic Mastery ability Eidetic Memory, since memes aren't that directly related with memory and whatnot.

[JackMage666]

HP seems a little high, based on the fluff, but it's nothing gamebreaking. Overall, the class looks solid and well balanced.

[Kellus]

Haven't taken a look at it, but I think you should probably call the Memetic Mastery ability Eidetic Memory, since memes aren't that directly related with memory and whatnot.

Thanks for the tip.

[Kellus]

Any other comments?

[Lappy9000]

Thar's a Spy! Sappin' Mah Sentry!!!
TF2 for the win.

[Jalor]

Imagine a changeling gestalt Spy/Beguiler.

Scary, huh?

[Lappy9000]

Imagine a changeling gestalt Spy/Beguiler

Changeling Druid's pretty nice too. Think about it; humanoids, animals, and elementals. You party will never feel safe again *thumbs up*

[Zeta Kai]

As written, City Slicker (@ 4th level) gives you the same abilities at Hide in Plain Sight (@ 17th level), at least while in an urban environment, which would be where this class would spend most of its time. This should be nerfed somehow. Perhaps City Slicker should grant a bonus to the spy's Hide checks &/or Gather Information checks equal to the spy's class level.

Overall, I like this class. It has an interesting & specific niche (a rarity in a base class). It also occupies a unique power level, somewhere between a PC class & an NPC class. I'd normally say something this specific & focus on non-combat abilities should be a prestige class, but this is so fleshed out, I wouldn't want to cram it into the standard 10-level PrC. Maybe a 14- or 15-level PrC?

[Kellus]

As written, City Slicker (@ 4th level) gives you the same abilities at Hide in Plain Sight (@ 17th level), at least while in an urban environment, which would be where this class would spend most of its time. This should be nerfed somehow. Perhaps City Slicker should grant a bonus to the spy's Hide checks &/or Gather Information checks equal to the spy's class level.

Overall, I like this class. It has an interesting & specific niche (a rarity in a base class). It also occupies a unique power level, somewhere between a PC class & an NPC class. I'd normally say something this specific & focus on non-combat abilities should be a prestige class, but this is so fleshed out, I wouldn't want to cram it into the standard 10-level PrC. Maybe a 14- or 15-level PrC?

Good call. I moved City Slicker up to level 12, and put in a new ability I'd already thought up for level 4.

As for PrC vs base class, the problem (as I saw it) is that this is a big character concept, and there's no real way to play it right now until you get to higher levels and can enter into some preexisting prestige classes like nightsong infiltrator, spymaster, and so on. And even those classes put far too much of an emphasis (in my opinion) on combat for this type of character. The point of a spy isn't that he's so-so at combat, it's that he avoids getting into combat in the first place. I only made one concession to combat in this class, with the Discern Weakness class feature so that people playing the class wouldn't feel totally left out in forced encounters.

[sigurd]

I really like the concept overall but I think it unrealistic to give it no combat powers at all.

It has the worst BAB. I think you could give it Thieves weapon proficiencies and a reduced nonproficiency penalty at 3rd level. The logic would be that they don't typically carry weapons but must learn to use what they can find.

Spies are proficient with all simple weapons, plus the hand crossbow, rapier, sap, shortbow, and short sword. Spies are proficient with light armor, but not with shields.

After they have some sort of weapons standing players can use their level feats to develop fighting if they wish. No backstab, poor Bab - these are still not a powerhouse by any means. I like the class though.

Sigurd

Also a suggestion... (I don't know if this will work"

Spies are Made not Born: Many spies are carefully trained by the organizations or countries that employ them. This intense background allows a character to exchange 'Spy' with their standard preferred class. This option may only be taken in a characters very first level. If a player has previous levels in any other class they do not gain this option.
A spy's relationship with his\her patron(s) is very important. Players and DMs should work together to create the aims and objectives of this organization, its contacts, and its secrets.

[Naleh]

New base class? What are you talking about, man? There's only an ordinary bard here...

[thevorpalbunny]

I like it, but I'd give it a good Reflex save. You'd have to have good reflexes to avoid being caught.

[Zeta Kai]

I like it, but I'd give it a good Reflex save. You'd have to have good reflexes to avoid being caught.

Agreed. Good reflexes are much more useful to a spy than a strong will.

[thevorpalbunny]

No, Will is more important, but I'd give it both.

[bibliophile]

Well, well, this is interesting. I like it, but perhaps it should have some limited combat ability.

[Prometheus]

I assumed you perused through the Spymaster PrC, but I forget what's in it.

Cover of Night seems a little vague. Do you always have total concealment or just the first turn entering the dark? If its the latter, would he get it again if he popped out than back in? It doesn't seem to make sense that way unless you give a limitation in frequency or number of uses.

Last Resort gives bonuses to coup-de-grace. If your opponent is helpless, it is by definition not a last resort.

I'd probably do a little bit more with the skills. Disguise and Hide is good, but Disable Device, Decipher Script, Forgery, Craft (poisonmaking), and Gather Information could use a little more. Poison Use (as an assassin), Urban Tracking (UA urban ranger variant), and eventually the ability to speak every language would be nice features. I'd also specifically enumerate some nifty offensive tricks he can do with Disable Device.