ROGUE - ADVENTURER Troubleshooter Kit Description: A Troubleshooter works chiefly as a security consultant, playing the part of an expert thief or intruder in order to test the defenses and security measures of an area. Troubleshooters occasionally work for thieves' guilds as an 'inside man'. A Troubleshooter who tries to lead this sort of double life must be very careful or else his or her reputation will be tarnished and he or she can expect a great deal of suspicion to fall on his or her shoulders after a place whose security has earned their 'seal of approval' has been violated. A Troubleshooter is able to apply their roguish talents as well as some magical skills in any number of innovative combinations to easily defeat or overcome most mundane obstacles, and it is this sort of expertise that places them in high demand. Of course, many Troubleshooters fall prey to the temptation to use the tools of the trade that they possess to moonlight in illicit activities, taking care to carefully disguise themselves (either normally or magically), and it is a rare Troubleshooter that is not eyed at least a little askance by the local authorities. Requirements: As a standard Adventurer, but Troubleshooters must have at least 15 Intelligence and 11 Wisdom. Weapons & Armor: As a standard Adventurer. Thief Abilities & Modifiers: Climb Walls, Escape Bonds, Find/Remove Traps, Hide in Shadows, Move Silently, Open Locks Troubleshooters gain only 25 discretionary points at 1st level and 15 points per level thereafter, and they do not gain any additional thieving abilities beyond those possessed at the start. Special Benefits: Troubleshooters have an array of special abilities that assist them in their chosen profession (note that Mechanical Magic replaces a standard Bard's Performance Magic): Danger Sense: As a standard Adventurer. Evasion: As a standard Adventurer. Magic Use: Troubleshooters are unique among Adventurers in that they have the ability to cast a limited number of Wizard spells. They use the Bard spell progression table on pg. 42 of the Player's Handbook and learn spells in the same fashion as a wizard, but the total number of spells he or she can learn of each level is only half the number normally allowed for his or her Intelligence score. In addition, because they are only dabblers in the arts of magic any spell cast by a Troubleshooter takes effect at only half his or her actual level (rounding down). Troubleshooters are limited to learning spells from the Realms of Enchantment, Illusion, Lore, and Universal Magic, as well as the School of Artifice (regardless of Realm). Unlike Wizards, they cannot engage in spell research or magical item creation, nor do they gain bonus spells for high Intelligence. They also must prememorize all spells and do not have the option to leave spell 'slots' open. As part of their magical training, Troubleshooters have access to all Wizard non-weapon proficiencies, and they also gain the ability to use magical scrolls at 10th level. Due to their incomplete understanding of the magical forces at work, however, there is a 15% chance of any scroll spell malfunctioning, in addition to any normal spell failure chance for scroll spells of very high level, as per the Dungeon Master's Guide section regarding magical scrolls (note that a Troubleshooter's effective wizard level for this purpose is only half of his or her true level). A Troubleshooter can only use wizard spell scrolls. Probable Path: Troubleshooters study so many different possible situations and combinations of magical and mundane effects that they are very skilled at making analytical decisions. When a decision must be made concerning multiple options (e.g., which hallway to proceed down, which door to open first, which opponent to attack first in order to achieve some goal), a Troubleshooter can use this training to help make the decision. In such cases, the DM should make an Intelligence check for the Troubleshooter, with a penalty equal to the number of times this ability was used previously on the same day. If the roll succeeds, the DM tells the player all significant clues that he or she might have had a chance to notice. If there are no such clues, no information is gained-- Troubleshooters are well-trained and highly observant, but not clairvoyant. If the roll is a natural 20, the information gained is misleading. Note that unless a given situation changes somehow, using this ability multiple times in the same situation will give the same result. Trap Expertise: A Troubleshooter is an expert in analysis, avoidance, and construction of all types of traps, and he or she can install traps quickly and easily around a campsite, at the entrance to the rooms of his or her party at an inn, or on chests or other portable containers. A Troubleshooter will develop a specific repertoire of traps from among the many possible types, selecting two trap types at 1st level and learning a new type of trap at every level thereafter. Note that simple pit traps, which can be constructed by anyone, do not count against this total. A Troubleshooter cannot use poison in a trap unless he or she is of evil alignment (neutral Troubleshooters might use paralytic or sleep-inducing poison). When confronted by a trap that he or she has studied and can construct in this way, a Troubleshooter gains a +10% bonus to his or her Find/Remove Traps skill. Troubleshooters are also expert at setting traps in such a way that they are difficult to detect and disarm. Hence, when other thieves try to disarm traps set by a Troubleshooter, they suffer a -5% penalty to their Find/Remove Traps score for every three levels of the Troubleshooter (rounding up, maximum -35% at 19th level). Special Hindrances: Troubleshooters are extremely focused upon their profession and its needs, and they never learn the secrets of Archaeology, Dungeoneering, or even simple Legends & Lore that typical Adventurers possess. In addition, because their focus requires the use of so many skills, Troubleshooters earn 50% more experience points than normal to advance in level (e.g., 1875 to reach 2nd level, rather than the normal 1250). At the DM's option, he or she may allow a Troubleshooter to advance using the normal experience point progression but disallow any experience points for combat or combat-related activity (being essentially irrelevant to the Troubleshooter's true professional inclinations), save for combat directly connected with breaking into a secure location. Bonus Proficiencies: Engineering, Observation Preferred Proficiencies: Alertness, Awareness, Carpentry, Direction Sense, Distance Sense, Fast-talking, Information Gathering, Local History, Locksmithing, Metalworking, Navigation, Numeracy, Reading/Writing, Rope Use, Spellcraft, Tracking, Trailing ***DISCLAIMER*** As with all postings by me of classes or races, it should be noted that portions of the information contained herein were inspired by or derived from information in published works of TSR, Inc., and may contain references to those works, quotations or passages of text (especially in the area of 'Character Description', where applicable sections from TSR works were often carried over more or less intact into my campaign world), or particular powers or abilities invented by TSR staff writers. No relationship with TSR, Inc., is to be implied by this use, nor is any attempt being made to solicit profit or remuneration of any kind. I have read the TSR Online Policy document, and have tried to accommodate the stipulations contained therein. In instances where I have lifted an essentially complete class or race without significant alteration, I have not included these in my postings but instead have inserted a reference to the appropriate D&D sourcebook for those curious in including it in their campaign. Only variations that include a significant component of original work, alteration, or reformulation (including the compositing elements from various TSR sources into new combinations) of have been included in this set of postings. Jason Eric Nelson < tjaden@u.washington.edu >