Assassin

The fog clings to the city streets as the alarm bells begin to ring throughout the city. A shadar-kai woman in fine clothes smiles to herself as she pays a street merchant for a hot apple cider to warn her hands. A silver coin from the advance payment was many times more than a single hot drink was worth, but she was feeling generous. A crier called out into the morning mist, "The governor is dead! Slain in his bed as his guards slept outside his locked door!" She shared a grin with the merchant, a local man. "Worse ways to start a day, no?" He laughs and hands her a pouch. "Worse ways, indeed. The client will be pleased. Exactly as much flash as they requrested, precisely on time, and no explanation as to how someone got into his room in the first place." The woman sips her drink and nods. "Of course, they hired a Wraith for a reason."

An ugly man in work clothes sprints the last 10 feet to close with a man in ceremonial robes, a blade sliding free of an arm bracer as he embraces his target. The priest tries to cry out, but cannot. His guards rush the assailant, who leaps from his target to the nearest guard, a quick jab silencing the guard as he stumbles back, and the assassin tumbles past toward the second guard, seemingly open to attack. As the guard lunges forward, the man guides the sword past himself, bringing the guard into his reach, and drives his blade into his heart.In a heartbeat, it's over, and in another, the assassin is over the garden wall and gone. His features shift just before he enters a busy street, brown hair turning red, features molding themselves into those of a freckled man barely past boyhood.

Each of these is an Assassin, a heroic assassin who works not only for petty coin, but for a cause. Some have been hired killers in the past, others have trained with them by refused the life of contract murder. Others were raised and trained to be a blade in the left hand fo their god, or to be a balance upon the scales, or to take down the powerful who abuse the powerless.

Lethal Focus and Esoteric Ritual

Assassins train, usually for years, to be utterly lethal in every situation. If you strike at them, they turn your attack into an opportunity. If you defend, they use your hesitation. If you come in groups, they use your numbers to hinder your movements and take you out one by one. Part of this training is the training to embrace the shadows, and to establish a mystical connection with their target, called a Shroud. Through rituals known only to the Assassin Guilds, these exceptioal individuals can track their quarry, and see their strengths and weaknesses to a degree otherwie impossible.

Born by Power, Imbalanced

The first Assassins were a religious order founded in response to the oppression of their faith by a more powerful group. They formed the Guild of The Peryton, and the other Guilds were formed in time as the methods of the Perytons proved effective, each Guild bringing a new focus, new tools, and new skills, into the fold.

Creating an Assassin

As you build your Assassin, consider where, and with whom, you trained. These days, the Guilds are often less formal, but you may still have trained in a Guild House, or instead with a single Master. Were you raised to be an Assassin, did you come to it as a source of potential revenge, or soemthing else?

Quick Build

The Simplest Assassin is the Guild of The Peryton. Choose Poisoner's Kit at level 1, take a hand crossbow and scimitar, choose the Spy background. Your highest score should be Dexterity, followed by Intelligence or Wisdom, and then Constitution. Stealth, Perception, Athletics, are good class skills.

Class Features

As an Assassin, you gain the following features

Hit Points

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• Hit Dice: 1d8 per Assassin level
• Hit Points at 1st Level: 8 + your Constitution modifier
• Hit Points at Higher Levels: 5 (1d8) + your Constitution modifier per Assassin level after 1st.

Proficiencies

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• Armor: Light Armor
• Weapons: Simple Weapons, hand crossbows, light weapons
• Tools: none

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• Saving Throws: Dexterity, Charisma
• Skills: Stealth, and choose 3 from Acrobatics, Athletics, Deception, Insight, Intimidation, Investigation, Perception, Persuasion, Sleight of Hand, Survival.

Equipment

You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:

• (a) showrtbow or (b) hand crossbow
• (a) a martial weapon or (b) two simple weapons
• (a) a burglar's pack or (b) an explorer's pack
• leather armor, two daggers, and 1 tool

Assassin's Shroud

At first level, you gain the ability to place a Shroud on a target you can see within 100ft of you at the start of your turn, or as part of rolling initiative. You can place Shrouds up to your maximum Shrouds if you are hidden, or if the target is Vulnerable. A shroud remains until you invoke it, otherwise spend it, choose to remove your shrouds from a target, or use this ability on a different creature. You can only have shrouds on a target equal to 1/2 your level, rounded up. You regain all spent shrouds at the end of a short or long rest.

While your shroud is on a target, you gain the following benefits.

Double proficiency bonus on any Wisdom or Inteligence ability check involving your shroud target.

Your attacks against it are critical hits if you roll a 19 or 20 on the attack roll.

When you hit with an attack with an Assassin Weapon, you can invoke your shrouds, spending them and removing them from the target, to deal 1d10 extra damage per shroud.

With maximum shrouds on a target, you reroll shroud damage dice of 2 or lower, until they show higher than 2.

Vulnerable Targets, Assassin Save DC, and Assassin's Weapons

A creature is Vulnerable to you if it is Charmed, Frightened, Incapacitated, Poisoned, Restrained, or Surprised.

Assassin Weapons are hand crossbows, and any simple or light weapon that lacks the heavy property.

If an Assassin feature requires a creature to make a saving throw to resist the feature’s effects, the saving throw DC is calculated as follows:

DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier

Shadow Moves

At first level, you can attempt to hide when only light obscured by dim light or by creatures that aren't hostile to you.

Additionally, you gain special abilities called Shadow Moves, which can be used as a bonus action when you hit or miss a creature with a weapon attack, or as an action. You can use any remaining movement you have in between the attack and the bonus action.

• You gain 15 ft of extra movement this turn, and can attempt to hide.

• Ignore difficult terrain and gain a climb speed equal to your speed until the start of your next turn.

• Become lightly obscured by a crowd simply by doing nothing out of the ordinary, such as drawing a weapon or climbing the side of a building, and by moving no more than half your speed, while at least 3 non-hostile creatures are near you. While lightly obscured in this way, you can attempt to hide as a bonus action.

• Take a defensive posture. You have a bonus to AC until the start of your next turn equal to your Intelligence modifier.

Specialised Tools

Starting at level 2, you choose a Specialised Tool. Choose one Basic Specialised Tool. You gain proficiency with the listed tool, and the benefits described below. You can create or replace 1 basic poison or specialised poisoner's tools, disguise, or device as part of a short rest. You cannot do so again in such a short time until you have completed a long rest.

Disguise Kit

You gain proficiency in the Disguise Kit, and learn to make clothing that can be made to appear very different if turned insie out or otherwise manipulated, and allows you to don or discard your disguise as part of another action, without losing the disguise. You can carry a number of Specialised Disguises equal to your Intelligence modifier. 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 Specialised diguises is certain that this is simply who you are, and does not question your identity unless you give them explicit reason to do so.

Poisoner's Kit

You gain proficiency with the Poisoner's Kit, which allows you to create the Basic POison found in the PHB. You can only learn a poison if it's cost is equal to your Assassin level times 50, rounded down. Learning to make new poisons requires 50 gold and 2 hours of study and experimentation 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 specialised poisoner's tools hidden on your person allow you to apply a poison to a weapon or to ammunition as part of the action used to attack, or to apply the poison to food, drink, or an object as part of another action, once per turn. You can choose a secondary effect when you make Basic Poison, from the following options. The target makes a save aginst the effects at the start of each of it's turns, and the effect ends after 1 minute regardless.

• The target gains disadvantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight.
• The target has trouble controlling their speach and moving carefully, gaining disadvantage on Stealth, Deception, or Slieght of Hand checks.
• The target's speed is reduced by a number of feet equal to 5 times your Intelligence modifier.

Your assassin save DC replaces the normal DC for a poison, including the DC to treat a creature poisoned by you.

Tinker's Tools

You gain proficiency with Tinker's tools. Choose an Assassin weapon, and construct a concealable version of that weapon. This could a dagger blade or hand crossbow hidden in a bracer, that extends when you strike with it, a bow that folds into an innocuous object and folds out as part of the attack action, a one-handed weapon like a scimitar or spear that collapses and telescopes or is cleverly disguised as a cane, or something else worked out between you and your DM.

The statistics of the weapon do not change, except as described below.

• The weapon does not appear to be a weapon to the eyes of observers, and even a close inspection has disadvantage to determine that it is a weapon, or that you are armed.
• The weapon can be drawn and stowed as part of each attack made with it.
• If your Specialised Weapon is a melee weapon, you can spend a bonus action grant yourself advantage on your next attack with the weapon before the start of your next turn.
• If your Specialised Wepaon is a ranged weapon it loses the loading property, or it's short range is doubled.

Expertise

At second level, choose 1 skill or your specialised tool. You add double your proficiency bonus to checks made with that skill or tool, and the Stealth skill.

Lethal

At 2nd level, you are the epitome of the efficient killer. When you make a weapon attack that would reduce a target to a number of hit points equal to or less than your level, you instead reduce them to 0 hit points.

Hindering Cut

Starting at level 3, when you deal damage with a weapon attack to a target that is vulnerable, the target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or either; lose the ability to speak, have their speed reduced by half, or be unable to take opportunity attacks. A successful Medicine check at the same DC ends the effect, as does receiving any magical healing. The extra damage is of the same type as the weapon's damage.

Assassin's Guild

At third level, you must choose which Guild your skillset comes from.

Ability Score Improvement

When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can’t increase an ability score above 20 using this feature. Alternatively, you can choose a feat (see Chapter 6 for a list of feats).

Preternatural Parry

Starting at level 4, as a reaction when you hit by a melee attack, you can try to cause the attcker 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. Your next damage roll against a creature that you cause to miss you with this ability has a bonus equal to your Intelligence modifier.

Inevitibility of Death

At 5th level, when you reduce a creature to 0hp or land a critical hit against a creature with an attack as part of the attack action, you gain a 10 ft bonus to speed until the end of your turn, and you can make a second attack as part of the attack action.

Additionally, when a creature fails the saving throw for your Hindering Cut feature, they take 1d4 damage of the same type as the attack at the start of their turn while the effect lasts.

Deadly Riposte

Starting at level 6, you can spend 1 shroud as a reaction when an attack misses you, to either take a Shadow Move, or make an attack against the creature that attacked you, if they are within range. Add a 1d10 bonus to the damage roll, or a single ability checky you make as part of a Shadow Move.

If you cause an attack to miss with Preternatural Parry, you can use Deadly Riposte as part of the same reaction.

Guild Feature

At 6th level, you gain a new feature from the Assassin's Guild you chose at level 3.

Evasion

At 7th level, your instinctive agility lets you dodge out of the way of certain area effects, such as a blue dragon’s lightning breath or a fireball spell. When you are subjected to an effect that allows you to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, you instead take no damage if you succeed on the saving throw, and only half damage if you fail.

Advanced Specialised Tool

Starting at 9th level, you gain an advanced use of your tools, depending on what tool you learned to use via your Specialised Tool class feature. You also gain an additional Basic Specialised Tool.

Disguise Kit Creatures now have disadvantage on checks to see through your Specialised Disguises. You can create convincing disguises for yourself and up to 6 other creatures as part of a long rest, with all the same benefits as your Specialised Disguises.

Creatures do not suspect your disguises unless given a reason to, at which point they can attempt to see through your disguises. The DC to do so is your Assassin save DC.

Poisoner's Kit You become resistent to poison, and have advantage on any check or save to avoid being poisoned, and on checks to detect, identify, and treat, poisons. You gain the knowledge of three new Specialised Poisons, and your Basic Poison damage gains a bonus equal to your Intelligence modifier.

When you make a Specialised poison, you can choose to instead make a gas in a glass vial or a specially crafted arrow that affects creatures within 5 ft of the space in which the vial is broken, or to make a flavored or flavorless additive that can be added to food or drink. Regardless of the delivery method, the DC is your assassin save DC.

• Sleep Tincture. The target must save or fall unconcious. They can make a new save any time they take damage after the initial damage, and at the end of every minute, and another creature can wake them by shaking them as an action. If the target is dropped to 0hp or fewer by this poison, it is unconcious until treated with a medicine check against your save DC.
• Rictus Tincture. The target must save or be restrained for 1 minute. They can make a new save by using their action to try to shake off the effect.
• Reflex Tincture. A creature that drinks this tincture loses 1 hit die or 1 hit die worth of HP, and then gains advantage on dexterity saving throws and a +5 ft bonus to speed for 1 minute.

Tinker's Tools you can use your tools as if they were Thieves Tools, and use your Tinker's Tools proficiency to do so. You also learn how to make a specialised tool that can either be integrated into your hidden weapon, or a separate device. Select from the following. YOu can replace a lost or broken device, during a short rest.

• A spring loaded grappling cord with a barbed tip. It has a range of 30ft, and is strong enough to hold the wieght of up to your Int modifier medium creatures at one time. When it has no more than 1 medium creature worth of wieght on it, you can use your action to pull the cord in, either pulling you toward the grappled end of the cord, or pulling an unattended object or a creature toward you. An unwilling creature must succeed on a strength save against your assassin save DC to avoid being pulled.

• An enhanced spyglass. You can see up to 1 mile away as if your were viewing something within 100 ft of you. Creatures you see through your spyglass count as being within 100ft of you. You have darkvision when using this spyglass, within the limited field of view of the spyglass.

Terrible Display

Beginning at level 9, you gain a new Shadow Move.

You can try to put the fear of Death into a creature that can see and hear you. The target must succeed on a save vs your Assassin save DC or be Frightened of you until the end of your next turn. On subsequent turns, you can use your Shadow Action to extend the duration of this effect until the end of your next turn.

This effect ends if the creature ends its turn out of line of sight or more than 60 feet away from you.

Quick On The Draw

At level 10, when you fail a deception, stealth, or slieght of hand check, you can use a Shadow Action, or make a single weapon attack, as part of the action used to make the failed check.

Lethal Efficiency

Beginning at 11th level, your Shrouds become more deadly, and your Lethal feature cuts deeper.

When you attack a creature who is under your Shroud, your attacks are critical hits on a roll of 18-20. Additionally, your Lethal damage threshold increases by your intelligence modfier, and applies to damage dealt by any of your Assassin class features, rather than only on weapon attacks. Additionally, any creature under your Shroud is Vulnerable to you.

Guild Feature

at level 13, Your Guild training provides you with a new ability, or improves an existing ability.

Focused Shrouds

Starting at 14th level, you can study a creature and gain greater insights about them. If you study or interact with a creature for at least 1 minute, they become Vulnerable to you, and you can place your maximum shrouds on them. You also learn their hit point total, and any damage or condition vulnerabilities and resistences or immunities they have.

Death's Messenger

Beginning at 15th level, your mastery over death has made you more difficult to kill, and has granted you deeper insight into the mysteries of Death. You can add your proficiency modifier to death saving throws, and you can cast Speak With Dead and Gentle Repose spells as rituals.

Lethal Mastery

Beginning at 17th level, your Lethal Threshold, weapon attack damage against Vulnerable targets, and Blood In The Cut damage gain a bonus equal to your proficiency bonus + your intelligence modifier.

Guild Feature

at level 18, youv'e mastered the teachings of your guild.

Angel of Death

At 20th level, you become an avatar of the cycle of Death and Life. You do not suffer the effects of old age, though you can die of old age. When you die, you can choose to return to life 1 year later, re-entering the world of the living from the land of the dead at the age at which you gained this ability. You cannot do so again for 1 year.

Guilds of The Assassin

Assassins are varied, but most belong to a Guild, and most Guilds follow one of the Guild archetypes listed here.

Any guild that focuses on physical movement, enhancing the mystical bond with the shroud target, and "death from above" tactics of swooping in from nowhere to strike then disapear, follow the Guild traditions of the Peryton.

Those who empower their Shroud with shadow magic, becoming as shadows to steal life force from their targets while passing through objects and appearing from thin air to strike with lethal living shadows, follow the tradition of the Wraith Guild.

Assassins who rely on varied poisons, while using mobility to keep out of the reach of reprisal, making even a small cut into a lethal strike, rely on the skills pioneered by the Manticore Guild.

Perhaps most terrifying of all are the guilds who look to the traditions of the Doppelganger, who teach a combination of manipulation, disguise, and mind-bending magic, to charm and frighten their targets, turn their allies against them, and often take down their target without ever touching them.

Regardless of your Guild, you will gain new abilities and improve core Assassin features as you level, and gain reputation within the secret circles of the Assassins.

Guild of The Peryton

Incredible athletes, highly skilled in, tracking, social engineering and blending into a crowd, the Perytons are students of the oldest traditions of the Assassins. Their most lethal tools are an intense focus on their prey and a preternatural ability to leap from great heights unharmed, often following their prety from rooftops and landing upon them from several stories up, the mark dead before the assassin takes their next step.

Heart Seeker

At 3rd level, when a creature is under your Shroud, you know their exact location, and can hear their heartbeat, as long as they are within 100ft of you.

Death From Above

Additionally at 3rd level, you gain advantage on attack rolls made as part of landing on a creature from a fall. If you land on a creature from a fall that would cause you to take falling damage, the creature must make a dexterity saving throw in order to avoid taking the same amount of damage.

Graceful Fall

At 3rd level, When you would take damage from falling, you can reduce any falling damage you take by an amount equal to 5 times your Assassin level. Doing so does not reduce the damage that is taken by a creature that you land upon. Upon landing, you do not fall prone even if you take damage from falling, and can use any remaining movement, or class abilities such as your Shadow Moves, as normal.

Level 6 Archetype Rock

Starting at 6th level, you no longer provoke opportunity attacks when you are falling or flying, and when you Dash, or use a Shadow Move that increases your speed or gives you a climb speed, you increase your jump distance and height by a number of feet equal to your dexterity score.

Level 13 Archetype Rock

Starting at 13th level, you gain a Guild Tool, based on what Specialised Tool you chose at level 2.

Disguise Kit While using your disguise, you have advantage on stealth or deception checks to blend into a crowd, and allies can add allies who are using one of your disguises can make such checks wiht a bonus equal to your intelligence modifier.

Poisoner's Kit You learn a new tincture, called a Deadeye Tincture. When you drink it, you spend 1 hit die and gain advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks involving sight, and you can see minute details out to 1 mile away as if you were looking within your immediate surroundings.

Tinker's Tools You craft a suit of Studded Leather armor called a Glide-Wing, with specialised flaps and hinges that allow for limited flight. As a bonus action, you can activate the gliding wings of your armor and gain a fly speed equal to your speed + your dexterity score in feet. You cannot fly from a standing position, but must instead leap from at least 20ft above the nearest surface. If an effect allows you to jump that high, you can use such a jump to engage the flight instead. You can disengage gliding mode as a bonus action.

Master of The Peryton

Starting at 18th level, you get something big like knowing your Shroud target's exact location on the same plane of existence and being able to spend an action to see and hear them?

Guild of The Wraith

Here you can provide an overview of the archetype.

Level 3 Archetype Rock

At 3rd level, this feature provides a mechanical identity to the archetype.

Level 3 Archetype Ribbon

Additionally at 3rd level, this feature provides a conceptual identity to the archetype

Level 6 Archetype Rock

Starting at 7th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

Level 13 Archetype Rock

Starting at 13th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

Level 18 Archetype Rock

Starting at 18th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

Guild of The Manticore

Here you can provide an overview of the archetype.

Level 3 Archetype Rock

At 3rd level, this feature provides a mechanical identity to the archetype.

Level 3 Archetype Ribbon

Additionally at 3rd level, this feature provides a conceptual identity to the archetype

Level 6 Archetype Rock

Starting at 7th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

Level 13 Archetype Rock

Starting at 13th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

Level 18 Archetype Rock

Starting at 18th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

Guild of The Doppelganger

Here you can provide an overview of the archetype.

Level 3 Archetype Rock

At 3rd level, this feature provides a mechanical identity to the archetype.

Level 3 Archetype Ribbon

Additionally at 3rd level, this feature provides a conceptual identity to the archetype

Level 6 Archetype Rock

Starting at 7th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

Level 13 Archetype Rock

Starting at 13th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

Level 18 Archetype Rock

Starting at 18th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

Guild of The guy with the stuff

Something that uses others as their weapons, allowed to invoke shrouds on an ally attack, and give allies a damage bonus or maybe expanded crit range or advantage against targets who are under the effects of Blood In The Cut.

Level 3 Archetype Rock

At 3rd level, this feature provides a mechanical identity to the archetype.

Level 3 Archetype Ribbon

Additionally at 3rd level, this feature provides a conceptual identity to the archetype

Level 6 Archetype Rock

Starting at 7th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

Level 13 Archetype Rock

Starting at 13th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

Level 18 Archetype Rock

Starting at 18th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

Guild of The Manticore

Poison-master. Gains better poisons, poison resistence, and benefits when dealing with poisoned targets. Also round one surprise attack benefit?

Level 3 Archetype Rock

At 3rd level, this feature provides a mechanical identity to the archetype.

Level 3 Archetype Ribbon

Additionally at 3rd level, this feature provides a conceptual identity to the archetype

Level 6 Archetype Rock

Starting at 7th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

Level 13 Archetype Rock

Starting at 13th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

Level 18 Archetype Rock

Starting at 18th level, this feature provides a new mechanic to increase the archetype's power, or improves upon an existing archetype rock.

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