Scheming Noble (Apath)

Unofficial rules compendium

A scheming noble is an plotting and conniving noble scion, an aristocrat willing to risk her honor to push her agenda. Knowledgeable in all kinds of tricks and stunts, the scheming noble is willing and able to use any opening.

Class Information

This is a prestige archetype. The scheming noble is a rogue with money and connections.

Publisher: Purple Duck Games.

Prestige Class: Noble Scion

Build Class: Rogue.

Role: A scheming noble often keeps to the shadows, acting incognito or through pawns. Some separate their adventuring and social careers, and adventure under a secret identity. Either way they are effective intrigants, spies, planners, tricksters and in a pinch backstabbers.

Alignment: Any. A scheming noble generally hides her true agenda under layers of deception.

Hit Die: d8.

Class Skills

The scheming noble's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Acrobatics (Dex), Appraise (Int), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Disable Device (Dex), Disguise (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (all) (Int), Perception (Wis), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Stealth (Dex), Swim (Str), and Use Magic Device (Cha).

Skill Ranks at Each Level: 8 + Int modifier.

Class Features

The scheming noble has all the class features of the rogue, except as follows:

Weapon and Armor Proficiency

A scheming noble is proficient with all simple weapons, plus the cane sword, hand crossbow, rapier, sap, shortbow, and short sword.

Affluent (Ex)

At each level, a noble scion gains gold pieces equal to 750 multiplied by her character level as stipend. (She gains 750 gp. at 1st level, an additional 1,500 gp. at 2nd level, and so on.) This is the noble's private spending money, a result of the increase in standing her level advancement brings.

A multiclass character only gets this stipend when increasing in level as a noble scion, not when increasing her level in any other class. The amount received is based on her character level, not class level. So a wizard 3 who takes a level of scheming noble gains 3,000 gp (750 times her new character level of four).This replaces trapfinding.

Noble Paragon (Ex)

In order to impress commoners and peers alike, the noble scion is brought up to be a paragon of her culture. At 1st level, the noble scion selects a culture she has been brought up in and three class skills. If a particular skill already a class skill, the scion instead gains a +1 trait bonus on that skill. Noble paragon, prestigious influence, fame and fortune, servitor, leadership, and greater leadership replaces trap sense.

Prestigious Influence (Ex)

At 2nd level, a noble scion can use her influence to receive special treatment, favors, and other services. She effectively has a pool of virtual gold pieces equal 25 gp per class level to spend on services and non-material goods. This represents the wealth of her house, but also connections; naturally the theatre will offer their best tickets for free to honor their great sponsor and beneficiary who just happens to be the noble characters uncle. This pool replenishes at the beginning of every week. Unspent resources are lost and do not accumulate. Services and nonmaterial goods available to a noble scion include:

• Pay for lodgings, stabling, taxes, and tolls.
• Pay off bandits or pay ransom.
• Pay for social gifts and bribes.
• Improve her lifestyle quality.
• Hire entertainers, messengers, mounts, servants, transport, workers, and so on.
• Obtain invitations to exclusive events, or entry into privileged locations.
• Gather information, spread rumors, or start a whispering campaign.
• Purchase spellcasting services.
• Employ an expert hireling to make a skill check with a check bonus of +10 plus half her class level at a cost of 50 gp.

The noble can spend some of these funds on her companions, but spending more than half your allowance on your friends could be seen as overly egalitarian. A noble scion cannot permanently gain goods or wealth from this ability. Boons attainable from this ability are generally only available in settlements of 500 people or more. The exact benefits available in a location are subject to GM discretion.

When in the home territory of her noble house, the scion has access to luxurious lodging at the manors or town houses of her family, and can use such facilities to throw parties, lodge her companions in comfort, or otherwise use the properties of her family to advantage. When traveling, she can expect at least modest accommodation with other nobles, and a noble visitor is often the occasion of parties and other entertainment. The backside is of course that the scion is expected to attend all these social functions, which can hinder her other activities.

Fame And Fortune (Ex)

At third level a noble scion gains a bonus equal to 1/3 her class level on Diplomacy, Intimidate, Knowledge (local), and Knowledge (nobility) checks. This ability also reduces the DCs of Diplomacy, Knowledge (local), and Knowledge (nobility) checks others make to gather information about the noble scion by the same amount.

Servitor (Ex)

At 4th level, a noble scion gains a faithful NPC servitor of the same level as a cohort granted by the Leadership feat (minimum 1st level). This servitor is of the expert NPC class and comes equipped with gear appropriate for a non-heroic NPC of the servitor's level. The servitor does not fight for the noble scion as would a cohort or follower, but instead can set up camp, act as a valet or maid, and otherwise provide food and comforts. The servitor can also run various errands while the noble scion is adventuring, such as delivering messages or maintaining the scion's interests.

Leadership (Ex)

At 7th level, the noble scion gains Leadership as a bonus feat. The cohort and followers come with equipment appropriate for their level. Pay and upkeep is provided by the noble scion's house. Followers serve their noble leader, but their ultimate loyalty is to the land and holdings; they may report unusual activities to others in the house and refuse orders that they perceive to be dangerous to the clan as a whole.

Greater Leadership (Ex)

At 13th level, a noble scion can have a cohort up to one level lower than herself and the level of all her followers increases by one. At 19th level, she can recruit a cohort of the same level she is and the level of her followers increases by two. This also improves the noble scion's servitor.

Peerless Patrician (Ex)

At 20th level a noble scion can roll twice on any Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidate, Knowledge (nobility), or Sense Motive check and take the better roll. Once per day, instead of rolling one of these skill checks, she can assume the roll resulted in a natural 20. Peerless patrician replaces master strike.

Table: Scheming Noble

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special
1st	+0	+0	+2	+0	Affulent, finesse training, noble paragon, sneak attack +1d6
2nd	+1	+0	+3	+0	Evasion, prestieous influence, rogue talent
3rd	+2	+1	+3	+1	Fame and fortune +1, finesse training, sneak attack +2d6
4th	+3	+1	+4	+1	Debilitating injury, rogue talent, servitor, uncanny dodge
5th	+3	+1	+4	+1	Rogue's edge, sneak attack +3d6
6th	+4	+2	+5	+2	Fame and fortune +2, rogue talent
7th	+5	+2	+5	+2	Leadership, sneak attack +4d6
8th	+6/+1	+2	+6	+2	Improved uncanny dodge, rogue talent
9th	+6/+1	+3	+6	+3	Fame and fortune +3, sneak attack +5d6
10th	+7/+2	+3	+7	+3	Advanced talents, rogue talent, rogue's edge
11th	+8/+3	+3	+7	+3	Finesse training, sneak attack +6d6
12th	+9/+4	+4	+8	+4	Fame and fortune +4, rogue talent
13th	+9/+4	+4	+8	+4	Greater leasership, sneak attack +7d6
14th	+10/+5	+4	+9	+4	Rogue talent
15th	+11/+6/+1	+5	+9	+5	Fame and fortune +5, rogue's edge, sneak attack +8d6
16th	+12/+7/+2	+5	+10	+5	Rogue talent
17th	+12/+7/+2	+5	+10	+5	Sneak attack +9d6
18th	+13/+8/+3	+6	+11	+6	Fame and fortune +6, rogue talent
19th	+14/+9/+4	+6	+11	+6	Finesse training, greater leadership, sneak attack +10d6
20th	+15/+10/+5	+6	+12	+6	Peerless patrician, rogue talent, rogue's edge

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