Stranger in the Night (3.5e Prestige Class)

Author: MisterSinister (talk) Date Created: 26/06/12 Status: Finished Editing: Clarity edits only please

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Stranger in the Night

Blah blah, wanderers, represent the night's mystery, blah blah.

Becoming a Stranger in the Night

Any class can become a stranger in the night, but it is mostly favoured by those who want subterfuge and mental control to be part of their act.

Entry Requirements

Feats:	Child of Night
Special:	Must wander the night for at least a month.

Table: The Stranger in the Night

Hit Die: Special

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Saving Throws			Special
		Fort	Ref	Will
1st	Special	Special	Special	Special	Geometries of the night, immemorable
2nd	Special	Special	Special	Special	Perfect darksight*
3rd	Special	Special	Special	Special	Stranger's beckoning
4th	Special	Special	Special	Special	Tricks of the night*
5th	Special	Special	Special	Special	Light as a shadow
6th	Special	Special	Special	Special	Armaments of night*
7th	Special	Special	Special	Special	Power of the night*
8th	Special	Special	Special	Special	[noncaster]
9th	Special	Special	Special	Special	Dark city
10th	Special	Special	Special	Special	[noncaster]
11th	Special	Special	Special	Special	[all]
12th	Special	Special	Special	Special	[noncaster]
13th	Special	Special	Special	Special	[noncaster]
14th	Special	Special	Special	Special	[noncaster]
15th	Special	Special	Special	Special	[all]

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the stranger in the night.

Weapon and Armour Proficiency: Strangers in the night gain no new proficiencies with weapons or armour.

Geometries of the Night: Strangers in the night are all wanderers, and each bring different experiences to their task. When you gain your first level of stranger in the night, choose one of your base classes. This class gains its base attack bonus progression, save progressions, hit die, skill points per level and class skills. Essentially, treat this class as a continuation of whatever progression the chosen base class would have given you.

Additionally, choose one of the following options:

Magic Geometry: Choose a class that gives spellcasting. This must be the same class that you chose for the earlier benefits of this class feature. At each level of stranger in the night, you gain new spells known and new spells per day as if you had gained a level in that class. You can only learn spells from this list.

Additionally, any DCs for the spells you cast are set to 10 + 1/2 of your character level + your Intelligence, Wisdom or Charisma modifier (choose one when you first get this). Your caster level for the chosen class is always equal to your character level.

Lastly, if you choose this option, you do not gain the class features marked on the table with a star (*). Them's the breaks - you're a spellcaster, you'll live.

Master Geometry: You gain a bonus feat at each level of stranger in the night. Your stranger in the night class levels count as levels in whatever class you chose for the purpose of taking feats. You must meet any of the prerequisites for the feats you select as these bonus feats, but you can ignore prerequisites based on ability scores.

Sublime Geometry: If you chose an initiator class for the earlier benefits of this class feature, at each level of stranger in the night, you gain new maneuvers known, maneuvers readied and maneuvers granted (if applicable) as if you had gained a level in that class. You can only learn maneuvers from the Shadow Hand discipline, but can ignore any requirements based on needing to know a certain number of Shadow Hand maneuvers to learn a maneuver.

If you chose a non-initiator class for the earlier benefits of this class feature, at each level of stranger in the night, you can either learn a Shadow Hand stance, or gain a Shadow Hand maneuver as a maneuver-like ability. You must meet all prerequisites to gain them this way as if you were choosing them for an initiator class, but you can ignore requirements based on needing to know a certain number of Shadow Hand maneuvers. Each of the maneuvers learned as a maneuver-like ability can be used once, but you can spend 10 minutes concentrating to restore all your maneuver-like abilities to usability.

Additionally, any DCs for the maneuvers you use are set to 10 + 1/2 your character level + your Strength, Dexterity or Constitution modifier (choose one when you first get this). Your initiator level for the chosen class is always equal to your character level. This applies regardless of the class you chose for the earlier benefits of this class feature.

Immemorable (Su): The stranger in the night is everyone you've ever met - and no-one you've ever met. Those that meet them have trouble remembering anything distinctive about them, and even the powers of divination rarely, if ever, work on them correctly.

This has several effects. Firstly, after a stranger in the night meets someone, talks to them or even is caught a glimpse of by someone, that someone must make a Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 the stranger's in the night character level + the stranger's in the night Intelligence, Wisdom or Charisma modifier, whichever would give the better result). This will save must be made 15 minutes after they can no longer perceive the stranger in the night using their normal (not magically-enhanced or spell-granted) senses. If they fail, they forget all specific details of the stranger's in the night appearance, voice, clothing, etc. They can still identify the gender of the stranger, as well as any species-based visual traits, but won't be able to describe or remember anything further than that. The stranger in the night can exempt someone from this using a free action, provided that they are aware that this would affect someone.

Example: Larran, a male elven stranger in the night, meets Eliza for a midnight 'interview'. 15 minutes after he leaves her presence, Eliza has to make a save or forget his specifics. If she fails, she'll remember that she spent time with a male elf, but nothing about him beyond that, such as what he wore, what his name was, what colour his hair was, etc.

Example 2: That same night, Larran meets his associate, Tam. Tam would be subject to the same memory loss, but Larran trusts him enough to exempt him from it for this meeting.

Example 3: However, while they were having this meeting, a local tavern wench spots them talking, and decides to listen in. She has to make a Will save to not forget, and since Larran did not detect her, he cannot exempt her from this - even if he wanted to.

Secondly, the stranger's in the night alignment always counts as neutral, regardless of what it actually is. This does not violate codes of alignment or conduct, but in all other respects, the stranger in the night registers as neutral. This means that detect evil would not register on him, an unholy blight would only deal half damage (reducible to a quarter if they save), and so forth.

Lastly, the stranger in the night is subject to a constant nondetection effect, with a caster level equal to their character level.

Perfect Darksight (Ex): A 2nd level, non-caster stranger in the night can see perfectly in darkness of any kind, including magical darkness. They also gain low-light vision, but at quadruple, rather than double, strength (meaning that they can see four times as far as normal in conditions of poor light).

Stranger's Beckoning: From 3rd level, strangers in the night can become very convincing if they need to be - there's a reason why stories warn about the power of the night to make people do stupid things, after all. The exact effect of this class feature depends on whether the stranger in the night is a spellcaster or not.

If the stranger in the night is a spellcaster, they add the suggestion spell to their spells known, as a 3rd level spell. If they already knew suggestion, but at a higher level, its level changes to 3rd instead. If they already knew it as a 3rd level spell, nothing happens.

If the stranger in the night is not a spellcaster, they can use suggestion as a spell-like ability. After they use it three times, it becomes unavailable until next sunset. The caster level for this is equal to the stranger's in the night character level, and the DC is equal to 10 + 1/2 the stranger's in the night character level + the stranger's in the night Intelligence, Wisdom or Charisma modifier, whichever gives the best result.

Tricks of the Night (Sp): A non-caster 4th level stranger in the night can use the powers of darkness, shadow and night to confuse others and get them to chase, well, shadows. They can use mislead as a spell-like ability. After they use it, it becomes unavailable until next sunset. The caster level for this is equal to the stranger's in the night character level.

Light as a Shadow (Su): From 5th level, a stranger in the night can make themselves light enough to walk on the air itself. They are subject to a constant air walk effect.

Armaments of Night (Su): A 6th level or higher non-caster stranger in the night can use the shadows themselves as their weapons and armour. By spending a swift action, they can form any size-appropriate weapon, armour or shield they are proficient with out of the shadows surrounding them. These are always jet-black and shadowy in appearance, are of masterwork quality, and have a +1 enhancement bonus to attack and damage rolls (if a weapon), or to the armour or shield bonus to AC that they provide (if an armour or shield). If the stranger in the night has a character level of at least 7, this is a +2 enhancement bonus instead. For every 4 character levels above 7th, increase this bonus by another +1 (+3 at 11th, +4 at 16th, etc).

These armaments last indefinitely, but if they are are taken from, dropped or removed from the stranger in the night, these armaments vanish back into the shadows and have to be reformed. This also occurs if the stranger in the night is exposed to full daylight (or something equivalent to it). This is a darkness ability that simulates a spell with a level equal to one-half of the stranger's in the night, and can be suppressed in the same way.

Power of the Night (Su): A non-caster 7th level stranger in the night can draw immense power from the night to give them strength in battle. As long as they are not exposed to direct sunlight (or anything that simulates direct sunlight), they receive a +2 enhancement bonus to their Strength, Dexterity and Constitution scores. If their character level is at least 12th, this becomes a +4 enhancement bonus instead, and if their character level is at least 18th, this becomes a +6 enhancement bonus instead.

Dark City (Ex): Strangers in the night wander some truly strange places, and when they reach 9th level, their experiences coalesce into a settlement on the Plane of Shadow (or a similar plane if your cosmology is different). The settlement has a population of 666 unseen servants (like the ones from the spell), who resemble the most notable people the stranger in the night has met on their wanderings. The settlement is complete with buildings, an economy, and pretty much everything else you'd expect a settlement of that size to have. The unseen servants do not have the usual distance limitation, but instead cannot leave the settlement (and won't, most probably). The unseen servants see the stranger in the night as their leader, and will do what he says, if it's within their abilities to do so. Things can be bought and sold in the settlement as normally could be expected of a place of that size.

The stranger in the night can also spend a standard action to tear open a portal to their settlement. This will always take them to the council hall, where there will be an unseen servant, ready for orders. Others can step through the portal, but only if the stranger in the night verbally invites them. This is a supernatural ability, and the portal stays open only 1 round.

While inside their settlement, the shadow magister can attempt to tear open a portal to their home plane (or, if their home plane is the same one as the settlement is on, a different plane, chosen when the city is formed) as a standard action. This is much less accurate, though - it suffers from the same inaccuracies that the plane shift spell does. Otherwise, it's the same as the portal that takes the stranger in the night and his friends to the settlement.

At each class level after 9th, the settlement's population increases by 666, with corresponding increases in size and what you can buy there.

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