Shadowdancer, Book of Elements (3.5e Prestige Class)

Author: IGTN (talk) Date Created: 1 Dec 2009 Status: Mucking around for balance Editing: Mechanics on Talk, please

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Shadowdancer

“

The shadows cast by the flame are not mere reflections, but active performers.

”

People really like the shadowdancer, even though it was badly defined in the core book and actually only had two unique features. So the shadowdancer really needs a revision. Since we've redefined the shadow plane, it now even has a place to fit in the world.

In contrast to shadowcasters, shadowdancers are people who have somehow made a deal with their shadow to free it, and in return it aids them and gives them power. Becoming a shadowdancer is a difficult path, and nobody knows quite how they do it, especially since, most of the time, your shadow wants nothing more than to utterly destroy you. But they manage it, and become truly terrifying people. They also become really sneaky and get a little bit of magic.

Entry Requirements

Skills:	Perform (dance) 5 ranks, Tumble 8 ranks, Hide 10 ranks.
Feats:	Elusive Target.
Alignment:	Must not be aligned with the Plane of Shadow.

Table: The Shadowcaster

Hit Die: d6

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Saving Throws			Special
		Fort	Ref	Will
1st	+1	+0	+2	+2	Hide in Plain Sight, Shadow Clone
2nd	+2	+0	+3	+3	Darkvision, Shadow Ally, Shadow Distraction Sneak Attack +1d6
3rd	+3	+1	+3	+3	Shadow Transposition, Dark Scent
4th	+4	+1	+4	+4	Misdirect, Shaded Steps, Sneak Attack +2d6
Class Skills (6 + Int modifier per level. Appraise (Int), Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Decipher Script (Int), Disable Device (Int), Disguise (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Forgery (Int), Gather Information (Cha), Hide (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Spot (Wis), Swim (Str), Tumble (Dex), Use Magic Device (Cha).

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the Shadowdancer.

Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: Shadowdancers are proficient with all simple weapons. They gain no new armor proficiencies.

Hide in Plain Sight (Su): A shadowdancer can use the Hide skill even while being observed. As long as she is within 10 feet of some sort of shadow, a shadowdancer can hide herself from view in the open without anything to actually hide behind. She cannot, however, hide in her own shadow.

Shadow Clone (Sp): A shadowdancer can cast Mirror Image as a spell-like ability once per day. The images created are quasi-real shadows, and detect as real to blindsight, blindsense, tremorsense, and similar abilities. Her caster level is equal to her character level.

Darkvision: A shadowdancer of 2nd level or higher gains darkvision 60', or her existing darkvision improves by 30'.

Shadow Ally: A shadowdancer of 2nd level or higher can send her own shadow out to fight or scout for her as a standard action. It uses the stats of an undead shadow, except that it is an elemental instead of an undead (Con 16), with two fewer hit dice than the shadowdancer (all of its hit dice are elemental hit dice). When the shadow ally is sent out, the shadowdancer casts one fewer shadow than normal (usually none), and counts as a magic item that the shadowdancer is using (it cannot use its own magic items). She can communicate telepathically with her shadow as long as it is within close range, and always knows direction and distance to it. If it is killed, she must wait 24 hours before it returns to her.

Shadow Distraction (Su): A Shadowdancer of 2nd level is considered to be flanking every threatened enemy that casts a shadow on ground adjacent to itself.

Sneak Attack (Ex): A shadowdancer can make sneak attacks exactly like a rogue can. If they have Death Attack, they can advance that every level instead of Sneak Attack every other level.

Shadow Transposition (Sp): A shadowdancer of 3rd level or higher may trade places with her shadow when it is sent out as an immediate action. She and her shadow must both be within some other shadow and within close range (for the shadowdancer's character level) of eachother to manage this.

Dark Scent (Su): A shadowdancer of 3rd level or higher has no scent when she wishes to hide it.

Misdirect (Sp): A shadowdancer of 4th level or higher can cast Silent Image and Darkness at-will as spell-like abilities at the same caster level as Shadow Clone. The Silent Images are quasi-real, behaving exactly as the Shadow Clones do under special senses. Also, her Shadow Clone ability is usable as a swift action at will. Only one of each effect may be running at a time; casting a new one ends the previous one.

Shaded Steps (Su): Whenever a shadowdancer is in shadow, she takes no penalty to Hide and Move Silently while moving at full speed, and only a -5 penalty for running or charging. She takes no penalty to her hide checks for sniping, may make a hide check following an attack as a free action, and may make sniping attacks at any range, even melee. She may also take 10 while hiding, as long as nobody looking for her is aware of her presense.

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