Blue_C.
2014-04-27, 07:23 AM
Covert
I'd rather be lucky than good. I'd rather get away than get famous.
In more chaotic leaning societies, casters often find different paths for their magic than either the Adept or Mage-smith classes allow. Coverts ply the margins of societies, living alone in the shadows or banding together with other outcasts for greater survivability. Not often respectable, coverts aren't always criminals either. Most are simply playing the hand life has dealt them, with maybe one or two cards up their sleeve.
Role: An NPC covert might be willing to assist in taking down a trap or two, or putting a word into the right ear. In a campaign setting, Coverts could in theory make credible political leaders or emissaries, but most coverts simply don't think along those lines, trusting their magic to get them past social barriers their preference for sticking to backgrounds does not.
Alignment: While more often hailing from societies that are Chaotic leaning, coverts themselves can be of any alignment.
Hit Die: d6
Starting Gold: As adept
Class Skills
The Covert's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Acrobatics (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Craft (Int), Disable Device (Dex), Disguise (Cha), Knowledge (Arcana) (Int), Knowledge (Local) (Int), Linguistics (Int), Perception (Wis) Profession (Wis), Perform (Cha), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Spellcraft (Int), Stealth (Dex).
Skill Ranks per Level: (4+ Int modifier)
Covert
Level
Base Attack Bonus
Fort Save
Ref Save
Will Save
Special
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
1st
+0
+0
+2
+0
Cantrips
0
-
-
-
-
2nd
+1
+0
+3
+0
Skill Focus
1
-
-
-
-
3rd
+1
+1
+3
+1
2
-
-
-
-
4th
+2
+1
+4
+1
2
0
-
-
-
5th
+2
+1
+4
+1
2
1
-
-
-
6th
+3
+2
+5
+2
2
2
-
-
-
7th
+3
+2
+5
+2
3
2
-
-
-
8th
+4
+2
+6
+2
3
2
0
-
-
9th
+4
+3
+6
+3
3
2
1
-
-
10th
+5
+3
+7
+3
3
2
2
-
-
11th
+5
+3
+7
+3
3
3
2
-
-
12th
+6/+1
+4
+8
+4
3
3
2
0
-
13th
+6/+1
+4
+8
+4
3
3
2
1
-
14th
+7/+2
+4
+9
+4
3
3
2
2
-
15th
+7/+2
+5
+9
+5
3
3
3
2
-
16th
+8/+3
+5
+10
+5
3
3
3
2
0
17th
+8/+3
+5
+10
+5
3
3
3
2
1
18th
+9/+4
+6
+11
+6
3
3
3
2
2
19th
+9/+4
+6
+11
+6
3
3
3
3
2
20th
+10/+5
+6
+12
+6
3
3
3
3
2
Class Features
All of the following are class features of the covert.
Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: Coverts are proficient with all simple weapons. They are not proficient with any type of armor, nor with shields, and suffer the normal arcane spell failure chance from wearing either.
Spells: A covert casts arcane spells, which are drawn from the covert spell list. He can cast any spell he knows without preparing it ahead of time. To learn or cast a spell, a covert must have a Charisma score equal to at least 10 + the spell. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a covert’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the covert’s Charisma modifier.
Like other spellcasters, a covert can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. His base daily spell allotment is given on Table: The Covert. In addition, he receives bonus spells per day if he has a high Charisma score. When Table: Covert Spells Known indicates that the covert gets 0 spells per day of a given spell level, he gains only the bonus spells he would be entitled to based on his Charisma score for that spell level.
The covert’s selection of spells is extremely limited. A covert begins play knowing four 0-level spells of your choice. At most new covert levels, he gains one or more new spells, as indicated on Table: Covert Spells Known. (Unlike spells per day, the number of spells a covert knows is not affected by his Charisma score; the numbers on Table: Covert Spells Known are fixed.)
Upon reaching 5th level, and at every third covert level after that (8th, 11th, and so on), a covert can choose to learn a new spell in place of one he already knows. In effect, the covert “loses” the old spell in exchange for the new one. The new spell’s level must be the same as that of the spell being exchanged, and it must be at least two levels lower than the highest-level covert spell the covert can cast. A covert may swap only a single spell at any given level, and must choose whether or not to swap the spell at the same time that he gains new spells known for the level.
As noted above, a covert need not prepare his spells in advance. He can cast any spell he knows at any time, assuming he has not yet used up his allotment of spells per day for the spell’s level.
Cantrips (Sp): Coverts learn a number of cantrips, or 0-level spells, as noted on Table: Covert Spells Known under "Spells Known." These spells are cast like any other spell, but they do not consume any slots and may be used again.
Skill Focus: At 2nd level, coverts gain addition mastery of their craft, whatever that craft happens to be. They gain Skill Focus as a bonus feat.
Covert Spell List
Coverts choose their spells from the following list.
0 Level: dancing lights, daze, detect magic, ghost sound, light, lulluby, mending, prestidigitation, read magic, touch of fatigue.
1st Level: cause fear, charm person, command, comprehend languages, detect secret doors, disguise self, feather fall, hypnotism, jump, lesser confusion, magic aura, silent image, sleep, ventriloquism.
2nd Level: cat’s grace, daze monster, detect thoughts, eagle's splendor, fox's cunning, find traps, hideous laughter, hypnotic pattern, invisibility, minor image, mirror image, misdirection, scare, undetectable alignment.
3rd Level: deep slumber, displacement, fear, glibness, haste, heroism, hold person, major image, rage, suggestion, slow, tongues.
4th Level: charm monster, confusion, crushing despair, good hope, fear, lesser geas, phantasmal killer, rainbow pattern.
5th Level: break enchantment, dominate person, greater command, permanent image, mass suggestion, mirage arcana, mind fog, seeming.
Table: Covert Spells Known
Level
0
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
1st
2
2
2nd
2
2
3rd
3
2
4th
3
2
2*
5th
3
2
2
6th
3
3
2
7th
3
3
2
8th
3
3
2
2*
9th
3
3
2
2
10th
3
3
3
2
11th
4
3
3
2
12th
4
3
3
2
2*
13th
4
3
3
3
2
14th
4
4
3
3
2
15th
4
4
3
3
3
16th
4
4
3
3
3
2*
17th
4
4
3
3
3
2
18th
4
4
4
3
3
2
19th
4
4
4
3
3
3
20th
4
4
4
4
3
3
*Provided the covert has a high enough Charisma score to have a bonus spell of this level.
This is a repost and Pathfinder update of an NPC class I had posted a while ago on Wizard's board, originally called the Charlatan. I have not yet gone through the spell list, so there is potential for wonkiness there, but everything else should be updated.
I'd rather be lucky than good. I'd rather get away than get famous.
In more chaotic leaning societies, casters often find different paths for their magic than either the Adept or Mage-smith classes allow. Coverts ply the margins of societies, living alone in the shadows or banding together with other outcasts for greater survivability. Not often respectable, coverts aren't always criminals either. Most are simply playing the hand life has dealt them, with maybe one or two cards up their sleeve.
Role: An NPC covert might be willing to assist in taking down a trap or two, or putting a word into the right ear. In a campaign setting, Coverts could in theory make credible political leaders or emissaries, but most coverts simply don't think along those lines, trusting their magic to get them past social barriers their preference for sticking to backgrounds does not.
Alignment: While more often hailing from societies that are Chaotic leaning, coverts themselves can be of any alignment.
Hit Die: d6
Starting Gold: As adept
Class Skills
The Covert's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Acrobatics (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Craft (Int), Disable Device (Dex), Disguise (Cha), Knowledge (Arcana) (Int), Knowledge (Local) (Int), Linguistics (Int), Perception (Wis) Profession (Wis), Perform (Cha), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Spellcraft (Int), Stealth (Dex).
Skill Ranks per Level: (4+ Int modifier)
Covert
Level
Base Attack Bonus
Fort Save
Ref Save
Will Save
Special
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
1st
+0
+0
+2
+0
Cantrips
0
-
-
-
-
2nd
+1
+0
+3
+0
Skill Focus
1
-
-
-
-
3rd
+1
+1
+3
+1
2
-
-
-
-
4th
+2
+1
+4
+1
2
0
-
-
-
5th
+2
+1
+4
+1
2
1
-
-
-
6th
+3
+2
+5
+2
2
2
-
-
-
7th
+3
+2
+5
+2
3
2
-
-
-
8th
+4
+2
+6
+2
3
2
0
-
-
9th
+4
+3
+6
+3
3
2
1
-
-
10th
+5
+3
+7
+3
3
2
2
-
-
11th
+5
+3
+7
+3
3
3
2
-
-
12th
+6/+1
+4
+8
+4
3
3
2
0
-
13th
+6/+1
+4
+8
+4
3
3
2
1
-
14th
+7/+2
+4
+9
+4
3
3
2
2
-
15th
+7/+2
+5
+9
+5
3
3
3
2
-
16th
+8/+3
+5
+10
+5
3
3
3
2
0
17th
+8/+3
+5
+10
+5
3
3
3
2
1
18th
+9/+4
+6
+11
+6
3
3
3
2
2
19th
+9/+4
+6
+11
+6
3
3
3
3
2
20th
+10/+5
+6
+12
+6
3
3
3
3
2
Class Features
All of the following are class features of the covert.
Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: Coverts are proficient with all simple weapons. They are not proficient with any type of armor, nor with shields, and suffer the normal arcane spell failure chance from wearing either.
Spells: A covert casts arcane spells, which are drawn from the covert spell list. He can cast any spell he knows without preparing it ahead of time. To learn or cast a spell, a covert must have a Charisma score equal to at least 10 + the spell. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a covert’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the covert’s Charisma modifier.
Like other spellcasters, a covert can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. His base daily spell allotment is given on Table: The Covert. In addition, he receives bonus spells per day if he has a high Charisma score. When Table: Covert Spells Known indicates that the covert gets 0 spells per day of a given spell level, he gains only the bonus spells he would be entitled to based on his Charisma score for that spell level.
The covert’s selection of spells is extremely limited. A covert begins play knowing four 0-level spells of your choice. At most new covert levels, he gains one or more new spells, as indicated on Table: Covert Spells Known. (Unlike spells per day, the number of spells a covert knows is not affected by his Charisma score; the numbers on Table: Covert Spells Known are fixed.)
Upon reaching 5th level, and at every third covert level after that (8th, 11th, and so on), a covert can choose to learn a new spell in place of one he already knows. In effect, the covert “loses” the old spell in exchange for the new one. The new spell’s level must be the same as that of the spell being exchanged, and it must be at least two levels lower than the highest-level covert spell the covert can cast. A covert may swap only a single spell at any given level, and must choose whether or not to swap the spell at the same time that he gains new spells known for the level.
As noted above, a covert need not prepare his spells in advance. He can cast any spell he knows at any time, assuming he has not yet used up his allotment of spells per day for the spell’s level.
Cantrips (Sp): Coverts learn a number of cantrips, or 0-level spells, as noted on Table: Covert Spells Known under "Spells Known." These spells are cast like any other spell, but they do not consume any slots and may be used again.
Skill Focus: At 2nd level, coverts gain addition mastery of their craft, whatever that craft happens to be. They gain Skill Focus as a bonus feat.
Covert Spell List
Coverts choose their spells from the following list.
0 Level: dancing lights, daze, detect magic, ghost sound, light, lulluby, mending, prestidigitation, read magic, touch of fatigue.
1st Level: cause fear, charm person, command, comprehend languages, detect secret doors, disguise self, feather fall, hypnotism, jump, lesser confusion, magic aura, silent image, sleep, ventriloquism.
2nd Level: cat’s grace, daze monster, detect thoughts, eagle's splendor, fox's cunning, find traps, hideous laughter, hypnotic pattern, invisibility, minor image, mirror image, misdirection, scare, undetectable alignment.
3rd Level: deep slumber, displacement, fear, glibness, haste, heroism, hold person, major image, rage, suggestion, slow, tongues.
4th Level: charm monster, confusion, crushing despair, good hope, fear, lesser geas, phantasmal killer, rainbow pattern.
5th Level: break enchantment, dominate person, greater command, permanent image, mass suggestion, mirage arcana, mind fog, seeming.
Table: Covert Spells Known
Level
0
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
1st
2
2
2nd
2
2
3rd
3
2
4th
3
2
2*
5th
3
2
2
6th
3
3
2
7th
3
3
2
8th
3
3
2
2*
9th
3
3
2
2
10th
3
3
3
2
11th
4
3
3
2
12th
4
3
3
2
2*
13th
4
3
3
3
2
14th
4
4
3
3
2
15th
4
4
3
3
3
16th
4
4
3
3
3
2*
17th
4
4
3
3
3
2
18th
4
4
4
3
3
2
19th
4
4
4
3
3
3
20th
4
4
4
4
3
3
*Provided the covert has a high enough Charisma score to have a bonus spell of this level.
This is a repost and Pathfinder update of an NPC class I had posted a while ago on Wizard's board, originally called the Charlatan. I have not yet gone through the spell list, so there is potential for wonkiness there, but everything else should be updated.