Help Building an IRS agent in 5e

[moonfly7]

There 3 things we are promised: life, death, and taxes. Out of those 3, there are agents assigned to carry them out. Angels heal body and soul, Grim reaper come at night and take you to your final rest, and the Tax Collector? He is the most terrifying of all.
Title says it all. Let's build an IRS agent in DND 5e! Yes, my DM hates my guts thanks for asking.
But to start us off:
Maybe paladin of conquering? The fear effects definitely fit. Perhaps warlock works for some stuff, mostly flavor though. Fighter could work for a tax man who deals with less....willing citizens.
A DND IRS agent would have to collect from necromancer, or chiefs, and cultists. Surely they'd have some skills.

[firelistener]

Whatever the class, I suggest modeling your background on the Guild Artisan (PHB) or Courtier (SCAG). Historical tax collectors actually purchased the right to collect taxes ahead of time and made money by collecting interest on top of the raw tax from each payer. So they would start out in debt, then collect all the tax to make it back plus interest.

The US's IRS functions very differently, where the employees are paid normal wages and thus have no real incentive to collect more than what is truly owed. If you want to go true IRS, then I think paladin would be good. Oath of the Crown (SCAG) might fit better than Conquest since the character is beholden to a government authority. The spells are also pretty good for "shakedowns" if you need to Command someone to drop some money or use Zone of Truth to figure out tax fraud.

[CheddarChampion]

Conquest/Crown Paladin, Inquisitive Rogue, Fiend Tome Warlock (for alternative payment methods and your tome is a tax log).

Or you could go with a peaceful/cc method where you debuff/charm an enemy, take their taxes, and leave:
Glamour Bard, Redemption Paladin, Enchantment Wizard, Sorcerer w/ Subtle spell (Dragon: "For the Hoard?")

[KorvinStarmast]

A DND IRS agent would have to collect from necromancer, or chiefs, and cultists. Surely they'd have some skills.
Bard, Whispers.
Expertise in Intimidation and Persuasion.
Go forth and do great things with that suggestion spell: "Surely, you can show me the receipt for that."
Then, when level 6 hits, you can strike feat into the hearts of any tax payer ...

[Corran]

Zone of truth and disintegrate would suffice imo. So, bard?
Edit: Or divine soul sorcerer.

[moonfly7]

Whatever the class, I suggest modeling your background on the Guild Artisan (PHB) or Courtier (SCAG). Historical tax collectors actually purchased the right to collect taxes ahead of time and made money by collecting interest on top of the raw tax from each payer. So they would start out in debt, then collect all the tax to make it back plus interest.

The US's IRS functions very differently, where the employees are paid normal wages and thus have no real incentive to collect more than what is truly owed. If you want to go true IRS, then I think paladin would be good. Oath of the Crown (SCAG) might fit better than Conquest since the character is beholden to a government authority. The spells are also pretty good for "shakedowns" if you need to Command someone to drop some money or use Zone of Truth to figure out tax fraud.
See, this is why I like the play ground. Didn't even cross my mind to consider spells(stupid I know, but I'm a barbarian at heart. I just wack until it stops moving, that's real life though.) Crown paladin actually sounds pretty dope actually.

Conquest/Crown Paladin, Inquisitive Rogue, Fiend Tome Warlock (for alternative payment methods and your tome is a tax log).

Or you could go with a peaceful/cc method where you debuff/charm an enemy, take their taxes, and leave:
Glamour Bard, Redemption Paladin, Enchantment Wizard, Sorcerer w/ Subtle spell (Dragon: "For the Hoard?")
Not quite sure why fiend warl.....ooooh souls. Ok get it now. Maybe also order cleric? It works great for law enforcement, but could work for someone who truly believes in the system.

Bard, Whispers.
Expertise in Intimidation and Persuasion.
Go forth and do great things with that suggestion spell: "Surely, you can show me the receipt for that."
Then, when level 6 hits, you can strike feat into the hearts of any tax payer ...


Zone of truth and disintegrate would suffice imo. So, bard?
Edit: Or divine soul sorcerer.

Looking at bard pretty hard right now to be honest. Obviously I'd be true neutral. I only care about making sure people file their taxes correctly. If you don't pay I'll have to foreclose your house, no exceptions. But if someone's screwing over someone else by messing with their taxes, I'll throw down.

[Corran]

Looking at bard pretty hard right now to be honest. Obviously I'd be true neutral. I only care about making sure people file their taxes correctly. If you don't pay I'll have to foreclose your house, no exceptions. But if someone's screwing over someone else by messing with their taxes, I'll throw down.
I purposely went with the not-evil approach, otherwise it would be zone of truth insight and finger of death!
As a bard you'll have good charisma (presumably) and expertise, so since I am guessing that collecting taxes is meant to be (primarily) a social encounter, or at least I am guessing that this is your plan, bard is definitely a good choice (I also liked the suggestion of an inquisitive rogue upthread). Access to spells (like zone of truth) can only help. Though I am basically responding because I thought that an acolyte (probably of Waukeen) could be a good background, for some extra in-character motivation.

[moonfly7]

I purposely went with the not-evil approach, otherwise it would be zone of truth insight and finger of death!
As a bard you'll have good charisma (presumably) and expertise, so since I am guessing that collecting taxes is meant to be (primarily) a social encounter, or at least I am guessing that this is your plan, bard is definitely a good choice (I also liked the suggestion of an inquisitive rogue upthread). Access to spells (like zone of truth) can only help. Though I am basically responding because I thought that an acolyte (probably of Waukeen) could be a good background, for some extra in-character motivation.
Definitely feeling the inquisitive bard combo, and yeah, mostly social I'd bet. 1 question though: whose Waukeen?

[Corran]

Definitely feeling the inquisitive bard combo, and yeah, mostly social I'd bet. 1 question though: whose Waukeen?
https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Waukeen
With emphasis on the ''beneficial use of wealth to improve civilization'', from the perspective of a dedicated (= true neutral?) tax collector (if you aim for your pc to be one, that is).

[Nidgit]

Order Cleric seems like an obvious pick to me. You're upholding the law and compelling people to obey- Order Clerics are highly lawful but can be G/N/E as you wish. Command, Zone of Truth, Compulsion, Locate Creature for tracking down debtors, a charm effect CD, it's all there.

[moonfly7]

https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Waukeen
With emphasis on the ''beneficial use of wealth to improve civilization'', from the perspective of a dedicated (= true neutral?) tax collector (if you aim for your pc to be one, that is).
Pretty cool. 1 issue, which could be awesome honestly: she's also the goddess of smugglers and those who avoid taxes via the black market. So, concept: Clerics of Waukeen are often hired to collect taxes because of their connection to wealth and their desire to see it used properly, so my Tax Collector does the same. But at the same time he aids smugglers and black marketeers avoid the Tax laws, and then gets paid by them for the legal or otherwise loopholes and help he provides. This money then mysteriously appears in the Treasury, or wherever taxes should go.
Thus Waukeen protects the economy and the place illicit trade has in it while maintaining order.
Plus it gives me criminal contacts.
Alternatively my tax collector simply follows the lawful and right side of the coin while some of his brother clerics, even at the same temple follow Waukeens more lawless side. Which would be funny to show that he has friendships or at least friendly relations with clerics whose jobs are to help others dodge taxes.

[Segev]

I'm going to go a strange direction and suggest a Totem Warrior Barbarian. A lot of your tax collection will be on farms and farmers, and so speak with animals will let you interview the "employees" of your targets before you ever even get to them. People load and unload contraband and smuggled goods in front of horses all the time. Even in cities, bribing some mice to do some snooping for you can be lucrative.

Go for a grapple specialist (a human or half-human with the Prodigy feat could have expertise in Athletics), and have your rage be entering a bureaucratic [intensity] where you start listing out laws, codes, violations, and in particular tax classifications and how much they have. Grapple them so they can't get away and keep shoving their noses into your documentation (which may or may not be on sturdy wood so that you have an improvized club to beat them with if they're continually recalcitrant).

Bear totem at 3rd level; you yawn at any damage they do, even necrotic or acid, and add a cleaning fee for your work uniform (which is whatever you happen to be wearing) to their taxes.

Eagle totem at 6th level; you can read over their shoulders from quite a distance away, and spot tax evaders as they try to flee.

[Laserlight]

I don't have any real complaints about the IRS (Revenue Canada is a different story!), but bear in mind that one key difference between a tax collector and a bandit is that if you kill a group of bandits, they don't necessarily get reinforcements and come back.

[Corran]

Pretty cool. 1 issue, which could be awesome honestly: she's also the goddess of smugglers and those who avoid taxes via the black market. So, concept: Clerics of Waukeen are often hired to collect taxes because of their connection to wealth and their desire to see it used properly, so my Tax Collector does the same. But at the same time he aids smugglers and black marketeers avoid the Tax laws, and then gets paid by them for the legal or otherwise loopholes and help he provides. This money then mysteriously appears in the Treasury, or wherever taxes should go.
Thus Waukeen protects the economy and the place illicit trade has in it while maintaining order.
The dogma certainly is conflicting (but what would you expect from a deity with a coin as a symbol). Being true neutral could perhaps justify it? I mean, you can certainly talk with your DM and change things here and there to make the religion more fitting to what you want it to be. Character motivation aside, I was thinking that a temple (where the whole group could find quests every now and then) could make collecting taxes (plus whatever else the quest involves/triggers) more of a thing you are actually doing, rather than something that just your character is doing during downtime.



Plus it gives me criminal contacts.
Yep, having a few people owing a favor or two could come in handy, certainly. That could be your background feature right there.



Alternatively my tax collector simply follows the lawful and right side of the coin while some of his brother clerics, even at the same temple follow Waukeens more lawless side. Which would be funny to show that he has friendships or at least friendly relations with clerics whose jobs are to help others dodge taxes.
That sounds interesting too. Though unless you have a temple of your faith be instrumental to what the pc's are doing, it's probably going to be something that even you will soon forget about. At least I don't see how this reality (although interesting on its own) can materialize to something interesting for the whole party, unless everyone has a role to play in it (so, temple/deity must be at the center of the campaign).

[moonfly7]

The dogma certainly is conflicting (but what would you expect from a deity with a coin as a symbol). Being true neutral could perhaps justify it? I mean, you can certainly talk with your DM and change things here and there to make the religion more fitting to what you want it to be. Character motivation aside, I was thinking that a temple (where the whole group could find quests every now and then) could make collecting taxes (plus whatever else the quest involves/triggers) more of a thing you are actually doing, rather than something that just your character is doing during downtime.



Yep, having a few people owing a favor or two could come in handy, certainly. That could be your background feature right there.



That sounds interesting too. Though unless you have a temple of your faith be instrumental to what the pc's are doing, it's probably going to be something that even you will soon forget about. At least I don't see how this reality (although interesting on its own) can materialize to something interesting for the whole party, unless everyone has a role to play in it (so, temple/deity must be at the center of the campaign).

No I totally agree, I plan on collecting taxes as much as possible. To the point where if we hit a slow area in game, I'm going to pull the party with me.
As for the temple not coming up, in my opinion it doesn't necessarily have too. My DM generally appreciates world building help, and I enjoy doing it. So if the temples come up, that's exactly what I want. If not, it's something I kept in reserve but never used. As for usefulness though, knowing I can find devout members of the faith who have vast criminal skills sounds pretty awesome to me.