 Twilight Talon
Source Adventurer's Guide pg. 72
Of all the members of the Eagle Knights, Twilight Talons often pay the highest price for the freedom the Eagle Knights work so hard to achieve, sacrificing years of their lives to serve as spies in nations whose cultures make their stomachs turn, and never receiving credit for or acknowledgment of their accomplishments—or even their existence. Perhaps even more exhausting are the moral and ethical choices a Twilight Talon has to make on so many of her missions. Often, such choices end up being difficult decisions made between two evils, and in many cases, a Twilight Talon ends up having to deal with the consequences of such decisions for months or even years to come. Yet to make no decision at all in such a time is perhaps the greatest evil of all, for to the Twilight Talon, acting in the best of intentions is always a better option than remaining quiet and allowing evil and cruelty to continue unopposed. Being selected to serve as a Twilight Talon is an honor bestowed on only the select few who Marshal Helena Trellis, head of the Talons, believes trustworthy enough to carry out the commitment and of strong enough character to be able to make morally difficult decisions for the best of Andoran—all without public recognition. To a Twilight Talon, a job well done is one that no one outside of the Talons ever knew occurred in the first place.
A candidate for the Twilight Talons rarely meets her commanding officer in person—it’s only after she’s been accepted into the fold that she begins to learn details about others in the group, and even then, only on a need-to-know basis. Twilight Talons train carefully in the arts of intrigue and spycraft, but they also endeavor to keep their combat skills up to snuff so that when the perfect opportunity arises, they are prepared to take swift and brutal advantage. When on a mission for the group, a Twilight Talon might tell friends and family that she’s leaving under some false pretense, but more often she just disappears for months or even years at a time. When a Twilight Talon works with a group of like-minded allies (as is the case when one works with an adventuring group), she may or may not reveal her true allegiance to her companions, but if she does, she must be prepared for the repercussions if those she trusts as allies do not keep her secret.RequirementsTo qualify to become a Twilight Talon, a character must fulfill the following criteria.
Alignment: Any nonevil.
Feats: Catch Off-Guard, Twilight Tattoo†.
Skills: Bluff 5 ranks, Disguise 5 ranks, Knowledge (local) 2 ranks, Linguistics 2 ranks, Stealth 5 ranks.
Special: A senior Eagle Knight must invite the character into the organization.Class SkillsThe Twilight Talon's class skills are Acrobatics (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Diplomacy (Cha), Disable Device (Dex), Disguise (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (geography) (Int), Knowledge (local) (Int), Knowledge (nobility) (Int), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Linguistics (Int), Perception (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Stealth (Dex), and Survival (Wis).
Skill Points at each Level: 6 + Int modifier.
Hit Die: d8.Class Features| Level | Base Attack Bonus | Fort Save | Ref Save | Will Save | Special | | 1st | +0 | +0 | +0 | +1 | Many hats, sneak attack +1d6 | | 2nd | +1 | +1 | +1 | +1 | Enhanced tattoo 1, resourceful agent | | 3rd | +2 | +1 | +1 | +2 | Eye for detail | | 4th | +3 | +1 | +1 | +2 | Enhanced tattoo 2, sneak attack +2d6 | | 5th | +3 | +2 | +2 | +3 | Dead drop (minor), resourceful agent (enhanced critical) | | 6th | +4 | +2 | +2 | +3 | Enhanced tattoo 3, unassuming presence | | 7th | +5 | +2 | +2 | +4 | Sneak attack +3d6 | | 8th | +6 | +3 | +3 | +4 | Enhanced tattoo 4, dead drop (major) | | 9th | +6 | +3 | +3 | +5 | Resourceful agent (staggering critical) | | 10th | +7 | +3 | +3 | +5 | Enhanced tattoo 5, sneak attack +4d6 |
The following are class features of the Twilight Talon prestige class.
Many Hats (Ex): A Twilight Talon is often required to take the role of a specific profession for the purpose of getting close to a target while remaining inconspicuous, becoming an everyday part of that target’s life until the time to strike arrives. As long as a Twilight Talon is within 60 feet of another character with ranks in Profession (architect, barrister, clerk, courtesan, driver, engineer, innkeeper, librarian, merchant, or scribe), the Twilight Talon can pick up cues and practices in performing that job, and can use her Sense Motive check in place of that particular Profession check.
Sneak Attack: This functions as the rogue ability of the same name. The extra damage dealt is 1d6 at 1st level, and it increases by 1d6 every 3 levels thereafter. If a Twilight Talon gets a sneak attack bonus from another source, the bonuses to damage stack.
Enhanced Tattoo (Sp): As a Twilight Talon gains levels, her Twilight Tattoo feat gains enhancements, allowing her to use certain spell-like abilities. At 2nd level and every 2 levels thereafter, the Twilight Talon gains access to one of the spells listed for that level as a spell-like ability: 2nd level—disguise self or undetectable alignment; 4th level— alter self or invisibility; 6th level—glibness or secret page; 8th level—modify memory or zone of silence; 10th level—mislead or seeming. These spell-like abilities function at a caster level equal to the Twilight Talon’s character level, and each ability can be used once per day. The save DC for these spell like abilities is 10 + half the Twilight Talon’s level + her Charisma modifier.
Resourceful Agent (Ex): A Twilight Talon often can’t risk carrying traditional weapons, as doing so would seem out of place for many of the covers that she employs. Instead, she becomes a master at maximizing the potential in everyday objects used as improvised weapons. At 2nd level, a Twilight Talon increases the amount of damage she deals with improvised weapons by one step (for example, 1d4 becomes 1d6). At 5th level, all improvised weapons used by a Twilight Talon have a base critical threat range of 19–20, and she gains Critical Focus as a bonus feat. At 9th level, a Twilight Talon gains Staggering Critical as a bonus feat.
Eye for Detail (Ex): Part of a Twilight Talon’s training is the extensive study of the most common bureaucratic documents in Golarion’s major nations, allowing her to accurately forge documents. At 3rd level, when forging a document associated with any government, she automatically receives a +8 bonus on Linguistics checks to create a forgery (as though she had seen a similar document before).
Dead Drop (Ex): A Twilight Talon prepares for many contingencies and can tap her underground network for supplies, provided she pays into her dead drop fund beforehand. At 5th level, by spending an hour spreading around coin in any small town or larger settlement, the Twilight Talon gains the ability to access dead drops of equipment in the field. A Twilight Talon can pay any amount into her dead drop fund when she does so, but can never have more than a total of 100 gp per class level in her dead drop fund.
A dead drop functions as an emergency cache of gear that any Twilight Talon agent can access while in the field. Part of the process of paying into the fund includes arranging dead drop locations in areas that the Twilight Talon suspects she may visit in the future. At any point in a wilderness region, but no more often than once per day, the Twilight Talon can take 1d8 hours to seek out the closest dead drop, at which point she can purchase any item from the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook from the dead drop, deducting the price from the amount of gold she has paid into the fund at that date. At the GM’s discretion, gear from other sourcebooks may also be available in a dead drop. In particularly remote locations, a GM may rule that no dead drops can exist, but the GM should inform the Twilight Talon of this fact when expeditions to such areas are planned. Dead drops shift locations often, so each time a Twilight Talon seeks one out, she must spend the 1d8 hours to find it.
At 8th level, it takes a Twilight Talon only 10 minutes to pay into her dead drop fund, it takes only 30 minutes to locate a dead drop in the wild, and her maximum dead drop fund increases to 2,500 gp. (This total does not increase when she gains additional levels.)
Unassuming Presence (Su): A Twilight Talon learns to quickly direct attention away from herself using subtle physical cues. At 6th level, a Twilight Talon can attempt an opposed Bluff check as a swift action against each enemy creature within 30 feet. If she succeeds against every target, the Twilight Talon can immediately attempt a Stealth check as though she had concealment; she gains a bonus equal to her Twilight Talon class level on this Stealth check. She can use this ability up to three times per day.
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