Illus. by D. Bircham
restige classes offer an excellent way for scoundrels to further expand on their myriad abilities or to become expert in a particular field. Just as characters of all classes can be scoundrels, all can benefit from the prestige classes presented in this chapter. Some of these classes also draw on two new rule sets introduced in Chapter 3: luck feats and skill tricks.
Choosing a Prestige Class
Whether you are creating a new character, advancing a beloved old character, or designing an antagonist to challenge the party, consider the nuances of each prestige class in this chapter. Knowing what you want to do with your scoundrel can help you choose which prestige class to take; the following short descriptions will guide you to the proper path. Bad Guys/Good Guys: Members of these prestige classes are defined first by their alignment or their outlook on the world, then by their other abilities. Roleplaying one of these characters means putting attitude first. Melee: Scoundrels who seek out melee are relatively rare, but those who do so often enter these prestige classes, which typically offer sneak attacks and similar precisionbased attacks.
Ranged: The role of ranged attacker is more comfortable for most scoundrels, letting them exploit their specialties while reducing the chance of being slaughtered by a burly foe. Magical: Characters entering these prestige classes rely on magic (or psionics) to power their primary abilities, though they might have more mundane class features as well. Sneaky: Exploiting the quintessential quality of the scoundrel, sneaky prestige classes focus on moving unseen through enemy territory or making devastating surprise attacks on the heels of a distraction. While nearly any scoundrel-oriented prestige class is somewhat stealthy, these take the concept to its ultimate expression. Support: These prestige classes are best at gathering and disseminating information or using their abilities to help other characters. Some also have strong combat abilities in their own right, but battle is not generally their primary role. Tricky: Luck feats and skill tricks let scoundrels pull off stunts that other characters can’t hope to achieve. The prestige classes in this category use one or the other of these new rules subsystems.
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