There are people in Midworld blessed by good fortune: their sails are always blowing in the right direction and their feet are always beneath them when they fall. The Fate-stealer is amongst these rare roster of folk, but they have “refined” their luck to the greatest of heights. They regularly achieve the impossible with nothing but plain providence, reflecting magic, cheating death and even changing the fates of those around them.

Those who delve deeply into the lores of the Fate-stealer find the answers to be just as strange as those who walk its Path. Fate-stealers both consciously and subconsciously bend the fates of those around them, expertly threading across the weave of reality. Many believe that Fate-stealers worship gods and deities of luck, stealing good fortune from their benefactors and receiving good humor instead of wrath for their audacity.

Whatever the truth of their technique, Fate-stealers tend to be free agents rather than the minions of a Guild or a Power Group. They are not all anarchists or wholly individualistic, but their free-wheeling, chaotic nature ill-suits the rigid structures of most organizations. That said, many of the documented Fate-stealers belong to Power Groups with a loose grasp of their roster. Fate-stealers are also often found on ships as captains, stealing their fate and the fate of their minions from the depths of the seas.

Aberrant Paths:  Two paths branch out from the Path of the Fate-stealer: the spiritual, totemic Fate-Dancer and the zealous, faithful Fate-Reaver.

The Fate-Dancer has been chosen by a mysterious Totem, allowing them the ability to alter fates and fortunes through spiritual will rather than metaphysical finesse. The Fate-Reaver is an agent of their clergy. They are granted divine sanction and supernatural powers to advance their faith’s goals.

Requirements:

• any 10th level Rogue feature
• Bardic Mastery skill
• Toughness (rank 10) skill
• Redirect feat
• You must be a Chosen of a God with access to the Chaos sphere.

Affiliations: The Riverfolk’s Crimson Fleet is known of their anarchic and law-defying corsairs and adventurers. It is with little wonder that some Fate-stealers claim mentorship from these crazed, chaotic folk.

Similarly, the Burning Dawn Guild of Labyrinthium is said to teach would-be Fate-stealers the basics of this Path. Those that would go to the Burning Dawn would be best forewarned however: the Guild is known not only for their drunken carousing and their wanton raiding but also for their ruthlessness and their lack of regard for any life.

Entrance: The organizations above have many Fate-stealers in their employ, so oftentimes the beginning of this Mythic Path requires entering and/or sufficiently impressing the leadership or membership of these groups. Sometimes, these groups will require a would-be Fate-stealer to steal several valuables from a target they indicate. On occasion, they will steal something of great value from the would-be Fate-stealer and give them the chance to steal it back.

Phys-rep Requirements: Every Fate-stealer openly displays upon their person a lucky charm or several. Perhaps it’s a ragged old bandana that they refuse to take off, a lucky rabbit foot or the holy symbol of their faith.
Attunement: Part of this Path’s initiation is the trading away of a part of your essence (1 latent effect slot) in exchange for greater power. Forever thereafter, label this slot with the name of this Path.

Steal Fate: Through training of the spirit and the will, you may bend the threads of fates and fortunes to your favor. Once per Period, you may metaphysically distract the powers that be and steal fate from the hands of destiny and fortune to be your own. This must be preceded by an act of gambling, a comedic performance or a one on one duel (must be a deadly one) that lasts for at least 10 minutes. Naturally, you must be a primary party to any of these actions.

Doing this grants you your choice of ONE of the benefits below:

• Divine Theft: You steal from the cosmos itself. Grant yourself a basic or complex latent Faith, Fate or Chaos spell as though someone had cast it as a Harbinger of Chaos. You need not pay any component cost for it, although it only lasts for the remainder of the current Moon.
• Lucky Fool: For the remainder of the current Moon, you gain an Expert (0 SP) use of the Dodge feat – this is usable only once per Short Rest. You may only choose this once per Moon.
• Happy go Lucky: You are granted 10 AP as a Shielding effect that does not stack with any sources of AP. You may replenish this with at least 10 minutes of gambling (card/dice play) or dueling wherein you win at least one game or duel. Increase this AP by 5 every time you choose this in the same Moon.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Lucky and Dangerous: You may always apply the damage bonuses of the Dirty Fighting skill to your Critical Strikes and Totem Strikes, even though you are not performing a Backstab or Flourish attack.

Furthermore, you gain all weapon proficiencies and the dual weapon proficiency, if you do not have it yet.

Trap-springer (Skullduggery (rank 3) skill or Master Artificer skill) When you are hit by a trap, you may halve the amount of damage or control effects you would normally take. This also includes the effects of disjuncting a Conjuration through the Skullduggery or Artificer skills.

Alternatively, you may say “Trap-springer’s Luck” and spend 2 SP to redirect the effect of a Trap you just received to another target within “whirlwind reach” of you. You may only redirect a Trap’s effects to someone who is not affected by the Trap (yet).

Furthermore, you gain the Cautious Harvester skill of the Survivalist if you do not have it yet.

Bend Fate: You may augment the Redirect feat and the Evade feat, prefacing either with “Fateful” to allow you to use them for 1 SP instead of 2 SP. After you augment either feat in this manner, you need to re-center yourself by Channeling for 10 seconds or completing a Short Rest.

Furthermore, bending Fate in this manner halves the effects of whatever you were redirecting, in duration, damage or any other numerical manner.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Contagious Luck: When using the Bend Fate feature, you may instead augment your Dodge feat to allow you to negate a physical attack that hit an ally that you touch. To do this, preface Dodge with “Intercept”.

Naturally, this cannot be used again until Bend Fate is recharged.

Enhance Healing (requires Thief of Air feat): When you regain HP from a healing spell, you may use your Fate-stealer talents to empower the spell to your benefit, bending the arcane currents with your will. You may say “Enhance Healing, Heal 10” immediately afterward – although you are then Dazed for 10 seconds.

You may also use this feature to empower magical healing done to a fellow Chosen you touch, although this must be done within 5 seconds of the initial healing. You may not use this feature while Dazed.

Spurn Fate: Your first Death Count is increased to 10 minutes and your second Death Count is increased to 5 minutes. This may not be increased any further, but they may be subject to effects that decrease them.

Also, you may avoid your demise once per Short Rest as though you had the Priest’s Harbinger of Fate skill.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Chaos Surge When you use the Bend Fate feature to augment the Redirect feat against a ranged attack that just hit you, you may deliver the redirected effect via spell-packet. The damage or effect is still halved as normal.

Song of Fortune (requires Song of the Heart skill): When you use Song of the Heart to revive someone at their Death count or their Critical Death count, you may also heal them for 10 HP.

Furthermore, you are incredibly irritating if you want to be (and sometimes when you don’t mean to be) – when you use the Mocking Words feat as a wave effect, you may choose to inflict a “Daze 10” or “Confuse 10” instead of the Taunt effect.

Misses and Mishaps (requires Thief of Might feat):  When you use the Dodge or Evade feat, you can sacrifice one “expert” feat that you would have made to instead inflict an “Expert” Weakness 20 against a target of your choice — cursing their soul with bad luck temporarily. Inflicting this effect costs 0 SP. You may deliver this effect via melee attack or spell-packet.

Thief of Fates: You may feature also allows you to change the Fates of everyone around you in a grand scale. Once per Short Rest, you may augment your Dodge or Evade, prefacing it with “Fate-Stealer’s” and following the Dodge or Evade feat with two “Intercept Dodge” or “Intercept Evade” feats that must be used within the next five seconds.

Furthermore, when you use Steal Fate, you may invoke it spontaneously — without the preamble of gambling, being funny or dueling — emulate one of the following abilities below:

• The Assassin sub-class— “Maybe Next Time”
• The Scoundrel sub-class – “Acquisitions Expert” (defensive function only)
• The Swashbuckler sub-class – “Reversal of Fortunes”

Lastly, your constant tomfoolery and bamboozlement have earned the favor of the fates, but also their ire on occasion. Whenever you die, you may no longer commute the loss of life with a Pure Component or through any other method.

While Fate-stealers thieve their powers from divinities, the Path of the Fate-Dancer is given power over the currents of fortune through the magics of a Great Totem. These Totems are usually entities with aspects of winds and mystery, allowing them to influence reality in chaotic and undetectable ways.

Fate-Dancers also possess the ability to enter a Totemic Shift, similar to what Adepts can do. However, they temper this spiritual ability with their capacities in dodging what the Fates can throw at them.

Unfortunately for most Fate-Dancers, the prospect of housing a Totem often leads others to believe that they are completely unhinged. They talk to the Totem, argue with the Totem and occasionally have to wrest control of their bodies from the benefactors.

Additional Requirements:

• the investiture of a Totemic entity.
• Dance of Shadows feat

Affiliation: Training as a Fate-Dancer is usually a difficult prospect to find due to the very mobile and chaotic nature of its trainers. There have been documented reports of Fate-Dancers among the Grellken of the Bloodscreamer Clan and the Stormgrimm Dwarves of the Stone Clans. It should also be noted that these two Clans are far from the only source of Fate-Dancer training. Belit, Mariner-Priestess of the Mardalla is said to be one.

Phys-rep Requirements: Fate-Dancers must display a Totemic Mark, similar to what an Adept is required to have on display. The Mark changes to either a Moon Mark or a Storm Mark depending on what kind of component is sacrificed (see below).

Additional Attunement/Cost: You must sacrifice a basic Shadow OR a basic Lightning component (choose one) to the Totem within you.

You do not get the Steal Fate feature. Instead, you may sacrifice a basic Shadow or Lightning component to the Totem that now resides within you. Depending on which type of component you used, you may use the Zephyr’s Dark-moon Dance (shadow) or Storm-crow Dance (lightning) once per Period as if you were a 1st level Zephyr.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Spiritual Convergence (requires Aura-sight skill): You gain the Spiritual Communion feature of the Adept, granting you the Spirit Sight skill and the ability to create an in-game light source.

Furthermore, Basic feats and skills with the word Totemic in their name or those of the Totem-type may be learned as though you were an Adept. For the purposes of these Feats and Skills, you are a Zephyr and your Totem is either Storm or Moon, depending on the type of component you sacrificed.

At the seventh Tier of this Mythic Path, you gain similar access to complex Totemic or Totem-type feats and skills.

Adept of Anarchy: You do not get the Thief of Fates feature.

However, if you sacrifice a total of 3 basic Lightning or 3 basic Shadow components to your Totem, you gain the special damage bonuses of either Dance (choose one) for the remainder of the moon, regardless of whether you are in a Totemic Shift or not.

Furthermore, while you are in a Totemic Shift granted by this Path, you have no need to recharge “Bend Fate” if you sacrifice 10 HP in addition to the SP cost.

Lastly, you may use the Zephyr’s “Stride of Five Winds” defensive ability once per Period as though you had it.

Fate-Reavers are trained by the clergy of their faith to advance its causes. In fact, many Fate-Reavers act as members their religion’s Priesthood. However, these divine agents can be distinguished by the crazy acts of providence that surround them and their lack of mastery with regards to spellcraft.

The chaos of the Fate-stealer is made intentional and holy by the Fate-Reaver’s training. Instead of taking divine power from a distracted divinity, Fate-reavers are invested with their abilities, granting them greater control over what they can do. Furthermore, Fate-Reavers are granted special dispensations from their churches, granted missions and given access to secrets beyond even that of the common priest.

Each Fate-reaver is a boon and a weapon of their church and woe be to the heretic and the apostate that treads across their way.

Additional Requirements:

• The Icon of Deception spell must be cast upon you.
• Special dispensation and ordination of an appropriate religion.
• Musical Arcana skill

Affiliation: Training as a Fate-Reaver can usually found in the upper echelons of their respective faiths. Of the churches in Midworld, the Gotterdammerung’s Reaver Creed, Ixia’s Keepers of Fate, Jotunbrud’s Luccari and the Callasine’s Mystery of the Glimmering Stars are reputed to train Fate-Reavers.

Additional Attunements/Costs: The maintenance of the Icon of Deception spell upon your person will require Components (see Agent of the Divine (Tier 1)).

Phys-rep Requirements: You must bear the symbol of your religion somewhere upon your person, as per the requirements of the Icon of Deception spell.

In addition to the Steal Fate feature, you gain the ability to learn and cast basic and complex Faith spells. If your religion allows you access to the Fate and/or Chaos spheres, you may learn and cast basic spells from those spheres as well. You may only learn and cast these spells while under the divine influence of an Icon of Deception spell.

Lastly, you are able to potentially sustain the Icon spell for long periods. At the end of every Month, you can sacrifice a basic Holy or Shadow component to maintain it for the next Moon. This allows the Icon to persist until you are unable to sustain it or until it is dispelled from you, assuming that you keep sacrificing components to maintain it.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Fate-Reaving: After successfully performing the Assassinate feat or the Life-stealer attack, you may store some of your target’s fateful energies within yourself. While you are charged with fate energies, the damage of your Divine-type spells and the HP replenished by your Healing-type spells is increased by 10. You may only one such charge of energy stored within yourself at a time and it expires after an hour if unused.

Furthermore, when casting a basic Faith, Chaos or Fate spell, you may expend this energy that you have stored, waiving the Channel cost of your spell – this spell is empowered as per above, even as you expend fate energy to cast it. Preface the spell with “Through Stolen Fates”

You do not get the Thief of Fate feature. Instead you are able to bring the Gaze of your deity upon a creature within your sight and after Channeling for 30 seconds then saying “the Gaze of the Divine is upon you” – similar to the Seeker’s “Eye of God” ability. Against your target, your Assassinate feat, Divine-type and Healing-type spells are improved in power by 10 points. The target is under the effect of this feature until it dies or you use this feature against someone else.

Finally, once per Period, you may use Steal Fate to warp the threads of fate and escape danger. To do this, say “Divine Glare!” and perform a “Whirlwind Snare 30”. If you wish, you may also gain an escape effect (similar to an instant Flee the Scene) for 100 seconds, vanishing into the threads of the cosmos.  You may clarify that you cannot be pursued.

Among the Mythic Paths, few are as painfully obvious and as flamboyantly debonair as the Path of the Night-Prince. While others use weaponry and spellcraft to get their way in the world, these charming individuals need only use their charisma and their wit to open doors and astound enemies. With only words, a Night-prince can confuse the most bloodthirsty demon, wheedle secrets from the most stone-faced keepers and even rally comrades from the brink of death.

Many who walk this Path lend their considerable talents to a Major Guild or a Power Group, since this affiliation allows them easier access toward the maintenance of their vanity items. However, a fair amount of Night-Princes prefer their own employ to the word of others, finding employment as emissaries, diplomats or negotiators. Night-Princes are also well suited to the rigors and trials of leadership, bringing inspiration and motivation to pirate crews, military units or adventuring parties.

Despite its name, the walkers of this Path belong to both sexes and everything in between. Most call themselves Night-Princes although a few female Princes prefer to be called “Night-Princess” or simply “your Greatness”.

Aberrant Paths: Two Paths branch off from the Night-Prince: the fiendish, draconic Devil-Prince and the musical, inspirational Nightingale-Prince. The former is said to have made a pact with an otherworldly entity to gain supernatural powers that rival and even surpass a typical Night-Prince. The latter fuels and adds to their charm with song and music.

Requirements:

• The 10th level Rogue class feature
• Poker Face skill
• Bardic Mastery skill or Master Guilder skill

Affiliation: Among the Power Groups of Midworld, the Crystal Fleet of the Riverfolk are the foremost in the teaching of this silver-tongued Path. Ixia’s Order of Silver are similarly affiliated with the Path of the Night-Prince, especially considering both Groups’ dedication to diplomacy and peacefulness over conflict and violence.

Shen Kaishu of the Kenrei can also claim to have Night-Princes among their ranks. The masked emissaries and guileful courtiers of this Clan hone their diplomatic skills to an artform.

Entrance: Despite their individualistic and often egotistical natures, Night-princes often find themselves beholden or in service to an organization. In exchange for beginning them on this Path, these groups usually have their recruits demonstrate leadership, ingenuity and efficiency by setting them to tasks that no one person could do, such as killing an army or creating an item that requires many different disciplines and reagents. It is expected that the would-be Night-Prince utilize their own resourcefulness and charm to find and employ hirelings, allies or rubes necessary for the task.

Phys-rep Requirements: Night-Princes tend to dress extremely well, favoring fashion-forward garments that can also withstand the rigors of adventuring. It is expected that a Night-Prince also carry several changes of clothing to reflect their mood and/or their vanity. They are also expected to bear their personal mark in the form of a favor, a hand-held banner or some other form of brazen, obvious insignia of self-advertisement.

Every Period, a Night-Prince must change up their costuming in a significant but acceptable way — they don’t have to change everything, but they do have to add or replace an obvious piece of garb (e.g. a hat, coat, shirt, corset, etc).

Attunement: As your ego and vanity swells, this Path requires a latent effect slot which must be labelled with this Path’s name.

Prince’s Retinue: A Night-Prince can assign themselves a retinue every Moon, drawing strength from their retainers. You gain the Comrade-in-arms skill, the Banner of Battle skill and one Warcry feat of your choice, although the maximum roster for your Retinue is five people instead of six. Also, you may now learn Warcry feats as though you were a Warrior, targeting your Retinue with said Feats as though they were your Comrades.

If your Comrade is NOT also the target of “Comrade-in-arms”, “Favored of the Spirits” or similar effects* of someone else AND brazenly displays your symbol or sign as part of a shield, cloak or tabard, then this ability does not occupy a Latent effect slot.

The members of a Prince’s Retinue require 3 additional SP to resist the Night-Prince’s social feats.

*Being a Chosen of a Faith does not count against this ability.

At this Tier, you gain the features below as long as you fulfill any necessary requirements.

Ally to all: (requires Suggestion feat) When you spend 1 extra SP (minimum use of 2 SP) to use the Befriend or Suggestion feat, you may augment it by prefacing it with “Princely”. Clarify that if the target does not resist the effect, they regain 1 SP. If your target resists the feat anyway, you expend the cost of the feat uselessly.

If the target is one of your Retinue, you may use the Suggestion feat instead to have them regain up to 10 HP as your charismatic presence and soothing voice allows them to ignore their injuries. Some Night-Princes convince their allies that their injuries are nothing while others inspire fear or rally heroism upon their retinue. At Tier 7 of Night-Prince, this healing improves to 20 HP.

The healing or SP recovery of these feats cannot be further augmented by any means, be it by skill, class feature or anything else.

Princely Mystery (requires the Master Camouflage skill): When you are subjected to an ability that allows others to ask yes or no questions of you (e.g. Gather Info feat, Read the Soul) in a yes or no manner, you may invoke “Princely Mystery” and clarify to your questioner that you have the ability to lie about one of the answers that you give. You may lie about one answer. You must be conscious and be above 0 HP to do this.

Presence of Greatness: Through your voice and your presence, you can inspire vigor and power to everyone around you, rousing even the fallen and the injured by your voice and charisma.

Once per Moon, you may say “Presence of Greatness” followed by “Whirlwind Heal 30” or “Whirlwind Dodge”, with the latter allowing everyone around you the immediate use of the Dodge feat. Both effects grant their benefits to everyone within a one-handed weapon’s reach of you regardless of whether they are part of your Retinue or not.

After you use Presence of Greatness, you gain an “Expert” (0 SP) use of a Warcry feat that must be used before 60 seconds have passed.

Just like Tier 2, you gain the features below as long as you fulfill any necessary requirements.

No Secret is safe: Keeping secrets from you is a difficult task, even for masters of deception. When you use Sense Deception or Gather Information, those who use the Poker Face skill or Disguise skill to defend against these feats must expend 2 SP to successfully do so. Furthermore, it takes 3 SP instead if you also have the No one’s Fool skill. Either way, clarify this effect upon those who use Poker Face against you.

Vicious Mockery (requires the Mocking Words feat) The voice and words of a Night-Prince can twist the minds of even those who cannot understand them. When you use the Mocking Words feat, you may augment it to inflict a Confuse 10 instead of a Taunt effect. Furthermore, if you channel for 10 seconds first, your use of Mocking Words does not cost SP.

Menace of the Night-Prince: You may use the “Presence of Greatness” once per Period instead of once per Moon. Furthermore, you may use it in an alternative manner as to what you are accustomed to – you wield your charismatic presence like a weapon, cowing and aweing those around you.

Instead of a “Whirlwind Heal 30” you may instead inflict those around you with a “Whirlwind Fear 30” or a “Whirlwind Confuse 30”

Furthermore, you may now have up to ten people in your retinue instead of merely five.

At this Tier, you gain the features below as long as you fulfill any necessary requirements.
Princely Smile: After channeling for 3 seconds, you may expend 3 SP and say “Princely Smile” to enter an unreadable state. For the next 10 minutes, as long as you remain in the same place, any use of the Sense Deception feat, Gather Information, Read the Soul (or similar spells or feats) upon you may be responded with “No Effect”. Receiving any damage or moving from your place prematurely ends this effect.

This feature is immune to abilities that increase the SP cost of Poker Face and similar defenses. However, Princely Smile cannot be used as a reaction or as a response – its defensive screen must be put up before inquiries are sent.

Prince of Peace: (requires the Diplomacy feat) When you use the Diplomacy feat, you may augment it by prefacing if with “Princely Diplomacy”. Doing this allows you to affect up to three people within a one-handed weapon’s reach of you instead of just one.

Princely Guardians: (requires the Redirect feat) A Night-Prince is marked by the quality of their retinue as well as their willingness to jump to the Prince’s defense. Whenever you are hit by an attack, you may augment your Redirect feat to cost 0 SP instead of 2 SP by saying “Princely Redirect”. The target of your Redirect feat must be one of your Retinue or someone under the effect of your Befriend feat. You may use this feature no more frequently than once every 60 seconds, but your target must be standing and above 0 HP.

Majesty of the Night-Prince: As you have always known, your very presence is a boon and balm to all who see you, especially your retinue. When you use Presence of Greatness ability to grant a “Whirlwind Heal 30”, you may instead invoke the effect as “Whirlwind Revive, Heal 30”.

Once per Short Rest, you may to point at a conscious member of your Retinue within 30 feet and say their name, following it with “Rallying Words! Heal 10”. You may repeat this upon one other members of your Retinue per use of this feature but this all must be done within the next 30 seconds.

The Path of the Devil-Prince is by walked by deal-makers willing to gain power at any cost. Through a secret rite, the would-be Devil-Prince consorts with a fiendish entity to be granted otherworldly charm and grace. The rite is said to be dangerous and unpredictable: many who risk it are permanently injured or even whisked away for an eternity of torment by their would-be benefactors. Those who come away with the blessing of the Underworld can sap strength from enemies with their presence or even kill with a word.

Additional Requirements:

• The Favor of a Demon Lord
• Industrial Contact or Black Marketeer skill

Affiliation: Since trafficking with dark entities is a crime in many Kingdoms, those seeking this Path are often pointed to the equally devilish and draconic Red Scales Guild of the Labyrinthium. It is believed that the Guildmaster, Varafel Ilithium, walks the Path of the Devil-Prince himself.

The Golden Fleet of the Riverfolk is also known for their willingness to treat with Sorcery and achieve their goals at any cost. If any among the Fleets of the Riverfolk would harbor and train Devil-Princes, it would the Fleet of the King in Gold.

Similarly, there are those who claim that Krieger Nibelung is able to train the foolhardy folk willing to walk this path. However, the Gotterdammerung house does not agree to these assertions. With Diablerie being a grave crime in the Corpse-Kingdom, there is little reason to wonder why they would keep it a secret.

Attunement/Cost: Instead of spending time and money grooming themselves, Devil-Princes only need to sacrifice a Basic Demonic component to their fiendish masters to maintain their powers. This requires a secretive 5 minute ritual and is usually done in the dark and away from all prying eyes and ears. This still requires a latent effect slot.

Alternatively, 9 such components can be expended to be attuned for the remainder of the current year.

Phys-rep Requirements: Devil-Princes tend to dress like Night-Princes although they are not as stringent or vain about their clothing. Each Devil-Prince however, bears a mark of the Vault upon their person (a broken circle). Some disguise it as a snake eating its own tail or include as part of a larger tattoo.

In addition to having a Retinue, the Devil-Prince may also make deals like only a fiend-tongued individual can do. Once per moon, immediately after the formation of their retinue, a Devil-Prince may expend Mercantile Points as though they possessed the same skills and Guild Contracts as every willing Trader in their retinue, benefiting from any discounts their underlings possess.

This represents your ability to broker deals and curry favors with the Major Guilds and the Minor Guilds that you and your retinue represent. This allows you and your group to take advantage of specific talents that you or your Guilds possess.

However, you may only do this once per Moon, soon after your create your retinue.

At this Tier, you receive an additional feature, should you fulfill its requirements.

Howl of Horror (requires Howl of Terror feat): When you use the Howl of Terror feat, you may affect your target with “Weakness 30” instead of “Fear 30” as your vicious presence saps the strength from their strikes.

Furthermore, if anyone uses the Read the Soul feature, Gather Information feat, Sense Deception feat or any similar effect upon you while you are using Princely Smile (Tier 6), you may inflict 10 points of fire damage upon them. If you spend 1 SP, they instead take 20 points of mortal-bane damage.

This feature completely replaces Majesty of the Night-Prince.

Once per Period, you may speak a verse filled with hateful power — the minds of those around you refuse to listen and instead fall to pieces. By expending a use of Presence of Greatness, you may say “Verse of Doom” and throw up to five spell-packets – each inflicts “Piercing, 20 Mortal-bane”.

For the Nightingale-Prince, it is not about the Self — it’s about the Music. These esteemed artists have honed their verbal skills to a fine edge, weaving the special magic of music into their speech to grant them supernatural powers of charm. Like a precisely tuned instrument, they are constantly tuning their art, tweaking and twisting to get the best pitch and the best tone. Thus empowered, Nightingale-Princes can inspire allies even during the battlefield’s fracas and even push their retinue toward greater heights of greatness.

Additional Requirements:

• Omni-linguist skill
• Commanding Voice skill

Affiliation: As major patrons of the arts, House Rayne and Choir Eldressar are well-known for their benefaction of Nightingale-Princes and Nightingale-Princesses. While these Power Groups tend to be open-handed, the Nightingale-Princes they have on retainer tend to be secretive about the inner workings of this Path. A prospective student would have to get into the innermost confidence of these “artists” to begin their journey upon the Path of the Nightingale-Prince.

Additional Phys-rep Requirements: More than their cousins in craft, Nightingale-Princes are devoted to the musical and lyrical arts. They are expected to carry a musical instrument and perform a concert every Moon to maintain their proficiency in music. They may have assistance when performing this concert but they must have an audience of at least 10 people to sit through the entire function (which must last at least 10 minutes). Being paid is option but accolades and praise are a necessity to the Nightingale-Prince’s confidence.

As the Night-Prince, except that when you use the Comrade-in-arms skill to designate your retinue, you may perform a long musical composition (either instrumental, vocal or both) to inspire your underlings to greatness.

At the end of the composition, say “Inspire Greatness” and inform your retinue that they have 5 additional ranks of the Apotheosis skill until the end of the current Period. This does not allow them to breach the maximum limit of 5 ranks, but it does allow them to reach it.

This benefits less powerful Player Characters rather than more powerful Player Characters, allowing the former to better survive in the dangerous lands of Freehold.

At this Tier, you receive an additional feature, should you fulfill its requirements.

Song of the Nightingale (requires Song of the Heart skill): When you use Song of the Heart to revive someone at their Death count or their Critical Death count, you may also heal them for 10 HP.

Furthermore, you may spend 1 SP and say “Nightingale Song” before throwing a spell packet at a target. In mid throw, say “Heal 10”. If you hit, your target regains up to 10 HP.

Once per Period, you may expend a use of your Presence of Greatness and say “Inspire Heroism” – follow this with at least 30 seconds of inspirational speech and wordplay. At the end of your speech, you may say the name of a character within 10 feet and follow it with “Regain 3 SP”. You may invoke the names of up to 5 people in total within the next 30 seconds.

If you take any damage while you are performing your inspirational speech, you only grant 3 SP to one individual within 10 feet that you name.

You also get the Rallying Words ability.

The criminals of Midworld whisper rumor and gossip of an elite kind of burglar, possessed of trickery and thievery beyond that of the common outlaw. Where typical thieves can take coins and goods from their targets, the Shadow-thief can take intangible and even innate qualities from their victims. Those who report their martial prowess, latent spells and even racial abilities as stolen can owe their misfortune to the Shadow-thief’s exotic brand of skullduggery.

The origins of this Path is shrouded in the same shadows and mystery that the Shadow-thief uses to their advantage, but the influence of Umbral Parasites is strongly suspected. Indeed, the Shadow-marque that all walkers of this Path bear somewhere on their person closely resembles the Runes that Shadowsouls bear — albeit without any immediate or obvious corruptive effects.

Aberrant Paths:  Two Paths branch off from the Shadow-thief, versions of this Mythic Path by those who have adapted it to suit their goals and needs. The first is the Shadow-saint, which allows for the use of minor shadow magic and even the stealing of arcane knowledge from others. The second is the Shadow-reaper, which revels in death and violence from the shadows. They are detailed after Shadow-thief.

Requirements:

• any 10th level Rogue class feature
• Cut Purse skill
• Master Camouflage skill
• Master Talismonger skill
• Aura-sight skill

Affiliation: Becoming a Shadow-thief involves finding a Master Shadow-thief that can teach you and bestow upon you the Shadow-Marque. The Shadowhand Guild of Labyrinthium is said to keep a few such Masters in their roster.

The Laughing-Tree Clan of the Grellken is rumored to keep these secrets and bestow them to the worthy. But this mysterious and murderous Clan is more likely to kill students than teach them.

Finally, the Crimson Fleet of the Riverfolk is known to have a few Shadow-thieves in their employ. The Fleet’s leader denies their existence, but the various heists allegedly attributed to the Crimson Fleet only supports the contrary.

Entrance: As one progresses into the Path, not only does one undergo training to hone skill and wit but the Shadow Marque is also added to and improved. Trainers of this Path typically have their students steal items of value or information of import to advance their goals or that of their faction.

Phys-rep Requirements: Every Shadowthief has a shadow marque, branded by his guild or by his experiences with shadowy entities. This manifests as a swirly or serpentine black, blue or purple tattoo on one arm that extends from shoulder to wrist. The color of this tattoo’s ink but be very different from your skin color (i.e. gnomes must have a black or purple tattoo) This may be hidden from view or hidden as part of a larger tattoo.
Attunement/Cost: This Path requires a latent effect slot – label this slot with the name of this Path with the annotation (GR) if it is a Greater Attunement (see Tier 5).

Steal Shadow: Once per Period, you may steal a small piece of your target’s shadow, allowing you to mimic a basic or complex Latent spell that is currently affecting the target and place it upon yourself, similar to the Witch’s Gift of Thieving Winds spell – except you do not negate the spell on your target. You must have knowledge of the spell you are taking, usually through the Aura-sight skill – you cannot steal from Shrouded targets.

In addition, you may also choose to “steal” latent Elixir effects or latent Remedy effects.

Regardless of their source, these latent effects last until the end of the Period they were taken, since they are only a shadow of their origin.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Hide in Shadows: Shadow-thieves are masters of hiding and subterfuge; capable of stealing even the mystery and the shadows of the night. After 30 seconds of channeling which may not be waived or reduced in any way, you may spend 10 Spirit Points and invoke “Hide in Shadows” to enter a hidden state similar to Master Camouflage and following its locational and positional requirements. While in this state, if you are detected by Sense Hidden, It’s a Trap or similar spells/feats, you may attempt to negate the attempt by respond with “Superior Camouflage”. This use of Master Camouflage may be used regardless of whether it is daytime or night time. Other characters cannot see or pinpoint your location unless they specifically use abilities that can defeat Superior Camouflage.

If Hide in Shadows is broken, you gain three “Expert” uses (0 SP) of the Dodge feat that must be used within 60 seconds of becoming visible.

Thieving Blade (requires Thief of Might or Thief of Air feat): When you willingly break from Camouflage, you may choose to inflict a Weakness 60 effect on yourself to gain an expert use (0 SP) of the Thief of Air or the Thief of Might feat. This feat must be used while you are weakened and must be prefaced with the word “Expert”. This ability is perfect for Shadow-thieves that prefer inflicting control effects over damage, or those who wish to weaken their targets for their allies.

Thief of Knowledge: Your ability to Steal Shadows grows in power as the Shadow-Marque digs deeper into your soul, allowing you to take from your target’s secrets.

Once per Period, you may use the Read the Soul feature of the Seeker or the Bright Witch. However, instead of asking “Yes or no” questions, you may also ask for the Race, Name and the Kingdom of origin of your target. As per usual, Poker Face and similar effects defend against this – however, doing so requires 3 SP per question deflected.

Unfortunately, your Shadow-marque has affected you immensely. You are unable to take a Short Rest in the day-time unless it is indoors. Similarly, you cannot gain SP from any effects while you are outdoors after sunrise but before sunset.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Shadow Healing: When a nearby creature receives healing, you may touch them with a weapon and say “Shadow Healing” to cure yourself of the same amount of HP, to a maximum of 20 HP. After you do this, you may not do it again until you have re-centered your Shadow-marque, a task that requires 10 seconds of uninterrupted Channeling..

Marque of Chaos (requires Poker Face skill): By spending 3 SP, saying “Marque of Chaos” and placing a hand on where your Shadow Marque is located, you may enter an unreadable state for 10 minutes. This ability persists for the allotted duration, until you take any damage or your hand is moved from your marque. While it is active, when anyone attempts to use the Sense Deception feat or similar abilities upon you, you may respond with “No effect”.

This feature is immune to abilities that increase the SP cost of Poker Face and similar defenses. However, Marque of Chaos cannot be used as a reaction or as a response – its defensive screen must be put up before inquiries are sent.

Greater Shadow Marque: The Shadow-marque fits you like a second skin. If you let it, it physically expends beyond your arm to the rest of your body. But your will and your training hold it in check, drawing from it the power that you need while maintaining control.

When you use Steal Shadows, you may instead “steal” the use of a basic or complex Feat from your target – once again, this does not prevent your target from using the Feat. This allows you to use it for the remainder of the current Period (or Moon, with a Greater Attunement) but it takes up a latent effect slot.

Upon an unwilling or unknowing target, you may request the assistance of a Game Marshall for the resolution of your theft, you may specify a basic or complex Feat that you wish to “steal”. You do not need to possess any pre-requisites (if any) to use this feat. If the target does not have what you seek, the Game Marshall may return to tell you that this feature is expended without effect.

Furthermore, if you expend a rare shadow component upon your Shadow Marque, you achieve a Greater Attunement to it for the remainder of the current Moon. While thusly attuned, the benefits you steal from others now last for the remainder of the current Moon, instead of only until the end of the current Period.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Steal Essence: You may use “Steal Shadows” to steal the essence of another Race. You must adhere to at least one of the phys-rep requirements of that Race. However, you gain its Racial ability (e.g. Stoneskin for Dwarves, Troll Resilience for Trolls, etc). You do not gain access to Racial skills, legacies or feats and Humans grant nothing.

Steal Secrets (requires Gather Information feat): Whenever you are affected by a feat or spell similar to Gather Information, Sense Deception or the Read the Soul ability (or similar abilities) and you deflect it with Poker Face, you may say “Steal Secrets” and spend “X” SP to perform a Gather Information feat upon the inquirer which cannot be augmented in any way. Poker Face and similar effects may protect against the Steal Secrets feature, although you must clarify that it requires X SP to do so. X is the amount of SP you are willing to spend upon Steal Secrets, from a minimum of 1 SP to a maximum of 10. It is also the amount that your target must expend in order to resist Steal Secrets.

Misdirecting Shadows (requires Dance of Shadows feat): When you use the Dance of Shadows feat, you take minimal damage for 10 seconds instead of 5 seconds. Furthermore, you also get an expert (0 SP) use of the Dodge or Redirect feat (if you have it) that must be used before 10 seconds have fully passed. Using either feat prematurely ends the Dance of Shadows.

Furthermore, if you have a Greater Attunement to your Shadow-marque, you may spend 1 SP instead of 2 SP to use Dance of Shadows. However, this also Weakens you for 10 seconds as the Marque drains energy from you.

Steal the Night: Once per Period, you may expend a use of your Steal Shadows ability to defend yourself from harm. You may invoke “Steal the Night” and mimic your choice of the “Maybe Next Time” of the Assassin sub-class or the “Step into the Night” of the Shadowsoul.

Lastly, your aversion to daylight remains terrible but your affinity for the night has improved. At night, you may suffuse your form with ribbons of shadowy essence. Once per Short Rest, you may channel for 3 seconds and invoke “Fluttering Shadows” to fly for 10 seconds – with all the mechanics of that condition. At the end of your flight, you heal 20 HP.

The Path of the Shadow-saint is rumored to predate the Shadow-thief. Some Shadow-saints even claim that the Shadow-thief is a lesser derivation of the original Path. What the Shadow-saint offers however, is well beyond the grasp of most Shadow-thieves. With the assistance of the Umbral Parasite, the followers of this Path gain access to magic and mayhem. Not only can they do minor magics of the shadowy spheres, but they can also steal spellcraft from others.

The initiation rites of the Shadow-saint typically involve the introduction of an Umbral Parasite or similar entity into the would-be Shadow-saint. Besides involving a great amount of pain and possibly permanent mental (or spiritual) damage, this ritual has a history of failure with the Parasite taking full control of the body and disappearing into the night.

Additional Requirements:

• Thief of Air feat
• An Umbral Graft must be cast upon you.

Affiliations: Shadow-saints are believed to originate from the Twilight Empire itself and the knowledge of its power has spread across Midworld toward the Kingdoms that harbor Twilight Elves amongst their numbers. Clan Nemain from Fir’bolg, Krieger Dammerlicht from Gotterdammerung and Choir Caellinrah from Ixia are families believed to still possess this shadowy lore and willing to teach it to others — for despite its origin, the Path of the Shadow-saint is available to any Race, not merely Twilight Elves.

Additional Attunements/Costs: The Umbral Graft upon you will require additional components to maintain. However, maintaining an Umbral Graft counts as a Greater Attunement of the Shadow Marque.

Additional Phys-rep requirements: In addition to their Shadow-marque, Shadow-saints also sport a similar colored Rune on their forehead. This Rune can be hidden. The players of Shadow-saints should have the phys-rep requirements for their Umbral Graft.

In addition to the Steal Shadow feature, you also gain the ability to access the power of an Umbral Graft for your own ends. This means that you need someone to cast an Umbral Graft upon you to gain the ability below.

While under the influence of an Umbral Graft, you gain the ability to learn and cast Basic and Complex Shadow-binding spells.

Lastly, you are able to potentially sustain the Graft for long periods. At the end of every Month, you can sacrifice 1 Rare Shadow component to maintain it for the next Moon. This allows the Graft to persist until you are unable to sustain it or until it is dispelled from you, assuming that you keep sacrificing components to maintain it.  Doing this counts as an Attunement for the Shadow Marque until the “Steal the Night” Path feature — in this case, the Rare Shadow component is enough to sustain both the Marque and the Graft.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Shadow-lash: While you are wielding a weapon in the same arm as your Shadow-Marque, you gain the ability to perform an Expert (0 SP) “Knockback 5” as a melee attack or spell-packet attack upon any assailant who inflicts damage upon you. You may use this once every minute.

Furthermore, the Graft that keeps you company also protects you — you are considered to be under the protection of the Oath of Deep Shadows spell. Instead of its effects, you may instead inflict a Snare 300 upon someone that tries to Search you. This snare also inflicts a Killing Blow for 30 points of Spirit-bane damage upon completion or if negated against, ensure that you clarify this to your victim.

Spell-thief: In addition to the new feature granted to you at tier 5, you may now also attempt to steal spells from those around you. When using the Steal Shadow ability, you may also steal a Basic or Complex spell of your Choice. Attempting to do so follows the same guidelines as stealing a Feat.

Unlike their brethren, Shadow-Slayers focus their powers on the siphoning and destruction of life energies. With each stab and swing, the Shadow-reaper sows death and reaps vitality from their hapless targets.

It is whispered that the initiation rites of the Shadow-reaper involve assassinations and ritual sacrifice rather than the relatively bloodless rites of the Shadow-thief. More than a few witnesses claim that the rite usually involves the kidnapping, mutilation and destruction of a specific person or loved one as determined by the Shadow-reaper’s trainer. Oftentimes, the target is a difficult one, made so by superior skills, watchful guardians or by the would-be Shadow-reaper’s sentiment.

Additional Requirements:

• Master of Medicine skill
• Assassinate feat

Affiliations: The Path of the Shadow-reaper is an adaptation of the Shadow-thief that is claimed by both the Kage-ryuu of Kenrei and Khasat Khosodam of Kali-Ishtar. Like the Path itself, this dispute sheds blood by the river between the two distant factions.

Additional Attunement/Cost: Instead of attuning your Shadow Marque with Shadow components, you must use Death components instead.

Additional Phys-rep requirement: Your Shadow-marque must be also be lined with blood red (bruise purple if playing a Nightkin or bright red if playing a Twilight Elf). Alternatively, your Shadow-marque may look like an angry scar (using liquid latex and paint).

In addition to your ability to steal bits of others’ shadows, you may augment the Assassinate feat to also steal some of your target’s vitality. Preface your Assassinate with “Reaping”, to augment the feat and therefore prevent any other augmentation to the feat. While augmented thusly, you may say “Heal 5” to regain up to 5 HP when you successfully inflict damage with the Assassinate feat. This healing can be augmented by the Grace of Tranquility skill and its upgrades.

Instead of Stealing Knowledge from others, the Shadow-Slayer can have their Shadow-Marque devour lesser Curses and lesser Disease that affect them. Invoke “Devour Affliction, no effect” when you would receive such ailments.

If you have a Greater Attunement to your Marque (see Tier 5), your Marque may now devour Greater Curses and Disease at no cost to yourself.

However, you must now avoid sunlight in all forms. Being in the sun without the proper garments that cover up your head and body now inflicts a Daze effect upon you. Be careful and design you costume for safety during the summer months.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Serrated Shadows (requires Thief of Might feat): You can sharpen the shadows of your bladed weapons and turn them jagged, allowing them to inflict more damage. If you spend a Rare component upon your Shadow Marque (as per Tier 5), longswords, shortswords or daggers that you wield may inflict 5 shadow damage instead of normal damage. If you choose to inflict damage in this method, it cannot be increased in any way.

Furthermore, the damage of your Assassinate feat increases by 10 after Sunset and before Sunrise.

The Jack of all Tricks is a Mythic Path pursued by those who esteem the arts of Artificing, Elixirs and Elementalism, seeking to blend these different disciplines to augment their own adventuring ability. Through the use of alchemical mixtures, a Jack of all Tricks can entangle, confuse or otherwise hinder enemies while augmenting himself or herself with refined versions of the aforementioned skills.

Like many Rogue mythic paths, the origins of the Jack of all Tricks are a mystery. Unsurprisingly however, the first recorded Jacks hail from the Stone Clan and its crafty dwarven denizens. While the walkers of this path can still be found in that Kingdom, most dwarven Jack of all Tricks can be found in Malak Travak. The Jacks of all Tricks that hail from the Iron Kingdom claim the origin as Travaki, although those following this Path from other Kingdoms often claim the same or claim self-introduction.

Aberrant Paths: The two paths that branch off from this Mythic path are the Jack of all Crafts and the Jack of all Banes. The former is walked by Rogues who focus on crafting and similar non-combative abilities — it allows them to create their own helper to assist them in their tasks. The latter is a path trod by those who wish to focus on the deadlier tricks of this Mythic Path, augmenting their weaponry and their assassination abilities.

Requirements:

• any 10th level Rogue class feature
• Master Elixirist skill
• Master Artificer skill
• Expert Elementalist skill.

Affiliations: Those who seek to walk the Path of the Jack of all Tricks would do well to seek affiliation or favor from Malak Travak’s Trustworth Securities or Roughrigger Enterprises, their rival. The first guild’s penchant for artisanry lends well to the precision and skill required by this Path. The second guild are believed to have stolen secrets from Trustworth Securities to be able to teach this Path to the highest bidder.

The Labyrinthium’s Steel Serpent Guild and the Firerunner Clan of the Grellken are also known to have members that walk this Path, although the styles of the two groups greatly differ.

Entrance: Jacks of all Tricks are renowned for their craftsmanship as well as their unstable natures. Thus, the organizations and individuals that give rise to these craftsfolk usually require the creation of several difficult items. Less ethical organizations may have the prospective recruit procure or steal knowledge, an item or even a person from a rival group.

Phys-rep Requirements: An ornate belt with at least 2 large pouches and many spell-packets for “Tricks”.

Attunement/Cost: At least 2 basic components, which will be dismantled and used to fuel the abilities of the Bag of all Tricks. The types of these components will determine what abilities of the Bag of all Tricks you have access to (see Bag of All Tricks). This requires a latent effect slot as the action also infuses you with elemental energies. Label this slot with the name of this Path.

Bag of all Tricks: After 5 seconds of a Crafting count (which follows the same restrictions as a Channeling count), a Jack of all Tricks can use the contents of his Bag of all Tricks to create an “Elemental Trick” or simply a “Trick”.

Doing so requires the Jack of all Tricks to be standing still as well as two free hands (or one free hand and a dagger) and access to the contents of one’s Bag of all Tricks. The aforementioned Crafting count may be whispered. This may be done twice before needing a re-charge which is a 5 minute Crafting task at the Alchemy Lab.

Bags in the hands of other characters, even other Jacks of all Tricks, are useless. It is the personal and unique knowledge of the Jack of all Tricks that lends the Bag of all Tricks power — they may craft and attune a new bag for twice the price of attunement, although they may only have one such item at a time.

After the requirements have been fulfilled, the Jack of all Tricks may have in their hand their Elemental Trick, in the form of a spell packet. Throwing the trick does not require an aim count, although it does require the invocation of which Trick you are using. Also, the unstable components used in its creation deteriorate if it is unused within 1 minute, if it ever leaves your hands or if you take damage.

Because Tricks are “Piercing”, they cannot be blocked or parried. However, they can be dodged or evaded.

The type of Elemental Trick is dependent on the component types used to attune the Bag of all Tricks (see below):

• Water and/or Fire components — “Liquid Pain! Piercing Daze 10”
• Metal and/or Lightning components —  “Thunder Dust! Piercing knockback 10”
• Shadow and/or Wind components — “Night-Sand! Piercing Confuse 10!”
• Water and/or Holy components — “Sacred-water! Piercing Heal 10!”
• Earth and/or herbal components — “Vine seed! Piercing Snare 10!”

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Deadly Trickery: After you use a Trick on someone, you may use Flourish against them (similar to the Swashbuckler’s Deadly Flourish) for the next 10 minutes. Furthermore, you may also use flourish with thrown Daggers that you use against your target.

In Vino Virtus (requires Potent Potables skill): The bonus to your maximum HP granted by the Potent Potables skill is doubled for the remainder of the current Moon. As usual, this will not stack with any other temporary increases to maximum HP.

Furthermore, if you imbibe an Erudite Elixir of your own creation, you may choose to temporarily benefit from a different skill or feat instead of Great Strength. Choose one from the list below:

— Patient Archer

— Iron Fist

— Spirit Sight

— Aura-sight

— Spurn Death

Greater Trick: Once per Period, you can augment your Elemental Tricks’ area of effect or strength. Preface the Trick’s name with “Greater”.

This allows you to add 10 to the numerical value of a Trick that you use or to inflict it as a Whirlwind effect on everyone around you. You may choose to be exempt from the effects of this Trick.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Sleeved Ace (requires Master of Augments skill or Alchemical Weapon Master skill): A single one-handed weapon or a pole-arm that you possess may store an Elementalism  or a Trick within it so long as it has at least 1 augmentation slot open.

The Elementalism deteriorates if it leaves your hand, at least one minute passes or the weapon is broken. While possessing an Attack Elementalism, you may deliver the alchemy’s effect via a weapon strike. Dodging, Blocking or Parrying the strike does not expend the Elementalism, neither does failing to hit the target.

You may not combine the effects of Elementalism with any other effects nor does it stack with base effects of the weapon strike.

Runic  Craftiness (requires Versatile Tinker skill):  By expending a Once per Period use of your Variable Runic Apparatus, you may spend 1 minute Crafting to quickly produce three Crafted items that you have the recipes/formulae for.

Furthermore, you may allow others to use this feature on your behalf but it expends a use for the Period.

Advanced Trickery: When you use a Greater Trick, you may instead augment a Trick and turn it into a “Chain 2” effect. This means that when you throw the Trick, you preface the “effect” with “Chain” and if you hit the target, you may throw the same Trick against the same or a different target (prefacing the effect a second time with “Chain”). Thus, Chain 2 allows you potentially throw 2 Tricks at the same time.

Alternatively, you may say “Escape Trick” and inflict a Whirlwind Confuse 10 followed by an “Escape 100” effect for yourself. This expends a per Period use of Greater Trick.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Pocket Sand: When you hit a target with a Trick, you may augment your Dodge or Evade feat to be “Tricky” and cost 0 SP if you are hit by the target within the next minute.

Despite the feature’s name, do not actually hit your target in an illegal target area.

Trick or Treat (requires Grace of Tranquility (rank 3)): The Jack of all Tricks is not always a malevolent force, on occasion it benefits them to bestow their blessings upon their allies. The Grace of Tranquility now augments the Sacred Water Trick as though it were a spell.

Potent Chemicals (requires the Energy Transmuter or the Alchemical Weapon master skills) When you use an Elixir that allows you to regain HP, the amount of HP it restores is improved by 5. Similarly, the damage of your Attack Elementalisms are increased by 5 as well. This feature augments only those Elixirs and Elementalisms that you have created; note this Path feature on their item tags.

Bottomless Bag of Tricks: Months or perhaps years of study have yielded advanced and improved techniques in your trickery. You have learned to add greater efficiency to your tricks, although at the cost of using a greater amount of elemental energy. If you expend at least 5 basic components in the attunement of your Bag of all Tricks, it becomes Greatly Attuned to you.

While it is in this state, you may spend 10 seconds Crafting (instead of 5 seconds). If you do this, you may use Elemental Tricks at-will instead of twice per recharge.

Furthermore, the Bag of Tricks may not be damaged or taken from you via mundane methods while you still have Lives remaining.

The Jack of all Crafts is a variant of the original Mythic Path, dedicated to the mastery and greater exploitation of the Variable Runic Apparatus. In the hands of these cunning craftsfolk, the Apparatus becomes more than a mere device — it may become companion, assistant and even mentor.

Their refinement of the mundane techniques of creation when added to the mechanical properties of the Apparatus allows them to perform feats of creation beyond the ken of normal craftsfolk. Several scholars from the Rune-speaker University believe that their Variable Runic Apparatus momentarily gains the properties of a modified Ark-stone, although these assertions have been laughed down.

Additional Requirements:

• Master Elementalist skill

Affiliation: A relatively new Path, the Jack of all Crafts is usually found among the eccentric geniuses of the Golemic Advancements Guild. Chainers of the Rune-Eaters are rumored to teach this Path, partially augmenting their lack of technical prowess by using enslaved and lobotomized spirits within their Apparatuses.

Phys-rep Requirements: None, although this Aberrant Path’s features rely heavily upon the Variable Runic Apparatus.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Companion Apparatus: When crafting an Elixir, an Elementalism or Artificer Device, your Variable Runic Apparatus assists you in the endeavor, managing the energies of the Ark-stone and acting as a helper that possesses your own crafting skills. Your Apparatus must be on the table or workspace (and thus, vulnerable to theft). This may reduce your Crafting time if Freehold has achieved Rank 1 of the Production Domain.

Furthermore, the creation cost of your Apparatus may be included in the cost to attune the Bag of all Tricks, if you use the correct components. This may affect the Tricks that you are able to employ.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Augmenting Apparatus (requires Master of Augments skill or Alchemical Weapon Master):  You may perform Elemental Tricks with one hand (Tricks normally require 2 free hands) as long as you are holding your Variable Runic Apparatus in the other. Furthermore, your Apparatus enhances your Tricks. Their effects are improved by 5 (whether healing or otherwise).

Furthermore, if you spend 20 seconds Channeling, you may use a Trick without expending its use. This part of the feature is usually rendered obsolete by Tier 7.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Versatile Crafter (requires Versatile Tinker skill or Master Researcher skill): While holding your Variable Runic Cube and a basic or complex Wyrdic Cipher, you may create the item on the Cipher without knowing the required skill. This expends a Once per Period use of your Variable Runic Apparatus.

The Jack of all Banes possesses the craftiness of their sibling Path, except that they have new features and tricks dedicated to bring death to whomever they choose. It is believed that this Path is a variant created by the poisoners of the Labyrinthium, a derivation bent toward the murderous spirit of that dark place.

Followers of this Path can access poison-like Tricks that can severely debilitate or damage their targets, distracting them enough while the Jacks of all Banes and their allies can move in for the kill. These Jacks themselves are lethal weapons, capable of exploiting the least of weaknesses to inflict death strokes. Because of their talents, they are used more often as assassins and hitmen than not.

Additional Requirements:

• Poison Dart skill
• Master Venomologist skill

Affiliation: The Steel Serpent Guild of the Labyrinthium claims to have created this aberrant Path. Few other organizations can contest this, given the relatively large roster that the Guild possesses.

Strangely enough, the Jade Fleet is known to have the followers of this Path among their membership, although their presence is utterly unadvertised.

Lastly, Clan Machta in Fir’bolg is also said to roster the followers of this Path. Their penchant for deadly and ruthless tactics is a perfect match for the Jack of all Banes.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Baneful Blades: If you sacrifice certain types of Components, you get access to a few Tricks that are reflect this Path’s focus on killing.

• Death Component                      “Destroyer Dust! 10 Piercing Mortal-Bane
• Shadow Component                 “Draining Dust! Piercing Silence 10”
• Demonic Component                 “Demon Dust! Piercing Weakness 10!”

You gain the ability to perform a Greater Trick, similar to the feature granted by the Jack of all Tricks path (Tier 3). However, instead of augmenting the Tricks you have on hand, you simply afflict your enemies with a splash of a powerful toxin. With up to three spell-packets, you may inflict “piercing 20 Mortal-bane” or “Piercing Blind 20” with each throw.

This Greater Trick, like all other Greater Tricks, may be used only Once per Period.

Furthermore, you may expend up to three doses of Trap poison into your Bag of all Tricks. If anyone attempts to search you, harvest you or otherwise get into the Bag without your consent, you may afflict them with a single dose of the Poison. If unused, these doses expire at the end of the current Moon. A Game-marshall may be necessary to convey this mechanic.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Lethal Trickery (requires Scorpion Eats the Lotus skill): After you perform a Trick on someone, you may augment your next Assassinate or Critical Strike upon them to be a “Expert Assassinate” or an “Expert Crit”. Both require 0 SP.

Either feat must be used before 10 minutes have passed or before you use any Trick. Either condition “dissipates” the readied feat.

The Vorpal Knife is the whisper of death waiting in the dark, a mortal fear made flesh to hunt freely. Adherents of this Path are experienced dealers of death with their skills turned keener by the inclusion of the eponymous Vorpal Knife, a weapon crafted for the ending of lives. The Vorpal Knife and its wielder are one and the same, each reveling and flourishing in destruction and murder.

It is believed that this Path is a deviation of a stricter and more difficult discipline: the Quiet Knife of the Clan Shaggrath. These Dwarves carved and shaped their skills with sorcery, skill and centuries of silent slaying. The Path of the Vorpal Knife lessens these restrictions in favor of more flexible, yet still deadly techniques. The end result is a fighting style that cleaves so close to death that its practitioners gain magical abilities such as seeing auras, spirits and gleaning secrets from the dead.

Requirements:

• any 10th level Rogue feature
• Dirty Fighting skill (rank 3)
• Master Venomologist skill
• Also, you need to have a Vorpal Weapon (Dagger) in your possession that you will irrevocably bind to yourself as part of this Path’s initiation.

Affiliation: The Path of the Vorpal Knife is known only by the greatest of assassins and those who field them. Thus, it is no surprise that the King-slayer Crew of the Labyrinthium is believed to keep the Path’s secrets.

Similarly, the death-obsessed White-mambas of the Grellken and the Bat-halai of the Riverfolk know well the way of the Vorpal Knife. However, those who seek it out from these religious zealots would more likely find doom than learning.

Lastly, it is rumored that Fir’bolg’s Clan Machta possesses a few Vorpal Knives amongst their Clanfolk. These killers are said to be former members of the Nuathan regime or runaways from Clan Nemain, given sanctuary in trade for the use of their skills.

Entrance: As is expected, the large part of a Vorpal Knife’s initiation and training involves assassinations and massacres at the behest of their patron organizations. Typically however, recruits are given limitations and/or incredibly difficult targets to attack. This usually means that some leeway is given in how the would-be Vorpal Knife engages the enemy and if they are allowed to utilize allies. With regards to the true targets of their mission however, the prospective Knife is expected to carry out the final cut themselves.

Aberrant Paths: Two Paths branch off from the Vorpal Knife: the Virtuous Knife is used by those who hunt Evil and the exclusive Shaggrathi discipline: the Quiet Knife. The former is used mainly by the magistrates of Pendrakken’s House Macha and also by ascetic assassins in the Callasine Mystery of Cadrafel Ahroun. The latter is used and taught only by Clan Shaggrath of the Stone Clans.

Phys-rep Requirements: A dagger with a skull upon it or upon a cloth attached to its hilt. The dagger must also sport your personal rune upon its blade or upon the aforementioned cloth — this rune binds it to you and allows you to call upon it if it is lost.

Attunement/Cost: After you begin your journey upon this Path, you and your Vorpal Knife become inextricably linked. To benefit from its deadly abilities, you must attune the Vorpal Knife to yourself with a latent effect slot – label this slot with the name of this Path with the annotation (GR) if it is a Greater Attunement (see Tier 3).

Vorpal Expertise: You are now bound to your Vorpal Weapon, attuning your life essence to its deathly power. It is thereafter referred to as your Vorpal Knife. If stolen or broken, you only need to take a Short Rest to have it returned to you. However, in your hands, it is immune to any worldly attempts to Sunder it, beyond abilities possessed by greater entities.

Furthermore, while wielding a Vorpal Knife, you may choose to have your melee attacks with the Knife (and with any other weapon you wield alongside it) hit for 5 points of shadow damage. While hitting in this manner, this damage may not be augmented or increased by any means whatsoever except with Death feeds upon Death (Tier 6).

Lastly, you may use the affinity of your Vorpal Knife as though you were a Master Weapon-smith.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Funereal Inquisition — (requires Gather Information feat or Interrogate feat) After 10 seconds of Channeling while maintaining weapon contact with a dying or dead Mortal, you may ask it 3 yes or no questions. It must answer truthfully although “I don’t know” is an acceptable answer. Once this is used, you must take a Short Rest to regain the use of this feature.

Heart Reader (requires Master of Medicine skill) Your mastery of anatomy and this grim Path allow you to read auras and utilize this knowledge accordingly. You gain the Aura Sight skill.

Also, you now have the Student of Murder feature of the Assassin with an additional option: instead of a free Assassinate, you may use it to gain a free Critical Strike instead with your Vorpal Knife.

Vorpal Sever: If you attune your Vorpal Knife with 3 basic Death components instead of 1, the Vorpal Strike property becomes enhanced with your deathly skills for the remainder of the Moon. You may say “Vorpal Sever” instead of “Vorpal Strike” to turn its damage into the equal to your Assassinate feat, along with any special modifiers that may apply.

After you use the Vorpal Sever ability, you may Channel for 30 seconds to recharge it.

Furthermore, if you use 1 Rare Death component to achieve a Greater Attunement to your Vorpal Knife for the remainder of the current Moon. If you do this, all of the Killing Blows performed with the Vorpal Knife inflict damage equal to the damage of your Assassinate feat — although you have to maintain weapon contact with the target and this takes a minimum of 5 seconds instead of the requisite 3 seconds.

Just as in Tier 2, you now gain access to any of the features below that you have the requirements for.

Death-Watch (requires Sense Hidden feat): Your sharpened senses and this grim path has allowed you to see the world of the intangible and the insubstantial.  You gain the Spirit sight skill.

Also, if you spent 1 Rare Death component to attune your Vorpal Knife to you, it is now considered to have the Soul Drinker augmentation for the remainder of the Moon. This takes up an augmentation slot.

Poison Haven (requires Scorpion eats the Lotus skill): The Vorpal Knife can become a haven for poisons, sheltering them like maggots on rotted meat. When you apply poisons on the Vorpal Knife, they last until the end of the current moon instead of 10 minutes. The Vorpal Knife may only store one Poison upon it in this manner.

Poison stored in this manner may be expended in a method similar to the “Scorpion eats the Lotus” skill to increase the damage of your Vorpal Strike or your Vorpal Typhoon (see Tier 7).

Sever the Soul: If you successfully use Vorpal Sever, you store a piece of your target’s essence within your Knife to consume as you wish. This essence remains in your weapon until used or until an hour has passed.

If you consume it, you may channel for 3 seconds and say “Heal X” where X is equal to the damage that you inflicted with Vorpal Sever. You may use this healing on yourself or on others.

You may gain the features listed below if you learn or gain their requirements while you are at this Tier. After you have left this Tier, these abilities are locked from you if you haven’t gained them yet.

Stand among the Dead: Vorpal Knives are so infused with death that they are capable of entering a state where they are as intangible and invisible as ghosts. After 30 seconds of channeling which may not be waived or reduced in any way, you may spend 10 Spirit Points and invoke “Stand among the Dead” to enter a hidden state similar to Master Camouflage and following its locational and positional requirements. Stand among the Dead can be used during night or day. While in this state, if you are detected by Sense Hidden, It’s a Trap or similar spells/feats, you may attempt to negate the attempt by respond with “Superior Camouflage. This use of Master Camouflage may be used regardless of whether it is daytime or night time. Other characters cannot see or pinpoint your location unless they specifically use abilities that can defeat Superior Camouflage.

Many of those who use this feature expend 10 Spirit Points to make themselves extremely difficult to find then drink Elixirs and use similarly quiet means to restore their lost SP while hidden. Furthermore, if Stand among the Dead is broken, you gain three “Expert” uses (0 SP) of the Dodge feat that must be used within 60 seconds of becoming visible.

Death feeds upon Death: While wielding your Vorpal Knife, the Assassinates, the Backstab attacks and the Flourish attacks of your off-hand weapon match the damage that your Vorpal Knife would inflict. This gives you the reach of your weapon and allows you to strike for the same amount of damage for both weapons.

Feast upon the Slain: (requires Master of Medicine skill) After you successfully use Vorpal Sever and while you still have essence stored in your blade, your healing abilities are greatly strengthened. In this state, using the Master of Medicine skill to Treat Wounds takes 30 seconds of treatment instead of 60 seconds. Similarly, Binding Wounds to revive a fallen individual now only takes 10 seconds of treatment.

If you have a Greater Attunement with your Vorpal Knife, the Treat Wounds action heals for 10 more than normal.

Vorpal Typhoon: Once per Period, you may perform a maneuver mastered only by the strongest of Vorpal Knives: the Vorpal Typhoon. This attack utilizes supernatural quickness to strike down everyone in your reach in a skilled and deadly fashion.

To do this, say “Vorpal Typhoon! Whirlwind X damage” where X is half the damage of your Assassinate feat. This is resolved in “whirlwind” fashion except that you may use a one-handed (non-bastard) weapon instead of your Vorpal Knife to resolve your attack. Immediately afterward, you may inflict a “Whirlwind Knockback 10”

Furthermore, your Assassinate feat now inflicts 10 more points of damage if used with the Vorpal Knife.

“The Virtuous Knife cuts deep the souls of the unjust” sayeth the Mysteries of Cadrafel Ahroun, Callasine God of Death. It is believed that the roots of this Path were seeded in the quiet monasteries of the Cadrafel orders, reaching back to the Elven war that allied Human, Elf and Dwarf against Demonic horrors.

Scholars of the Goddess Neheris speculate that the Virtuous Knife was born at that fateful time:  an anonymous Elf was given the Path’s deadly knowledge by a Shaggrathi Dwarf, adapting it to the destruction of Evil. In the modern era, the Mystery of the Silent Darkness continues to teach this Path to those Chosen of the Celestial Church that are willing to take up the cause against Evil.

Thus, the Virtuous Knife focuses on the seeking and the destruction of evil. This Path promises utter devastation to the wicked and the unholy although it has strict demands upon those who walk it. Woe is visited upon those Virtuous Knives who stray from their ethos — for the Knife punishes as well as grants power.

Additional Requirements:

• A Code with at least 2 Vows, chosen from or altered from the list below with Staff approval. Willful violation of this Code results in instantaneous loss of all Path features until you are given absolution by a High Priest of your Faith or the leader of their Organization. If the violation is meditated and of a heinous enough stature, all Path features may be rescinded from the Rogue utterly and permanently with no build refunded.

Vow of Mercy: You may not injure non-combatants (children, surrendered, elderly) and do your best to dissuade others from doing so.

Vow of Valor: Never flee a battle while allies are in danger, esteem the life of allies before your own.

Vow of Piety: Respect and utterly follow Priests and Tenets of your religion, tithing to the main Church every Moon in currency, components or in menial labor.

Vow of Charity: Never kill a Mortal sapient creature and dissuade others from doing so. Also, always assist those who need assistance and are worthy of assistance.

Vow of Honesty: Never speak a lie and never disguise yourself as anything but who you are.

Vow of Courtesy: Act and speak with courtesy and honor to everyone, even those who do not deserve it.

Vow of Balance: Display calmness and neutrality. Never cry out in wrath nor passion.

Affiliations: In addition to the Mystery of Cadrafel Ahroun, House Macha of Pendrakken also teaches the Path of the Virtuous Knife, given to them by Macha who traveled with Luther von Pendrakken and assisted him in his quest. House Macha is far less likely to teach the Path to others, but willingly instructs magistrates in its employ in the Virtuous Knife’s arts.

It is also rumored that the Nine-Fold Virtues teaches the Path of the Virtuous Knife, but inquiries about this matter have almost universally gone silent.

Attunement/Cost: You may use Holy components instead of Death components to attune yourself to your Vorpal Knife.

In addition to the abilities listed in Vorpal Expertise, your normal strikes may inflict “5 Demon-bane” or “5 Death-bane” instead of “5 Shadow”.

Also, if you strike down a Mortal who is undeserving of punishment (i.e. an innocent) or one is hurt/slain directly because of your actions, you are Dazed and Weakened. This lasts until the end of the current Moon or until removed by a Symbol of Remedy spell cast by a Priest of your faith, cast only after you confess your sin to them and perform an act of absolution that they place upon you. This act can be as easy as reciting a few prayers or as difficult as assassinating a powerful Evil without the use of your feats.

Just as in Tier 2, you now gain access to any of the features below that you have the requirements for.

Punish the Wicked (requires Gather Information feat): You are adept at asking the right questions and reading for the right answers. However, those who reveal themselves to be deceivers or criminals earn your ire and your blades sharpen and keen against such unworthy foes. Using the Gather Information feat only requires 10 seconds of conversation.

Furthermore, if you use it to determine whether someone has performed a murder, an assault, a theft or a similar crime and your target either admits to it or uses a skill/ability like Poker Face to deflect your inquiry, your Assassinate feat (and therefore your Vorpal Sever) inflicts 10 extra damage against them until the end of the current Moon.

Lastly, you receive a similar bonus to the Assassinate feat when using it against Demons (not nightkin, only full blood demons) and Undead, although you don’t need to speak to them beforehand. This bonus also applies to Vorpal Sever.

While you have life essence stored within you, say “Virtuous Soul, no effect” in response to a lesser Disease or a lesser Curse that would afflict you. If you have a Greater Attunement to your Vorpal Knife, you may also respond the same to Greater Diseases and Greater Curses.

The followers of the Quiet Knife devote their entire lives and the lives of hundreds of others to the study of their deadly art. Taught only by the shadowy death-dealers of Clan Shaggrath, the Sha-durath is said to hail from a forgotten Clan whose destruction claimed all but Shaggrath the Silent.

Those who study Sha-durath tend to become purists, eschewing all but their favored weapons in combat. More so than Vorpal Knives, these slayers are masters of a craft so difficult and demanding that they hold themselves above all other styles of fighting. The road to learning Sha-durath is an extremely difficult one, requiring physical strength and a strong soul to weather the necessary trials — traits that said to be innate to the First-born Race of the Dwarves.

Affiliations: Even with these physical and spiritual requirements however, the most difficult prerequisite is also the most dangerous — the favor of Clan Shaggrathi, a matter of such gravity that thousands have died to acquire.

Some believe that at least one Quiet Knife is in the employ of the King-slayer. However, these individuals are as elusive as they are deadly.

Additional Requirements:

• Great Strength skill
• Dance of Shadows feat

In addition to Vorpal Expertise, followers of the Quiet Knife are privy to an extremely difficult but deadly style of fighting: the Sha-durath.

Usable only when wielding the Vorpal Knife in one hand and a dagger in the other, the Sha-durath allows the Dirty Fighting skill to apply to the base damage of a Dagger instead of only during Backstabs.

This means that the base damage of a melee Dagger in the hands of the Quiet Knife is 5 damage (instead of 2 damage). This also means that when using the Backstab attack, Dirty Fighting no longer provides a damage bonus (bonuses from Backstabber and other sources may still apply) because it already provides its damage increases even without the need of a backstab attack – your damage in this way may not exceed 10.

An additional option is offered to Quiet Knives at this tier should they fulfill the requirement.

The Quiet Knife’s Retort (requires Pierce Shield feat) The reach of a dagger is short, but the Quiet Knife has its own answer to that problem. While wielding the Vorpal Knife, you may apply the damage bonuses from Sha-durath to throwing daggers.

Furthermore, you gain the Patient Archer skill from the Marksman skill list. You may even use it to gain an expert use of Pierce Shield. However, this version of the skill can only be used with throwing daggers.

Master of Quietus: Instead of Vorpal Typhoon, Quiet Knives may enter the eponymous “Sha-durath”, a special stance that is activated by the Dance of Shadows feat. In this state, the Quiet Knife’s melee strikes with their Vorpal Knife and their off-hand weapon (which must be a dagger) strike for “Flourish 10 Shadow” with every swing or thrust. This damage may not be increased or augmented in any way. Sha-durath ends when the Quiet Knife is reduced to 0 HP, loses hold of their Vorpal Knife or when no immediate threat is in the area.

Sha-durath may be activated at any time, so long as it is preceded by the Dance of Shadows feat.