NPC concept: Simnel the Pretender


Advice


NPC concept: a guy witha sky-high Bluff skill who is using it to pretend to be something he isn't. I'm thinking "the Long-Lost Heir", but other options are possible.

Simnel is a flat-out liar, but he's not actually evil. (I see him as N or CN.) He's made a very good career out of being a liar and a con man, and now he's about to make his big score. Unfortunately, the PCs are in the way somehow. Without even realizing it, they've stumbled across evidence that could expose him. Maybe they recovered treasure from a dungeon that included the remains of Simnel's late adventuring party, and they've unwittingly picked up an intelligent magic item that could accuse him. Or they found a spellbook that includes the diary of his late wizard companion, written in an almost impenetrable cipher; if they can translate it, they'll certainly realize that the Crown Prince is not who he claims to be. In any event, Simnel knows somehow that the PCs are a potential threat. He's not evil, but he's not good either, and he's not going to sit and let his scam be spoiled by a bunch of stupid adventurers. So he'll try to get the PCs discredited, driven away, or killed.

Most people think that Simnel is a bard, because he has a few ranks in Perform and can cast some minor spells. In fact he's a sorceror with the Rakshasa bloodline who has dipped a couple of levels of rogue. When the PCs encounter him, he should recently have been accepted into a very prestigious new position -- i.e., the aging Duke has just acknowledged that Simnel is indeed his nephew, kidnapped by witches as a small child and presumed dead for many years, returned in time to save the dynasty from extinction! This position will give him access to a wide range of resources, including some well beyond his level, and Simnel will not hesitate to use them agains the PCs.

Simnel is built around his Bluff skill, which is pumped as high as possible. He's a moderately competent combatant but that's not what he's really about. What makes him a deadly antagonist is that he's an incredibly good liar.

Here follow two sketches, one at 4th level and one at 10th.

Simnel the Pretender, Human Rogue (charlatan) 2 / Sorceror (rakshasa bloodline) 2

Spoiler:

Str 10 Con 12 Dex 14 Int 10 Wis 11 Cha 18

Feats include Skill Focus (Bluff). He has the Charlatan trait, which lets him burn a spell slot to gain a bonus to Bluff equal to that slot's spell level. Spells include Silent Image and Vanish (from the days when he needed quick getaways).

Bluff skill when lying: (+4 skill ranks +4 Cha bonus +3 class skill +3 Skill Focus +5 rakshasa bloodline) = +19, boosted to +20 if he uses his trait.

As a Charlatan Rogue he gets the Natural Born Liar power: when he successfully deceives a creature with a Bluff, that creature takes a –2 penalty against his Bluff checks for the next 24 hours. (Note that this is very gamable, since he can convince someone of a minor, plausible lie, then gain the bonus for subsequent implausible whoppers.) His 2nd level Rogue power is Convincing Lie: those who believe his lies use his Bluff skill when repeating the lies.

At this level he's a dangerous boss opponent for low level PCs -- not by himself, of course, but because he's able to convince most people that the PCs are frauds or enemy agents (or convince the PCs themselves that vast treasure awaits them in this totally empty and harmless cavern complex to which he just happens to have a map). Mind, his +20 Bluff, while formidable, is still vulnerable to divination magic or a good Sense Motive roll; at the end of the day, he's only 4th level.

Simnel the Pretender, Human Rogue (charlatan) 3 / Sorceror (rakshasa bloodline) 7

Spoiler:

Str 10 Con 12 Dex 14 Int 10 Wis 12 Cha 18 (22)

Feats include Skill Focus (Bluff), Deceitful (bonus spell from the rak bloodline), Iron Will, Still Spell, and Silent Spell. He has the Charlatan trait, as above. Spells include Charm Person, Eagle's Splendor, Invisibility and Suggestion. His bloodline gives him the ability to detect thoughts as per the spell twice/day.

Bluff skill when lying: (+10 skill ranks +6 Cha bonus +3 class skill +6 Skill Focus +4 Deceitful +5 rakshasa bloodline) = +34, boosted by another +1 to +3 if he uses his trait for a maximum of +37. And that's before he starts throwing Eagle's Splendor or other buffs; given a few rounds to prepare, he can get it up over +40. In addition to the Natural Born Liar and Convincing Lie abilities described above, he also has the Rumormonger advanced rogue talent -- given his Bluff, this means that with a few days' notice he can have almost everyone in the city convinced of anything, even very implausible ones.

He's now a very dangerous boss opponent for midlevel PCs and a potentially serious threat even for high level ones. Not many characters push Sense Motive past +20, so his lies will usually go unchallenged. He'll probably have access to the resources of a large city or a small kingdom; after all, everyone accepts him as the rightful Crown Prince. (To be fair, you might have to adjust his CR up a bit. A 10th level character who can call on the court wizard, half a dozen midlevel Hellknights, the priests from the capital's temple of Abadar and a hundred men-at-arms while "borrowing" tens of thousands of gp worth of magic items from the royal treasury is probably well over CR 9.) And if you want to add another wrinkle, have Simnel be working for someone else -- the rakshasas, the demon cultists, or just the rival kingdom from across the river.

Direct attacks against Simnel are probably a Really Bad Idea: attacking the Crown Prince is high treason, after all, and will bring the full wrath of the kingdom down on them. So the PCs will need to figure out what's going on and then figure out a way to expose him as a fraud. At this level Simnel's greatest mechanical weakness is to divination magic -- hence the Will boost and the Iron Will feat. If he can get magic items that can help with this -- and as Crown Prince, very likely he can -- he'll use them. (Note that if he gains two more levels of sorceror, the 9th level rak bloodline power gives him effective SR of 15+level against all divination spells.) His greatest weakness in game terms is that he's not all that bright -- Int 10, Wis 12 -- and has become rather too reliant on his silver tongue. He's come to think that pretty much any problem can be solved by some combination of lying and throwing minions at it. So, outsmarting him is potentially an option, if the PCs are clever about it.

Thoughts?

Doug M.


Is there any way this character can reliably benefit from the Glibness spell? With a high enough UMD he could get a staff or wand or something, I suppose.

With his resources, this character could easily have a Robe of Arcane Heritage, granting him the 9th level bloodline power. Although wearing something like that might be suspicious if he's pretending to be a bard, his bluff skill should make it easy to convince people that he just wears it because it looks cool.


fantastic!!

When you finish designing him would you pm me the build, i would love to use him in my home game as well

Grand Lodge

Infiltrator Inquisitor with the Heresy Inquisition will make a much better liar.


blackbloodtroll wrote:
Infiltrator Inquisitor with the Heresy Inquisition will make a much better liar.

You get to add Wisdom instead of Cha to Bluff, and starting at 4th level you get Blessed Infiltration: you can roll Bluff, Diplomacy or Stealth twice and take the better roll (number of times/day equal to Wis modifier).

This makes a good liar, but I'm not sure it's a superior one. At low levels the rak/rogue is clearly better. Once Blessed Infiltration kicks in, yes, that's pretty powerful, but "roll twice and take the better roll" is not always superior to "roll once but add +5". Also, the sorceror's spell list seems better for purposes of deceit.

Mind, if you take a Heresy Inquisitor and dip a level of rak bloodline sorceror, you can get the best of both worlds. I agree that this would be a very powerful liar. As a PC I'd be inclined to call cheese on it. As an NPC... +40 Bluff isn't obnoxious enough?

Doug M.

Grand Lodge

Double wisdom to bluff, and rolling twice and taking the higher roll is good. Nab Eldritch Heritage to get the Rakshasa Bloodline power and some masterwork bluff tools.

Shadow Lodge

I have played a character very much like this before (rouge/rakshasa sorcerer) and all that I have to say is, make sure your DM is okay with it. He may not allow you to get away with as much as you would like (mine sure didn't). But if your DM rewards you for building a character around bluff, do it!

Grand Lodge

Rouge/Rakshasa? Cat lady in make up?

By the way, this is a NPC.


The concept is amazing, but be warned: If you pull this type of thing against your players, don't be surprised if someone makes a diplomancer (someone with a ridiculous Diplomacy skill that can bypass most combats) as retaliation

Build wise, if you don't mind going very cheesy: one level in summoner (synthesist) allows you to get the skilled evolution for a +8 racial to bluff. Not sure if it would fit the concept you have described, but jsut an idea if you want to take the bluff even higher


I've got it! Take two levels of Pathfinder Savant to gain Glibness as a spell known!

Charlatan Rogue 2/Sorcerer 7/Pathfinder Savant 2

After that you can do whatever you want: add another level of rogue or continue with either sorcerer or Pathfinder Savant.

RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32

I once GMed for a Charismatic Hero in a d20 Firefly campaign, and it was super powerful. At 3rd or 4th level, he could get close to +15 or +20 on Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate checks! He had a couple Charismatic Hero talents that let him add his level to his Charisma-based checks twice, plus whatever skill ranks he had, plus a really high Charisma.

So be careful!


Depending on the GM you may be able to take Glibness as a spell known if you can get a wand or scroll of it to study. The sorcerer entry says you can take spells from outside the sorcerer/wizard spell list that you have been able to study.

Failing that you can pick up Bracers of the Glib Entertainer for an hour of glibness per day.

Liberty's Edge

I'd probably go Bard (or Mesmerist) instead of Sorcerer. All you really need it for is the Bloodline Power, and that's what Eldritch Heritage is for.

That gives you Glibness, which really helps. Negotiator Bards actually get Rogue Talents as well as a flat +1/2 level to Bluff as well, so you could easily go straight Negotiator (since you basically just want Rogue for the talents). Plus that gives you Pageant Of The Peacock, which is amazing for this concept (and another +4 Bluff). Which totals Bluff +46 or so, +66 with Glibness.

Frankly, I think that version of the character is better in just about every way (okay, maybe not as a melee combatant, but he's on par even there).


Be careful with how much power you give the bluff skill. If you give it too much then players will start taking it and then they can say, "but you let that npc become the crown prince with bluff". Also, with 1 commune spell his lies are undone. "Is he really the long lost nephew", "No". And bluff can do nothing to stop that. Yes, there are ways to make spells more difficult (his higher level class ability/SR vs divination), but even that has issues. But how about a plot twist, he really is the long lost nephew, and even he doesn't know it.


The problem I see with the Commune spell is that the deity is answering the character that cast the spell, not necessarily out loud or otherwise verbally. Which means that it might end up being that character's word against Simnel's.

I do like the plot twist though.


If he has some ranks in perform, he MUST sing this if he manages to won!

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