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First off I know the beta testing is closed but it took my a bit to get this tried in my games.
This is my redesign of the shadowdancer class
I love the concept of the class (a fast movment specialists with some add ons) but the class is very clunky to use and very slow for a movment specialist that and the pet made no sense in the class .
Shadowdancer
Hit Die: d8
To qualify to become a shadowdancer, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.
Skills: Stealth 5 ranks, Perform (dance) 2 ranks.
Feats: Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Mobility
Class Skills:
The shadowdancer’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Acrobatics (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Diplomacy (Cha), Disguise (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Perception (Wis), Perform (Cha), Search (Int), Sleight of Hand (Dex), and Stealth (Dex).
Skill Points at Each Level: 6 + Int modifier.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Shadowdancers are proficient with the club, crossbow (hand, light, or heavy), dagger (any type), dart, mace, morningstar, quarterstaff, rapier, sap, shortbow (normal and composite), and short sword. Shadowdancers are proficient with light armor but not with shields.
Class abilities:
Hide in Plain Sight (Su): A shadowdancer can use the Stealth skill even while being observed. As long as she is within 10 feet of some sort of shadow, a shadowdancer can hide herself from view in the open without anything to actually hide behind. She cannot, however, hide in her own shadow.
Darkness (Sp): Once per day per shadowdancer class level, the shadowdancer can cast darkness with a caster level equal to ½ the shadowdancers level with a minimum of level of 1.
Evasion (Ex): At 2nd level, a shadowdancer gains evasion. If exposed to any effect that normally allows her to attempt a Reflex saving throw for half damage, she takes no damage with a successful saving throw. The evasion ability can only be used if the shadowdancer is wearing light armor or no armor.
Darkvision (Su): At 2nd level, a shadowdancer can see in the dark as though she were permanently under the effect of a darkvision spell.
[/b]Uncanny Dodge (Ex): [/b]Starting at 2nd level, a shadowdancer retains her Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) regardless of being caught f lat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker. (She still loses any Dexterity bonus to AC if immobilized.) If a character gains uncanny dodge from a second class, the character automatically gains improved uncanny dodge (see below).
Shadow Illusion (Sp): When a shadowdancer reaches 3rd level, she can create visual illusions. This ability’s effect is identical to that of the arcane spell silent image and may be employed once per day per 3 class levels.
Dance of the Shadows (Su): At 4th level, a shadowdancer can, as part of a move action, make a jump from a shadow to another shadow. The movement is as dimensional door in that it is instantaneous. The shadowdancer must make a Perform (dance) check vs. DCs based on the chart below. If the shadow dancer fails the roll by less than 5 they make the jump but take 1d6 temporary damage per 10ft attempted. If they fail by more than 5, they must make a Fort save of 15 plus the amount missed by or be Exhausted in addition to the damage taken.
Base jump of 10 feet or less: DC 10
Per additional 10 feet : +5 dc
Change direction: +5 dc
Jumping into your own shadow : +10 dc
Into an occupied square: +10 dc
Defensive Roll (Ex): Starting at 5th level, once per day, when a shadowdancer would be reduced to 0 hit points or less by damage in combat (from a weapon or other blow, not a spell or special ability); she can attempt to roll with the damage. She makes a Reflex saving throw (DC = damage dealt) and, if successful, takes only half damage from the blow. She must be aware of the attack and able to react to it in order to execute her defensive roll. If she is in a situation that would deny her any Dexterity bonus to AC, she can’t attempt a defensive roll.
Improved Uncanny Dodge (Ex): At 5th level, a shadowdancer can no longer be flanked. This defense denies rogues the ability to use f lank attacks to sneak attack the shadowdancer. The exception to this defense is that a rogue at least four levels higher than the shadowdancer can flank her (and thus sneak attack her). If a character gains uncanny dodge (see above) from a second class, the character automatically gains improved uncanny dodge, and the levels from those classes stack to determine the minimum rogue level required to flank the character.
Aura of the Night (Su): At 6th level the shadowdancer gains an aura of shadows around herself that grants 20% concealment. This is a constant effect that suppressed as a free action.
Slippery Mind (Ex): At 7th level, if a shadowdancer is affected by an enchantment and fails her saving throw, 1 round later she can attempt her saving throw again. She only gets this one extra chance to succeed at her saving throw. If it fails as well, the spell’s effects occur normally.
Body of Shadows (Sp): At 9th level, the shadow dancer shifts her body to form a shadow. The effect is the same a Gaseous Form with the effect lasting 10 minutes per day that do not have to run consecutively but use a minimum of 1 minute per usage.
Improved Evasion (Ex): This ability, gained at 10th level, works like evasion (see above). A shadowdancer takes no damage at all on successful saving throws against attacks that allow a Reflex saving throw for half damage. What’s more, she takes only half damage even if she fails her saving throw.
Shadowdancer
Base
Attack Fort Ref Will
Level Bonus Save Save Save Special
1st +0 +0 +1 +0 Hide in plain sight, Darkness
2nd +1 +1 +1 +1 Evasion, darkvision, uncanny dodge
3rd +2 +1 +2 +1 Shadow Illusion
4th +3 +1 +2 +1 Dance of shadows
5th +3 +2 +3 +2 Defensive roll, improved uncanny dodge
6th +4 +2 +3 +2 Aura of the Night
7th +5 +2 +4 +2 Slippery Mind
8th +6 +3 +4 +3
9th +6 +3 +5 +3 Body of shadows
10th +7 +3 +5 +3 Improved Evasion
If I could get some feed back on this it would be nice
thanks
edited for some typos
Shadowdancer
Skills: Stealth 5 ranks, Perform (dance) 2 ranks.
I think you're underselling the skill requirement.
In 3.5, the earliest anyone could qualify for this PrC was 7th level, but you've brought it down to 5th level. I think I would bump Stealth back up to 7 ranks to keep it in line with 3.5.
I also think that 2 ranks is not enough for Perform (dance).
I know, 2 ranks in Pathfinder is like 5 ranks in 3.5, except that this is really a way out-there corner case skill that nobody ever takes except a small percentage of bards. So really, even in 3.5, 5 ranks represented a significant willingness to sacrifice useful ranks into this prerequisite with nothing (mechanically) gained at all except to qualify for this class.
Taking this down to 2 ranks, in Pathfinder where many skills are consolidated and skill ranks are easier for most classes to come by, is removing this significant investment. I would be inclined to leave it at 5 myself, or maybe bump down to 4.
Also worthy of note, the 3.5 class required a lot of ranks invested into Hide and into Move Silently. Since those are consolidated into Stealth now, anyone who wants to get into this PrC can do so with far far less effort of investing skill ranks - which ties into my suggestion to levve to Dance requirement at 5 ranks. If you don't, then I would suggest tacking on a different skill, maybe Perception (hey, it's not easy to suddenly acquire darkvision), with at least 5 ranks in this new skill prerequisite (to represent the fact that in 3.5 it required 3 skills to earn the PrC).
So either make dancing a real prerequisite investment, or find something else to replace that investment.
At least, that's what I would do.
I have little else to say about the class abilities. I've never seen a shadow dancer in play, so I have no frame of reference.
It will be interesting to compare this with the PF Final Shadowdancer in KQ #10 this month.
Shadowdancer
Skills: Stealth 5 ranks, Perform (dance) 2 ranks.I think you're underselling the skill requirement.
In 3.5, the earliest anyone could qualify for this PrC was 7th level, but you've brought it down to 5th level. I think I would bump Stealth back up to 7 ranks to keep it in line with 3.5.
I also think that 2 ranks is not enough for Perform (dance).
ok this a direct copy from the PFWE for the requirements Personally I will up the requirements. Because i agree with you on that point.
as for the original you had a movement class that had a standard action to make move action (aka casting a limited distance dimensional door), a sucktaculur pet that was too week and had a nasty xp penalty if it died.
It will be interesting to compare this with the PF Final Shadowdancer in KQ #10 this month.
finally got mine.
while the new spell add ons are nice, the movement issue still is a porblem. it way too slow for a movment specialist class.
the issues i still see are.
1. ifs a standard action cast time for diminsional door
2 you can do no actions till the next round after exiting.
3. the pet is more of a hernderence that a help.