Below is the Charlatan kit from 2.0 for bard I especially like the swindling rules where your using pick pockets to "steal" small amounts of money by talking people out of the full amount of services or items your buying like staying at an inn or buying minor non-magic items. I'm thinking I'll convert and write up some rules for this for PF.
Charlatan
Specialty: Trickster/Con Artist.
Qualifications: Standard ability scores. Charlatans live off the fat of the land, bending all the rules and hopping through loopholes in the law. It is completely against the personality of the Charlatan to be lawful. Charlatans are limited to NG, N, NE, or CN alignments. Gnomes may become Charlatans and advance up to 6th level.
Introduction: My real name is Tiel, but most of the fools who fall into my traps call me Tori. I know exactly how to get what I want from others. Especially those who are overconfident, weak, or emotional.
People often believe what they want to believe, and I take advantage of this. I know how to swindle these simple-minded fools and make them feel good about it. I have many disguises with which to cloak my activities. My favorite is that of a cleric of Tyr. Of course, none of my ruses has ever been uncovered, and it's a good thing.
There's a saying: "There are two types of Charlatans-those who are good and those who are dead."
I usually don't stay in one place for very long; it's not safe. By the time the poor fool I've tricked has figured out what happened, I'm long gone. Once, I agreed to watch over the castle of a good "friend," the rapacious Sir John of Canters, while he went off on a quest. I sold the castle and made off with all the loot before he returned. For now, I am performing sleight-of-hand tricks for mere pocket coins until I meet another "friend." Perhaps tomorrow I will be a powerful mage or a war
hero.
I thrive in cities and towns where victims are plentiful and easy to manipulate. Lately, I have been considering the possibility of posing as a thief. Why? So I can accompany a party of adventures in a quest and collect my "share" of the treasure.
Description: Charlatans are masters at manipulating people. Using their high Intelligence and understanding of human nature, Charlatans prey upon the foolish, overconfident, and greedy people around them.
Charlatans often seem bold and boisterous, but they always maintain self-control. The profession of swindling others and making them feel good about it is an age-old practice and none are better at it than Charlatans.
The Charlatan's profession has its downside, too. When a Charlatan's facade is pierced, he is in grave danger, for no one likes to be conned. Then the Charlatan's quick feet may serve him better than his quick wit.
Role: Charlatans are wanderers. They go from town to town, switching from one identity to another, always a step ahead of the last person they swindled. In large cities, Charlatans may be able to live out most of their lives moving from one quarter to the next.
When times are tough and no great con comes to mind, Charlatans sometimes perform sleight-of-hand tricks just to get by. Charlatans also have a knack for acquiring jobs that allow them to bluff their way through each day.
Charlatans can sometimes be found masquerading as priests, healers, sages, diplomats, powerful mages, and retired heroes.
As player characters, Charlatans are most useful in town-based campaigns or when traveling across inhabited country. Their talents often support the entire party with food, shelter, and minor luxuries. Unfortunately, many of their talents have little use when
exploring ruins or wilderness areas. However, they often pose as wizards, warriors, thieves, and sometimes even priests. As NPCs, Charlatans really come into their own.
Secondary Skills: Charlatans can have any secondary skill. However, well over half of all Charlatans are gamblers, jewelers, or limner/painters, for these skills help fill their coin purses in lean times.
Weapon Proficiencies: Charlatans must take dagger, short sword, or long sword as one of their initial weapon proficiencies, as these weapons are used in so many roles that they shouldn't be passed over. At least every second weapon proficiency gained must be one of these three until they are all selected.
A Charlatan selects the rest of his weapons to fill the needs of various roles. For example, if Charlatan decides to masquerade as a powerful warrior, he arms himself with a heavy combat weapon (a two-handed sword, polearm, long bow, or a battle axe) and spends a proficiency slot learning it. This way he can appear to be a skilled and tough fighter. The Charlatan always uses his proficient weapon in dire situations. If an encounter is less threatening, the Charlatan uses one of the other weapons so as to appear to be a well-rounded fighter (the -3 non-proficiency penalty is easier to hide when
attacking monsters with poor Armor Classes).
Nonweapon Proficiencies: Bonuses: Acting, Disguise, Forgery, Gaming. Suggested: Appraising, Astrology, Healing, Herbalism, Juggling, Reading Lips, Religion, Rope Use, Singing, Ventriloquism.
Armor/Equipment: A Charlatan is allowed to wear any type of armor if a role requires it. Thus, a Charlatan masquerading as a paladin can wear plate mail and carry a shield. But a Charlatan is a finesse character; heavy, bulky armor goes against the grain of his personality. No Charlatan will maintain a role that requires him to wear non-bard
armor for more than a few weeks.
Special Benefits:
Charm: Charlatans are aware of their unique charm and flair. They have learned to use this gift to sway the reactions of others. However, such charm must be carefully tailored to a specific audience. Charlatans can affect only a small group of people, no larger in number than their current level.
To be charmed, a group must be in average to high spirits. (You can't charm a merchant who's just been robbed.) The Charlatan must mingle among the intended group and chat for at least 1d10 rounds. After this time, those in the group roll a saving throw vs. paralyzation with a penalty of -1 per three levels of the Charlatan. Those who succeed
are unimpressed with the Charlatan and may even find him to be an irritation. If they succeed on a natural 20, they see through the Charlatan's facade. Those who fail have been caught up in the Charlatan's tales and find him to be a most remarkable person. The effects of the charm are identical to the wizard spell of the same
name. However, it is not magical in any way, and future saving throws are not made based on Intelligence and time. Rather, every time the Charlatan stresses the relationshipby calling for a favor, or requesting delicate information-the paralyzation saving throw is
rerolled. The DM can give bonuses or penalties depending on how much stress the request puts on the relationship.
Masquerade: The ability of masquerading requires much study, time, and effort on the part of the Charlatan. This enables a Charlatan to appear to have a specific skill. This is not a disguise, as the proficiency of that name. Rather, it is the ability to appear proficient at the chosen skill. The character picks up the language ('buzz words'),professional mannerisms, and general techniques to help him in his endeavor.
Unlike the True Bard, the Charlatan only appears to be a jack-of-all trades. He does not study skills to use them, but for the sake of conning others into believing he has them. The use of this ability is resolved by the DM in much the same manner as an illusion spell.
If the performance is not overly suspicious and the characters watching have no reason to disbelieve the bard's ability, then the attempt appears genuine. Otherwise, a saving throw vs. paralyzation is rolled with a -1 penalty per three levels of the Charlatan. Those who succeed realize that the Charlatan is a fraud.
A Charlatan can use his masquerade ability to fake any nonweapon proficiency or secondary skill. Furthermore, if the Charlatan rolls a successful Intelligence check with a -10 penalty, he actually functions as if he really knows the skill or proficiency (for this one check only). Thus, a Charlatan can actually succeed just enough to keep skeptics satisfied.
For example, if Tiel is masquerading as a cleric, she can claim to know the healing proficiency even though she doesn't really have it. Unless those she heals are suspicious, they will believe that the attempts are genuine (if they are suspicious, roll as described two paragraphs prior to this one). First Tiel's player rolls an Intelligence check with a -10
penalty. If that roll succeeds, she next rolls a healing proficiency check. If this check also succeeds, the patient is healed of 1d3 points of damage. If the Intelligence check fails, everyone watching rolls a saving throw vs. paralyzation (with a -1 penalty per three levels of the Charlatan) to notice that the Charlatan is a fraud. If the Intelligence check succeeds but the healing check fails, the patient and onlookers notice only that a valid attempt was made but it just didn't help.
Each time Tiel masquerades as a healer, an Intelligence check is rolled with a -10 penalty. If the check succeeds, a successful healing proficiency check will actually heal 1d3 points of damage.
Detect Fakery: Because Charlatans are so skilled at faking their personalities, lying, and concealing their feelings and reactions, they can see right through false personae and verbal trickery when others attempt them. As the old saying goes, "You can't con a con man." Any time a Charlatan player requests it, he can try to determine if someone is lying, operating under false pretenses (including a masquerade), or swindling him. A Charisma check is rolled. Success means the Charlatan realizes the deception. Furthermore, a Charisma check with a -10 penalty enables the Charlatan to determine a person's alignment. This requires that the Charlatan speak with and observe the individual for 1d10 rounds.
Swindling: Major cons, such as duping a king into believing that you are a highly respected sage, drawing him into your inner confidence, and then relieving him of the crown jewels, should be done only through role-playing. However, Charlatans hone such skills by constantly performing minor swindles and tricks. These are far too numerous
and insignificant to role-play every time. Swindling covers this aspect of a Charlatan's skill repertoire.
By performing various cons, sleight-of-hand, and other deceptions, a Charlatan is often able to walk away from a merchant with far more than a fair deal. The same is true of any common outlay of coins, such as buying meals at a tavern, paying for a room at an inn, and purchasing ordinary items. In instances like these, the Charlatan makes a pick
pockets roll. If successful, the cost of the item is reduced to the percentage rolled; this is what the Charlatan pays. If the roll fails by more than the Charlatan's Charisma, the con is seen through. Swindle rolls above 95 are always detected by the victim.
For example, Tiel tries to swindle a barkeeper for a 10-gp glass of imported wine (Tiel has only six gold coins left). Tiel's pick pockets roll is a 53 and she has a Charisma of 16. She rolls a 25 and swindles her way into paying only two gold and one electrum for the wine (25% of the original cost). If she had rolled a 54-69 the barkeeper would
have noticed the error and politely requested the remainder of the money. On a 70 or above the barkeeper would not only have noticed the error, but he would have realized that Tiel tried to swindle him (with unpleasant consequences for Tiel).
Swindling rolls should not be used for amounts in excess of 10 gp per level of the Charlatan. Such grand swindles require full role-playing.
Special Hindrances: None.
