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Hello! I would appreciate some assistance with a character I am building, The main premise is making the ultimate spy. My basic setup is below, but I wanted to see what classes would be easiest to fake with the given, or similar build.
Name: Yako (Meaning: Field fox, or the lowest tier of kitsune) and several others.
Race: Kitsune
Class: Ninja
Alignment: CN
Languages: Common, Sylvan, and any additional usual languages you can, (dwarven, elven, tengu, etc)
Main features: Change shape racial ability with level 1 feat realistic likeness. This gives you the ability to shapechange into any person(Or DM ruled any human) you have seen, and should confer the +10 bonus to disguise as that person, and physically being that person without adjusting stats.
Build so far;
L1 feat: Realistic likeness
L2 Trick: Vanishing trick
L3 feat: 2-weapon fighting
L4 trick: Finesse rogue
L5 feat+: unknown, probably more 2-weapon fighting and extra ki.
L6 trick: Umbral gear
L8 trick: Forgotten trick
L10 trick: Invisible blade
L14 Trick: Shrinewalk
Gear: Wakizashi(preferably agile and glammered for dex to damage, and to make it look like other weapons.), Ring of nondetection (To mask magic item auras and alignment detections), and sleeves of many garments (To easily provide quick disguises.) And the other typical items, the less conspicuous, the better. Not needed, but nice, Burglar's boots, and gloves of reconnaissance.
Skills:
Acrobatics(for avoiding attacks when fleeing, or doing movie ninja spy stuff)
***Bluff(you HAVE to be able to tell a good lie), Diplomacy(to get what you want/social engineering)
Disable device(opening places you shouldn't be in)
***Disguise(key ability to being a good spy)
Knowledge: Local (to identify people)
Linguistics(for good impersonation, forging and detecting official documents, and if DM lets you realistic likeness as an elf or dwarf etc.)
Sense motive(another important social skill)
Sleight of hand(to steal or hide items, like those important documents you spent a session obtaining from a fortress)
***Stealth(While not typically advised for the whole black-suit ninja assault, being able to hide is often preferable to being found in a restricted place, even in disguise.)
Main idea for the character is using realistic likeness and time spent studying people to disguise and fake being others, either specific people to gain access to restricted places/information, or random people to avoid getting identified. Umbral gear prevents you from ever being ENTIRELY helpless, as depending on DM rule, the inside of a cloak or backpack can be considered dim light to qualify.
Ideally, you can play it so the other party characters or even other real life players don't realize you are a kitsune or a ninja, as when I first played him to level 4.
So any advice would be greatly appreciated, but mainly, curious as to what classes you could get away playing as. I think rogue is easy, and maybe other martial classes like fighter.
--(uses vanishing trick)"I roll to steath, result X(+20 from invisibility) I'm effectively invisible, you don't see where I went."
--(Use realistic likeness)"I use a disguise kit and roll for disguise as X person/thing"
--"Oh right! I always pack some lockpicks in my bag!"(Use umbral gear) Etc.
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First things first, I will say that it will be practically impossible to hide this from the other players. To use your example of using vanishing trick, the GM needs to know you're using vanishing trick and not just using stealth in order to correctly adjudicate it. Doing this secretly without tipping off the other players to the fact that you have a secret is pretty much impossible, and once scrutiny falls on you your jig will be up. The other players will be able to see the GM adjudicating the actual rules, and once they're looking for it the discrepancies will be obvious. Now, you can absolutely keep this an in-character secret and see how long that lasts (in my experience this sort of thing often doesn't even last a single session if you're actively flaunting it in front of the other PC's), but trying to fool the other players will fall apart almost instantly.
With that aside, it sounds to me like you want to be a Teisatsu Vigilante. The vigilante class is pretty much designed for this "I'm not what I seem to be" style of character, the teisatsu archetype gets ninja powers.
Alternately there is the Eldritch Scoundrel, a Rogue archetype that gets spellcasting and the ability to convert spell slots into ki to fuel ki powers. While it has a weaker sneak attack, and can't two weapon fight (needs a free hand to cast spells), it does get finesse training and debilitating strike, and of course access to actual spellcasting is a huge toolbox of options.
Kiba Kurokage wrote: Ring of nondetection (To mask magic item auras and alignment detections) Largely useless. By the time you can afford it, any adversary worth their salt can beat the DC of a non-detection item and their divinations will see through it. A better option is to get a friendly spellcaster to cast (Greater) Magic Aura. It has days/level duration and hides their magical auras from all but the most determined prying eyes.
If you go the Vigilante route, they can get a constant EX non-magic Magic Aura effect.
If you expect to use it a lot and use the Eldritch Scoundrel, you could also grab a wand of of Greater Magic Aura.
Temperans wrote: If you expect to use it a lot and use the Eldritch Scoundrel, you could also grab a wand of of Greater Magic Aura. 4th level wands are really expensive. Probably better to wait until you're 10th to just cast it yourself. The duration will be 10 days/level, so you can just cast it on a downtime day.
I'd recommend dipping a level in Arcanist or something.
Dimensional Slide is a 10' Teleport that does not end your turn like Dim Door does, so it's a great way to achieve Flanking to lock in your Sneak Attack Damage.
Also, it gives you those Ranged Touch Attack Cantrips, and it lets you use Wands. Use them after you Vanished: Ranged Touch Attack vs. Flatfooted AC that locks in your Sneak Attack Damage! Just try to say that out loud without an evil grin splitting your face open!
You will eventually be able to use a Wand of Greater Invisibility, which is a Ninja Trick, not sure whether you will get the money or the levels first. But meanwhile, spamming Ninja Vanishing Trick and Sneak Attack Scorching Ray will burn your Ki fast. So, after you vanish, find a hiding place. Use Stealth.
Stealth checks after sniping impose a -20 on your check, so take the False Attacker Rogue Talent. False Attacker lets you make a Bluff Check after you attack. If your Bluff check succeeds, your target thinks the attack came from some other direction, and you don't need to make your Stealth Check to remain hidden.
You'll want a high Bluff Mod anyway to be a spy. I like the Rogue Talent Coax Information. That lets you use Bluff instead of Diplomacy or Intimidate. That will let you dump those skills and put it all into Bluff. Invest in the Mask of the Stony Demeanor. It gives you a +10 on Bluff Checks to Lie, and a +5 on Bluff Checks to feint in Combat.
The Disguise Self Spell gives you a +10 on Disguise Checks. The Grease Spell gives you a +10 on Escape Artist Checks. Those are both level 1 spells!
No one will see you coming. No one will know where the death rays keep coming from. When they do see you, no one will know who you are, and everyone will believe every lie you tell!
That says ultimate spy to me!
Rogue/Ninja/Unchained Rogue are all obvious options
Stalker Vigilante or Teisatsu Vigilante are also both solid options
Investigator would be solid as well
Slayer could pull it off as well if you wanted to go a little heavier on combat
Archaeologist Bard, Arcane Trickster, Warlock Vigilante, and a few others can do it as well if you want to go for a more magic focused build.
Plenty of ways to build a solid character around being a Kitsune with Realistic Likeness.
As mentioned above, trying to keep it a secret from your fellow players is going to be virtually impossible...and keeping it from the characters in game will become more and more difficult the longer you are around each other...especially at higher level when people start using things like True Seeing
I appreciate the feedback!
I didn't mean that I would hide it indefinitely, but as a start, introducing the character a certain way, and then trying to keep it secret while doing your own stuff until the story calls for it to be revealed. I actually managed to hide it from my last group for about 6-7 sessions, and was only revealed after he died. Though their characters still didn't know.
In any case, I didn't even know about the magic aura spells, so that is a great help! And I will look into the other class options as well, though just the initial glance has me between the teisatsu vigilante and the eldritch scoundrel, I will have to do a bit of a deeper dive into the classes, and other gear that is available.
And lastly, I was trying to go initially for a more physical/melee build, with a few ki/casting options, kind of like a "witcher" from the Witcher games. Mostly melee, maybe some minor abilities just to back up what is skill and training, not a half caster/half melee. Though I understand how important magic is in pathfinder, so you can't neglect it entirely.
Kiba Kurokage wrote: And lastly, I was trying to go initially for a more physical/melee build, with a few ki/casting options, kind of like a "witcher" from the Witcher games. Mostly melee, maybe some minor abilities just to back up what is skill and training, not a half caster/half melee. Though I understand how important magic is in pathfinder, so you can't neglect it entirely. Melee or missile, your character should have a variety of ways to lock in your Sneak Attack Damage.
Vanishing Trick and Invisible Blade are 2. That level in Arcanist would be another. Improved Feint would be another. There is the Rogue Talent Underhanded Trick which gives you the Improved Dirty Trick Feat. Dirty Tricks can make opponents Blind, locking in your SAD, and if you encounter someone who has Blindsight (which negates your Invisibility), a 2nd Dirty Trick can make them Deaf, too!
I know of other ways.
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