Noble

Adventuring aristocrats are an uncommon sight, since so many members of the gentry prefer a life of ease to, well, anything else.  Some gentlemen, though, feel a need to make a difference in the world.  These altruistic warriors sometimes operate as the commander of an elite contingent of musketeers, or perhaps as a masked hero, putting some swash in the buckle of a villain before disappearing into the night.  Noble adventurers have one thing in common, though: they are always courteous to the opposite sex and generally don’t harm the weak or innocent. 

       
Many nobles harbor a secret desire put power into the hands of the common people, but because the so often find themselves in the company of elitist snobs and bigoted squires, these secret heroes must keep their opinions to themselves… until the sun sets.

       
Abilities: Charisma is definitely the most important ability of the noble, as they must be able to deal with people in many situations.  From affairs of state to affairs of the heart, nobles fare better if they are able to “wow the crowd.”  Acting as a leader also requires high charisma.  Intelligence and Wisdom are also important, for the noble often cannot fall back on sword or spell; more so than any other class, nobles must be able to think their way though a variety of situations.

Hit Die: d6

Starting Cash: 6d4 × 1,000ƒ

Class Skills
The noble's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Appraise (Int), Bluff (Cha), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Disguise (Cha), Gamble (Wis), Gather Information (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (art & artifacts) (Int), Knowledge (behavioral sciences) (Int), Knowledge (business) (Int), Knowledge (civics) (Int), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), and Speak Language (none).
Skill Points at 1st Level: (6 + Int modifier) × 4.
Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 6 + Int modifier.
 

Class Features
All of the following are class features of the noble:

Starting Feats: Nobles start with Simple Weapons Proficiency, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Light Armor Proficiency, and Shield Proficiency.

Illicit Knowledge: At 1st level, a noble may designate any one cross-class skill as a class skill. This represents an area of expertise the noble picks up outside his or her normal training.

Favors: The noble has the ability to call in favors from those she knows. By making a favor check, the noble can call upon contacts to gain important information without going through the time and trouble of doing a lot of research. Favors can also be used to acquire the loan of equipment or documents from influential acquaintances.

To call in a favor, the noble makes a favor check. Roll a d20 and add the character's favor bonus (+1 at 1st level, +2 at 3rd level, and so on). The DM sets the DC based on the scope of the favor being requested. The DC ranges from 10 for a simple favor to as high as 25 for highly dangerous, expensive, or illegal favors. The noble can't take 10 or take 20 on this check, nor can she retry the check for the same (or virtually the same) favor. Note that favors should help advance the plot of an adventure. A favor that would enable a character to circumvent an adventure should always be unavailable to the character, regardless of the results of a favor check.

A noble can try to call in a favor a number of times in a week of game time that's equal to half her noble levels, rounded up. The DM should carefully monitor the noble's use of favors to ensure that this ability isn't abused. The success or failure of a mission shouldn't hinge on the use of a favor, and calling in favors shouldn't replace good roleplaying or the use of other skills. The DM may disallow any favor deemed to be disruptive to the game.

Inspire Confidence: Beginning at 2nd level, a noble can use oratory to inspire confidence in allies, bolstering them and improving their chances of success. An ally must listen to and observe the noble for a full round for the inspiration to take hold. The effect lasts for 5 rounds. The noble can inspire a number of allies equal to half her noble levels, rounded up. She can inspire confidence once per day for every four levels of noble she possesses (once per day from 1st to 4th level, twice per day from 5th to 8th level, and so on).

An ally inspired with confidence gains a +2 morale bonus on saving throws and a +1 morale bonus on attack and weapon damage rolls.

The noble can't inspire confidence in herself. The ability only aids her allies.

Taunt: Also at 2nd level, a noble can taunt his enemies.  The noble first rolls a Bluff, Diplomacy, or Intimidate check vs. DC 15.  If the check succeeds, the noble has successfully taunted his opponent (a foe must have an Intelligence of at least 3 to be susceptible to a taunt, and he must be within 30 feet of the noble and able to hear and understand him).  The foe must roll a Will save (DC = 10 + one-half the noble's class level + the noble's Cha modifier) or be dazed (able to defend normally, but cannot act) for one round.  A noble may taunt the same foe multiple times during a battle.

Resource Access: Beginning at 3rd level, a noble has access to an array of resources (usually from family, influential friends, or patrons). Once per day, the noble can make a Charisma check to use those resources during the adventure.

The value of resources (in gold doubloons) gained equals the noble's class level multiplied by the result of the Charisma check multiplied by 200. Thus, a 3rd-level noble who gets a result of 16 on her Charisma check would gain 9,600ƒ  worth of resources to use in the adventure (3 × 16 × 200 = 9,600). Resource access can be used instead of, but not in addition to, a Profession skill check to generate money.  (In order to find the value of a noble's resources in gold doubloons, rather than silver guilders, one would multiply the initial roll by 20, rather than 200 --  in the above example, 3 × 16 × 20 = 960 gd.)

These resources can take almost any form the noble chooses (within reason) and are hers to do with as she pleases. She can keep them, use them, give them away, or sell them as she sees fit. The resources gained arrive in the noble's possession 1d8 hours after she makes the check. These resources must be reasonably available when and where she chooses to make the check. For instance, a noble trekking through the Wilderness of Archania won't have access to many resources.

Resource access tends to be monetary, whereas favors tend to be benefits that can't necessarily be measured in gold.

Coordinate: A noble has a knack for getting people to work together. When the noble can aid others and give directions, she provides a bonus to the task at hand by making an aid another check. This bonus is in addition to the normal aid another bonus (+2), and it increases as the noble gains levels. So, the noble provides a total +3 bonus at 4th level (+2 aid another bonus, +1 cooperation bonus), a +4 bonus at 8th level, etc. This ability can't be used to assist in combat.

Backstab: A 5th-level noble may deal extra damage with a melee weapon when flanking an opponent.  The damage increases by +1d6 at every five levels.

Bonus Feats: At 6th, 9th, 14th, and 19th level, the noble gains a bonus feat. This feat must be selected from the following list, and the noble must meet any prerequisites: Alertness, Confident, Deceptive, Educated, Frightful Presence, Negotiator, Persuasive, Trustworthy.

Insult: At 6th level, the noble can attempt to insult his opponents, using more insightfully nasty jibes and put-downs than mere taunting.  The noble must roll a Sense Motive check vs. DC 15 to insult his opponent, but if he succeeds at the roll, and his opponent fails the Will save (DC 10 + one-half the noble's class level + the noble's Cha modifier), the target can't think straight and suffers a -1 penalty to all attack rolls, skill and ability checks, and saving throws, for the next five rounds.  At levels 10, 14, and 18, the penalty worsens by -1.  The noble can insult the same character multiple times during a battle, but the effects don't stack -- they merely last until five rounds have passed since the noble's last successful insult.

Inspire Greatness: Beginning at 11th level, a noble can inspire greatness in an ally, granting extra fighting capability. This works similar to inspire confidence, except it affects but a single ally. An ally inspired with greatness gains +2d6 temporary hit points, a +2 competence bonus on attacks, and a +2 morale bonus to saving throws. The effect lasts for 5 rounds. The noble can inspire greatness once per day. For every three noble levels attained beyond 11th level, the noble can inspire greatness in one additional ally.

The noble can't inspire greatness in herself. The ability only aids her allies.

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