Illusionist

"I once heard it said 'all warfare is based on deception'. In that case every army should have one of these buggers..."
==Introduction to the Illusionist==
Hedge-Wizard, Finger-Wagger, Charletain, Dalaran Dropout. Most Illusionists pick up at least one of these names during their career for the path of Illusion is a much maligned one. Where Sorcerers and Wizards create Illusory copies of themselves and slip intermittently between realms appearing invisible to anyone without magical aid, Illusionists dazzle enemies with imaginary lights and make themselves semi-transparant. Not much of a comparison really, until you get right down to the whole point of Illusions, to make the caster difficult to detect and to confuse foes, an Illusionist possesses a capability to vanish from sight and stay hidden until they choose to reveal themselves or are detected by other magical, olfactory or aural means. But know this, to be an Illusionist means to fade into the background, to be the one who pulls the strings but never seen as the puppeteer.
==The Path of the Illusionist==
Most Illusionists are, indeed, mage dropouts. They're the Sorcerer's who thought sitting in their preferred sexes locker room whilst cloaked in invisibilty was funny, the Wizards who used an Illusion spell to make the examiner only see all their answers as the right ones regardless of what they actually were, the Warmage who thought it would be more efficient to use Illusion to copy an image of themselves a hundredfold rather than bother hiring or training an army. In short, Illusionists tend to possess one or more of the following trait; laziness, laid-back, solipsistic, serial procrastinators, sneaky, deceptive, charming, charismatic, witty, generally knowledgeable and cynical. Although there are few Illusionists by choice there is a small school for training Wizards and the odd (in both respects) Sorcerer who deigns to dabble in it, regardless of how the student discovers Illusion magic they all follow a similar philosophy and training style.
The philosophy of the Illusion school is simply that only by being in the background, in the shadows, unnoticed can one learn true knowledge, facts. To Illusionists all people hide behind a facade of either politeness or savagery and it is only when they are alone do they drop this and reveal more of their true thoughts and feelings. Likewise it is only when a person thinks they are safe with only trusted friends that they reveal secrets, all whilst the Illusionist waits patiently in the shadows.
Training as an Illusionist normally consists of Magic, Acrobatics, Atheletics, Armed Combat adn Speechcraft. Illusionists tend to be lither, fitter, more charismatic and much less magically powerful than their counterpart Sorcerers and Wizards. Their place in a group or fight is at the front, confusing foes and striking where they are weakest as their weak strikes would do little if struck in any place but the vulnerable areas.
To quote the Schools of Arcane Magic - Illusions:
Illusion is the art of deceiving reality itself. The mists of illusion can make a mage invisible or inaudible to the world or twist the image of a location into something entirely different. Illusion can be used for disguise or manipulation, but beware, spells to counteract illusions exist in the divination school. It is not viable to base your entire career on illusionary magic.
Contrary to popular belief, illusions are far more than mere parlor tricks. The spell of invisibility is among the most integral in a battle mage's repertoire, as you will often find yourself in dangerous situations and in need of a quick method for a strategic retreat. Illusions can also be used to deceive your opponents into thinking that you are elsewhere, or even trick your enemies into fighting each other. This is no easy task, but the accomplished illusionist can turn allies into enemies - and his or her own enemies into allies.
==Suggested Representative Classes==
*Rogue - Subtlety is best, Assassination acceptable, Combat ok.
*Mage - Arcane, judicious use of Invisibility and Mirror Image.
*Classes that may use appearance altering items, though difficult to pull of, are a suggestion.
==Illusionists of the Sha'tar==
*Brian Rimeshade
*Kenon Keshtor
==Roleplay Tips==
Category:Roleplay Classes
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