Veiled One (Character Kit)

Veiled One
Description: A loyal member of the Veiled Alliance, the Veiled One has learned all he knows of magic from his contacts within the organization. He is part of a network of preservers and psionicists who assist each other and carry out a secret agenda of working for change on Athas. The Veiled One is an urban character, skilled in intrigue and espionage.
Veiled Ones often adopt disguises, aliases, and other diversionary measures to maintain their secrecy. Wizards are feared and despised all over Athas, and many lose their lives to the angry reactions of the common people. Above all, Veiled Ones fear the sorcerer-king and his templars. In addition to all other requirements, a character must have a Wisdom of 13 or better to show the common sense and willpower to be a Veiled One.
Role: The Veiled One is a revolutionary in a brutal police state. Above all, he maintains his secrecy. Second to the goal of survival, he tries to advance the agenda of the Alliance. The Veiled Alliances of the cities each vary in their organization, strength, and aggressiveness; some are so powerful they barely disguise their movements, and others have been decimated by the strikes of the local king’s templars.
The DM must carefully develop the scenario for the PC’s chapter of the Alliance, as well as contacts for the PC in the Alliance. The DARK SUN campaign accessory Veiled Alliance contains a wealth of information on running a Veiled Alliance campaign.
Preferred Schools: All schools of magic are welcomed into an alliance, pro- vided the wizard is a preserver and not a defiler. Illusionists, diviners, transmuters, and enchanters are particularly valuable for the subtlety of their spells.
Weapon Proficiencies: Small, easily concealable weapons are preferred by Veiled Ones. They may choose from the following: blowgun, knife, dagger, sling, wrist razor.
Nonweapon Proficiencies:
* Bonus: Reading/Writing, Disguise, Somatic Concealment.
* Recommended: Ancient History, Spellcraft, Local History, Reading Lips, Sign Language. Veiled Ones are required to select at least one craft proficiency relative to their cover identity. These include nonweapon proficiencies such as carpentry, cobbling, leatherworking, pottery, or bargaining.
Equipment: Veiled Ones are required to purchase any equipment necessary to their cover identity. A wizard posing as a potter should have a wheel, clay, and a workshop; a wizard posing as a carpenter needs a set of tools, etc. The DM should decide on the amount of equipment necessary to establish a cover.
Special Benefits: There are several benefits to being a member of the Veiled Alliance. First and foremost, the wizard enjoys access to the spells and research of other wizards. He has tutors available to instruct him when he advances in level, he can obtain spell components, and he can pass along his own findings to other wizards in need. Every time a Veiled One gains a level, he may automatically add one new spell to his spellbook, just as if he were a specialist wizard. This is cumulative with the specialist’s bonus, so specialist wizards gain two spells when they gain a level.
The Veiled One has a network of information gatherers and accomplices in place through which he can arrange for safe houses or similar assistance. No matter how much trouble he is in, the character can hide for up to three days with no possibility of the sorcerer-king’s forces finding him. For each day after the third that he holes up, there is a 10% chance that the character’s whereabouts are dis- covered. To effectively hide, a character must not leave his haven or attempt to contact anyone outside of his shelter. Doing so increases the chance of his being spotted to 50% per day. The character can include one companion per three levels in his hiding place.
Instead of holing up, the character can leave the city. Arranging transport requires 1d3 days, during which the character hides; then the Veiled One may be smuggled out of the city. There is a base 80% chance of success, but the DM may modify this for the intensity of the search and other similar factors.
Last but not least, the character has a cover identity that allows him to move around the city and interact with others as a law abiding citizen. The cover is complete unless the character casts a spell in the sight of others or takes some other action that would arouse suspicion.
Special Hindrances: As noted above, the character has a cover identity that must be carefully maintained. As a rule of thumb, the character must spend half of his time playing the part of his cover making pots, buying and selling goods, or whatever. A character who neglects his cover (poor potters taking long trips and returning with great wealth, merchants missing opportunities to purchase goods cheaply, etc.) runs the serious risk of becoming outlawed.
Outlawed wizards are among the most sought after of criminals in any city state. There is a 50% chance per day that the law comes so close to the character that he must hole up or leave the city. Failure to do so guarantees an encounter with a templar sweep for the character. It requires 2d4 months to re-establish a cover after one has been blown.
The character must also honor requests for assistance by his fellow Veiled Ones. From time to time, the character is called upon to perform jail breaks, to test prospective new members for hints of defiler magic, or to hunt down and kill wizards attempting to leave the Alliance. Again, the DM should develop these as very real commitments to the character and give the resolution of these matters a lot of attention. A wizard may not like the idea of blowing his comfortable cover by participating in a prison break, but as long as the wizard is in the Alliance, he has to be prepared to obey orders.
Wealth Options: Wealth is as normal for a wizard. However, the character may derive a steady income from a well developed cover profession.
Category:Character Kit
Category:Character Kit Dragon Magazine