Voice Mimicry (Proficiency)

==The Complete Thief's Handbook==
2 slots, Charisma, special modifiers.
Recommended: Assassin, Spy.
Voice mimicry is the art of convincingly imitating the voices of other people. It is a very demanding skill, needing intense training of and practice with the vocal cords. For this reason it requires two nonweapon proficiency slots.
A character with voice mimicry is able to imitate any accent he has heard. Success is automatic unless people who themselves speak in that accent are his listeners; in such a case, a proficiency roll is required (with a +2 modifier).
More difficult is the imitation of a specific person's voice. To do this, the thief must, of course, be familiar with the voice. A proficiency check is needed to determine if the imitation is detected; modifiers depend on how well the listeners know the voice that is being mimicked. Success is of course certain if the listener is a stranger, someone who has never heard the original voice. To fool an acquaintance, there is no modifier; while fooling a friend of the subject is at -2, a close friend -5, and someone extremely close (e.g., parent or spouse—someone who has had close contact with the person for years) is at -7.
This ability is often used in conjunction with the disguise proficiency. Which proficiency must be checked first depends on whether the character is seen or heard. If the disguise first is successful, there is a +5 modifier to the voice mimicry—the listeners have already accepted the appearance, so they are less likely to doubt the voice. If the disguise fails, it doesn't matter how good the voice imitation is. If the voice is successfully mimicked first, it gives a +1 modifier to the disguise check.
==The Complete Book of Humanoids==
Voice mimicry is the art of convincingly imitating the voices of other people. It is a very demanding skill, requiring intense training and practice.
A character with voice mimicry can imitate any accent he has heard. Success is automatic unless confronted by those who speak the mimicked accent (which then requires a check with a +2 modifier).
It is more difficult to imitate a specific person's voice. Characters can only attempt to imitate voices they have heard. A proficiency check must be made to determine if the imitation is detected. Success is certain if the listener is a stranger to the mimicked character. There is no modifier if trying to fool an acquaintance, -2 to fool a friend, -5 a close friend, and -7 for extremely close friends and relatives.
==The Complete Ninja's Handbook==
This proficiency, introduced in The Complete Thief's Handbook, is the art of convincingly imitating the voices of others. It is a demanding skill, requiring intense training of the vocal cords.
A character with Voice Mimicry proficiency can imitate any accent she has heard. Success is automatic, but if people who themselves speak in that accent are the character's listeners, a proficiency roll is required (with a +2 modifier).
To imitate a specific person's voice, the character must be familiar with that voice. A proficiency check determines if the imitation is detected, with modifiers based on the listeners' knowledge of the voice being mimicked. Success is certain if the listener has never heard the original voice. There is no modifier to fool an acquaintance of the original speaker, but the roll to fool a friend of the subject is penalized at –2. The penalty is –5 to fool a close friend of the subject, and –7 to fool someone who has had close contact with the person for years (a parent or spouse).
When Voice Mimicry proficiency is used in conjunction with the Disguise proficiency, the decision on which proficiency to check first depends on whether the character is first seen or heard. If the Disguise proficiency check is rolled first and is successful, the subsequent Voice Mimicry check receives a +5 modifier. (The listeners have already accepted the character's appearance, so they are less likely to doubt the voice.) If the Disguise check fails, it doesn't matter how good the Voice Mimicry is. If the Voice Mimicry check is rolled first and is successful, the subsequent Disguise check receives a +1 modifier.
Category:The Complete Thief's Handbook Proficiencies
Category:The Complete Book of Humanoids Proficiencies
Category:The Complete Ninja's Handbook Proficiencies