Dark Hunter

Dark hunters specialize in hunting down and eliminating creatures in the dark, twisting caves of the Underdark.

#### Requirements

**Base Attack Bonus:** +5

**Skills:** Craft (trapmaking) 2 ranks , Knowledge (dungeoneering) 1 ranks , Stealth 1 ranks , Survival 1 ranks

**Feats:** Blind-Fight , Track

#### Class Features

**Weapon and Armor Proficiency:** Dark hunters gain no proficiency with any weapon or armor.

**Improved Stonecunning (Ex):** A dark hunter gains the stonecunning ability possessed by dwarves (see page 15 of the Player's Handbook), or, if the character already has the ability, she increases her bonus from +2 to +4 on checks to notice unusual stonework, such as sliding walls, stonework traps, new construction, unsafe stone surfaces, shaky stone ceilings, and the like. This bonus also applies on Search checks made to detect stonework traps.

**Enhanced Darkvision (Ex):** Dark hunters spend most of their lives in the darkest caverns they can find. As a dark hunter's skills improve, her almost mystical understanding of the deep caverns sharpens her inborn visual acuity. If a dark hunter does not already have darkvision when she attains 2nd level, she gains it at a range of 30 feet. If she already had darkvision, she adds 30 feet to the range. Once a dark hunter attains 4th level, her darkvision range increases by an extra 30 feet.

This bonus stacks with other natural or extraordinary abilities that improve darkvision, but it does nothing to improve magically granted darkvision.

Any condition that causes the character to lose her normal darkvision also causes the enhanced darkvision to fail.

**Sneak Attack (Ex):** If a dark hunter can catch an opponent when he is unable to defend himself effectively from her attack, she can strike a vital spot for extra damage. Any time the dark hunter's target would be denied his Dexterity bonus to AC (whether the target actually has a Dexterity bonus or not), the dark hunter's attack deals an extra 1d6 points of damage. Should a dark hunter score a critical hit with a sneak attack, this extra damage is not multiplied.

It takes precision and penetration to hit a vital spot, so ranged attacks can only count as sneak attacks if the target is within 30 feet.

With a sap or an unarmed strike, a dark hunter can make a sneak attack that deals nonlethal damage instead of lethal damage. She cannot use a weapon that deals lethal damage to deal nonlethal damage in a sneak attack, not even with the usual —4 penalty, because she must make optimal use of her weapon in order to execute the sneak attack.

A dark hunter can only sneak attack living creatures with discernible anatomies—undead, constructs, oozes, plants, and incorporeal creatures lack vital areas to attack. Any creature that is immune to critical hits is not vulnerable to sneak attacks. The dark hunter must be able to see the target well enough to pick out a vital spot and must be able to reach such a spot. A dark hunter cannot sneak attack while striking a creature with concealment or striking the limbs of a creature whose vitals are beyond reach.

If a dark hunter gets a sneak attack bonus from another source (such as rogue levels), the extra damage stacks.

**Stone's Hue (Su):** When within 5 feet of a stone or earth wall, a dark hunter can take on the coloration of the stone and may seem to blend into the surface of the wall. As long as the dark hunter is within 5 feet of the wall, she gains a +10 circumstance bonus on Hide checks and can successfully hide herself from view in the open without having anything to actually hide behind.

**Death Attack (Ex):** If a dark hunter studies her victim for 3 rounds and then makes a sneak attack with a melee weapon that successfully deals damage, the sneak attack has the additional effect of possibly either paralyzing or killing the target (dark hunter's choice). While studying the target, the dark hunter can undertake other actions as long as her attention stays focused on the target and the target does not detect the dark hunter or recognize the dark hunter as an enemy. If the victim of such an attack fails a Fortitude save (DC 10 + the dark hunter's class level + the dark hunter's Int modifier) against the kill effect, he dies. If the saving throw fails against the paralysis effect, the victim's mind and body become enervated, rendering him helpless and unable to act for 1d6 rounds plus 1 round per level of the dark hunter. If the victim's saving throw succeeds, the attack is just a normal sneak attack. Once the dark hunter has completed the 3 rounds of study, she must make the death attack within the next 3 rounds. If a death attack is attempted and fails (the victim makes his save) or if the dark hunter does not launch the attack within 3 rounds of completing the study, 3 new rounds of study are required before she can attempt another death attack.