From: Raven <[s--ad--w] at [eot.com]>
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.dnd
Subject: MY NINJA CLASS
Date: 23 Dec 1995 22:12:27 GMT
Hey. The folllowing is a copy of the information
regarding a ninja class which I invented a while
ago. I would greatly appreciate it if some of you
reading this would tell me what you think of it
(is it too powerful, or not powerful enough, etc.).
Please post replies to this NG.
Well, here's the class (actually, classes)...
Ninja
Ability Requirements: Strength 12
Dexterity 16
Constitution 16
Prime Requisites: Strength, Dexterity
Races Allowed: Human
The ninja is a variety of rogue that has great fighting abilities and, to
a limited extent, magical powers. Ninjas are very
popular in modern history and are seen frequently in movies, but few
ninjas appear anywhere in ancient history.
The ninja must have Dexterity and Constitution scores of at least 16, and
a Strength score of at least 12. If the ninja has
a Strength score of at least 14 and a Dexterity score of 18, he gains a
10% bonus to his earned experience. Ninjas
may be of any alignment except the two extreme alignments (lawful good &
chaotic evil). They may wear no armor
heavier than leather, may not use shields, and may use any of the
following as weapons: blowgun, any short bow,
any crossbow, dagger, dart, knife, quarterstaff, spear, any sword except
for two-handeds and bastards. However,
due to their speed, they may use a weapon in each hand with no penalty in
the same way that rangers can. They may
use any magical item which is usable by either fighters or thieves. If
the ninja has high enough Intelligence to speak
more than one language, one of their languages is the tongue which is
spoken and understood only by ninjas (of all
types). Ninjas all worship the Eternal as their deity.
Ninjas roll saving throws and to-hit rolls as rogues, and they gain hit
points as a priest does They have the following
special abilities (note that although these abilities are similar to some
spell effects, they are not considered magical -
they are natural abilities unlocked through ninja training):
Heal Self - a ninja may restore a number of hit points to himself equal
to twice his experience
level once per day (this is the same as the lay on hands ability of a
paladin except that the ninja
may only use it on himself and he doesn’t need to have his hands free).
Invisibility - a ninja may become invisible as the wizard spell
invisibility up to 3 times per day
once he reaches Level 6.
Improved Invisibility - a ninja may become invisible as the wizard spell
improved invisibility
once per day once he reaches Level 10.
Ninja Magic - if the ninja has an Intelligence score higher than 9, he is
capable of using four of
the abilities which are normally restricted to the clans (blitz, flare,
frost, and sleep). If the ninja
has the required Intelligence, he may choose one of these special
abilities to start out with;
thereafter, upon gaining four more levels of experience the ninja may
choose another of these
abilities, and so on until he can use all four. Note that although these
abilities are commonly
referred to as “Ninja Magic,” they are not truly magical.
• To use any of the above special abilities, a ninja need only
concentrate for one round;
unlike spellcasting, the ninja does not need to be able to talk or even
move to use the
ability, but he may not be paralyzed or unconscious. To renew these
special abilities
each day, the ninja must spend a half hour in silent meditation every
morning.
Blocking/Dodging - a ninja’s armor class improves as he increases in
level, due to his ability
to block and dodge easily.
Martial Arts - a ninja is a master at hand-to-hand fighting, and can
inflict 1d4 points of damage
to an opponent without even using a weapon.
Thief Abilities - a ninja has the thief abilities of Pick Pockets, Move
Silently, Hide in Shadows,
Detect Noise, Climb Walls, and Backstab (though the amount of damage
inflicted by the
Backstab is greater for a ninja).
Spellcasting - upon reaching Level 9, a ninja gains the ability to cast
wizard spells from one
or two schools of his own choosing. Ninjas do not organize their spells
into books; rather,
they inscribe them upon a scroll which they always keep with them.
Ninjas may never cast or
learn spells that are above fifth level, but they never need to make a
check to see if they are
capable of learning a spell (provided that the spell being learned is
within their two houses).
Upon reaching Level 9, a ninja selects two schools of magic and two
first-level spells from
each; these are the spells he starts out with. Ninjas never
automatically learn more spells; they
must gain spells by finding them or by being taught them.
People tend to find ninjas unpleasant to be around, probably because of
the way they dress; commonly, they wear all
black and a black cloth mask which reveals only the area around their
eyes and upper nose. Not all ninjas mask
themselves in this way, but practically all of them have some type of
covering over at least half of their face. The
training necessary to become a ninja takes around 15 years to complete
and is usually begun at the age of 5 or so; the
starting age for a ninja is 19 + 1d4 years. Ninjas tend to be solitary
and very self-reliant.
Clan Ninjas
Ninja clans are organizations of ninjas who live, train, and work
together (oftentimes members of the same clan are
blood relatives). Ninjas who are in a clan have special abilities which
pertain to their clan. Clan ninjas are different from
regular “rogue” ninjas in the following ways:
• In addition the normal ninja requirements, clan ninjas are
required to have an Intelligence score of 12 or
higher This ensures that they can speak two languages in addition to the
common tongue; these two
languages are the tongue common to all ninjas (including rogue ninjas)
and another language which is
unique to that clan. To gain their 10% experience bonus, clan ninjas are
required to have an Intelligence
score of 14 or higher in addition to the other requirements.
• Ninja clans have alignment restrictions. If a ninja takes on an
alignment which is not represented in his
clan, he will be banished from the clan temporarily or, in extreme or
repeat cases, executed.
• Clan ninjas must donate 50% of any treasure they gain to their
clan. If they fail to do this, they will be
expelled from the clan, given a near-impossible task to accomplish, or
possibly executed.
• Clan ninjas have their own system of ranking for themselves
(these ranks are not to be confused with
levels of experience). Ninjas can tell each other’s ranks upon sight due
to some unknown part of their
training, and ninjas of low rank will seldom attack ones of high rank as
a sign of respect.
• Clan ninjas roll saving throws as wizards, not rogues.
• Clan ninjas do not have the Ninja Magic or Spellcasting abilities
of rogue ninjas.
• Clan ninjas have special abilities which are restricted to ninjas
of their clan; these abilities are renewed
at the beginning of each day, and the ninja must spend half an hour in
silent meditation to claim his
powers for that day. To use any of their special abilities, ninjas need
only concentrate for one round;
unlike spellcasting, the ninja does not need to be able to talk or even
move to use the ability, but he may
not be paralyzed or unconscious. Note that although these abilities are
similar to some spell effects,
they are not considered magical; they are natural abilities unlocked
through ninja training.
• Clan ninjas all dress differently than rogue ninjas (and each
other).
There are five ninja clans. They are listed and described below.
Falcons
The Falcons are a ninja clan with powers relating to lightning and
energy. Members of the Falcon clan are restricted to
being neutral good or chaotic good in alignment. Their powers are:
• Power 1 - blitz. Blitz creates a small lightning bolt that
shoots at any one target within 60 feet of the
ninja. This causes 2d4 points of electrical damage to the target. If
the target makes a successful
saving throw vs. spell, the damage is halved.
• Power 2 - wall of force as the 5th level wizard spell.
• Power 3 - lightning bolt as the 3rd level wizard spell.
• Power 4 - teleport as the 5th level wizard spell.
• Power 5 - chain lightning as the 6th level wizard spell.
• immunity to electricity upon reaching the 3rd rank. This special
ability reduces to zero any electrical
damage that the Falcon ninja receives (such as a blue dragon’s breath, a
shocking grasp, etc.).
The Falcons wear solid white outfits including the traditional mask
(which is also white); their uniforms also have dark
blue trim on the edges.
Scorpions
The Scorpions are a ninja clan with powers relating to flame. Members of
the Scorpion clan are restricted to being
chaotic good or chaotic neutral in alignment. Their powers are:
• Power 1 - flare. Flare creates a small fiery blast that shoots
at any one target within 60 feet of the
ninja. This causes 2d4 points of fire damage to the target. If the
target makes a successful saving
throw vs. spell, the damage is halved.
• Power 2 - wall of fire as the 4th level wizard spell.
• Power 3 - flame arrow as version 2 of the 3rd level wizard spell.
• Power 4 - fireball as the 3rd level wizard spell.
• Power 5 - flame strike as the 5th level priest spell.
• immunity to fire & heat upon reaching the 3rd rank. This special
ability reduces to zero any fire or heat
damage that the Scorpion ninja receives (such as a brass dragon’s breath,
a fireball, etc.).
The Scorpions wear the traditional ninja-style uniform, but they wear a
bright red quilted vest over it, and their masks
are red rather than black.
Frost Wolves
The Frost Wolves are a ninja clan with powers relating to ice and cold.
Members of the Frost Wolf clan are restricted to
being lawful neutral or lawful evil in alignment. Their powers are:
• Power 1 - frost. Frost creates a small icy blast that shoots at
any one target within 60 feet of the ninja.
This causes 2d4 points of cold damage to the target. If the target makes
a successful saving throw vs.
spell, the damage is halved.
• Power 2 - wall of ice as the 4th level wizard spell.
• Power 3 - ice storm as version 1 of the 4th level wizard spell.
• Power 4 - cone of cold as the 5th level wizard spell.
• Power 5 - globe of cold as version C of the 6th level wizard
spell Otiluke’s freezing sphere.
• immunity to cold upon reaching the 3rd rank. This special
ability reduces to zero any cold damage that
the Frost Wolf ninja receives (such as a white dragon’s breath, a cone of
cold, etc.).
The Frost Wolves wear the traditional ninja-style uniform, but they wear
a light blue quilted vest over it, and their masks
are blue rather than black.
Reapers
The Reapers are a ninja clan with powers relating to death. Members of
the Reaper clan are restricted to being lawful
evil or neutral evil in alignment. Their powers are:
• Power 1 - sleep as the 1st level wizard spell.
• Power 2 - vampiric touch as the 3rd level wizard spell.
• Power 3 - cause critical wounds as the 5th level priest spell.
• Power 4 - finger of death as the 7th level wizard spell.
• Power 5 - temporal stasis as the 9th level wizard spell. This
ability is different from the wizard spell in
one way; the ninja may release the recipient from the effects of the
temporal stasis at will without
using this ability again.
• immunity to gasses and poison upon reaching the 3rd rank. This
special ability eliminates any gas or
poison effects (including damage and death) that the Reaper ninja
receives (such as a green dragon’s
breath, a cloudkill, etc.).
The Reapers wear the traditional ninja-style uniform, but their masks
have only two small eyeholes in place of the one
larger opening of the traditional mask. Also, they commonly wear masks
underneath their external ones; these are
masks of thin white stone (or, sometimes, ivory) which look almost
exactly like human skulls.
Dragons
The Dragons are a ninja clan with powers which allow them to transform
into dragons. Members of the Dragon clan
are restricted to being lawful neutral, true neutral, or chaotic neutral
in alignment. Their powers are:
• at Level 1 - crystal dragon and white dragon.
• at Level 3 - yellow dragon and black dragon.
• at Level 5 - mist dragon and brass dragon.
• at Level 7 - cloud dragon and green dragon.
• at Level 9 - copper dragon and brown dragon.
• at Level 11 - blue dragon and mercury dragon.
• at Level 13 - bronze dragon.
• at Level 15 - red dragon.
• at Level 17 - silver dragon.
• at Level 19 - gold dragon.
• immunity to breath weapons upon reaching the 3rd rank. This
special ability eliminates any effects
(including damage and death) that the Dragon ninja receives from breath
weapons of any kind.
They may transform a number of times per day equal to their experience
level. At the first and second ranks,
Dragon ninjas may transform into each individual form only once per day.
At the third, fourth, and fifth ranks,
they may transform into each individual form up to twice per day, but no
more times than their total number of
transformations allowed. At the master rank, they may transform into
each individual form up to three times
per day, but no more times than their total number of transformations
allowed. The dragons they transform
into are considered Young (Age Category 3) dragons for purposes of size,
damage, etc. A Dragon ninja may
only use the breath weapon(s) of the dragon he is assuming the shape of
once per shapechange; however,
they may use any of the dragon’s physical attacks for the duration of the
shapechange. They are unable to
fly or use any other special abilities while in dragon form. They may
revert back to human form at will, or they
will revert automatically after one turn.
The Dragons wear the traditional ninja-style uniform, but their masks are
purple rather than black, and their tunics have
a purple dragon design on the back. Also, they commonly wear purple
scarves.
Clan Interaction
The Scorpions and the Frost Wolves are deadly enemies and have been for
many years. The Falcons are allied with
the Scorpions, and the Reapers are allied with the Frost Wolves. The
Dragon clan has neither allies nor enemies among
other clans; they keep to themselves. Relations between other clans
(i.e. the Falcons and the Frost Wolves) vary from
neutral to semi-hostile from time to time.
Experience/Rank Table
Level Rogue Ninja Clan Ninja Hit Dice (d8) Clan Rank
1 0 0 1 1
2 2,000 2,500 2 1
3 4,000 5,000 3 1
4 8,000 10,000 4 1
5 16,000 20,000 5 2
6 32,000 40,000 6 2
7 64,000 60,000 7 2
8 125,000 90,000 8 2
9 250,000 135,000 9 3
10 500,000 250,000 9+2 3
11 750,000 375,000 9+4 3
12 1,000,000 750,000 9+6 3
13 1,250,000 1,125,000 9+8 4
14 1,500,000 1,500,000 9+10 4
15 1,750,000 1,875,000 9+12 4
16 2,000,000 2,250,000 9+14 4
17 2,250,000 2,625,000 9+16 5
18 2,500,000 3,000,000 9+18 5
19 2,750,000 3,375,000 9+20 5
20 3,000,000 3,750,000 9+22 Master
Thief Abilities
Level PP MS HS DN CW
1 50 30 30 20 80
2 53 35 35 25 82
3 56 40 40 30 84
4 59 45 45 35 86
5 62 50 50 40 88
6 65 55 55 45 90
7 68 60 60 50 92
8 71 65 65 55 94
9 74 70 70 60 95
10 77 75 75 65 95
11 80 80 80 70 95
12 83 85 85 75 95
13 86 90 90 80 95
14 89 95 95 85 95
15 92 95 95 90 95
16 95 95 95 95 95
17 95 95 95 95 95
18 95 95 95 95 95
19 98 98 98 98 98
20 100 100 100 100 100
Backstab Damage Multipliers/AC progression
Level AC Modifier Backstab Damage
1-4 -0 x2
5-8 -1 x3
9-12 -2 x4
13-16 -3 x5
17-19 -4 x6
20 -5 x7
Spell Progression
Ninja Level Caster Lvl L1 L2 L3 L4 L5
9 1 1 - - - -
10 2 2 - - - -
11 3 2 1 - - -
12 4 3 2 - - -
13 5 4 2 1 - -
14 6 4 2 2 - -
15 7 4 3 2 1 -
16 8 4 3 3 2 -
17 9 4 3 3 2 1
18 10 4 4 3 2 2
19 11 4 4 4 3 3
20 12 5 5 5 4 3
Special Ability Progression (for Rogue Ninjas)
Lvl 1st Pwr 2nd Pwr 3rd Pwr 4th Pwr
1 1 - - -
2 1 - - -
3 1 - - -
4 1 - - -
5 2 1 - -
6 2 1 - -
7 2 1 - -
8 2 1 - -
9 3 2 1 -
10 3 2 1 -
11 3 2 1 -
12 3 2 1 -
13 4 3 2 1
14 4 3 2 1
15 4 3 2 1
16 4 3 2 1
17 5 4 3 2
18 5 4 3 2
19 5 4 3 2
20 6 5 4 3
Special Ability Progression (for Falcons, Scorpions, Frost Wolves, and
Reapers)
Level Power 1 Power 2 Power 3 Power 4 Power 5
1 1 - - - -
2 1 - - - -
3 1 - - - -
4 1 - - - -
5 2 1 - - -
6 2 1 - - -
7 2 1 - - -
8 3 2 - - -
9 3 2 1 - -
10 3 2 1 - -
11 4 3 1 - -
12 4 3 2 - -
13 4 3 2 1 -
14 5 4 2 1 -
15 6 4 3 1 -
16 7 5 3 2 -
17 8 6 4 2 1
18 9 7 5 3 1
19 10 8 6 4 2
20 11 9 7 5 3
--
Raven [s--ad--w] at [eot.com]
And God said "Let there be light." And there
was darkness, and a profound lack of interest.