Underworld Trees
Thievery, Assassination, Streetwise.
3 trees5 advancements + 1 ultimate1 skill point each, 2 for the ultimate
Thievery
Locks, Traps, Stealth, Fencing
- 1
Locksmith 1 pt
You understand locks the way their makers do.
Core: Open simple locks instantly with proper tools. Assess any lock's quality, age, and difficulty at a glance. Make a working key from any lock you've opened (10 minutes).
Advantage: Complex or reinforced locks, working without proper tools, picking under time pressure, magical locks with mechanical components.
- 2
Trapbreaker 1 pt
You see the mechanism, not the danger.
Core: Identify mechanical traps automatically when examining an area. Disarm simple traps without rolling. If you fail a disarm attempt, the trap doesn't trigger. You just don't succeed.
Advantage: Complex traps, magical triggers, disarming under time pressure, traps you can't fully see. You can harvest disabled traps for components.
- 3
Second-Story Work 1 pt
Walls are just slow doors.
Core: Climb any surface with handholds at full speed. Identify the weakest entry point of any building within 1 minute. Fit through any opening your head fits through.
Advantage: Sheer surfaces, climbing while carrying loads, climbing in combat, identifying hidden entry points.
- 4
Fence 1 pt
You know who buys what shouldn't be sold.
Core: Fence stolen goods at 50% value in any settlement with a market (others get 10-20%). Identify provenance and heat level of stolen goods at a glance.
Advantage: Moving extremely hot items, finding buyers for unusual goods, negotiating better rates, identifying undercover operations.
- 5
Vanish 1 pt
You can disappear in a blink.
Core: Move silently at full speed. In any crowd of 10+, you can disappear entirely. Break line of sight for even a moment and you can attempt to hide.
Advantage: Hiding while being actively watched, vanishing in sparse crowds, silent movement on noisy surfaces, escaping pursuit.
- 6
Ultimate: Master Thief 2 pts
Prerequisite: 3+ other Thievery advancements
You've stolen from places that shouldn't be possible.
Core: Open locks without touching them (thin wire, up to 5 feet). Trigger traps safely from outside their range. Case any building completely in 10 minutes. Every entrance, exit, and security measure.
Advantage: Legendary vaults, magical security systems, heists requiring split-second timing, bypassing wards.
TOTAL: 7 points
Assassination
Poisons, Disguises, Shadowing
- 1
Toxicology 1 pt
You know poisons the way a chef knows spices.
Core: Identify common poisons by sight, smell, or careful taste without being affected. Know onset time, duration, and symptoms. Detect obviously poisoned food or drink.
Advantage: Rare or magical poisons, subtle poisoning attempts, identifying antidotes, detecting residual traces days later.
- 2
Application 1 pt
You know where poison goes.
Core: Coat a blade so the next cut delivers the dose. Poison food or drink without leaving obvious taste or smell. Apply contact poison to surfaces (active 24 hours).
Advantage: Leaving no residue at all, delayed-release applications, coating weapons for multiple uses, poisoning guarded targets.
- 3
Quick Change 1 pt
You become someone else in moments.
Core: Create a convincing disguise in 10 minutes with basic materials. Change between two prepared disguises in 1 minute. Your disguises hold up to casual inspection.
Advantage: Disguises under active scrutiny, quick changes (1 round), disguising others, working with minimal materials.
- 4
Shadow 1 pt
You follow without being seen.
Core: Follow a target through crowds at up to 60 feet without being noticed. After 4 hours of observation, know their routine: where they go, when, who they meet.
Advantage: Following alert/paranoid targets, shadowing through sparse areas, counter-surveillance, following multiple targets.
- 5
Perfect Cover 1 pt
You don't just look like them: you are them.
Core: Impersonate a specific individual after 1 hour of study. Mimic their voice, mannerisms, handwriting, and habits well enough to fool acquaintances.
Advantage: Fooling close friends/family, improvising when asked unexpected questions, maintaining cover under interrogation.
- 6
Ultimate: Phantom 2 pts
Prerequisite: 3+ other Assassin's Trade advancements
You are whoever you need to be.
Core: Maintain up to 3 separate identities simultaneously, each with consistent history and contacts. Switch between prepared disguises in 1 round. Your poisons leave no trace. even autopsies show natural causes.
Advantage: Creating new identities on the fly, maintaining cover against magical detection, untraceable eliminations.
TOTAL: 7 points
Streetwise
Rumors, Contacts, Urban Navigation
- 1
Read the Streets 1 pt
Cities speak to those who listen.
Core: When you enter a neighborhood, know who controls it, what's sold there, and how dangerous it is. Spot plainclothes guards, criminals, and people who don't belong. Never get lost in a city.
Advantage: Reading unfamiliar cities quickly, identifying hidden power structures, spotting undercover operatives, navigating during pursuit.
- 2
Rumor Mill 1 pt
You hear what people are saying.
Core: Spend 1 hour in taverns or markets and learn 1d4 current rumors. Tell which rumors are deliberately spread versus arising naturally.
Advantage: Tracing rumors to their source, planting rumors effectively, filtering truth from exaggeration, hearing whispers meant to be secret.
- 3
Find Anything 1 pt
You know who has what.
Core: In any settlement, locate a specific type of person, business, or goods within 1d4 hours. If it doesn't exist, learn where the nearest one is. Know who to ask without asking the wrong person.
Advantage: Finding things people don't want found, locating illegal goods safely, finding specialists in obscure fields.
- 4
Safe Houses 1 pt
You always have somewhere to go.
Core: In any city you've spent at least a day in, you have 1d3 bolt-holes. secure places nobody knows about. Lead others to them without being followed.
Advantage: Establishing safe houses quickly in new cities, securing locations against searches, creating escape routes.
- 5
Street Eyes 1 pt
The street sees everything.
Core: In any city, learn if a specific person has been seen in a neighborhood within the last week. Know when someone has been asking about you. Hear about major disturbances within hours.
Advantage: Tracking someone actively hiding, identifying who's watching you, getting real-time intelligence during operations.
- 6
Ultimate: Urban Legend 2 pts
Prerequisite: 3+ other Streetwise advancements
Nothing in the city is hidden from you.
Core: In any city you've spent a month in, know about planned events before they happen. raids, deals, arrivals, departures. Know the real powers behind the official ones. Find anyone not actively hiding within a day.
Advantage: Predicting events in unfamiliar cities, uncovering deeply hidden conspiracies, finding people who are actively hiding.
TOTAL: 7 points