Primordial Trickster

More work on this Primordial thing. This time thinking about a combination of Thief and a little bit of Illusionist.

It's hard to show this in a blogpost format, but when I get these ready for printing I definitely want there to be blank spaces left in some of these sections, encouraging the players to add as they discover more about the world and their character.

Playbook - Trickster

Gear - At any time you can produce one of the following from your person. If you have had your possessions removed, then you know where to get a makeshift replacement nearby.

• Dagger

• Rope or Wire

• Hood and Mask

• Any tool that fits in a pocket

Alter-Egos - Choose 2 and name them. You have a good disguise and any papers required.

___________ the Guard: An upholder of the law. 

___________ the Servant: A loyal worker to a powerful employer.

___________ the Wretch: A pathetic nobody. 

___________ the Merchant: A wealthy business owner.

___________ the Traveller: A respected visitor from a neighbouring land.

Contacts - The remaining entries above are real people that you know and owe you a favour. 

Secrets - These apply to your own city, but after a day of immersion in a new settlement you pick up the local equivalents.

Thieves’ Cant: A code of slang used in criminal communication. Speaking in this dialect opens certain doors and lends you some credibility in unsavoury circles.

The Underground: Both literal and figurative. A network of organised criminals, often hiding secrets in the cellars and sewers of the city. 

Backdoors: Every building has a secondary entrance that few people know about, and a more secret way that’s risky even for experts.

Tricks - Nothing fancy, just old-fashioned ploys that can be taught to anybody pretty quickly.

Confidence: Speak in such a way and people will believe what you say, as long as they don’t get too long to think about it, or have disproving evidence staring them in the face. 

Stab: Every piece of armour has a weak point that a blade can slip through, easy to find if you can study it closely. 

Release: There’s a trick to every lock, knot, or binding method that lets you release it. Sometimes it just takes a little time. 

Shadowplay - Techniques that require an intimate understanding of misdirection and deception. 

Tranquillity: In dim light you can effectively become invisible and silent. Any sort of bright light dispels this effect. 

Distraction: You can make somebody look over their shoulder for a moment, or even compel them to take a few steps away to investigate. 

Transpose: You can reliably swap the positions of any pocket-sized items unseen, as long as they are in the same room as you for a few minutes. 

Illusions - For now you have only scratched the surface of this arcane art. 

Figment: You can trick somebody’s senses or memory for just a moment when you address them by name. For example, if they turn around expecting to see a fire then they see it, and even feel the heat. The illusion only lasts a moment, but the victim immediately acts as if it is real.

Haze: Requires an hour-long ritual, which gives you a hazy appearance for the rest of that night. Even if you’re caught red-handed, witnesses are never able to fully recall details about your identity, or even exactly what you were doing. 

Apparition: Through careful mixing of oils and powders, available in any criminal underground, you can manifest an illusory image that acts in a convincing manner for a few moments. Larger or longer-lasting apparitions require more concentrated reagents, which come with a heavy cost.