dragon-magic-oef

CHAPTER 2
DRAGON
ASPIRANTS
Combat
You are more alert than most rogues
and no less able to take advantage
of a distracted foe. If possible, you
should strike early in combat, while
your opponent is still flat-footed.
After that, your job is to outmaneuver
foes, picking off the weak and
(if needed) delivering a powerful
blow to a flanked major combatant.
Never allow yourself to be cut
off from a speedy exit, and always
remain aware of your environment.
While your allies focus on hitting
an enemy, make sure to keep an eye
on alcoves, corners, and shadowy
passages from which a new foe—or
some other opportunity—might
appear.
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Illus. by E. Deschamps
Advancement
As a hand of the winged masters,
you must demonstrate great loyalty
to a superior and a willingness
to bend or break laws in service
to that superior. Nothing is more
important than carrying out your
mission, and you are willing to betray
or trick others if needed. This
dedication and moral ambiguity
brought you to the attention of a
secret cabal and convinced them
to recruit you. When you finally
learned the identity of their ultimate
leader, you saw the benefit of
belonging to an organization run
by a creature far older, stronger, and
wiser than you will ever be.
You are now a trusted agent of
the dragon masters that rule your
cabal. Acting on your own, you follow
orders loyally—without ignoring
A hand of the winged masters must be ready to undertake missions anywhere
secrecy, it’s best to put forth a simple cover story or demonstrate
an obvious purpose so as not to raise suspicions. You goals—and maintain a cover story to ensure you are never
opportunities to further the cabal’s
might pose as nothing more than a sneak and treasure hunter, linked to the group. Not yet a leader, you remain an expert
but in truth, you belong to a vast network and could be called agent and troubleshooter, sent to accomplish difficult missions
that others have failed to complete.
on at any moment to carry out covert duties.
Most hands of the winged masters work for a cabal of some As a spy, you should purchase as many ranks in the Listen
and Spot skills as you can. Not only does this make you
kind, such as the Shadow’s Fangs (see page 144). These cabals
can provide minor assistance with training, cover stories, better able to ferret out information, but it also makes you
and delivering messages to and from your dragon masters. more likely to act in a surprise round (and deal sneak attack
However, they will not expend valuable resources to solve damage). Hide and Move Silently are the next two most important
skills for you. After that, choose skills that will help
your problems. By the time you enter this prestige class, the
cabal expects you to extricate yourself from most trouble on you fulfill your assigned missions and maintain your cover
your own. Only if you had something of great value for the story, which might paint you as nothing more than a common
thief or greedy dragon masters would the cabal risk itself for your sake.
adventurer.