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Skill-Monkey, ToP (3.5e Class)

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Author: Parakee (talk)
Date Created: September 2011
Status: Done.
Editing: Ask First
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Skill-MonkeyEdit

Making a Skill-MonkeyEdit

Tome of Prowess
This class is designed to be compatible with the Tome of Prowess rules. Any class abilities that have different rules under Tome of Prowess will be marked by a ToP: label.
Abilities: Any. Social Skill-Monkeys value charisma. Acrobatic and Stealthy Skill-Monkeys value dexterity. Tricksters and machine fetishists value intelligence. Most good Skill-Monkeys require a mix-match of Attributes. Skill-Monkey is a very wide term and can cover many different archetypes.

Races: Any.

Alignment: Any.

Starting Gold: As Rogue.

Starting Age: Moderate

Table: The Skill-Monkey

Hit Die: d6

Level Base
Attack Bonus
Saving Throws Special Spells per Day
Fort Ref Will 0 1st 2nd 3rd
1st +0 + + + Saving Throws, Bonus Feat, Skilled Combatant (1d6)
2nd +1 + + + Skill Training, Ability Surge 1
3rd +2 + + + Bonus Feat, Specialization, Shielded in Life 2 0
4th +3 + + + Skill Training, Ability Surge (Double), Skilled Combatant (2d6) 2 1
5th +3 + + + Co-Specialization, Jack of All Trades (6) 2 1 0
6th +4 + + + Skill Training, Specialization 2 1 1
7th +5 + + + Bonus Feat, Ability Surge (Haste), Skilled Combatant (3d6) 3 2 1 0
8th +6/+1 + + + Skill Training 3 2 1 1
9th +6/+1 + + + Specialization, Ability Surge (Triple) 3 2 2 1
10th +7/+2 + + + Skill Training, Skilled Combatant (4d6) 3 3 2 1
11th +8/+3 + + + Bonus Feat, Specialization 4 3 2 2

Class Skills, Tome of Prowess Variant (12 per level, ×4 at 1st level)
Acrobatics (Dex), Affability (Cha), Creature Handling (Wis), Appraisal (Int), Arcana (Int), Athletics (Con), Bluff (Int), Ciphers (Int), Concentration (Wis), Cultures (Cha), Devices (Int), Dowsing (Wis), Endurance (Con), Escape Artistry (Dex), Geomancy (Wis), Healing (Cha), Intimidation (Cha), Jump (Str), Legerdemain (Dex), Perception (Wis), Psychology (Int), Stealth (Dex), Survival (Wis), Thaumaturgy (Cha), Transformation (Cha)

Class FeaturesEdit

All of the following are class features of the Skill Monkey.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A skill monkey is proficient in all simple weapons and light armor plus three martial or exotic weapons of the players choice.

Saving Throws: As not all Skill-Monkeys are alike neither are their saves. A skill monkey chooses two saves to progress at the favorable rate at first level. The third save does not.

Spells: A Skill-Monkey casts arcane spells, which are drawn from the bard spell list. A skill monkey can not cast spells with elemental subtypes (including sonic and force) nor any spell with the summoning descriptor or belonging to the evocation school. He can cast any spell he knows without preparing it ahead of time.

A skill monkeys spells appear to be preformed in a mundane manner and all somatic and verbal components appear to be purely mundane and can't be identified as magic without a skill check. The effects are still obviously supernatural if the spells effects are obviously supernatural.

A Skill-Monkey selects intelligence, charisma, or wisdom to govern casting. To learn or cast a spell, a Skill-Monkey must have a ability score equal to at least 10 + the spell. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a Skill-Monkey’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the Skill-Monkey's ability modifier.

Like other spellcasters, a character can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. His base daily spell allotment is given on Table: Skill-Monkey. In addition, he receives bonus spells per day if he has a high ability score. When Table: Spells Known indicates that the Skill-Monkey gets 0 spells per day of a given spell level, he gains only the bonus spells he would be entitled to based on his ability score for that spell level.

The Skill-Monkey’s selection of spells is extremely limited. A Skill-Monkey begins play knowing two 0-level spells of your choice. At most new Skill-Monkey levels, he gains one or more new spells, as indicated on Table: Spells Known. (Unlike spells per day, the number of spells a Skill-Monkey knows is not affected by his ability score; the numbers on Table: Spells Known are fixed.)

Upon reaching 5th level, and at every third level after that (8th, 11th, and so on), a Skill-Monkey can choose to learn a new spell in place of one he already knows. In effect, the Skill-Monkey “loses” the old spell in exchange for the new one. The new spell’s level must be the same as that of the spell being exchanged, and it must be at least two levels lower than the highest-level Skill-Monkey spell the Skill-Monkey can cast. A Skill-Monkey may swap only a single spell at any given level, and must choose whether or not to swap the spell at the same time that he gains new spells known for the level.

As noted above, a Skill-Monkey need not prepare his spells in advance. He can cast any spell he knows at any time, assuming he has not yet used up his allotment of spells per day for the spell’s level.

Table: Spells Known
Level Spells Known
0 1st 2nd 3rd
1st
2nd 1
3rd 2 11
4th 2 2
5th 2 2 11
6th 3 2 2
7th 3 2 2
8th 3 2 2 11
9th 4 3 2 1
10th 4 3 2 2
11th 4 3 3 2
  1. Provided the character has a high enough ability score to have a bonus spell of this level.


Bonus Feat: At first level, third level and every fourth level thereafter you may select a bonus non-scaling skill feat.

Skilled Combatant: When a skill monkey attacks they may substitute a attack roll with an skill check albeit at a -5 penalty. This attack however does not do the standard damage of a weapon wielded, but does a flat 1d6 damage per 3 levels plus the ability score the skill operates on. This attack is only modified by things that modify the skill check. This attack may be made without a weapon. You may make special attack actions with this skill, such as power attack, trip, disarm, and ect. If they spend an additional swift action they may also make a standard check with the same skill providing that the attempt takes no more than a move action to preform.

Skill Training: At 2nd level and every two levels thereafter a skill monkey studies the subtly and art of a certain skill. You may treat your ranks in that skill as two ranks higher for the purposes of determining which skill abilities you can use. In addition you gain a pool of surge points for that skill equal to the ability score the skill depends on plus the number of levels since the skill was selected. Magic items or spells do not add to maximum surge points. When you make a check you can choose to use some of these Bonus points" to add a bonus on the check equal to the amount expended. Surge points can't be used to add more than a +3 bonus to checks after penalties due to conditions as specified in the skill description. Surge Points refresh daily. You may regain a number of surge points equal to your ability modieifier as a move action. If you roll a natural twenty when making a skill check you immediately gain 10 surge points for that skill. You may not select the same skill twice with this ability.

Ability Surge: By taking a swift action a 2nd level skill monkey can treat a single ability as 5 points higher for a minute. This grants temporary surge points. During this time all skills based on this ability are treated as the skill monkey had 3 more ranks than previously while the duration persists. After the effect ends the character is treated as fatigued until rested for one consecutive minute. This time can't be decreased by any means. This ability can be used at will but not while fatigued. At 4th level two ability scores are increased by this ability. By 7th level while in an ability surge all uses of trained skills are treated as one step quicker: Ten minutes to one minute to full round to standard to move to swift to immediate. Actions may take the standard amount of time if the user so wishes. At 9th level three ability scores are increased by this ability, two of which may stack on the same ability score.

Specialization: At third level and every 3 levels thereafter choose a skill selected as part of the Skill Training ability. If you meet the DC of a task with this skill, roll again, if the second roll would also meet the DC increase the result of the first check by 5 or take the second roll, which ever would be better. Your surge points for the skill increase by 3 each level from this point on.

Shielded in Life: At third level you gain Shielded in Life (3.5e Feat) as a bonus feat

Co-Specialization: By 5th level you may use any two specialized skills as one action. This required you to expend 10 surge points from the skills who's ability is the shortest. Take one action using the longer action. At the end of this action preform the second ability as a free action.

Jack of All Trades: At 5th level the skill monkey gains 6 skill points which can be retrained as a free action once per minute.


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