Holy Slayer
Holy slayers are the vengeful ghosts of the desert. They mete out justice and threats in a manner that intimidates and frightens most foreigners as well as many native to Yusuf. Also called assassins, these characters view an opposing army or nation as a great beast to be slaughtered, or at least confused by the severing of its head. Sometimes the mere warning that a holy slayer is nearby is enough to turn away those who seek to harm the assassin’s people.
Originally, they were a radical faction of the Church of Palanos. Their leader sequestered himself within a great, secret mountain in the Yusuf. There, young recruits were drugged. When they awoke, they were told they had been carried into heaven, to a garden of earthly delights. The youths dallied in this “paradise” for some time, then were drugged again and returned to the leader’s quarters. When they regained consciousness, they were offered the opportunity to serve the holy cause as warriors of the faith.
The bait: the promise that they would be readmitted to the garden after death, to spend eternity in paradise. Many young recruits agreed. They joined the “Grandfather” of assassins, fearless in their conviction that even if they died, they would be better off in the next world. Tales of such a secret society have changed through the centuries. “Assassin” has come to mean a mercenary killer who takes contracts out on his or her fellow citizens in the same way a mason would accept a contract to lay bricks. But the legendary characters after which this kit is modeled had the power of faith, even if misplaced faith, and an organization behind them. In the Yusuf, there are a number of fellowships comprising such assassins - or as they are more commonly called, holy slayers. Each fellowship is a religious organization dedicated to the advancement of its particular faith. Such organizations usually have the support of moralist clergymen, but vary in their intolerance of other factions. Each fellowship operates from a secret location, which is unknown to low ranking members.
The Church has purged themselves of their participation in the active recruitment and organization of such assassins. They claim they were a necessary evil, at one time, to combat powerful Appollonian mages. Some assert that the Church, now more than ever, actively uses Holy Slayers to deal with business that would be otherwise considered unseemly.
One such Holy Slayer organization is the Craven, a faction of Holy Slayers that, supposedly, has been brought forth to curtail dissent in the ranks of the Templar. Following the works and fame of Craylos the Scarred, a renegade Templar, the Church commissioned the Craven to hunt down and kill Craylos and any of his followers. They are thought to still be active in their mission today.
Skill Progression
The following adjustments are made to the thieving skills of a holy slayer: Pick Pockets: -10 percent, Move Silently: +5 percent, Hide in Shadows: +5 percent, Read Languages: -5 percent
Role
Holy slayers operate under as many restrictions as Templars, their antithesis. Members of this kit were literally created to follow the orders of the Grandfather or Grandmother of their respective organizations. They must be willing to die immediately for their cause. If a leader should ask a holy slayer to leap from a building to prove his or her faith, the holy slayer does so without question.
Unfortunately for assassins, leaders often ask exactly that, in order to prove their power. Holy slayers are not required to announce their profession to the general public. While a few fellowships encourage such displays, members who do so may be told to perform extremely dangerous missions in order to prove that they are worthy. Most fellowships prefer to operate in secrecy.
To disguise their identity, holy slayers often attempt to imitate other kits such as Beggar-Thieves, Matruds, or Sa'luks. In such cases, holy slayers lose none of their normal abilities. Nor do they gain the special benefits of the “cover” kit, though smart assassins often pretend they do. At a minimum, it’s a good idea to feign the cover kit’s hindrances.
Assassins who are not based at their fellowship’s secret hideout are allowed to act as free agents for a time, much like priests who are not currently attached to a particular church. These free agents are allowed to live their lives in a normal fashion. However, as soon as word comes from the Grandfather or Grandmother, they are expected to perform whatever actions are ordered. They are not expected to ask for additional aid or time, nor may they appeal the decision. They are expected only to do or die. NPC holy slayers rarely if ever ignore such orders. They are willing to die for their faith. However, those rare player characters who belong to this kit are not automatons. They may ignore the orders of their leader if they choose, especially if death is the likely outcome of those orders. (Of course, death may be the outcome of refusing an order, too.) Holy slayers who disobey become outcasts. The same applies to those who “obey” in part, but have managed to twist the meaning of an order through clever interpretation of the wording.
Outcasts become the target of attacks by other members of their fellowship. These attacks are planned by the DM. Rather than kill a target outright, fellowships usually prefer a string of nasty assaults - for example, the kidnapping of allies, the destruction of home towns, or the summoning of monsters. These attacks take place at the worst possible moments. They continue until one of the following occurs: the PC decides to complete the assigned mission; the PC has survived a number of separate attacks equal to his or her level (at which point the Grandfather or Grandfather may consider the punishment sufficient, if the DM so chooses or the PC slays the current leader of his or her fellowship (which is why the location of a fellowship’s base is kept so secret).
Distinctive Appearance
None
Special Benefits
Like a fighter, the holy slayer is allowed to specialize in the use of one weapon. In this case, a holy slayer must specialize in the weapon that represents his or her fellowship. As noted above, holy slayers use only one-handed weapons.
Special Hindrances
A holy slayer’s greatest hindrance is a short lifespan. (When a Grandfather or Grandmother says jump, these characters jump, unless they like the idea of preparing themselves against a number of ambushes.) In game terms, the DM should secretly roll for the chance of receiving “the call” each time a PC holy slayer makes it to the next experience level. There is a noncumulative 10 percent chance per level of receiving “the call.” Sometimes the call is an order to kill. It also may involve a risky mission to deliver a message or warning, or perhaps to retrieve a valuable item. When such an order targets a particular individual (though not necessarily for death), there is an 80 percent chance that the target is in the same city or territory as the holy slayer. Further, there’s an 80 percent chance that the target is a native of that area - in other words, that he or she is on “home turf” and is probably well-protected. Targets are always persons of importance or responsibility, such as sultans, viziers, or a captain of the king’s guard - never common merchants or loud-mouthed innkeepers. The DM is expected to challenge holy slayers in their craft.
Class
Attribute Requirements
None
Barred Beliefs
Holy slayers may be neutral or evil, but must always be lawful. They must also be thieves. Bards are never holy slayers, though they may be allied with such organizations in the same way moralist priests are. Members of this kit may be of any race. They may be male or female, and many fellowships include both genders. An equal number are exclusively male or female, however.
Race Requirement
Members of any race may be holy slayers, though few demi-humans choose this role.
Bonus Weapon Proficiencies
None
Required Weapon Proficiencies
A holy slayer may become proficient in the use of any one-handed weapon. Each fellowship specializes in a weapon, which must be among the holy slayer’s first proficiencies.
Recommended Weapon Proficiencies
None
Barred Weapon Proficiencies
None
Bonus Non-Weapon Proficiencies
Recommended Non-Weapon Proficiencies
Etiquette, Heraldry, Language (Modern), Rope Use, Bowyer, Endurance, Weaponsmithing, Herbalism, Religion, Begging, Blind-Fighting, Forgery, Jumping, Tumbling, Tightrope Walking
Equipment
Members of this kit are allowed to use any one-handed weapon. Otherwise, their limitations match those of any standard thief. Holy slayers can and do use poisons that inflict damage upon contact or injection, but only as nonfatal weapons, and they never use ingestive poison for holy slayings. (Any fool can poison the sultan’s wine, however, and any sultan who is foolish enough to forgo a food-taster should be removed from office anyway.)
Wealth Options
Each holy slayer begins the game with 2d6 x 10 gp. Members of this kit are expected to purchase their own arms and equipment. That includes any special weapon which the organization requires for slaying.
Homeland Terrain
None
Economic System
None