Some wealthy merchant guilds employ unscrupulous individuals in in their plots to achieve wealth and dominion over others. Guild agents are the chief instruments in this endeavor.

Guild agents research lore to discover long-lost treasures, then organize expeditions to recover them for their leaders—usually higher-ranking agents. Their careful study of the traps and hazards of ancient ruins helps agents evade danger themselves while leaving such threats intact for competing treasure hunters to face.

Class Details

Hit Die: d8.

Requirements

To qualify to become a guild agent, a character must fulfill all of the following criteria.

• Skills: Appraise 5 ranks, Bluff 5 ranks, Craft (traps) 5 ranks, Disable Device 5 ranks, Intimidate 5 ranks, Knowledge (history) 5 ranks, Perception 5 ranks.
• Special: Proficiency with the whip, as well as either the trap sense class feature or the ability to cast detect secret doors.

Class Skills

The Guild agent's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Bluff (Cha), Disguise (Cha), Knowledge (arcana) (Int), Knowledge (history) (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), and Use Magic Device (Cha).

Skill Ranks at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.

Table: Guild agent

Class Features

The following are class features of the Guild agent prestige class.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: a guild agent gains no additional weapon or armor proficiencies.

Trapfinding (Ex)

As the rogue class feature. Levels in Guild agent stack with levels from any other class that grants this ability for the purposes of determining a guild agent's total trapfinding bonus.

Trap Sense (Ex)

a guild agent gains a +1 bonus to AC and on Reflex saves made to avoid traps; this bonus increases by +1 every 3 levels after 1st. Trap sense bonuses gained from multiple classes stack.

Guild Secrets

At 2nd level and every two levels thereafter, a guild agent gains one of the following agency secrets. a guild agent can't select an individual agency secret more than once.

Mask Alignment (Su)

At 2nd level, as a standard action, a guild agent can alter her alignment aura to deceive effects that detect alignment. She may choose to be detected as any specific alignment she chooses or as no alignment. This affects only alignment detection, not effects that cause harm or are otherwise based on alignment. This effect lasts until she dismisses it or changes her alignment aura again.

At 6th level, a guild agent targeted with an effect that detects alignment or with any alignment-based effect can automatically identify the effect by making a Spellcraft check. If successful, she can assume a false alignment as an immediate action.

At 10th level, when a guild agent assumes a false alignment, she is treated as having that alignment for all effects of magic items, spells, and spell-like or supernatural effects (such as forbiddance, sympathy, or an unholy weapon), including magical traps based on alignment. While masking her alignment, she ignores these types of effects that relate to her true alignment.

Sneak Attack (Ex)

This ability is exactly like the rogue ability of the same name. The extra damage dealt increases by +1d6 at every third level (3rd, 6th, and 9th). If a guild agent gains a sneak attack bonus from another source, the bonuses on damage stack.

Ambush Trap (Ex)

At 3rd level, a guild agent can specially rig a mechanical trap she has either crafted or bypassed by exceeding its Disable Device DC by 10. A trap so made can be triggered by the Guild agent as a move action as long as she is adjacent to the trap. She adds her trap sense bonus to the trap's Perception DC and on the trap's attack rolls, and adds her sneak attack damage to the trap's damage if the target is flat-footed or otherwise denied its Dexterity bonus to AC.

Crucial Taunt (Ex)

At 5th level, a guild agent can combine infuriating smugness and sneering mockery with Bluff checks to feint, Intimidate checks to demoralize, and dirty trick combat maneuvers, gaining a bonus equal to 1/2 her class level on these checks. She may then delay the effect of the successful check for up to 1 day per class level, spending an immediate action to trigger it later. The Guild agent must be within 60 feet to use or trigger a crucial taunt. This is a language-dependent effect.

Improved Trap Sense (Ex)

At 7th level, a guild agent's trap sense bonus applies on all saving throws made to avoid trap effects.

Remote Activation (Ex)

At 8th level, a guild agent can use her ambush trap ability on a trap up to 30 feet away.