to rumor some of those people even hold high posi
tions in the Brelish government.
Foreign Nations. Every nation knows the King's Dark
Lanterns serves as an espionage force and do their
best to track the movements of Dark Lantern agents
within their borders. Foreign governments treat Dark
Lantern agents with care to avoid sparking an inter
national incident, but they are quick to arrest Dark
Lantern agents suspected of wrongdoing.
New Cyre. One of the world's largest concentrations
of Cyran refugees settled in eastern Breland under
the leadership of Oargev ir'Wynarn, the last prince of
Cyre. Many voices among the Cyrans, possibly includ
ing Oargev himself, call for the establishment of an in
dependent nation in what is now Brelish territory, but
Boranel is determined to hold on to every acre of his
land. The Dark Lanterns actively infiltrate the Cyran
refugee community, rooting out those who would act
against the king.PATRON BENEFITS
You gain the following benefits when your group's pa
tron is an espionage agency:
Assignments. Yo ur agency might assign you specific
tasks at any time, at the DM's discretion. You have
wide latitude regarding how you carry out a task, and
your assignments can sometimes be very broad and
require considerable time to complete.
Expense Account. You have access to an account main
tained at the banks of House Kundarak. You can use
this account to pay your daily living expenses, as well
as for purchasing anything you need for completing
your missions-equipment, transportation, bribes, and
so on. Your normal spending limit is 100 gp per month
for each member of your group. If you exceed that,
your agency asks you to account for the month's ex
penses, and they might require you to pay back the ex
cess if you can't justify it (at the DM's discretion). You
can't carry over an unused amount from one month
to the next, and your access to this account can be cut
off at any time if you abuse it or fall out of the agency's
good graces. The agency is aware of every time you ac
cess the account and where you are when you do so.
Identification. Yo ur agency provides you with identifi
cation papers establishing your true identity, and you
also have ready access to false papers and matching
travel documents showing different identities, when
you need them for a mission. (Any time you enter a
fo reign nation, it is a good idea for you to do so under
a false identity.)
Powerful Friends. An espionage agency, by nature,
has a long reach and a lot of power to make things
happen behind the scenes. You can call in a favor
for a wide range of benefits: A legal case against you
might be suddenly dropped. A rival might disappear.
A much-needed magic item might be delivered to you.
These favors can provide significant short-term ben
efit, but they can also come with equally significant
long-term repercussions-which might lead to entirely
new missions.
BUILD YOUR GROUP
Espionage agents are typically both highly trained and
tightly specialized. The type of missions you undertake
can shape your group's composition; you might be a
team of hunters or investigators, focused on tracking
people down or gathering information. More likely,
you're a diverse team with a range of skills that allow
you undertake a variety of different missions on your pa
tron's behalf. Consider some or all of these roles for the
characters in your party:
Chameleon. A master of disguise, sleight of hand, and
deception, the Chameleon can perform the work of
the Investigator or a Confiscator right under a target's
nose-or provide cover to agents with different special
ties as they do their jobs. A high Charisma, proficiency
with the disguise kit (or access to spells that cloak or
disguise one's appearance), and proficiency with skills
such as Deception, Performance, and Sleight of Hand
all greatly benefit the Chameleon. Bards and rogues,
as well as characters with the charlatan, entertainer,
or urchin background, often excel in this role.
Confiscator. Sometimes an espionage agency needs
something stolen-a document that incriminates a
public figure to a prototype war machine. The Confis
cator has the key skills for such jobs. A good Dexterity
score proves helpful in undertaking such tasks, es
pecially if it's enhanced with proficiency with thieves'
tools and the Sleight of Hand and Stealth skills. Con
fiscators are often rogues, and many have a history of
stealing for profit rather than national interest.
Hunter. The Hunter stalks humanoid prey, for purposes
of assassination, abduction, or gathering information.
A combination of combat prowess with stealth and
interaction skills makes for well-prepared Hunters.
Rangers and rogues prove particularly adept at this
role, as might anyone with proficiency in the Investiga
tion, Perception and Stealth skills. A high Charisma
and proficiency in Deception, Intimidation, and Per
suasion skills can also be useful. Hunters often come
from backgrounds such as outlander or urchin.
Investigator. The Investigator is the archetypal spy, a
master of deductive reasoning and suave interaction.
Naturally, Investigation can be a crucial skill, which
many characters in this role combine with magical
means of scrying to learn about their enemies and
objectives. Bards and wizards make natural Investiga
tors, especially if they can acquire one or more skills
from among Deception, Perception, Persuasion, and
Stealth. Investigators come from backgrounds as var
ied as charlatans, nobles, sages, and urchins.
Operator. An Operator leads or organizes a team of
agents in the field. Like a military officer, the Operator
issues orders and bears responsibility for the agents
on the team. High Charisma and Intelligence scores
help make the Operator a strong leader, especially in
conjunction with skill proficiencies such as Persua
sion and Investigation. The wide array of skills used
by other agents are also valuable to the Operator, who
might end up stepping into a different role when the
need arises. The Operator is often a bard and might
come from a soldier or noble background (being ac
customed to leadership in one form or another).CHAPTER I J CHARACTER CREATION
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