Orc Scout
Slipping down from the wild, barren high country into the more civilized lands of the south, the scout begins his work. His task is not to fight the enemy directly, but rather to gain valuable knowledge about the enemy’s strengths, weaknesses, and movements. With the scout’s help, the enemy will be destroyed, and he will play a valuable role in that downfall. The scout’s contribution to the foe’s demise
is visible not in the execution of his missions, but on the battlefield when the opponent realizes that the orc commanders know far more about them than they should. Part wilderness warrior and part spy, the orc scout is a hero to his people. His glory comes not from prowess in combat, but from risking his life to bring his chieftain accurate intelligence about the enemy’s activities. He prepares for this role by training himself to survive in inhospitable climes, to make clandestine observations from afar, and to return home safely with his knowledge intact. Most orc scouts are barbarians, fighters, or rangers who have chosen to be trained for special missions on behalf of their tribe. Orc scouts normally work alone or in pairs. Rarely, they gather in a triad when the task at hand is too demanding for a solo mission or twin group. Their goal is to spy on the enemy and get home safely to tell what they know.
Hit Die: d8.
REQUIREMENTS To qualify to become an orc scout, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.
Race: Orc, half-orc, or tanarukk.
Base Attack Bonus: +5.
Skills: Move Silently 6 ranks, Wilderness Lore 4 ranks. Feats: Alertness, Endurance, Stealthy.
CLASS SKILLS The orc scout’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are: Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Heal (Wis), Hide (Dex), Intuit Direction (Wis), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Search (Int), Spot (Wis), Swim (Str), Use Rope (Dex), and Wilderness Lore (Wis). See Chapter 4: Skills in the Player’s Handbook for skill descriptions.
Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.
Feat progression:
Level 1: Fieldcraft +1, blend into wilds
Level 2: bonus feat, fast movement (40ft)
Level 3: Fieldcraft +2, sneak attack +1d6
Level 4: Bonus Feat
Level 5: Fieldcraft +3, Fast movement (50ft)
Class levels: 5
Save progression:
Fort from level 1-5; +0, +1,+2,+3,+3
Reflex from level 1-5; +2,+3,+3,+4,+4
Will from level 1-5; +0, +0, +1, +1, +1
BAB progression: Medium
CLASS FEATURES: The following are class features of the orc scout prestige class.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Orc scouts are proficient in simple and martial weapons and light armor.
Fieldcraft (Ex): At 1st level, an orc scout gains a bonus on a number of skill checks due to his intensive training in these capabilities. The orc scout gains a +1 bonus on Climb, Heal, Hide, Intuit Direction, Listen, Move Silently, Search, Spot, and Wilderness Lore checks whenever he is engaged in a scouting mission. The bonus increases to +2 at 3rd level and to +3 at 5th level.
Blend into Wilds (Ex): At 1st level, an orc scout learns to blur his lines with the aid of colored body paint, carefully chosen clothing, and posture, making it much difficult for others to see him. This technique requires 1 minute to implement but grants the orc scout a +10 competence bonus on his Hide check. An orc scout can use this ability only when he is in a wilderness area, and only if he is not under observation by foes. If he moves at all, he loses the benefit of blending and must make his Hide check normally (see the Hide skill description).
Bonus Feat: At 2nd level and again at 4th level, an orc scout gains a feat from the following list: Blooded, Forester, Resist Poison, Survivor, Toughness, Treetopper. Fast Movement (Ex): At 2nd level, an orc scout’s speed improves to 40 feet, as shown on Table 6–4. An orc scout in medium or heavy armor, or carrying a medium or heavy load, loses this extra speed. At 5th level, the orc scout’s speed improves to 50 feet. Orc scouts with levels in barbarian add that class’s fast movement bonus to their orc scout base speed.
Sneak Attack (Ex): Often an orc scout must strike an opponent unawares in order to accomplish his mission. At 3rd level, an orc scout gains the ability to execute a sneak attack if he can catch an opponent unable to defend himself from attack, striking a vital spot for extra damage. Any time the orc scout’s opponent would be denied his Dexterity bonus to Armor Class (whether he actually has a Dexterity bonus or not), the orc scout’s attack deals +1d6 points of extra damage. Should the orc scout score a critical hit with a sneak attack, this extra damage is not multiplied. It takes precision and penetration to hit a vital spot, so ranged attacks can only count as sneak attacks if the target is no farther than 30 feet away. With a sap or an unarmed strike, an orc scout can make a sneak attack that deals subdual damage instead of normal damage. He cannot use a weapon that deals normal damage to deal subdual damage in a sneak attack, not even at the usual–4 penalty, because he must make optimal use of his weapon in order to execute the sneak attack. An orc scout can only sneak attack living creatures with discernible anatomies—undead, constructs, oozes, plants, and incorporeal creatures lack vital areas to strike. Additionally, any creature immune to critical hits is similarly immune to sneak attacks. The orc scout must be able to see the target well enough to pick out a vital spot and must be able to reach a vital spot. An orc scout cannot sneak attack while striking at a creature with concealment or by striking at the limbs of a creature whose vitals are beyond reach. If an orc scout gets a sneak attack bonus from another source (such as rogue levels), the bonuses to damage stack.