popular first names are those of Ulmagnus and Chevelle: Few outsiders realize the signifi- cance these names have, for the blickish rarely share the tale of their origins with strangers.
Male Names: Bethar, Dirren, Gallus,
Thammar, Ulmagnus, Veller.
Female Names: Anava, Chevelle, Dirra, Halla, Merevar, Navine, Shara.
Family Names: Dewmeadow, Gladwing, Sharptooth, Smokehollow, Strutter, Wandring. Adventurers: Blickish frequently wander. Some search for a new home in an accepting community; others hope to prove themselves and find their way in the world. Young blickish often set out on roaming quests, dedicating themselves to aiding anyone they find suffering at the hands of tyranny. Through these experi- ences they hope to make a small difference in the world. They often join transient bands of adventurers, seeking opportunities to gain wealth and notoriety, as well as acceptance into a broader section of society. Adventurers also tend to encounter those who most require assis- tance fighting the iron gauntlet of oppression. Since years of persecution have scattered many blickish, some leave their homes to seek lost relatives or hidden settlements. During their travels, adventuring blickish search for rumors of lone, wandering halflings fleeing to unknown regions. As they follow these leads, they work to hone their survival skills and gain enough wealth to take care of themselves and others who might depend on them.
Blickish Racial Traits
• +2 Charisma, +2 Strength, –2 Constitution, –2 Wisdom: The blickish heritage gives them good looks and greater physical might. Their small stature has difficulty supporting such muscle, and their pride often clouds their judgment.
• Small: As Small creatures, blickish gain a +1 size bonus to Armor Class, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, and a +4 size bonus on Hide checks, but they must use smaller weapons than humans use, and their lifting and carry- ing limits are three-quarters of those of Medium-size characters.
• Blickish base speed is 20 feet.
• +2 racial bonus on Intimidate checks. The icy stare from their eyes and the menacing canines in the blickish smile can have an unnerving effect on others.
• Track: Blickish have the ability to follow the trails of others across most types of terrain. This ability is identical to the Track feat. • Blink: Blickish enjoy an ability to blink in
and out of the material plane like the spell of the same name (PHB 180). Consider the blickish a 5th-level caster for all spell effects dependent on level. Blickish do not blink without difficulty. Moving from the ethereal to the material plane scrambles their con- scious thoughts and short-term memories for a moment afterward, but they can quickly recover from this disorientation and set about their purpose. In the round when they return to the material plane, blickish must make a Will save (DC 10) to regain their sense of purpose. Should they fail, they can only take defensive action, reacting instinctively to immediate threats. Blickish can roll their Will save once per round until they succeed. Otherwise they remain aimless and confused about their immediate objectives. Blickish may blink up to three times per day.
• Automatic Languages: Celestial, Common, Draconic, Halfling, and Infernal. Bonus Languages: Dwarven, Elven, Giant, Gnoll, Gnome, Goblin, and Orc. Blickish under- stand the language of those among whom they live, but also those from whom they descend. They rarely use their ancestors’ lan- guages in public lest they betray their true heritage.
• Favored Class: Rogue. A multiclass blick- ish’s rogue class does not count when deter- mining whether he suffers an XP penalty for multiclassing.
• Level Equivalent: Class levels +1.
Blickish Infiltrator
Blickish respect the infiltrator as one of the most common folk heroes in their culture. These vigilantes prefer stealth to strength but are also fully capable of fighting ruthlessly when defending themselves and others. Infiltrators use their talents to enter close- ly guarded areas to achieve certain moral
objectives—most often releasing a prisoner, returning stolen goods, or aiding a fellow in danger. They exist to aid the downtrodden, save those beyond hope, and champion lost causes. Although this profession has the potential for dishonorable conduct like thievery, assassina- tion, and espionage, blickish infiltrators hold themselves to high standards of conduct. They believe all their actions are observed by the spirit of their noble ancestor Ulmagnus, the epitome of self-sacrifice for the good of others. To act ignobly would dishonor their forefather and shame their people.
Many blickish infiltrators rise from the ranks of rogues, fighters, paladins, rangers, and others skilled in the arts of surreptitious entry and defense. Members of magic-using classes fre- quently focus their spells to improve their chances of stealthily entering forbidden areas, defending themselves, and escaping.
People who encounter NPC blickish infiltrators initially believe they are wayward halflings, loners who keep to themselves but stand up to defend others. They wait quietly on the side- lines until a strong tyrant begins abusing the weak or they hear of an innocent who requires help. Infiltrators seldom band together—only when they face overwhelming odds do they join forces. Nobles whose fiefs shelter blick- ish settlements sometimes call upon infiltra-
tors to rescue citizens captured by enemy powers or to retrieve stolen artifacts of great significance. Infiltrators do not work for money but to fulfill their sense of honor, pride, and duty to those in need.
Hit Dice: d10.
Requirements
To qualify to become a blickish infil- trator, a character must fulfill all the following criteria.
Race: Blickish.
Alignment: Any lawful. Base Attack Bonus: +6.
Feats: Dodge, Improved Disarm, Iron Will.
Intuit Direction: 4 ranks. Move Silently: 2 ranks.
Class Skills
The infiltrator’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Disable Device (Int), Disguise (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Forgery (Int), Gather Information (Cha), Hide (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Intuit Direction (Wis), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Open Lock (Dex), Profession (Wis), Search (Int), Spot (Wis), and Tumble (Dex). Skill Points at Each Level: 8 + Int modifier.
Class Features
All of the following are class features of the blickish infiltrator prestige class.
Blink Increase: Infiltrators gain an increase in the number of times they may blink each day. At 2nd level they can blink up to four times per day; this increases to five times per day at 7th level and to six times per day at 10th level. Each time they blink, infiltrators must make a Will save (DC 10) to recover from the disori- entation of returning to the Material Plane. Piggyback Blink: Infiltrators learn to expand their blinking ability to bring others with them into the ethereal plane and blink back into the material plane. This technique increases the range of the infiltrator’s blink power from per- sonal to touch, allowing them to blink with one other person at 1st level, two people at 5th
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level, and up to three at 9th level. The infiltra- tor and any “passengers” are bound at the time they enter the ethereal plane, so the blickish cannot let go of his companion and leave him stranded there. Both reappear on the material plane when and where the infiltrator returns, regardless of how far they might have wan- dered apart on the ethereal plane. The piggy- backed person must make a Will save (DC 15) to shake off the disorienting effects of blinking or suffer the same confusion as a blickish who fails such a save. The infiltrator must still respect his limits on the number of times he may blink per day.
Ethereal Jaunt: At 4th level infiltrators gain the ability to make themselves and their equip- ment ethereal, as the arcane spell ethereal jaunt (PHB 201). They may invoke this power once per day as casters of twice their infiltrator level. Upon returning to the Material Plane, blickish require a Will save (DC 10) to regain their sense of purpose.
Celestial Aid: Blickish draw on the power of their ancestors when traveling between the material and ethereal planes. This activity rein- forces their tenuous bonds with hound archons, kinsmen of the blickish progenitor Ulmagnus. When they attain 6th level, infiltrators gain the ability to summon a hound archon to come to their aid, as if they were a 9th-level caster using the summon monster V spell (PHB 258). The infiltrator draws on the pain of her own wounds to reach across the ethereal plane and call a celestial—he can only invoke this power in combat when his hit points are less than half his total. See MM 29–32 for information about the hound archon’s abilities. Infiltrators may employ this power no more than once per day.