Bringer of Twilight



''We are the whispers of Light that haunt every villain even in the heart of his own darkness. We are the blades, forged of Light's wonder, that never speak and are never seen. We do what must be done to save the Light, never known and never acknowledged. And I am sorry, but this too must be done. May the Light welcome you.''

- Bringer of Twilight

There are many colours to Light. But just as much there are many shades. Not all have the luxury of being able to take the path of purity and cut-and-dried morality. Sometimes all the available choices are bad, sometimes not even the powers of Light and friendship can solve a solution without loss. It is well known to all Evokers that, no matter how hard they might try, there will always – somewhen – come a time when their abilities just aren't enough. And from this realisation, in time, grew the order that refers to themselves as the Bringers of Twilight.

This organisation – and it is nothing less – formed out of those Champion, Empaths and Stargazers that found that simply blasting their opponents into submission sometimes wasn't enough. Sometimes, no matter how much they might have hated it, they had to kill. Destroy a life to save millions. Many of their sisters reject this idea as cynical or lost, but the Bringers of Twilight know better. They have been there at those precipices, where they had the ability to save worlds by killing one man or woman or to let it all come crashing down if they spared their foe. And whatever their 'more enlightened' kin might say, they know they made the right choice. Nothing else could be done.

Requirements
To become a Bringer of Twilight, you must fulfill all the following criteria.

Base Attack Bonus: +5

Special: Evoker Level 5, must have slain an opponent in cold blood to save others from their perceived 'evil'.

Class Skill List
Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Hide (Dex), Jump (Str), Knowledge [Local] (Int), Move Silently (Dex), Perform (Cha), Sense Motive (Wis), Swim (Str), Tumble (Dex), Use Magical Device (Cha)

Skill Points
4 + Int modifier at each level.

Hit Die
d8

Weapon and Armour Proficiencies
A Bringer of Twilight gains no additional proficiencies.

Illuminations
A Bringer of Twilight loses little of her power as an evoker, but she does lose some, pouring that power into the ability to strike with a lethal efficiency that is almost frightening. A Bringer of Twilight continues to progress access to Illuminations from her Evoking Class, as well as her Evoker Level, as shown. If she has more than one Evoking Class, then she must choose one of them when she takes her first level in Bringer of Twilight. Once made, this choice cannot be changed.

Enhanced Weaving
A Bringer of Twilight remembers fully the power and majesty of their costume elements, and lose none of their access to it as they progress in level. Their levels in Bringer of Twilight either stack with their levels in previous Evoking classes, or count as levels in Empath for the purposes of Costume Progression (whichever is more advantageous).

Bringer of Twilight
Bringers of Twilight are gifted with great power from their resolve, but they lose much of their innocence to that lethal conviction. In the end, stripping away the Light around them, they are the Light’s assassins. And whilst they might not take pleasure in that duty, they are unswerving in carrying it out.

At first level, a Bringer of Twilight forever loses their Merciful class feature. Night falls for them in that moment, stripping away one of the few things that make Evokers truly special, and replacing it with an utter determination to do what is right. No matter the cost.

The Bringer of Twilight gains the Death Attack ability of the Assassin with the following modifications. The Bringer of Twilight may make a Death Attack as a single attack standard action, and may do so from a range of up to 30’ if using their Device or a ranged Blast. It still requires the observation time as normal. The DC for the save this attack prompts is (10 + Evoker Level + Evoking Stat Modifier). This counts as a Death effect when used to strike to kill. At level seven, it is not protected against by Death Ward, and the paralysis effect bypasses the effects of Freedom of Movement.

At level four, the first glimmers of Light return to the Bringer of Twilight’s world. But this light is harder and far less kind, the Light of the dawn that rises above a killing field. The Bringer of Twilight becomes one with this harsh and pale light, and in doing so becomes capable of striking in ways all but invisible to the naked eye except for their effect. As a swift action, the Bringer of Twilight may make any enemy within 30’ become flat-footed against her for the next round if they fail a DC (10 + Evoker Level + Evoking Stat Modifier) Will save.

If she hits her target with a Death Attack, even if they succeed on their save, observers must make a spot check against the same DC to realise that the attack was the Bringer of Twilight’s doing. Of course, if her target is not dead or paralyzed, this becomes somewhat of a moot point.

Level seven brings another light into the Bringer of Twilight’s world, this time the blazing fury of the noonday sun in full summer, striking down those who dare oppose them with lethal swiftness. She reduces the number of rounds required to examine her target before she can make a death attack by a fifth of her class level, to a minimum of 1 round. In addition she reduces any penalties to Hide, Move Silently, Disguise, Bluff and Escape Artist DCs by her Class Level.

And at level ten, the Bringer of Twilight’s power has come full circle, back to the settling dusk that spawned her realisation. She has found her balance, and now strikes down all those who would seek to destroy it. She may make a Death or Sneak Attack from any range that she is capable of striking from with Device or Blasts. She adds half her class level to the DCs of her Class Abilities. She also ignores the -20 penalty to Hide when sniping and may snipe with the same restrictions as Death/Sneak Attack.

Duskblades
Bringers of Twilight are the blades that the Light wished it never had to have, the knives in the darkness that glimmer but faintly before they spill the blood of their foes. And in that faint glimmer is housed a determination that is made terrifying by the willingness of its wielder to do anything to hold back the night.

At 1st level, a Bringer of Twilight gains a special device effect that is always active and gained in addition to all others. Furthermore, she automatically has (class level) motes invested into it, without lowering her mote pool and bypassing normal investment limits.

Effect: The Bringer of Twilight gains the Sneak Attack ability of a Rogue of her Class Level when attacking a flat-footed target with her Device. If a Bringer of Twilight gets a sneak attack bonus from another source, the bonuses on damage stack. Duskblade damage does full damage against creatures that would be immune to sneak attack, like constructs and undead.

Essence Boost: For every 1m invested in this ability, the Bringer of Twilight may ignore 1 point of DR. If 10 or more motes are invested, any creature dealt damage by her Sneak Attack loses any fast healing or regeneration it may possess for one round.

Cartridge Boost: When a cartridge is expended to fuel this effect, the Bringer of Twilight’s weapons are imbued with a deadly sheath of faint light that allows them to strike their opponents weak spots again and again. Any opponent that she struck the round before with her Sneak Attack automatically counts as flat-footed against her attacks. This effect lasts a number of rounds equal to her Evoker Stat Modifer. If she successfully strikes a target with Sneak Attack whilst under this effect, she may immediately end the effect to have the attack count as a Death Attack.

Lurker in the Light
Bringers of Twilight are as at home hiding in the day as they are at night – in fact, they have to be. Their power allows them to slip away from sight in shadow or light. It matters little. At level three, a Bringer of Twilight may attempt a hide check even whilst observed.

Nightfall
The Bringers of Twilight prefer to bring death swiftly rather than slowly, but the magical protections that their targets often cloak themselves in would make that far, far harder if not for this ability. Known as the Nightfall, it allows Bringer’s of Twilight to reduce the defences of their target to that of an unenhanced mortal in the moment of their strike.

Once per day at level eight, a Bringer of Twilight may expend ten motes to enhance an attack with an anti-magic effect similar in nature to a weaponised version of the Warded costume effect. Before the attack roll is made, the Bringer of Twilight rolls an Evoker Level check against any magical and psionic effects affecting her target as Greater Dispel Magic/Psionics.