Complete Scoundrel

CHAPTER 2Prestigeclasses44order’s cause). The order has an unofficial hierarchy basedon experience and seniority, but only a captain has directauthority over members. In such a small organization, thecaptain knows every knight and assigns direction as suitsthe personality and abilities of each. Other interests withinthe church (such as concerned priests and rival paladins)frequently try to influence or hinder the work of the grayguards. In order to shield them from such internal politics,gray guards are often sent far afield, with instructions toreport for orders only infrequently.NPC ReactionsMost folk assume gray guards are typical warriors ormercenaries and treat them as such. The members of a grayguard’s own faith treat him with widely differing attitudes.Many within the church see the very existence of the orderas conceding to evil, the first step to becoming no betterthan those the faith would oppose. Those whom you wouldprotect abhor your very existence and might even hinderyou. Others understand the need for distasteful action toroot out evil and can be helpful toward the order. Paladinsdisdain gray guards, rarely having attitudes warmer thanindifferent toward them.Gray Guard LoreCharacters with ranks in Knowledge (religion) can researchgray guards to learn more about them. When a charactersucceeds on a skill check, the following lore is revealed,including the information from lower DCs.DC 10: Gray guards are paladins who aren’t bound by acode of conduct.DC 15: Gray guards seek out injustice in all its forms,often using the tools and methods of their enemies againstthem.DC 20: Paladins often distrust them, but gray guardstake their code of conduct just as seriously as other holywarriors do and violate its tenets only in the best interestof their faith.DC 30: Characters who achieve this level of success canlearn important details about gray guards in your campaign,including faiths that sponsor such orders, notable members,the areas where they currently operate, and the kinds ofactivities they undertake.Servants of religions that support orders of gray guardsshould have little problem contacting members throughchurch officials. Characters without such connectionsmight be able to leave messages for gray guards in care ofmembers of the same faith.Gray Guards in the GameGray guards are relatively easy to integrate into any campaignfeaturing powerful religions. The notion that suchdevout organizations have semisecret agents workingtoward their diverse causes probably doesn’t stretch theimagination. Nor does the concept that such powerfulgroups—no matter how pure they might appear—mightresort to less than ethical means of dealing with theirhated opponents.The easiest way to introduce gray guards into your campaignis to have the PCs encounter one working towarda parallel goal. Presenting a gray guard as a potential allygives the PCs a chance to ask questions and learn moreabout the order. After such an encounter, a devoted butfrustrated paladin within the party might pursue membership.Alternatively, an NPC gray guard might be a rival toa PC paladin, producing interesting tension.AdaptationIf gray guards don’t appeal to you as presented, you canreadily convert their order to fill other niches. With theirfreedom to exact justice on those of any alignment, grayguards make excellent inquisitors. Such church investigatorsmight openly enforce their faith’s beliefs, huntingdown heretics, witches, or any others viewed as violatingholy law. Alternatively, they might serve as church police,with the authority to seek out injustices among the devoutor monitor paladins’ adherence to their code of conduct.Instead of making the gray guard a prestige class, you canadjust the paladin class to grant its features at advancedlevels, representing a higher order free to right wrongsas it sees fit.Sample EncounterPCs hunting a villain who hides behind a mask of righteousnessmight not be the only ones on their target’s trail. Suchlurking evil can attract the attention of a gray guard.EL 11: For the last two years, Ambros Brasmere hashunted an elusive cult of the demon prince Malcanthet,Queen of Succubi. His recent investigations suggest thatthe popular owner of a local theater has connections to thecult. This prominent socialite is ever surrounded by hisretinue of attendants, bodyguards, and sycophants, any ofwhom might be a fiend in disguise or merely an infatuatedinnocent. Ambros seeks a few allies to help him force hisway past the suspected cultist’s clique and get the informationhe needs, through any means necessary.Ambros Brasmere CR 11Male half-elf paladin 7/gray guard 4LG Medium humanoidInit +0; Senses low-light vision; Listen +3, Spot +3Aura courage (10 ft., allies +4 against fear)Languages Common, ElvenAC 22, touch 10, flat-footed 22(+9 armor, +3 shield)hp 76 (11 HD)Immune disease, fear, sleepFort +14, Ref +7, Will +14 (+16 against enchantments)Speed 20 ft. (4 squares)Melee +2 longsword +15/+10/+5 (1d8+4/19–20)Base Atk +11; Grp +13Atk Options smite evil or chaos 3/day (+3 attack, +11 damage)Special Actions debilitating touch, lay on hands 33 points/day, turn undead 6/day (+5, 2d6+7, 4th)