Coastal Pirate

Coastal pirates prowl rivers in skiffs, rowboats, and coracles in search of easy prey. Those who prove handy at waterway robbery might someday find a position on the galleons that frequently raid along coasts and waylay trade ships.

Hit Die: d8

Requirements

To qualify to become a Coastal pirate, a character must fulfill all of the following criteria:

Alignment: Any nonlawful.

Base Attack Bonus: +3.

Skills: Appraise 5 ranks, Profession (boater or sailor) 5 ranks, Swim 5 ranks.

Special: +2d6 sneak attack.

Class Skills

The coastal pirate’s class skills (and the key ability for each) are Acrobatics (Dex), Appraise (Int), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (local) (Int), Perception (Wis), Profession (Wis), Stealth (Dex), Survival, Swim (Str).

Skill Points at Each Level: 8 + Int modifier.

Table: Coastal Pirate
Level Base Attack Bonus Fort Save Ref Save Will Save Special
1st +0 +0 +1 +0 Quick appraise, sodden stealth +2
2nd +1 +1 +1 +1 Bogstep, deep breath
3rd +2 +1 +2 +1 Sneak attack +1d6
4th +3 +1 +2 +1 Navigate maelstrom
5th +3 +2 +3 +2 Sodden stealth +4
6th +4 +2 +3 +2 Sneak attack +2d6
7th +5 +2 +4 +2 Grapple ship
8th +6 +3 +4 +3 Shipmind
9th +6 +3 +5 +3 Sneak attack +3d6
10th +7 +3 +5 +3 Fogcraft, sodden stealth +6

Class Features

The following are class features of the Coastal pirate prestige class.

Quick Appraise (Ex)

A Coastal pirate must at times quickly select the most valuable items to spirit away. She may appraise the value of an item in 1 round.

Sodden Stealth (Ex)

Coastal pirates spend their careers studying and adapting to their unique, marshy environs. As a result, they develop skills which allow them to stealthily approach their targets even over the wettest, muddiest ground. Most wear dark green and brown clothes made of oilcloth (to repel water) and reed hats with angled brims to keep rain out of their eyes. Coastal pirates sometimes string small beads in their hair to generate a quiet susurrus as they walk. This mimics the sound of wind in the bogs and helps mask the noise of their footsteps.

A Coastal pirate gains a +2 competence bonus on Stealth checks made in marshes, bogs, or swamps. At 5th level this bonus increases to +4, and at 10th level the bonus increases to +6.

Bogstep (Ex)

At 2nd level, a Coastal pirate learns how to move quickly through the treacherous terrain of her home. She moves through shallow bogs normally, and it costs her 2 squares of movement to move into a square with a deep bog. She can use Acrobatics to tumble through shallow bogs with no penalty and can tumble through deep bogs with a –4 penalty (see Marsh Terrain for more information regarding bogs and swamps.)

Deep Breath (Ex)

At 2nd level, a Coastal pirate can hold her breath for a number of rounds equal to three times her Constitution score before she must start making Constitution checks.

Sneak Attack (Ex)

This is identical to the rogue sneak attack ability, and stacks with sneak attack gained from other sources.

Navigate Storm (Su)

Coastal pirates know how to navigate the gusting winds and churning water of severe storms.

At 4th level, a Coastal pirate treats all storms as if they were one category less severe for purposes of sailing and navigation. She treats the storm as if it were a zone of inclement weather, rather than a powerful storm, for purposes of sailing and navigation (see Weather for more information.)

Grapple Ship (Su)

As a Coastal pirate’s connection to the sea grows stronger, she learns to perform impossible feats. At 7th level, a Coastal pirate gains the ability to stop another ship dead in the water for a short time. To use this ability, the Coastal pirate must hurl a grappling hook at the target ship. The pirate is proficient with the grappling hook, and she throws it with a 20-foot range increment.

If the Coastal pirate hits the target ship, she then makes an opposed Strength check. She gains a +1 bonus on her check for every crewmate who also grapples the enemy ship, although crewmates are considered non-proficient with grappling hooks and throw them with 10-foot range increments. For every point by which the Coastal pirate exceeds the ship’s Strength check, she halts its progress for 1 round.

Shipmind (Su)

At 8th level, a Coastal pirate can, once per day as a standard action, control her ship with a thought. The Coastal pirate must be on the deck of the ship she wishes to control and she must be conscious.

Once the Coastal pirate activates her shipmind, she can feel the ship as if it were an extension of her body. She can “see” from the ship anywhere she wants, and adjusting her point of view is a free action. The Coastal pirate can move the ship as if it were her own body, and it moves over water at her base move or the ship’s normal speed, whichever is greater. She and her ship can move forward and backward, make right angle turns, and come to a dead stop, despite the ship’s size or the weather conditions.

While the Coastal pirate uses her shipmind ability, her body appears paralyzed and unresponsive. She is considered helpless and cannot defend herself, but she retains an awareness of what goes on around her body (and can see her body from her perspective on the ship if she wishes). She may end the shipmind effect as an immediate action. This ability lasts for 1 round per class level.

Fogcraft (Su)

At 10th level, the Coastal pirate gains the incredible power to shape a vessel out of the fog that roils across the boggy landscape. This ability functions only in the Coastal and is usable once per day.

Forming a craft takes 10 minutes, and the craft’s duration lasts for a variable number of hours depending on its size. A fogcraft appears made of swirling gray mist but feels solid to the touch. Its unique composition can make it difficult to spot, and the craft makes no sound, but it does not baffle sounds made by its crew.

A fogcraft has a carrying capacity equal to an ordinary ship of its type, but its impermanence makes it a poor cargo ship. It requires the appropriate number of crewmen in order to sail. A fogcraft possesses speed and maneuverability equal to that of an ordinary ship of its type, but unlike ordinary ships, a fogcraft can move over land as easily as water.

A Coastal pirate receives a +4 competence bonus on skill checks made to sail her fogcraft.

When a Coastal pirate creates a fogcraft, she can chose its size from any of the options listed below. With larger ships comes a trade-off in stealth, Armor Class, and duration.

Fogcraft Type AC Strength Carries 1 Duration Stealth
Raft 10 18 4 10 hours +12
Rowboat 10 20 6 10 hours +10
Longship 8 24 170 4 hours +8
Keelboat 8 28 115 4 hours +8
Sailing ship 6 30 220 4 hours +8
Warship 6 32 240 2 hours +6
Galley 4 34 450 2 hours +4

1 Including the Coastal pirate herself.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

Pathfinder Chronicles Campaign Setting. Copyright 2008, Paizo Publishing, LLC; Authors: Mike McArtor, Keith Baker, Wolfgang Baur, Clinton J. Boomer, Jason Bulmahn, Joshua J. Frost, Ed Greenwood, Stephen S. Greer, Jeff Grubb, James Jacobs, Michael Kortes, Tito Leati, Mike McArtor, Rob McCreary, Erik Mona, Jason Eric Nelson, Jeff Quick, Sean K Reynolds, F. Wesley Schneider, Leandra Christine Schneider, David Schwartz, Amber E. Scott, Stan!, Owen K.C. Stephens, Todd Stewart, James L. Sutter, Greg A. Vaughan, Jeremy Walker, JD Wiker.

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