Lackey Class

I've taken the Lackey class I had made for ACKS and converted it into a level-limited NPC class useful for utility henchmen for D&D.

LACKEYS (NPC CLASS)

 

Prime Requisite: Constitution

Experience Bonus: 5% if Constitution 13+, 10% if Consititution 16+.

Hit Dice:  1d6 per level until 6^th

Maximum Level: 6

Armor:  leather, also, beginning at 4^th level: shield, scale, chain

Weapons: any axe, hammer, mattock, club, staff and dagger.  May used tools as weapons without the improvised penalty.  2 others gained at 6^th level.

Special Abilities:  Porter power,  Open Locks, Find/Remove Traps, Hear Noise. Fire Man, Detect Poison, Exchange, Shield Man, Battlefield Surgeon, Trusted Goon

 

Lackeys are skilled henchmen trained to support their principal during his adventures.  Unlike other classes, lackeys can be in almost any race from humans to halflings to goblins.

 

CLASS DETAILS

Prime Requisite:  A lackey's prime requisite is Constitution.  If the lackey has a Constitution of 13-15 he gains a +5% experience bonus.  If the lackey has Constitution of 16-18 he gains a +10% experience bonus.

Hit Dice: Roll a d6 to determine a lackey's hit points, plus Constitution bonus, if any.  He gets 1d6 extra points plus Con bonus for each experience level thereafter until 5th level, the maxmimum level for lackeys.

Armor: A lackey can wear leather armor and may not carry a shield. 

Weapons:  A lackey may use any sort of axe, hammer, mattock, club, staff or dagger and may use any tool as weapon without incurring the improvised weapon penalty.

 

SPECIAL ABILITIES

 Porter Power

If a lackey is wearing a Porter’s Pack or Back Pack, any items inside them only count half their weight toward encumbrance.

 Thief Skills

Lackeys have the ability to Open Locks, Find Traps, Remove Traps and Hear Noise, as a thief of the same experience level.

 Fire Man

Beginning at 2^nd level, a lackey with flint and steel can light a torch, candle or lantern in a single round, even if there is total darkness all about.  He can also use a lit torch as a missile weapon with a 10/20/30 foot range.

Detect Poison

Beginning at 3^rd level, a lackey can detect whether a trap, weapon, or treasure is smeared with poison, the percentage chance is the same as his Find Traps ability.  He must spend 1 round visibily examining the object.

 Exchange: 

Beginning at 3^rd level, a lackey within 5 feet of his boss can smoothly exchange any item in his hands with any item in his boss’s hands without his boss spending any of his turn’s action in doing so (assuming they act on the same initiative).

 Shield Man

Beginning at 4^th level, a lackey has learned enough about dungeon combat that he may now use a shield, scale and chain armor.  He also can use the Shield Wall, Shield Sacrifice and Shield Push maneuvers in combat.

 Battlefield Surgeon

Beginning at 5^th level, a lackey has developed sufficient skill at sewing up wounds that he can cure 1d6 hit points of damage, once per person (1 turn—10 minutes-- of work each) after each battle that is fought.  This requires needle and thread, a supply of cloth for bandages and 1 pint of wine or strong waters per patient.  The attempt is not automatic, he must roll the highest of his Intelligence, Wisdom or Dexterity or less on a d20.

 Trusted Goon

At 6^th level, a lackey may pick any two weapons that his class normally does not have access to and gain proficiency with those two weapons.   He can also choose 1 combat option that is normally restricted to classes other than his own, and may now use that combat option.

 MAXIMUM EXPERIENCE LEVEL

Since Lackeys are specifically trained and function as underlings and henchmen, they cannot progress past the 6^th level of experience.

 LACKEY SAVING THROWS:

Lackeys use the same saving throw tables as thieves.

 LACKEY COMBAT:

Lackeys use the same attack tables as thieves, and do not gain combat options or maneuvers except those available to all classes and as noted under the Shield Man and Trusted Goon abilities.   They also do not gain thieves' backstab ability. 

 LACKEY EXPERIENCE TABLE

 

EXP LEVEL	EXP POINTS	HD	POWERS
1	0	1d6	Thief Skills,  Porter Power
2	1200	2d6	Fire Man
3	2400	3d6	Exchange, Detect Poison
4	4800	4d6	Shield Man
5	9600	5d6	Battlefield Surgeon
6	19.200	6d6	Trusted Goon

 RECRUITING LACKEYS:

Lackeys can be found in the regular henchman recruiting deck, but if a Normal Man (or halfling or goblin or gnome or dwarf etc) accompanies an adventuring party into a dungeon or similar dangerous quest and receives 100gp or more in treasure, the DM may allow him to become a first level lackey and be recruited as a henchman.