Aspis Agents

Richly attired in noble's garbs, this savvy man boasts a colorful cloak, a bulging coin purse, and a fine rapier at his side.

Aspis Agents (CR 4)

Human Bard 5
Medium Humanoid (Human)
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Initiative: +2
Senses: Perception +10

Speed: 30 feet
Space: 5 feet

Defense

Armor Class: 16, touch 12, flat-footed 14 (+4 armor, +2 Dex, +0 natural)
Hit Points: 26 (5d8)
Saving Throws: Fort +0, Ref +6, Will +5; +4 vs. bardic performance, language-dependent, and sonic

Offense

Melee: +1 rapier +6 (1d6+2/18-20)
Reach: 5 feet

Special Attacks: bardic performance 15 rounds/day (countersong, Distraction, fascinate, inspire competence +2, inspire courage +2)

Statistics

Str	Dex	Con	Int	Wis	Cha
12 (+1)	14 (+2)	8 (-1)	12 (+1)	13 (+1)	16 (+3)

Base Attack Bonus: +3
CMB +4
CMD 16

Feats: Alertness, Arcane Strike, Deceitful, Weapon Finesse

Skills: Acrobatics +7, Bluff +5, Diplomacy +11, Disguise +12, Intimidate +10, Knowledge (local) +7, Knowledge (nobility) +7, Perception +10, Perform (oratory) +11, Sense Motive +10, Sleight of Hand +9, Stealth +7

Languages: Common, Varisian

Special Qualities: bardic knowledge +2, lore master 1/ day, versatile performance (oratory)

Special Abilities

NONE

Ecology

Environment: Any
Organization: solitary, pair, or company (3-12)
Treasure: NPC gear (chain shirt, +1 rapier, potions of cure light wounds [2], antitoxin, oil of taggit [2], sassone leaf residue [2], other treasure)


Magnimar's relatively loose laws and the affluence of the Vista district bring members of the Aspis Consortium to the city in droves. Their primary base of operations in Varisia is located in this district, a bronze-faced building with heavy doors emblazoned with sigils of three intertwined asps. The Aspis Consortium has had a presence in Magnimar for nearly a century, though agents have had to proceed more cautiously of late, following the recent founding of a Pathfinder lodge in the city.

Aspis agents in Magnimar favor no particular class, and agents from all walks of life can be found throughout the city. Some are rogues or fighters, while others practice the arcane arts as sorcerers or wizards. Quite a few, however, come from the ranks of bards, utilizing their various skills, social graces, and musical talents to covertly extort buyers, to beat Pathfinders to major finds, or simply to steal such treasures out from under Pathfinders' very noses.

As with Aspis headquarters in other parts of the Inner Sea, the leadership of Magnimar's Consortium is broken up into a strict hierarchy of power. The lowest and most common members are paid mercenaries who partake in the various odd jobs assigned by true Aspis agents, whether such tasks involve pillaging Thassilonian ruins or taking care of pesky competitors who would seek to hinder the Consortium's endeavors. Bronze agents are made up of Magnimar's dockworkers, freelancers, and lowly adventurers seeking money and improved status, while those agents wielding silver emblems organize the activities of their underlings throughout the regions surrounding the city. Only a couple gold agents operate in Magnimar, though their influence and power extends to nearly all the corners of Varisia, and their word is law as far as lesser agents are concerned.

While the NPC depicted here represents a city-based agent who excels at espionage, deceit, and other urbane tactics, those working for the Aspis Consortium in Magnimar take myriad forms. The company has enlisted warlords and wizards alike, and even some adventuring groups find their way onto the Consortium's payroll—all it takes is the gumption and means to find lost treasures and bring them back to the auction house, as well as a certain lack of ethics and a strong sense of cupidity for those who wish to rise in rank.