Scout

Description

A Scout is a thief, usually solitary, who operates in a wilderness setting. Besides working as a guide, spy, or saboteur for hire in the wilderness, many Scouts are involved in such illicit activities as poaching.
The Scout kit has no requirements beyond those of the thief class.

Role

One might say that Scouts are to thieves as rangers are to fighters — but they avoid the strict "silly ethics" of the ranger class. Scouts are not prohibited from being good — and in fact they are, on the whole, a good deal more dependable than thieves in general — but they have a cutthroat streak that can be dangerous and unpredictable. However, their rugged individualism and harsh practical judgement often endears them to adventurers, and many are found among such steadfast, daring companions.
Unlike Bandits (who also operate chiefly in the wilderness), the Scout usually shuns the company of other thieves, including guilds. The guilds, in turn, care little about Scouts. Their poaching and small-time thievery is seen as insignificant in the eyes of the great crime figures, especially when compared to the trouble and expense that would be required to identify and to track down the elusive Scouts, to punish them or force them to join guild ranks. If a Scout is a guild member, either it is a voluntary arrangement (whereby the Scout benefits from access to special equipment and training) or he has spent enough "professional time" in the city or other explicitly guild-controlled territory that he was 'persuaded" to join.
Of the many Scouts not belonging to a guild, some have a single, consistent employer. The rest are freelance or mercenary, serving themselves or whatever employers may come along, taking the best pay they can find. Or, if there's nothing else, they steal and poach to support themselves.
Several organizations employ Scouts regularly, sometimes on a permanent basis. The military, in particular, does so; reliable Scouts, trained for reconnaissance and sabotage, are vital to any successful military operation. And the key to having reliable Scouts is to have well-trained and (most of all) happy Scouts. A common grunt soldier can be bullied into line and, if need be, forced out into battle by the spearheads of the rank behind him — but the Scout's modus operandi is to explore alone. Maltreated Scouts have more opportunities to desert or, worse yet, betray vital information to the enemy than anyone else in an army.
Military Scouts are carefully nurtured and well-nourished. They get decent pay, excellent equipment, and the best training available for their special and important activities. The training of military Scouts is at least as intense and comprehensive as that of a thieves' guild. (Sometimes, after retiring from the army, military Scouts go on to be come the most illustrious and prosperous burglars and assassins of the underworld.)
A few other groups that may employ Scouts are secret societies and other paramilitary groups, thieves' guilds that have operations across the wilderness (Scouts may bolster the ranks of a smuggling party, for example), and agencies that are set up to connect clients with guides. Such agencies are normally found on the edge of vast wilderness areas that are being colonized; such areas, with frequent exploration by people unfamiliar with the region, have enough demand for guides that an agency can prosper on its percentage of the guide's fee.
As mentioned before, poaching is also an activity typical of the Scout. Animals may be protected by royal decree. written law, or the monopoly of a hunters' or furriers' guild. In medieval times, for instance, hunting was typically reserved for the noble classes. A commoner caught slaying one of "the king's deer" could be punished by death.
But when demand exceeds supply, there may be great incentive for the criminal killing and capture of animals. They may be sought for their meat, valuable pelts, ivory, feathers, magical purposes (e.g., eye of newt), or other esoteric ends. Thousands of animals in our world have been killed because some body part was believed to be an aphrodisiac. In the fantasy milieu. there may be real magical qualities, and the hunter or poacher's quarry may be fantastic. The horn of the unicorns, for instance. may be ground into powder and administered with liquid as a poison antidote.

Weapon Proficiencies

Scouts have the normal range of weapon proficiencies permitted to thieves.

Non-weapon Proficiencies

Bonus

Direction Sense, Tracking

Recommended

Alertness, Animal Handling/Training, Animal Lore, Animal Noise, Boating, Fire-building, Fishing, Heraldry. Herbalism, Hunting, Mountaineering, Observation, Riding, Rope Use, Set Snares, Survival, Swimming, Weather Sense

Skill Progression

Stealth skills are those favored most by the Scout, and members of this kit have highly trained senses. Therefore it would make sense for these skills to improve most rapidly: move silenty, hide in shadows, and hear noise. Climb walls also may see considerable use (though not from climbing walls, per se but trees, cliffs, and so forth).

Equipment

No self-respecting Scout will permit himself to go without a basic assortment of wilderness survival gear: adequate clothing, rations, fire-starting materials, etc. Special gear to assist climbing, hiding, and moving undetected are also favored, as well as devices for hindering or diverting pursuers. (VVhat worth is a Scout's knowledge if he never reports back to his employer?) For a fuJJ array of items, refer to Chapter 5, "Tools of the Trade."

Special Benefits

Due to their extensive wilderness experience and expertise, Scouts gain +10% on two thief skills when in the wilderness: silent movement and hiding in shadows. Scouts also have an increased chance (1 in 6 better) to surprise opponents in the wilderness, because of their stealthiness and careful attunement with their environment.

Special Hindrances

While Scouts are intimately familiar with the wilderness, they are not so comfortable in urban settings. In the city, consequently, the Scout suffers a -5% penalty on all thieves' skills.

Races

The Scout kit is a good choice for many demihuman rogues, since those races often already have an aptitude for wilderness adventuring. You may wish to give demihuman Scouts a particular orientation according to their race. Elves for instance, as natural forest dwellers, may have +15 % when hiding in shadows and moving silently in forested wilderness, and +5% in other wilderness settings. For a dwarf, the special bonus may apply to hills or mountains, and so forth.

[Complete Thief's Handbook]