The Kingdom of the Emerald Hills

[Un]Balanced Assassin

Can anyone point me in the right direction in regards to these four versions of assassin, errata or clarifications wise?

Mind you this is not a time span of 15-20 years. We're talking 1 1/2 time frame here.

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Amtgard Rules of Play 6.12 Draft
6th Innate Abilities (2): (choose two from this list or any lower level abilities not already taken.)
a. Take Teleport again (must have already been taken once) Teleport becomes (1/life).
b. Take Assassinate again (must have already been taken once), Assassinate becomes (1/life)
c. Take Poison again (must have already been taken once), poison becomes (1/life)
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Amtgard Rules of Play 7 Draft
Innate Ability (choose two from this list or any lower level abilities not already taken):
a. Take Teleport again (must have already been taken once) Teleport becomes (1/life)
b. Take Assassinate again (must have already been taken once), Assassinate becomes (1/life)
c. Take Poison Weapon again (must have already been taken once), Poison Weapon becomes (1/life)
d.Take Trap again (must have already been taken once), Trap becomes (1/life)

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Amtgard Rules of Play 7.0 Revised 10.27.06
Innate Ability (choose two from this list or any lower level abilities not already taken):
a. Take Teleport again (must have already been taken once) Teleport becomes (1/life)
b. Take Assassinate again (must have already been taken once), Assassinate becomes (1/life)
c. Take Poison Weapon again (must have already been taken once), Poison Weapon becomes (1/life)
d.Take Trap again (must have already been taken once), Trap becomes (1/life)

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Amtgard Rules of Play 7.0 Revision 1 ("Current" Rules)
6th Innate Ability (choose one from this list or any lower level ability not already taken):
a. Take Teleport again (must have already been taken once) Teleport becomes (1/life)
b. Take Assassinate again (must have already been taken once), Assassinate
becomes (1/life)
c. Take Poison Weapon again (must have already been taken once), Poison Weapon
becomes (1/life)
d. Take Trap again (must have already been taken once), Trap becomes (1/life)

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So how and when did we lose the ability to choose 2 abilities at 6th level again?

Regards
S

_________________
The general who advances without seeking fame and retreats without fearing disgrace, whose only thought is to protect his country and do service for his sovereign, is the jewel of his kingdom. -Sun Wu

Alternating Sins

Just for FYI: How Assassin read in all four versions of the last 4'ish rulebooks released/tested:

Amtgard Rules of Play 6.12 Draft
Assassin
Assassins were once so powerful in the Middle East that Genghis Khan had to storm their mountain fortress when they
demanded tribute. Renaissance Italy and its setting of political intrigue made the courtly killer somewhat of an art form.
Examples: Necron 99, Vlad Taltos, the Ninjas, the Borgias, Cain, the Jackal
I, the stealthy one
Lurking, hiding in the shadows
Invisible death
Garb: Black sash (plus must wear a mask)
Armor: None Initially
Shields: None Initially
Weapons: Non-hinged melee weapons of up to 4 ft in length, throwing weapons.
Immunities: None
Lives: 4
Abilities & Traits:
Note: each time an assassin plays in a battlegame, he must choose which abilities he is using for the entire battlegame. He can
switch them between each battlegame as he sees fit.
Levels
1st No additional abilities
2nd Innate Ability (choose one):
a. May use a short bow or hand crossbow.
b. Innate Ability: Poison(2/game): Denoted with black “enchantment” ribbon. May poison one of his own edged
weapons. People who are wounded by poisoned weapons die if they are not cured in a 100 count. This is nonmagical.
c. Innate Ability: Trap(1/unlimited):
M:10 ft of piece of brown cloth
I:Lay brown cloth in circle, state “trap” while touching it with your hand.
E:Anyone stepping into the circle cannot move his or her legs until each leg has been hit 10 times by a
slashing or bludgeoning weapon while stating “free this leg.” These hits do not injure the person.
L:Once a person is hit with a trap it must be reset to be used again. You may only have one trap in
existence at a time.
3rd Innate Ability (choose one from this list or any lower level ability not already taken)
a. Innate Ability: Touch of Death (1/game): Denote with a black “enchantment” cloth. As per the magic of the
same name,but non-magical.
S:Death
b. Teleport (2/game): as per the magic of the same name, but non-magical.
c. Antidote to Poison (1/life): Carry a liquid in a container. Anyone drinking this liquid is instantly cured of any
poison. Can be drunk from once per life.
4th Up to two points of armor may now be worn.
5th Innate Ability (choose one from this list or any lower level ability not already taken):
a. May now use small shields and bucklers.
b. Innate ability: Assassinate(2/game): Upon killing a person, the assassin may state “assassinate” the being killed
is affected as though a Sever Spirit spell has been cast upon them. This is a non-magical effect.
6th Innate Abilities (2): (choose two from this list or any lower level abilities not already taken.)
a. Take Teleport again (must have already been taken once) Teleport becomes (1/life).
b. Take Assassinate again (must have already been taken once), Assassinate becomes (1/life)
c. Take Poison again (must have already been taken once), poison becomes (1/life)

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Amtgard Rules of Play 7 Draft
Assassin
Assassins were once so powerful in the Middle East that Hulagu Khan had to storm their mountain fortress when they
demanded tribute. Renaissance Italy and its setting of political intrigue made the courtly killer somewhat of an art form.
Examples: The Ninja, the Borgias, the Jackal, Hassan-I-Sabah, Sir Francis Walsingham
Garb: Black sash plus must wear a mask or concealing face paint. Mask may be worn around neck.
Armor: None initially
Shields: None initially
Weapons: Dagger, short, long, throwing weapons
Immunities: None
Lives: 4
Abilities & Traits:
Note: Each time an assassin plays in a battlegame, he must choose which abilities he is using for the
entire battlegame. He can switch them between each battlegame as he sees fit.
Levels
1st No additional abilities
2nd Innate Ability (choose one):
a. May use a short bow or hand crossbow (T)
b. Poison Weapon (ex) (2/game)
c. Trap (ex) (1/game)
3rd Innate Ability (choose one from this list or any lower level ability not already taken):
a. Touch of Death (ex) (1/game)
b. Teleport (ex) (2/game)
c. Antidote to Poison (ex) (1/life)
4th Up to two points of armor may now be worn (T)
5th Innate Ability (choose one from this list or any lower level ability not already taken):
a. May now use small shields (T)
b. Assassinate (ex) (2/game)
6th Innate Ability (choose two from this list or any lower level abilities not already taken):
a. Take Teleport again (must have already been taken once) Teleport becomes (1/life)
b. Take Assassinate again (must have already been taken once), Assassinate becomes (1/life)
c. Take Poison Weapon again (must have already been taken once), Poison Weapon becomes (1/life)
d.Take Trap again (must have already been taken once), Trap becomes (1/life)

-----------------------------------------

Amtgard Rules of Play 7.0 Revised 10.27.06
Assassin
Assassins were once so powerful in the Middle East that Hulagu Khan had to storm their mountain fortress when they
demanded tribute. Renaissance Italy and its setting of political intrigue made the courtly killer somewhat of an art form.
Examples: The Ninja, the Borgias, the Jackal, Hassan-I-Sabah, Sir Francis Walsingham
Garb: Black sash plus must wear a mask or concealing face paint. Mask may be worn around neck.
Armor: None initially
Shields: None initially
Weapons: Dagger, short, long, throwing weapons
Immunities: None
Lives: 4
Abilities & Traits:
Note: Each time an assassin plays in a battlegame, he must choose which abilities he is using for the
entire battlegame. He can switch them between each battlegame as he sees fit.
Levels
1st No additional abilities
2nd Innate Ability (choose one):
a. May use a short bow or hand crossbow (T)
b. Poison Weapon (ex) (2/game)
c. Trap (ex) (1/game)
3rd Innate Ability (choose one from this list or any lower level ability not already taken):
a. Touch of Death (ex) (1/game)
b. Teleport (ex) (2/game)
c. Antidote to Poison (ex) (1/life)
4th Up to two points of armor may now be worn (T)
5th Innate Ability (choose one from this list or any lower level ability not already taken):
a. May now use small shields (T)
b. Assassinate (ex) (2/game)
6th Innate Ability (choose two from this list or any lower level abilities not already taken):
a. Take Teleport again (must have already been taken once) Teleport becomes (1/life)
b. Take Assassinate again (must have already been taken once), Assassinate becomes (1/life)
c. Take Poison Weapon again (must have already been taken once), Poison Weapon becomes (1/life)
d.Take Trap again (must have already been taken once), Trap becomes (1/life)

---------------------------------------

Amtgard Rules of Play 7.0 Revision 1 ("Current" Rules)
Assassin
Assassins were once so powerful in the Middle East that Hulagu Khan had to storm their mountain fortress when they demanded
tribute. Renaissance Italy and its setting of political intrigue made the courtly killing into an art form.
Examples: The Ninja, the Borgias, the Jackal, Hassan-I-Sabah, Sir Francis Walsingham
Garb: Black sash plus must wear a mask or concealing face paint. Mask may be worn around neck.
Armor: None initially
Shields: None initially
Weapons: Dagger, short, long, throwing weapons
Immunities: None
Lives: 4
Abilities & Traits:
Note: Each time an assassin plays in a battlegame, he must choose which abilities he is using for the entire battlegame. He can switch
them between each battlegame as he sees fi t.
Levels
1st No additional abilities
2nd Innate Ability (choose one):
a. May use a short bow (T)
b. Poison Weapon (ex) (2/game)
c. Trap (ex) (1/game)
3rd Innate Ability (choose one from this list or any lower level ability not already taken):
a. Touch of Death (ex) (1/game)
b. Teleport (ex) (2/game)
c. Antidote to Poison (ex) (1/life)
4th Up to two points of armor may now be worn (T)
5th Innate Ability (choose one from this list or any lower level ability not already taken):
a. May now use small shields (T)
b. Assassinate (ex) (2/game)
6th Innate Ability (choose one from this list or any lower level ability not already taken):
a. Take Teleport again (must have already been taken once) Teleport becomes (1/life)
b. Take Assassinate again (must have already been taken once), Assassinate
becomes (1/life)
c. Take Poison Weapon again (must have already been taken once), Poison Weapon
becomes (1/life)
d. Take Trap again (must have already been taken once), Trap becomes (1/life)

_________________
The general who advances without seeking fame and retreats without fearing disgrace, whose only thought is to protect his country and do service for his sovereign, is the jewel of his kingdom. -Sun Wu

Go here to download the documents that contain the items I'm talking about.

http://briefcase.yahoo.com/jrodas00

Thought it'd be easier to just present them all in the same place.

Regards
S

_________________
The general who advances without seeking fame and retreats without fearing disgrace, whose only thought is to protect his country and do service for his sovereign, is the jewel of his kingdom. -Sun Wu

So is it me or is Assassin the only non-magical class that starts with:

1st Level - No additional abilties

along with Anti-Paladin, Paladin, or Warrior?

So comparing all 4 at 1st level:

Assassin:
Armor: None initially
Shields: None initially
Weapons: Dagger, short, long, throwing weapons
Immunities: None
Lives: 4

Anti-Paladin:
Armor: 4 points
Shields: Large
Weapons: All Melee, javelins
Immunities: Control
Lives: 4

Paladin:
Armor: 4 points
Shields: Large
Weapons: All melee, javelins
Immunities: Subdual
Lives: 4

Warrior:
Armor: 4 points
Shields: Large
Weapons: All melee
Immunities: None
Lives: 5

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I just want to point this out as another item we should look into getting reviewed to make the class more equitable.

Regards
S

_________________
The general who advances without seeking fame and retreats without fearing disgrace, whose only thought is to protect his country and do service for his sovereign, is the jewel of his kingdom. -Sun Wu

Well then I am going to follow the advice of printing off the 7.0/Errata sheet.

So until it's proven/disallowed otherwise by the GMR or anyone in the proper authority to do so, I urge all assassins out there to play the class as it was originally scripted from the get go.

The Sin I'll be fielding...
Amtgard Rules of Play 7.0 Revised 10.27.05
Assassin

Garb: Black sash plus must wear a mask or concealing face paint. Mask may be worn around neck.
Armor: None initially
Shields: None initially
Weapons: Dagger, short, long, throwing weapons
Immunities: None
Lives: 4
Abilities & Traits:
Note: Each time an assassin plays in a battlegame, he must choose which abilities he is using for the
entire battlegame. He can switch them between each battlegame as he sees fit.
Levels
1st No additional abilities
2nd Innate Ability (choose one):
a. May use a short bow or hand crossbow (T)
b. Poison Weapon (ex) (2/game)
c. Trap (ex) (1/game)
3rd Innate Ability (choose one from this list or any lower level ability not already taken):
a. Touch of Death (ex) (1/game)
b. Teleport (ex) (2/game)
c. Antidote to Poison (ex) (1/life)
4th Up to two points of armor may now be worn (T)
5th Innate Ability (choose one from this list or any lower level ability not already taken):
a. May now use small shields (T)
b. Assassinate (ex) (2/game)
6th Innate Ability (choose two from this list or any lower level abilities not already taken):
a. Take Teleport again (must have already been taken once) Teleport becomes (1/life)
b. Take Assassinate again (must have already been taken once), Assassinate becomes (1/life)
c. Take Poison Weapon again (must have already been taken once), Poison Weapon becomes (1/life)
d.Take Trap again (must have already been taken once), Trap becomes (1/life)

Regards
S

_________________
The general who advances without seeking fame and retreats without fearing disgrace, whose only thought is to protect his country and do service for his sovereign, is the jewel of his kingdom. -Sun Wu

There was never a discussion nor was there a vote taken to change the number of ability choices for assassin at 6th level. 7.1 has many, MANY typos and this is just one of them. I ignored the 7.1 rulebook after Kurse mentioned a few weeks after it was released that there were still lots of errors that hadn't been fixed yet, those errors have still not been fixed to this day. I suggest taking a 7th ed rulebook, cutting up an errata sheet and pasting the changes in the appropriate places to achieve a current rulebook. Mine has worked well for the last 9 months. Of course there will be a new rulebook release soon, so lets see if the errors are fixed in that release.

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a. May use a short bow or hand crossbow (T)

The lack of mention of the hand crossbow is not an accidental change that removes an ability from Assassins. The rulebook clearly allows ANYONE who can use a shortbow to use a Hand Crossbow. (Page 6)

Feel free to chose two abilities at 6th.

Sir Rath,

Can you concede the point that if it's not in print on this specific page under this specific class, that someone somewhere would convince other's otherwise? Or at least delay the commencement of a game more than is required?

It's good to have it in print.

Regards
S

_________________
The general who advances without seeking fame and retreats without fearing disgrace, whose only thought is to protect his country and do service for his sovereign, is the jewel of his kingdom. -Sun Wu

No standard class specifically allows the use of crossbows. They all rely on the definition of bow on page 6. As this is a generic rule that applies to every class, without exception. Should it not be covered...generically?