| Prime Requisite: | STR and DEX |
| Requirements: | CON 9, INT 9 |
| Hit Dice: | 1d6 |
| Maximum Level: | 12 |
Some gnomes have long made their hidden homes in deep woods, often living near elves or more sylvan halflings. Among these forest gnomes, many develop great facility for stealth, and are known as stalkers. They protect their communities from beastmen and other threats.
Gnomish stalkers advance in attack and saving throws as fighters, by two points every three levels of experience. At first level, stalkers hit an unarmored foe (AC 0) with an attack throw of 10+. They increase their base damage roll from successful missile and melee atacks by +1 at 1st level, and by an additional +1 at 3rd, 6th, 9th, and 12th level. Gnomish stalkers may fight with any one-handed melee weapons and all missile weapons except for longbows. They may fight with a weapon in each hand or wielding a weapon two-handed. They cannot wear armor heavier than leather, and may not use shields. Stalkers may use magic items usable by fighters.
Outdoors, gnomish stalkers are difficult to spot, having the ability to seemingly disappear into woods and underbrush with a proficiency throw of 3+ on 1d20. In dungeons, a gnomish stalker who is motionless and quiet in cover can escape detection with a proficiency throw of 14+ on 1d20. Because of their stealthy nature, opponents suffer a -1 penalty to surprise rolls when encountering a stalker.
Gnomish stalkers can pass without trace, leaving no sign of their passing over wilderness terrain, and may not be tracked. For every 3 levels of experience, the stalker may cover the tracks of an additional traveling companion. The stalker's attunement to nature grants a +1 bonus to surprise rolls when in the wilderness.
Gnomish stalkers can move silently, hear noise, and backstab as thieves of the same level. Once per hour, a gnomish stalker can cast faerie fire and ventriloquism.
The gnomish penchant for trickery leaves gnomes resistant to illusions made by others. They receive a +4 bonus on saving throws to disbelieve magical illusions. Gnomes have a nose for potions. They may make a proficiency throw of 11+ to determine the magical properties of a potion or oil on taste. Starting at 5th level, gnomish stalkers may brew potions as mages of their class level. The gnomish tendency to underground life has granted them extended infravision to 90'. Gnomish characters speak the Common and Gnome tongue, and can also speak the tongues of Dwarves, Elves, Goblins, and Kobolds. In addition, gnomes can speak with animals (as the spell) at will.
A gnomish stalker who achieves enough fame and fortune from his adventures may build a gnomish vault when he reaches 9th level (Gnomish Chieftain). Gnomes usually live in clans, so gnomes of the character's clan will be the first to live under his roof, but gnomes from other clans will also come and live nearby to be ruled by the character. A total of 3d6×10 1 level NPCs of the same race will move in to help maintain and defend the vault at no cost to the character. A gnomish stalker is expected to employ only soldiers of gnomish descent, but may hire members of other races for other tasks. When a gnomish stalker builds a vault, all ordinary animals within 5 miles of the stronghold become kind and helpful.
Gnomish Stalker Proficiency List: Acrobatics, Alertness, Arcane Dabbling, Armor Training, Beast Friendship, Blind-Fighting, Climbing, Combat Reflexes, Combat Trickery (disarm, incapacitate, sunder), Contortionism, Fighting Style, Goblin-Slaying, Land Surveying, Mimicry, Naturalism, Navigation, Precise Shooting, Prestidigitation, Skirmishing, Sniping, Survival, Swashbuckling, Tracking, Trapping, Vermin-Slaying, Wakefulness, Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus
| Experience | Title | Level | Hit Dice | Damage | Move Silently | Hear Noise | Backstab |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Gnomish Hunter | 1 | 1d6 | +1 | 17+ | 14+ | ×2 |
| 2,750 | Gnomish Creeper | 2 | 2d6 | +1 | 16+ | 13+ | ×2 |
| 5,500 | Gnomish Sneak | 3 | 3d6 | +2 | 15+ | 12+ | ×2 |
| 11,000 | Gnomish Ferreter | 4 | 4d6 | +2 | 14+ | 11+ | ×2 |
| 22,000 | Gnomish Stalker | 5 | 5d6 | +2 | 13+ | 10+ | ×3 |
| 44,000 | Gnomish Weasel | 6 | 6d6 | +3 | 12+ | 9+ | ×3 |
| 90,000 | Gnomish Skulker | 7 | 7d6 | +3 | 10+ | 8+ | ×3 |
| 180,000 | Gnomish Prowler | 8 | 8d6 | +3 | 8+ | 7+ | ×3 |
| 315,000 | Gnomish Chieftain | 9 | 9d6 | +4 | 6+ | 6+ | ×4 |
| 450,000 | Gnomish Chieftain, 10th level | 10 | 9d6+2* | +4 | 4+ | 5+ | ×4 |
| 585,000 | Gnomish Chieftain, 11th level | 11 | 9d6+4* | +4 | 2+ | 4+ | ×4 |
| 720,000 | Gnomish Chieftain, 12th level | 12 | 9d6+6* | +5 | 2+ | 3+ | ×4 |
| * Hit point modifiers from Constitution are ignored | |||||||
| Level | Petrification & Paralysis | Poison & Death | Blast & Breath | Staff & Wands | Spells | Attack Throw |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 15+ | 14+ | 16+ | 16+ | 17+ | 10+ |
| 2–3 | 14+ | 13+ | 15+ | 15+ | 16+ | 9+ |
| 4 | 13+ | 12+ | 14+ | 14+ | 15+ | 8+ |
| 5–6 | 12+ | 11+ | 13+ | 13+ | 14+ | 7+ |
| 7 | 11+ | 10+ | 12+ | 12+ | 13+ | 6+ |
| 8–9 | 10+ | 9+ | 11+ | 11+ | 12+ | 5+ |
| 10 | 9+ | 8+ | 10+ | 10+ | 11+ | 4+ |
| 11–12 | 8+ | 7+ | 9+ | 9+ | 10+ | 3+ |