Charlatan (Revised 2024 Version)

You have always had a way with people. You know what makes them tick, you can tease out their hearts’ desires after a few minutes of conversation, and with a few leading questions you can read them like they were children’s books. It’s a useful talent, and one that you’re perfectly willing to use for your advantage.

You know what people want and you deliver...or rather, you promise to deliver. Common sense should steer people away from things that sound too good to be true, but common sense seems to be in short supply when you’re around. The bottle of pink-colored liquid will surely cure that unseemly rash, this ointment — nothing more than a bit of fat with a sprinkle of silver dust — can restore youth and vigor, and there’s a bridge in the city that just happens to be for sale. These marvels sound implausible, but you make them sound like the real deal.

Work with your DM to determine how your character fell into this unusual line of work. How did they learn and practice their skills, and what reasons do they have for using them? Perhaps you grew up poor, and conning others out of their money became a necessary task for your survival. Or maybe you didn't become a charlatan just for the money, instead treating your schemes as a game or a self-imposed challenge. A more experienced con artist might have helped you hone your craft. Perhaps they unintentionally set you on this path by making you their mark, inspiring you to learn tricks of your own so you couldn't be taken advantage of again. Alternatively, you have always worked by yourself, developing your preferred tactics and schemes through trial and error. What sort of marks does your character pursue? Do you try only to con people who have money to lose, or do you fleece nobles and commoners alike? Most importantly, how do you feel about your work? Do you feel a twinge of guilt whenever you take advantage of people's trust in you? Or do you see every successful con as another mark of prestige?

Ability Scores: Dexterity, Constitution, Charisma

Feat: Choose one feat from the Origin Feat list. Skilled is recommended.

Skill Proficiencies: Deception and Sleight of Hand

Tool Proficiencies: Choose between Disguise Kit and Forgery Kit

Equipment: Choose A or B: (A) Tool Kit of your chosen proficiency, Costume, Fine Clothes, tools of the con of your choice (see the "Favorite Schemes" table for inspiration), 15 GP; or (B) 50 GP

Suggested Characteristics

Charlatans are colorful characters who conceal their true selves behind the masks they construct. They reflect what people want to see, what they want to believe, and how they see the world. But their true selves are sometimes plagued by an uneasy conscience, an old enemy, or deep-seated trust issues.

d8	Personality Trait
1	I fall in and out of love easily, and I am always pursuing someone.
2	I have a joke for every occasion, especially occasions where humor is inappropriate.
3	Flattery is my preferred trick for getting what I want.
4	I’m a born gambler who can’t resist taking a risk for a potential payoff.
5	I lie about almost everything, even when there’s no good reason to.
6	Sarcasm and insults are my weapons of choice.
7	I keep multiple holy symbols on me and invoke whatever deity might come in useful at any given moment.
8	I pocket anything I see that might have some value.

d6	Ideal
1	I am a free spirit—no one tells me what to do.
2	I never target people who can’t afford to lose a few coins.
3	I distribute the money I acquire to the people who really need it.
4	I never run the same con twice.
5	Material goods come and go. Bonds of friendship last forever.
6	I’m determined to make something of myself.

d6	Bond
1	I fleeced the wrong person and must work to ensure that this individual never crosses paths with me or those I care about.
2	I owe everything to my mentor—a horrible person who’s probably rotting in jail somewhere.
3	Somewhere out there, I have a child who doesn’t know me. I’m making the world better for him or her.
4	I come from a noble family, and one day I’ll reclaim my lands and title from those who stole them from me.
5	A powerful person killed someone I love. Some day soon, I’ll have my revenge.
6	I swindled and ruined a person who didn’t deserve it. I seek to atone for my misdeeds but might never be able to forgive myself.

d6	Flaw
1	I can’t resist a pretty face.
2	I’m always in debt. I spend my ill-gotten gains on decadent luxuries faster than I bring them in.
3	I’m convinced that no one could ever fool me the way I fool others.
4	I’m too greedy for my own good. I can’t resist taking a risk if there’s money involved.
5	I can’t resist swindling people who are more powerful than me.
6	I hate to admit it and will hate myself for it, but I’ll run and preserve my own hide if the going gets tough.

Contacts

Charlatans don't offer their friendship freely, and they tend to make poor allies as a result. As a charlatan, your contacts are most likely people that you have some influence over. You might keep a few assistants on your payroll to handle the less important parts of your work (and take the fall for you if necessary), send bribes to a government official or compile blackmail material on friends and rivals alike. A clever charlatan will keep a thorough tally of who owes them what, and they can get just about anything done by leveraging a favor from a contact. On the flipside, however, a charlatan’s contacts will likely have the reasons and means to call on them as well. You may find yourself in debt to a fellow swindler, a former mark or someone on the other side of the law who wants to put your skills to good use.

d8	Contact
1	You have an ex-lover who shares your line of work. They sometimes serve as a date to help you worm your way into high-society events.
2	You’ve got a mole in a local government office who keeps you updated on changes to currency and official documents. That's how your counterfeits stay as accurate as possible.
3	A wealthy merchant owes you money or a favor for ruining one of their rivals with a previous con. Alternately, you owe them something.
4	A young street urchin works as your accomplice, distracting onlookers who might otherwise see the flaws in your street-corner card tricks or acting as a “dying patient” restored to full health by your miracle “healing elixir.”
5	The proprietor of a local tavern offers you a place to hide whenever you’re on the run from the law or a mob of angry customers.
6	You know the identity of a powerful blackmailer who buys and sells secrets on every important person in the realm.
7	One of your former marks had a grandchild, who is now seeking you out to take revenge on you for ruining their family.
8	An investigator has been on your trail for a while, and they’ve just caught up to you. But they are not here to bring you to justice—they want your help on a case they’re trying to solve.