You’ve walked both sides of the blood trail. Once a soldier-for-hire, you fought in open warzones, caravan defenses, and border skirmishes. But coin has a darker calling, and you learned to kill without banners or backup. Whether through necessity or choice, you became a solitary blade—an assassin who plans, executes, and vanishes.
You know the weight of a contract, the silence of a clean kill, and the politics of survival. Some call you mercenary. Others whisper assassin. You call yourself professional.
- Skill Proficiencies: Stealth, Insight
- Tool Proficiencies:
Poisoner’s Kit (for crafting or identifying toxins), Vehicles (Land or Water—your choice)
- Equipment: A contract scroll with a faded seal, A set of dark common clothes with a hidden pocket, A small vial of inert poison, and a pouch containing (15 gp)
You know how to navigate the underworld of blades-for-hire. In most settlements, you can find contacts who deal in mercenary work, assassination contracts, or black-market intelligence. These individuals may not trust you, but they respect your reputation. You can use this network to gain access to jobs, shelter, or information—though payment or proof of loyalty may be required.
Suggested Characteristics
Use the tables for the Blade of Coin and Silence background below as the basis for your traits and motivations, modifying the entries when appropriate to suit your identity as a deadly assassin mercenary.
Your bond could be associated with the company you traveled with previously, or with some of the comrades you served with. The ideal you embrace largely depends on your worldview and your motivation for fighting.
| d8 | Personality Trait |
|---|---|
| 1 | I speak little, but observe everything. |
| 2 | I treat every interaction like a negotiation. |
| 3 | I keep my gear immaculate—tools reflect discipline. |
| 4 | I never make threats. I make promises. |
| 5 | I study people like maps—weaknesses, patterns, exits. |
| 6 | I don’t flinch. Not anymore. |
| 7 | I use humor to disarm suspicion. |
| 8 | I sleep with one eye open and a blade within reach. |
| d6 | Ideal |
|---|---|
| 1 | Efficiency. A clean kill is a kind kill. (Neutral) |
| 2 | Loyalty. I never break a contract once accepted. (Lawful) |
| 3 | Freedom. No master, no leash. (Chaotic) |
| 4 | Balance. I kill only those who deserve it. (Neutral Good) |
| 5 | Power. Fear is the currency I trade in. (Evil) |
| 6 | Redemption. I’ve taken lives. Now I protect them. (Good) |
| d6 | Bond |
|---|---|
| 1 | I owe my life to the one person who spared me. |
| 2 | My last contract went wrong. I still see their face. |
| 3 | I protect a child or innocent tied to my past. |
| 4 | I keep a list of names—those I’ve killed, and those I won’t. |
| 5 | I’m hunting someone who betrayed the code. |
| 6 | I work for coin, but I live for vengeance. |
| d6 | Flaw |
|---|---|
| 1 | I don’t trust anyone to watch my back. Ever. |
| 2 | I sometimes kill out of reflex, not necessity. |
| 3 | I keep secrets even when they hurt allies. |
| 4 | I see people as targets before I see them as friends. |
| 5 | I believe I’m already damned—so why stop now? |
| 6 | I never forgive betrayal. Ever. |
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