Your home is the stage. There are many stages you have known - from street corners to grand theaters, but upon all of them you have reveled in the delighted shouts and thunderous applause of the crowd. You can amaze and entrance your audience with displays of inexplicable beauty, or reduce them to hushed fear with death defying escapes and illusions of certain carnage. You have seen patrons of all ages reduced to moments of childlike wonder, regardless of their station in life. But always, there is the stage and its call to glory.  

 

Skill Proficiencies: Sleight of Hand, Performance

Tool Proficiencies: Disguise kit, a deck of playing cards

Equipment: A deck of playing cards (theme of your choice), a memento of fame (fan letter, autographed sketch of self or poster advertisement of past performance), a costume, and a pouch containing 15 gp

Suggested Characteristics

Above all else, famous stage magicians must control a crowd's attention, so they tend to have personas that are outwardly amicable and humorous or moody and forboding, but always mysterious. Privately they are deeply committed to their art and a career of misdirection may leave them ruthlessly practical. Specializing in deception, they will inevitably have some knowledge of criminal elements, but their experiences and regard for such pursuits widely varies.  Depending upon the origin of a stage magician, they may have an affinity for certain types of magic or involve animal or humanoid assistants. 

d8	Personality Trait
1	I know a story relevant to almost every situation.
2	I dislike discussing stage magic with the uninitiated.
3	I am strongly motivated to learn new tricks.
4	I can defuse any amount of tension with a well-timed joke.
5	I love a good insult, even one directed at me.
6	I get bitter if I’m not the center of attention.
7	I’ll settle for nothing less than perfection.
8	My stage persona is the utter opposite of my true personality.

d6	Ideal
1	Beauty. When I perform, I make the world more mysterious and delightful. (Good)
2	Tradition. I must never reveal the secrets I've learned to non-magicians. (Lawful)
3	Creativity. Performers must be bold enough to take risks to create new art. (Chaotic)
4	Greed. I’m only in it for the money and fame. (Evil)
5	People. I like seeing the smiles on people’s faces when I perform. That’s all that matters. (Neutral)
6	Integrity. A trick should never be performed for an audience until it has been mastered. (Any)

d6	Bond
1	My first mentor gave me their favoured prop and I believe I can hear their voice when I perform with it.
2	A former assistant stole the secret of my prize act and someday I will find them.
3	I want to be famous, whatever it takes.
4	I idolize a legendary magician and measure my deeds against that person’s.
5	I will do anything to prove myself superior to my hated rival.
6	Whenever I come to a new place, my performing reputation (good or ill) follows me.

d6	Flaw
1	I’ll do anything to win fame and renown.
2	I’m a sucker for a pretty face.
3	A scandal prevents me from ever going home again. That kind of trouble seems to follow me around.
4	I once failed a grand and dangerous trick. I am fearful of attempting it again.
5	I am obsessive in maintaining the secrecy behind my act.
6	Years of travel have left me cynical and unable to empathize with high-minded idealists.

Contacts

A stage magician may know tavern or theater owners and staff. They may have performed for the children of nobles or before city officials. They may have performed with a troupe, with an assistant, an apprentice or under the supervision of a mentor. A stage magician may have rival performers or employ an agent who provides them with venues.

d6	Contact
1	Retired Mentor - Your mentor taught you all know about stage magic, although certain aspects of their career were never revealed. They may possess a long-forgotten prop with a storied past or recall a memory of a famous stage magician's final performance.
2	Former Assistant - Your assistant chose a new life apart from the stage and is intimately familiar with the mainstays of your stage act. They are trustworthy, if a little out of practice.
3	Corrupt Manager - Your first manager was a criminal who sought to use your skills to their own gain. They may have knowledge of a shameful past event you participated in or of the secret behind your most reknowned trick.
4	Pickpocket Accomplice - You were part of a two-person act in your early years. Your skills brought the crowd and your partner cut their pursestrings. Your skill in disguises kept you ahead of the city watch as you lined your pockets with coins.
5	Tavern Owner - The owner of the tavern who gave you your big break. You've performed countless times at their establishment and have many fond memories of the time before you began travelling.
6	A Hated Rival - Your rival has been unscrupulous in their quest to establish their superiority over your act! You have been the victim of (or committed) numerous acts of sabotage and espionage in your long rivalry. A tragic ending seems all but certain.