Brigands

All sorts of dangers stalk the roads and frontiers of untamed lands. Aside from monsters, uncouth thugs and dangerous miscreants unfit for life among civilized folk beat their living out of travelers and settlers daring to find their own paths. Whether lone highwayman or bands of ambush-laying robbers, these pirates of the trade ways are more than unthinking beasts—they're cunning bandits who know their prey and deadly art all too well.

Bandit CR 1/2

XP 200

Human warrior 2

CN Medium humanoid

Init +2; Senses Perception –1

Defense

AC 17, touch 13, flat-footed 14 (+3 armor, +2 Dex, +1 dodge, +1 shield)

hp 11 (2d10)

Fort +3, Ref +2, Will –1

Offense

Speed 30 ft.

Melee rapier +3 (1d6+1/18–20) or sap +3 (1d6+1 nonlethal)

Ranged composite longbow +4 (1d8+1/×3)

Statistics

Str 13, Dex 14, Con 11, Int 10, Wis 8, Cha 9

Base Atk +2; CMB +3; CMD 16

Feats Dodge, Point Blank Shot

Skills Climb +4, Handle Animal +3, Intimidate +3, Ride +5, Stealth +2

Languages Common

Gear studded leather, buckler, composite longbow (+1 Str) with 20 arrows, rapier, sap, light horse (combat trained)

Boon Bandits can allow the PCs to pass without robbing them and can alert them to ambush sites within a day's travel, granting a +2 circumstance bonus on Perception checks to notice ambushes. They might also be able to get the PCs an audience with a powerful local bandit lord.

Bandits are the scourge of the highway, robbing the rich and poor alike. Freebooting scoundrels simply out for a good time, bandits care only about themselves and their band of rogues. They accost and shake down innocent travelers, hijack poorly-guarded merchant caravans, charge tolls at remote bridges, or simply plunder isolated farmsteads and villages.

Bandits can be deserters from an army, disaffected huntsmen, rootless drifters with no taste for hard work, cattle rustlers or horse thieves, or even folk-hero freedom fighters who rob from the rich to feed the poor.

Bandits can be used as low-level archer soldiers (N alignment, replace Dodge feat with Weapon Focus [longbow]) or crossbowmen (replace longbow with light or heavy crossbow), or as guards manning city walls (LN alignment, replace rapiers with longswords and replace Dodge feat with Weapon Focus [longsword]). They can also be used as bored young nobles or dandies out on a hunt or as low-level scouts or outriders.

Bandits are usually found in pairs (CR 1) or in a gang of a dozen accompanying a highwayman (CR 8). They often make up the rank-and-file members of a bandit lord's gang (CR 12).

Highwayman CR 6

XP 2,400

Human fighter 4/rogue 3

CN Medium humanoid

Init +4; Senses Perception +7

Defense

AC 19, touch 14, flat-footed 15 (+5 armor, +4 Dex)

hp 53 (7 HD; 4d10+3d8+18)

Fort +8, Ref +9, Will +2; +1 vs. fear

Defensive Abilities bravery +1, evasion, trap sense +1

Offense

Speed 30 ft.

Melee +1 spiked chain +12/+7 (2d4+4) or sap +10/+5 (1d6+1 nonlethal)

Ranged mwk composite longbow +11/+6 (1d8+1/×3)

Special Attacks sneak attack +2d6

Statistics

Str 12, Dex 18, Con 14, Int 13, Wis 8, Cha 10

Base Atk +6; CMB +10 (+14 when tripping); CMD 21 (23 vs. trip)

Feats Agile Maneuvers, Combat Expertise, Deceitful, Exotic Weapon Proficiency (spiked chain), Improved Feint, Improved Trip, Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (spiked chain), Weapon Specialization (spiked chain)

Skills Acrobatics +14, Appraise +5, Bluff +12, Climb +5, Disable Device +11, Disguise +14, Escape Artist +10, Intimidate +4, Perception +7 (+8 to find traps), Ride +9, Sleight of Hand +8, Stealth +14, Swim +5

Languages Common, Halfling

SQ armor training 1, rogue talent (finesse rogue), trapfinding +1

Combat Gear potion of invisibility; Other Gear +1 chain shirt, +1 spiked chain, masterwork composite longbow (+1 Str) with 20 arrows, sap, cloak of resistance +1, disguise kit, light horse (combat trained) with saddle, silk rope, smokestick, thieves' tools

Boon Highwaymen can allow the PCs to pass without being robbed, or they could attempt to steal an item or deliver a secret message directly to an NPC.

Highwaymen are notorious outlaws or flamboyant criminals who flaunt the law, prey upon innocent travellers, and revel in the discomfiture their predations have upon the local constabulary. Highwaymen love deception and trickery and elevate taunting to an art form. For highwaymen, the humiliation of an enemy can be more important than a successful heist. Highwaymen can be used as expert spies or scouts, or even as agile gladiators.

Two highwaymen might be the bodyguards of a guildmaster (CR 11), while a trio of highwaymen may serve as the henchmen of a bandit lord or bounty hunter (CR 12). A lone highwayman may lead a gang of a dozen bandits (CR 8) or travel with a minstrel and a pair of cavalry for his gang (CR 9).

Bandit Lord CR 11

XP 12,800

Human fighter 8/rogue 4

CN Medium humanoid

Init +6; Senses Perception +10

Defense

AC 25, touch 18, flat-footed 18 (+5 armor, +1 deflection, +6 Dex, +1 dodge, +2 shield)

hp 74 (12 HD; 8d10+4d8+12)

Fort +9, Ref +13, Will +4; +2 vs. fear

Defensive Abilities bravery +2, evasion, trap sense +1, uncanny dodge

Offense

Speed 30 ft.

Melee +1 frost keen rapier +20/+15/+10 (1d6+6/15–20 plus 1d6 cold) or sap +17/+12/+7 (1d6+2 nonlethal)

Ranged mwk composite longbow +18/+13/+8 (1d8+2/×3)

Special Attacks rogue talent (bleeding attack), sneak attack +2d6, weapon training (light blades +1)

Statistics

Str 14, Dex 22, Con 13, Int 8, Wis 10, Cha 12

Base Atk +11; CMB +13; CMD 31

Feats Bleeding Critical, Blind-Fight, Critical Focus, Dazzling Display, Dodge, Improved Critical (rapier), Mobility, Shatter Defenses, Spring Attack, Vital Strike, Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (rapier), Weapon Specialization (rapier)

Skills Acrobatics +20, Appraise +3, Bluff +10, Climb +6, Diplomacy +5, Disable Device +12, Escape Artist +10, Handle Animal +5, Intimidate +16, Knowledge (local) +5, Perception +10 (+12 to find traps), Ride +10, Sense Motive +5, Stealth +21, Survival +4

Languages Common

SQ armor training 2, rogue talent (finesse rogue), trapfinding +2

Combat Gear potion of enlarge person; Other Gear +1 chain shirt, +1 buckler, +1 frost keen rapier, masterwork composite longbow (+2 Str) with 20 arrows, sap, belt of incredible dexterity +2, boots of striding and springing, cloak of resistance +1, ring of protection +1, light horse (combat trained) with saddle, thieves' tools

Boon Bandit lords can grant safe passage from bandit attacks for the PCs and their allies for up to 3 days. They can also arrange the purchase or sale of goods as if the gp limit was for a community one size larger.

Bandit lords are the daring masterminds of entire gangs of bandits, often ruling over camps in the centers of trackless woods or the equally trackless warrens of a slum or sewer inside a great city. Some hide their identity behind disguises or a nom de guerre, while others strive for fame or infamy. Bandit lords can be used as assassins, duelists, or royal swordmasters. Bandit lords may have a pair of sellswords as bodyguards and sparring partners (CR 12), or may travel with a battle mage, sellsword, and a gang of eight bandits (CR 12).