Ninja, Kunoichi くノ一

Ninjas who have not yet graduated to jonin are referred to as kunoichi instead. What they lack in experience, kunoichi make up for in willingness to excel against any challenge. As they grow into their role, they become experts in several combat and non-combat tactics, including the ability to sneak without being caught, poison a blade without endangering themselves, and eventually strike with as much finesse as a soldier does power.

Characteristics

A ninja is not accepted as a kunoichi until she understands her basic weapons and combat tactics, including sneak attack. Once she has learned how to channel ki and picked up a few tricks along the way, she becomes ready to take her chunin exam, then jonin, and finally kage. The kunoichi need not cease her training to take these tests; rather, she submits that she is ready and her mentors find time and opportunity to test her while she adventures. Many kunoichi do not even realize they were being tested until they receive their formal declaration of success or failure.

Table: Ninja, Kunoichi

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special
1st	+0	+0	+2	+0	Ninja school, sneak attack +1d6
2nd	+1	+0	+3	+0	Ki pool, ninja trick
3rd	+2	+1	+3	+1	No trace +1, school feature, sneak attack +2d6
4th	+3	+1	+4	+1	Genin rank exam, ninja trick, uncanny dodge
5th	+3	+1	+4	+1	Sneak attack +3d6
6th	+4	+2	+5	+2	Ninja trick, no trace +2, school feature
7th	+5	+2	+5	+2	Light steps, sneak attack +4d6
8th	+6/+1	+2	+6	+2	Improved uncanny dodge, ninja trick
9th	+6/+1	+3	+6	+3	No trace +3, school feature, sneak attack +5d6
10th	+7/+2	+3	+7	+3	Chunin rank exam, master Tricks, ninja trick
11th	+8/+3	+3	+7	+3	Sneak attack +6d6
12th	+9/+4	+4	+8	+4	Ninja trick, no trace +4, school feature
13th	+9/+4	+4	+8	+4	Sneak attack +7d6
14th	+10/+5	+4	+9	+4	Ninja trick
15th	+11/+6/+1	+5	+9	+5	No trace +5, school feature, sneak attack +8d6
16th	+12/+7/+2	+5	+10	+5	Jonin rank exam, ninja trick
17th	+12/+7/+2	+5	+10	+5	Sneak attack +9d6
18th	+13/+8/+3	+6	+11	+6	Ninja trick, no trace +6, school feature
19th	+14/+9/+4	+6	+11	+6	Sneak attack +10d6
20th	+15/+10/+5	+6	+12	+6	Ninja trick, kage rank exam

Other Classes

Because they are also still learning, kunoichi get along best with students and magical heroes, and samurai have been known to accept them, even if they often do not trust ninjas. Tech geniuses and hot rods can admire the kunoichi’s persistence, and martial artists love to train with them. Giant robots don’t understand the ninja’s reliance on poison, and sentai members see them as too self-involved. Of the fantasy classes, rangers, rogues, monks, and surprisingly sorcerers keep the best company with kunoichi. Druids and paladins see them as no more than rogues of a different nature, while barbarians find no honor in the use of poison over physical dominance.

Class Features	Point Cost
Hit Die: d8	2 per rank (40)
Skill Ranks: 6 + Int modifier.	3 per rank(60)
Base Attack: Moderate	2 + 2 per rank (32)
Bonus Attacks: 2	4 per rank (8)
Saves: Reflex	2 per rank (48)
Weapon Proficiencies: Simple+Rogue	(8)
Armor Proficiencies: Light	(3)
Ki Pool	2 points (2)
Light Steps	2 points (2)
Ninja Tricks*	2 per talent (20)
Master Tricks	1 point (1)
Ninja School 2 +	3 per rank(23)
Exams	4 per rank (16)
Kage Exam	2 points (2)
No Trace	2 per rank (12)
Sneak Attack	2 per rank (20)
Uncanny Dodge, Improved	3 points (3)
Total	300 points

* Ninja Tricks are introduced in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Ultimate Combat. Alternately, any rogue talent can be a ninja trick.

Class Skills: Acrobatics (Dex), Appraise (Int), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Disable Device (Dex), Disguise (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (local) (Int), Knowledge (nobility) (Int), Linguistics (Int), Perception (Wis), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Stealth (Dex), Swim (Str), and Use Magic Device (Cha).

Kunoichi Favored Class Bonuses

Dhampir: Add a +1/2 bonus on Stealth checks and Perception checks made in dim light or darkness.

Goblin: Add a +1 bonus on the rogue’s sneak attack damage rolls during the surprise round or before the target has acted in combat.

Human: Gain 1/6 of a new ninja trick.

Tiefling: Add +1/2 to sneak attack damage dealt to creatures with the outsider type.

Kunoichi Schools

The following schools are available to all kunoichi. When you pass the genin exam, you can either advance your current school or choose a new school and gains its initial benefits. When you pass the chunin and jonin exams, you can either advance one of your current schools by 1 step or again choose a different school and gain its initial benefits. When you pass the kage exam, you can advance up to 4 schools by 1 step each, gaining the initial benefits of any new schools you may choose in the process.

The competence bonuses gained by each school stack with each other, but only to a maximum of +6. Any spells or special abilities gained from a school treat your kunoichi level as your caster level.

Iga

As a member of the Iga, you learn how to manipulate seemingly magical power with a combination of fire and precise movement that you use to make it look as if you are teleporting around the field of battle.

When you join this school, increase your movement speed by +5 feet when in light or no armor and not carrying a heavy load. This speed bonus increases by +5 feet at 3rd, 9th, and 15th level. In addition, you gain a +1 competence bonus on Will saves. This bonus increases to +2 at 6th level, +4 at 12th level, and +6 at 18th level.

Rank Advancement: You gain the following abilities if you advance with the Iga instead of choosing another school.

• As a genin, when holding a lit torch or other source of fire, you can spend 1 ki point to cast burning hands. When you move, you can make a Bluff check to feint an enemy as a free action when moving past it (but not through its space).
• As a chunin, you gain the monk’s abundant step ability and can spend 3 ki points to cast fireball by throwing a lit torch or other source of fire. The source is destroyed after.
• As a jonin, you can spend 5 ki points to cast delayed blast fireball by throwing a lit torch or other source of fire. The source is destroyed after.
• As a kage, you gain the monk’s empty body ability.

Kouga

As a member of the Kouga, you are practiced in the proper application of medicine, which also makes you a responsible poisoner.

When you join this school, you add Heal to your list of class skills and become trained in the use of poison. You cannot accidentally poison yourself when applying poison to a weapon. At 3rd, 9th, and 15th level, poisons applied to your weapons last for 1 additional attack before they are consumed. In addition, you gain a +1 competence bonus on Fortitude saves. This bonus increases to +2 at 6th level, +4 at 12th level, and +6 at 18th level.

Rank Advancement: You gain the following abilities if you advance with the Kouga instead of choosing another school.

• As a genin, you gain the monk’s wholeness of body ability and can apply poisons to your weapons as a swift action.
• As a chunin, you can use your wholeness of body on a creature you touch as a standard action. You can also spend 2 ki points to cast accelerate poison.
• As a jonin, you can choose up to 2 mercies from the paladin class feature of the same name. You can apply one of these mercies each time you use wholeness of body. In addition, you can spend 2 ki points to cast pernicious poison.
• As a kage, you can spend 6 ki points to heal 10d6 points of damage with wholeness of body instead.

Rappa

As a member of the Rappa, you make others believe you are no more than a common bandit or thief. In truth, you are a highly educated individual who can make precision strikes as easily as informed decisions.

When you join this school, you gain Weapon Finesse as a bonus feat. At 3rd level, you gain a +2 competence bonus on initiative checks. This bonus increases to +4 at 9th level, and +6 at 15th level.

At 6th level, choose Acrobatics, Climb, Intimidate, Perception, or Stealth. You gain the skill unlock powers for that skill as appropriate for your number of ranks in that skill. If you are also a member of Iga, add Bluff to this list.

If you are also a member of Kouga, add Heal to this list. If you are also a member of Sanka, add Survival to this list. If you are also a member of Suppa, add Disguise to this list.

At 12th and 18th level, you choose an additional skill from your list and gain skill unlock powers for that skill as well.

Rank Advancement: You gain the following abilities if you advance with the Rappa instead of choosing another school.

Social Talents

Any Guise (Su): You can use everyman to disguise yourself as any specific person, even a king or high priest.

Furthermore, if the actual individual wouldn’t normally be able to be found via magic (such as by being dead or protected from divinations designed to locate the individual), such divinations always find you instead.

Everyman (Su): You can take on the appearance of a specific individual whenever you assume a mundane guise. The individual must be a farmer, laborer, or peasant. While disguised as this individual, you receive a +20 circumstance bonus on Disguise checks to appear as that individual. Any spell or ability designed to locate the individual has a 50% chance of finding you instead of the actual individual, and divination spells and abilities used on you give results as if you are the actual individual. Although this doesn’t grant you any special knowledge of the individual, you gain a +10 circumstance bonus on Bluff checks to properly play the part of the individual.

Many Guises (Ex): You can take on any number of mundane guises. Whenever you change your identity, you have a third option (instead of social or kunoichi): you can become mundane. The mundane identity is not a specific individual. Each one is created at the moment it is assumed, and quickly forgotten as soon as it is removed. While in a mundane identity, you does not gain the benefit of either your social or kunoichi identity, but instead appears as a member of your race, usually a common laborer, farmer, or peasant of any gender. Your alignment is treated as neutral when you is in your mundane identity. While in this identity, you receives a +20 circumstance bonus on Disguise checks to appear like an ordinary member of your race. Spells and abilities that are looking for you in either of your other identities fail while in your mundane identity. You must build the appearance for this identity using whatever clothing and tools you have at your disposal. While you can use magic (such as a hat of disguise), your mundane identity can never be anything other than an ordinary member of a society or large group (subject to GM discretion).

Mockingbird (Ex): You can mimic almost any sort of voice, or even animal calls and sound effects, and you can throw your voice at a distance. This functions similarly to a combination of the ghost sound, ventriloquism, and vocal alteration spells.

Morphic Mask (Su): Your physical form in your social identity can differ significantly from that of your kunoichi identity, within the norms for your race—this can include changes to your proportions, coloration, gender, and other physical characteristics. This increases your bonus on Disguise checks by 2 for every significant change, as per the Disguise skill. You always assumes the same form when using this ability. If you are a race with multiple natural forms, such as a kitsune or xendauni, you can alter each of your forms using this talent.

Quick Change (Ex): You learns to shift between your identities with ease. Instead of needing 1 minute to change your identity, you can now do so in 2 rounds.

Social Grace: You selects any one Intelligence-, Wisdom-, or Charisma-based skill other than Perception or Use Magic Device. Whenever you are in your social identity, you receive a circumstance bonus on checks with the selected skill. At 5th level and every 4 levels thereafter, you can select another skill (with the same restrictions) to gain this bonus.

• As a genin, you gain the unchained rogue’s finesse training feature, allowing you to add your Dexterity modifier to damage when using Weapon Finesse.
• As a chunin, you gain Skill Focus with one of the skills on your list above and finesse training with a second weapon.
• As a jonin, you gain finesse training with a third weapon and Improved Critical as a bonus feat with one of your finesse weapons.
• As a kage, you gain the unchained rogue’s master strike ability.

Sanka

As a member of the Sanka, you work outside of the cities where other ninja dwell, preferring the cover of a canopy overhead, or the feeling of unworked ground beneath your feet.

When you join this school, you add half your kunoichi level to Survival checks made to follow tracks. At 3rd level, you gain darkvision out to 30 feet or increase your darkvision by 30 feet. At 9th level, you gain swift tracker. At 15th level, you can spend 1 ki point as a move action to see through magical darkness effects for up to 10 minutes as if you were using true seeing. In addition, you gain a +1 competence bonus on Fortitude saves. This bonus increases to +2 at 6th level, +4 at 12th level, and +6 at 18th level.

Rank Advancement: You gain the following abilities if you advance with the Sanka instead of choosing another school.

• As a genin, you gain evasion and a favored terrain of your choice, as the ranger ability of the same name.
• As a chunin, you gain camouflage, and an additional favored terrain.
• As a jonin, you gain improved evasion and an additional favored terrain.
• As a kage, you gain hide in plain sight and an additional favored terrain.

Suppa

As a member of the Suppa, you can easily pass yourself off as others, making it a challenge to determine who or what you really are.

When you join this school, you gain a social identity, as the vigilante class feature, and a +5 circumstance bonus to appear as your current identity, instead of the other. This bonus increases to +10 at 3rd level, +15 at 9th level, and +20 at 15th level. In addition, you gain a +1 competence bonus on Will saves. This bonus increases to +2 at 6th level, +4 at 12th level, and +6 at 18th level.

Rank Advancement: You gain the following abilities if you advance with the Suppa instead of choosing another school.

As a genin, you gain the morphic mask social talent. You also gain the social grace social talent, but the bonus to skills from that talent is only +2.

As a chunin, you gain the many guises and mocking bird social talents.

• As a jonin, you gain the quick change social talent, and the bonus to skills from social grace becomes +4.
• As a kage, you gain the everyman and any guise social talents.

Kunoichi Archetypes