Base Requirements

• Races: Any
• Sub-Classes: Any
• Ability Requirements: Balance 15, Appearance 14
• Alignments: Any
• Starting Cash: By class, plus 2d6

Weapon Proficiencies

• Weapon Slots: By class
• Bonus Weapon Proficiencies: none
• Required Weapon Proficiencies: none
• Allowed Weapons: Any one-handed weapons allowed by class
• Allowed Armors: By class (see below)

Non-Weapon Proficiencies:

• Non-weapon Slots: By class
• Available Categories: By class, plus Performance
• Bonus Non-weapon Proficiencies: Dancing, Etiquette, Tumbling
• Required Proficiencies: none
• Recommended Proficiencies: Any Performance
• Forbidden Proficiencies: none

Overview: The danseur is a professional dancer, an entertainer who has mastered the intricacies of motion, form, and rhythm. Much like a poet or musician, a danseur makes his living through public performances. A good danseur is a rarity, and watching one can be a mesmerizing and unforgettable experience. Commoners and lords alike receive news of a new danseur’s arrival with joy, and nobles often call upon dansuers to give command performances.

While any character may take up dancing as a profession (indeed their are even a few dwarves and half-ogres who have attempted to make their fortunes performing), the vast majority are human, elven, or half-elven. Likewise, while any class can benefit from the addition of the danseur’s skills, the vast majority are Bards, Spellsingers, or priests of Lliira, Sharess, or Sune.

Description: Danseurs almost never wear armor of any kind. Most have tightly fitted clothing, or adorn themselves in layers of flowing scarves and skil. Most danseurs prefer small, easily concealed weapons. A few use scimitars or similar curved blades in their dancing.

Role-Playing: Most danseurs make their living purely from the performance of their art, but a few use their talents as an excuse for travel and access to the powerful and wealthy. Many of these danseurs are truly brave souls, allying themselves with adventurers who oppose dark forces. Others seek only to improve their dancing skills and see adventuring as an opportunity to learn new rhythms and themes to use in their art.

In a party, the danseur can be useful for gaining information and access to guarded places. Even vampires and werewolves crave entertainment, and nobles of these sorts often invite danseurs into their homes. The danseur can also distract a powerful foe, thus aiding in an ambush or buying comrades time to escape.

Special Abilities:

• The danseur gains a +1 bonus to his Dancing proficiency for every three levels (round down).
• Dance of Evasion: This swift, twisting dance sends the danseur into a chaotic series of acrobatic flips and quick spins. This grants him a +4 bonus to AC, which stacks with any bonuses from the Tumbling proficiency. The danseur may take no actions, other than moving, in a round that he uses the dance of evasion.
• Sword Dance: Despite its name, this special dance may be used with any single one-handed melee weapon with which the danseur is proficient. By engaging in a series of fast spins and slips while holding his weapon, the danseur gains a +2 bonus on his attack roll with the first attack he makes in a round.
• Dance of Beguilment: The slow, sensuous dance is full of graceful, complex movements. Those watching must make a save vs. death magic or be so enwrapped in the dance they are incapable of taking any actions other than watching the danseur. This ability does not work on creatures already engaged in combat, and the creatures must be able to see the danseur. Any attack on a beguiled creature instantly ends this effect. The danseur may not take any other actions while using beguiling dance.

Special Disadvantages:

• Danseurs hate to be hindered in their movements and tend to avoid armor of any kind. A danseur who does find himself in armor is unable to use any of the special benefits of this kit, and the AC bonus granted by the armor is reduced by 2 (to a minimum of +1), due to his unfamiliarity with it.
• A danseur must spend at least three hours practicing his dance every day. If this practice is missed, the danseur temporarily loses all special benefits of this kit. He does not regain his abilities until he has practiced for twice as many days as he missed. Note, the use of his special dance abilities in combat situations counts against the required practice time.

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