The following materials background is derived from the works of Vrylakos on
Eric Noah’s Unofficial 3e News Board. All else is the work of Ed Hastings, aka the Killer Shrike

Dössian Whispering Edge Blademaster Prestige Class

Death is profitable. Fear of Death is too. Nowhere else in all of the Shards is this quite so well understood as in Döss. Even the name of the Black City is enough to draw shivers and protective signs amongst all but the most brave or idiotic citizens of the other Cities of the Shard. The common folk call it the Land of the Unliving, more educated folk refer to it as the Mausoleum. All good-thinking and wise folk avoid it and all that comes from it. Unfortunately not all men are so wise. Döss is ruled by the so-called Ghost Council, whose membership is primarily composed of potent necromancers in various states of life and unlife. The city deals in vile and black magics to all and sundry who would dare their port and pay their fees. The populace are composed of scum and dregs from all other civilizations in the region, who have washed up on the dark cities shores as a last-ditch refuge before their final fall into oblivion.

Intertwined with all of this are the Silent Muses, mysterious and well-feared assassins. Independent of but allied with the Ghost Council, the Muses run their bloody business of contract killing from the auspices of the City of Death. The very hint of thier name is enough to send prestigious and powerful men and women into deep apprehension and an immediate review of their security setup. The Muses wisely keep their structure and size hidden, thus heightening their mystery and raising their prices. The skills of the Silent Muses are many and varied; there is little uniformity of modus operandi or training. However, almost all Silent Muses and a rare few outsiders that pay sufficiently for lessons seek to master the complex weapon style known as the Whispering Edge. The Whispering Edge style epitomizes speed and rapidity of strikes and is very agressive, taking advantage of opponents weak spots and is particularly effective for wounding foes caught off gaurd or surprised.

The style is popular amongst Rogues and Assassins, but it is certainly practiced by members of many other professions.

Note: In Döss, assassins tend to start as rogues, become assassins via the Traditional Assassin Prestige Class created by Killer Shrike, and along the way learn the Whispering Edge. Assassins of Hastur's Cult are the spell-using assassin as seen in the Dungeon Master's Guide.

Prerequisites
Base Attack Bonus +3
Feats: Expertise, Improved Initiative, Quickdraw
Skills: Balance: 3 Ranks, Tumbling: 5 Ranks
Abilities: Dex 13+ and Int 13+

Level    Attack    Fortitude    Reflex   Will    Abilities
1    +1    +0    +2    +0    The Whisper of the End
2    +2    +0    +3    +0    Sneak Attack +1d6
3    +3    +1    +3    +1    The Whistling Wind
4    +4    +1    +4    +1    Sneak Attack +2d6
5    +5    +1    +4    +1    The Musings of Madness


Hit Die D6
Skill Points Int Bonus + 4 / level
Skill List: Balance, Bluff, Climb, Hide, Intimidate, Jump, Listen, Move Silent, Sense Motive, Spot, Tumbling

Class Abilities
Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: This prestige class grants no additional weapon or armor proficiencies. The practitioner may use any of the below abilities with any bladed weapons that can be scabbarded, that are medium or light to them, and that they are proficient with.

The Whisper of the End: At 1st level the Whispering Edge Blademaster has nearly mastered this particular subtle blade technique. The practitioner gains Scabbarded Attack as a virtual Feat (listed below) when fighting with any light or medium melee weapon that he is proficient with.

quote:

New Feat by Ed Hastings aka Killer Shrike
Scabbarded Attack [Fighting Style]
You are skilled at drawing a weapon and attacking so quickly opponents are caught off guard.
Prerequisites: Quickdraw, Improved Initiative
Benefit: The practitioner of this type of style may choose to draw his weapon at the beginning of his action and make a melee attack in a single movement, with a +5 circumstance bonus to hit their first melee opponent. This as a full round action. Additionally, the targeted foe must make a Reflex Save versus the practitioners highest attack bonus with the weapon being used immediately or be caught flat-footed and therefore loose any Dexterity bonuses to their AC versus the attack. Note that the practitioner may only make one attack in this manner per round. The practitioner may opt to return the weapon to its scabbard or keep it drawn at the conclusion of the maneuver.


Sneak Attack: At 2nd and 4th levels the Whispering Edge Blademaster gains the ability to inflict an additional +1d6 damage under certain circumstances. This is identical to the Rogue ability of the same name (PHB pg47) and is stackable with that ability.

The Whistling Wind: At 3rd level the Whispering Edge Blademaster has refined their already-blazing speed with a blade further. The practitioner gains Lightning Attack as a virtual Feat (listed below) when fighting with any light or medium melee weapon that he is proficient with.

quote:

New Feat by Ed Hastings aka Killer Shrike
Lightning Attack [Fighting Style]
You are able to strike sooner at the expense of making yourself vulnerable to return attack.
Prerequisites: Expertise, Improved Initiative
Benefit: The practitioners of this type of style may strike quicker at the expense of defending themselves. The practitioner may take up to a –5 penalty to AC and apply an equal circumstance bonus to Initiative. This allows the practitioner to raise his Initiative without Refocusing, but for that round only; his Initiative drops to normal the next round. The AC penalty remains in effect until the practitioner’s action in the following round. The practitioner must declare a Lightning Attack on or before the Initiative count that his modified Initiative would allow him to take an action from.

The Musings of Madness: At 5th level the Whispering Edge Blademaster has mastered the art of all out attack to silence a foe permanently and with minimum toil. A dangerous style, even the most impetuous of old masters uses it wisely. The practitioner gains Rapid Assault Fighting as a virtual feat.

quote:

New Feat by Ed Hastings aka Killer Shrike
Rapid Assault [Fighting Style]
You may launch a furious attack of blows in melee at the expense of leaving yourself vulnerable.
Prerequisite: Base Attack +6, Expertise, Improved Initiative
Benefit: As a full attack option the practitioner may take up to a -10 penalty to his AC and gain an equal competence bonus to his BASE attack. Both the AC penalty and the Attack bonus last until the practitioners action in the following round. As this modifies the practitioners BASE attack bonus, this will grant the practitioner additional attacks just as if he were of a higher level but for that round only.

Example: Ularo Santeos is beset by a fearsome swordsman. Throwing caution to the wind, on his initiative Ularo announces that he will employ Rapid Assault against the foe and will take the full -10 penalty to AC. Ularos base attack is normally +13/+8/+3; for the following round it will be +23/+18/+13/+8/+3 but his normally impressive 23 AC drops to a mere 13 AC. His flurry of blows catches his opponent by surprise and the first 3 hit, but afterwards the foe severely punishes the off-balance and unprotected Ularo.