Class:
Merchant
A prince sets up a shop funded by his royalty parents in a bid to help control the market and gain more political pore for his parents.
A woman stands on a crate in the middle of a busy street telling people about a miraculous concoction she's created.
A halfling delves into a tomb seeking rare treasures and artifacts to sell.
All three of these people are merchants. Trying to haggle the hard earned money out of their pockets.
Pursuit of Riches
Many of the merchants that people in the world meet are only after one thing: gold! They take up this line of work to get super rich and maybe have an adventure along the way. Selling wares and picking up more valuable items along the way. Often going on to fund adventuring parties whenever they retire.
Haggler's At Heart
Even when not selling or buying wares, they often prefer to talk their way out of most situations where others would turn to violence. Resulting in them being seen as lackluster at combat situations.
Company Founders
Many merchants whenever they retire decide to put their hoard of gold towards founding adventuring companies and the whatnot. Or loaning out their riches to aspiring adventurers seeking to start their journeys.
Merchant
| Level | Proficiency Bonus | Features | Discount |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | +2 | Expertise, Merchant's Discount, Dimensional Shop | 15 |
| 2nd | +2 | Skilled Action | 30 |
| 3rd | +2 | Merchant Archetype Feature | 45 |
| 4th | +2 | Ability Score Increase | 60 |
| 5th | +3 | ─ | 75 |
| 6th | +3 | ─ | 90 |
| 7th | +3 | Merchant's Intuition | 105 |
| 8th | +3 | Ability Score Increase | 120 |
| 9th | +4 | Merchant Archetype Feature | 135 |
| 10th | +4 | Ability Score Increase | 150 |
| 11th | +4 | Talented | 165 |
| 12th | +4 | Ability Score Increase | 180 |
| 13th | +5 | Merchant Archetype Feature | 295 |
| 14th | +5 | Tagged Merchandise | 210 |
| 15th | +5 | Merchant Archetype Feature | 225 |
| 16th | +5 | Ability Score Increase | 240 |
| 17th | +6 | ─ | 255 |
| 18th | +6 | Mercantile Eye | 270 |
| 19th | +6 | Ability Score Increase | 285 |
| 20th | +6 | Skilled Charlatan | 300 |
Creating a Merchant
As you create your merchant, think about how they entered this line of work. What caused them to do so? Being a merchant isn't always glamorous work, so why are they a merchant?
Quick Build
You can make a merchant quickly by following these suggestions. First, Charisma should be your highest ability score. Make Dexterity your next highest if you want to excel at not getting hit or Constitution for survivability. Second, choose the charlatan background.
Class Features
As a Merchant, you gain the following class features
Hit Points
- Hit Dice: 1d8 per Merchant level
- Hit Points at 1st Level: 8 + your Constitution modifier
- Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d8 (or 5) + your Constitution modifier per Merchant level after 1st
Proficiencies
- Armor: Light armor
- Weapons: Dagger
- Tools: One artisan's tools or gaming set of your choice, vehicles (land)
- Saving Throws: Dexterity, Charisma
- Skills: Choose four from Acrobatics, Athletics, Deception, Insight, Intimidation, Investigation, Perception, Performance, Persuasion, and Sleight of Hand.
Equipment
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:
- Dagger
- A set of artisans tools or a gaming set your are proficient with
- Leather armor
Art Credits
Art by Alexander Maximov
Art by Maria Efthymiadou
Art by Veronika Firsova
Expertise
At 1st level, choose two of your skill proficiencies. Your proficiency bonus is doubled for any ability check you make that uses the chosen proficiencies.
At 6th level, you can choose two more of your skill proficiencies to gain this benefit.
Merchant's Discount
Beginning at 1st level, your time as a merchant has honed your tongue to a silver edge allowing you get better deals. Whenever you purchase or sell an item you may expend a number of discount points and add it to the amount you'd receive if you're selling or subtract it from the amount you'd have to pay if you're buying.
The amount in this pool increases as you gain levels in this class, as shown in the Discount column of the Merchant table.
Any expended discount points are regained whenever you finish a long rest. Additionally, any leftover or extra discount points remaining whenever you take a long rest are replaced by the new discount points.
Dimensional Shop
Additionally at 1st level, you gain access to a pocket dimension that serves as your shops inventory only you can access. You can access it whenever a creature buys something from you or when you go to put something into your shops inventory, and whenever you do so an opening that is 2 feet wide opens for you. The pocket dimension can hold a number of pounds equal to 100 times your Charisma modifier and has a volume of 150 cubic feet.
Your dimensional shop comes stocked with basic items, and is where the money for your Merchant's Discount is kept. The items stocked in the space can only be accessed if the shop is given gold equal to the item's value. This gold is added to your current total for Merchant's Discount.
You cannot buy any items in your shops inventory. The base items stocked in your shop are determined by your Merchant Archetype. A base item stocked in your shop can be purchased a number of times equal to your Charisma modifier. Your shop restock on base items every 24 hours.
Whenever you put an item into your dimensional shop you can choose for it to be added to your shops inventory. However whenever you do so, you can no longer access that item.
Skilled Action
Starting at 2nd level, you've honed your expertise in a variety of skills. You can take a bonus action on each of your turns to make a skill check with a skill you have expertise in.
Merchant Archetype
At 3rd level, you choose an archetype that you emulate in the exercise of your merchant abilities: Artifactor, Snake Oil Salesman, or Merchant Prince, all detailed at the end of the class description. Your archetype choice grants you features at 3rd level and then again at 9th, and 15th level.
Ability Score Improvement
When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 10th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can't increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.
Currency Exchange
Beginning at 7th level, you are able to exchange the points in your Dimensional Shop for actual currency. You can spend one minute exchanging currency from your shop into actual currency, for every 2 discount points you spend you gain one gold piece. You can exchange a maximum of 100 discount points for gold using this feature.
Talented
By 11th level, you have refined your chosen skills until they approach perfection. Whenever you make an ability check that lets you add your proficiency bonus, you can treat a d20 roll of 9 or lower as a 10.
Mercantile Eye
Beginning at 18th level, you know every trick in the book when it comes to using ones words, so none may get the better of you. No Charisma roll has advantage against you while you aren't incapacitated.
Skilled Charlatan
At 20th level, you know just the right words to say or just the right tool to use. If you fail a skill check with a skill you have expertise with or a skill that goes off of Charisma, you can turn that failure into a success.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Merchant Archetypes
Merchants all have common features that define them as merchants. However they each end up picking up different skill sets that help define them and set them apart from the competition.
Artifactor
You specialize in the buying, selling, and recovery of ancient artifacts. Delving into very ancient and very dangerous dungeons, risking your life for magical artifacts that you can sell later.
Shop's Inventory
This table determines the items, prices, and level the item appears in your shop.
| Level | Items | Prices |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | a torch, 10 feet of rope | 1gp, 5gp |
| 4th | +1 shortsword, leather armor | 100gp, 25gp |
| 8th | scroll of darkvision, ring of jumping | 75gp, 150gp |
| 12th | scroll of create food or water | 150gp |
| 16th | bead of force | 250gp |
An Eye for Traps
Starting at 3rd level, your numerous delves into ancient and dangerous ruins and crypts have keyed you into the telltale signs of traps and other hazards. You have advantage on Dexterity saving throws against effects that you can see, such as traps and spells.
To gain this benefit, you can't be blinded, deafened, or incapacitated.
Magic Item Expert
At 9th level, your time spent curating various magical times has given you the innate ability to determine the items effects. You can as an action roll a d20 to determine the exact properties of a magical item you can see within 10 feet of you. On a roll of 5-20 you succeed, on a 1-4 you fail and cannot make this check against that item again until you take a long rest.
Artifact Master
Finally at 15th level, your skill with magical items and hunting them has greatly increased. You gain an additional attunement slot.
Snake Oil Salesman
Your specialty is cheating people out of their money by falsely advertising and selling them products that don't works as advertised.
Shop's Inventory
This table determines the items, prices, and level the item appears in your shop.
| Level | Items | Prices |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | potion of healing, potion of climbing | 40gp, 25gp |
| 4th | potion of animal friendship, potion of greater healing | 50gp, 150gp |
| 8th | potion of resistance | 200gp |
| 12th | potion of hill giant strength | 250gp |
| 16th | potion of poison | 250gp |
Snake Oil
At 3rd level, you've learned to concoct an ointment that you claim can heal most wounds and make healing potions obsolete. Whenever you take a long rest, you can craft 1d8 + 1 snake oil. Whenever a creature applies the oil to a wound as an action, the creature gains temporary hit points equal to your Charisma modifier. These hit points last for a number of minutes equal to your Charisma modifier. The oil loses this effect 24 hours after it is made.
Placebo Effect
At 9th level, whenever you succeed on a Persuasion check against a creature that has recently applied snake oil to themselves they gain immunity to the poisoned condition for 1 hour and resistance to poison damage.
Greater Snake Oil
Finally at 15th level, your ability to concoct convincing snake oil ointments has greatly improved. Any creature that applies the oil, now gains a number of temporary hit points equal to your level + your Charisma modifier. The oil loses this effect 48 hours after it is made.
Merchant Prince
You specialize in using your skills and wealth as a merchant to vie for power and your own gain often seeking to have great political influence.
Shop's Inventory
This table determines the items, prices, and level the item appears in your shop.
| Level | Items | Prices |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | staff of flowers, clothes of mending | 20gp, 25gp |
| 4th | cloak of billowing | 50gp |
| 8th | staff of charming | 275gp |
| 12th | antitoxin, boots of elvenkind | 30gp, 150gp |
| 16th | cloak of protection | 300gp |
Pretty Face
At 3rd level, you can use your mercantile charm to better bolster yourself from harm. Whenever you take damage you can roll a d6 and reduce the damage taken by the amount rolled. You can do this three times before needing to take a long rest to regain all expended uses.
Political Favor
At 9th level, whenever you take your Skilled Action to make a skill check that uses Charisma you gain temporary hit points equal to the number rolled on the check.
Seat of Power
At 15th level, your ability to use your innate charm to gain favor as greatly increased. Whenever you gain temporary hit points from Political Favor you instead receive temporary hit points equal to twice the number rolled.
Traveling Salesman
You are adept at traveling the lands seeking out valuable customers. However you have learned that the road is fraught with danger and have prepared accordingly.
Shop's Inventory
This table determines the items, prices, and level the item appears in your shop.
| Level | Items | Prices |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | a torch, 10 rations | 1gp, 5gp |
| 4th | shield +1, pole of angling | 100gp, 50gp |
| 8th | alchemy jug | 200gp |
| 12th | boots of striding and springing | 200gp |
| 16th | goggles of night | 100gp |
Bonus Proficiencies
At 3rd level, you gain proficiency medium armor, simple weapons, and martial weapons.
The Long Road Ahead
Additionally at 3rd level, your base movement speed is increased by 20 feet while on roads or other similar pathways.
Standing Watch
At 9th level, your time spent scanning the sides of the roads for bandits has honed your senses. You gain a +5 bonus to your passive Perception score and Perception checks.
Marching Caravan
At 15th level, your base movement speed increases by an additional 20 feet.