Alternate Backstabbing
by HåvardIMC I have introduced the following system for Backstabbing:
| THIEF LEVEL | ATTACK BONUS | DAMAGE BONUS |
| Basic (1-4) | +4 | 1d6 |
| Expert (4-14) | +4 | 2d6 |
| Companion (15-25) | +4 | 3d6 |
| Master (26-36) | +4 | 4d6 |
As usual a successful Move Silently/Hide in Shadows will be required for the attack and damage bonuses to apply. Any melee weapon may be used in a backstab. The backstab does not have to be an attack from behind, but the defender must not see the attack coming.
My main reason for moving away from double damage to a 3E esque damage bonus system is to avoid the situation where you have double damage from Backstab, double damage from Weapon Mastery and Double damage from magic items.