Hello, there. I'm attempting to stat out a character very similar to Altaïr Ibn la-Ahad (see Assassin's Creed). There are a number of issues that are apparent.
Firstly, he's an assassin, yet not evil. However, assassin is the closest to the concept of Altaïr, namely because that's what he is. Is there any non-evil assassin-style class (and not Slayer of Domiel; the death touch and whatnot just don't fit)?
Secondly, I want this to be a non/low magic character. Maybe some magic weapons and items, but no supernatural abilities or spellcasting. As such, are there any variants for the standard Assassin class that get rid of spellcasting for something else? If so, I might just go with that and nix the evil and kill-for-money requirement, as that is not the character's motive.
Thirdly, what base class should I use? There's always Rogue, but I question how that'll line up with the character concept. Do any other similar classes grant Sneak Attack?
Lastly, what weapon would his hidden blade be considered? It retracts into his gauntlet and protrudes out from beneath his palm when weilded.
Thanks for your help, and I apologize for posting this in both Character Development and Optimization.
Well, a non-evil assassin would be the Avenger. Essentially an assassin with slightly different requirements. You can find it here: www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/prc/20... As for a spell-less assassin variant, I'm not aware of anything like that. More than likely, that would have to be homebrewed. Check out the beginning section of Complete Warrior for the spell-less ranger and paladin variants for inspiration.
For base class entry, you don't actually NEED sneak attack dice to get into assassin/avenger, it just helps. You could try something like an urban ranger from Unearthed Arcana, though Disguise would be a cross-class skill for you. You can grab Able Learner at first level (if you're human) to offset the skill point cost of raising it. You should probably also ditch the animal companion for some other class feature, since it won't have enough hit dice to be worthwhile.
Ninja or Swordsage (focusing on Shadow Hand) might be something to look into. Also Thief-Acrobat might have some abilities that maybe mesh with what you're looking for.
Why don't you try Scout as a base class?
Whenever I played Assassins's Creed, I did a lot of "skirmish" style attacks- go in, do some damage- get out alive- etc.
I actually made a build very similar to Altiar by using the Rogue class but, the Scout class is also a good start both can make for a good build. Also (as said above) the Swordsage focusing on Shadow Hand makes for a good Assassin. I gave him skill tricks from Complete Scoundrel whenever he could get them (Wall Jumper, Leaping Climber, Extreme Leap, and tricks like that all come in handy for pulling off his acrobatics). If Faerûn prestige classes are available you could look into the Telflammer Shadowlord and the Black Flame Zealot from Unapproachable East. They both get Death Attack (the Black Flame Zealot gets it at it's 1st level) and neither of them have to be evil (just nongood). Personally I like the Black Flame Zealot more because it requires slightly less than the Telflammer Shadowlord but, both are fun to play.
EDIT: as far as the hidden blade goes, just use a dagger (or punching dagger if you want to be more specific. I didn't read all of your post before. The Black Flame Zealot requires Divine spell casting and the Telflammer Shadowlord requires you to either have a template, be able to cast dimension door, or use the shadow jump feature (Shadow Dancer is the only way I know of off the top of my head to get that). If you wanted to go into that PrC you could take some levels in Mountebank (from Complete Scoundrel) for the Dimension Door prereq.
Honestly I think you could just play a Rogue or Scout with Altair's mindset. That's how I played him. If you want Poison Use my DM let me use a Rogue variant that didn't have Trap Finding or Trap Sense and instead he got Poison Use instead of Trap Finding and instead of Trap Sense he added +1 to the save DC for his poison every time Trap Sense would be gained. The Rogue technically gets everything Altair needs, slight of hand, disguise, hand crossbow proficiency (from the opening scene), hide, all your basics. A nice feat to look at for him would be Agile Athlete from Races of the Wild if your Dex is going to be higher than your Str because it lets you use Dex for Jump and Climb checks.