![[The Shifters.png|300]] > [!quote] Motto > We are the face you trust, the shadow you never see. ### Overview **The Shifters** are a covert and highly specialized guild of assassins and infiltrators, notorious for their secrecy and precision. Primarily composed of **Changeling rogues**, they leverage their innate shape-shifting abilities to blend seamlessly into any environment, making them one of the most elusive and feared organizations in the world. While predominantly a Changeling organization, they have been known to recruit individuals from other races to serve as informants, spies, and inconspicuous agents in public spaces. ### Structure and Operations The Shifters maintain a fluid and decentralized structure, ensuring their members are nearly impossible to track. Their presence is marked not by symbols or public notoriety, but by whispered rumors and unexplained disappearances. Few ever see a Shifter coming, and fewer still survive to tell the tale. Instead of operating out of a central guildhall, Shifters utilize shifting safehouses, abandoned buildings, and remote hideouts as temporary hubs. Recruitment is rarely voluntary — the Shifters approach those they deem useful, often without warning, and refusal is rarely an option. ### Roles Within the Shifters - **Phantoms** — Elite assassins responsible for high-profile targets and critical eliminations. Their identities are often concealed even from other Shifters. - **Masks** — Operatives trained in manipulation, deception, and infiltration, specializing in impersonation and information gathering. - **Echoes** — Low-profile spies and informants, often recruited from races known for blending in, such as **Halflings**, **Kenku**, and **Tabaxi**. ### Methods and Secrecy The Shifters rely on a combination of coded language, concealed symbols, and even body language to communicate safely. Known symbols include: - **A scratched crescent** — Marking a meeting point or safehouse. - **A three-dot pattern** — Warning that a Shifter is active in the area. - **A crossed circle** — Denoting a completed contract or successful assassination. Rumors suggest that the Shifters have developed a specialized form of **Thieves' Cant** laced with subtle gestures and expressions to pass messages in plain sight.