The Assassin

'' "Her voice is... familiar?" '' The Assassin is a "moving miniboss" in Sapphire Caves 1.1. A mysterious but fast figure chasing you in the Caves, seemingly unstoppable...

Appearance
The Assassin can appear in any battle of an area she's currently in. She starts in the Shaft, and after being either chased away or properly defeated, she moves to the next area (Shaft -> Den -> Fortress -> Vault). In addition to this, the following conditions must be met:


 * The second boss of the current area is beaten
 * No miniboss or boss appears in the current battle
 * You have the Thief in your team.

If everything is checked off, the Assassin has a 4% chance to appear in the battle, interrupting with a small cutscene. For example: if you haven't seen the Assassin yet, you have a Thief in your party, and you've beaten the Glob Lord, then any fight in the Shaft (without bosses or minibosses) can be interrupted by the Assassin.

In the Shaft, she will replace the frontline enemy. In the Den and Fortress, she will replace the backline enemy. In the Vault, she will replace the entire enemy party.

Moveset
The Assassin normally has 6 moves available. Numbers within (parenthesis) indicate the difference between the four areas.


 * Smokescreen: (3/3/4/4) turns (+7/+12/+12/+16) Dodge to all enemies, get 3 turns Stealth. Move Back 2.
 * If less than 3 enemies are in the battle, summon an Intangible/Turnless Smoke Cloud enemy.
 * Sickening Vapors: (2/2/3/3) turns (-10/-15/-15/-20) Accuracy-, +10 Fear, and Push 1 to front rank. Move Back 1.
 * Claptrap: ranged attack. (2/2/3/3) turns Mark and (105%/115%/125%/135%) Stun. Move Forward 1.
 * Tipped With Death: melee attack, 105% Poison for (2/2/3/3) turns and (3/4/4/5) damage. Move Back 1.
 * Crossfire: ranged attack. +20% damage vs Marked. Move Forward 1.
 * From the Void: melee attack. +30% damage vs Marked, +30% damage vs Stunned, +30% damage while Stealthed. Move Forward 2.
 * To Dust I Return: flee the battle. Triggers when she falls below (425/325/200/N. A.) Health, replacing any other move.
 * When the Thief dies in-battle, this move will immediately be used as well.

Her actual AI is quite complex, but this is roughly how she will act:


 * Smokescreen only in first position. Higher chance when a player is Stunned or Marked.
 * Sickening Vapours only in first or second position.
 * Claptrap only in second or third position, and not Stealthed.
 * Tipped with Death only in first position, and there is a player without Protection.
 * Crossfire only in second or third position, and there is a player without Stealth. Higher chance when a player is Marked.
 * Exception: cannot be used in the Shaft.
 * From the Void only in third position, only in Stealth, and only when a player is Marked or Stunned. Can only be used once per battle.
 * Exception 1 : when a player is both marked and stunned, can be used from anywhere with a much higher chance to trigger.
 * Exception 2 : in the Vault, has unlimited uses.

Between areas
The Assassin grows stronger the more area's she been in. Apart from the moves getting stronger, she will also gain better stats. The modifiers are as following:


 * Shaft: 500 Max Health, 10 Attack, 1 Defense, 8 Speed, 110 Accuracy, 12 Dodge, 60/70/60 Resistances.
 * Flees at 425 or lower Health (75 damage).
 * Cannot use Crossfire.
 * Den: 450 Max Health, 11 Attack, 2 Defense, 9 Speed, 118 Accuracy, 16 Dodge, 80/85/75 Resistances.
 * Flees at 325 or lower Health (125 damage).
 * Fortress: 375 Max Health, 12 Attack, 3 Defense, 10 Speed, 124 Accuracy, 24 Dodge, 90/95/90 Resistances.
 * Flees at 200 or lower Health (175 damage).
 * Starts with 4 turns Stealth.
 * Vault: 250 Max Health, 14 Attack, 4 Defense, 11 Speed, 132 Accuracy, 33 Dodge, 100/120/100 Resistances.
 * Never flees (250 damage).
 * Starts with 4 turns Stealth.

When the Assassin is beaten in the Vault, she will not be encountered for the entire game.

Other

 * The Assassin, obviously, is a mirror image of the Thief (dancing class, buildup to one attack, stealth/poison focus, high Dodge, both even carry a golden sword).