There's a few classes that I struggle to put together builds for, and the investigator is one of them. In fact, I think this is the first time that I haven't used the empiricism methodology. I don't read a ton on the Question, but he was a fantastic character in Justice League Unlimited that I really got into. As always, this build is conceptualized entirely in a vacuum, with choices made in my best attempt to fit the character. These choice may not hold up in a campaign with different themes and should be adjusted accordingly.
Naturally, you can check out a video on the character over here on YouTube.
Let's get into the build for The Question from DC Comics!
THE QUESTION
CHARACTER Charles Victor ‘Vic Sage’ Szasz
SOURCE DC Comics
BUILD GOALS
o Originally, Vic was a television investigative journalist who came across stories he couldn’t investigate through typical, legal means
o He donned a special mask that made it appear that he had no face to take on the identity of the Question and investigate these mysteries, despite the danger to himself
o This mask, made of psuedoderm, can be shaped into a variety of disguises enhanced by a specialized gas that let him safely apply it though it was also at times used as a smokescreen
o Originally a brawler, the Question underwent martial arts training and became a highly capable fighter
o More important to his operative style is his genius level intellect, which is mainly put to journalism, interrogation, and investigation where he is said to be the best detective after Batman
o While he mainly fights in hand-to-hand combat, he shows no hesitation in using firearms and has demonstrated skill with pistols, submachine guns, and rocket launchers
o He has also explored mysticism and learned a handful of spells
Summary of Goals: A TV reporter turned faceless vigilante who is able to don a variety of disguises. A highly capable detective who chases down conspiracies, he typically fights foes in hand-to-hand but won’t hesitate to use a firearm if need be and has even dabbled in mysticism and magic.
LEVEL 1
Ancestry & Heritage: Versatile Human
o Ability Boosts & Flaws: +Dexterity, +Intelligence
o Ancestry Feat: Arcane Tattoos – ghost sound
o General Feat: Fleet
Background: Truth Seeker
o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Intelligence
o Skill Increase: Deception (trained), Politics Lore (trained)
o Background Feat: Lie to Me
Class & Subclass: Investigator with an Interrogation Methodology
o Class Ability Boost: +Intelligence
o Skill Increase: Acrobatics (trained), Arcana (trained), Athletics (trained), Crafting (trained), Diplomacy (trained), Intimidation (trained), Occultism (trained), Society (trained), Stealth (trained), Thievery (trained)
o Class Feat: That’s Odd
o Skill Feat: No Cause for Alarm
Details
o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Dexterity, +Intelligence, +Charisma (Str +2, Dex +2, Con +0, Int +4, Wis +0, Cha +1)
Vic will be tapping into the human ancestry with a versatile heritage solely to pick up Fleet, which will help him sneak around, snoop, and conduct his investigations. Given his meager association with magic, he’ll take Arcane Tattoos with ghost sound likely being the best option as a way to let him sow confusion and discord among his adversaries. There’s a few options that are a solid fit for his background – Barker from Extinction Curse fits with his role as a television journalist specifically given his role as an entertainer, but this build settled on Truth Seeker from Age of Ashes with a focus on the idea of him being driven by a desire for the truth and drawing a bit from his animated incarnation – which was my first introduction to the character and possibly my favorite incarnation. Naturally, as DC’s second greatest detective (justice for my boy Detective Chimp), he will be using the investigator class that follows the interrogation methodology. This is obviously based on his persona as the Question and his methods of uncovering information. This methodology grants him No Cause for Alarm as well as the very cool Pointed Question action, while his class feat will be spent on That’s Odd. This build is a little less combat focused than some of the past investigators built here, though that is still important, and for somebody as aware of the Question, this feels like an appropriate pick.
LEVEL 2
o Class Feat: Vigilante Dedication
o Skill Feat: Dirty Trick
o Skill Increase: Deception (expert)
o Gear: psychopomp mask
LEVEL 3
o General Feat: Thorough Search
o Skillful Lesson: Quick Disguise
o Skill Increase: Thievery (expert)
o Gear: +1 knuckleduster, ring of discretion, psychopomp mask
LEVEL 4
o Class Feat: Person of Interest
o Skill Feat: Bon Mot
o Skill Increase: Diplomacy (expert)
o Gear: blazons of shared power, +1 knuckleduster, necklace of knives, psychopomp mask
LEVEL 5
o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Dexterity, +Intelligence, +Wisdom (Str +3, Dex +3, Con +0, Int +4.5, Wis +1, Cha +1)
o Ancestry Feat: Ornate Tattoos – illusory disguise
o Skillful Lesson: Alchemical Crafting
o Skill Increase: Intimidation (expert)
o Gear: +1 striking knuckleduster, blazons of shared power, glasses of sociability, +1 dueling pistol, ring of discretion, psychopomp mask
Perhaps it is because of the faceless nature of the Question’s mask, but it feels very important for him to take up a Vigilante Dedication, which will allow him to more fully separate the identities of Vic Sage and the Question. Person of Interest is a very valuable feat for Vic – as he gets deeper into this build, he’s going to have a lot of neat little tricks and tools to pull out of his box, and doing something to help his action economy is going to be big. While this costs an action to set up, it pays in dividends by allowing Devise a Stratagem be a free action against the target for a full minute. Now as an investigator, he’ll want Thorough Search to aid him in his investigations while Ornate Tattoo will allow him to pick up illusory disguise to let him shape the pseudoderm into different faces. As an investigator, he also receives a wealth of skill feats – Dirty Trick and Bon Mot are two skill actions with neat effects. The former is a new one from the Player Core 2 and is super awesome aside from its Attack trait. It is a great use if you know your Devise a Stratagem won’t land. The latter will help the Question land his Pointed Questions or make it harder for enemies to pierce through the various disguises he dons with the like of Quick Disguise. Finally, Alchemical Crafting is included for the sake of the binary gas that he uses to get his mask to adhere to his face and that he loads into his calling cards.
LEVEL 6
o Class Feat: Connect the Dots
o Skill Feat: Discreet Inquiry
o Skill Increase: Stealth (expert)
o Gear: +1 studded leather, +1 striking knuckleduster, demon mask, blazons of shared power, necklace of knives, masquerade scarf
LEVEL 7
o General Feat: Prescient Planner
o Skillful Lesson: Slippery Secrets
o Skill Increase: Deception (master)
o Gear: deck of illusions, +1 studded leather, diplomat’s badge, +1 striking knuckleduster, blazons of shared power, glasses of sociability
LEVEL 8
o Class Feat: Many Guises
o Skill Feat: Eyes of the City
o Skill Increase: Diplomacy (master)
o Gear: smuggler’s sack (type II), deck of illusions, lesser grub gloves, +1 studded leather, +1 striking knuckleduster, blazons of shared power
LEVEL 9
o Ancestry Feat: Multitalented – Monk Dedication
o Skillful Lesson: Trick Magic Item
o Skill Increase: Intimidation (master), Survival (trained)
o Gear: +1 resilient studded leather, boots of bounding, smuggler’s sack (type II), deck of illusions, +1 striking dueling pistol, handwraps of mighty blows (+1 striking)
LEVEL 10
o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Constitution, +Intelligence, +Charisma (Str +4, Dex +3, Con +1, Int +5, Wis +1, Cha +2)
o Class Feat: Whodunnit?
o Skill Feat: Slippery Prey
o Skill Increase: Performance (trained), Thievery (master)
o Gear: greater ventriloquist’s ring, +1 resilient studded leather, astral weapon rune, smuggler’s sack (type II), +1 striking dueling pistol, handwraps of mighty blows (+1 striking)
The use of Connect the Dots is predominantly inspired by the DC animated universe take on the character who is a self-confessed conspiracy theorist forging connections between insidious plots, boy band music, and ice cream flavors. With his ability to disguise himself using the psuedoderm, he employs the vigilante’s Many Guises feat. He rounds out his class feat choices in this block with Whodunnit, which will allow the Question to ask some questions of the GM. Related to class feats, he takes up Multitalented to grab a Monk Dedication and reference the training he underwent at the hands of Richard Dragon, refining his former brawling style into an actual martial art. He uses Prescient Planner for his forethinking ability, accounting for his ability to outplot his enemies while also maintaining the drama and suspense of a comic book. Discreet Inquiry fits with his role as the Question while also playing into his ability to disguise himself to ask these questions and keep his identity obscured through Slippery Secrets. Some of the Question’s magic allows him to empathically link with cities for a few purposes, which comes into play with Eyes of the City and he can tap into some actual magic with Trick Magic Item. Finally, for those scenes when are hero is imperiled only to slip out at the last second, he uses Slippery Prey.
LEVEL 11
o General Feat: Prescient Consumable
o Skillful Lesson: Dubious Knowledge
o Skill Increase: Stealth (master)
o Gear: handwraps of mighty blows (+2 striking), messenger’s ring, greater ventriloquist’s ring, +1 resilient studded leather, smuggler’s sack (type II), +1 striking dueling pistol
LEVEL 12
o Class Feat: Make ‘Em Sweat
o Skill Feat: Swift Sneak
o Skill Increase: Athletics (expert)
o Gear: +2 resilient studded leather, handwraps of mighty blows (+2 striking), +2 striking dueling pistol, greater ventriloquist’s ring, astral weapon rune, mask of the cursed eye
LEVEL 13
o Ancestry Feat: Natural Ambition
o Class Feat: Underworld Investigator
o Skillful Lesson: Fleeing Diversion
o Skill Increase: Society (expert)
o Gear: handwraps of mighty blows (+2 greater striking), +2 resilient studded leather, 11, +2 striking dueling pistol, messenger’s ring, greater ventriloquist’s ring
LEVEL 14
o Class Feat: Basic Kata – Stumbling Stance
o Skill Feat: Subjective Truth
o Skill Increase: Athletics (master)
o Gear: propulsive boots, handwraps of mighty blows (+2 greater striking), greater cloak of illusions, +2 resilient studded leather, greater demon mask, +2 striking dueling pistol
LEVEL 15
o Ability Boosts: +Constitution, +Intelligence, +Wisdom, +Charisma (Str +4, Dex +3, Con +2, Int +5.5, Wis +2, Cha +3)
o General Feat: Incredible Initiative
o Skillful Lesson: Legendary Negotiation
o Skill Increase: Diplomacy (legendary)
o Gear: +2 greater resilient studded leather, propulsive boots, moderate clarity goggles, handwraps of mighty blows (+2 greater striking), smuggler’s sack (type III), +2 striking dueling pistol
Pointed Question allows the Question to leave an enemy off-guard, leaving them vulnerable and he can enhance that with Make ‘Em Sweat to also make them frightened. Aside from applying a wider debuff, this penalty also stacks with off-guard to give the enemy a total of -3 to their AC. This build seeks to take further advantage of the off-guard from Pointed Question and a few other options with a backstabber fighting style, using Basic Kata to take Stumbling Stance or Wolf Stance but the former just seems generally stronger. For his general feats, he takes up Prescient Consumable to expand on his Prescient Planner feat as well as Incredible Initiative to get a jump on his enemies, leading with pointed questions to seize the advantage of it. He uses his ancestry feat for more class options with Natural Ambition letting him take Underworld Investigator, which is mainly useful for letting him add his Pursue a Lead bonus to Thievery checks – letting him pick locks or nab clues. Dubious Knowledge is meant to play into his conspiracy theorist characterization with him knowing something true among his more outlandish theories. Swift Sneak and Fleeing Diversion are something of a combo, letting him disappear in a puff of his binary gas and then Sneak away at full speed. Subjective Truth uses his vigilante archetype again and lets him more fully disguise himself. With him getting his Diplomacy up to legendary, it feels appropriate to take Legendary Negotiation, giving him a chance to talk a criminal down from fighting and instead turn himself in.
LEVEL 16
o Class Feat: Just One More Thing
o Skill Feat: Reveal Machinations
o Skill Increase: Deception (legendary)
o Gear: greater astral weapon rune, +2 greater resilient studded leather, major everair mask, propulsive boots, handwraps of mighty blows (+2 greater striking), +2 greater striking dueling pistol
LEVEL 17
o Ancestry Feat: Heroic Presence
o Skillful Lesson: Eye for Numbers
o Skill Increase: Thievery (legendary)
o Gear: handwraps of mighty blows (+3 greater striking), greater astral weapon rune, dragonscale amulet, +2 greater resilient studded leather, propulsive boots, +2 greater striking dueling pistol
LEVEL 18
o Class Feat: It Was Me All Along!
o Skill Feat: Wary Disarmament
o Skill Increase: Intimidation (legendary)
o Gear: crown of intellect, handwraps of mighty blows (+3 greater striking), +3 greater striking dueling pistol, greater astral weapon rune, +2 greater resilient studded leather, major everair mask
LEVEL 19
o General Feat: True Perception
o Skillful Lesson: Confabulator
o Skill Increase: Stealth (legendary)
o Gear: +3 greater resilient studded leather, crown of intellect, dread blindfold, handwraps of mighty blows (+3 greater striking), greater astral weapon rune, dragonscale amulet
LEVEL 20
o Ability Boosts: +Dexterity, +Intelligence, +Wisdom, +Charisma (Str +4, Dex +4, Con +2, Int +6, Wis +3, Cha +4)
o Class Feat: Everyone’s a Suspect
o Skill Feat: Legendary Sneak
o Skill Increase: Medicine (trained), Society (master)
o Gear: handwraps of mighty blows (+3 major striking), +3 greater resilient studded leather, greater ring of maniacal devices, crown of intellect, quickstrike weapon rune, +3 greater striking dueling pistol
The Question channels a little bit of Columbo with Just One More Thing, giving him a chance to debuff enemies when he fails the first time. Similarly, It Was Me All Along was just a fun feat that plays into his habit of disguising himself for an investigation while taking advantage of the psuedoderm. He rounds out his class feats with Everyone’s a Suspect given his paranoia and suspicion of everybody in Justice League Unlimited (‘Please. . . I go through everyone’s trash’) during his investigation. Despite this paranoia, the Question is undeniably a hero, which makes Heroic Presence feel appropriate though more ancestry options at this level for humans would be appreciated. True Perception plays into a bit of his mystical ability while rounding out his general feats. Reveal Machinations is another single action ability that allows the Question to debuff enemies while taking advantage of his Deception skill. Eye for Numbers is a funny feat, but they added something actually useful to it with Player Core 2 by letting it increase his attempt to Feint or Create a Diversion. Wary Disarmament and Legendary Sneak will aid him while infiltrating areas and organizations with Confabulator aiding in the efforts of the latter.
FREE ARCHETYPE SUGGESTIONS: In a free archetype game, I would pick up the Vigilante Dedication as quick as possible and then move onto a new one, which might mean having to take something like Startling Appearance to hurry it along. This could then allow an early dip into the Monk Dedication or exploring the Question’s association with magic, which is deeper than I realized, with a caster archetype. He would mainly want utility spells as he doesn’t seem as focused on combat spells though something like phantasmal killer seems like it might fit based on my readings. He could also maybe dip into an Alchemist Dedication – there’s honestly more ways to go than I initially realized when I devised this build. With freed up class feats, take the investigator feats that catch your eye, but if you can slip in a Quick Draw, you can look for a crit with Devise a Stratagem to use his dueling pistol on, whipping it from his coat to fire a crackshot.
BUILD CONCLUSION
The Question is a versatile human investigator who employs the interrogation methodology and has a background as a truth seeker, which ignores the lore implications of the AP it came from to instead focus on Vic’s dogged pursuit of the truth. This hardboiled hero hides his identity behind that of the Question through his Vigilante Dedication and expands on the disguises he can adopt with Many Guises, Quick Disguise, and the illusory disguise granted by his Ornate Tattoos. Some Alchemical Crafting can help him in these endeavors while also representing the binary gas that he will sometimes use to distract foes. This in conjunction with Fleeing Diversion resembles his use of the binary gas to create a smokescreen to confound his foes. He can use knuckle dusters or just his fists to start with, but he eventually invests in a Monk Dedication based on the martial arts training that he eventually undergoes while Stumbling Stance further explores this aspect of him while also taking advantage of the off-guard that he can create with Feints or his Pointed Question. His interrogation methodology references both his superhero identity and natural inquisitiveness, specifically as one of DC’s greatest detectives. Feats like Whodunnit, Connect the Dots, and That’s Odd makes him a capable investigator while No Cause for Alarm from his methodology and Heroic Presence are reflective of his role as a hero. His use of firearms aren’t entirely covered in his kit, but it’s something that he could very easily pick up and wield with few issues beyond itemization. Finally, to cover his meager forays into magic, he takes and reflavors a few choices such as Arcane Tattoos, Eyes of the City, and Trick Magic Item.
With his identity obscured through his Vigilante Dedication and a multitude of disguises from feats like Many Guises, the Question chases down his conspiracies with Pointed Questions, Connecting the Dots, and an endless curiosity. His ability to Devise a Stratagem aids in his brawling though he eventually refines it with a Monk Dedication. Even still, he occasionally slips in some legitimate magic with the likes of Arcane and Ornate Tattoos.
With a display devoid of details, this daring detective delves into difficult dilemmas with dauntless derring-do, dueling dastardly devils with his dukes.
Let me know what you think and what other builds you would like to see. On that topic, with the release of the remaster, I'm starting to go through past builds and update them. As part of this, I'm running votes for what character to start with over on the Monster Monday Discord as well as a poll on YouTube.
If you want to join in on the discussion of these builds and the ones I do for monsters or just hang out with a bunch of fellow TTRPG nerds, check out the Discord server. We also have a Twitter where we try to post teasers for the blog. The build for next week is going to be a real blast!
Have a fantastic Friday!
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