Here's the skill description:
Clowning(New!): The profession of the clown is an ancient one, known to have been practiced on the Palladium World as long ago as the Time of a Thousand Magicks, 70,000 years in the past! Clowning is more than just a costume and makeup, although learning to wear the costumes and apply the makeup is a difficult and time consuming process. Clowns take on very special "characters" (as if the charactr were role-playing someone entirely different). Note that clowns, in the Palladium World, are not considered to be funny (although they do get laughs). Their acts, skits and plays are all ancient routines (called "mystery plays"), the meanings of which arc often totally lost in the history of a forgotten time. All clowns are members of the "Guild of Kleintro," no ifs, and, or buts. "False" clowns, those without guild authority, are hunted down and killed, usually by assassins, but royal agents of the Western Empire. The Kingdom of Timiro, and the Eastern Territory have all been involved, at one time or another, in the slaying of pretend clowns.
And here's the guild description:
Guild of Kleintro is by far the most feared and deadly of all the various entertainment guilds. All clowns are members of the Guild of Kleintro, no ifs, ands or buts. "False" clowns, those without guild authority, are hunted down and killed, usually by assassins, but royal agents of the Western Empire, the Kingdom of Timiro, and the Eastern Territory have all been involved in the slaying of pretend clowns. Members of the Kleintro, even when they are not in clown garb, are usually easily identified by their bizarre gloves. It's not just that the gloves are large (they are!). but that they are always mismatched. so the number of fingers on one hand never matches the digits on me other, and so it looks as if they have from two to nine fingers on a hand. Some clowns, particularly those from the islands of Phi and Lopan. but from other places as well, also tattoo the outline (in a weird "stitch" pattern) of their oversized clown mouths on their faces.
This makes no sense. If people don't understand the meaning or point of their routines and they aren't funny, then why would people spend money on it enough for it to be a profession? In what sort of venue do clowns perform? Why does the guild exist at all? Why is it taken seriously by anyone? Why would clowns care about fake vs legit clowns enough to hire assassins? Why would three different human governments care? Why murder a fake clown?
Is this some kind of a reference to pop culture or medieval history? Why is this a thing, much less a serious thing that induces multiple non-aligned governments to murder people for clowning around without a guild membership?
(side note: I don't find clowns in real life to be remotely scary. One came to a birthday party I went to when I was a kid, and that dude was hilarious. Ronald McDonald is awesome, and the notion of clowns being scary is ludicrous to me.)
