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View Full Version : [3.5] Class: Eternal Apprentice; Need Help



Beowulf DW
2010-03-16, 12:38 PM
Creating a homebrew base class is probably way over my head at this point, so I'm asking for some help. I have some ideas for what I want this class to do, but I need help with the numbers, how some of the abilities should work, at what level each ability should be gained, whether or not this should be a prestige class, and if I’ve made something to over-powered or gimped. Also, I need to know if a class like this already exists.

My idea with the Eternal Apprentice was to create a melee striker that relied on Charisma as much as, or even more than, Strength and Dexterity. My ideas for the Eternal Apprentice have been drawn from my own training in the martial arts, as well as from the idea of kenki, or swordsman's spirit, as presented in Rurouni Kenshin. As such, many of my ideas for this class have been taken from the manga and from the stories and anecdotes that I've heard from my martial arts instructors. Kenki seemed to refer to a force of personality that expert swordsmen possess, which should explain why Charisma is important to this class. In Rurouni Kenshin, swordsman's spirit was used to intimidate one's enemies, to predict an enemy's actions, and even to paralyze large groups of opponents. I know that there are many interpretations over what exactly Charisma (and Wisdom and Intelligence) means, but I subscribe to the idea that Charisma is a character’s force of personality, as well as a character’s ability to read people’s emotions and react to those emotions.

I put everything in spoiler tags, because it's kind of long.

Class: Eternal Apprentice

Description: There are many philosophical approaches to the martial arts, but none quite like that of an Eternal Apprentice. Eternal Apprentices believe that it is impossible to truly master anything, and so they maintain the mindset of an apprentice: eager to learn, giving one's all, holding nothing back. To remind themselves of this philosophy, Eternal Apprentices carry boken, wooden swords, with them at all times. These boken are the weapons of choice for all Apprentices, and also powerful symbols of their philosophy. Because of their outlook on life, Eternal Apprentices have utmost faith in their own willpower, and many have even incorporated their strong will into their combat routines, using seemingly supernatural abilities.

Alignment: Any. The desire for self-improvement drives some Apprentices to be better people morally, and it drives some to look inwards, caring little for others.

BAB: Since the Eternal Apprentice's primary function is melee, I think it should be a full BAB class.

Saving Throws: Same as a fighter, but swap the values for Fortitude and Will.

Class Features: This is the part where I'm most uncertain, because I'm not sure at which levels the Eternal Apprentice should get some of these abilities, nor do I know some of the abilities should work according to the mechanics and rules of D&D.

--B]Weapon and Armor Proficiency[/B]: An eternal apprentice is proficient in all simple weapons and wooden swords. Eternal apprentices are proficient in light armor.

--B]Wooden Sword[/B]: Every eternal apprentice begins play with a wooden sword. For the purposes of game mechanics, wooden swords are identical to any kind of sword they’re modeled after (short sword, long sword or bastard sword) with the exception of damage type, which becomes bludgeoning. An eternal apprentice may carve a new wooden sword for him/herself. To do this, a character must obtain a piece of lumber that weighs twice as much as the kind sword that he/she intends to create (must be one single piece of wood), that character must then spend half a day carving the wooden sword.

--B]AC Bonus[/B]: An eternal apprentice adds his/her Charisma bonus to AC. Eternal apprentices are excellent at reading people, particularly during combat. They read the emotions and intentions of their opponents and react accordingly.

--B]Shin no Ippō[/B]: (This is one I definitely need help with. How should this ability function? Should this be a spell-like ability? What should the range be?) If you’ve read or watched Rurouni Kenshin, you should know what this is. It was an ability that caused every opponent with the user’s field of vision to become paralyzed with fear, but only so long as the victim’s fighting spirit was weaker than the user’s. Additionally, the user could use Shin no Ippo on himself to increase his strength and endurance. In terms of a game, I thought that this ability could be used to buff oneself and allies, and to de-buff and stun enemies.

--Upgrading the Wooden Sword: My idea here is that once every few levels, an eternal apprentice could permanently upgrade his/her wooden sword with a weapon enhancement. If anyone has any ideas for a list of enhancements, by all means, share it.

Well…that’s all I got. Again, any help would be appreciated. Thank you.