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Frog Dragon
2012-04-01, 01:52 PM
Falling Mountain

"That guy? He's a mindless brawler. An unskilled thug. I can take him. One round in the ring." A warrior, shortly before entering a fighting ring with a Falling Mountain practitioner, and not coming back.

While they may not be art in throwing one's weight around, there can certainly be skill in it. Falling Mountain practitioners use their weight and momentum to deadly effect, always making sure to strike with all their weight and strength, but without overbalancing themselves and thus becoming open to retaliation. Thus, the style that simply seems like like the brutish and chaotic flailing of an unprincipled brawler is actually an exercise in precision of balance and force, creating an extremely forceful style that nevertheless allows for very quick movements.

Falling Mountain was born on the streets, developed by those who wished to perfect the brawny style they utilized daily. Eventually, the developers of the style grew skilled enough to be taken seriously as warriors, and formed their own mercenary bands, before tiring of fighting and starting a school for their style. Their students eventually went to recruit more of their kind, and the circle began anew. Now, many fighters practice portions of the deceptively effective style they have seen without even realizing what it truly is, and the style is much more common than it is known. Many practitioners can still be found, but the ones that gravitate toward the style are largely outwardly brutish and physically imposing fighters, who care for results. The Falling Mountain certainly delivers. As the Falling Mountain is highly movement oriented, its associated skill is tumble. The associated weapons for Falling Mountain are light flail, heavy flail, warhammer, unarmed strike and maul. Only Warblades and Swordsages have access to the Falling Mountain discipline.

There are two ways to master the discipline. The first is to have been trained in it. If you choose to make a martial adept that has already been trained in the Falling Mountain discipline at character creation, you simply replace one discipline that adept could normally learn maneuvers from with the Falling Mountain discipline. He loses the associated skill of the replaced discipline as a class skill, but gains Tumble as a class skill.

The other way is to seek out a master of the Falling Mountain discipline–a martial adept capable of using at least 5th-level maneuvers from the discipline, and to learn Falling Mountain from them. You must train for a month under the master, or spend a month in research, and spend 1,000 xp at the end of your training. You gain the ability to learn maneuvers from the Falling Mountain discipline, and add Tumble to your martial adept class’s list of class skills. In addition, you may exchange your maneuvers known for maneuvers of the Falling Mountain discipline. You may exchange one maneuver of each level, and the new maneuvers you learn must be of the same level as the exchanged maneuvers, unlike normal.


Maneuvers
Lvl 1
Quicksilver Mallet (Strike): Charge with extra bonuses and reduced penalties
Heavy Stance (Stance): Count as one size category larger for some purposes.
Overbearing Assault (Boost): Gain combat bonuses for one round, penalties in the round after that.
Lvl 2
Brawler's Counter (Counter): Immediately respond to an attack, with half damage.
Tumbling Boulder (Strike): Move and make a tumble check, deal extra damage.
Lvl 3
Ogre's Hammer (Strike): Deal 2d6 extra damage, daze opponent.
Furious Tempest (Strike): Attack, knock opponent back.
Quicksilver Step (Stance): Make 10ft steps.
Lvl 4
Tempestuous Defense (Counter): Deny enemy attack of opportunity, make one yourself.
Lvl 5
Pendulum Swing (Counter): Evade attack. Counterattack against an unprepared foe.
Giant's Hammer (Strike): Deal 6d6 extra damage, daze opponent.
Unrelenting Tide (Stance): Gain bonuses when attacked.
Brawler's Retribution (Counter): Immediately respond to an attack.
Lvl 6
Foe-Tossing Charge (Strike): Move, attack, knock enemies back.
Dash Through Danger (Boost): Gain save bonuses, move.
Lvl 7
Titan's Hammer (Strike): Deal 12d6 extra damage, daze opponent.
Liquid Defense(Boost): Gain miss chance dependent on tumble check result.
Lvl 8
Brawler's Revenge (Counter): Immediately respond to an attack, deal double damage.
Perplexing Wave (Strike): Attack, stop enemy from taking actions.
Bulwark of Perseverence (Stance): Gain temporary hit points when attacked.
Lvl 9
Weight of the World (Strike): Attack, deal extra damage, knock back and stun enemy.

Maneuvers

Brawler's Counter
Falling Mountain (Counter)
Level: Warblade 2, Swordsage 2
Prerequisite: None
Initiation Action: 1 Immediate Action
Range: Melee Attack
Target: One creature
Even whilst being attacked, a Falling Mountain practitioner can turn the attack into an advantage and respond in kind.
A Falling Mountain practitioner can use this maneuver when attacked in melee by something within his melee reach. The initiator gets a free attack against the attacker that is resolved after the initial attacker's attack. This attack deals halved damage.

Brawler's Retribution
Falling Mountain (Counter)
Level: Warblade 5, Swordsage 5
Prerequisite: 2 Falling Mountain Maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 Immediate Action
Range: Melee Attack
Target: One creature
An opening a Falling Mountain adept gives to the opponent is an even greater advantage for himself, when used correctly.
A Falling Mountain practitioner can use this maneuver when attacked in melee by something within his melee reach. The initiator gets a free attack against the attacker.

Brawler's Revenge
Falling Mountain (Counter)
Level: Warblade 8, Swordsage 8
Prerequisite: 3 Falling Mountain Maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 Immediate Action
Range: Melee Attack
Target: One creature
With explosive strength and reflexes, a Falling Mountain can time a counter so that the opponent's attempt to exploit his flawed defense only does him harm.
A Falling Mountain practitioner can use this maneuver when attacked in melee by something within his melee reach. The initiator gets a free attack that deals double damage against the attacker that is resolved after the initial attacker's attack. If the attack is a critical hit, stack multipliers as normal.

Bulwark of Perseverence
Falling Mountain (Stance)
Level: Warblade 8, Swordsage 8
Prerequisite: 3 Falling Mountain Maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 Swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
A master of the falling mountain can power through almost anything. So great is his vigor, so unrelenting his stamina, that he can suffer a thousand arrows and not fall.
If you are damaged while in this stance, you gain a number of temporary hit points equal to your initiator level. You may not have more temporary hit points from this stance than you have initiator levels. The temporary hit points are granted to you after the damage is applied. If damage taken would reduce your hit point total below 0, you do not gain temporary hit points. These temporary hit points are retained for the duration of the encounter.

Dash Through Danger
Falling Mountain (Boost)
Level: Warblade 6, Swordsage 6
Prerequisite: 2 Falling Mountain Manuevers
Initiation Action: 1 Swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: One round
With a frenzied dash, the falling mountain adept repositions himself, shrugging off the attacks of his enemies.
When initiating this boost, the adept may move up to his land speed. This does not provoke attacks of opportunity. In addition, he gains a morale bonus to saving throws equal to 1/4 his initiator level, up to a maximum of +5 until the start of his next turn.

Foe-Tossing Charge
Falling Mountain (Strike)
Level: Warblade 6, Swordsage 6
Prerequisite: 2 Falling Mountain Maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 Full Round Action
Range: Personal
Target: You
You through enemy lines, tossing foes aside like ragdolls.
As a part of this maneuver, move up to your speed. You may make a full attack during the move, with the attacks distributed however you wish. Each attack initiates a bullrush that does not provoke attacks of opportunity, and in which you do not have to move with the target of the bullrush.

Furious Tempest
Falling Mountain (Strike)
Level: Warblade 3, Swordsage 3
Prerequisite: 1 Falling Mountain Maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 Standard Action
Range: Melee Attack
Target: One creature
With a mighty blow, you knock the opponent off his feet and back.
When you use this maneuver, make a single melee attack. This melee attack has the added benefit of functioning as a bullrush attempt, though you do not have to move with the opponent. You gain a +2 bonus to the opposed strength check, and do not provoke an attack of opportunity for bullrushing.


Giant's Hammer
Falling Mountain (Strike)
Level: Warblade 5, Swordsage 5
Prerequisite: 1 Falling Mountain Maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 Standard Action
Range: Melee Attack
Target: One creature
Duration: One round
Saving Throw: Fortitude Partial
Like a giant, the crashes down on the opponent, leaving them dazed vulnerable.
When you use this maneuver, make a single melee attack. This attack deals an extra 6d6 points of damage and dazes the opponent if he fails a fortitude save (DC 15+str modifier). Even if the save is successful, the target still takes the extra damage.

Heavy Stance
Falling Mountain (Stance)
Level: Warblade 1, Swordsage 1
Prerequisite: None
Initiation Action: 1 Swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
The Falling Mountain style teaches how to leverage your weight most effectively, becoming capable of taking down creatures much larger than yourself just by cleverly and efficiently using your mass.
When in this stance, and subject to a size modifier or a special size modifier for an opposed check (such as grapple, trip or bull rush), the initiator is considered one size larger than he actually is if doing so would be advantageous to him.

Liquid Defense
Falling Mountain (Boost)
Level: Warblade 7, Swordsage 7
Prerequisite: 3 Falling Mountain Manuevers
Initiation Action: 1 Swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: One round
With calculated, yet swift movements, you slip past attacks with ease.
When initiating this maneuver, make a tumble check. You gain a miss chance depending on the tumble check result until the start of your next turn.
Tumble check result|Miss chance
0-29|20%
30-34|30%
35-39|40%
40+|50%

Ogre's Hammer
Falling Mountain (Strike)
Level: Warblade 3, Swordsage 3
Prerequisite: 1 Falling Mountain Maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 Standard Action
Range: Melee Attack
Target: One creature
Duration: One round
Saving Throw: Fortitude Partial
The practitioner concentrates all the force he can muster into a single blow, leaving the opponent reeling.
When you use this maneuver, make a single melee attack. This attack deals an extra 2d6 points of damage and dazes the opponent if he fails a fortitude save (DC 13+str modifier). Even if the save is successful, the target still takes the extra damage.

Overbearing Assault
Falling Mountain (Boost)
Level: Warblade 1, Swordsage 1
Prerequisite: None
Initiation Action: 1 Swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
While the Falling Mountain emphazises balance and not overextending yourself, practitioners learn that sometimes a furious assault can work even if it leaves you vulnerable.
This maneuver grants you a +2 bonus to all melee attack rolls, and all melee damage rolls for one round. However, in the next round you lose these bonuses, and have a -2 to armor class.

Pendulum Swing
Falling Mountain (Counter)
Level: Warblade 5, Swordsage 5
Prerequisite: 2 Falling Mountain maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 Immediate action
Range: Melee
Target: One creature
As the enemy overextends himself futilely trying to hit you, you swing back, striking the defenseless foe with the force of a mallet.
Anytime an enemy misses you, you may take an attack of opportunity. This attack of opportunity deals 5d6 extra damage, and the enemy is considered flat flooted against it.

Perplexing Wave
Falling Mountain (Strike)
Level: Warblade 8, Swordsage 8
Prerequisite: 4 Falling Mountain Maneuver2
Initiation Action: 1 Standard Action
Range: Melee Attack
Target: One creature
Saving Throw: Will Negates
With a flurry of motion, you ruin the opponent's concentration, forcing them to spend the next few precious seconds regaining their bearings.
To use this maneuver, make a tumble check. If the tumble check result exceeds the opponent's armor class, make a melee attack. In addition, regardless of whether the melee attack hits, the opponent must make a will save with a DC equal to your tumble check result, or only be able to take a single move action on their next turn.

Quicksilver Mallet
Falling Mountain (Strike)
Level: Warblade 1, Swordsage 1
Prerequisite: None
Initiation Action: 1 Full-Round action
Range: Melee Attack
Target: One creature
A basic part of the Falling Mountain style, this maneuver requires precision and force in balance, utilizing momentum to great effect without opening up their defenses.
This strike functions as a charge. However, the initiator does not suffer the normal -2 penalty to AC after the charge, and gains an extra +4 to damage during the charge.

Quicksilver Step
Falling Mountain (Stance)
Level: Warblade 3, Swordsage 3
Prerequisite: 1 Falling Mountain Maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 Swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Motion is a crucial aspect of any fight, and falling mountain adepts know this better than anyone. By correctly shifting their weight, they can much more effectively maneuver around their foes.
When in this stance, you can move 10 feet with 5ft steps.

Tempestuous Defense
Falling Mountain (Counter)
Level: Warblade 4, Swordsage 4
Prerequisite: 1 Falling Mountain maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 Immediate action
Range: Melee
Target: One creature
The moves of a Falling Mountain adept are as swift as they are brutal. With sufficient agility, a fighter can strike throgh the defenses of another while they attempt to use a hole in theirs.
Anytime an opponent attempts an attack of opportunity against you, you can use this counter. First, you must make a tumble check. If your tumble check result exceeds the opponent's attack roll, the opponent's attack of opportunity is wasted and he immediately provokes an attack of opportunity from you.


Titan's Hammer
Falling Mountain (Strike)
Level: Warblade 7, Swordsage 7
Prerequisite: 2 Falling Mountain Maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 Standard Action
Range: Melee Attack
Target: One creature
Duration: One round
Saving Throw: Fortitude Partial
With the relentless might of a titan, the falling mountain practitioner strikes an opponent, leaving them stunned.
When you use this maneuver, make a single melee attack. This attack deals an extra 12d6 points of damage and dazes the opponent if he fails a fortitude save (DC 17+str modifier). Even if the save is successful, the target still takes the extra damage.

Tumbling Boulder
Falling Mountain (Strike)
Level: Warblade 2, Swordsage 2
Prerequisite: None
Initiation Action: 1 Full-Round action
Range: Melee Attack
Target: One Creature
With movements many would consider excessive, a Falling Mountain adept can add unprecedented power to an attack.
As a part of this maneuver, choose a target, move up to your speed, and make a tumble check. You must attack the target at the completion of the move. If the tumble check result exceeds the target's AC, you deal an extra 3d6 damage, and you get a +2 bonus on your attack roll.

Unrelenting Tide
Falling Mountain (Stance)
Level: Warblade 5, Swordsage 5
Prerequisite: 2 Falling Mountain Maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 Swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
A master of the Falling Mountain moves so that all motion aids him. Each attack made against him causes him to surge forth like a tide, with renewed strength.
If you are attacked in melee, you gain a +1 to melee attack rolls, armor class (dodge bonus), reflex saves, melee damage rolls, defensive bull rush checks and defensive grapple checks for each melee attack made against you (max +5) for your next turn, as long as you move at least 20ft during that turn. In addition, the adept gets a +5 to land speed for each melee attack made against him for the next turn (max +15ft).

Weight of the World
Falling Mountain (Strike)
Level: Warblade 9, Swordsage 9
Prerequisite: 4 Falling Mountain maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 Standard Action
Range: Melee
Target: One Creature
A master of the Falling Mountain strikes once, and the foe crumbles, defenseless and grievously injured.
As a part of this maneuver, make a single attack. This attack deals an extra 15d6 damage, and initiates a bullrush against the target. This bullrush attempt provokes no attacks of opportunity, nor do you have to follow the opponent during the bullrush. In addition, neither side gets to add size modifiers to the check unless they would be advantageous to you. If the initiator of this maneuver wins the opposed strength check, the opponent is also stunned and dazed for 1d6 rounds.


Sublime Adept
Though the sublime way is a long and arduous path, even those of lesser talent can manage to make use of it. While they do not have the talent of swordsages and warblades, they have managed to learn a smidgen of the sublime way and apply it to a useful purpose. Generally, they are the average students of schools of the sublime way, or perhaps specially trained soldiers of some description. They represent the average, like adepts to wizards, like warriors to fighters. They can be found wherever knowledge of the sublime way exists in the hands of people without the sufficient talent to truly excel at it.

Hit Dice: d8

{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|Maneuvers Known|Maneuvers Readied|Stances Known

1st|
+0|
+2|
+0|
+0||2|1|1
2nd|
+1|
+3|
+0|
+0||2|1|1
3rd|
+2|
+3|
+1|
+1||3|2|1
4th|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+1||3|2|1
5th|
+3|
+4|
+1|
+1||4|2|2
6th|
+4|
+5|
+2|
+2||4|2|2
7th|
+5|
+5|
+2|
+2||5|2|2
8th|
+6/1|
+6|
+2|
+2||5|3|2
9th|
+6/1|
+6|
+3|
+3||6|3|3
10th|
+7/2|
+7|
+3|
+3||6|3|3
11th|
+8/3|
+7|
+3|
+3||7|3|3
12th|
+9/4|
+8|
+4|
+4||7|3|3
13th|
+9/4|
+8|
+4|
+4||8|4|4
14th|
+10/5|
+9|
+4|
+4||8|4|4
15th|
+11/6/1|
+9|
+5|
+5||9|4|4
16th|
+12/7/2|
+10|
+5|
+5||9|4|4
17th|
+12/7/2|
+10|
+5|
+5||10|4|5
18th|
+13/8/3|
+11|
+6|
+6||10|5|5
19th|
+14/9/4|
+11|
+6|
+6||11|5|5
20th|
+15/10/5|
+12|
+6|
+6||11|5|5[/table]

Class Skills
The Sublime Adept's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Martial Lore (Int) and Swim (Str)

Skill Points at First Level: (2 + Int modifier) x 4
Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 2 + Int modifier

Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: The Sublime Adept is proficient with light and medium armor, as well as light and heavy shields. The sublime adept is proficient with all Simple Weapons, as well as all favored martial weapons of his chosen discipline.

Maneuvers
A Sublime Adept chooses maneuvers from a single discipline of his choosing. The Sublime adept gains the key skill of the chosen discipline as a class skill.
A Sublime Adept has 2 maneuvers at the start of his career, and gains more as he gains levels.
Once you know a maneuver, you must ready it before you can use it (See maneuvers readied). A maneuver useable by a sublime adepts is considered an extraordinary ability unless otherwise is indicated on the maneuver description. Maneuvers are not affected by spell resistance and initiating them does not provoke attacks of opportunity.
You learn additional maneuvers as you gain levels, as indicated in the the table below. You must be high enough level to learn a maneuver and you must fulfill all the prerequisites for a maneuver before you can learn it.
Upon reaching fourth level, and every even numbered level after that, you may replace a maneuver you already have with another maneuver that you qualify for. Essentially, you lose the old maneuver to gain a new one. The new maneuver may be any maneuver you qualify for and you can exchange a lower level maneuver for a higher level one this way.

Maneuvers Readied
You can ready one of your two maneuvers at first level and as you gain levels, you can ready more maneuvers, but you must still choose maneuvers to ready. You ready maneuvers by exercising for 5 minutes. The maneuvers remain readied until you decide to exercise to ready them again. You need not sleep or rest to ready maneuvers.
You begin an encounter with all maneuvers unexpended, regardless of how many times you may have already chosen to use them. When you initiate a maneuver, it becomes expended, and must be recovered to be used again (see below).
You can recover all expended maneuvers by making one attack as a full-round action. You may not initiate a maneuver or change stance, but you can remain in a stance in which you started your turn.

Stances
You begin play with knowledge of one first level stance open to sublime adepts. At levels indicated in the table, you can choose additional changes. Unlike maneuvers, stances are not expended and you do not have to ready them. All the stances you know are available to you at all times, and changing stance is a swift action. A stance is a extraordinary ability unless otherwise indicated in the description.
Unlike with maneuvers, you may not learn new stances in the place of old ones.


Note: Credit for the learning system for the discipline goes to The Demented One.

Empedocles
2012-04-01, 02:11 PM
Pretty cool discipline. However, I have some issues with the NPC class. To me, it seems like anyone who can use one of the disciplines has trained endlessly to attain that level of power. I don't see how they could end up so much weaker then say, a swordsage.

Frog Dragon
2012-04-01, 02:16 PM
I don't really see it like that. That same endless training goes much farther on a more talented person (PC), and results in a more powerful warrior (Swordsage). These are basically warriors who traded out some BAB for maneuvers. Besides, it's an NPC class. Needs to be appropriately weak. :smalltongue:

ScrambledBrains
2012-04-01, 02:19 PM
Pretty cool discipline. However, I have some issues with the NPC class. To me, it seems like anyone who can use one of the disciplines has trained endlessly to attain that level of power. I don't see how they could end up so much weaker then say, a swordsage.

Watch what you say about the Swordsages, please. While somewhat weaker than the Warblades purely physically, that doesn't give anyone the right to besmirch them, as they have numerous merits of their own.

Kymme
2012-04-01, 02:26 PM
I like the dicipline, and the class too. Good work!

Frog Dragon
2012-04-01, 03:57 PM
Hmm, I just realized the "Brawler's" Line is pretty overpowered. Nerf-bat incoming.