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View Full Version : [3.5] Heart's Key Discipline [WIP, ToB, PEACH]



Xefas
2012-10-31, 03:56 AM
Notes

A resident of this here playground noted a lack of disciplines with Open Lock as their associated skill. So, naturally, I had to rise to the challenge!

Things are obviously a Work-in-Progress, but feel free to post critiques and suggestions. I think there are already some interesting mechanics to look at. :smallbiggrin:

Aside from the unfinished maneuvers, I also gotta stick this in The Great Wheel somehow...

"Once, there was a maiden with no friends at all...
...who lived on an island, surrounded by a vast darkness.

"I'm going to leave this place, and find some friends." she said.
But, try as she might, she couldn't think of a way to flee her prison.

Putting their heads together, the other people on the island came up with an idea.
She could build a raft and sail away across the water.
"Thank you..." she said. "...for helping me when I needed it."

The maiden set about building the raft, working tirelessly day and night.
But the labor was difficult and she worked herself to exhaustion.

Concerned, the others came to the maiden and offered to help her build the raft.
Working together, it seemed to take no time at all.
"Thank you..." she said. "...for being strong when I couldn't."

The maiden got on her raft, and tried to sail it away.
But this raft was something that required more than one person.

The people of the island looked around, and saw how lonely it was.
All of them climbed aboard the raft, and they were able to crew it together.
"Thank you..." she said. "...for being with me to the end."

~Sutra of the Maiden's Friends

The associated skill for Heart's Key is Open Lock. Its associated weapons are the longsword, bastard sword, greatsword, and glaive.

All Warblades, Swordsages, and Crusaders may learn the Heart's Key Discipline, as well as any suitably appropriate homebrew martial classes, at the discretion of the group using them. A member of one of these classes may forsake one Martial Discipline they would normally be allowed. They lose all maneuvers and stances of that discipline, and must replace them with others of the same level (preferably Heart's Key ones). They may also, at their discretion, lose its associated skill as a class skill and gain Open Lock as a class skill, if they wish.

Alternative mechanics for gaining access to homebrewed disciplines are many, so feel free to utilize whichever you prefer. A method by The Demented One that I particularly like is as follows:

A prospective disciple of the Heart's Key may seek out a master – a martial adept capable of using at least 5th level maneuvers from the discipline, most often a wielder of one of the powerful and esoteric Key-Blades. Alternatively, a character may, through extraordinary circumstances, come into possession of a Key-Blade without already having mastered the discipline.

They must train for a month under their master, or spend a few moments internalizing the whispered enlightenment of their Key-Blade, and spend 1,000 xp. They then gain the ability to learn maneuvers from the Heart's Key discipline in addition to any other disciplines they know. In addition, they may exchange their maneuvers known for maneuvers of the Heart's Key discipline, up to one maneuver of each level, with each maneuver of the same level as the one exchanged for it.

Maneuver List
Level 1
Disheartening the Lock (Strike) – Open some locks.
Sharing Your Drive (Stance) – Embody you friends' strengths.
Unlocking the Heart (Strike) – Look into another's heart.

Level 2
Lighthearted Leap (Boost) – The jump has been doubled.
Raiding Strike (Strike) – Bounce your weapon off of an enemy.

Level 3
Synchonized Combination Move – Combine your abilities with a friend.
Secondary Drive (Stance) – Expand your ability to share your friends' drives.

Level 4
Chaining Us Together (Boost) – Collect tokens from your friends.
Lighthearted Dodge (Counter) – Press 'Dodge' to not die.

Level 5
Solo Drive (Stance) – Release memories of your friends.

Level 6
Loyal Summons – Call forth a friend to aid you.

Level 7

Level 8
Selfless Drive (Stance) – Give strength back to your friends.

Level 9
Harmony Limit (Strike) – By your powers combined.

Level 1
Disheartening The Lock
Heart's Key (Strike)
Action: Standard
Range: Melee
Target: One Lock

A lock is a barrier between mystery and truth, between confinement and freedom, between people and their desires. When you use this maneuver, your hands begin to glow softly, as does a single lock within range that you focus on. Your heart resonates with the lock, and speaks to it of the darkness it represents.

As part of this maneuver, make an Open Lock check, replacing the normal bonus you would receive from a high Dexterity score with your highest mental ability score instead. Masterwork tools cannot grant a bonus to this check, but if you are holding a weapon associated with this discipline, you may use it as a focus for your power, granting you a circumstance bonus to the roll equal to 1/2 your initiator level (rounded up).

If the check equals or exceeds the DC of the lock, it shudders in a moment of silent, inanimate horror at the realization of its purpose, and rebels against its very nature, springing itself open. Magical locks, such as an Arcane Lock spell, that normally do not have a DC associated with them, have a DC of 20 plus their caster level.

At initiator level 10, your heart's aptitude for discouraging locks now extends to walls. For, what are walls, but a means to separate people more permanently and tyrannically than any lock? This only functions on inanimate barriers a foot thick or less, that were artificially crafted to serve as such (so, you could effect the stone wall of a castle, but not the stone wall of a cave). The DC to effect walls is 30 + their Hardness rating + 1 per inch of thickness. Success causes a simple open doorway just large enough for someone of your natural size category to walk through to blossom forth from the wall. The doorway lasts for 1 round per point by which you exceeded the DC - or, if you exceeded it by 10 or more, the doorway becomes a permanent addition to the wall. Magical walls, such as a Wall of Iron spell or a Wall of Force spell, have a DC of 30 + their caster level.

If you fail to unlock a lock or wall, you may not attempt to unlock that same lock or wall again with this maneuver for (24 hours - your initiator level), as it becomes stubborn to your pleas.

Sharing Your Drive
Heart's Key (Stance)
Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance

When you learn this stance, choose three of the following six Virtue Forms to learn. This choice cannot be changed later.

When you shift into this stance, choose one Virtue Form that you know, and one friend that you can perceive that fits the requirement of that Virtue Form. You gain the effects of that Virtue Form until you leave this stance, the encounter ends, or five minutes have elapsed – whichever comes first.

While in a Virtue Form, your appearance always undergoes a variety of purely cosmetic alterations, depending on the friend chosen. The changes tend to be metaphorical, rather than an explicit overlaying of the friend's features. For example, going into Valor Form by choosing a stalwart paladin ally might alter your armor to integrate a golden lion motif, complete with a dramatic furred collar, fanged pauldrons, and clawed gauntlets, while going into Temperance Form by choosing a wise wood-elven druid might lengthen your hair, turning it a brilliant green, and twisting your armor until it looks like a canopy of leaves, each cut from a flawless emerald.

The exact look that you gain from any given friend should stay more-or-less consistent, unless that friend undergoes some significant personality changes. However, they need not stay consistent across different friends – a stalwart and lion-hearted paladin will give a different Valor Form from that of a grim, grizzled, and practical strategy-oriented paladin, which will give a different Valor Form from a stalwart and lion-hearted barbarian, and so on.

Note that accessing different forms from the same friend tends to create similar shifts in appearance, though not identical. It might be as simple as the accents on someone's Valor Form being Red, while those same accents on their Diligence Form are Green. Or their Diligence Form might incorporate a sagely hood and cloak instead of a helmet.


Valor Form
Requirement: A friend with a higher Strength score than your own.
Effects:
Add your chosen friend's current strength modifier as a morale bonus on all Strength Ability Checks (such as from a Bull Rush, or breaking free from a Web spell), and checks to oppose a grapple.

At initiator level 6, your friend may choose one feat they know that qualifies as a Fighter Bonus Feat. You gain the benefits of that feat, even if you do not meet the prerequisites. Once a feat has been chosen for a particular friend, it is always the same whenever you use that particular friend to activate Valor Form. The one exception being that, if that friend levels up, and obtains a new feat via the level up process, they may choose to scrap the old selection and replace it with the newly acquired feat (which must still qualify as a Fighter Bonus Feat).

Grace Form
Requirement: A friend with a higher Dexterity score than your own.
Effects:
Your movement speed is not decreased by armor, and you do not take your Armor Check Penalty as a penalty to skill checks.

At initiator level 6, you may use your friend's current Dexterity modifier in place of your Strength or Dexterity modifier for the purposes of Strength or Dexterity based skill checks.

Conviction Form
Requirement: A friend with a higher Constitution score than your own.
Effects:
As long as your friend is still at 1 hit point or above, you are not rendered Staggered at 0 hit points, nor Dying at negative hit points. Instead, you may continue to act normally, right up until you die.

At initiator level 6, you no longer die at -10 hit points. Rather, your threshold for death is extended to be equal to your friend's current Constitution score. In addition, while your hit point total is negative, you gain a morale bonus to your armor class equal to your friend's current Constitution modifier.

Diligence Form
Requirement: A friend with a higher Intelligence score than your own.
Effects:
You gain a Competence bonus equal to your friend's Intelligence score on all melee damage rolls made against a target that you or your friend have identified with a Knowledge skill.

At initiator level 6, you may take 10 on any skill check that you and your friend both have at least 1 skill point in, regardless of whether you are distracted.

Temperance Form
Requirement: A friend with a higher Wisdom score than your own.
Effects:
Calculate the modifiers to your Will save, and to all of your Wisdom-based skill checks, using your friend's current Wisdom modifier in place of your own.

At initiator level 6, whenever you make a Will saving throw or a Wisdom-based skill check, you may use your friend's Will save or Wisdom-based skill check in place of your own.

Dignity Form
Requirement: A friend with a higher Charisma score than your own.
Effects:
Add your friend's Charisma modifier to any skill check, ability check, or saving throw that opposes an attempt to knock you prone, or attempts to force you to move (such as a Trip or Bull Rush, or a Gust of Wind or Plane Shift spell).

At initiator level 6, you no longer automatically fail any check on a 1, and you add your friend's Charisma modifier to your Critical Confirmation rolls.


Unlocking The Heart
Heart's Key (Strike)
Action: Standard
Range: 10ft per initiator level
Target: One Creature
Duration: 1 Minute per Initiator Level

With an open, beckoning gesture, your hands begin to glow softly, and an inner light erupts from your target's chest. They may make a Will saving throw to resist but, otherwise, a glimpse of their true nature will be revealed for all to see.

As part of this maneuver, make an Open Lock check, replacing the normal bonus you would receive from a high Dexterity score with your highest mental ability score instead. Masterwork tools cannot grant a bonus to this check, but if you are holding a weapon associated with this discipline, you may use it as a focus for your power, granting you a circumstance bonus to the roll equal to your initiator level.

If you can meet or exceed a DC of (10 + the target's hit dice + the target's highest ability score modifier), then their form visually changes, effectively revealing their Alignment, but in more abstract terms, and proportionally to the depths they have sunken into that alignment. A mildly Lawful Good character might have a few lines, wrinkles, and imperfections smoothed out, while emanating an almost imperceptible aura of warmth and strength. A strongly Lawful Good character might have their cloak redesigned into a cascade of white feathers, a golden halo shining behind their head, and a voice like the beautiful-but-stern thundering of brass trumpets.

This tiny sliver of one's true self is consistent with each activation. So, using this maneuver on a strongly Lawful Good character whose true self is represented by the feathers, the halo, and the trumpets, will always bring about the same imagery (unless their moral or ethical outlook changes, of course). While using this maneuver on a different strongly Lawful Good character whose true self is represented by different imagery, will always bring up that imagery. Note that the imagery of one's true self is probably similar (but not identical) to the imagery granted to a user of the Sharing Your Drive stance when they use that person as a focus for a Virtue Form.

For every 10 points by which you exceed the DC, you may choose to have the answer to one of the following questions become obvious to all who look upon the changed individual. Such is the truth that leaks from their every pore.


-What would they die to protect?
-What do they want more than anything else?
-Who do they care most for?
-Who do they hate most?
-What is their most prized possession?
-What has been the happiest moment of their life?
-What has been the worst moment of their life?


Once you have used this maneuver on someone, you always get the same result upon additional uses, succeeding or failing just as the first time, and asking the same questions (although the answers might be different). Until, that is, you level up, in which case you may try for a higher result, and therefore ask additional questions.

If a spell is currently on your target that would obscure their alignment, or somehow prevent their true nature from being revealed (such as an Undetectable Alignment spell), you may make an additional Open Lock check, with the same modifiers as the first, with a DC of (20 + the effect's caster level). Success allows you to circumvent that spell. Failure forces your maneuver to operate by the effects of the spell, possibly revealing a false "true" nature, or revealing false answers to the questions.

Note that your own heart does not have the power to unlock itself. You cannot use this maneuver to reveal your own true nature, although another disciple of the Heart's Key with this maneuver may do so.



Level 2
Lighthearted Leap
Heart's Key (Boost)
Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: you
Duration: Varies

Your entire body flashes for the briefest of moments as you release a burst of stress, grief, and sadness. The lifting of such an enormous emotional weight makes you feel, even if just for a few seconds, as if you can fly.

Until the end of your next turn:
-You may substitute the number of ranks you have in Open Lock for the number of ranks you have in Jump for the purposes of Jump checks. Being able to release a greater amount of mental strain means you're even lighter.
-You do not fall. If you are in midair, you simply 'hang', until something moves you, or until you move yourself, either via a Fly speed, or by a Jump check.
-You can make Jump checks, even without a solid surface to push off against.
-Your Jump checks are always considered to have a running start behind them.

Beginning at initiator level 6, as long as you Jump at least once per round, you may extend the duration of this maneuver up to a number of rounds equal to your highest ability score modifier.

At initiator level 9, as long as you Jump at least once per round, you may extend the duration of this maneuver indefinitely.

At initiator level 12, while this maneuver is active, once per round, you may move via a Jump check as a swift action.

Raiding Strike
Heart's Key (Strike)
Action: Standard
Range: 10ft per initiator level
Target: One Creature

A fierce light sheathes a melee weapon you are holding, and it seems nearly weightless in your hands. You may make a normal melee attack against any target within the range of this maneuver, hurling your weapon like a spinning boomerang of justice to strike them down.

If your attack misses or deals no damage, your weapon reappears in your hand.

If you attack hits and deals damage, your weapon bounces off the target and remains, hovering in the air, in a space of your choosing that is, at most, 1/2 the range of this maneuver from the target.

At the beginning of your next turn, your weapon will return to you. However, in the mean time, if someone that is not your friend attempts to grab your weapon, they not only fail to do so, but take (your highest mental ability modifier) damage. Furthermore, a friend in the same space as your weapon, with a free hand, may spend a swift action to grab the weapon and hurl it back at the same target.

In this case, make another melee attack roll (it may be polite to let your friend's player roll this, if they want ^_^). Only, this time, rather than dealing normal damage, it deals (your friend's highest ability modifier) damage, which bypasses damage reduction. If this misses or fails to deal damage, the weapon returns to you. Otherwise, it ricochets again, to a spot of your friend's choosing, with the range halved once more (to 1/4 this time).

Your weapon may continue to ricochet as long as friends are willing to devote swift actions, up to a maximum of (your highest mental ability modifier) times, or until the range is cut to 5ft or less. If either of these conditions occurs, the weapon reappears in your hand immediately.


Level 3
Synchronized Combination Move
Heart's Key
Prerequisite: One Heart's Key Maneuver
Action: Varies

This maneuver may be used in one of two ways.

In the first, you use this maneuver during an encounter to create a Sync Combo with a friend, that is in the same encounter and that you can perceive and that can perceive you, that you do not already have a Sync Combo with. The action required to activate this maneuver, in this case, is the same action that the finished Sync Combo will require.

A Sync Combo is a special custom maneuver that requires a friend to use. The two of you should work out what the maneuver does, and have your group finalize it (it can be tweaked for balance later, if need be). After you know what your Sync Combo will do, it immediately activates, consuming your actions as normal. Then, Synchronized Combination Move is removed from your pool of readied maneuvers for the encounter.

Typically, a particular friend may only ever have a single Sync Combo associated with him, so make sure that the maneuver scales, or somehow stays useful for a while, because the odds are that you won't be able to change it. The one exception is that if the friend undergoes some drastic personality change that makes the previous Sync Combo completely unthematic and nonsensical for him, then you may create a new, more fitting, Sync Combo.

The second use of this maneuver may be activated as a free action whenever you begin an encounter. Choose one friend also entering the encounter that you already have a Sync Combo with. This maneuver is replaced, for the duration of the encounter, with that Sync Combo maneuver. You can activate, recover, expend, and so on, with this Sync Combo, exactly as you would a normal maneuver. For external effects that require a maneuver's level for calculation, all of your Sync Comboes are considered to be Heart's Key maneuvers of the highest level you are able to initiate.

Example:

Lily is a Swordsage with the Synchronized Combination Move maneuver. She has a paladin friend, Bethany. Early in their career, they are attacked by a pack of evil demon-worshipping cultists. Lily activates her maneuver, and the two put their heads together to produce this:

Heavenly Bombardment
Bethany (Strike)
Action: Standard
Range: See Below
Area: 20ft radius

This maneuver may only be activated while Lily is adjacent to Bethany, and Bethany is able to commit an immediate action to finalize the maneuver.

Bethany picks up Lily and hurls her bodily through the air, up to 10ft per point of Bethany's strength modifier. At the end of her travels, Lily strikes the ground (or air, if she is in midair), releasing a wave of purifying light outwards. Non-evil enemies in the area take 1d4 points of damage per two of Lily's initiator levels (Fortitude save for half damage). Evil enemies increase the die to a d6. Evil undead and outsiders increase the die to a d8.

Bethany has the option to expend a use of her Smite Evil class feature as part of her immediate action, infusing Lily with even more divine wrath. In this case, Evil enemies take a penalty to their saving throw equal to Bethany's charisma modifier.

This becomes Bethany's Sync Combo, and they immediately use it to dispatch the cultists.

In many following encounters, Lily uses the second function of her maneuver to ready Heavenly Bombardment for use again. She also ends up creating Sync Comboes with her other friends, and is thus faced with the tough decision, every encounter, of which one to ready. Heavenly Bombardment is great for taking out groups of enemies, but she might go with Healing Rain from her Cleric pal, if she anticipates a lot of bloodshed, or Heart-Taker from her Rogue buddy, if there's going to be one big boss-monster.

Eventually, after many adventures, Bethany falls and becomes a Blackguard – an enemy of Lily and her other friends.

Still, in their ultimate encounter, a summoning ritual goes haywire and accidentally brings forth a terrible demon. Neither of them wants the demon to go free, so they make a temporary alliance. "I still hate you. But the enemy of my enemy is... my friend? Maybe, just this once, for old times' sake."

In this case, they attempt to use a Sync Combo, but Heavenly Bombardment is hardly appropriate for Bethany now. Instead, they erase Heavenly Bombardment and replace it with:

Baator's Demon-Smiting Advance
Bethany (Strike)
Action: Full-Round
Range: Charge
Target: One Creature

This maneuver may only be activated while both Lily and Bethany are within range to Charge the same target, and while both are acting on the same initiative count (typically by one of them Delaying until the proper time).

When activated, both ladies become wreathed in the bleak flames of Hell itself, and blaze forward to stab at their foe. This is considered a Charge for both of them, with all the associated benefits and penalties. The attack they each make at the end of the Charge gains a bonus as if the users were flanking with one another (even if they aren't), and bypasses any damage reduction if the target is of a Chaotic alignment.

Furthermore, if both attacks hit, the target is automatically knocked prone.

If Bethany modifies her attack with Smite Good, it is extended to function against Chaotic targets as if they were Good, and Lily's attack automatically benefits from the same Smite Good/Chaos modifiers.

On Bethany's next turn, she cannot take a standard action.

Which they are then free to use against the demon. Afterward, they go back to being hated enemies, but maybe there's a glimmer of hope still there.

Secondary Drive
Heart's Key (Stance)
Prerequisite: The "Sharing Your Drive" Stance
Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance

This stance functions in all ways like the "Sharing Your Drive" stance, save that it is used to access the three other Virtue Forms that you did not choose for that stance.


Level 4
Chaining Us Together
Heart's Key (Boost)
Prerequisite: Two Heart's Key Maneuvers
Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: One Weapon
Duration: 1 round

While you have this as one of your Maneuvers Known, you may create Heart Keychains. One of your friends must gift you a small token, and then you must spend a few minutes affixing it to a small chain or rope, and then investing it with the power of your friendship. When you do so, your friend chooses a magical weapon enhancement that is the equivalent of a "+1" enhancement. No matter how many tokens a single friend gifts you, all of their Heart Keychains will bear the same enhancement, although different friends can (and will, likely) invest their tokens with different powers.

As a move action, you may affix (or remove) a Heart Keychain to one of your held weapons. This occupies the same slot as an augment crystal would (see Magic Item Compendium pg 221), and thus cannot be simultaneously stacked with other keychains, or with augment crystals. While affixed, your weapon gains the power of that Heart Keychain.

When you activate this maneuver, your weapon transforms, incarnating the power of its affixed Keychain to a greater extent. When this happens, the friend that designed the Keychain's first power, should assign it either two more "+1" enhancements or a single "+2" enhancement, for your weapon to gain when utilizing this heightened state. They should also design a unique visual alteration that effects your weapon for the duration of the maneuver. Perhaps it becomes laced with intricate golden filigree, or its blade twists into a shape reminescent of a wavering flame, or it appears to be made of wood (whether or not it actually is).

Heart Keychains do not function for anyone but you and, once designed, their powers are always consistent with each activation.

Lighthearted Dodge
Heart's Key (Counter)
Prerequisite: Two Heart's Key Maneuvers
Action: Immediate
Range: Personal
Target: You

The normal chaotic din of the battlefield shrinks away for a moment, and you are filled with a pure zeal for life that draws forth and consumes all of the doubt and hesitation in your heart. A trickle of light slinks down from your chest, through your legs, into your feet, and then bursts forth from the space beneath you as you act.

Make an Open Lock check, replacing the normal bonus you would receive from a high Dexterity score with your highest mental ability score instead. Masterwork tools cannot grant a bonus to this check, but if you are holding a weapon associated with this discipline, you may use it as a focus for your power, granting you a circumstance bonus to the roll equal to your initiator level.

You then move a number of feet equal to your Open Lock check, rounded up to the nearest 5ft increment.

If this movement would take you outside of the area of an effect (such as a spell, or a breath weapon) that you used this maneuver in response to, then that effect has... no effect! Targeted effects still function, so long as you are still within range. Although, if that targeted effect forces a Reflex save on you, you receive a +2 circumstance bonus to the saving throw.

If you use this maneuver to move farther than your own Speed, you lose your Move Action on your next turn.


Level 5

Level 6

Level 7

Level 8

Level 9

Xefas
2012-10-31, 03:59 AM
Magic Item: Key-Blades

The collection of varied armaments known as The Key-Blades are speculated to number very few, although none can say the exact amount. Each one functions identically, however, save for the fact that four general shapes exist: one for each associated weapon of the Heart's Key Martial Discipline.

Regardless of whether they take the general shape of a Longsword, Bastard Sword, Greatsword, or Glaive, every Key-Blade is simply, though masterfully, crafted, incorporating very few adornments or ornamentations, but with every angle, curve, and line perfectly shaped. They appear to be forged of purest gold and silver, shining brightly from only the tiniest glint of light, though their hardiness betrays the fact that they are a far sturdier and more alien metal.

Perhaps most peculiarly of all, no Key-Blade bares an actual blade. Where the cutting edge would be on such a weapon, there is only a rounded cylinder, crowned with 'teeth', like that of a key.

Where the Key-Blades come from, and where they lead, are anyone's guess. But those that have wielded one attest to their weapon having a subtle kind of intelligence to it. Not the overt kind of intelligent magic item that has an Ego score, but something quieter. Something that whispers to the wielder, in the briefest rays of sunlight reflected from its blade, in only faintly remembered dreams of painted glass and darkness, in almost unquantifiable tugs in a particular direction - it tells the one who wields it that they have a great destiny, to make friends, fight the darkness, be a hero, and die gloriously.

Acquiring a Key-Blade isn't a matter of finding one in conspicuously dungeon-adjacent magic shops, but being chosen by one. They appear to heroes, and those who may yet be heroes, in their times of need, manifesting in their hands when the time is right, and bonding with them if the first impression is a good one.

A 'hero', however, need not necessarily coincide with the forces of "Good", as the Great Wheel defines it. The Keys, as far as any can tell, wish to prevent destruction and mayhem, as well as promote freedom and happiness. If a Devil-serving Blackguard has dedicated themselves to hunting down demonic incursions on the Prime Material Plane, they might well be a candidate for a Key-Blade, even though they then return to their Kingdom in which they rule with an iron fist. In the big picture, that Blackguard may, by the Key's reckoning, prevent more harm than he causes (that particular Key's "personality" may also skew towards the 'preventing destruction' side of its directives more heavily than other Keys).

A bloodthirsty Barbarian that marauds from empire to empire, destabilizing governments, raising riots, and deposing tyrants may also be a possible candidate, as a harbinger of freedom and an icon that brings folks together (even if that togetherness is a lynch-mob).

Still, in most cases, your Key-Blade wielders will be the valiant do-gooders, forever surrounded by doe-eyed woodland creatures, and always prepared to sacrifice themselves for even the lowliest innocent life. Avatars of justice, compassion, love, truth, so on and so forth.

Once a Key-Blade has found a wielder and attached itself, it has the following powers:

Personal Growth: A Keyblade's most basic statistics are that of a +1 Merciful Illuminating Weapon of whichever type of weapon it takes after (Longsword, Bastard Sword, Greatsword, or Glaive). In the hands of a character with a character level of 10 or more, its enhancement bonus increases to +2. At character level 14, this increases to +3. At character level 17, it becomes +4. And at character level 20, it becomes +5.

Soulbound: Once a Key-Blade has forged a bond with a character, it will always return back to either their hand, or to some appropriate resting place on their body, at the beginning of their turn. A Key-Blade may undo its own bond, and disappear from its wielder's possession if it wishes, but to rid one's self of one without its consent requires magic on par with a Wish or Miracle. Furthermore, a Key-Blade is unbreakable while bound to someone. To destroy one would require somehow intercepting and capturing it before it can find a wielder.

Unlocking The Heart's Secrets: The wielder of a Key-Blade may choose one Heart's Key maneuver that they are high enough level to learn, and that they meet the prerequisites for. The chosen maneuver is considered one of their Maneuvers Known. If the wielder is not a martial adept, with maneuvers known, then they may use the chosen maneuver once per encounter. This choice may be altered once per 24 hours by meditating for a few minutes.

Some Good Advice: Occasionally, a Key-Blade may create subtle inclinations in the mind of its wielder. At first, someone new to the weapon might be unsure whether it was their own thought or not, but after a while it becomes more apparent that the Key has its own ideas about what its wielder should be doing. It might suggest befriending a certain person, not trusting someone, moving towards a certain destination, and so on. For 24 hours after following the Key's advice, its wielder doubles their natural healing rate as an aura of good feelings washes over them. Disregarding the Key's advice within this time ends the benefit prematurely.

Cost: While Keyblades are unique artifact-like items, a general effective "price" can be placed on them, to match them against other items, relate them to Wealth-By-Level guidelines, and so on. If the wielder is lower than level 10, the price will be between 10,000gp and 20,000gp. At levels 10-13, the price is around 35,000gp. At levels 14+, the price will raise from around 85,000gp to 130,000gp at the highest end. This is a rough estimation on my part.

The-Mage-King
2012-10-31, 04:13 AM
You have my attention.


I shall review later. I've been up for...


Far too long to be a valuable reviewer.

RoyVG
2012-10-31, 07:36 AM
When I saw the title, Kingdom Hearts was the first that came up to me. I sure was happy when it was based on it.

Already loving this discipline, and I've only read the level 1 stance and one boost.

I would love to see this when it is finished

EDIT: Now that I finally have some more time on my hands, I read through the others..... and I fell even more in love with this discipline. Especially the Synchronized Combination maneuver is awesome. It allows for some really spectacular and flashy moves.

Xefas
2012-11-01, 02:58 AM
Levels 1 and 4 have been finished. Which means: Half the discipline is complete! (9/18 maneuvers).

Solarix
2012-11-02, 01:18 AM
I like what I see.

I am not completely convinced by the "Disheartening the Lock" but it seems functional enough to work. The "Sharing Your Drive" seems to provide interesting bonuses for a level 1 stance, it΄s flavorful and yet not overtly powerful.

I wish the Tome of Battle had existed at the moment I used to create KH homebrew material for 3.5 , disciplines and martial strikes/stances work marvelous with the character concepts from the series.

Xefas
2012-11-02, 03:10 AM
I am not completely convinced by the "Disheartening the Lock" but it seems functional enough to work.
Not convinced in what way? Just interested in case I can improve it.

Do you mean thematically? As in it doesn't make sense to you? Or that it doesn't make sense to you that it's part of this discipline? Or that the mechanics don't accurately represent the theme?

Do you mean mechanically? As in it's too strong or too weak? Or too esoteric to be useful? Too general as to make it an always-obvious choice? Or its too complicated or fiddly to use?

Something else?


I wish the Tome of Battle had existed at the moment I used to create KH homebrew material for 3.5 , disciplines and martial strikes/stances work marvelous with the character concepts from the series.

If/when I finish this, you might see more from me. Maybe a Zexion inspired discipline, as I don't think I've seen a Blue Mage martial style yet. A Xaldin "I wield six two-handed weapons simultaneously" style would be neat.

Axel would simply involve a rewrite to Desert Wind to make it awesome (which I already have notes on). Same for Lexaeus and Stone Dragon. I've also got notes for a "Crimson Flamingo" discipline which, oddly, was inspired by my scythe-wielding flamingo-pet-having Dervish/Hunter character in Guild Wars, but would be perfect for Marluxia.

edit: Put up stats for a Keyblade. It's almost 5am D=. I hope they work.

DracoDei
2012-11-02, 01:28 PM
Disheartening the Lock makes rogues cry themselves to sleep at night for both speed and effectiveness but then again Knock already does that, so it really depends on where you want to balance this. If you want to bring it down a bit say that the maneuver can't be attempted against any lock more often than once per hour. Or once per day? Day at first but improving to hour at a later level? 24 hours minus IL minimum 1 hour? You might also consider only applying half of IL to the check (minimum 1?), being able to use your best mental ability score in place of dexterity is already going to be helpful, especially for the non-light-armor types.


or, if you exceeded it by 10 or more, the doorway becomes a permanent addition to the wall.
I was going to say that this should be optional, but thinking about it, no, no it really shouldn't be.




The stance chaining idea is bold. I like it.

Double-rate natural healing should at least explicitly apply to ability damage as well as hitpoint damage, and maybe even ability burn. Even so it is going to be mechanically pointless at higher levels. Maybe have it eventually also grant a bonus to ongoing saving throws, and double the numerical effects of instantaneous curative spells on the wielder?

To channel the spirit of my loyal nemesis DebiHuman: "Where is the Illuminating weapon enchantment from?"


EDIT: Dignity form doesn't seem to fit Charisma as closely as the others do.

Also, let us suppose that we have a party that contains both an Ogre barbarian, and a human sword-sage. I think the swordsage should look different when accessing the strength-based form than the constitution-based form. Also, what happens if you activate the strength-based one, and the next round the party wizard throws a Bull's Strength on you right before your friend fails a save against a Ray of Enfeeblement that rolls maximum damage? Do you drop out of the stance automatically? Some of the options provide static bonuses that would actually be beneficial to remaining in the stance even if that happened.

EDIT^2:
I have only seen/palyed the first Kingdom Hearts I, but I would recommend making the lock opening strike a melee-range thing. Maybe even "Adjacent".

Xefas
2012-11-02, 03:13 PM
If you want to bring it down a bit say that the maneuver can't be attempted against any lock more often than once per hour. Or once per day? Day at first but improving to hour at a later level? 24 hours minus IL minimum 1 hour? You might also consider only applying half of IL to the check (minimum 1?), being able to use your best mental ability score in place of dexterity is already going to be helpful, especially for the non-light-armor types.


I have only seen/palyed the first Kingdom Hearts I, but I would recommend making the lock opening strike a melee-range thing. Maybe even "Adjacent".

Mmkay, I made some changes.

Double-rate natural healing should at least explicitly apply to ability damage as well as hitpoint damage, and maybe even ability burn.

Isn't that already an explicit benefit of natural healing?

Even so it is going to be mechanically pointless at higher levels. Maybe have it eventually also grant a bonus to ongoing saving throws, and double the numerical effects of instantaneous curative spells on the wielder?

It does become mostly irrelevant at higher levels, but I like the idea of a stronger character needing to rely on the Key's advice less and less. The healing bonus is meant as an incentive to listen to it, not really as a game-changing power boost to the item.

How soon do you think natural healing (including ability burn n' such) becomes irrelevant in actual play? If it's too soon, then, yeah, I'll need to come up with something else.

To channel the spirit of my loyal nemesis DebiHuman: "Where is the Illuminating weapon enchantment from?"

Magic Item Compendium. It's a +500gp enchantment that just makes your weapon shine really brightly.

EDIT: Dignity form doesn't seem to fit Charisma as closely as the others do.

Well, things that Charisma are used for in combat that aren't specific class features: ...Feinting? Yeah, so I went with the idea of "Charisma As Composure". A highly charismatic person tends to look badass, rather than foolish, and to prevent you looking like a fool, the stance makes it more difficult for you to get tossed around like a ragdoll, slammed into the mud, or for you to auto-fail a roll. You stand tall and impressively! Teeth gleaming, velour uniform flowing in the dramatic wind, folks of varying genders draped about your feet fawningly. So on.

Also, let us suppose that we have a party that contains both an Ogre barbarian, and a human sword-sage. I think the swordsage should look different when accessing the strength-based form than the constitution-based form.

This was my intention, but I didn't note it. Thank you for pointing this out.

Also, what happens if you activate the strength-based one, and the next round the party wizard throws a Bull's Strength on you right before your friend fails a save against a Ray of Enfeeblement that rolls maximum damage? Do you drop out of the stance automatically? Some of the options provide static bonuses that would actually be beneficial to remaining in the stance even if that happened.

You only need to have them meet the requirement when you go into the Virtue Form. If their ability is lowered after the fact, you can still maintain the Form.

DracoDei
2012-11-02, 06:35 PM
Did you ever look at my "Gemini Strike (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=116900)" feat? I think it might inspire something for this discipline.

Unlocking The Heart
Interestingly this means that you have two utilities and a versatile self-buff for the first level. I suspect that later maneuvers may build on this one though, manipulating or harming the heart so revealed... or maybe you can just make your party look completely awesome at critical moments while exposing your enemies.


Level 2
Lighthearted Leap
Because jumping is part of movement, rather than an action of its own, this might as well read to treat your ground movement rate as a flight speed for the duration of it (PERHAPS requiring one rank in Open Lock or Jump so you don't fall prone). Limit it to a double-jump, either by turn, or saying that you get ONE launch off thin air per turn.

At initiator level 9, as long as you Jump at least once per round, you may extend the duration of this maneuver indefinitely.
Limit this to "as long as you have this maneuver expended, when refreshing maneuvers you may choose not to refresh this maneuver." or maybe just "as long as you have this maneuver prepared".

At initiator level 12, while this maneuver is active, once per round, you may move via a Jump check as a swift action.
Reasonable given that Tiger Claw has a single-use maneuver for that at a much earlier IL.


Raiding Strike
In this case, make another melee attack roll (it may be polite to let your friend's player roll this, if they want ^_^).
Whose BAB and other to-hit modifiers get used?

Only, this time, rather than dealing normal damage, it deals (your friend's highest ability modifier) damage, which bypasses damage reduction. If this misses or fails to deal damage, the weapon returns to you. Otherwise, it ricochets again, to a spot of your friend's choosing, with the range halved once more (to 1/4 this time).
I would refine this that anyone but the last person to throw it can throw it. That keeps the team aspect feeling right I think, including that you can do the second re-throw, but not the first.


Your weapon may continue to ricochet as long as friends are willing to devote swift actions, up to a maximum of (your highest mental ability modifier) times, or until the range is cut to 5ft or less. If either of these conditions occurs, the weapon reappears in your hand immediately.
Well, either what I said before or you can only do the initial throw and any ally can only re-throw ONCE per activation of the maneuver.


Level 3
Synchronized Combination Move
Heart's Key
Prerequisite: One Heart's Key Maneuver
Action: Varies

This maneuver may be used in one of two ways.

In the first, you use this maneuver during an encounter to create a Sync Combo with a friend, that is in the same encounter and that you can perceive and that can perceive you, that you do not already have a Sync Combo with. The action required to activate this maneuver, in this case, is the same action that the finished Sync Combo will require.

A Sync Combo is a special custom maneuver that requires a friend to use. The two of you should work out what the maneuver does, and have your group finalize it (it can be tweaked for balance later, if need be). After you know what your Sync Combo will do, it immediately activates, consuming your actions as normal. Then, Synchronized Combination Move is removed from your pool of readied maneuvers for the encounter.

Typically, a particular friend may only ever have a single Sync Combo associated with him, so make sure that the maneuver scales, or somehow stays useful for a while, because the odds are that you won't be able to change it. The one exception is that if the friend undergoes some drastic personality change that makes the previous Sync Combo completely unthematic and nonsensical for him, then you may create a new, more fitting, Sync Combo.
This meets with my approval, but realize that many groups simply won't be able to cope doing this.


The second use of this maneuver may be activated as a free action whenever you begin an encounter. Choose one friend also entering the encounter that you already have a Sync Combo with. This maneuver is replaced, for the duration of the encounter, with that Sync Combo maneuver. You can activate, recover, expend, and so on, with this Sync Combo, exactly as you would a normal maneuver. For external effects that require a maneuver's level for calculation, all of your Sync Comboes are considered to be Heart's Key maneuvers of the highest level you are able to initiate.
I would also put in something about activating it as a free action if you started the battle alone. This won't come up very often, but it gives "The Cavalry Arrives"/"You Are Not Alone" more possibility, which would be totally worth the added word-count.



Example:
Yeah, this VERY MUCH needs an example. Especially since I am not 100% sure what the difference between the two modes of activation is.






Lily is a Swordsage with the Synchronized Combination Move maneuver. She has a paladin friend, Bethany. Early in their career, they are attacked by a pack of evil demon-worshipping cultists. Lily activates her maneuver, and the two put their heads together to produce this:

Heavenly Bombardment
Bethany (Strike)
Action: Standard
Range: See Below
Area: 20ft radius

This maneuver may only be activated while Lily is adjacent to Bethany, and Bethany is able to commit an immediate action to finalize the maneuver.

Bethany picks up Lily and hurls her bodily through the air, up to 10ft per point of Bethany's strength modifier. At the end of her travels, Lily strikes the ground (or air, if she is in midair), releasing a wave of purifying light outwards. Non-evil enemies in the area take 1d4 points of damage per two of Lily's initiator levels (Fortitude save for half damage). Evil enemies increase the die to a d6. Evil undead and outsiders increase the die to a d8.

Bethany has the option to expend a use of her Smite Evil class feature as part of her immediate action, infusing Lily with even more divine wrath. In this case, Evil enemies take a penalty to their saving throw equal to Bethany's charisma modifier.

This becomes Bethany's Sync Combo, and they immediately use it to dispatch the cultists.

In many following encounters, Lily uses the second function of her maneuver to ready Heavenly Bombardment for use again. She also ends up creating Sync Comboes with her other friends, and is thus faced with the tough decision, every encounter, of which one to ready. Heavenly Bombardment is great for taking out groups of enemies, but she might go with Healing Rain from her Cleric pal, if she anticipates a lot of bloodshed, or Heart-Taker from her Rogue buddy, if there's going to be one big boss-monster.
Oh, I see... I think that it is going to have to be an AWESOME group full of skilled homebrewers to come up with something on the fly that will stand the test of time. You are almost REQUIRING it to be made up on the spot. CONSIDER saying that it takes some practice with eachother to create the combo instead. This will mean that fewer GMs will faint when they read this maneuver.

Eventually, after many adventures, Bethany falls and becomes a Blackguard – an enemy of Lily and her other friends.

Still, in their ultimate encounter, a summoning ritual goes haywire and accidentally brings forth a terrible demon. Neither of them wants the demon to go free, so they make a temporary alliance. "I still hate you. But the enemy of my enemy is... my friend? Maybe, just this once, for old times' sake."

In this case, they attempt to use a Sync Combo, but Heavenly Bombardment is hardly appropriate for Bethany now. Instead, they erase Heavenly Bombardment and replace it with:

Baator's Demon-Smiting Advance
Bethany (Strike)
Action: Full-Round
Range: Charge
Target: One Creature

This maneuver may only be activated while both Lily and Bethany are within range to Charge the same target, and while both are acting on the same initiative count (typically by one of them Delaying until the proper time).

When activated, both ladies become wreathed in the bleak flames of Hell itself, and blaze forward to stab at their foe. This is considered a Charge for both of them, with all the associated benefits and penalties. The attack they each make at the end of the Charge gains a bonus as if the users were flanking with one another (even if they aren't), and bypasses any damage reduction if the target is of a Chaotic alignment.

Furthermore, if both attacks hit, the target is automatically knocked prone.

If Bethany modifies her attack with Smite Good, it is extended to function against Chaotic targets as if they were Good, and Lily's attack automatically benefits from the same Smite Good/Chaos modifiers.

On Bethany's next turn, she cannot take a standard action.

Which they are then free to use against the demon. Afterward, they go back to being hated enemies, but maybe there's a glimmer of hope still there.
I like this scenario given how it plays into the "Friendship" theme at the end.



Secondary Drive
Heart's Key (Stance)
Prerequisite: The "Sharing Your Drive" Stance
Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance

This stance functions in all ways like the "Sharing Your Drive" stance, save that it is used to access the three other Virtue Forms that you did not choose for that stance.
[/spoiler]
Nice and simple. I approve, although a lot of players are going to give this one a miss if they already have their favorites picked out.

Going to stop here for the moment.


Level 4
Chaining Us Together
Heart's Key (Boost)
Prerequisite: Two Heart's Key Maneuvers
Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: One Weapon
Duration: 1 round

While you have this as one of your Maneuvers Known, you may create Heart Keychains. One of your friends must gift you a small token, and then you must spend a few minutes affixing it to a small chain or rope, and then investing it with the power of your friendship. When you do so, your friend chooses a magical weapon enhancement that is the equivalent of a "+1" enhancement. No matter how many tokens a single friend gifts you, all of their Heart Keychains will bear the same enhancement, although different friends can (and will, likely) invest their tokens with different powers.

As a move action, you may affix (or remove) a Heart Keychain to one of your held weapons. This occupies the same slot as an augment crystal would (see Magic Item Compendium pg 221), and thus cannot be simultaneously stacked with other keychains, or with augment crystals. While affixed, your weapon gains the power of that Heart Keychain.

When you activate this maneuver, your weapon transforms, incarnating the power of its affixed Keychain to a greater extent. When this happens, the friend that designed the Keychain's first power, should assign it either two more "+1" enhancements or a single "+2" enhancement, for your weapon to gain when utilizing this heightened state. They should also design a unique visual alteration that effects your weapon for the duration of the maneuver. Perhaps it becomes laced with intricate golden filigree, or its blade twists into a shape reminescent of a wavering flame, or it appears to be made of wood (whether or not it actually is).

Heart Keychains do not function for anyone but you and, once designed, their powers are always consistent with each activation.

Lighthearted Dodge
Heart's Key (Counter)
Prerequisite: Two Heart's Key Maneuvers
Action: Immediate
Range: Personal
Target: You

The normal chaotic din of the battlefield shrinks away for a moment, and you are filled with a pure zeal for life that draws forth and consumes all of the doubt and hesitation in your heart. A trickle of light slinks down from your chest, through your legs, into your feet, and then bursts forth from the space beneath you as you act.

Make an Open Lock check, replacing the normal bonus you would receive from a high Dexterity score with your highest mental ability score instead. Masterwork tools cannot grant a bonus to this check, but if you are holding a weapon associated with this discipline, you may use it as a focus for your power, granting you a circumstance bonus to the roll equal to your initiator level.

You then move a number of feet equal to your Open Lock check, rounded up to the nearest 5ft increment.

If this movement would take you outside of the area of an effect (such as a spell, or a breath weapon) that you used this maneuver in response to, then that effect has... no effect! Targeted effects still function, so long as you are still within range. Although, if that targeted effect forces a Reflex save on you, you receive a +2 circumstance bonus to the saving throw.

If you use this maneuver to move farther than your own Speed, you lose your Move Action on your next turn.

Solarix
2012-11-02, 11:42 PM
Not convinced in what way? Just interested in case I can improve it.

Do you mean thematically? As in it doesn't make sense to you? Or that it doesn't make sense to you that it's part of this discipline? Or that the mechanics don't accurately represent the theme?

Do you mean mechanically? As in it's too strong or too weak? Or too esoteric to be useful? Too general as to make it an always-obvious choice? Or its too complicated or fiddly to use?

Something else?



If/when I finish this, you might see more from me. Maybe a Zexion inspired discipline, as I don't think I've seen a Blue Mage martial style yet. A Xaldin "I wield six two-handed weapons simultaneously" style would be neat.

Axel would simply involve a rewrite to Desert Wind to make it awesome (which I already have notes on). Same for Lexaeus and Stone Dragon. I've also got notes for a "Crimson Flamingo" discipline which, oddly, was inspired by my scythe-wielding flamingo-pet-having Dervish/Hunter character in Guild Wars, but would be perfect for Marluxia.

edit: Put up stats for a Keyblade. It's almost 5am D=. I hope they work.

Actually the issues I had with it were resolved with your latest update.

Personally, I believe Lighthearted Leap should have a maximum duration, which could be half or full your initiator level or your jump ranks. It΄s easier than just adding more rolls to each round and keeps things a bit cleaner.

Hope it helps, this is looking great.