Getting Balance as a class skill

[weckar]

A player of mine wants to go from Barbarian into Bloodstorm Blade, but she needs to get 8 ranks of Balance to make it happen. Is there a way she can get it as a class skill? She'll have to multiclass for one level to get the maneuvers required, but that doesn't cover the amount of points she'll need (at 4 per level).

Any ideas?

[DeltaEmil]

This thread (http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=6832.0) says that you can gain Balance as a class skill with the Martial Study feat selecting either a Iron Heart or Stone Dragon maneuver.

[weckar]

Seems expensive... But probably the only way.

[DeltaEmil]

Since Bloodstorm Blade needs an Iron Heart strike maneuver (which you gain from the Martial Study feat) and an Iron Heart stance (which you gain from the Martial Stance feat) anyway, it won't cost you anything in addition. A human barbarian or a barbarian of any other race with a flaw can get into it without having to multiclass.

[weckar]

Multiclassing would save two feats, though. And she wanted to dip Warblade for Weapon Aptitude anyway...

I wonder, would it be a heinous ruling to say that taking that dip and using it to pick up the Iron Heart requirement would also give her the key skill as a permanent class skill as the feat would?

[Vhaidara]

Balance is a Warblade class skill, so if they were going to dip WB anyways...

[weckar]

Only for one level, though, so that's only 4 points out of the 8 they need.

[DeltaEmil]

If the barbarian has the Able Learner feat with one level in warblade, the rank will always cost 1 skill point, even if the class would normally only gain a half rank.

A two level dip of warblade will also grant improved uncanny dodge with two levels of barbarian.

An okay Intelligence score to benefit from the warblade's battle clarity class feature will also grant more skill points to make the Balance skill more affordable. With an Intelligence score of 16 and being a human, the barbarian could get 8 ranks in Balance with 1 level of warblade as the fifth level. The Open Minded feat grants 5 skill points, so if the barbarian delays her entry into bloodstorm blade until level 7 or uses it in conjunction with the Able Learner feat, it would become easily affordable with an Intelligence bonus of +0 (although if you get warblade levels, you ought to have an Intelligence score of 12 or more anyway).

[Cavir]

If you are human, a level of Human Paragon (UA p43) grants you any one skill to be permanently added to your class list (even if you level up in a different class). 4+INT+Human skill pts. L2 gives another feat. L3 is a +2 to any stat. Good stuff.

[weckar]

We're not using any UA material, and keep in mind that the character in question already exists, so changing around ability scores is not an option.

I think Able Learner may be the option that will allow entry earliest, by pure RAW. Because she also still needs the Point Blank Shot that would allow her to get in by lv 10.

[ericgrau]

You can dip for 4 ranks, then on the next 2+ levels pay 8 skill points for the remaining ranks. Costly though. Your maximum ranks is the same whether you have 1 level of warblade or 5; it's character level + 3 either way.

[weckar]

I thought it was Character level +3 when it was a class skill, half that otherwise? So you couldn't add the extra points on barbarian levels?

[DeltaEmil]

Once a skill has become a class skill for any of your class, the maximum ranks of the skill will permanently now be your character level + 3. However, if the skill is not a class skill for the class you have chosen at leveling up, you must pay 1 skill point to gain half a rank.

So if your first level is warblade, and the next levels are all barbarian, your Balance skill maximum rank will always be your character level + 3. However, every skill point you gain from your barbarian class only increases half a ranks of the Balance skill, making it cost you two skill points to increase the Balance skill by 1 rank with every barbarian level (and you can still only have the maximum skill rank of level + 3, of course).

[weckar]

Source? I see no such thing in any of my books, and I have been looking since I made that last post.

[DeltaEmil]

Player's Handbook 1, page 62, under the skill section for SKILLS AT HIGHER LEVELS.

[weckar]

Looks like I have a few calls to make and some apologizing to do to ex-players of mine.... This does work out to make things a lot easier now, though.