Flickerdart
2014-06-18, 08:21 PM
I've seen a lot of fighter fixes. One of them I've even seen in a WotC book! It was called Warblade and it was pretty sweet. This thread is not about that. This thread is about a guy that beats monsters to death with the ruthless efficiency and lack of imagination of a true soldier.
Warmaster
Prerequisites:
Base Attack Bonus: +4
Special: Tower shield proficiency
Hit die: d10
Skill points: 4+INT modifier per level
Class skills: The warmaster’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Ride (Dex), Spot (Wis), and Swim (Str).
Level
BAB
Fort
Ref
Will
Special
1st
+1
+2
+2
+2
Art of war
2nd
+2
+3
+3
+3
Art of war, forward march
3rd
+3
+3
+3
+3
Art of war, combat trick
4th
+4
+4
+4
+4
Art of war, backup plan
5th
+5
+4
+4
+4
Art of war, split the thaum
Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: Warmasters gain no proficiency with any weapon or armor.
Art of War (Ex): The warmaster's signature trait is the perfection of a fighting style on which he chooses to focus. When gaining a new level of warmaster, a warmaster may select a [Fighter] feat he possesses that provides a permanent, static numerical bonus, such as Improved Initiative or Weapon Focus. The bonus granted by that feat is doubled. When the warmaster reaches 10 hit dice, the bonus is instead tripled, and at 15 hit dice, it's quadrupled. For example, a fighter 14/warmaster 1 who chose Weapon Specialization for his Art of War gains a total damage bonus of +8 from the feat. This ability does not apply to feats like Improved Two-Weapon Fighting, which reduce a penalty rather than provide a bonus, or like Law Devotion, because the bonus is not permanent or static. The warmaster may not pick the same feat twice.
Forward March (Ex): By studying warriors from other cultures, the warmaster has learned to make their tactics his own. At 2nd level, the warmaster no longer suffers a penalty to his speed for wearing armours heavier than light in which he is proficient, and is not forbidden from flying while carrying a load heavier than light or wearing armours heavier than light. Any mount the warmaster rides also gains this ability while he is riding it.
Combat Trick (Ex): The warmaster has run out of teachers who know things he does not, and has begun incorporating much more exotic influences into his fighting style. At 3rd level the warmaster gains one ability from the following list:
Bull Stampede: The warmaster puts his entire weight behind every blow. He may initiate a bull rush as an attack action rather than a standard action, allowing him to make bull rushes on attacks of opportunity, and multiple bull rushes on a full attack.
Hornet Sting: The warmaster can disarm in a much more literal sense. He may attempt to disarm a creature's natural weapon. On a successful disarm attempt, the weapon is crippled with a well-placed blow and the defender takes 1 point of non-lethal damage. Until that creature no longer has non-lethal damage (usually after resting for an hour), it may not use that natural weapon.
Peacock Flourish: The warmaster's spectacular skill with a blade makes his feinting that much more distracting. When he successfully feints, the target is denied its Dexterity bonus to AC against the warmaster for an entire round, rather than just the warmaster's next attack.
Python Strangle: The warmaster has learned a complex style of wrestling that binds the foe, giving him slightly more mobility during a grapple. He is allowed to initiate a grapple against a target of any size. He does not suffer the -4 penalty for striking with a light weapon while in a grapple, and may attack with a one-handed weapon against creatures two or more sizes larger than he is (though he may not wield it in two hands). The warmaster may escape a grapple he has initiated as a free action that does not require a grapple check.
Stallion Gallop: The warmaster goes where he pleases, crushing his enemies under his boots. On any round in which he attempts an overrun, he may still initiate a full attack action at the end of his move, but receives one fewer iterative attack than normal for his attack bonus.
Dragon Smash: The warmaster has learned an important lesson: never break that which you can sell. When he sunders a magic item, he strikes around the enchantment. If the sunder is successful, the item is rendered useless, but the magic does not fade; a Craft check of appropriate difficulty for the type of mundane object that the enchantment was placed on restores both the item's mundane and magical functions as though it was never sundered.
Dog Pile: The warmaster makes sure that when he knocks someone down, they stay down. When he successfully trips an opponent, the warmaster can immediately enter a grapple with that opponent without having to make a touch attack or opposed grapple check.
At 4th and 5th level, the warmaster may choose an additional Combat Trick instead of a new Art of War bonus.
Backup Plan (Ex): The warmaster has internalized the wisdom of a true warrior - that no plan survives contact with the enemy - and knows not to over-commit to his actions. When a warmaster of 4th level or higher loses the opposed check on a bull rush, disarm, starting a grapple, overrun, sunder, or trip, he does not suffer the negative consequences of failure (except when he has entered another creature's space, in which case he moves to the nearest free space). He may immediately attempt a different combat maneuver from the list, using the same d20 roll. This ability can be used once per round.
Split the Thaum (Ex): The warmaster has reached the pinnacle of sword art, and can cut through anything - even magic. As an attack action, the warmaster can attempt to dispel any magical effect that includes him as a target or in its area, or is affecting a creature or object within the warmaster's melee reach. The warmaster uses his BAB instead of caster level for the dispel check.
The warmaster can also use this ability to attempt to counter a spell that either has him or a creature or object within his melee reach as a target, or includes him in its area of effect. He does not have to ready this ability to use it in this way, but doing so counts as his Attack of Opportunity for the round. If the warmaster can make multiple Attacks of Opportunity per round, he can Split the Thaum that many times.
Warmaster
Prerequisites:
Base Attack Bonus: +4
Special: Tower shield proficiency
Hit die: d10
Skill points: 4+INT modifier per level
Class skills: The warmaster’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Ride (Dex), Spot (Wis), and Swim (Str).
Level
BAB
Fort
Ref
Will
Special
1st
+1
+2
+2
+2
Art of war
2nd
+2
+3
+3
+3
Art of war, forward march
3rd
+3
+3
+3
+3
Art of war, combat trick
4th
+4
+4
+4
+4
Art of war, backup plan
5th
+5
+4
+4
+4
Art of war, split the thaum
Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: Warmasters gain no proficiency with any weapon or armor.
Art of War (Ex): The warmaster's signature trait is the perfection of a fighting style on which he chooses to focus. When gaining a new level of warmaster, a warmaster may select a [Fighter] feat he possesses that provides a permanent, static numerical bonus, such as Improved Initiative or Weapon Focus. The bonus granted by that feat is doubled. When the warmaster reaches 10 hit dice, the bonus is instead tripled, and at 15 hit dice, it's quadrupled. For example, a fighter 14/warmaster 1 who chose Weapon Specialization for his Art of War gains a total damage bonus of +8 from the feat. This ability does not apply to feats like Improved Two-Weapon Fighting, which reduce a penalty rather than provide a bonus, or like Law Devotion, because the bonus is not permanent or static. The warmaster may not pick the same feat twice.
Forward March (Ex): By studying warriors from other cultures, the warmaster has learned to make their tactics his own. At 2nd level, the warmaster no longer suffers a penalty to his speed for wearing armours heavier than light in which he is proficient, and is not forbidden from flying while carrying a load heavier than light or wearing armours heavier than light. Any mount the warmaster rides also gains this ability while he is riding it.
Combat Trick (Ex): The warmaster has run out of teachers who know things he does not, and has begun incorporating much more exotic influences into his fighting style. At 3rd level the warmaster gains one ability from the following list:
Bull Stampede: The warmaster puts his entire weight behind every blow. He may initiate a bull rush as an attack action rather than a standard action, allowing him to make bull rushes on attacks of opportunity, and multiple bull rushes on a full attack.
Hornet Sting: The warmaster can disarm in a much more literal sense. He may attempt to disarm a creature's natural weapon. On a successful disarm attempt, the weapon is crippled with a well-placed blow and the defender takes 1 point of non-lethal damage. Until that creature no longer has non-lethal damage (usually after resting for an hour), it may not use that natural weapon.
Peacock Flourish: The warmaster's spectacular skill with a blade makes his feinting that much more distracting. When he successfully feints, the target is denied its Dexterity bonus to AC against the warmaster for an entire round, rather than just the warmaster's next attack.
Python Strangle: The warmaster has learned a complex style of wrestling that binds the foe, giving him slightly more mobility during a grapple. He is allowed to initiate a grapple against a target of any size. He does not suffer the -4 penalty for striking with a light weapon while in a grapple, and may attack with a one-handed weapon against creatures two or more sizes larger than he is (though he may not wield it in two hands). The warmaster may escape a grapple he has initiated as a free action that does not require a grapple check.
Stallion Gallop: The warmaster goes where he pleases, crushing his enemies under his boots. On any round in which he attempts an overrun, he may still initiate a full attack action at the end of his move, but receives one fewer iterative attack than normal for his attack bonus.
Dragon Smash: The warmaster has learned an important lesson: never break that which you can sell. When he sunders a magic item, he strikes around the enchantment. If the sunder is successful, the item is rendered useless, but the magic does not fade; a Craft check of appropriate difficulty for the type of mundane object that the enchantment was placed on restores both the item's mundane and magical functions as though it was never sundered.
Dog Pile: The warmaster makes sure that when he knocks someone down, they stay down. When he successfully trips an opponent, the warmaster can immediately enter a grapple with that opponent without having to make a touch attack or opposed grapple check.
At 4th and 5th level, the warmaster may choose an additional Combat Trick instead of a new Art of War bonus.
Backup Plan (Ex): The warmaster has internalized the wisdom of a true warrior - that no plan survives contact with the enemy - and knows not to over-commit to his actions. When a warmaster of 4th level or higher loses the opposed check on a bull rush, disarm, starting a grapple, overrun, sunder, or trip, he does not suffer the negative consequences of failure (except when he has entered another creature's space, in which case he moves to the nearest free space). He may immediately attempt a different combat maneuver from the list, using the same d20 roll. This ability can be used once per round.
Split the Thaum (Ex): The warmaster has reached the pinnacle of sword art, and can cut through anything - even magic. As an attack action, the warmaster can attempt to dispel any magical effect that includes him as a target or in its area, or is affecting a creature or object within the warmaster's melee reach. The warmaster uses his BAB instead of caster level for the dispel check.
The warmaster can also use this ability to attempt to counter a spell that either has him or a creature or object within his melee reach as a target, or includes him in its area of effect. He does not have to ready this ability to use it in this way, but doing so counts as his Attack of Opportunity for the round. If the warmaster can make multiple Attacks of Opportunity per round, he can Split the Thaum that many times.