ToB: Way of the Wandering Blade - Epic Discipline [PEACH]

[Rhistel]

Originally Posted by The Demented One
Epic Martial Disciplines

Epic martial disciplines are the fighting styles of the most powerful warriors and swordsmen in all creation. Powerful secret techniques wielded by gods, archfiends, and epic heroes, they represent the absolute pinnacle of the Sublime Way.

Learning Epic Martial Disciplines
Every epic discipline has an epic feat associated with it, called an initiation feat. Once an epic character has taken the initiation feat of a discipline, he gains the ability to learn the maneuvers of that epic discipline. Unlike normal maneuvers, epic maneuvers must be learned individually–each one has a unique XP cost and training time to learn. Learning even a single epic maneuver is an arduous quest for the mightiest of heroes, as they must seek out a master of the discipline to learn it from. Such beings include deities, demon princes, and things far more strange. Without such a mentor, the training time required to learn an epic maneuver is doubled–and even then, the pinnacle maneuver of an epic discipline can never be learned without a mentor. As with normal martial maneuvers, a martial adept must meet certain prerequisite number of maneuvers known from the same discipline to learn epic maneuvers. Each discipline has a single “pinnacle” maneuver, one that requires all other maneuvers of the discipline to be learned before it can be mastered.

Using Epic Maneuvers
Epic maneuvers are readied and initiated differently than normal maneuvers. Whenever a martial adept readies his maneuvers, he may choose a single epic martial discipline to ready for that day. Doing so readies all epic maneuvers of that discipline that he has learned. They do not count towards his normal maneuvers readied. Each readied epic maneuver can be initiated once per encounter–they cannot be recovered by any means. The martial adept may enter epic stances of his readied discipline as if they were normal martial stances, save that no ability or effect can ever allow him to gain the benefits of any other or second stance at the same time as he gains the benefits of an epic stance. Epic maneuvers do not have a level, but are treated as being of 10th level for all purposes. The saving throw against an epic maneuver has a DC of 20 + the listed ability modifier, although many epic maneuvers list ways in which their DC can be increased. All epic maneuvers are extraordinary abilities, unless otherwise listed

Hi all, i'm trying to create an asian-like samurai epic discipline, i've created 3-4 maneuvers over 10 needed to complete it and, important thing, i'm not an english mothertongue so my grammatic will not be perfect so please, don't be too cruel :smallredface: :


Samayōyaiba no michi, Way of the Wandering Blade


Description: I'll traslate it soon :)

Feat
Master of the Wandering Blade [Epic, Initiate]
Prerequisite: Iaijutzu Focus 23, Ability focus (Iaijutsu Focus), Improved initiative, Superior initiative, Dire charge.
Benefici: All the iaijutsu focus bonus dices are maximized and is no longer necessary to extract your weapon in order to make a Iaijutsu attack. You can now make a Iaijutsu attack every time your target doesn't have the Dex bonus to AC and when flanking it.
In addition, you may learn maneuvers from the Way of the Wandering Blade discipline.





Wind's Alacrity
Samayōyaiba no michi (Counter)
Initiation Action: Immediate
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous
XP Cost: 20,000 XP
Training Time: 10 days
Start first and roll initiative, if you start before all other enemies you will gain a surprise round.

Moment of lighting clarity
Samayōyaiba no michi (Counter)
Prerequisito: 1 Samayōyaiba no michi maneuver
Initiation Action: Immediate
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous
XP Cost: 30,000 XP
Training Time: 15 days
USable when an enemy in melee reach use an immediate action, prepared action, contingent action or any other action that can interrupt you. You will gain a free standard action and the target is flat footed. Special: you canno tbe interrupted when doing this spec

Istintive dodge
Samayōyaiba no michi (Counter)
Prerequisito: 1 Samayōyaiba no michi maneuver
Initiation Action: Immediate
Range: Personale
Target: A melee attack
Duration: Instantaneous
XP Cost: 30,000 XP
Training Time: 15 days
When an enemy targets you with a melee attack you can use this ability and roll an opposite check of Iaijutsu focus agains't her attack roll. You you succed you can teleport adjacent to the target and the attack miss. If you don't succed you can teleport but have only 50% miss chance

Slashing the eternity
Samayōyaiba no michi (Boost)
Prerequisito: 1 Samayōyaiba no michi maneuver
Initiation Action: Swift action
Range: Personale
Target: 1 round
XP Cost: 30,000 XP
Training Time: 15 days
You focus all your training in a few seconds. Until the beginning of your next round all your attacks can be done with Iaijutsu focus skill with a +10 to the check. You add the Cha bonus to each dices and double the dices. (You won't double the Cha bonus so 2d6+cha each normal dice)

Lightning blink of the invisible blade
Samayōyaiba no michi (Rush)
Prerequisito: 1 Samayōyaiba no michi maneuver
Initiation Action: Move action
Range: 5 times move capacity
Target: Personal
Duration: Instantaneous
XP Cost: 30,000 XP
Training Time: 15 days
Increase your move speed by 5 times, ignore difficult terrain and opportunity attacks but you can move only in straight lines of 20 ft and turn to 45 grades. Every enermy you walk over must do an opposite roll of perception against your Iaijutsu focus or be flat-footed for one round. Target with 5 Dv less than you initiator level are automatically flat-footed.


[No name]
Samayōyaiba no michi (-)
Prerequisito: 1 Samayōyaiba no michi maneuver
Initiation Action: -
Range: -
Target: -
Duration: -
XP Cost: 30,000 XP
Training Time: 15 days


Wind Lord's Rage
Samayōyaiba no michi (Stance)
Prerequisite: 2 Samayōyaiba no michi maneuvers
Initiation Action: Swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance
XP Cost: 45,000 XP
Training Time: 20 days
A powerful frost wind run around you, guiding every attacks. Every time you make a melee attack you have 30 ft range

Blade Tornado
Samayōyaiba no michi (Strike)
Prerequisite: 2 Samayōyaiba no michi maneuvers
Initiation Action: Standard action
Range: Cilinder with 30 ft diameter and 120 ft height
Target: You
Durata: Concentration or 1d4+2 round (See text)
XP Cost: 45,000 XP
Training Time: 20 days
You creato a tornado of sharp wind with 30 ft diameter and 120 ft height where you can move freely horizontally e vertically at double speed. When you initiate this maneouver you chose one held weapon, Inside the area of effect all the creatures take one simple attack damage without crit or other effect like challenge, smite and so on. Every creature in 60 feet of the tornado must make a reflex save (DC 10+1/2 initiator level + Car) to avoid the Tornado Weather effect and to be pulled in.
If you chose to interrupt the concentration you can chose a direction and the Tornado will move in that way for 1d4+2 round with 45 ft speed

Destruction of Heaven's Gate
Samayōyaiba no michi (Strike)
Prerequisite: 2 Samayōyaiba no michi maneuvers
Initiation Action: Standard action
Range: Melee reach
Target: One creature or object
Duration: Istantaneous
XP Cost: 45,000 XP
Training Time: 20 days
After channeling all you spirit and ki to you blade, you strike the opponent with a devastating attack that ignore all resistance or damage reduction and hardness, ignoring armor, shield and natural armor with a +10 to the attack. If the target creature possess 1 Dv less than the initiator level must success a fort save equal half a iaijutsu focus check of the initiator or be cutted in half, if the target saves will remain at 1d4 HP. This effect ignore immunity to death effect of any sort.
A creature with equal or more DV must suceed a Fort save or lost 50% of total HP, if saves it'll lost only 25% of total hp.
If the target is an object, it will be reduced to 0 and destroyed automatically. It's possible to destroy 100m² for each point of iaijutsu focus the initiator has

Kami no Ikari, God's Fury [Pinnacle]
Samayōyaiba no michi (Srike)
Prerequisito: 8 Samayōyaiba no michi maneuvers
Initiation Action: One complete action
Range: 90 feet
Target: One creature
Duration: Instant
XP Cost: 100,000 XP
Training Time: 50 days

You can move fly 90 feet in straight line and all creature in 15 ft reach of your movment must make a reflex save (DC 10+1/2 initiator level + Car) to avoid the Tornado Weather and a melee attack. When you reach the target you can do a complete attack. After it you do an opposite check of Iaijutsu focus against perception, if you win it you trow the targed in air to 60ft+10ft for every point of iaijutsu focus over the perception and you move freely to the target and do a second full attack to flat footed AC. After if you d a second opposite check, if you win that too you trow the enemy to the ground doing a thirth full attack to a Flat-footed and contact AC and doing 1d6 point of damage for every 5 ft af falling. At the impact, all enemy in a reach of half the falling ft must make a reflex save to halve half of the d6 of the enemy fall. It counts as a charge

[Rhistel]

Updated, i need only one maneuvers.
Please, examine and comment honestly and sorry for my bad english :smallsmile:

[VoodooPaladin]

Oh, wow. I haven't seen an Epic Discipline in years! Quite an ambitious project.

Right now, I don't have much more to offer than voicing support for your work. I'll try to put forward some actual commentary soon, when I have a better chance of finishing it without a fatal error crashing my computer midway through typing it out.

[VoodooPaladin]

Alright! That took longer than I'd hoped, but here are my comments!


Starting with the initiation feat, Master of the Wandering Blade. Though it requires only 23 ranks in Iaijutsu Focus (one less than max for 21st level), the Dire Charge and Superior Initiative requirements push back its minimum entry level to 27th. I must ask: was it intentional that a character does not need to be able to initiate maneuvers of 9th level (or indeed, any maneuvers at all) to obtain it?

Its bonus effect is... wow. At Epic level, Iaijutsu Focus checks can be assumed to reach anywhere from 40~50 without significant difficulty. Along with the maximization of Iaijustu Focus damage dice, that's a +54 bonus to every damage roll made. That's instant-kill territory for anyone who can deliver more than two hits at once, which is easy for maneuver-using characters. Which, at level 27, may be acceptable, but I have to ask if that was your intention or not.

Oh, yeah. And there is a typo that, for reasons relating to the Complete Arcane book, does actually matter: Ability Focus (Iajiutsu Focus) does not exist. You're thinking of Skill Focus (Iaijutsu Focus). Don't feel bad: the Ability Focus feat is actually a monster-oriented parallel to Spell Focus, and boosts the save DC of a chosen Spell-Like or Supernatural ability, while Skill Focus is the +3 bonus to chosen skill check we all know and love.

Wind's Alacrity is nice, certainly, but it's not very strong for its level. A surprise round gives only a standard action, which for a melee character is unhelpful at the start of combat. Even then, it can be countered by a single non-epic spell: foresight. It's a good concept, quite elegant, but it should have a bit more. Perhaps grant a single move and standard action?

Moment of Lightning Clarity is probably intended to be a non-action, or a free action that can be taken at any time. Immediate Actions can already be used at any time to interrupt other peoples' actions, even other Immediate Actions.

Instinctive Dodge completely fine as-is. Gotta love those AC replacers, always worth the sign-up cost. Perhaps a bit weak, mind you, I think there's a non-epic maneuver with power equivalent to this one's. If it's not too presumptuous, I would suggest something like 'You do not need to be aware of the attack in question to initiate this maneuver.' for the style points.

Slashing the Eternity... Charisma synergy? Okay, kind of feels like it comes out of nowhere, but I can see it working. +10 is a really high bonus to stack, all but guaranteeing max dice (and thus, when both doubled and maximized, +104 damage) on every swing. The Cha*(# of dice) is just extra. My opinion of this maneuver is that it... is overpowered. Even Epic D&D shatters on contact with +100 damage to every attack. If I were to suggest something to help off the top of my head, I would go with 'Until the beginning of your next turn, the bonus damage dealt by Iaijutsu Focus is not maximized. Instead, for each die of Iaijutsu Focus dealt, you may add your Charisma as a bonus to the damage roll. ' But that's not great either. I'll have to think on it.

Lightning Blink of the Invisible Blade is certainly an interesting way of doing things. The average movespeed of a PC is only 30 ft., so you would get 7.5 full 20 ft. increments, and the turning rules are rather harsh. The real concern is that of redundancy; it's really easy to get Iaijutsu Focus damage dice as part of other Wandering Blade maneuvers.
>Question! What is Dv? Are you referring to level? Because (and I regret to inform you of this, because this is a really silly D&D-ism we've all just learned to live with around here) but you probably want one of the following instead: HD, CR, or ECL.

Wind Lord's Rage isn't on the level of all the other maneuvers, and is arguably not Epic material. It's quite salvagable, however. Perhaps a solution involving giving your melee attacks an effective range of 30', as though a range weapon with infinite range increments? That way, the 'wind slashes' have a theoretically boundless reach, provided one can actually see the target and overcome the range penalties.

Blade Tornado is a fair minion-clearing effect. Perhaps it's a bit weak, but that depends on a few factors. First: if Iaijutsu Focus bonus damage is also excluded from the damage dealt. Second: am I accurate in assuming a Blade Tornado's tornado is an actual Tornado, as per the weather rules? Third: is the damage is dealt each turn or just once?

Also! I'm proud to say, we're almost to the end, and I've only now stumbled upon a typo that confused me. 'Car' is most likely supposed to be 'Cha'.

I think Destruction of Heaven's Gate is great. You have a solid concept and a rather effective execution (:smallbiggrin:) with the 'instant death or just barely less' thing. Perhaps, for utility, you can choose to waive the save on the target, keeping them alive at 1d4 hp if you so please?

Note: 100 m^2 is about 4,225 squares. Shouldn't that be 100 m^3? D&D is technically a 3D game, despite all its efforts to become a dedicated miniatures combat system.

Kami no Ikari, God's Fury... this is a big maneuver. Wow, three full attack routines. I have to ask: the Tornado weather effect mentioned is triggered by your melee attack, right? I can't see how else you would adjudicate the pulling effect, with no static point to draw the targets to. Also... 'Perception' is not a skill in D&D 3.5; Spot, Listen, and Sense Motive are all different skills. (you probably want Spot in this case)

Now we get to the meat of the maneuver. The second full attack is fine, because eh, high level stuff. The third full attack is probably unnecessary, the fall damage should be enough. (same goes for the second, really) The last sentence does kind of need to be cleaned up: something like “At the point of impact, all enemies within a radius equal to ½ the total distance fallen by the target receive damage equal to 1d6/10 ft. fallen, with a Reflex save for half.“

Finally, it says it's a charge. How does this interact with Dire Charge?



So my general notes about your discipline... it needs more polish, as any fresh design does. It's got potential, but the need to think upwards is present here. Remember: D&D is full of crazy stuff, and Epic D&D is crazier still! You've got a great foundation. It reminds me a lot of the Lightless Divine Wind (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?256759-quot-Did-you-hear-it-The-voice-of-the-Divine-Wind-quot-3-5-Discipline-PEACH), which I also enjoyed.

And I wish you the best of luck with the second language, and, to a lesser extent, learning D&D's ridiculous and exacting internal language. It's going to be a steep climb, from what I've heard, but the rewards are great once you get there.