ArmorArmadillo
2007-07-15, 03:07 PM
Ever feel like Ninja were beaten with the lame stick? Well, we wouldn’t want our martial arts savvy friends to stay that way, but can we fix them without redoing the entire classes? I think so, using the unsung hero of recent design Skill Tricks.
The Ninja:
I feel like the flaw of the Ninja class is that, although it does have a few evasive and invisibility tricks, it really isn’t enough to equal the trademark of ninjas in fiction and legend, a vast array of theatrical tricks. What’s left is a rogue with a worse version of sneak attack and fewer skill points. I could design new Jutsu feats (a la Dragon Magazine) but characters just don’t get enough feats to make such options worthwhile. What ninjas do have, however, is skills to spend (and a skill trick is ultimately what a Jutsu is.)
Also, I’m adding a Ninja-Specific craft skill.
Craft (Pyrotechnics)
You can work explosive powders and reactive ingredients into distracting and bewildering tricks.
Use: Crafting a pyrotechnic item requires a certain period of dedicated effort, equal to one hour for every 4 points of the item’s Craft DC, and raw materials equal to the items listed price. At the end of this period, you must make a craft check against that item’s DC; meeting the DC indicates that the item was made successfully, if you fail by 5 or more, you fail to make the item and lose the raw materials used on the item. If you beat the DC by 10 or more, the item is masterwork, and all attack or skill checks made with it are made at a +1.
Special: Because of the difficulty of storing or transporting pyrotechnic items, they are not economical to sell or buy in their completed form, and therefore not available outside the craft skill.
Pyrotechnic Items
Item |Use |Effect |Craft DC |Price
Blasting Powder |Standard Action |Hide while being observed |16 |20 Gp
Smoke Pellet |Move Action; Grenadelike |Concealment in 5 ft. Radius |20 |30 Gp
Spark Seed |Move Action; Ranged Touch |Ignite Flammable Materials |16 |20 Gp
Oil Sphere |Move Action |Flammable oil fills 15 ft. Line |24 | 40 Gp
Light Powder |Standard Action; Ranged Touch |Blinds for 1 Round (DC 14) |16 |30 Gp
Death Veil Jutsu [Skill Trick]
Through control of your body, and force of will, you can place yourself in a coma indistinguishable from death.
Requirements: Ki Pool, Disguise 5 Ranks, Bluff 5 Ranks
Benefit: You can, as an immediate action, place yourself in a special unconsciousness for 1 hour. This state makes you appear dead to others; you register no pulse, do not breathe, and your body becomes cold and begins to stiffen. Because this is a special Ki induced bodily state, and not an illusion or simple bluff, no method short of true seeing can reveal your ruse.
Special: Use of this skill trick requires expending a use of Ki power.
Prism Hornet Jutsu [Skill Trick]
Layering thrown weapons with explosive powder and igniting it with a small burst of Ki, you can cause them to create a dazzling trail in flight.
Requirements: Ki Pool, Craft (Pyrotechnics) 8 Ranks
Benefit: You can use a single dose of light powder to render an opponent flatfooted for a single turn.
Special: Use of this skill trick requires expending a use of Ki power.
Sky Catfish Jutsu [Skill Trick]
Focusing Ki downward after a great leap, a Ninja can hammer the ground with seismic power.
Requirements: Ki Pool, Jump 10 Ranks, Tumble 5 Ranks
Benefit: After falling or jumping vertically, you can force all adjacent creatures to make a reflex save (DC 10+1/2 Character Level+Wis Modifier) or fall prone and take 1d6 damage for each 10 ft. you fell.
Special: Use of this skill trick requires expending a use of Ki power.
The Ninja:
I feel like the flaw of the Ninja class is that, although it does have a few evasive and invisibility tricks, it really isn’t enough to equal the trademark of ninjas in fiction and legend, a vast array of theatrical tricks. What’s left is a rogue with a worse version of sneak attack and fewer skill points. I could design new Jutsu feats (a la Dragon Magazine) but characters just don’t get enough feats to make such options worthwhile. What ninjas do have, however, is skills to spend (and a skill trick is ultimately what a Jutsu is.)
Also, I’m adding a Ninja-Specific craft skill.
Craft (Pyrotechnics)
You can work explosive powders and reactive ingredients into distracting and bewildering tricks.
Use: Crafting a pyrotechnic item requires a certain period of dedicated effort, equal to one hour for every 4 points of the item’s Craft DC, and raw materials equal to the items listed price. At the end of this period, you must make a craft check against that item’s DC; meeting the DC indicates that the item was made successfully, if you fail by 5 or more, you fail to make the item and lose the raw materials used on the item. If you beat the DC by 10 or more, the item is masterwork, and all attack or skill checks made with it are made at a +1.
Special: Because of the difficulty of storing or transporting pyrotechnic items, they are not economical to sell or buy in their completed form, and therefore not available outside the craft skill.
Pyrotechnic Items
Item |Use |Effect |Craft DC |Price
Blasting Powder |Standard Action |Hide while being observed |16 |20 Gp
Smoke Pellet |Move Action; Grenadelike |Concealment in 5 ft. Radius |20 |30 Gp
Spark Seed |Move Action; Ranged Touch |Ignite Flammable Materials |16 |20 Gp
Oil Sphere |Move Action |Flammable oil fills 15 ft. Line |24 | 40 Gp
Light Powder |Standard Action; Ranged Touch |Blinds for 1 Round (DC 14) |16 |30 Gp
Death Veil Jutsu [Skill Trick]
Through control of your body, and force of will, you can place yourself in a coma indistinguishable from death.
Requirements: Ki Pool, Disguise 5 Ranks, Bluff 5 Ranks
Benefit: You can, as an immediate action, place yourself in a special unconsciousness for 1 hour. This state makes you appear dead to others; you register no pulse, do not breathe, and your body becomes cold and begins to stiffen. Because this is a special Ki induced bodily state, and not an illusion or simple bluff, no method short of true seeing can reveal your ruse.
Special: Use of this skill trick requires expending a use of Ki power.
Prism Hornet Jutsu [Skill Trick]
Layering thrown weapons with explosive powder and igniting it with a small burst of Ki, you can cause them to create a dazzling trail in flight.
Requirements: Ki Pool, Craft (Pyrotechnics) 8 Ranks
Benefit: You can use a single dose of light powder to render an opponent flatfooted for a single turn.
Special: Use of this skill trick requires expending a use of Ki power.
Sky Catfish Jutsu [Skill Trick]
Focusing Ki downward after a great leap, a Ninja can hammer the ground with seismic power.
Requirements: Ki Pool, Jump 10 Ranks, Tumble 5 Ranks
Benefit: After falling or jumping vertically, you can force all adjacent creatures to make a reflex save (DC 10+1/2 Character Level+Wis Modifier) or fall prone and take 1d6 damage for each 10 ft. you fell.
Special: Use of this skill trick requires expending a use of Ki power.