Elves
2019-04-24, 03:46 PM
https://i.ibb.co/8Yc9RHf/JSYDEVe.jpg
A Shadow Hand master moving through the Plane of Shadow.
For this fanmade Tome of Battle sequel project (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?581281-The-Age-of-Warriors-(Project-Revived!)), the focus is on adding new disciplines -- but there will also be a few new maneuvers for each of the existing 9, with the specific aim of serving people who want to focus heavily on a single discipline.
Rush
Rushes are move action maneuvers.
Utility
Utility maneuvers can take any amount of time, but they still abide by the refresh mechanic; they have no per-day or other time restrictions.
Saves
Maneuver save DCs now scale with your Initiator Level, rather than being based on the maneuver's level. The save DC for your maneuvers is 10+½ Initiator Level+class-relevant mental ability mod (crusader=cha, swordsage=wis, warblade=int). If you have multiple initiator classes, you use the statmod of whichever class granted you the given maneuver.
New Condition: Uncentered
While you're uncentered, you can't be in a stance. When you become uncentered you automatically exit any current stance(s).
New Maneuvers
Desert Wind:
Dancing Flame
Dancing Wildfire
Dancing Inferno
- more TBA
Dancing Flame
Desert Wind (Rush) [Fire]
Level: Swordsage 2
Initiation Action: Move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous; 1 round
Saving Throw: Reflex negates
You move in a fiery blur, dashing across the battlefield like a fire spread by the wind.
Move up to your speed. This movement provokes attacks of opportunity as normal. Each time you exit a square adjacent to an opponent, you can have that creature make a Reflex saving throw. If it fails, the creature's fire resistance (if any) is reduced by your initiator level (to a minimum of 0), and you then deal 1d6 points of fire damage to it. The reduction in fire resistance lasts until the beginning of your next turn. A creature that makes the save successfully is unaffected. You can only attempt to affect a given opponent once with this maneuver each time you initiate it.
Dancing Wildfire
Desert Wind (Rush) [Fire]
Level: Swordsage 6
Prerequisite: 2 Desert Wind maneuvers
Initiation Action: Move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous; 1 round
Saving Throw: Reflex negates
You move in a fiery blur, flying across the battlefield like a wildfire across a dry forest.
As Dancing Flame, but you may fly up to your speed, and the fire damage dealt to affected targets is 3d6.
Dancing Inferno
Desert Wind (Rush) [Fire]
Level: Swordsage 8
Prerequisite: 3 Desert Wind maneuvers
Initiation Action: Move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous; 1 round
Saving Throw: Reflex negates
You move in a fiery blur, blasting across the battlefield like a screaming inferno.
As Dancing Flame, but you may fly up to twice your speed, you suppress all of affected targets' fire resistance and even fire immunity, and you then deal 5d6 fire damage.
Devoted Spirit:
Warden's Step
Warden's Step
Devoted Spirit (Rush)
Level: 3
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round or until discharged
Weaving through your foes, you position yourself to best defend your allies.
Move up to your speed. Any ally that you pass adjacent to during this movement is considered to be protected by you for the duration of this maneuver. Whenever an opponent attacks an ally you protect this way, you may discharge the effects of this maneuver as an immediate action to perform a charge against that opponent. Treat the first attack you make at the end of this charge as though it was an attack of opportunity (thus, it also counts against your limit of attacks of opportunity in a round). You can charge through your allies when performing a charge in this way, but you must otherwise respect all of the limitations and requirements of a charge.
Diamond Mind:
Crystal Intuition
Perceptive Reflex
Quivering Crystal Reflexes
Mind as Prism
Diamond Bladed Time Saw
Action Without Motion
Diamond Time Sharpener
Crystal Intuition
Diamond Mind (Boost)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: Swift Action
Range: Personal
Target: Self
Duration: Instantaneous
Time seems to slow to a crawl as your eyes dart around. There are 3 enemy orcs and 2 enemy worgs. Orcs are sensitive to bright light and are generally stupid. That orc is middle aged and is showing signs of baldness. There are approximately 2.1 million hairs on that orc. The current temperature is 73 degrees. Your angle of attack is 35.7:45.41:39:01. There is an ant on a flower 124 feet away. You can determine...
You open your mind to make an accelerated series of logical judgments and let in razor-fine sensory perceptions. As a swift action you may make two skill checks, for which the eligible skills are Autohypnosis, Knowledge (any), Martial Lore, Spellcraft, Listen, Spot, and Sense Motive. You gain a +2+1/2 IL bonus on each check. You can even make an untrained check in a skill that doesn't normally allow it.
This maneuver can only be used in real combat, where tension and necessity press the livening insight out of you. It can't substitute for a skill check required by a maneuver.
Perceptive Reflex
Diamond Mind (Counter)
Level: 1
Maneuver prerequisite: 1
Initiation Action: Immediate
Range: Personal
Target: Self
Duration: Instantaneous
Trigger: You make a Search, Spot, or Listen check
You swore you saw something flicker in the corner of your vision. Without even thinking about it, your eyes focused closer, spotting the assassin before he struck!
Reroll the check with a +5 insight bonus. You must accept the result of the second roll.
Quivering Crystal Reflexes
Diamond Mind (Stance)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: Self
Your snap reactions allow you to correct for inaccuracies in your athletic form.
Once per round, you can reroll a failed Strength or Dexterity ability or skill check.
When targeted by an effect that allows a Reflex save, you can choose to benefit from evasion, or improved evasion if you already have evasion, against that one effect. However, this causes you to become staggered and uncentered for 1 round.
Mind as Prism
Diamond Mind (Counter)
Level: 3
Maneuver prerequisite: 3
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal, then Close (25ft+5ft/2 IL)
Target: Self
Duration: Instantaneous
Trigger: You are targeted by a mind-affecting effect with a saving throw
Your mind is like a flawless diamond prism. Instead of resisting, you open yourself to the effect, and it just passes though you, decomposed into its elements.
This counter can be used either after you fail your save against the triggering effect or before your save is rolled. Regardless, the effect passes through you harmlessly, and you may retarget it on any two creatures on the opposite side from you as the caster (anyone who's between 4 and 8 o'clock from them). The redirected effect has a save DC 3 lower than the original effect, and its range is Close or the original effect's remaining range, whichever is higher. This can even be used to employ touch spells at range, using you as the vector.
Alternately, you can let the effect flow out harmlessly.
You can't use this maneuver while immune to mind-affecting effects.
Diamond Bladed Time Saw
Diamond Mind (Utility)
Level: 4
Maneuver prerequisite: 3
Initiation Action: Move or standard
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration See text
One moment, fractured into two. A series of steps, transformed from a motion to a martial dance. You ready yourself for your enemies, setting aside the time you need to execute your techniques.
Gain additional actions based on the action you used to initiate this maneuver.
Move action: 1 swift action
Standard action: 1 swift and 1 move action
This represents you divvying up that action into smaller pieces.
Action Without Motion
Diamond Mind (Rush)
Level: Swordsage 5, Warblade 5
Prerequisite: Two Diamond Mind maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round
In the blink of an eye, you dash across the battlefield, taking note of your opponents' openings as you pass them by.
Move up to your speed. Whenever an opponent makes an attack of opportunity against you that you provoked from this movement, they provoke an attack of opportunity from you after their attack has been resolved. They are aware of this before making their attack.
If any opponents decline to make an attack of opportunity based on that information, or if they cannot make any more attacks of opportunity this round, you gain the sudden strike ability until the beginning of your next turn. You gain 1d6 sudden strike damage per enemy that refused to make or was incapable of making an AoO. If you already have sudden strike, the damage you deal with it increases by this amount.
Diamond Time Sharpener
Diamond Mind (Boost)
Level: 5
Maneuver prerequisite: 3
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Area: Encounter
Duration: Instantaneous
Like a sudden wave, everyone's perceptions flare forward.
A new round starts. No time has actually passed, but for mechanical purposes a new round begins when you initiate this maneuver. Everyone who already acted in the round that ends when you initiate this maneuver does not get a turn during this new round. Those who have not used immediate actions may still use them, albeit drawing on their swift action for the round following the new round.
As for you, you get a unique turn that bridges both rounds. When you initiate this maneuver, the first thing that happens is that end of round and start of round effects are resolved, but your turn then continues as before, with the exception that all your remaining actions (such as free actions, even if your other actions are used up) take place in the new round. This bridging turn counts as your turn during both rounds.
The Area entry indicates that the maneuver affects only participants in the localized sphere of the encounter that's being modeled.
This maneuver is not magical or mind-affecting. It represents how you're so ahead of the curve that fighting you is like watching moments crash into each other and meld.
Iron Heart:
Cut and Run
Iron Duelist Stance
Sweeping Strike
Fencer's Reach
Epiphany of Steel
Pulse of the Iron Vein
Axeman's Break
Sword Fortress Buffet
Forcible Yield
Beat of the Iron Heart
Cut and Run
Iron Heart (Rush)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: See text
Target: One creature
Duration: See text
There is no such thing as retreat. There is only attacking in another direction.
Move your speed. You may take a standard action in the midst of this movement, similar to what the Spring Attack feat allows.
Iron Duelist Stance
Iron Heart (Stance)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: Swift
Personal
By adopting this stance, the disciple presents a slim profile to his foes, holding his weapon low and one- handed, elegantly leading with it. When attacking with a single one-handed weapon, you count as fighting defensively but don’t suffer the corresponding attack penalty. When you make a full attack with a single one-handed weapon, you count as using the total defense action (+4 dodge bonus to AC). Wielding a non-animated shield, off-hand weapon, or two-handed weapon ends the stance. If you have the Two-Weapon Fighting feat, wielding a light weapon in your off-hand instead merely suppresses the stance’s benefits for 1 round whenever you make an off-hand attack.
Sweeping Strike
Iron Heart (Strike)
Level: 2
Prerequisite: 1 Iron Heart maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instant
Make a melee attack. If it hits, it deals weapon damage as normal plus an additional 2d6 points of damage. If you drew your weapon as part of this strike, you may also make a trip attempt against them as a free action with a +2 competence bonus on your combat maneuver check. This trip attempt does not provoke an attack of opportunity.
[name]
Iron Heart (Stance)
Level: 4
Prerequisite: Two Iron Heart maneuvers
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: Self
This is the stance of someone truly comfortable with their abilities.
While in this stance, gain +2 to the save DC of maneuvers you intitiate. In addition, while in this stance all your levels in non-spellcasting classes are treated as granting full instead of half initiator levels. This doesn't let you learn higher level maneuvers than you normally would, but it does let you use them from items.
Fencer’s Reach
Iron Heart (Stance)
Level: 3
Prerequisite: 1 Iron Heart maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Personal
You can translate the momentum of your swift attacks into greater reach, striking foes who would normally be out of your range. While you maintain this stance, your melee attacks deal an additional 1d6 points of damage, and you increase the reach of the first attack you make each round by 5 feet. The additional damage of this stance increases by 1d6 for every eight initiator levels you possess.
Epiphany of Steel
Iron Heart (Counter)
Level: 5
Prerequisite: Two Iron Heart maneuvers
Initiation Action: Immediate
Range: Personal
Target: You
Trigger: You roll what would be a critical threat against a creature immune to crits
You ignore the creature's critical hit immunity with this attack. Against creatures with partial fortification you must use this counter before rolling to penetrate their fortification.
Pulse of the Iron Vein
Iron Heart (Rush)
Level: 5
Prerequisite: 2 Iron Heart maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
You flow unstoppably across the battlefield like blood.
You may move up to your speed, even through occupied spaces.
Axeman’s Break
Iron Heart (Strike)
Level: 6
Prerequisite(s): 3 Iron Heart maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instant
Perfectly feeling the pulse of the combat, the disciple finds their instant to strike true. Make a single attack; if it hits it automatically counts as a critical threat. If the roll is naturally a threat, it automatically confirms.
Sword Fortress Buffet
Iron Heart (Counter)
Level: 6
Prerequisite: 2 Iron Heart maneuvers
Initiation Action: Immediate
Range: Melee
Target: One creature
By perfectly timing your counterattacks, you can force your opponent into a position where they are unable to further attack you. You can initiate this counter in response to a melee or ranged attack being made against you. Make an attack roll with a weapon you are wielding against each attack from a single opponent. Every subsequent opposed roll is made a at a cumulative -2 modifier. If your attack roll is higher than your opponent’s, their attack is negated.
Forcible Yield
Iron Heart (Strike) [mind-affecting]
Level: 7
Prerequisite: two Iron Heart maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instant
Saving Throw: Will negates
With a mighty overhand swing you put your foe in their place: on their knees before the majesty of a prince of warriors. Make a melee attack against the target. If it hits it inflicts an additional 10d6 points of damage and the target must make a Will save to resist being knocked prone.
Beat of the Iron Heart
Iron Heart (Rush)
Level: 8
Prerequisite: 3 Iron Heart maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round or until discharged
As part of this maneuver, you can move up to your speed. Until the beginning of your next turn, you can discharge this maneuver to modify a single strike you as you initiate it. This must be a strike that normally involves making a single melee attack. You can instead attack each creature that was within your reach at any point during your movement, even if they are no longer within your reach (this replaces any attacks normally granted by the strike). These attacks gain the same benefits and cause the same effects as the attack granted by strike you initiated (although you are still considered to have only initiated the one strike). You cannot attack a single creature more than once in this way.
Setting Sun:
Float Like a Butterfly
Wristgrab Intercept
Lunging Tackle
Pivotal Chop
Roll with the Blow
Sunset Slide
Sunrays Flaring Between Trees
Gentle Fist
One Inch Punch
Bicycle Kick
Horizon Step
Shooting Star Launch
One Inch Heartstrike
Float Like a Butterfly
Setting Sun (Stance)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance
You may take a 5-foot step as an immediate action when someone targets you with a melee or ranged attack and misses (failed crit confirmations don't count). Once per round, you may do this even if you've already used your 5-foot step for the round.
Wristgrab Intercept
Setting Sun (Counter)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: 1 immediate action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous
Trigger: Creature no more than 5ft outside your reach attempts to move any distance
As your opponent moves towards you, you are able to grab him and spin, swiftly changing his direction and disrupting his motion, causing him to have to halt in order to hold his balance.
Optionally, move 5 feet. Then attempt to grab the triggering target. If you hit, instead of following with a grapple, you end their movement and the action that involved it. They proceed with their turn, if applicable.
At IL 15, you can also use this maneuver against a target who tries to teleport (which does not including moving to another plane, as with plane shift or etherealness).
Lunging Tackle
Setting Sun (Rush)
Level: 2
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous
With great speed you burst towards your target, keeping your body low for maximum leverage. As you come underneath them, you secure a hold.
Move your speed toward the target, who must be a creature you can reach with your movement speed when this maneuver is initiated. When you get in range you must initiate a grapple against them as a free action. This still provokes if you don't have Improved Grapple, but your low lunging form gives you a +2 circumstance bonus to AC against this AoO and all AoOs your movement may provoke.
If something happens that prevents from reaching the target, you stop in your tracks and the maneuver ends.
Pivotal Chop
Setting Sun (Counter)
Level: 3
Prerequisite: One Setting Sun maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 immediate action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous
Trigger: Target makes a melee attack roll against you
Capitalizing on your foe’s forward inertia, you plant one foot and spin away too quickly for him to adjust, dodging his attack and slipping behind him before unleashing a vicious chop to his exposed backside.
Make a Sense Motive check. If the result meets or exceeds the triggering attack roll, you dodge the attack and switch places with the target. You may then immediately make a melee attack against the target, against which they are both flat-footed and flanked.
Roll with the Blow
Setting Sun (Counter)
Level: 3
Prerequisite: One Setting Sun maneuver
Initiation Action: Immediate
Range: Personal
Target: Self
Duration: Instantaneous
Trigger: You take damage from a melee attack
The hammer hits you solid but you roll with it and fly back, missing the next swing.
You roll away from the source of damage, moving up to [damage taken] feet (round down to the nearest 5 ft increment, minimum 5, maximum 50). This movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity.
Sunrays Flaring Between Trees
Setting Sun (Stance)
Level: 3
Prerequisite: Two Setting Sun maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance
You anticipate your opponents' actions and act accordingly.
When you enter this stance or start your turn in it, you may choose to delay your actions in the current round without compromising your place in the initiative count. When you choose to delay in this fashion, you may spread out your remaining actions between other peoples' turns.
Sunset Slide
Setting Sun (Rush) [Teleportation]
Level: Swordsage 3
Prerequisite: One Setting Sun maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round or until discharged
Rushing forwards, you move to strike your foe. In the blink of an eye, you stand serenely back where your charge began.
As part of this maneuver, you may move up to your speed. As a free action any time before the beginning of your next turn, you can discharge this maneuver to teleport to the space you were in when you initiated this maneuver, or the nearest available space if that space is occupied or impassable. You can do this at any time, even if it is not your turn and even in response to another creature's actions.
Gentle Fist
Setting Sun (Strike)
Level: 4
Prerequisite: 2 Setting Sun maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: One round
Saving Throw: Fortitude partial
Your opponent braces for what he expects to be a jarring blow from your open palm, but instead only receives a hit more akin to a light pat. When he tries to unleash his magic, however, his spells fizzle, and he grows increasingly flustered as he realizes he is helpless before you.
Make an unarmed attack. If you hit, the target must make a Fortitude save or become unable to cast spells, manifest powers, or use spell-like abilities for one round. In addition, they are subjected to a targeted dispel, for which you make an initiator level check (max +20) instead of a caster level check. Unlike dispel magic, this dispel can't affect objects, nor can it end an ongoing spell by targeting a creature who is the effect of that spell (in the case of eg a summoned monster).
One Inch Punch
Setting Sun (Counter)
Level: 5
Prerequisite: Two Setting Sun maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 immediate action
Range: See text
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous
Trigger: A foe targets you with a counter
Your foe, apparently possessed of at least a certain wit, manages to catch your incoming fist between his hands in a defensive pose. You immediately launch another punch with the same fist -- which is now only inches from his chest -- overpowering his defense with sheer strength and speed.
You and the target make an opposed initiator level check (1d20 + your initiator level). A character with at least 10 ranks in Sense Motive gains a +4 competence bonus to this check. If you win, the counter is negated, allowing you to continue with your previous action normally. If you're in melee range of the opponent whose counter you voided, you may also make a single melee attack against them, which automatically hits.
Bicycle Kick
Setting Sun (Strike)
Level: 6
Prerequisite: Two Setting Sun maneuvers
Initiation Action: Full-Round Action
Range: Melee
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
As a part of initiating this maneuver, you make a charge attack. Instead of a normal attack, you instead deliver three consecutive unarmed strikes against the same creature. If all three unarmed attacks hit, you may make another two. If those two hit, you make another one, and if this one hits, it throws your opponent 20 feet away, dealing an extra 1d6 damage per initiator level and causing them to fall prone.
Horizon Step
Setting Sun (Rush)
Level: Swordsage 6
Prerequisite: Three Setting Sun maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal; up to 1 mile
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous
A single step takes you from where you are to where you wish to be.
As part of this maneuver, you may move to any space that you can see, using any movement mode or combination of movement modes that you possess (even if this would require moving beyond your normal speed). You have total concealment while moving, and your movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity. If your path is blocked by a barrier you cannot bypass, your movement ends and you fall prone in the space nearest to your destination that you can reach within this maneuver's range. You cannot use this ability to move more than one mile each time you initiate it.
Shooting Star Launch
Setting Sun (Strike)
Level: 7
Prerequisite: Two Setting Sun Maneuvers
Initiation Action: Standard Action
Range: Melee Attack
Target: One Creature
Duration: Instantaneous
You won't need this sword. Into the trash it goes.
Make a melee attack with at least one hand free. You deal normal damage and may immediately make a disarm attempt without provoking. On a successful disarm, you may throw the object up to 10 ft/IL; if you disarmed a weapon, you may throw it that distance against a target. This is a thrown weapon attack, but without the normal range restriction or the normal -4 penalty for throwing non-thrown weapons. If it hits, the thrown attack deals an extra 10d6 damage.
One Inch Heartstrike
Setting Sun (Counter)
Level: 8
Prerequisite: Three Setting Sun maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 immediate action
Range: See text
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous
Save: Fortitude negates
Your foe thought they were being clever to interrupt you. But you foil their move, setting them off guard, then use the opening to hit them right up close with lethal force.
As One Inch Punch, except that if you win the opposed check your target must save or die. As a nonmagical death effect this is not subject to death ward or similar protections.
Shadow Hand:
Creeping Dark
Nightlover's Carapace
Step of the Jackal
Shadow Ward Rush
Hampering Dark
Stalker's Move
Accumulating Shadow Vortex
Dancing Gripping Teasing Cavorting Shadow
Shadow Walk
Reaping Gloom
Deathblain Falcon
Midnight Echoes
Moon-Guided Shadowstance
Shadow Master's Hatred
Creeping Dark
Shadow Hand (Rush)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round
You slip unseen past your foe's watchful gaze.
As part of this maneuver, you can move up to your speed. This movement does not count towards determining the penalties (if any) you suffer to your Hide and Move Silently checks due to movement. In addition, if you had cover or concealment when you initiated this maneuver, you are considered to have the same degree of cover or concealment for the purpose of hiding for the duration of your movement and until the beginning of your next turn. This does not grant you any other benefits of cover or concealment, but it does allow you to hide in the open for a short time.
Nightlover’s Carapace
Shadow Hand (Stance)
Level: 1
Personal
Favored technique of vampiric adepts.
A shell of dimness clings around you. You gain immunity to the dazzled condition and to blindness conditions caused by bright light. You are not subject to mild forms of light sensitivity, but still count as exposed to sunlight for the purpose of serious vulnerabilities.
At IL 3, the shell becomes more solid. You gain resist=IL to positive energy damage and +1 to saves against positive energy effects. You are not counted as exposed to sunlight.
At IL 5, it becomes a curdled suit of magic shadow energy, granting you a shield bonus equal to ½ IL.
At IL 10, it becomes even more tangible and takes the form of a monstrous shadow beast. You gain powerful build as well as two claw attacks and a bite attack, which each deal one negative level in addition to normal damage on a hit. Your eyes become black orbs that see through normal and magical darkness at a range equal to your normal sight.
The benefits of these forms are cumulative. Targeted light spells such as sunburst may make a dispel check to revert this stance back to the IL 1 version for 1d4 rounds. The DC is 11+the stance user's IL.
Shadow Ward Rush
Shadow Hand (Rush)
Level: 1
Mv prereq: 2
Action: Move
Move your speed. Every time someone makes an attack of opportunity against you, an obstacle made of shadow energy immediately appears on the edge of your square from the direction the attack came in. These obstacles grant +4 AC to targets who are attacked through them (a benefit you gain against the AoO you just triggered). They cost 2 squares of movement to cross through, and block charges. They even affect incorporeal creatures. They fade after 1d10 rounds.
Hampering Dark
Shadow Hand (Boost)
Level: 3
Mv prereq: 2
Action: Swift
Area: 20 foot radius, centered on you
Maintain: Swift
All areas of darkness or shadow become difficult terrain. All areas of low light cost +50% to enter, like moving diagonally does normally. Diagonal movement in areas of low light is unaffected.
At IL 15 the area's radius increases to 30ft.
Step of the Jackal
Shadow Hand (Rush)
Level: 3
Prerequisite 1 Shadow Hand Maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 Round
Upon initiating this maneuver you become invisible (as the spell) and move your speed. You leave a major image of yourself at your starting position. Both effects last until the start of your next turn.
Stalker's Move
Shadow Hand (Rush)
Level: 4
Prerequisite: One Shadow Hand maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round
Cloaked in shadow, you move into position, preparing to strike your foes unaware.
As Creeping Dark, but for the duration of the maneuver you gain two sneak attack dice. The benefits of this maneuver last until the beginning of your next turn.
Accumulating Shadow Vortex
Shadow Hand (Stance)
Level: 5
Prerequisite: Three Shadow Hand maneuvers
Initiation Action: Swift
Save: Fort partial
You become surrounded by a huge swirling aura of purplish umbral energy.
As a free action, you may pull any visible creature in the aura adjacent to you (Fort save halves the movement they would take (round down)). They get +3 or -3 on the save for every size category larger or smaller than you they are. You can only pull each creature once per round. You can’t pull creatures through obstacles.
This aura initially extends 10 feet. At IL 15, it extends 20 feet. At IL 20 it extends 40 feet.
Dancing Gripping Teasing Cavorting Shadow
Shadow Hand (Stance)
Level: 5
Prerequisite: Two Shadow Hand maneuvers
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: Self
Your shadow begins to dance independently of you, limbs stretching out like tentacles that worm across the landscape.
Your shadow's limbs elongate into shadowy tentacles under your control. You can have them grab and manipulate objects out to 30 ft as if they were your own hands, though they can't wield weapons or shields, only hold them. You can make disarm and grapple checks at range, and you can attack with them as if they were natural weapons. Attacks with the tentacles are touch attacks. Instead of damage, they deal a stacking -2 penalty to Strength which lasts for 1 round.
In total darkness, the effect of the stance is suppressed as your shadow becomes indistinguishable.
Shadow Walk
Shadow Hand (Utility)
Level: 6
Mv prereq: 4
Target: Personal
Shadow Hand adepts are famed for their ability to travel through the Shadow Plane, crossing distances in the real world rapidly.
As the spell, except that it becomes more powerful depending on your IL:
IL 15: Your travel speed increases to 100mph.
IL 17: Your accuracy is increased by a factor of 10.
IL 19: You may use it as a shadow teleport, mimicking the effects of a teleport spell.
IL 21: You may traverse outer space at the speed of dark. On planets and bodies you’re still limited to teleporting.
Reaping Gloom
Shadow Hand (Boost)
Level: 7
Prerequisite: Three Shadow Hand maneuvers
Initiation Action: Swift
Personal
Until the end of your turn, you may make melee attacks, including those made as part of maneuvers, at up to 60ft reach so long as there is unbroken darkness or shadow between you and your target. If it's not dark but you're currently casting a shadow, you can still use this maneuver to attack in the direction your shadow falls; your shadow elongates so as to deliver these attacks.
Deathblain Falcon
Shadow Hand (Rush)
Level: 7
Mv prereq: 4
Action: Move or Full
Save: Will and Fort partial
You become a shadowy, wraithlike bolt of a being that speeds through the air and leaves your enemies reeling, infested with infecting shadow.
You gain Flyby Attack and fly speed 90 ft (good) while using this maneuver. You must make a flyby attack against a creature. If the attack hits, in addition to normal damage it infects the target with toxic shadow energy that causes immediate sores and welts -- the titular deathblains. The target takes 1d4 ongoing points of Con damage (Fort save each turn negates and ends). In addition, until this ends, they must make a mind-affecting Will save each turn or spend their standard action clawing at themselves and writhing in pain.
You become semi-incorporeal while using this maneuver, and gain some of the benefits of being a ghost: immunity to non-magic weapons, 50% miss chance except against ghost touch weapons and force spells, and a deflection bonus equal to your wismod, minimum 0. You don't gain any other benefits of incorporeality, such as moving through walls or ignoring natural armor.
You still provoke AoOs. Taking weapon damage ends this maneuver: you appear where you were when damaged, falling if appropriate (so eg, no going through blade barriers).
Optionally, you may also let out a screeching wail that deals 1d6 sonic (Fort negates) to all creatures within 10ft of any square you move through while using this maneuver. Those farther away can still hear the screech but aren’t damaged.
Kata: This maneuver can be used as a full round action. Your flyby attack becomes a full attack. You may spread your full attack among anyone you pass by during your movement. The deathblain effect can only be applied once to a given creature during this maneuver.
Utility: Out of combat, this maneuver grants a fly speed equal to your land speed with good maneuverability; during this movement you gain the semi-incorporeal benefits described above.
Midnight Echoes
Shadow Hand (Utility)
Level: 8
Initiation Action: Full Round Action
Range: Personal
Target: Self
Duration: 1 minute
You disperse yourself into up to nine shadowy echoes of your image, one for each Shadow Hand maneuver you know. Each echo has the same stats you have when this maneuver is initiated.
All your echo fragments share a single action pool, and they share a single bank of limited-use abilities: for example, if one uses a readied maneuver it's expended for all of them, and if one refreshes maneuvers, all echoes have access to the maneuvers thereby refreshed. Effectively, you're simply in several places at once. However, damage, conditions, spells, and so on applied post-initiation are not shared between your echo fragments.
As long as a single echo of you remains, you aren't dead. When this maneuver expires, one remaining echo fragment of your choice becomes you (all damage and conditions it has sustained are carried over), while the rest vanish.
Possessions on your person when this maneuver is used get duplicated on all echoes, although like your echoes these items aren't truly real, and if they leave your echoes' person they melt away. Item charges and other limited usages are shared between echoes just like spells and maneuvers are.
You don't exist at the same time as your echoes do. Your echoes enjoy a unified consciousness regardless of distance (but this doesn't mean mind-affecting effects are shared between them). Echoes can benefit from flanking but are incapable of providing flankage to others. Your echoes share your initiative, and can't act until that count next round. If you've already used an off-turn immediate action this round, they lose their swift action next turn as normal.
Moon-Guided Shadowstance
Shadow Hand (Stance)
Level: 8
Prerequisite: Five Shadow Hand maneuvers
Initiation Action: Swift
Save: Fort partial
Your body phases in and out of existence as it blinks through the shadow plane. This stance is sometimes called Shadow Blink because it's similar to the blink spell, except slower, more controlled, and shadowy rather than ethereal.
Each turn, the benefits provided by the stance change. You choose which phase to start in when you enter the stance for the first time during an encounter (or when the encounter starts if you're already in this stance). If you re-enter the stance later during the same encounter, the cycle continues from where you left off.
Full Moon - +2 reflection bonus to AC (which is like a deflection bonus, but stacks with them), and gain the effects of a restoration spell.
Crescent Moon - concealment
New Moon - total concealment and incorporeality (you're on the Plane of Shadow)
Then Crescent Moon again.
Then the cycle repeats starting from Full.
In addition, you gain syzygy benefits:
Eclipse Cover: You provide total cover, not normal cover as creatures usually do. Line and chain effects stop at you.
Blood Moon: If you are part of a straight, unobstructed line in which a single ally is blocking you from an enemy, you glow with a dim red cast or aura and gain +1 to hit and +5 damage on all attacks so long as you remain in their penumbra. Their penumbra of anger extends 30ft, plus or minus 10ft per size category away from medium. This benefit stacks for every such penumbra you are in, but can only be applied once per ally. You don’t gain penumbra benefits from an ally small enough to co-occupy your square.
Shadow Master's Hatred
Shadow Hand (Stance) [Shadow, Evil]
Level: 8
Prerequisite: Eight Shadow Hand maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance
Saving Throw: See text
At last... I have returned to take my revenge on the Temple of Nine Swords! The other masters will bow down to me! And all those who doubt the efficacy of the Shadow Hand discipline will die!
After being exiled, the Shadow Master made a journey deep into the Plane of Shadow. He returned with plans, powerful new weapons, and new secrets -- among them this terrifying stance, which he used to rip through and set discord in the ranks of the Temple defenders. Only the Spirit Seeker's lights and the Fire Master's flames were able to reveal his form in the darkness.
While in this stance, you're virtually impossible to see in anything other than bright illumination; in other states you're treated as invisible, like the spell.
In addition, you gain 1 sneak attack die per four initiator levels (which being effectively invisible will help you use).
Finally, all creatures that you kill are instantly raised as shadows under your control, but look no different from their previous selves and still seem to be alive. A Spot check followed by a Sense Motive check, both against a DC of 18 + your initiator level, are necessary for a creature to realize what has happened -- true seeing doesn't suffice. The victim leaves no corpse behind, but if the shadow that sprang from them is killed it leaves behind a trace of essence, which if collected suffices for resurrection. If you leave this stance, all your created shadows vanish. For the purpose of resurrection this does not count as having been destroyed.
A Shadow Hand master moving through the Plane of Shadow.
For this fanmade Tome of Battle sequel project (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?581281-The-Age-of-Warriors-(Project-Revived!)), the focus is on adding new disciplines -- but there will also be a few new maneuvers for each of the existing 9, with the specific aim of serving people who want to focus heavily on a single discipline.
Rush
Rushes are move action maneuvers.
Utility
Utility maneuvers can take any amount of time, but they still abide by the refresh mechanic; they have no per-day or other time restrictions.
Saves
Maneuver save DCs now scale with your Initiator Level, rather than being based on the maneuver's level. The save DC for your maneuvers is 10+½ Initiator Level+class-relevant mental ability mod (crusader=cha, swordsage=wis, warblade=int). If you have multiple initiator classes, you use the statmod of whichever class granted you the given maneuver.
New Condition: Uncentered
While you're uncentered, you can't be in a stance. When you become uncentered you automatically exit any current stance(s).
New Maneuvers
Desert Wind:
Dancing Flame
Dancing Wildfire
Dancing Inferno
- more TBA
Dancing Flame
Desert Wind (Rush) [Fire]
Level: Swordsage 2
Initiation Action: Move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous; 1 round
Saving Throw: Reflex negates
You move in a fiery blur, dashing across the battlefield like a fire spread by the wind.
Move up to your speed. This movement provokes attacks of opportunity as normal. Each time you exit a square adjacent to an opponent, you can have that creature make a Reflex saving throw. If it fails, the creature's fire resistance (if any) is reduced by your initiator level (to a minimum of 0), and you then deal 1d6 points of fire damage to it. The reduction in fire resistance lasts until the beginning of your next turn. A creature that makes the save successfully is unaffected. You can only attempt to affect a given opponent once with this maneuver each time you initiate it.
Dancing Wildfire
Desert Wind (Rush) [Fire]
Level: Swordsage 6
Prerequisite: 2 Desert Wind maneuvers
Initiation Action: Move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous; 1 round
Saving Throw: Reflex negates
You move in a fiery blur, flying across the battlefield like a wildfire across a dry forest.
As Dancing Flame, but you may fly up to your speed, and the fire damage dealt to affected targets is 3d6.
Dancing Inferno
Desert Wind (Rush) [Fire]
Level: Swordsage 8
Prerequisite: 3 Desert Wind maneuvers
Initiation Action: Move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous; 1 round
Saving Throw: Reflex negates
You move in a fiery blur, blasting across the battlefield like a screaming inferno.
As Dancing Flame, but you may fly up to twice your speed, you suppress all of affected targets' fire resistance and even fire immunity, and you then deal 5d6 fire damage.
Devoted Spirit:
Warden's Step
Warden's Step
Devoted Spirit (Rush)
Level: 3
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round or until discharged
Weaving through your foes, you position yourself to best defend your allies.
Move up to your speed. Any ally that you pass adjacent to during this movement is considered to be protected by you for the duration of this maneuver. Whenever an opponent attacks an ally you protect this way, you may discharge the effects of this maneuver as an immediate action to perform a charge against that opponent. Treat the first attack you make at the end of this charge as though it was an attack of opportunity (thus, it also counts against your limit of attacks of opportunity in a round). You can charge through your allies when performing a charge in this way, but you must otherwise respect all of the limitations and requirements of a charge.
Diamond Mind:
Crystal Intuition
Perceptive Reflex
Quivering Crystal Reflexes
Mind as Prism
Diamond Bladed Time Saw
Action Without Motion
Diamond Time Sharpener
Crystal Intuition
Diamond Mind (Boost)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: Swift Action
Range: Personal
Target: Self
Duration: Instantaneous
Time seems to slow to a crawl as your eyes dart around. There are 3 enemy orcs and 2 enemy worgs. Orcs are sensitive to bright light and are generally stupid. That orc is middle aged and is showing signs of baldness. There are approximately 2.1 million hairs on that orc. The current temperature is 73 degrees. Your angle of attack is 35.7:45.41:39:01. There is an ant on a flower 124 feet away. You can determine...
You open your mind to make an accelerated series of logical judgments and let in razor-fine sensory perceptions. As a swift action you may make two skill checks, for which the eligible skills are Autohypnosis, Knowledge (any), Martial Lore, Spellcraft, Listen, Spot, and Sense Motive. You gain a +2+1/2 IL bonus on each check. You can even make an untrained check in a skill that doesn't normally allow it.
This maneuver can only be used in real combat, where tension and necessity press the livening insight out of you. It can't substitute for a skill check required by a maneuver.
Perceptive Reflex
Diamond Mind (Counter)
Level: 1
Maneuver prerequisite: 1
Initiation Action: Immediate
Range: Personal
Target: Self
Duration: Instantaneous
Trigger: You make a Search, Spot, or Listen check
You swore you saw something flicker in the corner of your vision. Without even thinking about it, your eyes focused closer, spotting the assassin before he struck!
Reroll the check with a +5 insight bonus. You must accept the result of the second roll.
Quivering Crystal Reflexes
Diamond Mind (Stance)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: Self
Your snap reactions allow you to correct for inaccuracies in your athletic form.
Once per round, you can reroll a failed Strength or Dexterity ability or skill check.
When targeted by an effect that allows a Reflex save, you can choose to benefit from evasion, or improved evasion if you already have evasion, against that one effect. However, this causes you to become staggered and uncentered for 1 round.
Mind as Prism
Diamond Mind (Counter)
Level: 3
Maneuver prerequisite: 3
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal, then Close (25ft+5ft/2 IL)
Target: Self
Duration: Instantaneous
Trigger: You are targeted by a mind-affecting effect with a saving throw
Your mind is like a flawless diamond prism. Instead of resisting, you open yourself to the effect, and it just passes though you, decomposed into its elements.
This counter can be used either after you fail your save against the triggering effect or before your save is rolled. Regardless, the effect passes through you harmlessly, and you may retarget it on any two creatures on the opposite side from you as the caster (anyone who's between 4 and 8 o'clock from them). The redirected effect has a save DC 3 lower than the original effect, and its range is Close or the original effect's remaining range, whichever is higher. This can even be used to employ touch spells at range, using you as the vector.
Alternately, you can let the effect flow out harmlessly.
You can't use this maneuver while immune to mind-affecting effects.
Diamond Bladed Time Saw
Diamond Mind (Utility)
Level: 4
Maneuver prerequisite: 3
Initiation Action: Move or standard
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration See text
One moment, fractured into two. A series of steps, transformed from a motion to a martial dance. You ready yourself for your enemies, setting aside the time you need to execute your techniques.
Gain additional actions based on the action you used to initiate this maneuver.
Move action: 1 swift action
Standard action: 1 swift and 1 move action
This represents you divvying up that action into smaller pieces.
Action Without Motion
Diamond Mind (Rush)
Level: Swordsage 5, Warblade 5
Prerequisite: Two Diamond Mind maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round
In the blink of an eye, you dash across the battlefield, taking note of your opponents' openings as you pass them by.
Move up to your speed. Whenever an opponent makes an attack of opportunity against you that you provoked from this movement, they provoke an attack of opportunity from you after their attack has been resolved. They are aware of this before making their attack.
If any opponents decline to make an attack of opportunity based on that information, or if they cannot make any more attacks of opportunity this round, you gain the sudden strike ability until the beginning of your next turn. You gain 1d6 sudden strike damage per enemy that refused to make or was incapable of making an AoO. If you already have sudden strike, the damage you deal with it increases by this amount.
Diamond Time Sharpener
Diamond Mind (Boost)
Level: 5
Maneuver prerequisite: 3
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Area: Encounter
Duration: Instantaneous
Like a sudden wave, everyone's perceptions flare forward.
A new round starts. No time has actually passed, but for mechanical purposes a new round begins when you initiate this maneuver. Everyone who already acted in the round that ends when you initiate this maneuver does not get a turn during this new round. Those who have not used immediate actions may still use them, albeit drawing on their swift action for the round following the new round.
As for you, you get a unique turn that bridges both rounds. When you initiate this maneuver, the first thing that happens is that end of round and start of round effects are resolved, but your turn then continues as before, with the exception that all your remaining actions (such as free actions, even if your other actions are used up) take place in the new round. This bridging turn counts as your turn during both rounds.
The Area entry indicates that the maneuver affects only participants in the localized sphere of the encounter that's being modeled.
This maneuver is not magical or mind-affecting. It represents how you're so ahead of the curve that fighting you is like watching moments crash into each other and meld.
Iron Heart:
Cut and Run
Iron Duelist Stance
Sweeping Strike
Fencer's Reach
Epiphany of Steel
Pulse of the Iron Vein
Axeman's Break
Sword Fortress Buffet
Forcible Yield
Beat of the Iron Heart
Cut and Run
Iron Heart (Rush)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: See text
Target: One creature
Duration: See text
There is no such thing as retreat. There is only attacking in another direction.
Move your speed. You may take a standard action in the midst of this movement, similar to what the Spring Attack feat allows.
Iron Duelist Stance
Iron Heart (Stance)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: Swift
Personal
By adopting this stance, the disciple presents a slim profile to his foes, holding his weapon low and one- handed, elegantly leading with it. When attacking with a single one-handed weapon, you count as fighting defensively but don’t suffer the corresponding attack penalty. When you make a full attack with a single one-handed weapon, you count as using the total defense action (+4 dodge bonus to AC). Wielding a non-animated shield, off-hand weapon, or two-handed weapon ends the stance. If you have the Two-Weapon Fighting feat, wielding a light weapon in your off-hand instead merely suppresses the stance’s benefits for 1 round whenever you make an off-hand attack.
Sweeping Strike
Iron Heart (Strike)
Level: 2
Prerequisite: 1 Iron Heart maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instant
Make a melee attack. If it hits, it deals weapon damage as normal plus an additional 2d6 points of damage. If you drew your weapon as part of this strike, you may also make a trip attempt against them as a free action with a +2 competence bonus on your combat maneuver check. This trip attempt does not provoke an attack of opportunity.
[name]
Iron Heart (Stance)
Level: 4
Prerequisite: Two Iron Heart maneuvers
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: Self
This is the stance of someone truly comfortable with their abilities.
While in this stance, gain +2 to the save DC of maneuvers you intitiate. In addition, while in this stance all your levels in non-spellcasting classes are treated as granting full instead of half initiator levels. This doesn't let you learn higher level maneuvers than you normally would, but it does let you use them from items.
Fencer’s Reach
Iron Heart (Stance)
Level: 3
Prerequisite: 1 Iron Heart maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Personal
You can translate the momentum of your swift attacks into greater reach, striking foes who would normally be out of your range. While you maintain this stance, your melee attacks deal an additional 1d6 points of damage, and you increase the reach of the first attack you make each round by 5 feet. The additional damage of this stance increases by 1d6 for every eight initiator levels you possess.
Epiphany of Steel
Iron Heart (Counter)
Level: 5
Prerequisite: Two Iron Heart maneuvers
Initiation Action: Immediate
Range: Personal
Target: You
Trigger: You roll what would be a critical threat against a creature immune to crits
You ignore the creature's critical hit immunity with this attack. Against creatures with partial fortification you must use this counter before rolling to penetrate their fortification.
Pulse of the Iron Vein
Iron Heart (Rush)
Level: 5
Prerequisite: 2 Iron Heart maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
You flow unstoppably across the battlefield like blood.
You may move up to your speed, even through occupied spaces.
Axeman’s Break
Iron Heart (Strike)
Level: 6
Prerequisite(s): 3 Iron Heart maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instant
Perfectly feeling the pulse of the combat, the disciple finds their instant to strike true. Make a single attack; if it hits it automatically counts as a critical threat. If the roll is naturally a threat, it automatically confirms.
Sword Fortress Buffet
Iron Heart (Counter)
Level: 6
Prerequisite: 2 Iron Heart maneuvers
Initiation Action: Immediate
Range: Melee
Target: One creature
By perfectly timing your counterattacks, you can force your opponent into a position where they are unable to further attack you. You can initiate this counter in response to a melee or ranged attack being made against you. Make an attack roll with a weapon you are wielding against each attack from a single opponent. Every subsequent opposed roll is made a at a cumulative -2 modifier. If your attack roll is higher than your opponent’s, their attack is negated.
Forcible Yield
Iron Heart (Strike) [mind-affecting]
Level: 7
Prerequisite: two Iron Heart maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instant
Saving Throw: Will negates
With a mighty overhand swing you put your foe in their place: on their knees before the majesty of a prince of warriors. Make a melee attack against the target. If it hits it inflicts an additional 10d6 points of damage and the target must make a Will save to resist being knocked prone.
Beat of the Iron Heart
Iron Heart (Rush)
Level: 8
Prerequisite: 3 Iron Heart maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round or until discharged
As part of this maneuver, you can move up to your speed. Until the beginning of your next turn, you can discharge this maneuver to modify a single strike you as you initiate it. This must be a strike that normally involves making a single melee attack. You can instead attack each creature that was within your reach at any point during your movement, even if they are no longer within your reach (this replaces any attacks normally granted by the strike). These attacks gain the same benefits and cause the same effects as the attack granted by strike you initiated (although you are still considered to have only initiated the one strike). You cannot attack a single creature more than once in this way.
Setting Sun:
Float Like a Butterfly
Wristgrab Intercept
Lunging Tackle
Pivotal Chop
Roll with the Blow
Sunset Slide
Sunrays Flaring Between Trees
Gentle Fist
One Inch Punch
Bicycle Kick
Horizon Step
Shooting Star Launch
One Inch Heartstrike
Float Like a Butterfly
Setting Sun (Stance)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance
You may take a 5-foot step as an immediate action when someone targets you with a melee or ranged attack and misses (failed crit confirmations don't count). Once per round, you may do this even if you've already used your 5-foot step for the round.
Wristgrab Intercept
Setting Sun (Counter)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: 1 immediate action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous
Trigger: Creature no more than 5ft outside your reach attempts to move any distance
As your opponent moves towards you, you are able to grab him and spin, swiftly changing his direction and disrupting his motion, causing him to have to halt in order to hold his balance.
Optionally, move 5 feet. Then attempt to grab the triggering target. If you hit, instead of following with a grapple, you end their movement and the action that involved it. They proceed with their turn, if applicable.
At IL 15, you can also use this maneuver against a target who tries to teleport (which does not including moving to another plane, as with plane shift or etherealness).
Lunging Tackle
Setting Sun (Rush)
Level: 2
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous
With great speed you burst towards your target, keeping your body low for maximum leverage. As you come underneath them, you secure a hold.
Move your speed toward the target, who must be a creature you can reach with your movement speed when this maneuver is initiated. When you get in range you must initiate a grapple against them as a free action. This still provokes if you don't have Improved Grapple, but your low lunging form gives you a +2 circumstance bonus to AC against this AoO and all AoOs your movement may provoke.
If something happens that prevents from reaching the target, you stop in your tracks and the maneuver ends.
Pivotal Chop
Setting Sun (Counter)
Level: 3
Prerequisite: One Setting Sun maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 immediate action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous
Trigger: Target makes a melee attack roll against you
Capitalizing on your foe’s forward inertia, you plant one foot and spin away too quickly for him to adjust, dodging his attack and slipping behind him before unleashing a vicious chop to his exposed backside.
Make a Sense Motive check. If the result meets or exceeds the triggering attack roll, you dodge the attack and switch places with the target. You may then immediately make a melee attack against the target, against which they are both flat-footed and flanked.
Roll with the Blow
Setting Sun (Counter)
Level: 3
Prerequisite: One Setting Sun maneuver
Initiation Action: Immediate
Range: Personal
Target: Self
Duration: Instantaneous
Trigger: You take damage from a melee attack
The hammer hits you solid but you roll with it and fly back, missing the next swing.
You roll away from the source of damage, moving up to [damage taken] feet (round down to the nearest 5 ft increment, minimum 5, maximum 50). This movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity.
Sunrays Flaring Between Trees
Setting Sun (Stance)
Level: 3
Prerequisite: Two Setting Sun maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance
You anticipate your opponents' actions and act accordingly.
When you enter this stance or start your turn in it, you may choose to delay your actions in the current round without compromising your place in the initiative count. When you choose to delay in this fashion, you may spread out your remaining actions between other peoples' turns.
Sunset Slide
Setting Sun (Rush) [Teleportation]
Level: Swordsage 3
Prerequisite: One Setting Sun maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round or until discharged
Rushing forwards, you move to strike your foe. In the blink of an eye, you stand serenely back where your charge began.
As part of this maneuver, you may move up to your speed. As a free action any time before the beginning of your next turn, you can discharge this maneuver to teleport to the space you were in when you initiated this maneuver, or the nearest available space if that space is occupied or impassable. You can do this at any time, even if it is not your turn and even in response to another creature's actions.
Gentle Fist
Setting Sun (Strike)
Level: 4
Prerequisite: 2 Setting Sun maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: One round
Saving Throw: Fortitude partial
Your opponent braces for what he expects to be a jarring blow from your open palm, but instead only receives a hit more akin to a light pat. When he tries to unleash his magic, however, his spells fizzle, and he grows increasingly flustered as he realizes he is helpless before you.
Make an unarmed attack. If you hit, the target must make a Fortitude save or become unable to cast spells, manifest powers, or use spell-like abilities for one round. In addition, they are subjected to a targeted dispel, for which you make an initiator level check (max +20) instead of a caster level check. Unlike dispel magic, this dispel can't affect objects, nor can it end an ongoing spell by targeting a creature who is the effect of that spell (in the case of eg a summoned monster).
One Inch Punch
Setting Sun (Counter)
Level: 5
Prerequisite: Two Setting Sun maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 immediate action
Range: See text
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous
Trigger: A foe targets you with a counter
Your foe, apparently possessed of at least a certain wit, manages to catch your incoming fist between his hands in a defensive pose. You immediately launch another punch with the same fist -- which is now only inches from his chest -- overpowering his defense with sheer strength and speed.
You and the target make an opposed initiator level check (1d20 + your initiator level). A character with at least 10 ranks in Sense Motive gains a +4 competence bonus to this check. If you win, the counter is negated, allowing you to continue with your previous action normally. If you're in melee range of the opponent whose counter you voided, you may also make a single melee attack against them, which automatically hits.
Bicycle Kick
Setting Sun (Strike)
Level: 6
Prerequisite: Two Setting Sun maneuvers
Initiation Action: Full-Round Action
Range: Melee
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
As a part of initiating this maneuver, you make a charge attack. Instead of a normal attack, you instead deliver three consecutive unarmed strikes against the same creature. If all three unarmed attacks hit, you may make another two. If those two hit, you make another one, and if this one hits, it throws your opponent 20 feet away, dealing an extra 1d6 damage per initiator level and causing them to fall prone.
Horizon Step
Setting Sun (Rush)
Level: Swordsage 6
Prerequisite: Three Setting Sun maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal; up to 1 mile
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous
A single step takes you from where you are to where you wish to be.
As part of this maneuver, you may move to any space that you can see, using any movement mode or combination of movement modes that you possess (even if this would require moving beyond your normal speed). You have total concealment while moving, and your movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity. If your path is blocked by a barrier you cannot bypass, your movement ends and you fall prone in the space nearest to your destination that you can reach within this maneuver's range. You cannot use this ability to move more than one mile each time you initiate it.
Shooting Star Launch
Setting Sun (Strike)
Level: 7
Prerequisite: Two Setting Sun Maneuvers
Initiation Action: Standard Action
Range: Melee Attack
Target: One Creature
Duration: Instantaneous
You won't need this sword. Into the trash it goes.
Make a melee attack with at least one hand free. You deal normal damage and may immediately make a disarm attempt without provoking. On a successful disarm, you may throw the object up to 10 ft/IL; if you disarmed a weapon, you may throw it that distance against a target. This is a thrown weapon attack, but without the normal range restriction or the normal -4 penalty for throwing non-thrown weapons. If it hits, the thrown attack deals an extra 10d6 damage.
One Inch Heartstrike
Setting Sun (Counter)
Level: 8
Prerequisite: Three Setting Sun maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 immediate action
Range: See text
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous
Save: Fortitude negates
Your foe thought they were being clever to interrupt you. But you foil their move, setting them off guard, then use the opening to hit them right up close with lethal force.
As One Inch Punch, except that if you win the opposed check your target must save or die. As a nonmagical death effect this is not subject to death ward or similar protections.
Shadow Hand:
Creeping Dark
Nightlover's Carapace
Step of the Jackal
Shadow Ward Rush
Hampering Dark
Stalker's Move
Accumulating Shadow Vortex
Dancing Gripping Teasing Cavorting Shadow
Shadow Walk
Reaping Gloom
Deathblain Falcon
Midnight Echoes
Moon-Guided Shadowstance
Shadow Master's Hatred
Creeping Dark
Shadow Hand (Rush)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round
You slip unseen past your foe's watchful gaze.
As part of this maneuver, you can move up to your speed. This movement does not count towards determining the penalties (if any) you suffer to your Hide and Move Silently checks due to movement. In addition, if you had cover or concealment when you initiated this maneuver, you are considered to have the same degree of cover or concealment for the purpose of hiding for the duration of your movement and until the beginning of your next turn. This does not grant you any other benefits of cover or concealment, but it does allow you to hide in the open for a short time.
Nightlover’s Carapace
Shadow Hand (Stance)
Level: 1
Personal
Favored technique of vampiric adepts.
A shell of dimness clings around you. You gain immunity to the dazzled condition and to blindness conditions caused by bright light. You are not subject to mild forms of light sensitivity, but still count as exposed to sunlight for the purpose of serious vulnerabilities.
At IL 3, the shell becomes more solid. You gain resist=IL to positive energy damage and +1 to saves against positive energy effects. You are not counted as exposed to sunlight.
At IL 5, it becomes a curdled suit of magic shadow energy, granting you a shield bonus equal to ½ IL.
At IL 10, it becomes even more tangible and takes the form of a monstrous shadow beast. You gain powerful build as well as two claw attacks and a bite attack, which each deal one negative level in addition to normal damage on a hit. Your eyes become black orbs that see through normal and magical darkness at a range equal to your normal sight.
The benefits of these forms are cumulative. Targeted light spells such as sunburst may make a dispel check to revert this stance back to the IL 1 version for 1d4 rounds. The DC is 11+the stance user's IL.
Shadow Ward Rush
Shadow Hand (Rush)
Level: 1
Mv prereq: 2
Action: Move
Move your speed. Every time someone makes an attack of opportunity against you, an obstacle made of shadow energy immediately appears on the edge of your square from the direction the attack came in. These obstacles grant +4 AC to targets who are attacked through them (a benefit you gain against the AoO you just triggered). They cost 2 squares of movement to cross through, and block charges. They even affect incorporeal creatures. They fade after 1d10 rounds.
Hampering Dark
Shadow Hand (Boost)
Level: 3
Mv prereq: 2
Action: Swift
Area: 20 foot radius, centered on you
Maintain: Swift
All areas of darkness or shadow become difficult terrain. All areas of low light cost +50% to enter, like moving diagonally does normally. Diagonal movement in areas of low light is unaffected.
At IL 15 the area's radius increases to 30ft.
Step of the Jackal
Shadow Hand (Rush)
Level: 3
Prerequisite 1 Shadow Hand Maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 Round
Upon initiating this maneuver you become invisible (as the spell) and move your speed. You leave a major image of yourself at your starting position. Both effects last until the start of your next turn.
Stalker's Move
Shadow Hand (Rush)
Level: 4
Prerequisite: One Shadow Hand maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 move action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round
Cloaked in shadow, you move into position, preparing to strike your foes unaware.
As Creeping Dark, but for the duration of the maneuver you gain two sneak attack dice. The benefits of this maneuver last until the beginning of your next turn.
Accumulating Shadow Vortex
Shadow Hand (Stance)
Level: 5
Prerequisite: Three Shadow Hand maneuvers
Initiation Action: Swift
Save: Fort partial
You become surrounded by a huge swirling aura of purplish umbral energy.
As a free action, you may pull any visible creature in the aura adjacent to you (Fort save halves the movement they would take (round down)). They get +3 or -3 on the save for every size category larger or smaller than you they are. You can only pull each creature once per round. You can’t pull creatures through obstacles.
This aura initially extends 10 feet. At IL 15, it extends 20 feet. At IL 20 it extends 40 feet.
Dancing Gripping Teasing Cavorting Shadow
Shadow Hand (Stance)
Level: 5
Prerequisite: Two Shadow Hand maneuvers
Initiation Action: Swift
Range: Personal
Target: Self
Your shadow begins to dance independently of you, limbs stretching out like tentacles that worm across the landscape.
Your shadow's limbs elongate into shadowy tentacles under your control. You can have them grab and manipulate objects out to 30 ft as if they were your own hands, though they can't wield weapons or shields, only hold them. You can make disarm and grapple checks at range, and you can attack with them as if they were natural weapons. Attacks with the tentacles are touch attacks. Instead of damage, they deal a stacking -2 penalty to Strength which lasts for 1 round.
In total darkness, the effect of the stance is suppressed as your shadow becomes indistinguishable.
Shadow Walk
Shadow Hand (Utility)
Level: 6
Mv prereq: 4
Target: Personal
Shadow Hand adepts are famed for their ability to travel through the Shadow Plane, crossing distances in the real world rapidly.
As the spell, except that it becomes more powerful depending on your IL:
IL 15: Your travel speed increases to 100mph.
IL 17: Your accuracy is increased by a factor of 10.
IL 19: You may use it as a shadow teleport, mimicking the effects of a teleport spell.
IL 21: You may traverse outer space at the speed of dark. On planets and bodies you’re still limited to teleporting.
Reaping Gloom
Shadow Hand (Boost)
Level: 7
Prerequisite: Three Shadow Hand maneuvers
Initiation Action: Swift
Personal
Until the end of your turn, you may make melee attacks, including those made as part of maneuvers, at up to 60ft reach so long as there is unbroken darkness or shadow between you and your target. If it's not dark but you're currently casting a shadow, you can still use this maneuver to attack in the direction your shadow falls; your shadow elongates so as to deliver these attacks.
Deathblain Falcon
Shadow Hand (Rush)
Level: 7
Mv prereq: 4
Action: Move or Full
Save: Will and Fort partial
You become a shadowy, wraithlike bolt of a being that speeds through the air and leaves your enemies reeling, infested with infecting shadow.
You gain Flyby Attack and fly speed 90 ft (good) while using this maneuver. You must make a flyby attack against a creature. If the attack hits, in addition to normal damage it infects the target with toxic shadow energy that causes immediate sores and welts -- the titular deathblains. The target takes 1d4 ongoing points of Con damage (Fort save each turn negates and ends). In addition, until this ends, they must make a mind-affecting Will save each turn or spend their standard action clawing at themselves and writhing in pain.
You become semi-incorporeal while using this maneuver, and gain some of the benefits of being a ghost: immunity to non-magic weapons, 50% miss chance except against ghost touch weapons and force spells, and a deflection bonus equal to your wismod, minimum 0. You don't gain any other benefits of incorporeality, such as moving through walls or ignoring natural armor.
You still provoke AoOs. Taking weapon damage ends this maneuver: you appear where you were when damaged, falling if appropriate (so eg, no going through blade barriers).
Optionally, you may also let out a screeching wail that deals 1d6 sonic (Fort negates) to all creatures within 10ft of any square you move through while using this maneuver. Those farther away can still hear the screech but aren’t damaged.
Kata: This maneuver can be used as a full round action. Your flyby attack becomes a full attack. You may spread your full attack among anyone you pass by during your movement. The deathblain effect can only be applied once to a given creature during this maneuver.
Utility: Out of combat, this maneuver grants a fly speed equal to your land speed with good maneuverability; during this movement you gain the semi-incorporeal benefits described above.
Midnight Echoes
Shadow Hand (Utility)
Level: 8
Initiation Action: Full Round Action
Range: Personal
Target: Self
Duration: 1 minute
You disperse yourself into up to nine shadowy echoes of your image, one for each Shadow Hand maneuver you know. Each echo has the same stats you have when this maneuver is initiated.
All your echo fragments share a single action pool, and they share a single bank of limited-use abilities: for example, if one uses a readied maneuver it's expended for all of them, and if one refreshes maneuvers, all echoes have access to the maneuvers thereby refreshed. Effectively, you're simply in several places at once. However, damage, conditions, spells, and so on applied post-initiation are not shared between your echo fragments.
As long as a single echo of you remains, you aren't dead. When this maneuver expires, one remaining echo fragment of your choice becomes you (all damage and conditions it has sustained are carried over), while the rest vanish.
Possessions on your person when this maneuver is used get duplicated on all echoes, although like your echoes these items aren't truly real, and if they leave your echoes' person they melt away. Item charges and other limited usages are shared between echoes just like spells and maneuvers are.
You don't exist at the same time as your echoes do. Your echoes enjoy a unified consciousness regardless of distance (but this doesn't mean mind-affecting effects are shared between them). Echoes can benefit from flanking but are incapable of providing flankage to others. Your echoes share your initiative, and can't act until that count next round. If you've already used an off-turn immediate action this round, they lose their swift action next turn as normal.
Moon-Guided Shadowstance
Shadow Hand (Stance)
Level: 8
Prerequisite: Five Shadow Hand maneuvers
Initiation Action: Swift
Save: Fort partial
Your body phases in and out of existence as it blinks through the shadow plane. This stance is sometimes called Shadow Blink because it's similar to the blink spell, except slower, more controlled, and shadowy rather than ethereal.
Each turn, the benefits provided by the stance change. You choose which phase to start in when you enter the stance for the first time during an encounter (or when the encounter starts if you're already in this stance). If you re-enter the stance later during the same encounter, the cycle continues from where you left off.
Full Moon - +2 reflection bonus to AC (which is like a deflection bonus, but stacks with them), and gain the effects of a restoration spell.
Crescent Moon - concealment
New Moon - total concealment and incorporeality (you're on the Plane of Shadow)
Then Crescent Moon again.
Then the cycle repeats starting from Full.
In addition, you gain syzygy benefits:
Eclipse Cover: You provide total cover, not normal cover as creatures usually do. Line and chain effects stop at you.
Blood Moon: If you are part of a straight, unobstructed line in which a single ally is blocking you from an enemy, you glow with a dim red cast or aura and gain +1 to hit and +5 damage on all attacks so long as you remain in their penumbra. Their penumbra of anger extends 30ft, plus or minus 10ft per size category away from medium. This benefit stacks for every such penumbra you are in, but can only be applied once per ally. You don’t gain penumbra benefits from an ally small enough to co-occupy your square.
Shadow Master's Hatred
Shadow Hand (Stance) [Shadow, Evil]
Level: 8
Prerequisite: Eight Shadow Hand maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance
Saving Throw: See text
At last... I have returned to take my revenge on the Temple of Nine Swords! The other masters will bow down to me! And all those who doubt the efficacy of the Shadow Hand discipline will die!
After being exiled, the Shadow Master made a journey deep into the Plane of Shadow. He returned with plans, powerful new weapons, and new secrets -- among them this terrifying stance, which he used to rip through and set discord in the ranks of the Temple defenders. Only the Spirit Seeker's lights and the Fire Master's flames were able to reveal his form in the darkness.
While in this stance, you're virtually impossible to see in anything other than bright illumination; in other states you're treated as invisible, like the spell.
In addition, you gain 1 sneak attack die per four initiator levels (which being effectively invisible will help you use).
Finally, all creatures that you kill are instantly raised as shadows under your control, but look no different from their previous selves and still seem to be alive. A Spot check followed by a Sense Motive check, both against a DC of 18 + your initiator level, are necessary for a creature to realize what has happened -- true seeing doesn't suffice. The victim leaves no corpse behind, but if the shadow that sprang from them is killed it leaves behind a trace of essence, which if collected suffices for resurrection. If you leave this stance, all your created shadows vanish. For the purpose of resurrection this does not count as having been destroyed.