A Bar Sinister: Options for Players and DMs using the Bastard Sword or Katana

[Saintheart]

A Bar Sinister

Options for 3.5 Players and DMs using the Bastard Sword or Katana


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Introduction
The image of the swordsman is one of the most potent in fantasy literature, and just as iconic is the image of the katana: the one-handed weapon which can be gripped in both hands if need be, rendered under 3.5 rules as essentially the same weapon as the bastard sword – or the hand-and-a-half sword, a weapon meant to be versatile.

While most handbooks or guides tend to focus on classes or styles of combat, the aim of this guide is to list tools and options for people who particularly want to focus on fighting with the bastard sword as opposed to other weapons. As with my other weapon guides, I make no claim to saying which of these are fantastic and which are not for a particular build, my main intent is to list and speculate. Enjoy and use as you will.

Our first step, of course, is to look properly at the weapon we’re considering. It’s time for a careful consideration of the bastard sword and the katana. That said, for reasons that will become apparent and for better Google search for those coming looking for options, I’m mostly going to refer to the katana as the bastard sword.



Features of the Bastard Sword and Katana

Is it a bastard sword, or is it a katana? Though you'd think a katana is just a bastard sword, there is a difference: a katana, per 3.0's Oriental Adventures, is explicitly a masterwork bastard sword, i.e. a +1 to the attack roll and about +300 gp on the price. This difference is explicit in D&D 3.5: the Samurai PrC from Complete Warrior which references katana as masterwork bastard swords … and most interestingly, in the associated weapons of the various schools in Tome of Battle, where the bastard sword is an associated weapon of the Iron Heart discipline, but “bastard sword (katana)” is an associated weapon of the Diamond Mind discipline. However, as far as this guide is concerned, I’m generally going to be referring to the two under the one title of bastard sword unless there is something specific referring to one or the other. That said, I would urge or get confirmation from your DM that you can read bastard sword wherever you read katana … simply because it makes things better if you’re delving into Oriental Adventures.

It’s an exotic weapon. Regardless of the cute stuff you can do with it set out below, it is said explicitly to be “too large to use in one hand without special training; thus, it is an exotic weapon.” That’s the default from which one starts. If you’re using an exotic weapon without a proficiency in that weapon, you take a -4 on the attack rolls and any other option which requires proficiency in it isn’t available. And of course, if you want to get proficient in a particular exotic weapon, you generally have to burn a feat on Exotic Weapon Proficiency or find some other way around the problem, of which there are a few.

One question that might immediately occur: since the bastard sword’s status as an exotic weapon seems to be premised on it being too large to use in one hand without special training, then if I get big enough, does that mean I can wield it one-handed without it being an exotic weapon, i.e. can I get around the need to take EWP if I’m Huge or something like that?

Nice try, but no. Unlike the original 3.0 rules, 3.5 explicitly rules that a creature can’t make optimum use of a weapon that isn’t properly sized for that creature. A cumulative -2 on attack rolls applies for each category of difference between the size of a weapon's intended wielder and the size of its actual wielder. Gargantua Badguy, the Large hobgoblin, wielding a Medium size bastard sword is taking -2 just due to the difference between his vastness and the weedy scrub the weapon was originally made for -- even if Gargantua can whip it around like a toothpick, even if it becomes a light weapon in his hands. (Indeed, Gargantua Badguy’s brother, Maximus Colossus Badguy the Huge combatant, can’t wield a Medium sized bastard sword at all, because by virtue of the size difference, it becomes something other than a light weapon for him. One-handed at Medium => Light weapon for Large combatant => Unwieldable for Huge combatant. That was the case under 3.0 and 3.5.)

On top of that, you potentially suck up a -4 nonproficiency penalty; increases in size might make something a one-handed weapon for you, but that still doesn’t make you proficient with it. There might be certain exceptions that the bastard sword creates, but ultimately it is still classed in the table as an exotic one handed weapon. It is not a two-handed weapon.

Monkey Grip from Complete Warrior doesn't help with this because whilst it allows you to wield (in effect) a Large version of your weapon in one hand, it still imposes a -2 to the attack roll and grants no specific proficiency with the weapon, i.e. yes you're able to wield a Large bastard sword in one hand, but you are still not proficient with it, and you still take a -2 because it's an inappropriately sized weapon for you. On top of that? It's still a wasted feat slot when you could just take EWP and be done with it.

If you’re using two hands, it counts as a martial weapon... And here’s the reason we had to talk about inappropriately sized weapons. Per the SRD, “a character can use a bastard sword two-handed as a martial weapon.” This does not mean it grants you proficiency with a martial weapon. All it does is that if – and only if – you are using the bastard sword two-handed, it counts as a martial weapon, i.e. if you have proficiency with martial weapons, you can use it without a -4 proficiency penalty. It doesn’t make you proficient with the bastard sword as such, and it certainly doesn’t give you the EWP feat for free. All it means is that in that circumstance and that circumstance only, it counts as a martial weapon.

…but it’s not a martial weapon. It remains an exotic weapon, which means that the arcane gish is not getting into Abjurant Champion with it. And it also means, contrary to the common misconception, that you’re not getting free proficiency via the War domain power, either – we’ll talk more about this below.

It’s not a two-handed weapon. But you can still grab it in two hands and get the same x1.5 STR bonus to your blows with it. Even if you treat it as a martial weapon when using it two-handed, you add x1 STR bonus to damage with it in one hand, and x1.5 STR bonus to damage on melee attacks with it in two hands. And Power Attack looks at it the same as a two-hander in that instance: double your self-imposed attack penalty added to damage.

It’s a melee weapon. Which means it’ll qualify for any option applicable to melee weapons – see more about this under the special materials section.

It’s a slashing weapon. Not a few spells and options are directed specifically to slashing weapons, but at the same time DR against this form of damage is not uncommon.

It isn’t a Reach weapon. There are polearms out there which do 1d10 damage, but they’re invariably two-handed weapons. And the other elephant in the room is the Spiked Chain … which only does 2d4 damage and which is a two-handed weapon but which is a lot better at tripping and similar shenanigans; if you’re going for lockdown or attack of opportunity optimisation while concentrating on Reach, then the bastard sword probably isn’t the most optimal choice anyway.

It has a d10 damage dice. And this is probably the biggest reason the bastard sword is worth considering, mainly because it gets this damage dice despite being a one-handed weapon and still being able to used with Power Attack for its full benefit. Greataxes and Greatswords do more, and as always it’s about what comes after the damage dice, not before, but this is still a nice whack to dish out from level 1, especially on critical hits.

It has a 19-20/ x2 critical hit range and multiplier. Sure, the Dwarven Waraxe does x3, but only half the time the bastard sword does – and it’s generally harder to get an expanded critical hit range than it is an improvement to the multiplier. Look, critfishing is a niche, but the only better foundations on critical range are basically way back down among the light weapons.




Styles of Combat
Whilst this is not an exhaustive survey of how to use one of these things, it’s a brief rundown of your basic pathways with this weapon.

Two-Handed Fighting:
The simplest and arguably the most devastating, founded on Power Attack from around first level for most martial characters. If you’re going with this there’s hardly any need to even take Exotic Weapon Proficiency, just get that big bastard in your hands and just chop everything to pieces around you. There’s plenty of guidance around on how to optimise Power Attack, but the most common combination is Power Attack + Pounce + Leap Attack + Shock Trooper, and everything else suited to it is just icing on the cake from there.

Sword and Shield:
This is where the bastard sword probably is at its best without optimising in any particular direction -- mainly because of the difference in damage dice compared with the longsword. Sword and board styles aren’t that popular in 3.5 mainly because of the loss in damage from not wielding a weapon two-handed. It is a valid way of building the character nonetheless, especially if you weaponise your shield.

Two-Weapon Fighting:
I’m going to do my standard referral to Darrin’s Off-handbook on two-weapon fighting (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?279079-3-5-The-TWF-OffHandbook) generally because it’s an exhaustive and in-depth discussion of how TWFing works. It’s in this area that the romantics amongst us will probably be most frustrated, because whilst Eastern martial arts have a rich history of two-weapon fighting with a katana and a short blade, it’s hard enough just to make a TWF build work, let alone find options that particularly play towards a combination of a bastard sword specifically and some other weapon. The problem for the bastard sword in this area is twofold: it’s not a light weapon, so not only do you have to suck up an Exotic Weapon Proficiency feat to use it in one hand, you have to have a high STR and DEX to use it to best effect with a Weapon Finesse’d dagger in the off hand.


This is not to say there aren’t other ways of building characters based around the bastard sword – lockdown, AoO optimisation, tripping builds, gishes, single hand, the list goes on -- but these as said are the basics.

[Saintheart]

Feats and ACFs


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Exotic Weapon Proficiency (PHB): So you doubtless figured you'd wind up here at some point. That said, there are situations where you won't have to actually take this even while using a bastard sword. If you don't plan to TWF or Sword-and-Board, if your game isn't going to pass around BAB +6 where prestige classes start to come online, or if you don't need Weapon Focus for its prerequisite, then there's not much need to take EWP right away, if at all. In particular, if you're going sword-and-board at low levels, EWP basically is nothing but the right to use a shield with a katana. Similarly, TWF builds at low levels are debatable at best, and particularly debatable when using anything other than light weapons and/or daggers/kukris, so again, in general EWP for those purposes is a waste of time unless you are determined to be extremely thematic. In particular, Tome of Battle, as with most things martial, renders katana and/or bastard sword use more viable at low levels. Swordsage and Warblade can both use it to good effect without EWP in it at all - more about this further down.

Crescent Moon (CWar): If you take five feats (which admittedly includes Weapon Focus (bastard sword)) you gain the ability to make a free disarm attempt if you hit with both your sword and dagger in the same round. This is bad for daggers, but if you have a high STR bonus it might be at least interesting for bastard sword -- if you are seriously into two-weapon fighting. One houserule to ask your DM about would be if you can just switch the dagger for a wakizashi, at least it'd be thematic and would still be superior to Mirumoto Niten Master.

Hammer's Edge (CWar): This one is more likely if you've pursued some sort of tripping build, but in essence, if you hit with both your bastard sword and your hammer, the opponent has to make a Fort save (10 + 0.5*character level + STR mod) or be knocked prone. Takes four feats including two Weapon Focus, but as said for high-STR lockdowns this could be interesting.

Blade Meditation (Diamond Mind or Iron Heart) (Bo9S): As said, the katana and bastard sword are associated with different schools, so it’s either choose wisely or gleefully point out to the DM that you qualify for and can take both. Either way, it’s a +1 to damage when using a strike maneuver, and a +2 to the associated skill. Diamond Mind gets Concentration, which helps with a couple of its maneuvers; Iron Heart gets Balance checks.

Einhander (PHB 2): Would take a bit of an odd build to really take advantage of this, but a bastard sword is certainly a one-handed weapon. If you aren’t carrying anything in your off hand, you can use three tactical maneuvers, which gain you some dodge bonus to AC when fighting defensively, +2 bonus on Tumble checks to avoid AoOs, and a flourish that gives you a free action Feint using Sleight of Hand. Still, if you’re going down the Power Attack route, this feat does give you more options as you can freely switch between one hand and two hands with a bastard sword.

Acrobatic Strike (PHB 2): Synergises a little with Einhander in that if you succeed on a Tumble check to avoid an AoO, you gain a +4 bonus to the next attack against that opponent before the end of your current turn. Also consider in combination with Scorching Sirocco out of Tome of Battle.

Power Lunge (Ghostwalk): Works for Power Attack, charging build: a successful attack roll while charging means your STR bonus to the attack’s damage doubles, regardless of whether you’re using one or two-handed weapons, which is obviously handy for us types who have a weapon that can situationally do both. In conjunction with Pounce this is grand stuff.

Ancestral Relic (BoED): Fundamentally, the attraction here is the cost saving, since it allows you to convert loot coin-for-coin rather than sell at 50-75% loss and then enchant rom there. Also handy for magic-shop-rare campaigns.

Item Familiar (PHB 2): Arguably the best feat in the whole game, it deserves its own mention here once it gets past the +1 weapon point.

Snowflake Wardance (Frostburn): If you’re using a slashing melee weapon one-handed, burn a bardic music ability and add your CHA to attack. Specifically stacks with STR or Weapon Finesse’s DEX. Also known as how the bard gets in the front line of battle, though he’ll still probably need Slippers of Battledancing to do this.

Flay Foe (CoR): hit the same enemy more than once in a single round with a slashing melee weapon, deal an extra 1 point of damage on each hit. The only interesting part is that whilst that's what the feat text indicates, the table provides that it was meant to be an extra 1d6 damage ... but text generally trumps table, so you might have to provide pizza to your DM to pick this one up. There are better options in the Power Attack area, but at least this is thematic for the idea of the supersharp sword.

Oversized Two Weapon Fighting (CAdv): If for some reason you want to wield two bastard swords at once, then you’re pretty much going to have to take this feat. Your penalties are as if you were wielding a light weapon in your off hand – though note if you do so, it’s only 0.5xSTR bonus with that hand.

Twin Sword Style (PGtF): Mentioned only to make the point that it doesn't apply to bastard swords by RAW, so you'll never have to take or justify taking this appalling feat, which is a +2 to armor bonus against one opponent you designate, i.e. all of Dodge's suckiness.

High Sword, Low Axe (CWar): It’s expensive – four feats – but at least Weapon Focus (bastard sword) is one of them. Hit with your sword and axe in the same round, and you can make an immediate free trip attempt against the enemy, and also pick up an immediate additional attack via the Improved Trip that’s a prerequisite for this feat. Some of the feat taxes might be mitigated by items such as Glove of the Balanced Hand or ACFs (dwarven fighters pick up Weapon Focus in all axes for free).

Melee Weapon Mastery (PHB 2): +2 to attack and damage with the bastard sword, but it takes at least two feats and picking up weapon proficiency in bastard sword somewhere.

Slashing Flurry (PHB 2): Basically, get a flurry with a slashing weapon, but my god the feat requirements.

Weapon Supremacy (PHB 2): Here for completeness. If you actually suffered through 18 levels in Fighter, took Weapon Focus, Weapon Specialisation, Greater Weapon Focus, Greater Weapon Specialisation, and Melee Weapon Mastery, then here, have a floating +5 you can apply to any one attack during a full attack, once per round take 10 on a d20 result, and get utterly meaningless bonuses against being disarmed and the ability to use your weapon while grappled. Oh, and have a +1 to AC, just because we like the cut of your jib, son.

Stormguard Warrior (ToB): Right up your alley since you can qualify via proficiency with a bastard sword, but absolutely don't have to. Combined with Robilar’s Gambit it’s shockingly good. Just a wonderful tactical feat, especially for AoO optimisation.

Iaijutsu Master (OA): The Ancestor feat, not the prestige class. 1/day, you can make an attack roll, saving throw, or skill check using your Iaijutsu Focus skill modifier, in place of all other modifiers. If your character is building on this skill, this could be a very handy cover for a weak saving throw, since skill modifiers grow a lot faster than saves do.

Weapon Focus (PHB): You’re likely going to be meeting this guy at some point for prerequisites anyway. But don’t forget – you’re going to need exotic weapon proficiency specifically before you can get it.

Power Attack (PHB): The mainstay of most two-handed damaging builds, and the foundation for several other styles of combat as well.

Power Throw (CAdv): Ranged version of Power Attack, and if you’re going to be this silly just go and get Bloodstorm Blade already.

Dragon 301: This issue's special on swashbuckling styles of combat actually provides some rather useful stuff for bastard sword users, or at least those whose attack rolls far outstrip their AC. Whilst the whole special is worth looking over for feats, the following ones struck me as to the point (yes, I went there):

Parry: After a melee attack roll is made against you but before damage is rolled, burn one, and only one, AoO to parry the blow. (The weapon can't be more than 2 size categories larger, natural attacks are considered 2 size categories smaller than the creature's size ... i.e. most horrible bitey or clawing beasts are subject to this option, as are Huge greataxes, since a bastard sword is a Medium-sized weapon.) Make a melee attack roll, and if you exceed the enemy's attack roll, the blow is parried and does no damage. That said, this does allow the enemy to attempt to disarm you ... but if you've got the right weapon crystal you won't care about this. Can't be wearing medium or heavy armor. This might also, by RAW, even invalidate an enemy's natural 20, since while a 20 is always a hit, the parry occurs after the melee attack roll is made but before damage is rolled.

Armored Fencer: You can be wearing medium or heavy armor when you parry!

Expert Parry: You can divide up your parries among multiple creatures' attacks or a single creature's as you see fit!

Improved Parry: You can parry as many times as you've got DEX bonus to AC!

Guarded Defense: You don't provoke a disarm attempt when you parry!

Incredible Parry: You can parry creatures 3 size categories larger than you! And more, if you take this feat multiple times, how about parrying a Titan's hammer with your tiny katana?

Iaijutsu Focus (Skill) (OA): It’s one of the more thematic skills that the katana leans on. Essentially, when you pull a weapon on someone flatfooted, you make an Iaijutsu Focus check, and add additional d6s of damage depending on what comes up. It’s a CHA based skill, and it’s often Factotums who are used for it, as their combination of ‘use any skill’ plus ‘cast some spell that flatfoots the enemy’ goes a long way towards maximising this skill. That said, Human Paragons are handy for this skill as they can make it a class skill automatically, and Half-Elf Paragons with their racial bonuses to CHA skills buttress this.

Acrobatic Backstab (Skill Trick) (CSco): Tumble check to render an opponent flatfooted on your next turn. Once per encounter, but nice, especially in combination with the Acrobatic Strike feat further up.



Races, Class Features, Prestige Classes, Monsters

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Exotic Weapon Master (PrC) (CWar): Also known as WOTC’s partial apology to those who want to wield slightly funky weapons. 3 levels long, full BAB, and you pick up three of a selection of tricks which make up for some of the bastard sword’s drawbacks. Notable in this space: Trip Attack, which lets you trip with the bastard sword ... and the standout: Uncanny Blow. This is where the bastard sword pulls slightly ahead of two-handed martial weapons, because when wielding the weapon in two hands, it grants x2 STR bonus on weapon damage rolls, and if you’re using Power Attack, allows you to also double your bonus damage for your attack penalty too. The rest of the tricks are suited to ranged attacks, sundering, disarming, or other assorted stuff we don’t really need, or a little suboptimal (+1 shield bonus to AC if you wield the bastard sword in two hands, for example).

Exoticist (Variant Fighter Class) (Dragon 310): Not too bad if you are dead certain on the bastard sword and nothing else for all your fighter levels. First up, the Exoticist doesn’t get any proficiency with martial weapons. He still gets proficiency with simple weapons, all armors and all shields. And he gets free proficiency with four exotic weapons, of which the bastard sword is one. His bonus fighter feats are confined to what amounts to basically core-only fighter feats; stuff like Shock Trooper or even Leap Attack are not part of it, though you’ll have ample room to pick up the basics. The three specific tricks the class grants are not fantastic: a +4 to Bluffs on feints, a +2 to trip and disarm attempts, and a +1 to attack rolls if the opponent is not proficient with the same weapon (which isn’t that bad – DMs frequently won’t build for EWP, and players who don’t use bastard swords are natural targets for this.)

Dervish (PrC) (CWar): Two to three useless feats to qualify, but the prestige class is focused on slashing weapons, which a bastard sword certainly is. For high DEX builds this might actually be worth thinking about, and it would certainly be a flavourful build, especially combined with something like Einhander.

Raumathari Battlemage (PrC) (UE): It specifically takes EWP (Bastard Sword) to qualify, but as gish classes go, it's got a substantial amount of competition: Duskblade for one, Abjurant Champion most specifically with which it shares a prerequisite. And it has a d4 damage dice, rendering it kind of squishy. Still, it has a wider spell list than the Duskblade, and it has some limited channelling strength as well, so...

Shadow Sentinel 3 (PrC) (RoD): Not bad for critfishing, and it applies specifically to slashing weapons. Nice hit dice for a prestige class, too – d10.

Disciple of Dispater (PrC) (BoVD): Pretty evil, and the reflex reaction of every DM will be to say “It’s 3.0”. The main feature we’re interested in, as the wielder of an iron or steel weapon, is the fourth level, which doubles the threat range ‘as if’ the Disciple were using a keen weapon. At 8th level, the threat range triples. It doesn’t stack with keen, but it does stack with Improved Critical. This will prompt a lot of arguments about whether that choice is still valid as against the 3.5 critical rules, but even if you just bypass the debate by not having any further critical range increasers, it’s still not bad; a default bastard sword would impose critical threats on 15-20. And the PrC also has full BAB and advances all saves similar to a monk, and its other abilities – Iron Hews, Greater Iron Hews – strongly favour people with high CON scores.

Bloodstorm Blade (PrC) (ToB): Because hurling two-handed weapons around the battlefield is as awesome as it is silly.

Master of Masks 1 (PrC) (CSco): As dips go, this is actually one to think about if you can hold off acquiring a bastard sword until around level 5. The prerequisites are wholly skill-based, and for our purposes the masks of most interest are the Gladiator (which grants proficiency with all, yes, all martial and exotic weapons, and then a +1 to attack and damage on top of that) and the Assassin (which grants sneak attack and an extra +1d6). The rest of the PrC isn’t worth taking.

Knight of the Iron Glacier (PrC) (Frostburn): Requires EWP (Bastard Sword) to qualify. Very thematic, not the strongest paladinesque PrC out there, but it gives you a Megaloceros as a war mount at the first level, which is just made of awesome. And if he's a paladin entry, he can make it a Megaloceros special mount, which is just made of made of awesome.

Shining Blade of Heironeous 1 (PrC) (CDiv) Can cause a slashing weapon to become a shock weapon for CHA+PrC level rounds.

Akodo Champion (PrC) (OA): Requires Weapon Focus (katana) to qualify. Most of the prestige class is Shouty Paladin, but there is something interesting at 2nd level: add CHA bonus to all your saving throws. That's also where you pick up a free Leadership feat, and at 3, you pick up immunity to fear. Not bad, but not really focused on the katana as such.

Iaijutsu Master (PrC) (OA): This is actually not bad at all if you’ve got a DEX and CHA focused build. It’s tuned to the bastard sword because Weapon Focus (katana) is one of the prerequisites and the other two – Improved Initiative and Quick Draw – are synergistic with the PrC’s primary strategy. Weapon Finesse applies to the katana from level 1, and at level 5 the Iaijutsu Master adds his CHA mod to each damage dice for the Iaijutsu Focus skill. Even with a check result of 20 you pull an extra 3 d6s, so 9 or so extra damage around the minimum. However, staying past level 5 is a maybe. One Strike, Two Cuts is obsolete in regular combat if you have a source of Pounce or some other way to get a move action in before a full attack. Strike with No Thought only applies once per combat and then only if you’re already in ‘melee range’ – which doesn’t have a definition but implies the enemy is right next to you. By RAW, however, a single-move charge action is an attack action, i.e. you don’t have to be standing right next to someone to pull this off. If your DM agrees with that, then this might well be worth sticking around for: your build would be focused literally on first round Rocket Tag and hoping the target’s friends don’t kill you one round later. Note also that by RAW, One Strike, Two Cuts applies to Strike With No Thought because an attack action is a standard action. Even if you can’t get Iaijutsu Focus damage twice, two hits in the surprise round are always better than one, and always better when the enemy is still flatfooted. The other alternative is to take a throwing build, since all Iaijutsu Focus requires is that you ‘immediately attack’ a flatfooted opponent, not that you attack a flatfooted opponent in melee.

Ronin (PrC) (CWar): Has EWP (Bastard Sword) as a prerequisite. The main draws are full BAB progression, the addition of some sneak attack (useful for certain PrCs) and an AC-dumping Charge for additional damage, which synergises well with Power Attack. In the case of fallen Samurai, it regains some of their abilities – but you can qualify without going anywhere near the CW Samurai (and probably should). Consider in combination with Iaijutsu Master above – but bear in mind that the Ronin doesn’t get Iaijutsu Focus as a class skill, because this Ronin is from Complete Warrior, not OA.

Samurai (Class) (CWar): Picks up EWP (Bastard Sword) specifically as a bonus feat, but no shield proficiency, which is kind of ridiculous since sword-and-board pretty much needs this unless the damn shield is animated. Gains the basic Two Weapon Fighting feats, Quick Draw, Improved Initiative, and later on some bonuses to intimidation, but the main problem with this class is that it doesn’t really do anything particularly well that can’t be duplicated or bettered even by thoughtful Fighter builds. Quick Draw, Improved Initiative, and EWP (Bastard Sword) are prereqs to Iaijutsu Master … but the Complete Warrior Samurai doesn’t get Iaijutsu Focus as a class skill.

Samurai (Class) (OA): It’s not like the OA Samurai is/was much better. This one doesn’t get Exotic Weapon Proficiency with the katana automatically, and the weapon’s equipment entry in OA underlines that this was deliberate: “Like a bastard sword, the katana can only be used in one hand by a character with the Exotic Weapon Proficiency (katana) feat . A Medium-size character can use a katana two-handed as a martial weapon, or a Large creature can use it one-handed in the same way.* Among the samurai of Rokugan, only Dragons routinely use their katanas one-handed.” So again we have the dodgy issue of whether you even qualify to take Weapon Focus for the katana, because it’s not a martial weapon with which you are proficient. And the remainder of its structure is basically identical to a Fighter, but with a lot less variety in the bonus feats that can be taken, breaking them up among the different clans (Only Dragon clan samurai have EWP (katana) available as a bonus feat, it might be noted). Its only advantages over the CW Samurai are Iaijutsu Focus as a class skill, a couple of physical class skills, and a built-in equivalent to Ancestral Relic via the Ancestral Daisho feature at first level.
* Yes, I saw that. Here's the thing: OA is 3.0, which had slightly different rules on inappropriately sized weapons. Whether it's a martial or exotic weapon for you, you're still sucking up a -2 on the attack rolls due to the size difference, under 3.5. In addition, it isn’t actually conveying an exotic weapon proficiency. As with using a bastard sword two-handed, it is simply saying that a Medium bastard sword is a martial weapon for a Large combatant … but the rules on inappropriately sized weapons would still apply, and you still don't get that sweet EWP.

Mirumoto Niten Master 1 (PrC) (OA): “Mom, can we get Miyamoto Musashi for dinner?” “No, we have Miyamoto Musashi at home.” Welcome home. This PrC's use would be to those martials who want to fight defensively and use two weapons, and its prerequisites at least aren't feat taxes for those purposes (TWF and the 3.0 feat that later became Combat Expertise). At MNM 1, if you’re not using your off hand weapon (wakizashi, a masterwork short sword) to attack, it adds a tiny +2 armor bonus that stacks with all other armor bonuses except shields. Now, you can get more out of it: “A magic wakizashi does not add its enhancement bonus to the Niten Master’s AC unless it is a defending weapon or has been otherwise specially enhanced for defense.” So one possibility is the Perfect Balance weapon quality from Dragon #358, which grants a +1 untyped bonus to AC when taking the total defense action -- i.e., you can say to the DM such a weapon has been specially enhanced for defense, and only costs an extra 100 gp as opposed to the effective +2 of a Defending weapon. From there, get Greater Magic Weapon cast on your wakizashi. Now you've got a magic wakizashi and all its enhancement bonus goes to your AC, on top of whatever your armor is. The PrC is full BAB and has decent Fort and Will saves, but its features otherwise are weak and when decent, come far too late; only look at dipping this class if at all, and then likely only if you can afford a lost level and want a bit of extra AC for your TWFer or defensive specialist that isn't available by an Animated Shield or something.

For what it's worth, there is a simple exploitation to get around the main control on MNM 1, arising out of the update from 3.0 to 3.5; it's of most practical use to martial adepts or psionics. As we know, "if the niten master uses the wakizashi to attack, she loses this AC bonus until her next action." When this was written, swift actions and immediate actions weren't around - and swift actions are still available even after a full attack. If you can take a swift action after an attack -- for example, dropping a martial stance you're in, and then resume it as a swift action, or manifesting a swift action power -- then you have your AC bonus back before the opponent can attack you. Indeed the stinkiest cheese is that, by RAW, the feature specifies you only lose the bonus until your next action. You can quite legitimately take a free action right after your full attack and you've got your AC bonus back.

Note that it requires proficiency with the katana specifically, rather than a bastard sword. Note that OA had a feat – Born Duelist – that increased the armor bonus by +1, but in Dragon 318’s update of the book, the feat was outright replaced with a slightly different Twin Sword Style, just as sucky as the default Twin Sword Style, except that Dragon 318's version could be used with a katana and wakizashi, and it stacked with Mirumoto Niten Master as well as a buckler or animated shield bonus.

Gladiator 9 (PrC) (Sword and Fist): When you deal damage with a slashing weapon, wound bleeds for 1 damage per round for a short time. Too small a bonus and too long in an otherwise not-great PrC, though the prereqs are fairly easy.

Kensai (PrC) (CWar): The main draw of this class is the cost saving on upgrading your weapon. By the entry point around character level 5 or so, you should be pulling fair amounts of XP per encounter, so the costs are pretty low compared with how much gold you have to put together to get a comparable quality on your bastard sword. You also gain a +8 to STR for a few rounds if you pull off a Concentration check, and that ability is granted at a low level. On the other hand, the class is not full BAB – 7/10, which is low to awful for a frontlining melee type. If, however, you are looking at some sort of build which pumps or emphasises Concentration, the features are maybe worth considering.

Kensai (Variant Fighter Class) (Dragon 310): Maybe worth a dip depending on the sourcebooks you're allowed to use and if your heart is set on the bastard sword or katana. The Kensai gets proficiency with simple weapons, light armor, and one martial or exotic melee weapon, which is then their chosen weapon. The fighter's bonus feat at level 1 is replaced with an untyped +1 to attack and damage rolls with that chosen weapon. If your DM is open to allowing class features to serve as prerequisites when they duplicate a feat (i.e. Masters of the Wild), then that's EWP and Weapon Focus in a bastard sword for the price of one feat in effect, which a regular fighter can't get you. Also significant is that -- unlike the default fighter -- Concentration is on the Kensai's class list (presumably in place of Intimidate). This is a natural fit for Swordsages or even Warblades looking into the Diamond Mind school. Even more hilariously, the Concentration skill sets the Kensai up for qualification for the Kensai PrC, thus allowing you to become a Kensai/Kensai. (Can also get an additional melee attack per round at a -3 to all attacks (i.e. worse than a flurry or TWF), or a -6 penalty for two additional melee attacks – which is worse than Improved TWF.)

Corsair 8-9 (PrC) (Dragon 321): This would be one hell of an odd build, and absent the Warblade's Aptitude ability you're looking down the barrel of at least one wasted Weapon Focus feat ... but Corsair 8 allows the corsair to treat any one-handed weapon he's got Weapon Focus in as a light weapon, and Corsair 9 allows that corsair to substitute DEX for STR when calculating damage rolls. Bastard swords are one-handed weapons. However, you would have to be a Weapon Finesse, DEX-focused build to be going down this road, since light weapons don't get a x1.5 STR bonus when wielded two-handed, and in particular Power Attack simply doesn't provide any bonuses for them, but on the other side, if you were taking Parry as mentioned further up, it allows you a +4 on your rolls to negate successful enemy strikes.

Warrior of Darkness (PrC) (BoVD): This PrC I guess you could call a slightly-more customisable fighter. For the bastard sword wielder, it has one or two features of interest, one of which is that the Warrior can pick up Exotic Weapon Proficiency as a free feat. On the other hand, if this is the only feature you're after, then it's worth noting that the PrC's main prerequisite is Iron Will, which is useless. That is, unless you can pick up Iron Will via an Otyugh Hole, you're literally no better off than if you retrained a feat or just plunked EWP in one of your default slots anyway. Still, it does have a few random bits and pieces to offer including the capacity to temporarily give your weapon a +1 weapon quality, and it'll help file off the odd numbers in your stats via occasional inherent +1 bonus grants.

Weapon Master (Kensei) (PrC, OA): For the sake of completeness … 1 level in this allows you, 1/day/level, to max out the damage you can inflict normally, but stuff like sneak attack, critical hits, and Power Attack are all determined normally. 2 levels allows you, 1/day, to increase the critical multiplier of your weapon. At 5th level, Combat Reflexes affords you DEX + WIS mod Attacks of Opportunity, which is reasonably unique. At 9th level, you can make a whirlwind attack as a standard action. And all this only costs you six feats with four of those being completely useless. (Sword and Fist had a 3.0 version of this, which was identical ... except that you also had to have DEX 13 to qualify.)

Master Samurai (PrC) (Sword and Fist): …why? Seriously, the only feature that doesn’t suck huge globes in this is Blades of Fury which lets you pick up an additional +2 to attack and damage if you delay your attack until after the enemy has attacked. Maybe you could get Robilar’s Gambit to work with this, but the rest of it is just Cleaving and some random useless stuff for which you have to pay six feats, of which between three and four are useless. Unless you’re – no, not even unless you’re anything, just stay away for the love of Gygax.

Binder: (Class) (ToM): There's one Vestige - the Triad (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20070119a) - that grants proficiency with all martial and exotic weapons. Too bad it doesn't happen until you're ECL 10. :smallfrown:

Favored Soul 1 (Class) (CDiv): Favored Souls are Clerics with a C minus, an attempt at creating a divine sorcerer which just doesn’t stack up against cleric versatility. But the class does have one thing going for it: its proficiency list. Specifically, a Favored Soul is proficient with his deity’s favoured weapon … i.e., a free Exotic Weapon Proficiency that even a War domain cleric of Aengrist can’t get. And if you’re really short on feat space, three levels in this gets you Weapon Focus in that same weapon for free. The list of gods who favour the bastard sword is further down.

Warblade (Class) (ToB): The Warblade's weapon aptitude feature is similar to the Aptitude weapon quality, and might by RAW allow you to get around the problem of not having Weapon Focus (bastard sword) at least - because the Warblade can alter the weapon that single-weapon feats like Weapon Focus apply to with one hour of training in the morning, and it doesn't specify that you must actually be proficient with that weapon to do so. Better yet, by RAW it gets around the War domain problem I set out further below. Because the War domain provides a free grant of a Martial Weapon Proficiency feat and Weapon Focus in that weapon, the Warblade's weapon aptitude ability then --arguably -- allows you to apply that Martial Weapon Proficiency feat to any other weapon you have ... i.e. the bastard sword. Which then gives you proficiency in an exotic weapon. Now, virtually any sane DM is going to object to this by saying that changing the designated weapon for the feat doesn't change the fact the feat still only can apply to weapons of that type, so be prepared for an argument and to back down on this, but this is the same trick that fuels Lightning Mace abuse and infinite attacks (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?485047-Does-Lightning-Mace-grant-you-infinite-attacks). On top of that, Warblade gets a reasonably easy run at qualifying for Stormguard Warrior, and doesn't even need to take EWP to apply it to a bastard sword or even a katana.

Swordsage (Class) (ToB): Swordsages pick up the benefit of Weapon Focus in a chosen discipline's associated weapons as a class feature. Because we get the benefit of the feat and not the feat itself - thus avoiding the need to meet the feat's prerequisites - that means we get a +1 to attack and damage with the katana, the associated weapon of the Diamond Mind school. The Swordsage always has to use the katana two-handed, since he's only proficient with martial melee weapons, which the katana is treated as when it's used with both hands, but the swordsage can trundle through the rest of his career never once acquiring EWP in his chosen blade.

Human Paragon (Class) (SRD): Main reason we’re interested in this is because it can render one skill a class skill for you – i.e. Iaijutsu Focus.

Half-Elf Paragon (Class) (SRD): All CHA-based skills get a racial +2 bonus – i.e. Iaijutsu Focus. And it can be taken with human paragon as well.

Declining Elf (Race) (Dragon 320): Dragon's special on Warcraft III races varied elves a little bit. Declining elves lose their immunity to sleep effects, racial bonuses to saves against enchantment spells or effects, rest like normal people for 8 hours per day and age as half-elves, but they get free Weapon Focus feats in one melee and one ranged weapon. Although these feats have to initially apply to longsword, rapier, longbow, or shortbow, the Warblade's aptitude ability allows this to be shifted around freely, which may pay for the feat tax of Exotic Weapon Proficiency by default, or at least avoid the character having to take Weapon Focus for something, as well as providing actual feats for retraining. Most significantly, elves are the only race that can qualify for Eternal Blade, making this a handy fit for a Warblade or other entry to that class.

Tengu (Monster) (OA): Tengu get proficiency with the katana automatically, and are able to apply Weapon Finesse to the katana despite the fact it doesn't normally apply to that weapon. They're even given skill ranks in Iaijutsu Focus. Human-headed Tengu in particular also get Improved Initiative and native casting ability, as a 5th level air shugenja with no access to [fire] spells. They come out of the box with Dodge, Mobility, Spring Attack, and Weapon Focus (katana), which means they need only one feat and two skills switched or added to qualify for Dervish! However, they're not the most ideal for PCs. The Crow Headed Tengu is 2RHD and LA +3, while the Human headed is 5RHD and LA +5.

[Saintheart]

Spells

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Master’s Touch (SpC) (Brd 1 Sor/Wiz 1): Explicitly gain proficiency with your bastard sword. Wand of this costs 750 gp, and a Wand Chamber stuck on the hilt of your bastard sword costs 100gp. Do the math.

Blades of Fire (SpC) (Rgr 1, Sor/Wiz 1): 1 round, but Persistable. Either way, whack 1d8 fire damage on your weapons. Stacks with everything else, including other fire damage by RAW.

Spectral Weapon (SpC) (Assn 3, Bard 4, Sor/Wiz 3): Make a shadow weapon of a weapon you are proficient with, and which hits via melee touch attacks – but which also has a Will save to disbelieve it, in effect. Persistable as a 0 foot spell.

Weapon of the Deity (SpC) (Pal 3, Blk 3, Clr 3): If you’re holding your deity’s favoured weapon (not that there are many who like the bastard sword), it gets a +1 enhancement bonus to attack and damage and a special ability. The enhancement bonuses increase with higher caster levels.

Whirling Blade (CArc) (Bard 2, Warmage 2, Sor/Wiz 2): Hurl a slashing weapon, use your INT or CHA modifier for the STR on attack and damage. Deals damage “just as if you had swung it in melee, including any bonuses from ability scores or feats”. Not a bad alternative to Bloodstorm Blade.

Spiritual Weapon (PHB) (Clr 2, War 2): Weapon of pure force appears, takes the form of your deity’s favoured weapon, but doesn’t use the 1d10 damage dice your bit of sharpened steel does.

Toxic Weapon (Dusk 4, Sor/Wiz 5): Weapon delivers a CON poison. Can be applied to a slashing weapon.

Blade Thirst (SpC) (Rgr 3): Give a slashing weapon a +3 enhancement bonus.

Bladebane (UE) (Pal 2, Clr 3, Sor/Wiz 4): Slashing weapon gets the bane ability against a chosen creature type or subtype.

Keen Edge (PHB) (Dusk 3, Sor/Wiz 3, Wu Jen 3, Sha’ir 3, Urban Druid 3, other randoms) Make your weapon keen. Only works on a piercing or slashing weapon.

Bleed (CChamp) (Blk 4, Clr 5, Drd 5): Any new hit from a slashing weapon also deals 1 CON damage (no save). Also imposes a -4 on Fort saves against sickened or nauseated condition, which might be handy for some higher-end combat feats which impose these conditions.

Blade Storm (SpC) (Rgr 3): On a swift action, take a full round action to make one attack with each melee weapon against one opponent within reach – double weapons can attack once for each end of the weapon. Until you’ve got enough iterative attacks, this is actually pretty solid if you’ve got a lot of enemies around you – minimum 2 attacks on all creatures in range, which is handy if you can combine it with an increased reach.

Blade of Blood (PHB 2): +1d6 damage on the next attack; caster may spend 5 hp to increase this damage to 3d6.

Cursed Blade (SpC): wound from a weapon can't be healed until the remove curse spell (or some similar effect); slain creature can't be raised from the dead unless a remove curse spell (or similar effect) is cast on the body or a true resurrection spell is used.

Align Weapon (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/alignWeapon.htm) - there are creatures with not just DR, but even Regeneration keyed on alignment, so you may be unable to CdG them without this spell

Bane Weapon (Dragon #279) - gives temporary Bane (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/magicWeapons.htm#bane) weapon special ability

Blade Thirst (SpC) (Rgr 3): Just a +3 enhancement bonus to a slashing weapon. Not bad at all.

Bladeweave (SpC) (Brd 2, Sor/Wiz 2): If you hit someone with your weapon, as a swift action make them save against being Dazed - once per round, mind you!

Bless Weapon (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/blessWeapon.htm) (PHB) (Pal 1): Grants a +1 enhancement bonus and automatically confirms critical hits (though Vorpal is shut down by it, so no heads rolling I'm afraid). The spell is not as available as you might think - regular clerics don't get it, though it is on the Glory domain list.

Profane Weapon (Dragon #312) - an Evil version of Bless Weapon

Brilliant Blade (SpC) (Sor/Wiz 6, Drd 7, Clr 7): Give one of your melee or thrown weapons the Brilliant Energy quality.

Disrupting Weapon (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/disruptingWeapon.htm) (Clr 5): Have your weapon blow up undead on a hit and a failed Will save.

Honorable Weapon (Dragon #318) (Sha 2, Soh 2): Out of the Dragon 3.5 revision of Oriental Adventures, your weapon becomes honourable and bypasses the DR of dishonourable creatures, mainly undead.

Magic Weapon (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/magicWeapon.htm) - obvious, but worth mentioning.

Magic Weapon, Greater (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/magicWeaponGreater.htm) - as above.

Poison Weapon (Dragon #304) - both as a spell, and as psionic power

Rusted Blade ([CMage) (Assn 3, Drd 3, Sor/Wiz 4, Wu Jen 4): Your weapon gives people filth fever, and you make them save again every time they get hit with the weapon.

Silvered Weapon (Dragon #340) (Clr 1, Rgr 1, Sor/Wiz 1): As you'd guess, weapon is a silver weapon for DR and does +1d4 damage to shapechangers.

Tune of the Dancing Weapon (Dragon #335) - Dancing (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/magicWeapons.htm#dancing) weapon special ability for 4 rounds



Suggested Maneuvers and Stances

Although the Swordsage has access to the Diamond Mind school, when you get right down to it the Warblade’s access to Iron Heart and Diamond Mind is just a more natural fit for someone focusing on the bastard sword. In this area it is really difficult to recommend one school over another in terms of maneuvers or stances, simply because Tome of Battle is solid enough that it’s really hard to pick badly from. Your better approach here is to look at the Warblade, Crusader, and Swordsage handbooks that are already out there.

For martials, though, probably the most important thing to do is being able to move. As Ender Wiggin once said, there is no combat without movement. It’s the martial’s ability to pull off more than one attack per round with large melee damage attached that is their standout feature, but to do that, the bastard sword wielder like any other martial character has to close with his opposition. The strongest maneuvers in Tome of Battle for these purposes tend to be higher level, but they’re also the most useful ones as well. After that it’s about playing to the style of combat you’ve been looking for.

One notable maneuver for the Iaijutsu Focus types, though, is Sapphire Nightmare Blade, which explicitly renders the target flatfooted as opposed to just denied their DEX bonus to AC. The two conditions, unfortunately, are not identical.

[Saintheart]

Deities with bastard sword or katana as their favoured weapon
https://images2.imgbox.com/ea/8d/tQXLHhHG_o.jpg



Aengrist LG (Law, Protection, War, Winter)
Eilistraee CG (Chaos, Charm, Drow, Elf, Good, Hunt, Moon, Night, Portal, Sin-Lust)
Finder Wyvernspur CN (Chaos, Charm, Renewal, Scalykind, Sin-Avarice, Sin-Pride, Sin-Sloth)
Graz'zt CE (Chaos, Darkness, Demonic, Evil, Knowledge, Temptation, Vile Darkness, War)
Helm LN (Law, Humility, Planning, Protection, Sin-Pride, Strength)
Kelemvor LN (Death, Fate, Law, Protection, Repose, Travel)
Kelanen TN (Travel, War) – has a favored weapon of “any martial sword”, which by virtue of the Living Greyhawk official list of deities, includes a bastard sword wielded two-handed ... but see below.
Odur CG (Chaos, Fire, Sun)
Mayaheine LG (Good, Law, Nobility, Protection, War) – favoured weapons are bastard sword, mace, longbow

There are no gods I am aware of who have the katana specifically as a favored weapon. Not even in Oriental Adventures.

Since we’ve got some space due to an appalling lack of gods who like the bastard sword: you’re not getting a free Exotic Weapon Proficiency in bastard sword if you happen to take Aengrist as your god … and arguably not even Weapon Focus either.

Nope, no free proficiency for the bastard sword. Or any exotic weapon for that matter.

Why? Easy, go and read the text of the War domain power again. It grants Martial Weapon Proficiency in the god’s favoured weapon (if necessary). A bastard sword is not a martial weapon. It’s an exotic weapon.

“But Saintheart—it’s just an oversight, a misprint, surely they meant you get free proficiency in your god’s favoured weapon—” Yep, that’s what I thought. And then I went and read the text for Martial Weapon Proficiency. It’s right there in the PHB/SRD. Don’t feel ashamed that you have to go look, I’m pretty sure nobody’s read it since Dragon magazine folded. It’s quite explicit: ”A cleric whose deity's favored weapon is a martial weapon and who chooses War as one of his domains receives the Martial Weapon Proficiency feat related to that weapon for free, as well as the Weapon Focus feat related to that weapon.” A bastard sword is not a martial weapon, it’s an exotic weapon. Just because it’s treated as a martial weapon in the specific case of being wielded two-handed does not change that fact. It is still an exotic weapon. Which means there is no martial weapon proficiency feat that relates to it. (Worse still, some DMs might rule that the words "(if necessary)" in the text mean that you don't get that feat at all - because if you already have proficiency in martial weapons, you can use the bastard sword two-handed as one, and therefore it is not necessary to grant you proficiency in the bastard sword at all.)

And here’s the other problem: if you can’t find some way to get proficiency for that exotic weapon, the War domain’s grant of Weapon Focus is just as dead. Unlike, say, a Ranger’s Combat Style, the War domain power does not treat you as having Weapon Focus regardless of whether you meet the feat’s prerequisites. And the prerequisites for Weapon Focus? BAB +1 and proficiency with the weapon in question.

And no, it’s not a workaround to say that you gain proficiency with it while using it two-handed. If you say that when the weapon is two-handed it’s a martial weapon and therefore you pick up proficiency in it via War domain, all you have done is attain proficiency in a martial weapon. You have not obtained proficiency in an exotic weapon, and whenever an option requires that proficiency specifically, the War domain will not fulfil that requirement – because at best all you got was a martial weapon proficiency, nothing more.

If, however, you were able to plead with your DM to modify the wording of War domain so it does give you free proficiency in the bastard sword where it’s a favoured weapon of the god concerned, this would be an excellent houserule for that weapon – because that saves two significant feat taxes for anyone playing with the bastard sword.

(For what it’s worth, this same issue is also lurking when you go looking for a god with a favored simple weapon. War domain is only giving you a free Weapon Focus in that case. But you don’t run into the same problem there because virtually all base classes in 3.5 are already proficient with all simple weapons. Those that aren’t – the monk, wizard, and druid – also tend to have proficiency in a few simple weapons anyway, e.g. the quarterstaff and dagger, which was a huge relief to me given the content of my other weapon guides in this area. Nonetheless: be careful! A War domain cleric is not picking up automatic proficiency in an exotic weapon or a simple weapon, full stop – you will need to find that somewhere else.

Indeed by a certain reading of the War domain power, you still might not get Weapon Focus with a simple weapon.

The 'Special' section of Martial Weapon Proficiency reads as follows:

”A cleric whose deity's favored weapon is a martial weapon and who chooses War as one of his domains receives the Martial Weapon Proficiency feat related to that weapon for free, as well as the Weapon Focus feat related to that weapon.”

That is: a DM could argue that all of the War domain power's benefits are conditional on the deity's favored weapon being a martial weapon -- which a dagger, being a simple weapon, is not. Thus you don't even get Weapon Focus because that requires that your deity happens to like a weapon that the game explicitly classes as martial. Unpalatable as such a stance might be, there is a RAI justification for this: the War domain is granting you benefits that relate to armed forces, armies, military types. Hence why it confines its benefits to martial weapons, because these are the weapons of war.)

That said, and as I’ve noted elsewhere, one level in Favored Soul does pick up EWP, because the class flat-out gives proficiency in the deity’s favoured weapon, regardless of whether it’s simple, martial, or exotic.

In addition, the Revered Ancestor domain (Faiths of Eberron) grants Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Double Scimitar) as a free feat. It seems pretty clear that the Warblade's Weapon Aptitude ability would allow this to be freely shifted across to Bastard Sword. Hence the easiest way around it might be to take War and Revered Ancestor domain and use Warblade aptitude to switch the bonus feats around to suit.

[Saintheart]

Weapon Qualities

https://images2.imgbox.com/55/93/rVyUFzrW_o.jpg


- Skilful (CArc): A +2, but if you absolutely can’t fit EWP in your build any other way and you really, desperately want to wield a bastard sword, this is how to do it without sucking. I doubt your DM will let this weapon quality qualify as your exotic weapon proficiency for Exotic Weapon Master. For the price you might as well just go get UMD, a Wand Chamber, and a Wand of Master’s Touch instead.

- Vorpal: Has to be on a slashing weapon. +4 bonus. Way too expensive and way too situational to justify taking.

- Keen: Double your critical threat range, so at least to 17-20. Doesn’t stack with Improved Critical, because melee can’t have nice things.

-Defending (PHB): Costs a +1, stays good no matter how far you increase the weapon’s enhancement bonus (by either permanent increases or by spells.)

- Brutal Surge (MIC): Free bull rush attempt after successful attack. +1 bonus.

- Focus (OA): Flat +640 gp, and whilst it can only be put on a katana, it adds a +4 insight bonus to Iaijutsu Focus checks while carrying it, even if it’s sheathed. That’s basically Skill Focus (Iaijutsu Focus) in a can plus 25%, and only overshadowed by Divine Insight if you’re a cleric or similar. If you are focusing on Iaijutsu this is practically a must-have. (NB: If you’re using the sorta-update to OA that happened in Dragon 318, they pumped the price of this up to +2,400 gp, but at least still left it a flat gp increase.)

- Sizing (MIC): Flat +5,000 gp so your bastard sword sizes up and down with you.

- Sudden Stunning (PHB 2): Great option barely missed by the nerfing of 3.0 to 3.5, for high-CHA bastard sword users -- e.g. the Iaijutsu Master -- even if there’s a fair number of creatures in the world immune to stun. And that’s mainly due to the fact it’s a +2,000 gp bonus and not in terms of a +1 or so forth.

- Torturous (Ghostwalk): for a +1 (DC 12) or a +2 (DC 17), impose a stunning chance on every strike you make – which is probably superior to Sudden Stunning, but also a lot more expensive depending when you pick this up.

- Aptitude (ToB): It’s low-fat cheese and only really applies for our purposes where you absolutely have to have DEX applied to damage, but: Shadow Blade in its orthodox form only applies to weapons from the Shadow Hand school. An Aptitude weapon allows its wielder to use that feat for a different type of weapon, i.e. DEX added to damage for a katana.

- Warning (MiC): +5 insight bonus to Initiative checks as long as it is held, albeit the price is a +1. Good for the builds that take advantage of flatfooted targets.

- Deadly Precision (CAdv): +1 bonus, and adds +1d6 damage on a successful sneak attack or sudden strike.

- Razor Sharp (Dragon 358): added for a flat 1,000 gp, you get a +1 damage on a masterwork weapon without it becoming a magical weapon. Can only be applied to bladed slashing weapons. And yes, it stacks with the +1 to damage you get from eventually making it a magic weapon.

- Blurstrike (RoTW): Pricey at a +2 bonus, but the first attack with such a weapon is made as if the target were flat-footed ... ten times per day under the MIC version.

- Shadowstrike (MIC): For once the MIC provides an ability with a flat gp bonus! Okay, it's +5,000 gp, but 1/day, your weapon reaches 5 feet further than normal and denies the target its DEX bonus to AC.

-Martial Discipline (ToB): +1 bonus, but grand as hell for anyone using a stance in one school and a maneuver from another, which provides a +7 to your attack rolls.

- Serrated (Dragon 358): bleed ‘em on a critical hit! Yeah, it’s a flat +600 gp to add it, and it’s not much, but if you’re critfishing, this could be fun.

- Wounding (PHB): Or hey, let's just bleed 'em 2 points per round on any successful hit we make, for a +1! (Well, assuming we're in 3.0. In 3.5, it's CON damage instead).

- Greater Wounding (MM2): This is definitely 3.0, and it appears only in the entry for the Kelvezu Demon. It cost a +4 bonus, and the MM2 update to 3.5 changed it to CON damage as with Wounding.

- Implacable (MIC): And here's where the 2 hitpoints per round bleeding went in 3.5. Only lasts 5 rounds, but cumulative hits add additional bleeding.

- Collision (MIC): +5 untyped damage bonus to all blows, for a +2.

- Perfect Balance (Dragon 358): +1 to AC when on Total Defence, for a modest gp flat addition.

- Spellstrike (MIC): For a +1 bonus, transfer the weapon’s enhancement bonus as a bonus on saving throws against spells and spell-like abilities. Good way to shore up that weak Will save that most martials get.

- Valorous: (UE): Double damage when charging. I’m guessing you might be doing this a lot.

- Berserker (+1; Dungeon #137): When the wielder is raging, a berserker weapon's enhancement bonus increases by +2.

- Dementia (+2; Dungeon #116): target must make a Will save, or be confused for 7 rounds. The only relevant thing Confused does is mean the opponent doesn't make AoOs against you unless they're already attacking you.

- Nervewrack (+1; Dungeon #105): on a critical hit, victim for 1d4 rounds is suffering -2 penalty on AC, attacks, Ref saves; speed is halved, and casting spells requires a Concentration check.

- Razor Sharp (Dragon 358): added for a flat 1,000 gp, you get a +1 damage on a masterwork weapon without it becoming a magical weapon. Can only be applied to bladed slashing weapons, so it’s just as well you’ve got one. And yes, it stacks with the +1 to damage you get from eventually making it a magic weapon.

- Fierce (A&EG): dump DEX bonus from AC into damage. Would likely stack with Shadow Blade. +2 bonus.

- Speed (PHB): +3 bonus, which is pretty expensive for what it grants: one single extra attack per round at your highest bonus, which doesn’t stack with haste.

- Truebane (+3; Dragon #345): The weapon works as bane (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/magicWeapons.htm#bane) weapon vs the same creature type as the wielder. But if wielder strike with it creature of another type, then - at the end of the round - bane will be "re-attuned" to the target's creature type, and stays this way until the end of the next round (in case of multiple targets - only the last hit is matter)




Special Materials

https://images2.imgbox.com/21/6d/t1lkdhzB_o.jpg


Kaorti Resin (Web): Raise your weapon’s critical hit multiplier to x4. Bastard sword is a slashing weapon, it qualifies, and you already have to take Exotic Weapon Proficiency anyway.

Platinum or Gold (Heavy) weapons (MoF, p. 179): It’s cheesy, but a Heavy bastard sword made from alchemical gold or platinum would have a 2d8 damage dice, and you’re already sucking up an EWP feat anyway, so you might as well make it a specific EWP for this weapon.

Baatorian Green Steel (FC 2): +1 to damage, but doesn't stack with magical enhancement bonuses.

Riverine (Stormwrack) - at the weight of a Riverine bastard sword, this sort of weapon will cost you around 10,000 gp or more -- but it hits Incorporeal creatures with no miss chance, and even able to cut creatures who are on Ethereal Plane

Thinaun (Complete Warrior) - one more way to ensure killed enemy stays dead, and also - way to catch a soul

Starmetal (CArc): Equivalent to adamantine for all purposes, and does +1d6 damage against extraplanar creatures while on the Material Plane. Costs 5k more than a normal weapon.

[Saintheart]

Specific Bastard Swords Of Interest

https://images2.imgbox.com/eb/a2/rZgRnGvj_o.jpg


Kamate (ToB): It’s a Legacy Weapon. All right, all right, stop your crying, this one is slightly better than the standard Legacy Weapon, but only if you just activate its first, lowest ability and take it no higher: at character level 5, you gain the ability to use the maneuver Steel Wind, 5 times per day. Steel Wind is a pretty solid low-level martial maneuver – essentially, make two melee attacks, each against a different foe that you threaten, no penalties on the attack roll. Not too bad for a fifth level fighter or thereabouts, and to use this +1 Bastard Sword you have to have EWP: Bastard Sword anyway.

Berserker Blade (MoF): +1 or +2 bastard swords with one useful thing for the barbarian builds: the weapons gain an extra +1 enhancement bonus when the owner flies into a rage. Pretty cheap to make, only 3,331 gp, and that probably because the benefit is restricted to barbarian-ish classes.

Kakita Katana (OA): Nonmagical, but has a natural +2 enhancement bonus. 9,400 gp.

Knight’s Sword (A&EG): +2 bastard sword. When riding a mount and charging, double damage. Stick Valorous on this baby and see what happens. 18,000 gp.

Sword of Zeal (A&EG): +2 holy bastard sword, but in the hands of a paladin, it ignores outsiders’ DR, and you can channel your lay on hands point for point into damage against evil outsiders and the undead -- best of all, deciding how much extra damage to put into it after you hit.

Balor’s Sword of Flame (A&EG): Large +1 vorpal bastard sword that can detect good. Supposedly looks like a flaming sword, but isn’t one. But hey, it’ll only cost you 115,870 gp.

Balor’s Sword of Lightning (A&EG): Large +1 brilliant energy shock bastard sword. Detects law. Looks like a bolt of lightning, also costs 115,870 gp.

Balor’s Sword of Smiting (A&EG): Seeing a theme here yet? Large +5 unholy bastard sword allows the wielder to smite good once per day, add CHA mod, +10 damage, can’t use your own smite on the same attack you smite with this. 118,000 go.

Balor’s Sword of Soul Stealing (A&EG): Large +3 vorpal bastard sword, and if it severs the head of a living creature, it pulls the soul out and imprisons it in a gem on the blade. Will save DC 23. But the gods don’t have to worry too much, if the creature has more than 30 HD, the gem explodes. 219,000 gp!

The Sword of Shannara (Dragon 286): Yeah. That one. Dragon did an eye-bleeding adaptation of the world of Terry Brooks’ Shannara series, and they statted this out. And guess what, it’s a bastard sword! +3 keen ghost touch weapon which forces shapeshifted and polymorph creatures back to their normal form, +10 morale bonus to saves against illusion (shadow) spells, makes the wielder immune to spells that “use lies as their foundations”. Blows up undead that touch it unless they pull a DC 30 Will save. But it has a decent chance to stun you any time you draw it.

Baneblade of Demron (Keryvian) (PGtF): The last and the most powerful. Can only be wielded by a fighter, paladin, or ranger of Good alignment. It’s a keen bastard sword that allows its wielder to use jump, feather fall, and alarm at will; it bestows a negative level when it does a critical hit and gives its wielder 1d6 temporary hitpoints. On top of that, it’s a +4 holy, evil outsider and undead bane sword. Over 200,000 gp, but if I had a spare 200k to drop on something, I sure wouldn’t be choosing a soul-stealing Balor’s sword if this was on the table.

Celestial Blade (A&EG): Large +3 bastard sword that twinkles.

Sword of the Solars (A&EG): +5 dancing vorpal bastard sword that twinkles, and it’s an Epic level weapon.

Demonfoe (Dragon 356): 21,000 gp, +2 evil outsider bane bastard sword, but 3 times a day you can swap the bane ability for suppressing DR 5 for 1 round, and once per day, as a full round action, make an attack, and if it hits, make another one with the same attack modifier as the first.

Taragarth (MoF): +3 mighty cleaving bastard sword that grants fire resistance, featherfall, and nondetection, for an eyewatering 86,000 gp.

Black Sword (PGtF): +3 intelligent bastard sword that thinks most people are beneath it. Constantly urges its wielder on if it’s put in a position of being able to fight a tyrant, because that’s its special purpose. Gives luck bonuses on attack rolls, saves, checks, as well as darkness, silence, and dispel magic. Only costs you 131 grand, if you’re a DM just give this to the party for the sheer hilarity of their sword either maintaining a snobby silence or patronising the party for its general non-awesomeness.

Magebane (Waterdeep): +2 bastard sword, but it’s intelligent and can use detect magic or feeblemind as its dedicated power, has some mid-teens ranks in Spot and Knowledge (Arcana).

Sword of the Glorious Pearl (Stormwrack): +3 aquatic holy pearlsteel bastard sword, but also gives the wielder Extra Turning (provided he already can turn undead). 75,000 gp market price.

Sword of Giant Rending (Dragon 345): Boy, someone really didn’t like giants. +2 giant bane bastard sword, but it also does a different type of damage against different types of giant – e.g. Icy Burst against a Fire Giant, Flaming Burst against a Frost Giant, and so on. Most interestingly, if you come across a giant that isn’t cloud, fire, frost, hill, stone, or storm, it’s the wielder’s choice what special ability you pick, which was probably RAI meant to be just one of the forms set out, but which by RAW could include almost anything … e.g. Vorpal.

Sword of Retribution (A&EG): Get morale bonuses to attack and damage rolls when you get hit by someone. A ToB Crusader, Robilar’s Gambit, and/or Stormguard Warrior would have a field day with this.

Dyerwaen (PGtF): +2 bastard sword that grants camouflage, pass without trace, hide from animals, speak with plants, Diplomacy competence bonuses against hippies elves, fey, woodland creatures. Chaotic and Good weapon.

Sun Blade (DMG): Short sword and bastard sword in one package. Also see Expedition to Castle Ravenloft for Lesser Sun Blades. Not to be confused with...

The Sunsword (Expedition to Castle Ravenloft): It's a Legacy Weapon, with all that implies.

Blade of Black Ice (Epic Level Handbook) +5 keen icy burst bastard sword, said to have been forged by Iuz, and was gifted by Mordenkainen to Robilar

Blade of Valgyr (Heroes of Horror) tainted artifact; +4 keen, unholy, wounding bastard sword; intelligent weapon (Ego 20, Chaotic Evil); able co cast Detect Magic at will, and Darkness 3/day; demands to kill a Lawful Good creature every day, and if refused - bestow negative levels

Dornavver (Champions of Valor) also known as Demonbane; +3 (evil) outsider bane bastard sword; glows within 60' of a Demon; the bearer of the blade is immune to demonic charms, gets +3 on saves against demonic spells, spell-like, and supernatural abilities, and gets Improved Initiative as a bonus feat; any demon struck by the blade must make a DC 20 Will save or be blocked from summoning others of its kind for the next hour

Lifequencher (Complete Psionic) +1 sundering bastard sword; stygian weapon 3/day as a swift action; gives benefits of Improved Sunder feat

Midnight Blade (Book of Vile Darkness) [minor artifact] +5 bastard sword, which gets at night unholy, fleshgrinding, and marrowcrushing special abilities; required daily draw of blood from a creature of at least Medium size, or will turn into –4 cursed bastard sword (to recover its abilities, need to slay with it a Medium-or-larger creature at night)

Souldrinker (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/epic/magicItems/weapons.htm#souldrinker)

Stormblade (Arms and Equipment Guide) +1 shocking burst bastard sword; grants Combat Reflexes feat; Jump (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/jump.htm) for 20 minutes, 1/day; Lightning Bolt (1/day, CL 8)

The Bleeding Infanta (Magic Item Compendium) - mention only: this bastard sword was used by Drelzna (daughter of Witch of the Yatils), and fitted with a blood-filled Witchlight Reservoir

Drakeblade (SRD, Variant Magic Rules): Legendary Weapons are basically the prototype version of Legacy Weapons, which basically say that if you get a particular weapon, and then take a prestige class more or less married to that weapon, you get a bunch of random abilities from the weapon and some different class features. In the case of Drakeblade, the prestige class is the Battle Scion, who only gets a slower fighter feat progression and full BAB. That said, you can legally dip Battle Scion for the first level feat and then abandon the class: Drakeblade just reverts to the weapon it was when you first took up the class, which in this case is a +2 bastard sword which confers immunity to a dragon’s frightful presence ability and confers +4 morale bonuses to his allies within 30 feet against that dragon’s frightful presence. Most of the rest of Drakeblade’s abilities are keyed pretty much entirely to dragons: Bane (dragons), resistance to energy, etc, etc. Wouldn’t take this weapon unless you had a mostly-fighter progression, desperately needed one more fighter bonus feat , but didn’t want to take two levels in fighter.

Shishi-O (WoL): We started with a Legacy Weapon, let’s finish with another: this katana, which is dreadful and must never, never, never be taken. A bunch of silly abilities in one screaming burning dungpile of a weapon, topped with one shrivelled cherry on top: Lion’s Charge, i.e. a Pounce ability, at wielder level 17, and by which point you will have been hit with -3 to attack rolls, -3 to your saving throws, and -10 hitpoints.



Approaches, Combinations, Suggested Builds

https://images2.imgbox.com/68/40/iUQJvw7r_o.jpg


The Unarmoured Swordsman
The concept being the classic, wandering master of the single blade who doesn't wear a lot of armour, if any at all.


This was actually created by Piggy Knowles in this thread (https://forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?553065-3-5-Unarmoured-Swordsman&highlight=unarmored+swordsman). Quoting Piggy's whole post:

1. Warblade1- Aereni Focus (iaijutsu focus)
Sapphire Nightmare Blade, Moment of Perfect Mind, Wolf Fang Strike, Leading the Charges
2. Warblade2-
Sudden Leap
3. Warblade3- Quick Draw
Mountain Hammer
4. Warblade4-
Hunter's Senses, Wolf Fang Strike -> Emerald Razor
5. Warblade5- Improved Initiative
White Raven Tactics
6. Warblade6- Weapon Focus (katana)
7. Iaijutsu Master1-
8. Iaijutsu Master2-
9. Warblade7- Power Attack
Death from Above
10. Warblade8-
Emerald Razor -> Bounding Assault
11. Eternal Blade1-
Crusader's Strike
12. Eternal Blade2- Martial Stance (Thicket of Blades)
13. Eternal Blade3-
Moment of Alacrity
14. Eternal Blade4-
15. Eternal Blade5- Defensive Sweep
Clarion Call, Aura of Perfect Orders
16. Eternal Blade6-
17. Eternal Blade7-
Diamond Nightmare Blade
18. Eternal Blade8- Adaptive Style
19. Eternal Blade9-
Time Stands Still
20. Eternal Blade10-

Lots of maneuvers to make your oppo flat-footed to trigger iaijutsu focus, Int to defense both from Iaijutsu Master and Eternal Blade's defensive insight ability, the usual brokenness of eternal training giving you extra maneuvers as needed (useful for stuff like Quicksilver Motion or Strike of Righteous Vitality) and the absolutely insane island in time capstone. Probably in early levels it's strictly better to have some light armor, but from level 7 onwards you're better off running armorless.

This does sort of rely on you being allowed to qualify for Weapon Focus (katana) without actually taking EWP (katana). I'm a bit rusty on my RAW these days, but if a katana is treated just as a bastard sword then I think this should work based on the description of bastard sword, which states that if you're using it two-handed it is considered a martial weapon. If this doesn't work you can shift the build around a bit to account for it (Warblade 9/Iaijutsu Master 1/Eternal Blade 10, using the bonus feat you get at Warblade 9 to make up for the extra feat cost of EWP), but it means you don't become particularly good at being unarmed until ECL 10 and that's kind of a drag.

Worth noting that the later feats are easy to mess around with. I nabbed Thicket of Blades mostly so that I could qualify for Aura of Perfect Order, which in turn led me to grabbing Defensive Sweep as my level 15 feat, but both Defensive Sweep and Adaptive Style aren't actually required.


From the same thread, DMVerdandi's build stub. His original build had EWP: Greatsword which is probably a typo (should be Martial Weapon Proficiency), but I have adjusted it so it still works:

A.Unarmed Swordsage 2 (Able Learner/Kung Fu Genius)

B. Fighter 1 (Power Attack/Greater Fortitude)

C.Lion totem barbarian 1

D.Battle Dancer 1 (Exotic Weapon Proficiency: Katana)

E. Fist of the forest 1

F. Warblade >>>14


Going down.

You get a nice amount of skills that are always class skills, Int to AC, Cha to AC, Con to AC, [dex to ac lol], Pounce, and then finish off your build with 14 levels of warblade.
Swordsage initiator level 11/ Warblade initiator level 17.

Now, actually having the stats to put into all those AC bonuses might prove difficult, but with 36 point buy you can have:

16 str
12 dex [+1 bonus]
16 con [+3 bonus]
15 int [+2 bonus]
8 wis [0]
Cha 14[+2 bonus]

So that's +8 to AC, without armor at level 6 BEFORE stat increases by level factored in, and of course stat+ items.


Again from the same thread, this time by gorfnab, this one is more suited to defensive fighting. Again, the only real change needed is to use a flaw for EWP: bastard sword or katana rather than broadblade shortsword.

Quoting gorfnab:

Human or Strongheart Halfling
1. Swashbuckler - Deadly Defense (CS), Combat Expertise, B: Weapon Finesse
2. Cobra Strike (UA) Decisive Strike (PHBII) Monk - B: Dodge
3. Cobra Strike (UA) Monk - Carmendine Monk (CoV), B: Mobility
4. Swashbuckler
5. Swashbuckler
6. Thief Acrobat - Combat Reflexes
7. Thief Acrobat
8. Thief Acrobat
9. Thief Acrobat - Einhander (PHBII)
10. Thief Acrobat or Warblade
11. Warblade or Duelist
12. Warblade or Duelist - Ironheart Aura (ToB)
13. Duelist
14. Duelist
15. Duelist - Robilar's Gambit (PHBII)
16. Duelist
17. Duelist
18. Duelist - Stormguard Warrior (ToB)
19. Duelist
20. Duelist

This build uses a number of the options mentioned in this handbook: A short guide to defensive fighting (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?178445-A-short-guide-to-defensive-fighting)

Levels 10 through 12 can be rearranged depending on your needs. The current setup gives you Improved Evasion and Uncanny Dodge at these levels. However if you don't need Improved Evasion take one less level of Thief Acrobat and move the first level of Warblade to level 10. If you don't need Uncanny Dodge don't take the 2nd level of Warblade and instead go into Duelist a level early. If you don't need either abilities take Warblade at level 10 and enter Duelist at level 11.

If flaws are available, choose two and then grab the feats EWP: Broadblade Shortsword (CAdv, pre-errata version if possible) and Versatile Unarmed Strike (PHBII). If traits are available pick up Cautious (UA).

Items:
Vest of Defense (MIC)
Bracers of Blocking (Dragon 322)
Broadblade Shortsword (CAdv) (pre-errata version if possible) or Rapier with the Defensive Surge (MIC) enhancement.



The Deadly Bastard ... Sword

Still working on this one, but the basic idea is that after picking up EWP in the bastard sword early in life, our man becomesa cleric and then an Ordained Champion of a god with the Spell domain, and thus, Anyspell. He starts channelling spells at Ordained Champion 3. Then it's Spellwarp Sniper to rip Reflex saves off those arcane spells and start hitting people in the face with it. Legacy Champion then advances Spellwarp Sniper, allowing higher levels of spells to be converted to ray spells and the Reflex saves removed. Really this can be done with a focus on any weapon, but the ranks in the variant fighter Kensai are so we can build up the Concentration skill ranks early on. Ronin is in there for its sneak attack, but it also gives us a nice d10 HD.

In progress:

1: Kensai 1 (Fighter variant) BAB 1
+1 to attack and damage
Chosen weapon: Bastard sword proficiency
(Fighter Bonus : Weapon Focus Bastard Sword)

Starting Char feat: Able Learner
2: Kensai 2 (Kensai Fighter Bonus: Something) BAB 2

3: Cleric 1 of Thoth (Knowledge, Spell) (Feat: Point Blank Shot) BAB 2
4: Cleric 2 of Thoth BAB 3
5: Cleric 3 of Thoth BAB 4
6: Ordained Champion 1 BAB 5
7: Ordained Champion 2 BAB 6
8: Ordained Champion 3 BAB 7
9: Ronin 1 BAB 8
10: Spellwarp Sniper 1 BAB 8
11: Spellwarp Sniper 2 BAB 9
12: Spellwarp Sniper 3 BAB 10
13: Spellwarp Sniper 4 BAB 11
14: Spellwarp Sniper 5 BAB 11
15: Legacy Champion 1 BAB 11
16: Legacy Champion 2 BAB 12
17: Legacy Champion 3 BAB 13
18: Legacy Champion 4 BAB 14
19: Legacy Champion 5 BAB 14
20: Legacy Champion 6 BAB 15



Happy to hear further suggestions!

[Saintheart]

Acknowledgments

As always, a thanks to all of you for making this forum great and in anticipation for any comments you might have. I will admit to self-plagiarising some of my other guides, and in particular I've reborrowed some of ShurikVch's finds on spells and weapon qualities for this guide in the area of spells that affect bladed and/or slashing weapons. This post is not complete and will be added to with a proper bibliography as time goes on.

As for specific sources, I especially recommend: (Links incoming)

- X Stat to Y Bonus (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?125732-3-x-X-stat-to-Y-bonus)
- Darrin’s TWF Handbook (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?279079-3-5-The-TWF-OffHandbook)
- Dictum Mortuum’s Fighter Handbook (https://www.dandwiki.com/wiki/Fighters%27_Handbook_By_Dictum_Mortuum_(3.5e_Optim ized_Character_Build))
- Troacctid’s Comprehensive List of Deities (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?571607-Comprehensive-Deity-Database)




...otherwise that's it, take it away folks!

[Saintheart]

...and as my first update, how 'bout I put that section on races, prestige classes, monsters, and classes that I completely forgot to put in as my Internet exploded beneath me for a few hours?

[Remuko]

Baatorian Green Steel (FC 2): +1 to damage, explicitly stacks with magical enhancement bonuses.

I thought this was wrong and looked it up and unless theres been some errata I dont know of this is exactly the opposite of true. It explicitly does not stack. I'd double check any other stuff in your guide you said stacks to make sure it actually does if I were you.

[Saintheart]

Whoops; fixed; thanks!

[Thurbane]

Nice guide as always! :smallsmile::smallsmile:

Crescent Moon (style feat) [CW]
Hammers Edge (style feat) [CW]

...the following PrCs all require Weapon Focus or EWP (katana or bastard sword) to enter:

Akodo Champion [OA]
Knight of the Iron Glacier [Fr]
Raumathari Battlemage [UE]

Tengu [OA] get EWP Katana automatically - Crow Headed is 2RHD and LA +3, Human headed is 5RHD and LA +5; so not ideal for PCs.

[Saintheart]

Added and much appreciated as always!

[Thurbane]

Just thought of another way to get EWP for free (as well as Master of Masks): psionic Vestige "The Triad (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20070119a)" gives proficiency in all martial and exotic weapons when bound. If you're going down the melee Binder path, not too bad.

As a 6th level vestige, you won't be getting it until late in your build though. Even with Improved Binding, earliest would be ECL 10. :smallsigh:

Warblade [ToB] may also be worth a mention: Weapon Aptitude means that if you invest feats in specific weapons, you can swap them around to other weapons with 1 hour practice in the morning.

[Saintheart]

Warblade [ToB] may also be worth a mention: Weapon Aptitude means that if you invest feats in specific weapons, you can swap them around to other weapons with 1 hour practice in the morning.

Added both, but this one is very interesting by RAW - mainly because it might well get around the War domain problem, by the narrowest of RAW.

War domain grants you, expressly, two feats: Martial Weapon Proficiency feat in the deity's favored weapon, and Weapon Focus in that weapon.

Weapon Aptitude allows you to change the weapon that feat applies to. Therefore, if your DM agrees War domain grants you Martial Weapon Proficiency (bastard sword but only when two-handed), Weapon Aptitude allows you to shift the weapon the subject of the feat to bastard sword (one-handed). Weapon Aptitude doesn't require you to be proficient with the weapon, only that you've got it in your hot little hand for one hour. There's your exotic weapon proficiency in bastard sword, and Weapon Focus follows along with it the same way.

[Thurbane]

Sorry to filter through info in dribs and drabs, but another god you may be interested in:

Mayaheine (http://www.wizards.com/rpga/downloads/LG_Deities.zip) LG (God, Law, Nobility, Protection, War)

Also, some sources (see link above) cite Kord as having Bastard Sword as a secondary favored weapon.

You could definitely use Warblade in conjunction with the Revered Ancestor domain to swap out Exotic Weapon Proficiency and Weapon Focus (Valenar double scimitar) for Bastard Sword. :smallsmile:

Do classes like Bard or Rogue actually grant a feat in EWP (whip and hand crossbow, respectively)? Could you use Warblade to swap them out for Bastard Sword?

[DeTess]

Weapon Aptitude allows you to change the weapon that feat applies to. Therefore, if your DM agrees War domain grants you Martial Weapon Proficiency (bastard sword but only when two-handed), Weapon Aptitude allows you to shift the weapon the subject of the feat to bastard sword (one-handed). Weapon Aptitude doesn't require you to be proficient with the weapon, only that you've got it in your hot little hand for one hour. There's your exotic weapon proficiency in bastard sword, and Weapon Focus follows along with it the same way.

I don't think that'll work, as the weapon proficiency required to use a bastard sword one-handed is a different feat (namely, exotic weapon proficiency) from martial weapon proficiency.

[Saintheart]

I don't think that'll work, as the weapon proficiency required to use a bastard sword one-handed is a different feat (namely, exotic weapon proficiency) from martial weapon proficiency.

RAI I completely agree. RAW it might well be different. Per Weapon Aptitude itself...


...You also have the flexibility to adjust your weapon training. Each morning, you can spend 1 hour in weapon practice to change the designated weapon for any feat you have that applies only to a single weapon (such as Weapon Focus). You must have the newly designated weapon available during your practice session to make this change. For example, if you wish to change the designated weapon for your Weapon Focus feat from greatsword to longsword, you must have a longsword available to practice with during your practice session. You can adjust any number of your feats in this way, and you don?t have to adjust them all in the same way.

Crucial bits:

(1) Change the designated weapon
(2) For any feat you have
(3) That applies only to a single weapon.



(1) Designated weapon is bastard sword
(2) Feat is Martial Weapon Proficiency, assuming your DM rules you basically get a "Bastard Sword, but only while two-handed" Martial Proficiency Feat under War domain
(3) Martial Weapon Proficiency applies only to one weapon.

What is Martial Weapon Proficiency's description and benefit?

Choose a type of martial weapon, such as longbow (see Table 7-4: Weapons, pages 98-99, for a list of martial weapons). You understand how to use that type of martial weapon in combat. Use this feat to expand the list of weapons you are proficient with beyond the basic list in the class description.

You make attack rolls with the weapon normally.

The loophole lies in the fact the writers didn't know how to use the word 'type'. I grant you the feat description implies the feat applies to a category of weapons, i.e. more than one, i.e.e. Weapon Aptitude can't apply to it, but the feat benefit says explicitly that you make attack rolls with "the weapon", not "the type of weapon". That's what makes it a valid target for Weapon Aptitude, or at least that's my argument: because Weapon Aptitude allows you to change the designated weapon for a feat that applies only to one weapon, and Martial Weapon Proficiency's benefit applies only to one weapon, not to one type of weapon. It is the same operating cheese that allows Lightning Maces abuse.

Exotic Weapon Proficiency has precisely the same wording as Martial Weapon Proficiency, down to using the word 'type' again. The only difference between it and Martial Weapon Proficiency is literally the substitution of the word 'exotic' for 'martial' ... and it's pretty clear Exotic Weapon Proficiency only applies to one weapon, not several.


EDIT: Indeed, Weapon Focus itself - the feat that Weapon Aptitude uses as an example of a feat it can work on - uses the same terminology. Choose one type of weapon, such as greataxe. You can also choose unarmed strike or grapple (or ray, if you are a spellcaster) as your weapon for purposes of this feat. You are especially good at using this weapon. Benefit? You gain a +1 bonus on all attack rolls you make using the selected weapon. If Weapon Aptitude applies to Weapon Focus, it must -- must -- apply just as validly to Martial Weapon Proficiency, because a feat's benefit and description are what matters, not its title.


EDIT THE SECOND: Indeed we could force the issue for Cleric 1/Warblade 1. Cleric 1 takes the War domain. Clerics don't get proficiency with martial weapons. Cleric chooses Graz'zt. Domain power kicks in: Martial Weapon Proficiency (if necessary) granted for free.
"Wait," says the DM, "You can't get a bastard sword proficiency free through that."
"I sure can," says the player. "A bastard sword 'can be used as a martial weapon when wielded two-handed'. I choose to use it only two-handed. War domain requires that I get a Martial Weapon Proficiency in bastard sword, two-handed. It's either that or you admit I don't get EWP via War domain and give it to me for free or let me rebuild my character."
DM bites his lip and grants the feat described: Martial Weapon Proficiency (Bastard Sword, two-handed only).
Cleric takes first level in Warblade. Weapon Aptitude kicks in. Martial Weapon Proficiency's designated weapon can be changed to the bastard sword, one-handed.

[Saintheart]

Sorry to filter through info in dribs and drabs, but another god you may be interested in:

Mayaheine (http://www.wizards.com/rpga/downloads/LG_Deities.zip) LG (God, Law, Nobility, Protection, War)

Also, some sources (see link above) cite Kord as having Bastard Sword as a secondary favored weapon.

Appreciated! Unfortunately, given the notes that preface that Living Greyhawk document, it's stated explicitly that Kord's bastard sword is an 'other preferred weapon' - i.e. as distinct from a favored weapon, i.e.e. it doesn't count as the deity's favored weapon for the purposes of feats, etc.

However, and also germane to this discussion, check this out for when they describe what "any martial sword" means:


Any martial sword (m) indicates a short sword, longsword, greatsword, falchion, scimitar, and rapier. It also indicates any other weapon that is both defined as a sword and as a martial weapon; thus a bastard sword wielded two-handed meets this definition.


You could definitely use Warblade in conjunction with the Revered Ancestor domain to swap out Exotic Weapon Proficiency and Weapon Focus (Valenar double scimitar) for Bastard Sword. :smallsmile:

Agreed and updated!


Do classes like Bard or Rogue actually grant a feat in EWP (whip and hand crossbow, respectively)? Could you use Warblade to swap them out for Bastard Sword?

Unfortunately the answer seems to be 'no' to both. Whips and hand crossbows are named as weapons those classes are specifically proficient with; each class gets a set of weapon proficiencies at the outset that don't require feats as such. Per p. 24 of the PHB:


Weapon and Armor Proficiency: This section details which weapons and armor types the character is proficient with ... Characters can become proficient with other weapon or armor types by acquiring the appropriate Armor Proficiency (light, medium, heavy), Shield Proficiency, and Weapon Proficiency (exotic, martial, or simple) feats.

Thus: if it's on your class's starting list of proficiencies, it's not granted by a feat, and Weapon Aptitude cannot apply to it because there's no feat to work on. The War domain and/or Revered Ancestor tricks work because they specifically grant feats ... and in particular, feats that apply to only one weapon, with Weapon Aptitude making no distinction between simple, martial, or exotic weapons. Simply put, the writers were assuming that Weapon Aptitude would be used on feats like Weapon Focus, which only apply to one weapon. But by the RAW, it works on Martial Weapon Proficiency as well. Because Martial Weapon Proficiency only applies to one weapon, and as the kindly folk at WOTC have told us, to wield a bastard sword two-handed is to wield a martial weapon.

[EndlessKng]

Really appreciate this thread a bunch. And glad I am not the only one who saw the potential in Bloodstorm Blade and throwing the katana around (I was actually conceiving of a Scout/BSB build for the latest E6 Iron Chef competition but couldn't get it to feel right).

[ShurikVch]

Riverine (Stormwrack) - riverine weapons cost the same as +1 weapons, but hits Incorporeal creatures with no miss chance, and even able to cut creatures who are on Ethereal PlaneSorry for confusing the matters, but Riverine material isn't hard analogue to +1 in pricing department: any (non-armor) item made of Riverine costs 2000 gp/lbs.; since Medium-sized dagger weighs 1 lb., it costs +2000 gp - the same price as for +1 weapon enhancement; Bastard Sword, on the other hand, weighs 6 lbs. - thus, Medium-sized Riverine Bastard Sword is +12000 gp (+9500 for Breakaway Riverine Bastard Sword)

EDIT: Originally, I missed the cost of Feycraft weapon template - it wouldn't cheapen the resulted weapon, so I removed mentions of it.

[Saintheart]

Really appreciate this thread a bunch. And glad I am not the only one who saw the potential in Bloodstorm Blade and throwing the katana around (I was actually conceiving of a Scout/BSB build for the latest E6 Iron Chef competition but couldn't get it to feel right).

Want a build?

Try here: http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?134276-3-5-Iaijutsu-Katana-Chucker

[Saintheart]

Sorry for confusing the matters, but Riverine material isn't hard analogue to +1 in pricing department: any (non-armor) item made of Riverine costs 2000 gp/lbs.; since Medium-sized dagger weighs 1 lb., it costs +2000 gp - the same price as for +1 weapon enhancement; Bastard Sword, on the other hand, weighs 6 lbs. - thus, Medium-sized Riverine Bastard Sword is +12000 gp (+10800 in case of Feycraft Riverine Bastard Sword, +9500 for Breakaway Riverine Bastard Sword, and +8600 for Feycraft Breakaway Riverine Bastard Sword)

Noted, updated, and appreciated! :smallsmile:

[Nihilarian]

And here’s the other problem: if you can’t find some way to get proficiency for that exotic weapon, the War domain’s grant of Weapon Focus is just as dead. Unlike, say, a Ranger’s Combat Style, the War domain power does not treat you as having Weapon Focus regardless of whether you meet the feat’s prerequisites. And the prerequisites for Weapon Focus? BAB +1 and proficiency with the weapon in question.by this ruling 1st level clerics can't get Weapon Focus from the war domain no matter what the weapon in question is

[Saintheart]

by this ruling 1st level clerics can't get Weapon Focus from the war domain no matter what the weapon in question is

If you're referring to the BAB requirement: yep, that's what I'm saying. There are plenty of occasions across 3.5 where the specific notation is made that a person is considered to have a given feat despite not having the prerequisites for it - for example, the ranger's Combat Style where he's considered to have TWF even if he doesn't meet the prerequisites for it. It isn't so in this case, and the general practice with feats is that if you're granted them but don't satisfy the prerequisites, you can't access them until you satisfy those prerequisites again. They are still being given a free feat, they just can't access it until they hit level two. Or until their BAB hits +1. You are welcome to find a competing ruling from WOTC in respect of War domain specifically that says otherwise; if that official ruling exists in WOTC, I'll happily amend the guide to reflect the same. It might not be RAI, but it is RAW as far as I can tell.

Leaving aside the BAB requirement, they can still get Weapon Focus from the War domain if their god's favored weapon happens to be a simple weapon - i.e. something they are already proficient with from a source other than the War domain. So the quarterstaff, dagger, etc, will still yield up Weapon Focus in those weapons in those cases. Also leaving aside the BAB requirement, if their god has a favored martial weapon, the War domain grants them proficiency in that martial weapon specifically, which then satisfies that prerequisite for the domain's Weapon Focus.

[Thurbane]

Warrior of Darkness PrC (BoVD) may be of interest: their Black Magic Elixir/Violent Knowledge class feature can grant a bonus feat, including Exotic Weapon Proficiency (basically, from a shortened list of Fighter bonus feats). It also gets the Darkling Weapon ability which can temporarily upgrade a weapon with +1 bonus, or a +1 equivalent weapon quality.

Should we go digging for other sources of means to get EWP as a bonus feat (Fighter, Eldritch Knight, Thayan Knight, Vengeance Knight, Martial Wizard, Battle Trickster etc.)?

[Saintheart]

It'd be handy and I'd add it; I could make it into its own specific section since the EWP is the one 'drawback' or feat tax one has to suffer in order to pick up a bastard sword, so more materials on how to get it for free would (I think) be of benefit.

[Ramza00]

I am away from books right now but Expedition to Castle Ravenloft had a Weapon of Legacy called the Sunsword.

For 3000 GP and not activating the WOL ritual you get a +1 Bastard Sword but there was special text where you could treat it as a short sword for Weapon Profiencies. If I recall this was good if you did not have EWP but also for TWF as an off hand.

[Thurbane]

Speaking of TWF - Oversized Two Weapon Fighting: if you're really into bastard swords or katanas, why not one in each hand?

[Saintheart]

Thanks, guys, both of those are already in there, but I'll expand the Sunsword entry. :)

[ShurikVch]

Specific Bastard Swords Of Interest

Blade of Black Ice (Epic Level Handbook) +5 keen icy burst bastard sword, said to have been forged by Iuz, and was gifted by Mordenkainen to Robilar

Blade of Valgyr (Heroes of Horror) tainted artifact; +4 keen, unholy, wounding bastard sword; intelligent weapon (Ego 20, Chaotic Evil); able co cast Detect Magic at will, and Darkness 3/day; demands to kill a Lawful Good creature every day, and if refused - bestow negative levels

Dornavver (Champions of Valor) also known as Demonbane; +3 (evil) outsider bane bastard sword; glows within 60' of a Demon; the bearer of the blade is immune to demonic charms, gets +3 on saves against demonic spells, spell-like, and supernatural abilities, and gets Improved Initiative as a bonus feat; any demon struck by the blade must make a DC 20 Will save or be blocked from summoning others of its kind for the next hour

Lifequencher (Complete Psionic) +1 sundering bastard sword; stygian weapon 3/day as a swift action; gives benefits of Improved Sunder feat

Midnight Blade (Book of Vile Darkness) [minor artifact] +5 bastard sword, which gets at night unholy, fleshgrinding, and marrowcrushing special abilities; required daily draw of blood from a creature of at least Medium size, or will turn into –4 cursed bastard sword (to recover its abilities, need to slay with it a Medium-or-larger creature at night)

Souldrinker (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/epic/magicItems/weapons.htm#souldrinker)

Stormblade (Arms and Equipment Guide) +1 shocking burst bastard sword; grants Combat Reflexes feat; Jump (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/jump.htm) for 20 minutes, 1/day; Lightning Bolt (1/day, CL 8)

The Bleeding Infanta (Magic Item Compendium) - mention only: this bastard sword was used by Drelzna (daughter of Witch of the Yatils), and fitted with a blood-filled Witchlight Reservoir

[Gauntlet]

I feel like it would be useful to highlight the choices that are particularly strong/weak? I'm not saying you should do a full colour code with seven different power levels, but picking out the options that are definite traps and the ones that are strong enough to actually be a central part of a build might help to break things up a bit.

[Ramza00]

Specific Bastard Swords Of Interest
Sun Blade (DMG): Short sword and bastard sword in one package. Also see Expedition to Castle Ravenloft for Lesser Sun Blades.




Thanks, guys, both of those are already in there, but I'll expand the Sunsword entry. :)

The Expedition to Castle Ravenloft item (page 218) is called a Sunsword not a Sun Blade. But cool I never noticed the DMG similar item before. I am at my books now and I see something I did not mention earlier, the 3,000 GP version that is a +1 bastard sword and does not require a ritual of Weapon of Legacy (it is just a magic item anyone can use), only good characters can wield it like a short sword and get the benefits of bastard sword. Neutral and Evil creatures do not get this benefit. That and it has an "omen" where it glows brighter like Sting when it is near an Undead. [Aka a hook trying to convince you to do the Weapon of Legacy Ritual.]

But yeah thank you OP Saintheart.

[ShurikVch]

One more thing: Eldenser, "The Worm Who Hides in Blades" (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/wn/20030618a); and Steelsteal psionic power from that article can work for both swords and daggers...

[Voidstar01]

Exotic Weapon Master (PrC) (CWar): Also known as WOTC’s partial apology to those who want to wield slightly funky weapons. 3 levels long, full BAB, and you pick up three of a selection of tricks which make up for some of the bastard sword’s drawbacks. Notable in this space, Trip Attack, which lets you trip with the bastard sword; Flurry of Strikes which basically gives you a Monk 1’s flurry of blows applied to your weapon wielded in two hands; and lastly, the standout: Uncanny Blow, which grants x2 STR bonus on weapon damage rolls, and if you’re using Power Attack, allows you to also double your bonus damage for your attack penalty too; combine with Power Lunge and that’s arguably a triple bonus. The rest of the tricks are suited to ranged attacks, sundering, disarming, or other assorted stuff we don’t really need.

Pretty sure flurry of strikes specifies "double weapon or spiked chain".

Also warblade 19/Fighter 1 is able get you weapon mastery (and the hilarious ability to master a new weapon every day)

I love this handbook bastardsword is my all-time favorite weapon.

[Saintheart]

Pretty sure flurry of strikes specifies "double weapon or spiked chain".

Also warblade 19/Fighter 1 is able get you weapon mastery (and the hilarious ability to master a new weapon every day)

I love this handbook bastardsword is my all-time favorite weapon.

Noted and updated. Getting to the other stuff. :)