PDA

View Full Version : Iaijutsu Master (Semi-updated) [PEACH]



ZeroNumerous
2007-11-05, 04:00 PM
Iaijutsu Master

Iaijutsu is the art of drawing a weapon and attacking in a single fluid motion. Many martial artists practice a form of dueling using iaijutsu, but only a select few truly grasp the power behind iaijutsu. These Iaijutsu Masters are respected and feared by any individual who knows what style they use. Iaijutsu Masters use their personal energy(ki) to strike with blinding speed and devastating power. Many Iaijutsu Masters can kill in a single blow, and almost never need more than their first strike.
Hit Die: 1d8

Requirements
Alignment: Any Lawful
Base Attack Bonus: +5
Skill: Concentration 4 ranks;
Feats: Skill Focus(Concentration); Quick Draw; Improved Initiative

Class Skills
Balance(Dex); Climb(Str); Concentration(Con); Craft(Int); Diplomacy(Cha); Escape Artist(Dex); Jump(Str); Perform(Cha); Profession(Wis); Ride(Dex) Sense Motive(Wis); and Tumble(Dex).
Skill Points: 4+INT modifier

{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special
1st|
+1|
+0|
+1|
+2|Iaijutsu Stance, weapon mastery, ki pool, Iaido(+1d6)
2nd|
+2|
+0|
+1|
+3|Canny defense, Iaido(+2d6)
3rd|
+3|
+1|
+2|
+3|Lightning Blade, Iaido(+3d6)
4th|
+4|
+1|
+2|
+4|Bonus Feat, Iaido(+4d6)
5th|
+5|
+1|
+3|
+4|Strike from the Void, Iaido(+5d6)
6th|
+6|
+2|
+3|
+5|Singing Dragon Sword, Iaido(+6d6)
7th|
+7|
+2|
+3|
+5|Iaido Recovery, Iaido(+7d6)
8th|
+8|
+2|
+4|
+6|One Strike, Two Cuts, Iaido(+8d6)
9th|
+9|
+3|
+4|
+6|Bonus Feat, Iaido(+9d6)
10th|
+10|
+3|
+5|
+7|Strike With No Thought, Iaido(+10d6)
[/table]

Class Features

Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: An Iaijutsu Master gains no new proficiencies.

Weapon Mastery: At first level, an Iaijutsu Master may choose a single weapon that she has proficiency with. The weapon must be a slashing weapon appropriately sized for her, cannot have reach, and must have a hard wooden sheath. An Iaijutsu Master may replace her Dexterity modifier for her Strength modifier when determining damage and attack bonuses with her chosen weapon.

Ki Pool: At first level, an Iaijutsu Master can focus her ki to enhance her speed and power. An Iaijutsu Master has a ki pool of her class level plus charisma modifier. As long as an Iaijutsu Master has one point of ki left in her pool, she gains a +2 bonus to Initiative checks.

An Iaijutsu Master's Ki powers are: Lightning Blade; Strike from the Void; Singing Dragon Sword; One Strike, Two Cuts; and Strike With No Thought.

Iaijutsu Stance: At first level an Iaijutsu Master gains the ability to assume her iaijutsu stance. By sheathing her weapon inside it's hard case, the Iaijutsu Master prepares herself to perform an iaido. Assuming the Iaijutsu Stance is a move-equivalent action which provokes attacks of opportunity. While inside her Iaijutsu Stance, an Iaijutsu Master may perform an Iaido. An Iaijutsu Stance is very hard to maintain, and the stance is lost in 3+CHA modifier rounds because focus naturally shifts away from the sheathed sword.

Iaido: At first level, an Iaijutsu Master within her Iaijutsu Stance may perform an Iaido attack. By taking a five foot step prior to attacking, an Iaijustu Master adds 1d6 damage to an attack with her mastered weapon. An Iaido strike gains an additional d6 in damage every level.

If an Iaijutsu Master misses with one of her Iaido attacks, she suffers a penalty to AC equal to her class level.

Canny Defense: At second level, an Iaijutsu Master may apply his Intelligence modifier to AC when unarmored and unencumbered. This bonus applies as well as her dexterity bonus.

Lightning Blade: By expending one Ki point, an Iaijutsu Master of third level may apply her charisma modifier to initiative as well as her dexterity modifier.

Bonus Feat: At fourth level and every fifth level thereafter, an Iaijutsu Master gains a bonus feat. This bonus feat must be selected from the Fighter Bonus Feat list.

Strike from the Void: At fifth level, an Iaijutsu Master may add her Charisma modifier to each extra damage die gained from an Iaido strike. This maneuver costs three Ki points. Whenever an Iaijutsu Master misses with a Strike from the Void, roll d%. On 1-51, an Iaijutsu Master strikes herself. On 52-95, an Iaijutsu Master suffers the normal penalty. On 96-100, an Iaijutsu Master suffers no penalty. If an Iaijutsu Master strikes herself, she only takes weapon damage, any magical enhancements on her weapon, and her dexterity modifier.

Singing Dragon Sword: At sixth level, an Iaijutsu Master may choose to imbue her sword with her ki. For each point of Ki spent in this manner, an Iaijutsu Master adds two points of damage to her Iaido strikes. The extra damage lasts for 3+CHA rounds, but does not expire if an Iaijutsu Master is not in her Iaijutsu Stance. Her sword counts as adamantine and magic for the purpose of bypassing DR when imbued with ki.

Iaido Recovery: At seventh level, an Iaijutsu Master may attempt a Concentration Check when she misses with an Iaido strike. If the Iaijutsu Master succeeds, then she suffers no penalty. The DC for this concentration check is equal to your opponent's AC+the difference between your strike and that AC.

For example: Bayushi Kuro, an Iaijutsu Master, attempts an Iaido against a Shield Guardian. He rolls a 2, but has a BAB of +17 and a DEX of 16. His +22 is just two short of the Shield Guardian's 24 AC. If he attempts an Iaido Recovery, then his Concentration check DC would be 26(24+2).

One Strike, Two Cuts: At eighth level and above, an Iaijutsu Master may make two attacks with her mastered weapon as a standard action. This means that she may strike twice and then move, or charge and then cut twice. This ability costs a single ki point to use.

Strike With No Thought: If an Iaijutsu Master of tenth level begins combat adjacent to an opponent, then she may act in the surprise round even if her opponents are fully aware of her location and existence. The only action an Iaijutsu Master may take during this surprise round is an attack with her mastered weapon. Any attack made during a surprise round gained through this ability gains an attack bonus equal to an Iaijutsu Master's class level. This ability costs two Ki points to use.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

As I do not have the updated Iaijutsu Master from Oriental Adventures, I felt like making my own. This one is abit more balanced with the addition of ToB.

Xuincherguixe
2007-11-05, 11:10 PM
Neat. Though from what I understand why Iaijutsu works is because of the shape of the Katana. It gains extra speed when withdrawn a certain. I don't think it could work for straight blades?

But, I'm not an expert.

elliott20
2007-11-06, 09:35 AM
making a point system mechanics for this seems... well... unless you're going to use this system to cross with other systems, it's kind of an island on it's own. (At this point, you might as well just pick up the OA book, and call the ki points "void points", which is their equivalent of it.)

I'm still not quite sure why you insist on adding a fumble rule in here. that whole thing about cutting your foot just seems... well... silly. If it was that dangerous, people won't do it. If people are going to do it, then they obviously are confident and know what they're doing. On top of that, it also costs them 3 points to use. All in all, it's just an extremely risky technique that quite frankly people are not going to use if you write it like that.

elliott20
2007-11-06, 09:39 AM
also, normal class progressions have good save vs. poor saves, not 3 different levels.

Closet_Skeleton
2007-11-06, 11:54 AM
Neat. Though from what I understand why Iaijutsu works is because of the shape of the Katana. It gains extra speed when withdrawn a certain. I don't think it could work for straight blades?

But, I'm not an expert.

Iaijutsu is just drawing a sword and attacking with it in the same motion. It doesn't have additional speed or power or anything, it just takes the opponent by surprise. Hitting an opponent who isn't defending himself is fatal in a real battle where a single major injury will put you out of action. The extra damage dice is just to make Iaijutsu useful in a hit point based system where getting a single attack in early (unlike getting a single spell in early can do) has no major advantage at high levels.

It's harder to do with straight blades because the sword doesn't slide out of its sheath as easily but it can be done, just not as effectively. You also need to have your scabbard worn in a certain way. Earlier, pre-katana Japanese swords called Tachi tended to be worn edge upwards, hanging from cords. They also tended to be longer than Katana later were. This made them harder to draw and meant that if you drew the blade quickly, the edge would be pointing towards you. The katana was designed to be shorter to make it easier to draw quickly.

ZeroNumerous
2007-11-06, 08:48 PM
making a point system mechanics for this seems... well... unless you're going to use this system to cross with other systems, it's kind of an island on it's own. (At this point, you might as well just pick up the OA book, and call the ki points "void points", which is their equivalent of it.)

Oh, look at that. OA isn't 3.5. That was the point of updating Iaijutsu Master to 3.5.

As for it's own point system. They're ripped entirely from Ninja.


I'm still not quite sure why you insist on adding a fumble rule in here. that whole thing about cutting your foot just seems... well... silly.

Ever tried to perform iaijutsu? One screw up on the re-sheathe and you're suddenly sheathing the sword inside your own body.

And if you paid attention to Strike from the Void, you'd note something very interesting. +CHA to damage for each extra die of damage from Iaido Strikes. Even if it costs 3 points, and even if there is the chance that screwing up will cause you to fail.. Well, lets do a quick calculation. Base stats: 18 DEX, 18 CHA, basic katana chosen as mastered weapon.

1d10+10d6+4+40.

And, of course, each +2 to CHA gives a +10 to damage.

elliott20
2007-11-07, 11:17 AM
hey, I'm just saying, personally, I think it would be a bit more streamlined to go with an existing point system is all. Updating this class to 3.5 would not actually require too much except changing up several of the feats to make it fit. Of course, that would be a rather different iaijutsu master from yours since the way iaijutsu works there is different from how you did it. (Which is fine, but I'm just saying...)

anyway, as for the cutting yourself bit...

well... you see, the way I see it is really just numbers. If an attack carries such a huge penalty for missing, It'd be something I would probably not do at all if possible. The AC penalty after a miss is already pretty big. Adding an additional 50+% chance of cutting myself on it, it makes missing the strike EXTREMELY dangerous. Considering that there is no way what so ever to improve your chances, it's like playing russian roulette every time you decide to use the move. Also, what kind of damage do you take if you miss and roll say, a 47%? Do you end up cutting yourself WITH the additional CHA bonus damage or the iaijutsu strike damage or the weapon damage?

What I'm saying here is that this mechanic is essentially creating a gigantic fumble mechanic where fumbling has been pretty much of the houserule variety.

Do not forget, it's easy to cut yourself be it in iaijutsu or just normal sword fighting. And yet, D&D did not put in a mechanic to hurting yourself specifically because well... it's not really conducive to heroic play. It's also just not an option that people are going to use very often.

I'm not sure about your martial arts background or what not, but I'm fairly certain you know more about iaido than I do, I'm not gonna pretend that. However, my criticism stems mostly from a game design usability perspective.

ZeroNumerous
2007-11-07, 01:31 PM
hey, I'm just saying, personally, I think it would be a bit more streamlined to go with an existing point system is all.

I did use an existing point system. Ninja uses ki points as well. Heck, Factotum uses inspiration points, which are essentially the same thing.


Considering that there is no way what so ever to improve your chances, it's like playing russian roulette every time you decide to use the move. Also, what kind of damage do you take if you miss and roll say, a 47%? Do you end up cutting yourself WITH the additional CHA bonus damage or the iaijutsu strike damage or the weapon damage?

You're right, I should note that you only do weapon+dexterity to yourself. The +CHA and iaido strike would only apply when the slash is performed as a technique and wouldn't apply to stabbing yourself in the gut.


Do not forget, it's easy to cut yourself be it in iaijutsu or just normal sword fighting. And yet, D&D did not put in a mechanic to hurting yourself specifically because well... it's not really conducive to heroic play. It's also just not an option that people are going to use very often.

By the same basis, a critical hit that decapitates the BBEG in a single swing before the fight even starts isn't conductive to heroic play.

As for where you're coming from: I understand that. I apologize for my hasty response because I was alittle on edge yesterday.

To the Point of Using Non-Katanas: I let people pick because it makes for a better PrC if I'm not forcing people to choose a single weapon and no other weapon what so ever.

elliott20
2007-11-07, 01:41 PM
well, a crit is a little different because a crit is your character doing it to somebody else, which actually makes them look even larger than life. But like I said, it's mostly a stylistic choice. If you feel that a fumble chance is warranted, and it needs to be that large of one, by all means go ahead. Just keep in mind that it will effect the usability of that power. The return on it is risky enough that people won't be using it recklessly, and that's fine, I think.

ZeroNumerous
2007-11-07, 02:20 PM
The return on it is risky enough that people won't be using it recklessly, and that's fine, I think.

That was one of the problems with the original Iaijutsu Master. You could get your CHA modifier to each damage die gained through Iaijutsu Focus. And, of course, everyone did it because it was essentially free damage.

yosho
2007-11-09, 02:21 PM
I like your class, good work. Now how would you turn this class into one that would use the TOB manevers system? Would taking out the bonus feats and uping the prereqs balence out giveing this class manuvers?

Also I have a question on the iaido strike. It says you have to make a 5' step. does that mean I cant use it after a charge or move. Thanks

elliott20
2007-11-09, 04:07 PM
I like your class, good work. Now how would you turn this class into one that would use the TOB manevers system? Would taking out the bonus feats and uping the prereqs balence out giveing this class manuvers?

Also I have a question on the iaido strike. It says you have to make a 5' step. does that mean I cant use it after a charge or move. Thanks

If he were to do it ToB, he might as well just make a ToB character.

Hannes
2007-11-09, 04:12 PM
Also I have a question on the iaido strike. It says you have to make a 5' step. does that mean I cant use it after a charge or move. Thanks

Well, you see... If you -charge- at someone, he's pretty able to defend himself. If you move, there's still time. However... A five-foot step is short enough to get him fast enough.

ZeroNumerous
2007-11-13, 03:15 AM
I like your class, good work. Now how would you turn this class into one that would use the TOB manevers system? Would taking out the bonus feats and uping the prereqs balence out giveing this class manuvers?

The whole point of it was the Iaido and practicing Iaijutsu. Giving it maneuvers defeats the point of being an uber-specialist.


Also I have a question on the iaido strike. It says you have to make a 5' step. does that mean I cant use it after a charge or move. Thanks

As Hannes said, a five-foot-step is intended to be one of those "He's only stepping towar--OH GOD MY FACE!" moments. Just like Strike With No Thought. (Yes, even if there is no surprise round, Strike With No Thought gives you one).