Swordsage Discipline Focus

[Saintjebus]

Can someone explain Discipline Focus to me, please? If I choose Stone Dragon at 1st level, obviously I get Weapon Focus for Stone Dragon Weapons. If I then chose Setting Sun at 4th level, would I get weapon focus for both Stone Dragon and Setting Sun disciplines? Would I get the Wisdom bonus to both Stone Dragon and Setting Sun Maneuvers?


Sorry for the barrage of questions, but I am not understanding how the ability progresses.

Thanks in advance!

[Eldariel]

Can someone explain Discipline Focus to me, please? If I choose Stone Dragon at 1st level, obviously I get Weapon Focus for Stone Dragon Weapons. If I then chose Setting Sun at 4th level, would I get weapon focus for both Stone Dragon and Setting Sun disciplines? Would I get the Wisdom bonus to both Stone Dragon and Setting Sun Maneuvers?


Sorry for the barrage of questions, but I am not understanding how the ability progresses.

Thanks in advance!

You get what it says for each level. Level 1 is Weapon Focus. Level 4 is Insightful Strikes. Etc.

[Saintjebus]

So in my example, I get Weapon Focus for Stone Dragon weapons, but only get the Insightful strike bonus for Setting Sun Maneuvers?

[DragoonWraith]

You can't do that, at least, not at 4th. You may only choose two schools, the first at 1st and the second at... uh... 12th, is it? Anyway, you get Weapon Focus, Insightful Strikes and... that other feature... for the first school, then you choose a second school to also get Insightful Strikes and that third feature.

I am completely and utterly wrong. Don't know where I got that idea.

[Yuki Akuma]

You can't do that, at least, not at 4th. You may only choose two schools, the first at 1st and the second at... uh... 12th, is it? Anyway, you get Weapon Focus, Insightful Strikes and... that other feature... for the first school, then you choose a second school to also get Insightful Strikes and that third feature.

No, you choose a new discipline each time you get Discipline Focus. It doesn't care what you chose at earlier levels.

Exact wording:

Discipline Focus (Ex): As a swordsage, you can focus your training to take advantage of each discipline's fighting style. Each time you gain the discipline focus ability, select one of the six swordsage disciplines to which that focus applies. You can select a different discipline each time you gain discipline focus, but you must know at least one martial maneuver from the selected discipline. Even if you select a different discipline at higher levels, your discipline choice for earlier abilities does not change.

I'm not, honestly, quite sure how much more explicit you can get.

[hamishspence]

You can choose a new discipline- or you can choose the same one every time.

There is a "must have at least one manuever from that discipline" rule though.

So you can't take "Discipline Focus: Setting Sun Weapons" without at least one Setting Sun manuever.

Choosing a new one doesn't change previous choices though.

[Saintjebus]

Thank you all very much. I think I have it figured out now.

[DragoonWraith]

Wow, I'm sorry. I have been mistaken on this for a long time, then.

[Yuki Akuma]

Wow, I'm sorry. I have been mistaken on this for a long time, then.

*pats* We all make mistakes.

This is why I always pull out the relevant book and double check before I answer questions now.

[DragoonWraith]

Heh, I can't actually do that right now, cuz I have it in electronic format and I'm still in the process of recovering my harddrive (well, actually, that's not entirely true; I'm in the process of reinstalling Windows having finished recovery).

[Saintjebus]

Since you all were so quick to help with that explanation, perhaps you can help me with another ToB question. How does the Tiger Claw manuever "Sudden Leap" work? The text says that you jump a distance determined by a Jump check, but how does one interpret the jump check? Do you just jump the number of feet that you rolled( that is, 1d20 + jump mod)?

[Private-Prinny]

Since you all were so quick to help with that explanation, perhaps you can help me with another ToB question. How does the Tiger Claw manuever "Sudden Leap" work? The text says that you jump a distance determined by a Jump check, but how does one interpret the jump check? Do you just jump the number of feet that you rolled( that is, 1d20 + jump mod)?

Pretty much. The DC for jump checks is 5/5 ft, so you would just round down to the nearest multiple of 5. Granted, you would need something that makes you count as having a running start for jumps.

[Greenish]

Do you just jump the number of feet that you rolled( that is, 1d20 + jump mod)?

Yeah, rounded to the nearest interval of 5.

[Master_Rahl22]

The distance you move is determined by the DCs given in the Jump skill in the PHB. Treat it as a standing horizontal jump. Its main use is to move more than 5ft and still use a full round action, such as a full attack.

[Saintjebus]

Ok, cool. Next question: How do Improved Natural Attack, Superior Unarmed Strike, the Monk's belt, and Unarmed swordsage interact with each other? In other words, I am a 10th level unarmed swordsage. I have both improved natural attack and Superior unarmed strike. I am wearing a monk's belt. In this case, Do I look at the line for Monk 10, raise it by four from the superior unarmed strike, and raise it by another five levels from the monk's belt, and then increase the die size from Improved Natural attack?

[Akal Saris]

Yup, that's exactly what you do. So your damage would go from 1d10 to 2d6 to 2d8 to 3d8. Add on Enlarge Person and it would jump to 4d8 from the size increase, etc.

Next level (monk 20 damage at swordsage 11) would probably go from 2d10 to 4d8, then Enlarge Person would make it 6d8. After swordsage 11, your base damage won't increase any further, so at swordsage 16 you can swap out the monk's belt for a different item.

[Saintjebus]

I was hoping that that's what would happen. Thank you.

Also, what book is Necklace of Natural Attacks in?

[Eldariel]

I was hoping that that's what would happen. Thank you.

Also, what book is Necklace of Natural Attacks in?

Savage Species, but it's on one WoTC online article too. And honestly, it should've been in Core instead of Amulet of Mighty Fists; that PoS is one of the (many) big issues unarmed combatants have.