Samurai quick fix

[quiet1mi]

hey guys... i thought as a quick fix to the samurai class was to take the thug class (from Unearthed arcana) and change the bonus skills around to fit a samurai (such as instead of bluff they get diplomacy and instead of sleight of hand they get sense motive)... any ideas on my fix...

[Tsotha-lanti]

Here's an even quicker fix:

Use Fighters, Paladins, Knights, or Marshals with bastard swords (no EWP necessary, since the katana is a two-handed weapon, just like European longswords were).

You were on the right track, though. Fluff can be separated from the mechanics and transported to just about anything. The more generic the mechanics (Fighter), the easier it is.

If you want to represent later-era (17th century) samurai (who would, I suppose, have a broader skill-base, being nobles and bureaucrats rather than mounted archers), there's also the aristocrat class.

[quiet1mi]

just looked through my 3.0 oriental adventure book and noticed something.... the samurai class is just that... a variant thug with a better will save and slightly less feats

[Talya]

The best Samurai "Quick Fix":
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x...dacc/882440000

[Talya]

just looked through my 3.0 oriental adventure book and noticed something.... the samurai class is just that... a variant thug with a better will save and slightly less feats

Yeah. Samurai in OA gets:

High Will/Fort saves.
4+int skills per level
"Ancestral Daisho." Fully customizable, self-upgrading weaponry. Nice in any campaign, godlike in lower-magic ones.
Seven Bonus Feats over 20 levels. (2,4,7,10,13,16,19)

[AmberVael]

The quickest and simplest fix is to simply play a fighter instead.
Really, they're versatile. You can do practically anything combat related with all those feats. Just be a Samurai.

[Talya]

The quickest and simplest fix is to simply play a fighter instead.
Really, they're versatile. You can do practically anything combat related with all those feats. Just be a Samurai.

Yeah, but why would you want to?

Just play the OA Samurai. You still have more bonus feats than you know what to do with (and if you're not using the Rokugan samurai clans, you can pretty much use any fighter or samurai bonus feat), and you get better other abilities. Plus precious skill points!

Not to mention the class is frontloaded. Once you get past level 4, you could multiclass out to something else rather efficiently. Ancestral Daisho ability is based on character level, not class level, so multiclassing doesn't hurt them at all.

[BadJuJu]

Or give them Diamond Mind, Iron Heart, and White Raven manuvers from the ToB. These are the schools that make the most sense. If thats to much, let them choose 2 of these schools.

[Talya]

Or give them Diamond Mind, Iron Heart, and White Raven manuvers from the ToB. These are the schools that make the most sense. If thats to much, let them choose 2 of these schools.

Yeah, a two level dip in OA Samurai to start off a character, followed by 18 levels of Warblade, would be an excellent Samurai. ;)

[Rutee]

Vael and Talya both have good fixs, honestly. I'm predisposed to ToB, so I'd take Talya's, but both of you have good, though different, solutions to the question.

[Person_Man]

Yeah. Samurai in OA gets:

High Will/Fort saves.
4+int skills per level
"Ancestral Daisho." Fully customizable, self-upgrading weaponry. Nice in any campaign, godlike in lower-magic ones.
Seven Bonus Feats over 20 levels. (2,4,7,10,13,16,19)

They also get Iajutso Focus as a class Skill, which can add a ton of damage against any Flat Footed enemy.

My personal favorite "fix" for the Samurai is to play any other class and just call yourself a samurai.

[Quorothorn]

They also get Iajutso Focus as a class Skill, which can add a ton of damage against any Flat Footed enemy.

My personal favorite "fix" for the Samurai is to play any other class and just call yourself a samurai.

For example.

[Gorbash]

hey guys... i thought as a quick fix to the samurai class was to take the thug class (from Unearthed arcana) and change the bonus skills around to fit a samurai (such as instead of bluff they get diplomacy and instead of sleight of hand they get sense motive)... any ideas on my fix...

Sepukku - full round action, instant kill (self only). That should provide them with an awesome excuse to play another character (preferably, not a Samurai).

[Talya]

Sepukku - full round action, instant kill (self only). That should provide them with an awesome excuse to play another character (preferably, not a Samurai).

Harsh.

Funny, but harsh.

[TheThan]

Sepukku - full round action, instant kill (self only). That should provide them with an awesome excuse to play another character (preferably, not a Samurai).

That so belongs to the CW samurai.

[Collin152]

Sepukku - full round action, instant kill (self only). That should provide them with an awesome excuse to play another character (preferably, not a Samurai).

Instant kill?
No! Dragged out, painful kill!
Salt your blade in advance!

[Gorbash]

Blade? What blade?

It's supposed to be done with a rusted spoon.

[Collin152]

Blade? What blade?

It's supposed to be done with a rusted sppon.

Hey, why else would they give you free swords?

[Gorbash]

To sell them to get the rusty spoon. Duh.

[Collin152]

To sell them to get the rusty spoon. Duh.

I thought that's why they took ranks in Craft (rusty suicide tools).

[AmberVael]

Vael and Talya both have good fixs, honestly. I'm predisposed to ToB, so I'd take Talya's, but both of you have good, though different, solutions to the question.

I don't recommend ToB simply because I know there are too many people opposed to it. I figured fighter its the more common solution. However, using ToB wouldn't be so bad either.
Hmmm... come to think of it...
One of my friends made a base class that essentially ran off of fear effects and charges. It would make a good samurai substitute. I'd have to find it though.

[drengnikrafe]

I thought that's why they took ranks in Craft (rusty suicide tools).

Yeah, but that takes time, and somehow makes them even more useless. And we've already been down the road where they're useless.

[Collin152]

Yeah, but that takes time, and somehow makes them even more useless. And we've already been down the road where they're useless.

If it helps them die, is it really useless?

[drengnikrafe]

If it helps them die, is it really useless?

I concede.

[Draz74]

Yeah, a two level dip in OA Samurai to start off a character, followed by 18 levels of Warblade, would be an excellent Samurai. ;)

Assuming you don't want to use the TWF style that CW Samurai railroads you into ... let's see what we can pull off. These are not optimized choices; they are Samurai-flavor choices. (Samurai aren't slow, but maneuvers that make them stronger seem more in-character than maneuvers that make them super-fast or mobile.)

Human Samurai [OA] 2 / Warblade 18

Level 1:
Feature: Ancestral Daisho
Feats: Able Learner (to keep up Iaijutsu Focus your whole career), Power Attack

Level 2:
Feat: Quick Draw

Level 3:
Features: Weapon Aptitude, Battle Clarity
Feat: EWP (mainly because you can change it to any exotic weapon you want)
Maneuvers: Sapphire Nightmare Blade, Moment of Perfect Mind, Steel Wind
Stance: Leading the Charge

Level 4:
Feature: Uncanny Dodge
Maneuver: Wall of Blades

Level 5:
Feature: Battle Ardor
Maneuver: Disarming Strike

Level 6:
Feat: Martial Study (foehammer)
Maneuver: Iron Heart Surge instead of Steel Wind
Stance: Pearl of Black Doubt

Level 7:
Bonus Feat: Unnerving Calm
Maneuver: White Raven Tactics

Level 8:
Feature: Improved Uncanny Dodge
Maneuver: White Raven Strike instead of Sapphire Nightmare Blade

Level 9:
Feat: dunno, my brain's out of juice
Feature: Battle Cunning
Maneuver: Ruby Nightmare Blade

Level 10:
Maneuver: Dazing Strike instead of Disarming Strike

Level 11:
Bonus Feat: Improved Initiative
Maneuver: Disrupting Blow

Level 12:
Feat: Martial Stance (thicket of blades)
Maneuver: Manticore Parry instead of Wall of Blades
Stance: Press Advantage

Level 13:
Feature: Battle Skill
Maneuver: Moment of Alacrity

Level 14:
Maneuvers: Clarion Call instead of Disrupting Blow

Level 15:
Feats: Perfect Clarity of Mind and Body, White Raven Defense
Maneuver: Finishing Move

Level 16:
Maneuver: White Raven Hammer instead of Dazing Strike

Level 17:
Feature: Battle Mastery
Maneuver: Diamond Nightmare Blade

Level 18:
Feat: Clarion Commander
Maneuver: War Master's Charge instead of Ruby Nightmare Blade
Stance: Stance of Alacrity

Level 19:
Bonus Feat: Blade Meditation
Maneuver: Strike of Perfect Clarity

Level 20:
Maneuver: Mountain Tombstone Strike instead of Finishing Move

Final maneuvers list:
Diamond Mind: Moment of Perfect Mind, Moment of Alacrity, Diamond Nightmare Blade
Iron Heart: Iron Heart Surge, Manticore Parry, Strike of Perfect Clarity
White Raven: White Raven Tactics, White Raven Strike, Clarion Call, White Raven Hammer, War Master's Charge
Devoted Spirit: Foehammer
Stone Dragon: Mountain Tombstone Strike

Final stances list:
Leading the Charge, Press Advantage, Pearl of Black Doubt, Stance of Alacrity, Thicket of Blades

And don't forget the scaling Iaijutsu damage and free magic weapons throughout. How's that sound for a Samurai?

[FinalJustice]

Ancestral Daisho scales with non samurai levels? o.O'