The Blademaster

    The Blademaster is an expert in using swords, they focus so intently upon these blades that they exclude the use of any other weapon. As a result, a Blademaster has no equal when it comes to the deadly art of swordplay.
    Not only are they devoted to the use of the blade but their devotion goes even further.  The Blademaster is a follower of Mahacto, the God of Law.  They will worship no other god and through Mahacto gain even more advantages in personal combat.  Without this devotion the Blademaster loses his focus and with it many of his abilities with a blade.

Ability Requirements:

Strength 12, Constitution 13, Dexterity 14, Wisdom 12

Dexterity and Wisdom
(if they are 16+ he gets a 10% bonus on experience)

Human

A Blademaster must worship Mahacto and thus can only be Lawful Good, Lawful Neutral, or Lawful Evil.

Blademasters use the same experience point table as Paladins and Rangers.

The Blademaster is a subclass of Warrior. Their hit die is a d8, and their THAC0 progresses as per a warrior's THAC0. Furthermore, Blademasters use the saving throw table for warriors. They can also roll for exceptional strength, and they gain the hit bonuses of warriors for a high constitution.

Blademasters are limited to the use of a single melee weapon, chosen at their creation. This weapon is always a type of sword. Blademasters refuse to wear armor claiming that most armors are too heavy and bulky to allow them the freedom of movement needed to fight effectively. Instead, because of their rigorous training, all Blademasters rely upon a combination of their natural reflexes and their skill with their weapon to ward off any blows that might cause damage. Consult the following table to determine the Blademaster's armor class when wielding his weapon of choice. Please note, that without his blade, a Blademaster has an AC that corresponds only to his natural Dexterity modifications. Only when using his blade does he gain the additional bonuses to AC.
 

Dexterity	AC
14	9
15	8
16	7
17	6
18	5

A Blademaster gains Non-Weapon proficiencies as a Warrior.

Blademasters do not gain weapon proficiencies as a normal warrior would, instead they begin the game with one weapon proficiency devoted to their weapon (Or in the case of a Blademaster who specializes in two weapon combat style, weapons). As they gain weapon proficiencies at the same rate as fighters, those weapon proficiencies are once again dedicated to their chosen weapon. Because of this single-minded focus, a Blademaster gains different skills of their choice when a new weapon proficiency slot is added to their weapon of choice. When a new weapon proficiency is available, a Blademaster can choose one of the three abilities listed below for the appropriate level. Once chosen, the ability can never be altered, nor can another ability ever be chosen for that level. At the next available weapon proficiency slot, a Blademaster goes to the next listing of abilities to choose from, they can never choose an ability below their current level.

 

Level	Choice of Ability
3rd	Forceful Edge - A Blademaster masters the art of striking with deadly force, inflicting an additional +1 damage with every successful attack with his weapon of choice.  Mental Focus - A Blademaster hones his mind to such a precise state that magics that target the Blademaster and would impair his mind or body are easier to resist. Using this ability, the Blademaster is granted a second saving throw versus those magics. It is important to note that magics that effect an area will still function even if the Blademaster resists the spell.  Perfect Strike - Once per day, a Blademaster can do maximum damage to an opponent upon a successful hit. In order to use this ability, the Blademaster must announce his intent prior to rolling to hit. If he is successful in his hit, then he inflicts maximum damage with all modifiers included. If he is unsuccessful, this ability is wasted until the following day.
6th	Accelerate Healing - Once per day, a Blademaster can exert an almost perfect control over his body's natural healing rate. Using this ability, the Blademaster can force his body to heal itself quickly and efficiently, equivalent to a Cure Light Wounds spell. However, the use of this power leaves the Blademaster ravenously hungry and he must eat within the next few hours or suffer a -1 penalty upon all attacks until he eats.  Lightning Strike - At times, a Blademaster can exert an uncanny ability to predict the actions of his opponent(s). In doing so, a Blademaster automatically wins the initiative over his opponent(s) for that round and may attack first. Usable once per day per level of the Blademaster.  Precision Strike - Often, a Blademaster is called upon to perform a test of skill for entertainment as well as for victory in battle. To this end, some Blademasters have developed a skill for channeling their abilities into a single perfect strike, capable of achieving perfect accuracy. Using this ability a Blademaster can attempt a called shot without penalty once per day for every three levels he has attained.
9th	Absolute Focus - A Blademaster is unaffected by changes in terrain, lighting conditions, wounds, etc. If combat is possible in the midst of a hurricane, a Blademaster with this ability could still fight without hindrance. But should conditions be so severe as to make combat impossible, a Blademaster is affected as would be any other person. His focus is such that he can continue fighting even if brought below 0 HP. When the fight is over, a Blademaster whose HP is less than -10 will die immediately. However, if his HP is -1 to -9, he will fall unconscious and will be unable to be revived until he has had absolute rest for a week Battle Senses - With experience, all warriors learn to pick up upon tiny cues within a battle that tell them more about their opponents and more about how the battle itself is progressing. When using this skill, a Blademaster can only be surprised 10% of the time. The Blademaster is instinctively aware of what is going on all around him at any moment during a battle, thus eliminating the ability of thieves and others to sneak up behind the Blademaster. Additionally, invisible creatures can be detected with a 5% chance of detection per Intelligence characteristic point of the Blademaster.  Powerful Blow - A Blademaster's dedication to his weapon is absolute, he knows instinctively every movement, every graceful arc of his blade and can use that knowledge with deadly force to overwhelm a foe with powerful strikes. Blademaster's possessing this ability add +2 damage to all attacks with their weapon of choice.
12th	Motion Shift - Through the demands of a rigorous training routine, a Blademaster comes to know every aspect of his body's motion intimately. Over time, this knowledge begins to show in the fighting of a Blademaster enabling them to take a subtle motion and use it to confuse or deceive their opponent. Those who have truly mastered this art can cause their forms to shift or blur to their opponents perception, giving them a +2 bonus to AC. This ability whilst spectacular to use is very draining upon a Blademaster and can only be used for a short time (1d8+2 rounds max.) and even then only once per day.  Unhindered Movement - A Blademaster with this ability is unaffected by any spell or ability that would cause a change in his ability to move and attack in combat. Blademaster's with this ability act as if the clerical spell, Free Action, had been cast upon them.  Whirlwind Attack - By drawing upon his years of training and intense concentration, a Blademaster can launch himself into a frenzied whirlwind of motion. During this outburst, a Blademaster gains one of two possible abilities. The first is that the Blademaster gains all the benefits of a Haste spell for 1d4 rounds. A second option is that the Blademaster can attack all opponents within the reach of his blade once that round, rolling to hit each opponent separately. The Whirlwind attack can only be used once per week by the Blademaster.

A Blademaster starts with a very limited amount of starting money: (2d4+1)*10 gp. However, all Blademasters begin with their weapon of choice, free of charge.

The Blademasters can use magical items only allowed to warriors and general items.

 

Level	Skill Advancement
1st	-1 Initiative
2nd	+1 To Hit
3rd	-1 AC Bonus
4th	-2 Initiative
5th	+2 To Hit
6th	-2 AC Bonus
7th	-3 Initiative
8th	+3 To Hit
9th	-3 AC Bonus

Note: Similar bonuses are not cumulative, rather if a more powerful version is listed that version takes precedence over the previous version. Hence, a 4th Level Blademaster has a -2 Initiative, not a -3 Initiative. In addition to the -2 Initiative, he would also have a +1 To Hit, and a -1 AC bonus when using his chosen weapon.

Style Description and Effects:

Single Weapon Style: This specialization relies on the speed and agility of the Blademaster to make up for the lack of shield. The Blademaster is extremely skilled at dodging blows and gains a +1 bonus to his AC.

Two Handed Style: The Blademaster is an expert in using large swords with a large degree of skill and precision. His finesse with the weapon allows him to wield large two-handed weapons quicker than normal (lowers weapon speed by 3). Also if using a one handed weapon that can be used two handed (typically medium sized weapons) the character gets a +1 damage bonus.

Two Weapon Style: The Blademaster uses two weapons simultaneously. The second blade must be one size smaller then the other, except in the case of small weapons. In combat the character has two choices with what to do with his second weapon, first he can choose to act defensively, parrying incoming strikes (usable only against armed opponents). Secondly they can use the off handed weapon to make one extra attack (made at -2 to hit unless the character is ambidextrous).

A Blademaster always chooses a single weapon with which to become intimately familiar. As time goes on, the Blademaster will become an expert in the usage of this weapon and vastly exceed the skill of normal warriors who might use that same weapon. To this end, a Blademaster has the same number of attacks per round with his weapon as a specialized warrior would. However, the Blademaster does not gain the To Hit and Damage bonuses that are normally accompanied by specialization. At no time can the Blademaster ever gain weapon specialization in the same manner as a fighter.  This specialization attack advantage only applies to the main weapon proficiency of the Blademaster and not any secondary weapon proficiency used in the two weapon fighting style.

When the Blademaster completes his training he is given a weapon of special manufacture. The weapon is made of a special alloy which can only be made by a high priest of Mahacto and is always inlaid with precious metals and small gems. The weapon is worth at least 200gp and can be worth as mush as 1,000gp. This weapon will be the Blademaster's most prized possession that he owns, and as such he will never part with it.

While the Blademaster's weapon has some magical properties, it is not magical in the normal sense. It does not radiate magic and its special abilities will not function in the hands of anyone but the owner. As the Blademaster increases in level, so to does the abilities of his sword. To increase his sword's abilities, he must find a place sacred to Mahacto and spend at least one week praying and consecrating his sword. At the end of the week, he rolls 1d100 and if it is equal to or lower then the combined total of (base chance + intelligence + wisdom + Blademasters level*2) then the sword will be blessed by Mahacto and increase in power. The failure of this roll will result in the failure of the Blademaster to gain the favor of Mahacto and the sword will remain unchanged from its prior powers. For each extra week the Blademaster spends praying, he gains an additional 10% chance of success. A Blademaster can attempt to consecrate his sword only once per level.

Religion:

Blademasters are servants of Mahacto, the Lord of Blades. He is the God of Law, of Discipline, through his teachings a Blademaster can achieve levels of perfection beyond the normal human limits. The training routine of a Blademaster is actually a form of communion with Mahacto, whereupon Blademasters strive to achieve utter mastery over themselves and their blade. Such is their devotion, that sacrifices must be made and kept to achieve the level to which they have arisen. A Blademaster has to pray to Mahacto at least once a day or he will be cursed for the next 2 weeks (more than one curse can be accumulated). When a Blademaster is cursed he will lose all his abilities for the duration of the curse until he can properly atone for his failures. In addition, to this requirement, a Blademaster lives by all the restrictions of Mahacto (as detailed under Mahacto's listing amongst the Thardferrian Pantheon.) Failure to meet these restrictions carries the same punishment as per a Blademaster failing in his obligation to pray.

Blademasters are not allowed any perks that would provide additional advantages to their ability to fight. Examples include the Critical Hit Bonus, Fast Perk, Specific Race Attack Bonus, Specific Weapon Bonus and Weapons Master. Additionally, their reverse forms or flaws also cannot be taken.

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This page last updated on 02/14/01