Revision as of 12:20, 30 March 2015

Einhander

Ehrgeiz, iconic einhander

"My sword is all I need."

There are three approaches to martial combat: focus on weapons; focus on armor; or focus on speed. The einhander is the pinnacle of the first discipline, choosing to devote himself to the way of the weapon.

Game Rule Information

Einhanders have the following game statistics.

Force Alignment: None.

Force Resistances: None.

Abilities: Strength is the most important ability for an einhander, improving his ability to hit and deal damage to opponents.

Hit Die: d8.

Class Skills: The einhander's class skills are Brawn (Str), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Initiative (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Martial Lore (Int), Ride (Dex), Spot (Per), Swim (Str), and Vitality (Con).

Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.

Alignment: Any.

Starting Age: Simple.

Starting Gold: 6d4 x 10gp.

Favored By: None.

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the einhander.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: An einhander is proficient with all simple and martial melee weapons, simple ranged weapons, and light armor. He is not proficient with shields.

Weapon Focus: At first level, the einhander gains the Weapon Focus feat.

Combat Style: At second level, the einhander comes into his own as a member of the arts martial. This has two benefits.

• Choose any ability score. For any weapon for which you have the Weapon Focus feat, you may use that ability score's ability modifier in place of your Strength modifier for attack and damage rolls.
• Choose any three skills. These skills are now class skills.

Comprehend Weapon: At third level, the einhander is familiar with the construction and usage of nearly any weapon in existence - or can quickly ascertain the proper method to use an alien one. An einhander who spends at least ten minutes examining a melee weapon with which he is not proficient gains the Exotic Weapon Proficiency feat for that weapon.

Weapon Specialization: At fourth level, the einhander gains the Weapon Specialization feat.

Parry: At sixth level, the einhander's ability with weapons now allows him to block attacks with his weapon. When you are attacked by a melee attack, you may opt to parry the attack. If you do, make an attack roll, using any of the base attack bonuses granted by your BAB; if you overcome the attack's attack roll, you parry the attack. This is an immediate action, which you can take as many times as you have attacks. If you do, on your next turn, you cannot use a standard action to make an attack, and if you make a full attack action, you cannot use the base attack bonus you used to parry.

Weapon Versatility: At eighth level, the einhander's understanding of weapons extends beyond most mortal ken. You now utilize the weapon group variant rules, rather than standard weapon proficiency rules. Any Weapon Focus, Weapon Specialization, or similar feats you have taken now apply to that weapon's weapon group, rather than just that weapon.

Einhander Talent: At 10th level, every two levels thereafter, the einhander's understanding of the way of the blade improves even more. Choose one of the abilities below.

• Chunk of Metal (Ex): You can use the comprehend weapon ability to gain proficiency with improvised weapons. Doing so requires only a minute (rather than ten), but each improvised weapon requires its own feat.
  • Barroom Fighter (Ex): You now treat all improvised weapons as belonging to the Improvised weapon group, granting you automatic proficiency with all improvised weapons, and allowing you to take Weapon Focus and its related feats for them. (Prerequisite: Chunk of Metal)
• Combat Focus (Ex): You gain the Weapon Focus feat for all weapon groups with which you are proficient. This ability overrides (does not stack with) prior Weapon Focus feats.
  • Combat Specialization (Ex): You gain the Weapon Specialization feat for all weapon groups with which you are proficient. This ability overrides (does not stack with) prior Weapon Specialization feats.
• Combo (Ex): Each time you successfully attack a creature, your next attack against that creature gets a +1 circumstance bonus to your attack roll; this effect stacks. If you miss, change targets, or do not attack that creature for a round, the bonus is lost.
  • Improved Combo (Ex): Each time you successfully damage a creature, your next attack against that creature gets a +1 circumstance bonus to your damage roll; this effect stacks. If you fail to deal damage, change targets, or do not attack that creature for a round, the bonus is lost. (Prerequisite: Combo)
• Extension of Self (Ex): You focus solely on wielding a single weapon to deadly efficiency, improving your fluidity and allowing you more attacks than might otherwise be possible. Your BAB improves, as per the improved iterative attacks technique. This ability only functions while you are wielding one weapon.
• Greater Weapon Focus: You gain the Greater Weapon Focus feat. You can take this ability multiple times; each time you do, it applies to a different weapon group.
  • Greater Weapon Specialization: You gain the Greater Weapon Specialization feat. You can take this ability multiple times; each time you do, it applies to a different weapon group. (Prerequisite: Greater Weapon Focus)
• Heavy Metal (Ex): You ignore the attack roll penalty for using a weapon one size category larger than you. (Prerequisite: Monkey Grip)
• Identify Weapon (Ex): You have further studied the art of weaponsmithing, to the point of knowing how the various forces craft weapons imbued with their abilities. When using the comprehend weapon ability, you also learn information about the weapon as per the identify spell.
  • Weapon Lore (Ex): Your knowledge and comprehension of weapons is encyclopedic, allowing you to glean seemingly-impossible knowledge about the history of a weapon just by a simple glance. When using the comprehend weapon ability, you also learn information about the weapon as per the object loresight meme, with effective memory equal to one-quarter your einhander level. (Prerequisite: Identify Weapon)
• Perfect Versatility (Ex): When using a melee weapon with which you are proficient, you can choose to reduce the weapon's damage by one step to reduce it's handedness by one step, or increase it's handedness by one step to increase it's damage by one step. Making this adjustment is a swift action. You cannot use this ability to reduce a weapon's handedness to less than light, or to more than two-handed.
• Tactical Advantage (Ex): Whenever you receive a circumstantial bonus to your attack rolls - such as from flanking, terrain, or your positioning - increase the bonus to your attack rolls by +1.
  • Superior Tactics (Ex): Whenever you receive a circumstantial bonus to attack rolls that is modified by tactical advantage, you gain a circumstance bonus to damage rolls equal to one-half the base benefit provided. (Prerequisite: Tactical Advantage)
• Twin Style (Ex): When wielding two identical weapons (ie, two longswords) or a double-ended weapon, you reduce the attack roll penalties for wielding two weapons by 2. (Prerequisite: Two-Weapon Fighting)
• Unique Form (Ex): You may have two stances active at a time.
• Feat: An einhander may take a bonus feat in place of an einhander talent.

Maneuvers

This section explains how the maneuver system for einhanders works.

Martial Abilities

Martial abilities fall into two separate categories: stances and maneuvers (boosts, counters, and strikes). A martial maneuver is a subtle extraordinary or supernatural effect that is temporarily expended after use. A stance is never expended and is always available.

Stances and maneuvers are usable as many times as you like in a day. However, each time you use a maneuver, you temporarily expend it: you exhaust some small portion of your energy, you've finished the move and are now out of position and can't immediately resume the necessary posture, or your mental focus must be regained. This means you cannot use an expended maneuver again until you have rested for a brief time or perform a particular action in combat that will allow you to recover one or more expended maneuvers. The type of action required depends on which type of martial disciple you are; see your class for it's maneuver recovery mechanism. Because of this, you can usually employ each of your readied maneuvers once per encounter, unless they are recovered so you may use them again. Stances are never expended or used up and are always available to you, but they do take up readied slots.

Readying Maneuvers

Maneuvers require preparation in the form of prayer, meditation, exercise, or any other similar rehearsal. Accordingly, you must choose your selection of readied maneuvers from all the ones you know. Only those you have readied are available for immediate use.

The number of maneuvers you can ready at once is dependent on your level.

A brief period of practice, meditation, exercise, or prayer is required to ready maneuvers. The particular nature of this preparation depends on your initiator class, but each one requires 10 minutes of preparation time. You do not need to be well rested to ready maneuvers; however, it is necessary for you to be able to stand move without restriction or restraint. Each martial maneuver requires a precise combination of techniques, repetitive training of muscle memory or honing the edge of the mind to focus in on a specific concept or goal; because of this, most martial disciples are unable to keep every maneuver they know at the front of their mind. As long as you are not physically disturbed during your 10 minutes of preparation, you can change out previously chosen maneuvers for new ones. You may not ready an individual maneuver more than once when readying your maneuvers.

Recovering Maneuvers

At the beginning of each encounter, you have all of your readied maneuvers available and unexpended. When you initiate a maneuver, it is expended; it cannot be used again until it is recovered. Expended maneuvers can be recovered in two ways: through special actions or at the end of an encounter. Stances are never expended, but again, still take up a readied maneuver slot.

Normal Attack: You can choose to make a single attack as a standard action. If you do, and if you successfully hit, you may recover a single maneuver of your choice.

Focus: You can spend a full-round action focusing, mentally rehearsing your moves and studying the flow of combat. If you do, you may recover a number of maneuvers equal to the modifier for the ability score you chose for your Combat Style ability (above).

End of Encounter: You automatically recover all expended maneuvers when an encounter ends. Even a few moments out of combat is sufficient to refresh all maneuvers expended in the previous battle. In the case of a long, drawn-out series of fights, or if an initiator is out of combat entirely, assume that if a character makes no attacks of any kind, initiates no new maneuvers, and is not targeted by any enemy attacks for 1 full minute, he can recover all expended maneuvers. If a character can't avoid being attacked for 1 minute, he can't automatically recover his maneuvers and must use special actions to do so instead.

Maneuver Types

Most martial abilities fall into one of four categories: boosts, counters, stances, or strikes. Very few maneuvers don't fall into any of these categories, and they are exceptions to the rule.

Boost

This category covers maneuvers that allow a warrior to bring himself into focus, summon his ki energy or other source of power, and unleash it through melee attacks, or other attacks. A character who shouts an invocation to his cause or god and then unleashes a mighty attack is using a boost.

A boost is a maneuver that grants a bonus, most commonly to attack or damage rolls, for the duration of your turn. A boost always requires a swift action, frequently allowing you to initiate it before unleashing a standard action or full-attack. Some boosts apply additional conditions such as fatigue or stunning to your attacks, while others provide some additional effect imposed on an enemy you have just successfully struck in battle. If a boost applies to your attacks, it applies to all those attacks within the round in which it was initiated, but its effect ends at the end of your turn, unless otherwise specified. A boost's effect applies for its duration, no matter which weapon you might wield in that round. Should you switch weapons during your turn, the effect of the boost still applies. Each maneuver's description gives you the details of each boost's effect.

A boost doesn't always modify an attack; it could provide a bonus on a skill check, to your character's speed, or draw the attention of an attacking opponent.

Counter

A counter is a fast, usually defensive maneuver that is used to prevent or respond to your opponent's actions. A martial disciple who dodges just beyond an ogre's reach is using a counter.

Counters use a "reaction" action, which is an action you take in response to another action. Unlike other action types, you can take as many reaction actions as you have available each round.

Stance

A stance is a type of fighting method that you maintain from round to round. So long as you stay in a stance, you gain some benefit from it. A martial disciple who performs a kata and assumes a specific posture as he prepares to fight is using a stance.

A stance is initiated as a swift action. When you enter a stance, you immediately gain its benefit. You continue to gain the benefit of a typical stance as long as you remain in it. Some stances give you a benefit only when you meet certain conditions. A stance might grant a bonus when you move, or stand still, or if you attack a flat-footed opponent. You cannot enter a stance you are already in.

You can use a single swift action to end one stance and begin another, or you can choose to simply end your current stance without entering another. You continue to gain a stance's benefits until you switch to a new stance or end your current one. At the start of your turn, you might be in a stance that grants you a bonus on attack rolls. You could make your attacks gaining the stance's bonus then use a swift action to switch to a stance that gives you a bonus to AC.

Your stance ends if you are rendered helpless for any reason. If you later recover, a swift action must be used to initiate your stance once again. Stances are considered maneuvers for the purpose of fulfilling prerequisites for learning higher-level maneuvers or qualifying for prestige classes or feats.

Strike

A strike is a maneuver that allows a special attack. A martial disciple who slays a wyvern in a single blow is using a strike. A strike imparts some bonus or advantage over a standard attack, such as extra damage, or an additional effect such as blinding a foe.

Strikes almost always require a standard or full- round action. Most involve a melee or ranged attack as part of completing the maneuver. If the attack hits, your opponent takes normal melee or ranged damage, as well as suffering the effect of the strike. When making a strike, you use your base attack bonus, all attack and damage modifiers, weapon damage, and so forth, as normal. You can make a critical hit with a strike, but you do not multiply extra damage from a strike when calculating the critical hit damage. It is treated just as extra damage from another special ability would be (like deadly strike damage or damage from a flaming weapon).

Because strikes require a specific form of attack, you cannot benefit from spells or effects that grant extra attacks when making a strike (such as the haste spell or a speed weapon). You are not taking a full attack action when you initiate a strike whose initiation action is 1 full round, unless otherwise specified in the description. Also, you cannot combine special attacks such as disarm or sunder with strikes, unless stated otherwise in the maneuver's description.

Maneuver List

The following is the einhander maneuver list.

Feats

The following are a selection of feats that are relevant to einhanders.