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Topics - Bozwevial

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1
[PTU] Moémon / Aurelie & Her Mons
« on: March 14, 2014, 11:55:19 PM »
Aurelie

Appearance
(click to show/hide)

Trainer Level 1 (XP 1)

Attributes
Body 0
Mind 2
Spirit 3

Combat Stats
HP 10+5 (15)
Attack 5 (5)
Defense 5 (5)
Special Attack 5 (5)
Special Defense 5 (5)
Speed 5+5 (10)

Derived Stats
AP 5
Hit Points 57
Physical Evasion 1
Special Evasion 1
Speed Evasion 2
Power 3
High Jump 0
Long Jump 1
Overland 4
Swim 2
Throwing 4
Size Medium
Weight: 95 lbs (class 2)

Background
Pokemon Sitter
+: Intuition, Charm, Pokemon Education
-: Athletics, Combat, Intimidate

Skills
Acrobatics 2d6, Athletics 1d6, Combat 1d6, Intimidate 1d6*, Stealth 2d6, Survival 2d6, General Education 2d6+2, Occult Education 2d6+2, Pokemon Education 3d6+2, Medicine Education 2d6+2, Technology Education 2d6+2, Guile 2d6+2*, Perception 2d6+2, Charm 3d6+3*, Command 2d6+3*, Focus 2d6+3, Intuition 3d6+3*
(*add +2 when dealing with Fire-types)

Edges
Grace [Pokemon can eat and benefit from 2 more Poffins, can always use prereq skills in a contest's intro stage]
Basic Cooking [create Candy Bars or Baby Food for 50 'dollars']
Elemental Connection (Fire) [+2 to Charm, Guile, Intuition, Intimidate, and Command against Fire-types]

Features
Mentor [Pokemon learn moves X levels earlier, X the sum of Charm and Pokemon Education]
Chef [create Salty Surprise, Spicy Wrap, Sour Candy, Dry Wafer, Bitter Treat, Sweet Confection]
Coordinator [Spend 1 AP as a free action 1/contest or 1/scene to reroll an Appeal or Damage roll]

Items
Pokedex
Cooking Set (1000)
6 5 Poke Balls (1500)
Sleeping Bag (1000)
2 Potions (400)
(3900/5000 spent)

2
[PTU] Moémon / OOC Thread
« on: March 11, 2014, 06:26:34 PM »

3
[FATE]/golden entelechia / Day Three - Fuyuki Shuffle
« on: August 04, 2013, 03:20:40 AM »
Another late night passes with the peculiar speed of exhaustion. A few hours after Laoise's head hits the couch, sullen grey clouds drift in, and by morning the ground outside is coated with a layer of snow. Everything is quiet, but after the events of last night it's a deceptive calm, and there's one more person in the Hannagáin household than there was the morning before.

While yesterday was draining for everyone, Laoise and Lancer uncovered valuable information about their opposition, captured Assassin's Master, and successfully faked Lancer's death. By those standards, at least, the evening wasn't a waste. But just like the falling snow muffles what little noise there is outside, the consequences of the match at the temple prevent it from being an unqualified victory. Snoring quietly upstairs in Laoise's bed is a young boy with the ability to summon two inhuman killers to his side and a veritable fountain of energy pouring through unrefined Magic Circuits. Eventually, Lancer will have to resurface, and his identity may not remain a secret for long. And finally, Caster has dealt herself in, burning through Lancer's trump card on her first attack. Somehow, Laoise and Lancer will need to find a way to take her down when her Noble Phantasm seems to be on a completely different level than anything they've encountered.

For now, however, the War can rage a little while longer without their participation. Even if it's just a lull to restock, gather information on their opponents, and plan strategy, it's a break that they might be glad to have soon enough. It's still quite early, but there's time enough today to recover. That is, once the newest guest has been attended to...

4
[FATE]/golden entelechia / Day Two - Heels and Wheels
« on: May 31, 2013, 09:15:33 AM »
A storm rolls over Fuyuki City around 3 in the morning, and when morning comes it comes to the beat of splattering raindrops on the window. The cold grey light leaking through the curtains marks the start of the second proper day of the Fifth Holy Grail War, but although only twenty-four hours have passed, plenty has already happened.

Yesterday, Lancer managed to elude Berserker while Laoise fought off an Einzbern magus. Even though the victor of the skirmish was clear, however, Berserker still hasn't been defeated, and five more Servants wait in the wings. Far too many mysteries are floating around unsolved for Laoise's likings. Who poisoned her brother? Where did the blood on her Command Spell come from? If that was Assassin watching her, when will it attack? Who is the mysterious cowboy Servant at the knight's grave? Is Florianus the only Einzbern with a stake in this war?

Despite how much everyone might want to turn over and sleep until the rain goes away, it's time to get up and search for some answers. This war isn't over by a long shot.

5
[FATE]/golden entelechia / Status Menu
« on: May 30, 2013, 11:10:09 AM »
Berserker


Class: Berserker
Master: Florianus von Einzbern
True Name: ???
Noble Phantasm: ???
Keywords: Golden Armor, Flames, Even Temper, Old Leg Injury

Strength: A+ (A++)
Endurance: A+ (A++)
Agility: B (B+)
Mana: B
Luck: A

Skills:

Magic Resistance: B

Cancels spells of three verses or fewer in length. At this rank, even rituals and High Thaumaturgy have difficulty affecting the target.

Mad Enhancement: B --> D

The class skill of the Berserker, increasing the Servant's parameters in exchange for a loss of sanity. As it is incompatible with Berserker's nature and would normally be held in check by his will, the skill is degraded from its normal rank, and this state must be forcibly imposed on him by his Master, which requires a much higher amount of magical energy to maintain than usual.

Battle Continuation: B

A skill governing a Heroic Spirit's ability to continue fighting even as they sustain injury. Only the most severe wounds will hamper Berserker's fighting prowess at all, and anything less than a decisive fatal strike or multiple life-threatening wounds will not bring him down.

Further skills remain hidden.

Noble Phantasm(s):

All Noble Phantasms remain hidden.

6
[FATE]/golden entelechia / City Map and History
« on: May 11, 2013, 07:19:15 PM »
Fuyuki City

Fuyuki looks much the same as it did a long time ago, with its oddly divided houses and the Miongawa river being mostly untouched by the Fourth Holy Grail War. The war's biggest impact can be felt in the central park, which feels unnaturally quiet and still. The improper war ended here, according to the most reliable information the Association has on the matter (which isn't very reliable). Most residents of Fuyuki avoid the park entirely due to the atmosphere.

(click to show/hide)

The Fourth Grail War

Events of the Fourth War are largely speculation, not only because the supervisor died almost immediately after the war began, but also because the war itself was spectacularly lethal. None of the known Masters survived the war, and emphasis is placed on 'known' because of the seven Masters, only three were known to the Association. The other four Masters are believed not to have come from proper magus families.

Regardless of the outcome, it appears none of the participants made use of the Grail. While the War's duration was marked by a number of strange disappearances, deaths, and 'unscheduled demolitions' that could only have arisen through the presence of Servants, nothing served to indicate the end of the War. The built-up prana was not expended through a wish, as made evident by the Fifth War's start ten years later, but for all intents and purposes the Grail appears to have vanished - which, according to most understandings of magecraft, is impossible.

Major Families

The Einzberns retain much of their involvement in the war, as would be expected. They are also immensely secretive about their preparations; however, recent news suggests that there has been something of a feud between various parts of the family who differ in opinions on how to go about winning the Grail and what to do with it.

The Matous have been much reduced in recent years. With their only capable heir, Kariya Matou, killed during the Fourth War, the only surviving member of the family known to have any magical talent is Zouken Matou, who lives in Fuyuki City. Zouken is utterly withdrawn from magi business, and is likely far too old for any active participation in a Holy Grail War, but given that he is over three hundred years old by any reckoning, he must have significant power in his own right as well as reason enough to want the Grail.

The Tohsakas lost one of their finest magi, Tokiomi Tohsaka, during the Fourth War, who left behind his wife and three children. Their most talented magus at this moment is the eldest daughter of the family, Rin Tohsaka, but her father's death appears to have made her unwilling to compete in the War. At present, Rin is studying at Clock Tower, and has made waves among the magical community by advocating that the Grail be completely dismantled, as it only serves to ruin promising magi with little to no benefit.

7
[FATE]/golden entelechia / Day One - Compass Rose
« on: April 28, 2013, 03:45:45 PM »
Will you be the one to drink?

You, who would see your wish realized,

An impossibility of the world,

Found in the hands of one lost twice,

Grasp what you can,

But remember gold is fleeting.

So, child,

Shoulder what you can carry alone.



Music: On the Shore

This is a story from ten years ago.

...No, that's not right. This is a story from yesterday.
But it feels much older than that.
I guess that's the way of tragedy.

A young man is lying on the floor.
Or, to be precise, a body is lying on the floor.
Can you really call something 'a man' if it isn't alive?
What's left isn't anything.
Put simply, it's just meat.

But,
to the girl kneeling nearby, this body is her brother.
He is also a magus.

The Holy Grail war has started, and her brother is the first casualty.
The Grail could be said to have taken him.
Without a Master,
there isn't a chance at winning the war.
But the girl doesn't care about that so much any more.
Well, she does want the Grail.
But what she wants isn't a wish of her own.
She wants what the Grail stole.
...So, she takes the only thing her brother has left.
The Servant who couldn't save him helps.

A Master isn't a Master without the Command Spell.
For the girl to command a Servant, she needs to take her brother's.
The young boy carefully traces out the spell's new home.
...It hurts.
Having a star forced into your body would be a good comparison.
And, just like having something foreign put into you,
her Magic Circuits want to reject the outsider.
But this Command Spell is her brother's.
...So, she forces it to stay.

...It's morning again.
The sun is barely up.
Only a little light comes through the window.
Laoise's alarm hasn't gone off, either.
She must have been sleeping ever since the surgery.
Although there are as many people here as there usually are,
the Hannagáin house still feels empty.
I guess that's the way of tragedy.

8
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / March of Aeons [Epic Martial Discipline]
« on: February 09, 2013, 02:13:41 PM »
March of Aeons



The March of Aeons is said to be the oldest of all martial traditions, yet none can say for sure who its first master was. Some legends speculate that the March is yet to be founded, and that some future hero will scatter her knowledge to the ages so that all of eternity might have its own guardian. Bleak-eyed oracles conjure images of a tyrant whose command of Time will be so immeasurably powerful that his enemies have always and will always struggle against agents of his will. Sages wonder whether there ever will be a true origin to the March, and whether the entire tradition might have sprung from nowhere in some vast cosmic joke. Whatever the truth, all the rumors agree that those epic heroes who embark along the March seem to have their own grand designs in mind, whether conquest or salvation.

The key skill for the March of Aeons discipline is Knowledge (history). Its associated weapons are the flail, the dagger, and the scythe.

Quote from: The Demented One
Epic Martial Disciplines
Epic martial disciplines are the fighting styles of the most powerful warriors and swordsmen in all creation. Powerful secret techniques wielded by gods, archfiends, and epic heroes, they represent the absolute pinnacle of the Sublime Way.

Learning Epic Martial Disciplines
Every epic discipline has an epic feat associated with it, called an initiation feat. Once an epic character has taken the initiation feat of a discipline, he gains the ability to learn the maneuvers of that epic discipline. Unlike normal maneuvers, epic maneuvers must be learned individually–each one has a unique XP cost and training time to learn. Learning even a single epic maneuver is an arduous quest for the mightiest of heroes, as they must seek out a master of the discipline to learn it from. Such beings include deities, demon princes, and things far more strange. Without such a mentor, the training time required to learn an epic maneuver is doubled–and even then, the pinnacle maneuver of an epic discipline can never be learned without a mentor. As with normal martial maneuvers, a martial adept must meet certain prerequisite number of maneuvers known from the same discipline to learn epic maneuvers. Each discipline has a single “pinnacle” maneuver, one that requires all other maneuvers of the discipline to be learned before it can be mastered.

Using Epic Maneuvers
Epic maneuvers are readied and initiated differently than normal maneuvers. Whenever a martial adept readies his maneuvers, he may choose a single epic martial discipline to ready for that day. Doing so readies all epic maneuvers of that discipline that he has learned. They do not count towards his normal maneuvers readied. Each readied epic maneuver can be initiated once per encounter–they cannot be recovered by any means. The martial adept may enter epic stances of his readied discipline as if they were normal martial stances, save that no ability or effect can ever allow him to gain the benefits of any other or second stance at the same time as he gains the benefits of an epic stance. Epic maneuvers do not have a level, but are treated as being of 10th level for all purposes. The saving throw against an epic maneuver has a DC of 20 + the listed ability modifier, although many epic maneuvers list ways in which their DC can be increased. All epic maneuvers are extraordinary abilities, unless otherwise listed.

Knight of Paradox [Epic, Initiation]
You have begun to walk the March of Aeons.
Prerequisites: Knowledge (history) 24 ranks, Martial Lore 24 ranks, must be capable of initiating 9th-level maneuvers of any discipline
Benefits: If a creature you are in an encounter with casts Time Stop, you may choose to be affected by the spell as well, allowing you to act as normal during its duration. Characters with this feat may learn maneuvers from the March of Aeons discipline.

Maneuvers
(click to show/hide)

Many thanks to sirpercival, veekie, Agita, and especially The Demented One.

9
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / Infinite Shore [3.5, Discipline]
« on: September 30, 2012, 03:45:10 PM »
Infinite Shore



And dreams in their development have breath,
And tears, and tortures, and the touch of joy;
They have a weight upon our waking thoughts,
They take a weight from off our waking toils,
They do divide our being.

The fool pays no attention to dreams. The product of an overactive imagination, such fantasies are precisely this, and nothing more. They are inconstant, fleeting, and of no worth to one concerned with what is real. To obsess over dream is to waste away, squandering what precious life one has. But always, always in the back of the mind during a dream, there is the burning, certain notion that this is real, and once this notion is seized, the very nature of the dream can be reshaped into any form imaginable. These sleepers who grasp this crucial skill often wonder if perhaps the waking world could be made more like dream, or if dream could be given form, for then their mastery over thought would become mastery over the world.

In this way was the school of the Infinite Shore founded. Surrounded by shrieking jungle, twelve warriors came together to forge a style of fighting which imposed their will onto reality. Favored by spies and assassins, the school is often dismissed as mere fiction, for its practitioners prize the secrecy their skills afford them. Even beyond that, they enjoy the notion that they are the bearers of a truth about the nature of reality which few have yet come to accept.

There are two ways to master the discipline. The first is to have been trained in it. If you choose to make a martial adept that has already been trained in the Infinite Shore discipline, you simply replace one discipline that adept could normally learn with maneuvers from with the Infinite Shore discipline. He loses the associated skill of the replaced discipline as a class skill, but gains Lucid Dreaming as a class skill.

The other way is to seek out a master of the Infinite Shore discipline–a martial adept capable of using at least 5th-level maneuvers from the discipline–and training under him. You must train for a month under the master, and spend 1,000 xp at the end of your training. You gain the ability to learn maneuvers from the Infinite Shore discipline, and add Lucid Dreaming to your martial adept class’s list of class skills. In addition, you may exchange your maneuvers known for maneuvers of the Infinite Shore discipline. You may exchange one maneuver of each level, and the new maneuvers you learn must be of the same level as the exchanged maneuvers, unlike normal.

While many of the discipline's abilities rely on a connection to dream, most of them do not depend on the target's ability to dream, as even creatures who do not dream such as warforged have minds which are connected, however intangibly, to the realm of dream. Unless otherwise noted, a creature's inability to dream or sleep does not render it immune to the maneuvers of this discipline. In addition, a creature who learns maneuvers from this school gains the ability to sleep and dream if it could not otherwise do so. Maneuvers of the Infinite Shore discipline are supernatural abilities unless otherwise noted in their descriptions. The associated skill for Infinite Shore is Lucid Dreaming, as virtually all of the school's abilities require mastery over dream. Its associated weapons are the scimitar, falchion, unarmed strike, dagger, short sword, and sickle, as well as any weapons created by Infinite Shore maneuvers.

10
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / Homebrew Contest II: Races of the Board
« on: September 24, 2012, 12:04:30 AM »
The second annual Min/Max Boards homebrew contest is officially live, and this time around we're going to create enough fictional races to populate an entire continent! Contestants should reserve their breeding for the designated breeding rooms, down the hall to your left.

The contest begins as of now, and will remain open for entries through midnight of October 24th. Once it closes, voting will be open via public poll for a ten-day period ending at midnight of November 3rd.

Rules and Whatnot
  • Entrants will create both a race and a set of racial substitution levels for that race's favored class. This time around, there's no particular theme you're tied to - feel free to create as diverse a cast of creatures as you can conjure from whimsy. Races with scaling abilities, races as templates, whatever you like.
  • Entries should be either 3.5 or Pathfinder. You can draw on any WotC or Paizo material for your work, but kindly specify which system you're using in your entry. You may also use homebrewed material if you want to write racial substitution levels for a homebrew class, but be sure to link anything you use and provide credit to the author.
  • Complete entries should include your race's racial traits, information about that race's place in the world, society, and any other relevant cultural information you think is necessary, along with the complete racial substitution levels for that race's favorite class. Go nuts with the fluff, write a damn essay if you want! Incomplete entries won't be considered. For ease of formatting, you can use the race template in the dropdown menu to the right of the font color menu.
  • Likewise, if your entry is edited after the deadline, it won't be considered.
  • This thread should be reserved for entry posts only. Discussion and questions should be posted in the discussion thread here.
  • I would take it as a personal kindness if you didn't reserve posts in this thread. Skeleton entries which you edit later are acceptable.
  • All submitted work should, obviously, be your own work. It should also be entirely new. Previously posted entries or entries not written by you will not be considered, because that would just be silly. In addition, only a single entry submitted by a given competitor will be considered.

11
Gaming Advice / Homebrew Contest I: One-Spell Wonder Voting Thread
« on: September 24, 2012, 12:00:38 AM »
This is the voting thread for the first Min/Max Boards homebrew contest. All the entries can be found here. This contest's theme is the One-Spell Wonder, a prestige class that revolves around the use of one spell or closely related set of spells.

Vote for your favorite in the above poll. Voting will remain open for ten days.

12
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / Archetypal Spells (Information-Gathering)
« on: September 14, 2012, 02:23:10 PM »
So this is a little discussion thing I'm putting here. It could also go in the talespinning/general D&D discussion forums, but since I'm using it to collect information for a project, I think it'll be fine.

Anyway, my question to you: What spells from each of the schools of magic would you say belong (or should belong) in a core set of effects? More broadly, what effects should each of those schools be able to produce thematically?

I know, it's a tad vague. Just bear with me on this.

13
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / Gambler [3.5 base]
« on: September 13, 2012, 09:17:56 PM »
Gambler



"Look, I'm willing to concede the possibility that I'm insane so long as you concede that I am both alive and, as of ten seconds ago, fabulously wealthy."

Luck, be a lady tonight.

MAKING A GAMBLER
Luck can't get you as far as skill can. It's a good thing you have both.
Abilities: Charisma, baby. Face is everything for you. Intelligence is also good for various skills, and your other physical stats are useful too.
Races: Humans, halflings, and gnomes tend to be the most commonly encountered gamblers, although rumors exist of one illithid who made a killing in Sigil's casinos.
Alignment: Any.
Starting Gold: 5d4x10 (125 gp)
Starting Age: As rogue.

Class Skills
The Gambler's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Appraise (Int), Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Disguise (Cha), Disable Device (Int), Escape Artist (Dex), Forgery (Int), Gather Information (Cha), Hide (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (local, nobility and royalty) (Int), Listen (Wis), Martial Lore (Int), Move Silently (Dex), Open Lock (Dex), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), Spot (Wis), and Tumble (Dex).
Skill Points at 1st Level: (6+Int) x 4
Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 6 + Int

Table: The GamblerHD: d8


Level
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
Base
Attack
Bonus
+0
+1
+2
+3
+3
+4
+5
+6/+1
+6/+1
+7/+2
+8/+3
+9/+4
+9/+4
+10/+5
+11/+6/+1
+12/+7/+2
+12/+7/+2
+13/+8/+3
+14/+9/+4
+15/+10/+5

Fort
Save
+0
+0
+1
+1
+1
+2
+2
+2
+3
+3
+3
+4
+4
+4
+5
+5
+5
+6
+6
+6

Reflex
Save
+2
+3
+3
+4
+4
+5
+5
+6
+6
+7
+7
+8
+8
+9
+9
+10
+10
+11
+11
+12

Will
Save
+0
+0
+1
+1
+1
+2
+2
+2
+3
+3
+3
+4
+4
+4
+5
+5
+5
+6
+6
+6


Special
Layout 3x3, High Roller, Beginner's Luck
Uncanny Dodge
Playing the Rush
Evasion, Layout 3x4
Lucky Hunch
Doubling Down
Improved Uncanny Dodge
Savvy Scoundrel, Layout 4x4
Jack of Hearts
Skill Mastery
Improved Evasion
All or Nothing, Layout 4x5
Ace of Hearts
Letting It Ride
Daredevil Intuition
Jackpot, Layout 4x6
Endless Roulette
Losing Is For Suckers
Never Tell Me The Odds
Cashing Out

Maneuvers
Known
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
24
24
25
25

Stances
Known
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
4
4
4
4
4


Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: Gamblers are proficient with all simple weapons and all martial melee weapons, including thrown weapons. They are proficient with light armor, but not with shields.

Maneuvers: A gambler begins her career with knowledge of nine martial maneuvers, chosen from the Coin’s Edge, Oncoming Storm, Dancing Fox, and God Slash disciplines. The types of maneuvers she may learn are subject to the restrictions of her Layout, detailed below. A maneuver initiated by a gambler is considered an extraordinary ability unless otherwise stated in its description. A gambler’s maneuvers are not subject to spell resistance, and she does not provoke attacks of opportunity when she uses them.

A gambler learns additional maneuvers at higher levels, as shown on the table. At 4th level, and each even-numbered class level after that (6th, 8th, 10th, etcetera), she may also choose to learn a new maneuver in place of one she already knows. In effect, she loses the old maneuver in exchange for the new one. She can choose a new maneuver of any level she likes, as long as she observes the restriction on the highest-level maneuvers she can learn; she need not replace the old maneuver with a maneuver of the same level. She may not exchange a maneuver if doing so would prevent her from meeting her Layout restrictions (detailed below).

Layout: A gambler need not recover her maneuvers like other martial adepts. They are instead granted to her through circumstance, inspiration, and most of all, luck. At 1st level, the gambler’s Layout looks like this:

123
StrikesStrike AStrike BStrike C
BoostsBoost ABoost BBoost C
CountersCounter ACounter BCounter C

Each row contains maneuvers of a particular type (strikes, boosts, or counters). When she readies her maneuvers, she assigns them to slots in the Layout. She may not place a maneuver in an incompatible row. She also may not place the same maneuver in the Layout twice; each entry must be a separate maneuver. However, subject to these restrictions, she may arrange the maneuvers she knows through the Layout in any fashion she desires, and may change the placement of her maneuvers with five minutes of meditation, card shuffling, die rolling, or some other engrossing activity. If for some reason the gambler is unable to fill her Layout completely (such as by entering a prestige class which provides maneuvers known at a slower rate, or deliberately selecting more maneuvers of a given type than will fit in her Layout), she may leave Layout slots empty.

For the purposes of filling the Layout, maneuvers which have no type or have a type which does not fall under the standard three (strikes, boosts, and counters) may be placed in any slot.

At the start of each encounter, she randomly determines which column of her Layout is available to her. Each of the maneuvers in that column is granted to her either until she initiates and expends it or until the end of her turn. At the end of her turn, she again randomly determines which column’s maneuvers are granted to her.

At 4th, 12th, and 16th level, she gains an additional column in her Layout, increasing its size to 3x4, 4x5, and 4x6, respectively.

At 8th level, she gains an additional Layout row, increasing the size of each column to four maneuvers. Unlike other rows, she may assign maneuvers of any type to the slots in this row.

For reference, the gambler's Layout at each level:
(click to show/hide)

Stances known: A gambler begins play with knowledge of one 1st-level stance from any discipline open to her. At 4th, 10th, and 16th level, she can choose additional stances. Unlike maneuvers, stances are not expended or granted, nor are they randomly available to her. All the stances she knows are available to her at all times, and she can change the stance she currently uses as a swift action. A stance is an extraordinary ability unless otherwise stated in the stance description. Unlike with maneuvers, a gambler cannot learn a new stance at higher levels in place of one she already knows.

High Roller: All gamblers know the fine art of staking your living on a hand of poker or a throw of the dice. The gambler is always treated as having the maximum possible ranks for her Hit Dice in her Profession (gambler) skill.

Beginner's Luck (Ex): Gamblers know which end of a sword to hold. Poking it in the enemy's direction works unreasonably well for them. At 1st level, the gambler may use her Charisma modifier in place of her Strength modifier on melee attack rolls or in place of her Dexterity modifier on ranged attack rolls, up to a maximum of her class level. If she has or later receives another ability which also allows her to do this, she may instead add her Charisma modifier to her damage rolls, up to a maximum of her class level.

Uncanny Dodge (Ex): Nothing says "stop winning so much" like the other sort of blackjack. At 2nd level, the gambler retains her Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) even if she is caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker. However, she still loses his Dexterity bonus to AC if immobilized. If the gambler already has uncanny dodge from a different class, she automatically gains improved uncanny dodge instead.

Playing the Rush (Ex): Too much cockiness is bad. Except when you really are that good, in which case you get to gloat until you screw up. At 3rd level, the gambler may select three skills each day. She gains a competence bonus of +2 per three class levels to these skills. In addition, she may choose to treat any one skill check made with each of these skills as though she had rolled a 20. However, doing so means she no longer receives a competence bonus to that skill until she rests for eight hours (or receives an equivalent amount of rest) and selects new skills.

Evasion (Ex): Sensing which way the wind is blowing turns out to be a useful survival trait as well as a useful moneymaking trait. At 4th level, the gambler can avoid even magical and unusual attacks with great agility. If she makes a successful Reflex saving throw against an attack that normally deals half damage on a successful save, she instead takes no damage. Evasion can be used only if the gambler is wearing light armor or no armor. A helpless gambler does not gain the benefit of evasion.

Lucky Hunch (Sp): Your gut feelings are almost supernaturally precise about things. At 5th level, the gambler may use augury and cheat (Spell Compendium) twice each per day as spell-like abilities which take a standard action to use and have a caster level equal to her class level.

Doubling Down (Ex): Sometimes there's too much money on the table to cut and run. At 6th level, as an immediate action, the gambler may trigger a state where her force of personality imposes itself upon the world and keeps her alive in the face of unlikely odds. She gains a +4 morale bonus to Charisma and may add her Charisma modifier as a bonus to her saving throws and Armor Class. This state lasts 1+her (improved) Charisma modifier rounds, after which time she is fatigued until the end of the encounter. She may use this ability once per day, plus one additional time per day for every four class levels above 6th (two times at 10th level, three times at 14th level, etcetera).

Improved Uncanny Dodge (Ex): She who plays both sides of the table needs to know when to duck. At 7th level, the gambler may no longer be flanked. This defense denies a rogue the ability to sneak attack the character by flanking her, unless the attacker has at least four more rogue levels than the target does gambler levels.  If a character already has uncanny dodge from a second class, she automatically gains improved uncanny dodge instead, and the levels from the classes that grant uncanny dodge stack to determine the minimum rogue level required to flank the character.

Savvy Scoundrel (Sp): You have an incredible knack for knowing the odds and then promptly ignoring them. At 8th level, the gambler may use divination twice per day as a spell-like ability which takes one minute to use and has a caster level equal to her class level.

Jack of Hearts (Ex): You are just too pretty for God to let you die. At 9th level, the gambler may use her Charisma modifier in place of her Constitution modifier to determine her hit points.

Skill Mastery (Ex): Table chatter and card sharping come as naturally to you as breathing does to normal folks. At 10th level, the gambler may take 10 when making a skill check with any Charisma-based skill even if stress and distractions would normally prevent her from doing so.

Improved Evasion (Ex): You know when to run. Hell, you started running half a second earlier. This ability works like the gambler’s evasion, except that while the gambler still takes no damage on a successful Reflex saving throw against attacks, henceforth she takes only half damage on a failed save. A helpless gambler does not gain the benefit of improved evasion.

All or Nothing (Ex): When the chips are down, you don't see danger, you see chips for the taking. At 12th level, the morale bonus to Charisma granted by the gambler's Doubling Down ability improves to +6, and while the ability is active, she gains DR/- equal to half her class level.

Ace of Hearts (Ex): Keep plowing through the rough spots and sooner or later you'll get a better hand. At 13th level, the gambler receives fast healing equal to her Charisma modifier, up to a maximum of her class level divided by three.

Letting it Ride (Ex): The stakes get bigger, and so do your wagers. At 14th level, the gambler may select five skills each day to which Playing the Rush applies.

Daredevil Intuition (Sp): Listening to the voice in your head might be a little odd, but it's worked for you so far. At 15th level, the gambler may use contact other plane twice per day as a spell-like ability which takes a standard action to use and has a caster level equal to her class level. She may only ask one question per use of the ability, but she never needs to make an Intelligence check to avoid an Intelligence and Charisma decrease.

Jackpot (Ex): They'll have to invent a new lucky star just for you. At 16th level, any luck bonuses the gambler benefits from have their numerical value increased by one (for example, a robe of stars would provide her with a +2 luck bonus on all saving throws instead of the usual +1).

Endless Roulette (Su): You can't keep a good--okay, decent--alright alright, maybe-slightly-tarnished-but-otherwise-good--man down. At 17th level, the gambler may spend a swift action to act as though she were affected by freedom of movement until the start of her next turn.

Losing Is For Suckers (Ex): Everything you touch turns to gold. Except for gold. That turns to more gold. At 18th level, the gambler may select up to her Charisma modifier in skills each day to which Playing the Rush applies.

Never Tell Me The Odds (Sp): You've heard of misfortune. Generally, it's something that happens to other people. At 19th level, the gambler may use choose destiny (Races of Destiny) once per day as a spell-like ability which takes a swift action to use and has a caster level equal to her class level.

Cashing Out (Ex): No untimely demise will get in the way of your aims. After all, there's still money that doesn't belong to you. At 20th level, should the gambler ever be killed, she returns to life one week later in the spot where she was slain as per true resurrection.


PLAYING A GAMBLER
"You know what would make this better?"
"If we weren't hanging off the edge of a giant gear, about to be crushed by its teeth?"
"You know what two things would make this better?"
"Blackjack and hookers?"
"Okay, four things now."

 Combat: Gamblers make remarkably good combatants, mostly because they themselves don't really know what they're doing until three seconds after they've jumped onto the other dragon.
 Advancement: Gamblers often pick up a smattering of other talents, although they are almost uniformly drawn to high-risk, high-reward professions.
 Resources: A gambler likes civilization, people with money, talking to people with money, and making those people have less money. They are very likely to know a great many people. Whether those people like them back is another story altogether.

GAMBLERS IN THE WORLD
"How about if I'm Mr. Purple? That sounds good to me. I'll be Mr. Purple."
"We left the vault fifteen minutes ago."
"You have a cool-sounding name, look--"
"WE LEFT THE VAULT FIFTEEN MINUTES AGO"

 Daily Life: Despite the glitzy persona a lot of them like to put off, many gamblers actually never set foot in a casino, instead preferring to make bets directly with their lives by treasure-hunting, smuggling, or monster-hunting. The pay is generally better, but the clothes are worse and you can't get a decent drink.
 Organizations: Gamblers tend to work poorly with other gamblers. You need at least one straight man around.

NPC Reaction
"You know, you're right. Paying to have a trap put on the chandelier rope WAS the best money I ever spent."
 Gamblers don't really have a codified martial tradition. To the rest of the world, they're mostly indistinguishable from every other sap who thought he could make a quick buck, except that now it's the dozenth quick buck this week. Interestingly, the best partnerships between gamblers and their associates tend to come when the gambler is working with her polar opposite.

GAMBLERS IN THE GAME
"Do you always drink whatever witch doctors offer you?"
"Ask me that again when the sun stops talking to me."

 Adaptation: Gamblers are probably going to favor campaigns with at least some opportunity for social skills. Even if you never set foot in a town, however, they're easily flavored as the risk-taking bravo who set out to make his fortune in the world.
 Encounters: NPC gamblers make interesting rivals and interesting allies. The DM is therefore encouraged to make them both at once in the hopes of sparking an escalating competition that will be, if nothing else, memorable.

14
[Tome] The Fall of Pun-Pun / The Black Book
« on: September 09, 2012, 11:43:00 PM »
You examine the book. It is coated with a thin layer of some peculiar substance. At some angles, it reflects light exactly like a mirror. At others, it doesn't seem to be there at all.

The book itself, below the silvery coating, is a slim black volume with a leathery covering that doesn't quite seem like it came from a farm animal. At least, not one they'd farm on the Prime.

You open the book up to the first page. A precise, copperplate hand has written, in maroon ink, "Table of Contents." The list of items is extremely long and spills over to the next page.


I: Introduction
II: Clerical Duties in the Dweomerheart
III: Xuuvosic
IV: From Stoning to Stones
V: Inhuming the Inhuman
VI: Ris-Janna
VII: On the Underdark and Other Untidiness
VIII: Temporal Mechanics: A Primer
IX: Raoul Bonerges II
X: Toril's Most Famous Ruins (And How to Avoid Them)
XI: Wishing for More Wishes, or: Why Your Economy Is Wrong And You Can't Unfuck It
XII: Cade
XIII: Fiends with Benefits
XIV: Marlowe

15
Off Topic Fun / Mornington Crescent
« on: September 09, 2012, 03:34:57 PM »
I thought it might be fun to have an ongoing match with everyone here. Marquis of Fantailler rules, I think, since the Smethwyck edition has a tendency to skew in favor of the hairpin-double strategy and the printed copy from 1982 onward has had every instance of the word "route" replaced by the word "path," which of course presents horrid difficulties.

I'll start with Kew Gardens.

16
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / Interesting Times [3.5, Discipline]
« on: August 27, 2012, 11:42:28 PM »
Interesting Times



Not pictured: An Interesting Times adept, who buggered off ten seconds ago.


Ask twelve different people what it is that makes a true warrior, and you will receive twelve different answers. The students of Tiger Claw will tell you that unbridled ferocity is the path to victory, while the Shadow Hand adepts will smile and speak of subtle cunning and deception. A Diamond Mind master will advise you to seek inner calm so that you might master your enemies as well as yourself, while a practitioner of the Devoted Spirit will encourage you to draw your strength from a higher calling.

These answers are all wrong.

The difference between the victor and the loser is luck. A simple pebble, if Fate decrees it, can bring down a giant. Those who have great luck survive against all odds, rising as Fate’s appointed champions, and those who do not are swiftly trampled and forgotten. Lucky warriors spurn death’s touch again and again, eventually to take their place as legends, figures who are larger than life.

This discipline is not for them.

This discipline is for the poor bastard Fate will overturn the table to get off the board. It is for the man for whom things never go smooth but who manages to keep flying anyway. It is for the warrior who dies over and over and over again but somehow sticks around. Its practitioners do not have great luck; they have miraculous luck, although they might argue the point somewhat. But just because something isn’t nice doesn’t mean it’s not miraculous, and despite the many scrapes an Interesting Times adept gets into, they always seem to come out on top.

Usually during a thunderstorm while wearing wet copper armor.

Interesting Times is not a codified discipline which can be taught. Indeed, most practitioners of the discipline aren’t even aware of what they’re doing, and it is debatable that they’re responsible at all. Coin’s Edge adepts tend to regard the discipline as a subconscious version of the same techniques they practice, with wildly different results. Others suggest that the discipline is the result of a blessing from a deity with an ineffable plan and a sense of humor. Whatever the case, most Interesting Times adepts remain skeptical that they have any particular abilities in that regard at all. The ones who start placing any sort of trust in their “talents” tend to end up without them when they’re most needed.

The associated skill for Interesting Times is Sense Motive, as most of its practitioners are highly suspicious of any situation which sounds too good to be true (for them, it usually is). Its associated weapons are the club, the quarterstaff, the sap, the unarmed strike, the longsword, the shortsword, the warhammer, the greatclub, the light mace, the heavy mace, the flail, the heavy flail, and improvised weapons.

17
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / What's in the Works?
« on: August 25, 2012, 01:50:08 AM »
Or, what pieces of homebrew are you working on right now?

I've got another base class waiting in the wings. I wrote up a few more details on it tonight (including five ACFs), but I'm holding off on working too seriously on it until I finish one of the disciplines an ACF uses. I definitely need to come up with a better name before posting it, though.

Apart from that and the discipline (tentatively named Interesting Times), I've got a handful of other discipline ideas I ought to flesh out more fully.

18
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / Homebrew Contest I: One-Spell Wonders
« on: August 24, 2012, 03:30:26 AM »
Behold! The first Min/Max Boards homebrew contest, as suggested by sirpercival! (Also, much thanks to ErrantX of GitP for inspiring our own sirpercival, and also for his rules, from which I have borrowed heavily.)

As of now, the contest is open, and will remain open for entries through midnight on September 24th. Once that's done, we'll be collecting votes via public poll over a ten-day period ending at midnight, October 4th.

Rules and Other Bothersome Things
  • Entrants will create a prestige class that centers on the use of a particular spell, in much the same way as the Swiftblade focuses on the use of haste. One example, for instance, might be a fist of stone-based prestige class which transforms you into an earth elemental. The prestige class can either require the spell (or an equivalent ability such as an invocation) as a prerequisite or hand it out at first level, depending on your preferences, but it should be central to the class in theme and mechanics.
  • As you may have guessed from the fact that you're creating a prestige class, entries should either be 3.5 or Pathfinder. You can draw on any WotC or Paizo material for your work, but kindly specify which system you're using in your entry.
  • In order to keep the formatting consistent, entries should use the prestige class template in the dropdown menu to the right of the font color menu. Complete entries need not provide epic level progressions, but they should include a name, the full class, and all necessary fluff. (That doesn't include NPC statblocks, however.) If your entry is incomplete at the deadline, it won't be considered.
  • Likewise, if your entry is edited after the deadline, it won't be considered.
  • This thread should be reserved for entry posts only. Discussion and questions should be posted in the discussion thread here.
  • I would take it as a personal kindness if you didn't reserve posts in this thread. Skeleton entries which you edit later are acceptable.
  • All submitted work should, obviously, be your own work. It should also be entirely new. Previously posted entries or entries not written by you will not be considered, because that would just be silly. In addition, only a single entry submitted by a given competitor will be considered.

19
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / Homebrew Contest II: Discussion Thread
« on: August 24, 2012, 03:29:49 AM »
This is the discussion thread for our current homebrew contest. Questions, comments on entries, conversations among entrants, angry tirades about my lineage, and the like all go here, while actual entries should be directed to the contest thread here.

Current Contest Topic: Races of the Board

Previous Contests:
I: One-Spell Wonders. Winner(s): A tie between TheGeometer's Master of Opening and Closing and veekie's Thousand Petal Initiate!

20
Homebrew and House Rules (D&D) / Nomad [3.5, Base]
« on: August 21, 2012, 12:12:59 AM »
Nomad



A nomad is a martial pilgrim, the warrior wandering over mountains and across deserts to find serenity at the point of a sword.

MAKING A NOMAD
Any given nomad is probably going to be nothing like the last. Their patchwork martial arts make them unpredictable opponents.
Abilities: A nomad can get by with decent mental stats, but Intelligence is valuable for skills. Constitution may also be of some use in not dying.
Races: Any race with a penchant for travel and learning. Humans, obviously, are decent candidates.
Alignment: Any.
Starting Gold: 5d4x10 (125 gp).
Starting Age: As monk.

Class Skills
The Nomad's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Hide (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Martial Lore (Int), Move Silently (Dex), Profession (Wis), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str), and Tumble (Dex).
Skill Points at 1st Level: (4 + Int)x4
Skill Points at Each Additional Level: 4 + Int

Table: The NomadHD: d8


Level
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
Base
Attack
Bonus
+0
+1
+2
+3
+3
+4
+5
+6/+1
+6/+1
+7/+2
+8/+3
+9/+4
+9/+4
+10/+5
+11/+6/+1
+12/+7/+2
+12/+7/+2
+13/+8/+3
+14/+9/+4
+15/+10/+5

Fort
Save
+0
+0
+1
+1
+1
+2
+2
+2
+3
+3
+3
+4
+4
+4
+5
+5
+5
+6
+6
+6

Reflex
Save
+2
+3
+3
+4
+4
+5
+5
+6
+6
+7
+7
+8
+8
+9
+9
+10
+10
+11
+11
+12

Will
Save
+2
+3
+3
+4
+4
+5
+5
+6
+6
+7
+7
+8
+8
+9
+9
+10
+10
+11
+11
+12


Special
At the Crossroads, Wanderer's Enigma (fundamental)
Dust-Covered Boots
Evasion, The Walker (+10 feet)
Path Unending
Uncanny Dodge, The Road Less Traveled (known)
Wanderer's Enigma (competence)
The Walker (weaponry)
Two Roads as One (stance+strike), The Walker (+20 feet)
Improved Uncanny Dodge
The Road Less Traveled (unknown)
The Walker (resistance)
Wanderer's Enigma (fate), Two Roads as One (boost+strike)
Improved Evasion, The Walker (+30 feet)
The Walker (recovery)
Two Roads as One (counter+strike)
The Walker (soul)
Wanderer's Enigma (excellence)
The Road Less Traveled (effortless), The Walker (+40 feet)
Two Roads as One (stance+stance)
Journey's End

Maneuvers
Known
4
4
5
5
6
6
7
7
8
8
9
9
10
10
11
11
12
12
13
13

Maneuvers
Readied
3
3
4
4
4
5
5
5
5
6
6
6
7
7
7
7
8
8
8
9

Stances
Known
2
2
2
2
3
3
4
4
4
5
5
6
6
6
7
7
8
8
8
9


Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: A nomad is proficient with simple and martial weapons. She is also proficient with light armor, but not shields.

Maneuvers: A nomad begins his career with knowledge of four martial maneuvers. At 1st level, he selects any four martial disciplines from which he may learn maneuvers. Once selected, these disciplines cannot be changed; however, at 5th, 9th, 13th, and 17th level, he may select an additional discipline from which he may learn maneuvers. In addition to these disciplines, every nomad has access to the Sublime Tapestry discipline.

Once he knows a maneuver, a nomad must ready it before he can use it (see Maneuvers Readied, below). A maneuver initiated by a nomad is considered an extraordinary ability unless otherwise noted in the maneuver's description. A nomad's maneuvers are not affected by spell resistance, and he does not provoke attacks of opportunity when he initiates one.

A nomad learns additional maneuvers at higher levels, as shown on the above table. In place of the normal prerequisites, however, a nomad must know maneuvers from as many additional disciplines as he would normally have to know from a single discipline. (For example, to learn the Diamond Mind strike Bounding Assault, which normally requires two Diamond Mind maneuvers, he would have to know maneuvers from two disciplines outside of Diamond Mind.) The highest-level maneuvers he can learn are based on his initiator level, as normal. Upon reaching 4th level, and at every even-numbered nomad level after that (6th, 8th, 10th, and so on), a nomad can choose to learn a new maneuver in place of one he already knows. In effect, he loses the old maneuver in exchange for the new one. He can choose a new maneuver of any level he likes, as long as he observes his restriction on the highest-level maneuvers he can learn; he need not replace the old maneuver with a maneuver of the same level.

Maneuvers readied: A nomad can ready three of her four maneuvers known at 1st level, and as she advances in level and learns more maneuvers, she may ready more, but she must still choose which maneuvers to ready. A nomad readies her maneuvers by meditating and exercising for five minutes. Once readied, her maneuvers remain readied until she chooses to meditate again and change them.

A nomad begins an encounter with all her maneuvers unexpended, regardless of how many times she might have already used them since she chose them. When she initiates a maneuver, she expends it for the current encounter, so each of her maneuvers can be used once per encounter (unless she recovers them, described below).

A nomad can recover a single expended maneuver by using a swift action to change her active stance. She can't use a maneuver in the same round that she recovers it, nor can she recover a maneuver in the same round she expended it.

Stances known: A nomad begins play with knowledge of two 1st-level stances. At 5th, 7th, 10th, 12th, 15th, 17th, and 20th level, he may choose an additional stance. Unlike maneuvers, stances are not expended, and he does not have to ready them. All the stances he knows are available to him at all times, and he can change the stance he is currently using as a swift action. A stance is an extraordinary ability unless otherwise stated in the stance description. Unlike with maneuvers, he cannot learn a new stance at higher levels in place of ones he already knows.

At the Crossroads (Ex): A nomad knows that a common tie links all paths, no matter their routes. At 1st level, she chooses a mental ability score (Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma). When she initiates a maneuver which permits a save, she may use this score to calculate the save DC in place of the normal score. Once made, this choice cannot be changed.

Wanderer's Enigma (Ex): A nomad comes into contact with a great many philosophies throughout his travels. Each truth he learns makes his journey a little less arduous. At 1st level, the nomad may treat any discipline skill as a class skill, provided he knows at least one maneuver from that discipline.

At 6th level, while he is in a stance, he receives a competence bonus (equal to half his class level) to that stance's discipline skill.

At 12th level, while he is in a stance, he may reroll any checks he makes with that stance's discipline skill after seeing the roll but before knowing the result. He must take the second of the two, even if it is worse.

At 17th level, if he knows at least two maneuvers from a discipline, he is treated as having a minimum of five ranks in the discipline's key skill.

Dust-Covered Boots (Ex): A nomad walks many roads. If she's careful, she'll live to walk many more. At 2nd level, she may select a mental score, so long as it is not the one chosen in At the Crossroads, and add its modifier as a bonus to her Armor Class, so long as she is either unarmored or wearing only light armor. She loses this bonus when she is immobilized or otherwise helpless.

Evasion (Ex): A nomad knows how to leave trouble behind. At 3rd level, he can avoid even magical and unusual attacks with great agility. If he makes a successful Reflex saving throw against an attack that normally deals half damage on a successful save, he instead takes no damage. Evasion can only be used if the nomad is wearing light armor or no armor, and a helpless nomad does not gain the benefit of evasion.

The Walker (Ex): Miles upon miles bring the nomad closer, both to her destination and to perfection. At 3rd level, her base land speed increases by ten feet, plus an additional ten feet for every five class levels thereafter.

At 7th level, she may add the ability score modifier selected in At the Crossroads to her attack and damage rolls made with any weapon with which she is proficient.

At 11th level, she may add the ability score modifier selected in Dust-Covered Boots to any saving throw she makes.

At 14th level, when she recovers a maneuver by switching stances, she recovers five hit points.

At 16th level, if she dies, she does not lose a level from being raised from the dead.

Path Unending (Ex): Journeys start with a single step, but they're finished by many, many more. At 4th level, if the nomad uses strikes from two different disciplines in consecutive rounds, he may recover an expended strike maneuver. Maneuvers expended as part of Path Unending may not be recovered by Path Unending and must be recovered by switching stances as normal.

Uncanny Dodge (Ex): Nomads learn very quickly not to be the Buddha on the side of the road. At 5th level, a nomad can react to danger before her senses would normally allow her to do so. She retains her Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) even if she is caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker.  However, she still loses her Dexterity bonus to AC if immobilized.  If a nomad already has uncanny dodge from a different class, she automatically gains improved uncanny dodge instead.

The Road Less Traveled (Ex): A nomad collects scraps of technique just as his boots collect dirt. At 5th level, once per encounter, he can use a maneuver he doesn't know from any discipline from which he has at least one maneuver. He must meet all the prerequisites for the maneuver, including its initiator level, and its discipline must be one he has selected through his nomad levels. Using this technique expends one of his readied maneuvers but otherwise functions as normal. However, the strain of using an unfamiliar maneuver renders him exhausted until the end of the encounter, at which point he is merely fatigued.

At 10th level, he need not know a maneuver from the discipline. He is still limited to disciplines selected through nomad levels.

At 18th level, using this ability only renders him fatigued until the end of the encounter.

Two Roads as One (Ex): A nomad is never truly at rest, and her fighting style is just as restless. At 8th level, when she uses a strike from a different discipline than her current stance, she may move five feet afterwards as a free action that does not provoke attacks of opportunity.

At 12th level, when she uses a boost followed in the same round by a strike from a different discipline, she gains a number of temporary hit points equal to the strike's level plus the boost's level, which last for one minute. These temporary hit points do not stack with those gained by using this ability a second time.

At 15th level, when she successfully initiates a counter in response to an opponent's action and, on her next turn, hits that opponent with a strike from a different discipline, that opponent is dazed for one round.

At 19th level, she may spend a swift action every round to maintain two stances at once. The second stance must be of a different discipline than the first, and the swift actions needed to maintain this second stance do not qualify for recovering maneuvers.

Improved Uncanny Dodge (Ex): A nomad must be ever-vigilant. At 9th level, he can no longer be flanked. This defense denies a rogue the ability to sneak attack the character by flanking him, unless the attacker has at least four more rogue levels than the target does nomad levels.  If a character already has uncanny dodge from a second class, he automatically gains improved uncanny dodge instead, and the levels from the classes that grant uncanny dodge stack to determine the minimum rogue level required to flank the character.

Improved Evasion(Ex): Even on her worst day, a nomad is still extremely tough to pin down. This ability works like the nomad's evasion, except that while the nomad still takes no damage on a successful Reflex saving throw against attacks, henceforth she takes only half damage on a failed save. A helpless nomad does not gain the benefit of improved evasion.

Journey's End (Ex): "Why didn't Alexander just turn around and start going back the other way?" At 20th level, the nomad may use two strikes as part of a single standard action. Both strikes are resolved simultaneously and are expended as normal, and he may use a maneuver from The Road Less Traveled as part of this ability. He may use this ability as often as he is able; however, each time he does, his number of maneuvers readied decreases by one. He does not lose any maneuvers he currently has readied; he is simply unable to recover maneuvers up to his normal total. Maneuvers readied return at the rate of one per eight hours of rest.

PLAYING A NOMAD
"You like it? A Coin's Edge probability mandala riposte leading into a Grinning Reverie battle meditation, which of course flows naturally into the ever-popular Emerald Razor from the school of the Diamond Mind."
"Nah, pretty sure you just got lucky and stabbed him in the face."
"Go jump in a lake."

 Combat: Nomads are absolutely unpredictable in a fight, for a given value of absolutely. They have a dizzying array of tricks that boggles the imagination, but if you do some research you can nail down 95% of their moves. Watch that last 5%, though. It's a real lulu.
 Advancement: Multiclassing will put a real dent in your versatility, but can help if you want something specific. On the whole, though, you're probably not leaving until you're good and ready.
 Resources: Nomads are likely to have contacts in many places due to their constant travels. On the flip side, unless you do something like duel the rakshasa terrorizing the town, your connection is likely to be pretty tenuous with those people. Then again, if anyone could duel a rakshasa, it'd be you. Or so you like to think.

NOMADS IN THE WORLD
 "Behold, the Basalt Temple of the Tephramancers!"
 "You take me to the nicest places."

 Daily Life: You're likely to spend time bouncing around from place to place, picking up what training you can from masters you meet and fellow pilgrims. Evil nomads only stay long enough to collect (read: extort) their due, while good nomads sometimes act as wandering troublestabbers.
 Organizations: Nomads rarely organize, but they often leave signs for each other in a particular script which provides warnings of monsters ahead, indication of shelter, and other such helpful notes. Frequent travelers often make an attempt to learn the more prominent symbols, although malicious nomads or other tricksters will sometimes use them to ambush the unwary.

NPC Reaction
"The contract clearly states that only fire-breathing chickens of up to house-size are covered by your policy. Manor-sized costs extra."
 The world is likely to view a nomad in much the same way that it would view any other martial adept, with some exceptions. They tend to be less fame-hungry than warblades and somewhat less mystical than swordsages, but don't get them started about the Isles of Kynwr or they'll never shut up. On the other hand, they make excellent caravan guards and guerrilla mercenaries, and if you can convince one to stay in the same spot for a few minutes, their combat training is superb, if eclectic.

Notes
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