Crippled Master [Archive] - Wizards Community

Crippled Master [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Sutemi
09-25-07, 08:58 AM Crippled Master

Description: What is wizard without a hand or a rogue without a leg? A character needing some powerful curative spells that’s what! But a disciplined monk can rise beyond these debilitating handicaps and become something more, something equal to there physically whole brethren.
They are Crippled Masters, deceitfully lethal martial artists.
Hit dice: d8
Requirements:
Skills: Balance 4 ranks, Jump 4 ranks, Bluff 2 ranks. If blind: Listen 5 ranks. If not blind: Tumble 5 ranks.
Feats: If blind: Blindfight. If not blind: Acrobatic
Special: Must be monk or martial artist (reference: Beyond Monks), Evasion-ability. Must have a whole arm or leg missing/useless, or must be blind.

Class Skills:
Balance, Bluff, Climb, Escape Artist, Hide, Jump, Listen, Move Silently, Survival, Swim, Tumble.

Skill Points at Each Level:
4 + Int modifier

Class Features

Level BAB Fort Ref Will Special
1st 0 0 +2 +2 Negate Handicap, Non-threat
2nd +1 0 +3 +3 Bonus feat
3rd +2 +1 +3 +3 Improved Feint
4th +3 +1 +4 +4 Bonus Feat
5th +3 +1 +4 +4 Sneak Attack 1d6, +1 AC
6th +4 +2 +5 +5 Bonus Feat
7th +5 +2 +5 +5 Bluff +3
8th +5 +2 +6 +6 Bonus Feat
9th +6 +3 +6 +6 Smite Fool
10th +7 +3 +7 +7 Bonus Feat

Negate Handicap (Ex)
You no longer suffer penalties from being a cripple.
Restrictions: Cripple Masters without a leg cannot use hands while moving normal speed, Cripple Masters without an arm cannot hold two items, use two-handed weapons or shield. Blind Cripple Masters gain Uncanny Hearing up to 60 feet, which is identical to Blindsight.
At your option, you can give up this ability for any period of time.

Non-threat (Ex)
Using Bluff or Diplomacy, Cripple Masters have +8 bonus when convincing opponents that you are a worthless and helpless opponents. This bonus stacks with all other bonuses. This can be used only once against a single opponents and is also usable in Feinting.

Bonus Feat, 2nd-level
Blind Cripple Masters gain sixth sense, so you get Improved Initiative as bonus feat.
At will, other Cripple Masters can now be treated as one size category smaller for all purposes except fitting in to armour or clothing or using smaller weapons. Note: You gain +1 bonus to AC for being smaller.

Improved Feint
You gain the Improved Feint-feat, even if you don’t meet the prerequisite.

Bonus Feat, 4th-level
Blind Cripple Masters can now use Uncanny Hearing up to 120 feet.
Other Cripple Masters gain the ability to use the stub of their lost limb to attack. This does halve unarmed damage, but has +1 bonus to hit.

Sneak Attack (Ex)
You gain the Rogue ability to sneak attack.

AC-bonus (Ex)
+1 Extra Dodge Bonus to AC.

Bonus Feat, 6th-level
Blind Cripple Masters gain ability to Death Attack (see Assassin) opponents that loose Dexterity Bonus to AC due to blindness/darkness. Blind Cripple Masters attack as Assassin of five levels lower would. Note: Dexterity Bonus must be lost every round Death Attack is used, including the time used to study opponent.
Other Cripple Masters can now Feint as a free action once per round.

Smite Fool (Su)
You add 1d6 to sneak attack when striking a successfully Feinted opponent.

Bonus Feat, 10th-level
Blind Cripple Masters gain the Scent-ability and Detect Evil or Detect Good at will, whichever is their opposite alignment. Neutral ones can choose either one and once chosen, it cannot be changed.
Other than blind cripple masters gain the ability to do Ghost Attack. Using the stub of the lost limb while performing unarmed attack, they can attack incorporeal creatures.

Multiclass note: Cripple Masters may continue advancing as monks.
Easalyamusedoldman
09-25-07, 09:30 AM Why do they get sneak attack?
Sutemi
09-25-07, 12:26 PM Why do they get sneak attack?

As you can see from the other abilities, Crippled Masters rely heavily on deceit + quick and leathal/dirty techniques. That's why they get sneak attack. After all they get only 1d6, so it's not like they are challenging roques or anything...
Tarpan_God
10-01-07, 03:07 AM I saw that movie, The Crippled Masters. It was something else... :D
DraconiumX
10-01-07, 03:19 AM What about the deaf?
This PrC doesn't sound very PC, because I'm pretty sure a deaf (or even a mute!) would want in on this class.
What if, say, Jeffy, the Deaf/Mute Bard wants in on this class, hm?
I say nay, good sir, for excluding these similarly handi-capable people from your prestige class!
On a serious note, though, this certainly seems like an interesting class. Definitely a niche market; you should check out the Swordsman of the Sightless Eye prestige class here: http://www.community3e.com/prestige.html
Search around for it. It certainly is interesting, and somewhat similar to what you have here.
But, down to business. The term "bonus feat" means, like with a fighter, for example, you get to choose a feat from a list, hence the "bonus" term. You should just give those two class ability names, like "Quicker than the Eye" or something of the sort.
Also, the ability to be considered a size smaller? That doesn't quite make sense with this class; losing a leg or an arm doesn't really make you smaller; maybe you should have it give something along the lines of Skill Focus (Escape Artist).
And Death Attack? That seems a little extraneous, because Death Attacks seem to require far more precision than any handicapped character would be able to do, supernatural abilities or not, and doesn't seem to fit in with the class at all. Maybe just have more levels of Sneak Attack instead, and keep Death Attack out entirely.
Maybe you should do something slightly different, an ability that allows you to do Sneak Attack damage (which, I think, should increase once every 2 or 3 levels), but the Crippled Master can only do so after he has successfully Feinted an opponent.
You should also include Improved Feint as a Prerequisite, or as a 1st level ability.
That's all I have for now, but as a final note, maybe you should try forgoing this class entirely and make a few, separate PrCs for specific handi-(capable! :-P )capped characters, to simplify things a bit and give each one of them more specific and balanced flavor.
deathbane
10-01-07, 11:53 PM The feint or death attack work with intelligence and charisma, two dump stats for monks. What does Uncanny Hearing have to do with darkvision. Either you can see or you can't. If he is blind it won't matter if it is dark or not. If he can only see when it is dark, which makes no sense, then he should just wear a blindfold all the time. Does the uncanny hearing stop working in the area of a silence spell?
Tarpan_God
10-07-07, 12:19 PM I agree with DraconiumX's points, especially making this class for monks with lost limbs only. That way you won't have to list different requirements depending on handicap. Plus, the PCs from the movie were missing arms or legs respectively. There's plenty of "Zatoichi"-Blind Master classes out there, but I don't think I've seen an "I got no arms" PRC before. I could be wrong though.
And deathbane is right, monks are already screwed with MAD. As they are, CM's would need 6 good ability scores? Ouch. Poor monks. :(

Some other suggestions you might find useful:
-Instead of requiring Flurry of Blows, just require Monk (and state that Crippled Master levels stack with Monk levels for unarmed damage, Stunning Fist, and AC Bonus?). Some monks might want the alternate class feature instead of Flurry.
-If you want to keep blind Crippled Masters, "Uncanny Hearing" should be Blindsight instead of Darkvision.
-Instead of "Bonus Feat 6th level" give them the ability to use monk weapons with the stub of their limbs (letting a 1 armed monk dual-wield a quarterstaff, for example :D) and let a stub of a limb do full unarmed damage?
-Maybe give CM a class ability that lets him use DEX or WIS on Bluff checks, instead of CHA?
-I like "Smite Fool", but +CHA to damage is probably going to be -1 or +0 for the average monk. More SA d6 would be better.
-The 10th level ability... huh?!? They carry their rotting, severed arm or leg around and throw it at people for a bonus? :confused: And Detect Evil/Good at level 10 is kinda weak, imho.

A capstone that builds on CM's existing abilities might be a better fit. At 10th level you could improve:
-Feinting: "If a CM bluffs his opponent into thinking he is helpless (using "Non-threatening"), until the end of the encounter he can Feint as a swift action against that opponent (instead of a move action)."
-Or Sneak Attack: "If a CM successfully Feints an opponent, all of his attacks against that opponent deal Sneak Attack damage until the end of the next round."
-Or even focus on the missing limb. Let the "phantom limb" be able to hit incorporeal creatures, or give it 5' extra reach, and full unarmed damage. In the Crippled Masters, attacks with the stub of a limb did more damage than the uninjured limbs, but I dunno if you wanna go there...

Just a few thoughts, hope you find something useful. :)
Sutemi
12-14-07, 04:50 AM Hey, sorry for being late! Some very good advices, but I would like to keep the division of blind/other in CM's. It's just that I want to specify the handicaps clearly. Mistake maybe?

I would like to keep death attack for this reason:
- In total darkness blind person is much, much more powerful than seeing person. In that situation CM is in total control and want to make sure that he/she is powerful, so...

"...Ein Jii listen to her opponent stumble in the dark. She can hear him breathe and wave his hands helplessly. She concentrates and can sense the open neck of her opponent waving around. Waving... waving... Then a snap. A big snap. She feels her hand wet in blood..."
Leaflitter
12-15-07, 10:15 PM i like the class. the reason is for the two way to take the class. i am a firm believer in the multiple chose class. good job.
Leaflitter
12-18-07, 08:40 PM ssssooooo...:bump:
sigma999
12-21-07, 07:55 PM OK... that is one unique class. I wouldn't use it as a PC, but most certainly as NPC.

I'm thinking... The Old Headless Master.

Consider combining it with Talisman's "Debuffing Templates" elsewhere in this board, excuse me for not having link on hand but it would show up in search feature.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Sutemi 09-25-07, 08:58 AM	Crippled Master Description: What is wizard without a hand or a rogue without a leg? A character needing some powerful curative spells that’s what! But a disciplined monk can rise beyond these debilitating handicaps and become something more, something equal to there physically whole brethren. They are Crippled Masters, deceitfully lethal martial artists. Hit dice: d8 Requirements: Skills: Balance 4 ranks, Jump 4 ranks, Bluff 2 ranks. If blind: Listen 5 ranks. If not blind: Tumble 5 ranks. Feats: If blind: Blindfight. If not blind: Acrobatic Special: Must be monk or martial artist (reference: Beyond Monks), Evasion-ability. Must have a whole arm or leg missing/useless, or must be blind. Class Skills: Balance, Bluff, Climb, Escape Artist, Hide, Jump, Listen, Move Silently, Survival, Swim, Tumble. Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier Class Features Level BAB Fort Ref Will Special 1st 0 0 +2 +2 Negate Handicap, Non-threat 2nd +1 0 +3 +3 Bonus feat 3rd +2 +1 +3 +3 Improved Feint 4th +3 +1 +4 +4 Bonus Feat 5th +3 +1 +4 +4 Sneak Attack 1d6, +1 AC 6th +4 +2 +5 +5 Bonus Feat 7th +5 +2 +5 +5 Bluff +3 8th +5 +2 +6 +6 Bonus Feat 9th +6 +3 +6 +6 Smite Fool 10th +7 +3 +7 +7 Bonus Feat Negate Handicap (Ex) You no longer suffer penalties from being a cripple. Restrictions: Cripple Masters without a leg cannot use hands while moving normal speed, Cripple Masters without an arm cannot hold two items, use two-handed weapons or shield. Blind Cripple Masters gain Uncanny Hearing up to 60 feet, which is identical to Blindsight. At your option, you can give up this ability for any period of time. Non-threat (Ex) Using Bluff or Diplomacy, Cripple Masters have +8 bonus when convincing opponents that you are a worthless and helpless opponents. This bonus stacks with all other bonuses. This can be used only once against a single opponents and is also usable in Feinting. Bonus Feat, 2nd-level Blind Cripple Masters gain sixth sense, so you get Improved Initiative as bonus feat. At will, other Cripple Masters can now be treated as one size category smaller for all purposes except fitting in to armour or clothing or using smaller weapons. Note: You gain +1 bonus to AC for being smaller. Improved Feint You gain the Improved Feint-feat, even if you don’t meet the prerequisite. Bonus Feat, 4th-level Blind Cripple Masters can now use Uncanny Hearing up to 120 feet. Other Cripple Masters gain the ability to use the stub of their lost limb to attack. This does halve unarmed damage, but has +1 bonus to hit. Sneak Attack (Ex) You gain the Rogue ability to sneak attack. AC-bonus (Ex) +1 Extra Dodge Bonus to AC. Bonus Feat, 6th-level Blind Cripple Masters gain ability to Death Attack (see Assassin) opponents that loose Dexterity Bonus to AC due to blindness/darkness. Blind Cripple Masters attack as Assassin of five levels lower would. Note: Dexterity Bonus must be lost every round Death Attack is used, including the time used to study opponent. Other Cripple Masters can now Feint as a free action once per round. Smite Fool (Su) You add 1d6 to sneak attack when striking a successfully Feinted opponent. Bonus Feat, 10th-level Blind Cripple Masters gain the Scent-ability and Detect Evil or Detect Good at will, whichever is their opposite alignment. Neutral ones can choose either one and once chosen, it cannot be changed. Other than blind cripple masters gain the ability to do Ghost Attack. Using the stub of the lost limb while performing unarmed attack, they can attack incorporeal creatures. Multiclass note: Cripple Masters may continue advancing as monks.
Easalyamusedoldman 09-25-07, 09:30 AM	Why do they get sneak attack?
Sutemi 09-25-07, 12:26 PM	Why do they get sneak attack? As you can see from the other abilities, Crippled Masters rely heavily on deceit + quick and leathal/dirty techniques. That's why they get sneak attack. After all they get only 1d6, so it's not like they are challenging roques or anything...
Tarpan_God 10-01-07, 03:07 AM	I saw that movie, The Crippled Masters. It was something else... :D
DraconiumX 10-01-07, 03:19 AM	What about the deaf? This PrC doesn't sound very PC, because I'm pretty sure a deaf (or even a mute!) would want in on this class. What if, say, Jeffy, the Deaf/Mute Bard wants in on this class, hm? I say nay, good sir, for excluding these similarly handi-capable people from your prestige class! On a serious note, though, this certainly seems like an interesting class. Definitely a niche market; you should check out the Swordsman of the Sightless Eye prestige class here: http://www.community3e.com/prestige.html Search around for it. It certainly is interesting, and somewhat similar to what you have here. But, down to business. The term "bonus feat" means, like with a fighter, for example, you get to choose a feat from a list, hence the "bonus" term. You should just give those two class ability names, like "Quicker than the Eye" or something of the sort. Also, the ability to be considered a size smaller? That doesn't quite make sense with this class; losing a leg or an arm doesn't really make you smaller; maybe you should have it give something along the lines of Skill Focus (Escape Artist). And Death Attack? That seems a little extraneous, because Death Attacks seem to require far more precision than any handicapped character would be able to do, supernatural abilities or not, and doesn't seem to fit in with the class at all. Maybe just have more levels of Sneak Attack instead, and keep Death Attack out entirely. Maybe you should do something slightly different, an ability that allows you to do Sneak Attack damage (which, I think, should increase once every 2 or 3 levels), but the Crippled Master can only do so after he has successfully Feinted an opponent. You should also include Improved Feint as a Prerequisite, or as a 1st level ability. That's all I have for now, but as a final note, maybe you should try forgoing this class entirely and make a few, separate PrCs for specific handi-(capable! :-P )capped characters, to simplify things a bit and give each one of them more specific and balanced flavor.
deathbane 10-01-07, 11:53 PM	The feint or death attack work with intelligence and charisma, two dump stats for monks. What does Uncanny Hearing have to do with darkvision. Either you can see or you can't. If he is blind it won't matter if it is dark or not. If he can only see when it is dark, which makes no sense, then he should just wear a blindfold all the time. Does the uncanny hearing stop working in the area of a silence spell?
Tarpan_God 10-07-07, 12:19 PM	I agree with DraconiumX's points, especially making this class for monks with lost limbs only. That way you won't have to list different requirements depending on handicap. Plus, the PCs from the movie were missing arms or legs respectively. There's plenty of "Zatoichi"-Blind Master classes out there, but I don't think I've seen an "I got no arms" PRC before. I could be wrong though. And deathbane is right, monks are already screwed with MAD. As they are, CM's would need 6 good ability scores? Ouch. Poor monks. :( Some other suggestions you might find useful: -Instead of requiring Flurry of Blows, just require Monk (and state that Crippled Master levels stack with Monk levels for unarmed damage, Stunning Fist, and AC Bonus?). Some monks might want the alternate class feature instead of Flurry. -If you want to keep blind Crippled Masters, "Uncanny Hearing" should be Blindsight instead of Darkvision. -Instead of "Bonus Feat 6th level" give them the ability to use monk weapons with the stub of their limbs (letting a 1 armed monk dual-wield a quarterstaff, for example :D) and let a stub of a limb do full unarmed damage? -Maybe give CM a class ability that lets him use DEX or WIS on Bluff checks, instead of CHA? -I like "Smite Fool", but +CHA to damage is probably going to be -1 or +0 for the average monk. More SA d6 would be better. -The 10th level ability... huh?!? They carry their rotting, severed arm or leg around and throw it at people for a bonus? :confused: And Detect Evil/Good at level 10 is kinda weak, imho. A capstone that builds on CM's existing abilities might be a better fit. At 10th level you could improve: -Feinting: "If a CM bluffs his opponent into thinking he is helpless (using "Non-threatening"), until the end of the encounter he can Feint as a swift action against that opponent (instead of a move action)." -Or Sneak Attack: "If a CM successfully Feints an opponent, all of his attacks against that opponent deal Sneak Attack damage until the end of the next round." -Or even focus on the missing limb. Let the "phantom limb" be able to hit incorporeal creatures, or give it 5' extra reach, and full unarmed damage. In the Crippled Masters, attacks with the stub of a limb did more damage than the uninjured limbs, but I dunno if you wanna go there... Just a few thoughts, hope you find something useful. :)
Sutemi 12-14-07, 04:50 AM	Hey, sorry for being late! Some very good advices, but I would like to keep the division of blind/other in CM's. It's just that I want to specify the handicaps clearly. Mistake maybe? I would like to keep death attack for this reason: - In total darkness blind person is much, much more powerful than seeing person. In that situation CM is in total control and want to make sure that he/she is powerful, so... "...Ein Jii listen to her opponent stumble in the dark. She can hear him breathe and wave his hands helplessly. She concentrates and can sense the open neck of her opponent waving around. Waving... waving... Then a snap. A big snap. She feels her hand wet in blood..."
Leaflitter 12-15-07, 10:15 PM	i like the class. the reason is for the two way to take the class. i am a firm believer in the multiple chose class. good job.
Leaflitter 12-18-07, 08:40 PM	ssssooooo...:bump:
sigma999 12-21-07, 07:55 PM	OK... that is one unique class. I wouldn't use it as a PC, but most certainly as NPC. I'm thinking... The Old Headless Master. Consider combining it with Talisman's "Debuffing Templates" elsewhere in this board, excuse me for not having link on hand but it would show up in search feature.