Sunday, June 30, 2019

10 Unbeatable Techniques

All techniques listed here are Difficulty 5 Special Moves, only accessible to max level Fighting classes and requiring the same training costs and time as listed in the rules for Special Moves. They are very powerful. In addition to the normal requirements, characters who wish to learn these moves will need to perform a difficult quest or seek to reincarnate into a new body which can generate the chi necessary for these moves.

[1] Flying Squirrel Furls Cape
As long as you are equipped with any sort of robe, billowing clothing, a strong cape, or a kite strapped to your back; you can fly. Your flight requires only the slightest movement of wind to accomplish- but fails if the air is totally still. You can generate enough air currents with a simple hand fan, or using another move like Broom in the Old Study.

Your flight is as fast as a running horse, and you have total control over acceleration, movement, and control. You can hover or make attacks while swooping, lift in the air high or low as needed, and freely battle other flying creatures- do not make saving throws or checks for flying skill. If a saving throw or check is needed to perform any
exceptionally difficult maneuver, roll with advantage anyway.

[2] White Whisker Killing Glance
You can perform any of your pressure points, debilitating strikes, and even unarmed attacks with any part of your body. You can step on someone's foot to perform a blinding strike, strike with a tail or tongue for damage, or even harm a foe who puts their hand on your shoulder. The move appears to invisibly strike foes, but its true nature is related to the spectral whisker-hairs that the user grows.

This move requires the same time to train as all other Difficulty 5 moves, but takes years to grow the whiskers requires to use it. This move makes the user grow a handful of very long, thin white hairs. Those without the ability to see the invisible or a supernatural level of Wisdom (+3 modifier minimum) cannot even see the hairs. The hairs are like spiderweb, coiling around your limbs and extremities and striking at the pressure points and fault lines of your foes. Additionally, enemies with longer weapons no longer hit first against you AND add a permanent +2 to hit with your unarmed attacks.

[3] Way of Twenty-Two Jewels
Your hands channel the magic and power of your soul. Your hands count as magic weapons permanently, if they didn't already. When you perform martial arts moves, your hands may glow with spiritual energy, burning with your aura so brightly it is visible to the naked eye. Additionally, add +2 to damage rolls with unarmed attacks.

Your hands gain face. You treat both your hands as Heads for the purpose of magic spells or special attacks- For example, a vorpal weapon that automatically cuts off your head on a roll of 20 has only a 1 in 3 chance to target your head, instead it may cut off a hand- turning a death condition into losing a limb as an improvement. Additionally, spells that target, mutate, or mutilate hands simply don't work anymore unless you want them to. Any effect too powerful to be resisted instead just deals 1 damage as your hands cramp. You are hands are too spiritually superior to be destroyed by mere magic, ensuring you are never helpless.

[4] Way of the Left Hand
This infamous move counts as a regular martial arts combat style. Unlike animal, gemstone, weather, or other named styles, this one doesn't have a counter. It counters every other style, and cannot be countered by any style except itself. Due to both its shadowy origins and use by power-hungry adepts, it has an extremely dishonorable reputation and all hirelings who know kung-fu must make a loyalty check to stay employed to anyone who uses this. Old masters shake their heads at the upstarts who only lust for power, and nothing else. It is said using this technique even once permanently stops the warrior from every achieving enlightenment- their soul stained too deeply from a lust for victory over all else.

[5] Dragon Fist
This is the advanced form of the technique Clawing Tiger, and you must know that move first before you can learn this one. Clawing Tiger lets you automatically hit any foe with an AC of 10 or less, no roll needed. Dragon Fist lets you hit any foe with AC of 13 or less, no roll needed. A clumsy man in chainmail, or an agile man in leather have no defense against your technique. This move works with both weapons and unarmed strikes.

[6] Soul Bursting Pinch
This move requires a successful unarmed attack, which deals no damage. The target is pinched on a specific spot in their body, which renders their spiritual energy asunder. Target loses 1 level or -1 HD, with all possible negatives therein and must reroll their Charisma score, taking the lower of the two results. If it's a monster, reroll their morale score instead and remove any leadership skills or abilities. After the first time you are hit with the pinch, you become immune to its powers, but are forever altered by it. If they are 1 HD or less, they simply die.

[7] Infinite Star-Chakra Technique
The learner of this technique studies it underneath a night sky. They let the power of stars flow into their body, permanently gaining a pale silver glow of starlight. They no longer get tired and no longer need to eat, sleep, or rest if they do not wish to. Their stamina comes from within and without, their body becoming an infinite loop of recurring energy. This power is permanently lost if the user is hit by a level draining undead, spell, or technique, but instead of draining their levels it just ruins this chakra balance in such a way it cannot be restored again. Additionally, while under this technique, gain advantage on saving throws versus death.

[6] Special Ninjitsu- Gleam in the Eye of a Warrior
The user of this technique must not have attacked the victim for at least 3 days. If the victim of the attack attacks the user, and the user does not fight back, then the victim must roll a saving throw from the cold gleam in the user's eye. On a success, they miss their first attack and give time for the user of the technique to ready themselves for combat. On a failure, their body slumps down, barely standing, and becomes devoid of personality. It can eat and sleep, but cannot speak or have any relationships- this is because this technique traps the aggressive victim's mind within the warrior's mind. The body remains alive but essentially in stasis, unable to fight or train.

While within their mind; the victim of this technique can be subject to multiple hallucinations and real fantasies. They may face hundreds of powerful foes in an endless combat struggle, be subject to their worst fears, or the user of this technique may simply mock and scold them for their arrogance at attacking them. The enemy is trapped for an indefinite period of time with two exceptions; the user may only hold one spirit within their eye's gleam and the trapped spirit can break free if exceptional pain or loss of concentration happens to the user. Additionally, the trapped spirit gets a hard saving throw to escape once per year if they are equal or higher level to the user of the technique.

As this power straddles the line between special move and spell, it is said high level Wizards can learn a variant of this move. As they lack the powerful aura to trap enemy spirits within themselves, they must rely on a crystal orb or other powerful magic item, but the rules remain the same.

[7] Breaking Strike
This move strikes at the weakness in the target. It can be performed with any weapon or while unarmed, even at range if using a specialty “hardpoint” arrowhead. Upon a hit, it deals all the damage of the creature's current difference between max and current hit points. The move splits open all wounds, inflames burns, splits cracked bones, and breaking the creature apart. If you attacked with this move against a creature with 20 missing hit points, then this move would deal 20 damage. It has no effect on creatures without injuries. Once a creature has been struck by this move and survived it, their body becomes tough enough to withstand it and it no longer works on them as their old scars disappear and reassemble into something far stronger.

[8] Gift of Absolute Power
The ripple of life can be given, the final gift before death. This move can be learned as normal, or may be learned as part of training to manipulate chi, and can only be used once. If a Fighter is dying, they may transfer their remaining life energy into someone else as a gift, causing the user to die. The target swells, recovering all of their lost hit points, advantage on their next to hit roll, and a glowing aura of pure life energy that deflects all save vs death attacks or spells, especially from the undead. If the affected character is also a Fighter, they also grow an entire level, permanently.

[9] Flawless Granite Body
Through advanced training techniques; the user becomes physically tough. Their body becomes supernaturally hard. Their skin simply cannot be harmed by weapons below a certain level in quality. Improvised wooden weapons, rusted iron, flimsy decayed teeth and claws simply cannot break the warrior's skin; count all attacks with these weapons as automatic misses. Regular high quality weapons and magic weapons can still penetrate your skin, in which case you get +2 AC passively.

[10] Lacerate the Sky
This move uses swords and daggers. The master of the move becomes so adept with bladed weapons that the space between the blade and their foe is reduced to nothing. This move allows the user to slash the air and create waves of energetic force the cut anything they strike as though the sword had slashed them. Unlike normal slashes, these ones don't damage the blade and strike at a short range, meaning you can slash at beings encased in stone or acidic things without harming your weapon or your own body from the shrapnel. The range of this attack is similar to that within throwing distance, the waves of force glow bright enough that someone can attempt to dodge them if at the edge of its useful range, granting a saving throw to avoid as well as requiring a successful attack by the user.

Friday, June 28, 2019

Spell Name Mutations + 4 Knock Mutant-Spells

I was reading this Goblin Punch article about mutant spells again recently, and it got me thinking about how much I like this nested table. You roll a d20 on a normal spell mutation, but a d30 on a mutate spell use. This unlocks new potential outcomes as well as increasing the chance of a specific result: New Flavor.

The New Flavor indicates the spell is changed in its elements, alignment, direct use, or otherwise. It goes from a 10% chance on a mutant spell to a 13.333% chance, making it the most likely outcome on the big table. But what about wordplay?

Change the mutant spell table; 18-20 is a New Flavor of spell. 21-22 is a New Name- change a single letter in the spell's name. If you want to do it randomly; roll the biggest die you can fit the spell's name with the unnecessary shit cut out (no Greater, Lesser, Melf's, etc.) and then remove the letter that it rolled. If you roll over, you then add a new letter instead. This makes weird results; Grease can never become Greasy but Knock can totally become Knocky.

Anyway, if you don't care about any of this bullshit, here's 4 Knock variants.
4 Knock Mutant-Spells
[1] Nock
This spell nocks any arrow you see onto any drawn back bow you can see. If there are no arrows; a bunch of twigs and leaves and bones and particles of dust and grime form into a rough shape of an arrow instead. The improvised arrow is destroyed on impact but deals 1d3 damage.

[2] Knck
Summons a minor demon of torment named Knck. He is a lesser familiar and can throw 1d4 flame damage fireballs, fights as a 1+1 HD creature, and has +1 AC and to hit. He carries a book with eighteen horrible faces in it. If you agree to mutilate the faces in the book; drawing crude symbols, slashing eyebrows, pulling lips and creating blemishes, he'll give you a silver coin. Your conscious weighs on you heavily. The faces are of course tied to actual people in hell, being punished for their envious greed, their faces warped as the drawings. Knck is only bound to serve you for 1d4+1 turns, but might stick around if you're really cruel with the faces.

[3] Knok
The name of an ancient caveman hero, slayer of dinosaurs and mammoths alike. Your characters may not know this, but they do know screaming KNOK!!! at the top of their lungs before attacking a huge prehistoric beast gives them +2 to hit and damage on their attack. Additionally, gives advantage to saving throws to do things like jump on a dino's back or avoid getting scared off by their death roar. Knok has up to three invocations, usable by anyone who hears and shouts along.

[4] Kock
Gives the magic user a functional, 8 inch long penis. It's bright purple with green polka dots and has invisible (actually octarine) cum. It doesn't seem to do anything else- but both sexes can cast it equally well. The spell lasts until it gets someone pregnant, and then falls off. It is highly likely the baby will be something else in human form, or a sentient spell given a new body.

Wednesday, June 26, 2019

Dirt Simple Lockpicking & Lock Tiers

Are X in 6 or Percentile lockpicking chances too swingy? Want to remove skill rolls? Instead of using a roll to pick locks, your Rogue can just pick them. It simply takes time and a lockpick to open most locks, with the exception of puzzle style locks, which are more like weird dungeon doors that have slide puzzles or little mazes to solve instead of keys.

You'll probably need specialist tools to open the higher tiers of locks- as a rule of thumb, you need a number of tools equal to the lock's tier to open it. These include things like wedges, picks with different heads, vices, tumblers, and so on. Magic locks fit into this paradigm as either advanced puzzles or as whatever base lock was enchanted +1 higher Tier.

If you want to include a use for Dexterity- change the time it takes to unlock a lock tier above your own by 6 - Dex Modifier. (adding if Dex mod is negative)

Dirt-Simple Lockpicking - Lock Tiers Table
Rogue lvl
Tier
Description
x
0
Improvised, rusted, primitive.
1
1
Standard or common locks. Owned by merchants and lesser-nobles.
3
2
Mechanical Puzzles- Sliding blocks, levers and pullies, etc.
5
3
Advanced locks. Used by the very wealthy or to protect great treasure.
7
4
Advanced puzzles. Reflective mirrors, crystal arrays, etc.
9
5
Ancient Locks. May not use keys- old daggers and talismans slot in instead.
x
6
Self-Aware Clockwork, "Unbreakable", and Divine-level locks.

If the lock is two stages or below your current tier of lock, you can open it basically instantly. You've seen it before.

If the lock you're picking is one stage below your current tier of lock, you can open it in one turn.

If the lock you're picking is an equal stage to your current tier of lock, you can open it in two turns.

If the lock you're picking is one stage above your current tier of lock, you can open it in 6 exploration turns/one hour.

If the lock is two or more stages above your current tier of lock, you can't open it. It's too complex. You'll have to bypass it through breaking it or leave it for later.

Sunday, June 23, 2019

Nine Tables of Hell

What is the environment of this section of hell like? - 1d10
[1] Fire, molten rock, burning brimstone. Pretty normal.
[2] Freezing rains and winds, forever-sticking mud in your boots. Swampy.
[3] Clearly designed for punishments; orderly sections, demons on rotation. Artificial barriers.
[4] Steps to a demon lord's palace. Protesters flayed, calmly stand up to protest some more.
[5] Humongous pillar stretching into the black, ashy sky above. Holds up the surface world?
[6] Flying skulls laugh evilly, pushed along by blistering winds over the salt flats.
[7] The floor is moving. Giant beetles are the hills, crawling over and eating anyone who falls down.
[8] Green trees and plants, everything is painted razorblades.
[9] The forest of suicides. Those who kill themselves become trees here in hell. Moaning trees.
[10] Tall bony demons walk on stilts, pluck souls up in their beaks, throw them down off the nearest cliffs. Hilly terrain of sharpened stones and seemingly bottomless ravines.

What is this Damned Soul being punished for? - d10
[1] Lust
[2] Gluttony
[3] Greed
[4] Sloth
[5] Wrath
[6] Envy
[7] Pride
[8] Wearing mixed fabrics, being left handed, etc. Ridiculously unfair orthodox sins.
[9] Being a terrible Father/Mother In-Law. Majority of hell's population.
[10] Evil deeds of a past life- ironic punishments don't work for this incarnation. Has no clown phobia, yet being harried by demon clowns.

What are the Demon's doing on their break? - d8
[1] Smoking.
[2] Gossiping with a giant stone face that is chewing on a sinner; they laugh softly over the screams.
[3] Picking through a stack of beautiful paintings, then smashing them.
[4] Swimming in lava. There is a rope swing made of some lady's innards. She's tied up above.
[5] Affixing black metal armor to themselves, welding it to their skin.
[6] Torturing “for fun”. The damned soul is a volunteer; getting a break from his preordained, much worse torture for this easy and casual finger breaking and anus ripping stuff.
[7] Drawing lines in the sand and discussing hell geopolitics. Eavesdrop for 1d4 rumors.
[8] Torturing, eating, and molesting dogs. Absolutely horrific, but you'll notice the dogs aren't real. They're automatons; everybody knows dogs always go to heaven. They wish they had a real dog.

What's the Hellish Kitchen's Special? - d12
[1] Jellied Baby Souls. It's a rare delicacy, because only a few babies end up here.
[2] Any normal dish, à la mode. The topping is molten lava.
[3] Flail-Snail Escargot. They're still alive, of course.
[4] Evil Jam. Dark purple, flavor tastes like miasma and wasted time. Served on bleeding-bread.
[5] Ale, fermented in a barrel with the heads of several punished brewers.
[6] Pixie dust. Stolen from a paraplegic girl who wanted one chance to fly.
[7] Wizard ganglion, served on his own staff. Slow roasted to get that wood-smoked flavor.
[8] Journal of a youth, read to expose their failed dreams. Laughs of spite are the main course.
[9] Ulcer of the damned. Scratched daily for a few eons, it's perfectly ripe now.
[10] Water. There's basically none of it in hell, save the occasional snowball.
[11] Elf ears.
[12] Looks like a normal tavern special. But cooked, prepared, and made by devils.

What did the Greed Demon just drop on the ground? - d10
[1] Key to one of the Hell vaults. Incredibly valuable, but the guards and traps are still there.
[2] Smaller Greed Demon. It's the first one's compound interest, so it's still growing.
[3] Gold coin wrapped in silver coin wrapped in copper coin wrapped in bear shit.
[4] Stowaway mimic. Small, portable design like jewelry box or medicine flask.
[5] Burning Ruby. It burns for years, even outside of hell. Submerge in ice water for a few months.
[6] Vile wind chime. When shook, worst imaginable smell blows in. Demons will trade for this.
[7] Handful of copper scarabs. They burrow under skin and turn you into an immobile statue; typical punishment for metal workers who cheat their customers.
[8] Soul of a banker. It immediately tries to lend advice and guidance, and charges by the penny. It's charging interest on every word; in a few days will demand ridiculous first payment for the loan.
[9] Bag of Witholding. Anything placed within requires several summoned lawyer demons and days of litigation to get back out. The demon gets to keep anything left in when you die, expect tricks.
[10] Dyed rope with multiple knots from some primitive culture's money system. Demons still trying to find proper exchange rate between it and hell-currency.

How are these Damned Souls planning to escape? - d6
[1] Digging up. Small collection of shovels and a single, rotten 20 ft ladder. It's not going well.
[2] Collecting hell coins and luxuries to trade with a major demon for safe passage out of here.
[3] Being so evil they can be promoted into demons. Very likely to attack you.
[4] Prayers sent to realms above. They travel by post, will take quite a while.
[5] Seeking nirvana to escape the cycle of death and rebirth. Hard to meditate with birds eating your organs all the time.
[6] Growing a garden in a hidden nook, a few blades of grass and a stumpy squash is all they have to show for their “grow a huge vine and climb out” plan.

How are these Damned Souls being tortured? - d12
[1] Giant cat is playing with them, it's claws are frozen ice, chills so they can't run away.
[2] Little dollies go “play with me” while making more of themselves out of people skin.
[3] Crushed flat by huge demon, stacked on burning shelves. Not a punishment, just storage.
[4] Melted by ultra-hot fire. Their bodies pool together, faces and memories start to intermingle.
[5] Giant eyeball watches them from above, criticizing every action.
[6] Lightning bolt strikes person, they get fat and run. As soon as they slim down, struck again.
[7] Great geysers of boiling piss. Also, poop hail.
[8] Huge rolling stone constantly chases them. Also has their mother's face or some shit.
[9] Demons paint their body team colors; throw some limbs around to score points.
[10] Leaky bags of drugs put inside skin; sneak across border to purgatory. Always busted.
[11] Endless waiting room “to be sent to your punishment”. As soon as one gets clever and figures it out, they are put on a bandsaw that slices them from groin to head. Just to spite them.
[12] Bored demons poking at someone in boiling tar with a pitchfork. They'll let you take over if you want, but won't compensate you. They wished they paid more attention in devil school.

What is this Demon's weapon made out of? - d8
[1] Dark Soulstuff. Souls that last hope so many times they lost all semblance of being.
[2] Steel forged in the fiery furnaces of hell itself. Look cruel and dirty but very strong.
[3] Bones and ligaments. It still bleeds.
[4] Demon horn and scales. Acts as an Unholy weapon, turning lawful/angels on a successful strike.
[5] Wood from the roots of the world. Very strong, can be stuck in stone to make rock indestructible.
[6] Dwarf weapon, fallen from an underground kingdom above. Notches mark promises broken.
[7] Stolen angelic weapon. Kept filthy and used as sex toy; its spirit must constantly be broken for the demons to be able to successfully use it.
[8] Soul of a sinful warrior, crushed and molten, made into the shape of a sword. His face is etched onto the flat of the blade, stuck in an endless scream of pain and battle.

The Devil himself flies overhead! What does he decree? - d6
[1] For 10 decades only, super sale at Hell Emporium! It's just an illusion from Mammon.
[2] He screams the name of the most sinful party member. Hell's forces descend on you.
[3] Babbles and pukes green slime, which rains down. If it touches you, holes open up on your flesh.
[4] He doesn't say anything; just draws a giant dick in the sky with his black contrail.
[5] Challenges the demon prince of this level of hell to show who is the boss. He will win.
[6] He's turned over a new leaf, ready to save the damned and make demons good- wishes to rejoin heaven instead of fight. 1 in 10 chance he's actually not joking.

Wednesday, June 19, 2019

[Class] Disciple

There are many paths through life. Some take the high road and live virtuously. Some take the path of the sword- and some seek inner mastery. Disciples are those who study to seek enlightenment. The Path of the Shadowy Death teaches its users to starve themselves in dark places until one day they can fade into darkness and become one with shadow. There is the Path of Peace, which teaches that its users must be totally nonviolent, to experience the peace of the afterlife with their limited time. But by far the most famous and potent path is the Path of Many Ways.

Disciples of the Many Ways are martial experts. They learn martial arts, combat, and train their bodies relentlessly. Unlike many of the more strict paths, Disciples of the Many Ways are allowed to incorporate many training techniques and don't have the same ritualistic observances as other schools. This is the reason why all the Disciples you'll see adventuring are Disciples of the Many Ways. Disciples of the Many Ways can also seek wealth, wives, and can engage in pointless pursuits like violence or honor even if true masters shun such things. Young adherents are fully engrossed in worldly pursuits; this is all part of learning how much they don't matter.

Disciple
HD- d8
Max AC- 14 / Minimum Hit-Points- 5

Disciples are warrior adherents. You've trained your body and mind into a weapon. You can still use all weapons/armor- you're just really good at Special Moves. You're a lot like a Monk.

Every Odd level, including 1st level, you get +1 to hit with all weapons and attacks. You also get +1 to saves versus poison at the same rate.

At 2nd, 4th,6th, and 8th level, you get +1 AC.

You are an expert at Blade Arts. Secret Techniques are something any class can learn, but you're the best at it. You can learn any number of Special Moves; and begin play with a Difficulty 1 Special Move at 1st level, rolled on the table below.

You are a martial artist. You deal 1d4 damage on an unarmed attack, where as most characters only deal 1d2 or 1d3. You also start with a single martial arts style. Martial Art Styles are required to use the enhanced damage die and special moves that use unarmed combat strikes or defense as a base. Styles are based on animals, the weather, a gemstone, etc. Every style encompasses the movements, strikes, and blocks flowing from that inspiration- but styles aren't perfect. If you are an expert at Snake style, then Mongoose style is your counter. Burning Emerald Fist is popular, because it counters the Killing Sapphire Strike, etc.

Whenever your style is countered, your opponent gains advantage on attack rolls against you and gains advantage on saving throws against your moves. These styles only work on martial arts, and have little effect on weapon users. You can switch styles at the start of a round.

If you are at least 7th level, you can make your own unique style. Making your own style involves meditation, study, and experimentation. You must observe an animal in nature, or own and find the fracture points of a 5,000c cost precious stone with your fingers, etc. It takes a season to create your style. Before this point, your character will need to learn new styles from Masters of the Many Ways. At 10th level you can start making multiple new styles.

Starting at 5th level, you gain a supernatural level of agility that lets you move on things that cannot support your weight. This ability scales further as you level further, eventually allowing you to run on water or balance on a spear's tip.

At 10th level, you become a Master of Many Ways. Masters are heralded as having learned enough from the many paths they've traveled, reaching a new level of understanding. Masters gain access to a Dojo, which is usually in a misty mountain or in some isolated place. Every Season, many new students will join the Dojo, but only 1d4-2 will remain at the end of the Season, to become 0th Level Disciples themselves, who can be trained further. After the first few years; you'll be famous and established enough to get invited to martial arts tournaments, have rival schools show up to beat up your students and vice versa, and be sought as a source of Wisdom and training in your styles from roaming Disciples of the Many Ways. Your most basic expenses of bland staple food, simple robes, and straw mats are taken care of for you and your students. Wandering Disciples that you train may move heaven and earth for you to simply gain a few new skills; you could shake them down for quite a lot of wealth, or trade knowledge for a few peaches.

Additionally, you gain the power of Stunning Fist. Whenever you land an unarmed martial arts attack, you can choose to make the result a one round stun instead of a damage roll, and you can do it after you have rolled the damage; picking a stun over a low damage roll. You can also chain this ability with any special moves or martial arts that require a successful attack roll- letting you perform 1d4+1 multiple debilitating martial arts moves in a single round's worth of attack. If you're already allowing this ability, then gain an extra attack instead.

Disciple Starting Special Moves – 1d10
[1] Throwing Bull Movement
Use the strength and momentum of your enemy against them. When engaged in a grapple, you can substitute your enemy's Strength modifier for your own if it's bigger. The maximum modifier you can swap is a +4; enemy's with levels of Strength above this are just too strong to fully control, but you can still keep up to +4 against gargantuan strength.

[2] Reach Heaven through Violence
Whenever you hit a foe with an attack roll of 20, put a tally mark on your sheet. Once you get 3 tally marks, you can create your own unique style based on a variation of your favorite one. Gorilla Twist style becomes Monkey Kick style, and so on. You can only create one style from this move.

[3] Old Man's Cane strikes at Spirits
When using a bo staff, you can strike at beings that can only be hit with magic weapons or spells. This only works with purely wooden implements; metal caps and sharpened points ruin the magic.

[4] Way of the Closed Fist
You deal +1 damage with unarmed attacks. This affects all styles equally; you strike with much more aggression then most practitioners.

[5] Contortionist slithers like Snake
You can move at half speed when bound, tied up, or otherwise stuck in place by anything you could feasibly move through. For instance, crawling like a worm when tied up, or 'swimming' through entangling roots. This doesn't work for being frozen in place or bound by a strong creature.

[6] Whirlwind sends back the Twigs
If you give up your attack roll, you have a 4 in 6 chance to deflect an arrow or throwing weapon as long as you're using a whip, nunchuck, or other flail like weapon. Even if you fail the deflect roll, the arrow still has to succeed against your AC. You can deflect arrows aimed at others behind or adjacent to you as well, but only one arrow per round.

[7] Immortal Prana Ember
If you fall to exactly 1 hit point, you can use up a combat round to perform a breath exercise that returns you up to 4 hit points. You can only do this once per adventure/day.

[8] Gorilla's Knuckle makes Thunder
This is actually a Difficulty 2 move, and you cannot use it yet. Everyone can learn this at the cost and training time of a Difficulty 1 move however. As part of learning this move, you constantly crack your knuckles until you can pull it off at 3rd level. By giving up your combat round to crack your knuckles, it creates a loud echoing noise that causes a morale check in animals.

[9] Defensive Ninjutsu
You get +1 to saves versus spells. You only get this benefit if you are totally unencumbered.

[10] Gleaming Sword speaks Truth
Any amount of times you can turn undead per day can be used instead for this ability. If you have a light level of at least a torch, and a highly polished mirror, weapons, or piece of armor, you can reflect light off of that object and at an undead creature dealing 1d4 damage of searing holy light, no save or attack roll needed. If you cannot turn undead, or have unlimited uses of turn undead, just let the character use this power 3 times per day.

`Errata
I've been working on this class and it's adjoining 50 Special Moves post for a while. The Monk is a weird place in a game with a specialized Fighting class- you might be pressed to remove one and keep the other depending on what theme your campaign is going for. Anyway; here are some little thoughts or extra rules that are relevant to this class.

The Disciple gaining AC may seems a bit powerful without a max AC rule. In my game, your AC has a cap based on your class. This simply means you get to wear less armor to get to your cap. If you don't use this cap, then reduce this to +1 AC at levels 4 and 8.

Styles are countered by each other in a semi-logical and semi-allegorical sense. Crane style counters Frog style, as the Crane eats the Frog. But Crane style is countered by Rat style, as the wily rat steals the Crane's eggs. Rat style is countered by Monsoon style, as the rat is drowned by the flood. But you know what comes out after a Monsoon? Frogs. Gemstone styles and other more esoteric styles aren't countered as easily- for Gemstones I'd say they're countered by a prettier gemstone. So if an enemy Disciple pulls out the Gleaming Diamond Technique you'd probably want to switch styles.

Finally; the supernatural movement mechanic might be quite powerful, especially at level 5, but with this character class's lack of out of combat usefulness it might be a decent niche. Additionally, with Rogues getting supernatural or nearly supernatural climbing and saves, this could be bled into that class as well, just at a later level.

Wednesday, June 12, 2019

50 Special Moves

Special moves, secret techniques, or “blade arts” are the names of special fighting techniques that characters can learn or develop. They act as a in-universe rule or justification for supernatural fighting prowess. Note that no special move should be able to grant a character a new power that should already be available to everyone; you don't need a special feat to swing on a rope while fighting with the pirates.

Each Technique has a difficulty. This is the minimum to hit bonus a character must have from their class in order to learn this skill. For example, a Fighter with +4 to hit total and has +1 Strength modifier would be able to learn difficulty 3 or less blade arts, as their Strength bonus does not reflect their martial mastery.

To learn a technique takes a number of Seasons of downtime equal to its difficulty -1. Difficulty 1 Blade Arts can be learned with just a few days or lessons of practice. Blade Arts also cost coins to learn, but this cost may be in addition to or supplemented by a minor or major quest, especially for higher level blade arts, which are only taught be reclusive masters in misty mountain dojos.

Every character can learn a number of Special Moves up to their class HD's highest possible roll. The exception are Monks, who can learn as many as they want.

Most techniques require a simple attack roll to execute, or have their own requirements listed. This list also assumes that unarmed attack damage begins at 1d2 or 1d3 for untrained characters without natural weapons; if this is not the case, then slide up the die sizes of moves that improve unarmed combat damage.

-Training Cost by Difficulty-
Difficulty 1 : 1,000c
Difficulty 2 : 4,000c
Difficulty 3 : 9,000c
Difficulty 4 : 16,000c
Difficulty 5 : 25,000c

-Move List By Difficulty-
Difficulty 1
[1] Dragon's Sheathe
This move lets you draw your blade in such a way to create a shower of sparks without causing damage to the blade or needing a special sheathe. You can only use this move with a bladed weapon, like a sword, dagger, or glaive. You can also draw your sword or dagger at a different angle, which does not create the sparks. The sparks fly out at anyone standing within melee striking range, dealing no damage, but allowing you to go first or temporarily blind those with sensitive eyesight. If the opponent is flammable, such as being covered in oil or wine, then this move instead ignites them and deals 1d4 or 1d6 damage from the quick burn. This move is mostly a dishonorable parlor trick.

[2] Blind Oracle's Touch
This special move isn't used in combat. Instead, it allows a simple touch from one character to potentially learn what skills and abilities of another creature has by studying their muscles and skin. Running a hand along theirs can sense their skills in archery or close combat, touching their legs can feel their stealth or speed, and touching their chest and back can sense if they are used to wearing heavy armor. The target of this ability doesn't get a saving throw, but unwilling targets will usually be restrained anyway or secretly being felt up to learn their combat prowess. If the character knows any specific powerful 5th difficulty blade arts then specific clues can be found in their body, such as light vibrations in their muscles for Quivering Palm.

[3] Sting of the Master's Blade
You never inflict real damage from your weapon unless you intend to. You can spar with full force and always stop short before dealing any real damage to your partner. Additionally, you can use this to change the damage type of a sword to blunt of one die size less without risking damage to the blade. Magic weapon bonus still applies but at a ½ rate, rounding down. +1 Magic swords therefore do not confer any magic bonus, as most of their magic is in the sharpness of their blade.

[4] The Falling Butterfly
Allows you to catch something sharp, dangerous,or explosive without hurting yourself. If the object is burning hot or acidic you will only be able to hold it for a single round before it start to harm you. This is “catch” from above, such as a oil lamp falling to the ground, not “thrown” such as an attack from an enemy. You do not need to roll or use a save to perform this skill, unlike other characters who may need to save to avoid the negative effects of whatever they're catching.

[5] Plug up the Dragon's Nose
If you put a finger in the barrel of a black powder weapon, it cannot fire. You cannot attack or perform any other action with that hand, and it only works if your finger totally blocks the hole, meaning you could not block up a cannon this way. If your setting doesn't use black powder, instead make it the tip of a crossbow bolt.

[6] The Lobster sheds its Skin
With a single combat round of precise movements, you can jump out of any suit of armor. This move will let you escape from armor that is burning or slowly crushing you from a spell or effect, but won't necessarily grant any protection from cursed armor unless taking it off this quickly would defend from the effects of its curse. You can treat the doff time of armor as essentially zero.

[7] Gears with Oil, Red as Blood
By learning this technique, you can now perform all of your martial arts pressure point and special moves on machines as well as people, with an appropriate level of effect and damage. This only works if you have an Intelligence of at least +1, or have special training in how complex machines like automatons and clockwork-men work.

[8] Way of the Open Palm
You get +1 to hit with unarmed melee attacks. While useful as a self defense tool, professional warriors can use much more sophisticated and powerful martial arts techniques to make their punches, kicks, and slaps as deadly as forged weapons of iron and steel.

[9] The Merchant's Only Friend
You can fling coins as deadly projectile weapons. They are flicked from between your fingers, and impact with almost the force of a sling. You deal 1d3 damage from the improvised weapons. Crushed and impacted coins lose surprisingly little value; gold is still gold.

[10] Nineteen Legged Stool
You can use a stool, farming mat or basket, metal bucket, a ladder, or other improvised item as a shield. Gain the normal AC bonus of a shield while using these items, though they will be destroyed from blocking powerful attacks such as axes or beast bites, since they were never meant to defend against weapons as a shield was. You still have to use up a hand to use the item.

Difficulty 2
[1] The Drunken Master
This special move lets you fight with your normal skill (normal To-Hit, AC, movement, saves, etc.) while under the effects of an intoxicating drug like alcohol or mad salts.

[2] Wick the Wax from the Scorpion's Tail
This move allows a character to remove the poison coated on a blade or other material by spending their turn dodging instead, granting +2 AC from no aggressive action. They will use their sleeve, scarf, or fur to remove the poison, thus no longer having an effect on the next successful attack roll, as long as this attack roll missed. You can also make a stealth roll to see if the enemy is aware of your trickery. Rogues can add their stealth bonus/sneak chance to this ability.

[3] Fists of Fury
Increase your unarmed attack damage to 1d4. If you had a natural weapon that already gave you 1d4 unarmed attack damage, such as cat claws, then just add +1 to your unarmed damage rolls. You can train this technique multiple times, but each time you must train it at the higher cost and difficulty of one higher, needing a new and better master to learn from, and each time you finish your training you gain a die size higher unarmed damage die; up to a maximum of d10 for a Difficulty 5 martial arts technique. Additionally, each martial arts school has their own name and style- some are based on animals, some on gemstones, some on elements, and so on. If an enemy combatant knows your martial arts school, they may be able to counter it, gaining a bonus against you in combat. Learning a different martial arts school may let you disrupt an enemy; it costs ½ the normal training costs of Fists of Fury, but you get to keep your highest possible damage die from your highest level technique.

[4] Broom in the Old Study
You can spin your arms around and spend a combat turn to push away gas, dust, or floating particles or even a swarm of small insects that aren't too aggressive or powerful. This creates a small radius of 15ft where the cloud will be absent from for at least two combat turns, and slowly fill back in or continue disappaiting depending on the source. If you use a staff with this move, then can be integrated into your normal attack and doesn't requires a round, plus the radius is doubled in size to 30 ft.

[5] I am but a Straw Mannequin
If you are at full hit points and are hit by a non-magic attack, you can roll a d20 + your to-hit bonus to make a very hard saving throw to avoid the damage instead; tucking the weapon under your armpit, allow the arrows to pin your bags and miss you by inches, etc. You can pretend to fall over or be in pain, but will require a stealth roll to fool anybody too close or clever to be easily deceived by this trick.

[6] Wanderer Digs for Water
You can go an extra day without water and an extra week without food. If you are a Fighter and have a Constitution score of at least +1, you can also learn a special technique where you sit absolutely still while awaiting rescue, conserving all your energy but allowing any attacker to get surprise against you in your deep stasis. While in that state, you can last up to a week without water or an entire month without food.

[7] Two Finger Steel Defense
If you are using unarmed combat while fighting an opponent that has a roughly human-like physiology and is also unarmed- you add +2 AC against their attacks. This doesn't work against anyone who knows a martial arts style; you stop clumsily thrown fists with just two fingers.

[8] Rigid Spine counters Earthquake
You can resist stun effects on a hard saving throw. If the stun effect already gave a saving throw to avoid or mitigate, then you just get +2 to that saving throw. Additionally, if you are capable of learning 5th Difficulty special moves, you can learn this move again at the 5th Difficulty cost and become totally immune to all stun effects outside of the ultimate magical or divine effects. Any stun effect that can force itself upon you only lasts a single turn.

[9] Falling Comet smites a Bird
When you are falling, you can grapple an opponent that is also falling to transfer the damage of your fall into them. If they die from the fall damage, you have to soak the remainder of your own fall damage. Additionally, you can jump from a high fall onto an enemy to transfer the speed of your fall into a powerful attack, dealing your fall damage into the enemy instead, but the enemy gets a saving throw to step out of the way and it requires stealth and positioning to use this move.

[10] Acupuncture
You are as skilled in the body for combat as you are for healing. As long as you use a proper acupuncture kit that costs at least 500c, you can employ it while healing other characters with spells or first aid, granting +2 to healing. Additionally, if anybody you heal has a damaged attribute that is one point away from the next ability modifier up, you can restore just enough functionality to that body's system to recover that one point.

Difficulty 3
[1] The Monkey's Tail
Using this move, the character can use a long rope or cord of fabric as a method to control a weapon at a distance. This allows for short ranged weapons to be used with reach as though they were a spear or whip. The long cord requires both hands to use, and can only make basic attacks with the weapon, meaning it cannot be combined with most other blade arts. Secondly, the cord can be cut as it must be made out of something flexible and soft. The enemy combatant may make an attack with a sharp weapon against the AC 10 cord and on a hit, it is severed, ending the control you have over the extended weapon and dropping it at their feat. If you are a Fighter with at least +4 to hit from your class bonus, then you may spend 50% of the training cost again to learn how to use this blade art with metal chains instead, raising the AC of the “monkey tail” to 18.

[2] Drinking Rain from a Falling Leaf
This move is similar to Wick the Wax from the Scorpion's Tail and requires that move to learn this one. This ability instead removes a temporary enchantment or power from a blade in the same method as poison; by dodging the lightning-infused sword so closely, you can cause it to fire off harmlessly next to you. This move only works on Blade Arts of an equal difficulty or less, and only works on spells of an equal level or less.

[3] Eagle's Cry
You can focus your voice into a powerful weapon. With intense training, your voice becomes powerful and shrill enough to deal damage; whenever you use this power you deal 1d6 damage to enemies directly in front of you in a small cone. All normal glass within a 50 ft radius shatter from the loud noise. If you use this power more then once in a single day, you lose your voice and cannot speak, cast spells, or use this ability for 1d3 days afterwards.

[4] Dancing Dagger
You can only use this move on a dagger, ninja star, or other small, concealable throwing weapon. Once you learn it, any dagger you throw will ricochet back to your hand on a missed ranged throwing attack, allowing you to use it in melee the next round or throw it again.

[5] Locklimb Chop
By hitting an unarmed attack, you can chose to deal no damage and instead lock an enemy's limb in place. If their arm is straight, then they cannot bend it. If it is bent, then they cannot straighten it out, etc. Saving throws are given to flexible enemies or those using weapons to still retain use of them, but some tools like shields or magic staves for spells may still be used even when the limb is locked in place. The creature has their limb locked like that for 1d6 combat rounds.

[6] My Body is Mountain
Once per day, your character can meditate for an exploration turn to stop their bleeding and close up wounds. This restores 1d6 hit points and requires no first aid or medical supplies to perform. You also get a second saving throw to resist a poison in your system.

[7] Speak no Spells
This move requires an unarmed attack roll to be made against an opponent and successfully hit. The attack deals no damage, but strikes a pressure point in their throat that prevents them from speaking. Using this prevents magic users from speaking a spell incantation; thus silencing their magic. This lasts for 1d4 combat rounds.

[8] Rawhide is my Flesh
By concentrating on defense for a combat round instead of attacking, you can lower all the damage you take from acid spells, attacks, or other sources by -2 damage per hit. Attacks that deal 2 or less damage are totally ignored, as you wipe them off your skin before they can burn into you, but any secondary effect of the acid or spell still occurs. Additionally, this move raises your AC by +1 whenever you use another defensive combat action or use up your combat round to defend yourself.

[9] This Blade I So Name
You can name a weapon using the ancient arts. You must also impact the weapon with some tradition and mark; such as a rune, a bright tassel, or a notch for each life it has taken. This weapon counts as magic for the purposes of hitting enemies immune to normal weapons, but has no special magical properties. If you can learn 4th Difficulty moves then you can spend ½ the training cost again, you can make any weapon you have named have an ego score of 1. This means laymen cannot use it without fumbling the weapon, as it refuses to serve lesser warriors. You can only name one weapon a year.

[10] The Shadow Cuts at Noon
You can make an extended attack with a spear, rapier, or other mostly piercing weapon melee weapon. This requires you not to move and charging your balance. The weapon is thrust forward, but the piercing energy of the attack is carried forward- piercing through all enemies in a line in front of the weapon, extending up for a maximum of 25 ft. This ability is more tiring then standard attacks and as such can only be used a few times before the character will be too tired to continue using it in a fight. Make a saving throw to avoid fatigue if you use it more then twice in any combat encounter, or if you use it too many times once per day.

Difficulty 4
[1] Hand of the Typhoon
This move allows for the transfer of force through the medium of water. The slash of a sword or punch of a fist transfers through water and can strike your foe at a distance, dealing 1d4 damage of the appropriate type. By paying ½ the training cost again, you can learn to do this through all other similar mediums, such as through sheets and blankets in the Sultan's palace, sand and gravel along a beach, or long grass in a field.

[2] Dragon's Blade
By cultivating an inner fire and practicing lightning-fast movements with a sword, you may engulf your blade in fire by spending a combat round waving it around to gather the heat and ignite the metal. The scorching heat of the blade deals +1d6 fire damage on any successful hit. Weapons that use this technique that are not magical are singed and corroded with soot, giving -1 to hit with that weapon until it is properly cleaned and polished. Magic weapons or weapons made of super heat-resistant material ignore this effect. The Dragon's Blade lasts up to an exploration turn and can be used as a makeshift torch. Those who cultivate this ability use an inner flame, and as such it can only be used once per day until the spark is rekindled.

[3] The Hidden Knife
You can redirect the force of your fists and feet into cutting damage instead of blunt damage. You can do this to either deal damage to an enemy immune to slicing damage, or to cut through something vulnerable to cutting like a rope or vines. This does not change the damage of your unarmed attacks, just the type of damage it deals. Additionally, you can use just a single finger as a penetrating or piercing type damage attack as well, if your game is so specific with damage types.

[4] Clawing Tiger
If an enemy you are facing has AC of 10 or lower, you don't have to roll to hit, you hit automatically. This applies to standard weapons and unarmed combat attacks, but not ranged weapons.

[5] River God's Skin & Scale
Your body is toughened and hardened by this technique. The training time for this technique is doubled, as your body must be constantly subjected to light scratches and wounds as well as beaten and rinsed with special oils and salts. After the training is over, your skin is much tougher. You gain +2 maximum hit points and no longer take damage from caltrops, light needle traps, or being trapped in an iron maiden. This also means you cannot be poisoned by a blowgun or similar, as the needle lacks the depth and strength to reach your bloodstream.

[6] Death After October
When you die, your character can instead have their blood and body instantly freeze with ice, going totally stiff. This prevents any healing spells or medical attention from being used on them until they thaw, but also prevents their body from being further ravaged or rotten or turned into an undead slave by an evil necromancer. Their body thaws in typical summer weather and if they are placed next to a fire, but can stay frozen essentially forever if placed in a cold, damp place. This spell can be used to preserve a corpse for a resurrection spell, or to protect a vital treasure held close to the corpse's breast, since nothing they are wearing or carrying can be taken until they thaw.

[7] Hold Fast against Death's Specter
You can project your life energy into a barrier that protects you against the terrible effects of negative energy. You get +2 to saves vs death. This power is passive, and is always on as long as you are capable of fighting. When against ghosts or level-draining undead, your skin glows a white sheen, and black smoke rises whenever they touch you and you succeed your saves against them.

[8] Strike the Hidden Point
By studying one race's biology, you can learn their secret pressure points. Whenever you defeat a foe with an unarmed melee strike, or are attacking an otherwise helpless or near-death victim, you can choose to instead paralyze them temporarily or deal 1d6 damage to any stat of your choice from disrupting their bodies own channels. You have to pay the training cost again each time you want to learn a new race's biological systems. Some races, such as High Elves, may be too supernatural or superior biologically for them to have pressure points you can exploit in the first place.

[9] Shear-Steel
Anyone can attempt to break armor or weapons of significantly weaker quality or material then the type they are using; even a layman without this move can damage iron weapons with steel, or destroy iron with mithril. This power lets a warrior channel their own toughness into their blade or armor, treating it as one level of material strength higher. Wooden weapons become as tough as iron, iron is as steel, steel is as mithril, and so on.

[10] Dream of the Slave
When you are bound and tied, you may attempt to burst free. Roll a saving throw, and on a success you can rip apart ropes, leather muzzles and leashes, and wooden bindings. If your Strength score is at least +3, you can also do this to iron chains. If you are trapped by magical shackles or locked in place or in a prison made of magic, you can also attempt this but instead use your Wisdom score as a limit on how powerful an enchantment you can break free from.

Difficulty 5
[1] The Flying Swordsman
This ability teaches the fighter to be able to balance and hold their weight on things too weak to do so normally, run across light surfaces like fabric or water without falling through, and balance on precarious places. Learning this ability requires at least +2 from your Dexterity from natural talent, training, or magic items. While this ability is similar to the ninjitsu Rogues gain through leveling up, yours is always a bit more brutish and less agile then theirs.

[2] The Spirit in the Sword
Using this power, you can evoke a magic weapon's ability at a range to create a single spell-like effect. Blades with an ice enchantment could throw out a blast of ice, dealing the damage of the ice enchantment as a ranged attack. Swords with incredible sharpness instead could cut something at a distance instead, or do a simple ranged attack. Magic blasts caused by this power deal the enchantment/special damage plus the magic value of the weapon, such as +2 to the damage for a +2 magic sword, etc. Magic weapons with a more powerful, intelligent spirit are actually manifested as a real spirit entity, with stats and abilities befitting of what the sword's spirit is. After using this power, the sword loses its magic enchantment (but remains as durable) for the rest of the day. Weapons with intelligent spirits can last for up to 1d4 exploration turns before disappearing and falling silent for the rest of the day, until the sword has had time to recuperate.

[3] The Pit of Death
You must use a blunt weapon or the blunt end of a specialized weapon to use this power. When you strike the ground with all your might, you can create a small crack in the floor, rocky earth, or soft soil to create a small pit. The pit is filled with spikes, including the bones of dead animals, cave stalagmites, and bits of buried wood all pointing up. Anyone pushed into this pit or thrown down there would take massive damage from the fall and being impaled; equal to 3d10 piercing damage. You can also choose to hit the ground a little less hard to make the pit just flat instead, which could be used to trap people or make an impromptu arena for you to fight something 1 on 1. This power has no daily limit but if abused to dig trenches or latrines it still tires you out as though you had dug the pit yourself; it's a powerful martial arts move, not a magic shovel.

[4] Quivering Palm
This ability lets you channel the vital energy of a foe into a deadly weapon. Creatures killed by this move have their blood boil and explode like a bomb, their eyes pop out, muscles spasm and break their spine or any number of other of gruesome fates. You can do this whenever you kill a living creature with an unarmed attack if you so choose. Additionally, if you hit a foe with low enough hit points that your attack could have killed them, but your damage roll was too low, you can instead strike their pressure points and make them into a ticking time bomb. They get one final round to act, either to make an attack or blurt something out, and then their body rips apart in a manner described above. If they manage to heal enough hit points that your strongest attack couldn't kill them anymore in their final round, then they get a save vs death. On a failure, they die anyway. On a success, they survive but take 2d6 damage in a random stat or lose -1 HD from the internal damage.

[5] Flawless Thoughts of Crystal
You are immune to mind control and mind-effecting powers. You can always sense illusions, and your roll to disbelieve is an easy saving throw. If something absolutely has to still mess with your brain, or if you are hit by a spell or move that is god-like in power, then just resist 90% of the effect. For example, if you were to see a Lovecraftian horror that kills you just by seeing it, just take a maximum of 1d6 damage instead. Additionally, you may tap someone on the head to give them a bonus saving throw against any mind effecting ability that is harming them.

[6] Limitless Breath within your Breast
You cannot be paralyzed. Any spell or effect that would paralyze you is ignored, saves automatically succeed against paralysis. If an effect is so powerful as you cannot resist it, such as a curse by the Gods, then you are half paralyzed instead. Additionally, this power lets you break out of being petrified or turned to stone after 1 exploration turn of being trapped- this works even on permanent changes into stone.

[7] Suffer thy Sorcery
This move requires an unarmed attack roll against a target, which must hit- you deal normal damage. If you already know Speak no Spells, then you get +2 to hit with this move. This ability penetrates the aura of a magic user and disjoints their magical powers; reversing the effect of their next spell or a current spell and sending it back to them. Additionally, this move ignores magical shields and barrier 3rd level and lower in strength. Magic users get the same saves against their own spell effects, but at -2 if you know Speak no Spells.

[8] Power Within
By concentrating and spending your combat round channeling your energy, you can temporarily enter a state of increased power. The character's muscles bulge and clothes rip, and subtle energy collects around their frame. After channeling this power, the character gains temporary bonuses of +1 HD and treat their level as one higher. Additionally, they get +2 to hit, damage, AC, saves, and treat all stat modifiers as +1 higher, and get an extra attack per round. This state lasts an entire combat, but is very draining and causes extreme fatigue once it wears off. It cannot be used again until the character has gained several thousand XP or has had a long recovery period with ancient remedies.

[9] Enlightened Master God Defense
This move is one of the most powerful and rare of the martial arts moves. Increase training cost by an additional +10% and requires a very special tutor. Additionally, once this move is learned you gain +1 AC permanently from this ancient wisdom.

You stand still in absolute concentration, and focus the perfect flawless defense of the Gods into your stance. No matter what attack strikes at you, they are blocked, parried, dodged, or absorbed without taking any damage. This applies to melee attacks, ranged attacks, direct damage spells, and supernatural attacks such as dragon breath or the damaging bolts from magic rods- however this protection does not apply to cursing spells or spells that cause damage indirectly. While using the Enlightened Master God Defense stance, you are restricted by several factors.

  • You cannot advance forwards even a single step. You can only step back, thus ceding ground to the enemy.
  • You cannot attack while using this move.
  • You cannot use this move while under the effect of a poison or disease strong enough to make you feel sick or feeble.
  • Your equipment takes damage; your armor and weapon will start to chip, crack, and break from the strain and absorbing all the damage of the attacks.

If you are struck in combat, you lose the ability to use the perfect defense move for the rest of that combat- the technique requires a certain focus and esoteric energy reserves in the body that take time to replenish. It is said this move is so perfect it can even block a single attack from a divine weapon, but this only works once.

[10] Enlightened Master God Assault
This move is one of the most powerful and rare of the martial arts moves. Increase training cost by an additional +10% and requires a very special tutor. Additionally, once this move is learned you gain +1 to-hit permanently from this ancient wisdom.

You concentrate, then jump at any foe you choose with supernatural vigor and ferocity. Every attack you hit will strike. The opponent will always take the hit, and you will always deal the maximum possible damage that your attack can deal. Next round, you can attack the same foe again and automatically hit, dealing maximum damage each and every time. If your character has multiple attacks, then all of them do the same thing as long as you focus them on your one opponent.

  • You cannot change targets or shift focus. As in; you cannot change weapons, use other fighting moves, drink a potion, etc.
  • If an enemy successfully grapples, blocks your path, or restrains you, the effect will end early.
  • You cannot use this move if the enemy is a friend or if you do not wish to truly kill them. This is a mostly flavor restriction, and unlikely to come up in actual play.
  • If your weapon is broken, you must cease the assault.

Once the assault ends, you cannot perform another this combat. The Master-God attack requires a sort of mental state that cannot be reused so quickly after the first one, and relies on esoteric energy reserves in the body that take time to replenish. This move is so powerful that no blade art or magic armor could stop it, with only the exception of a divine level defense. However, this move can still get one strike in against such a defense, even where a normal attack would have no chance, but you can only pull it off once versus a divine defense.