Revised Samurai Core Class

This is the second draft of the Samurai Core Class that I have been working on. Thanks to everyone's feedback, I have fixed a lot of errors and filled in a lot of gaps in the character concept, and I am satisfied with the final product.

But it is far from being finished...feedback is invited and appreciated. With everyone's help, this could be the best one out there.

-Trav


Core Class: Samurai

Characteristics: What sets a samurai apart from all other classes is the code of bushido, or “way of the warrior.” Bushido is a code of conduct, a system of honor and loyalty that governs every aspect of the samurai’s life. A samurai lives only to bring honor to his lord, to his family, and to himself.

Samurai are highly-trained combatants, each focusing on a particular fighting style. The stereotypical samurai is the student of the katana (bastard sword) but it is important to note that many samurai were also skilled horsemen, archers, and shock troops. Samurai were trained in the ways of kenjutsu (“sword methods,”) kyuba no machi (“the way of the horse and bow,”) and sodo (“the way of the spear.”)

Game Rule Information

Samurai have the following game statistics.

Alignment: any Lawful

Hit Dice: d10


Class Skills
The samurai’s Class Skills (and the key abilities for each) are Concentration (Con), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Knowledge [history] (Int), Knowledge [nobility] (Int), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), and Swim (Str).

Skill Points at 1st Level: (4 + Intelligence modifier) x 4

Skill Points per Level: 4 + Intelligence modifier


Class Features
The following are the class features of the samurai class.


Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: The samurai is proficient with all simple and martial weapons, as well as the katana (bastard sword). They are proficient with all armor, but not shields.


Focused Strike (Ex): By concentrating on a chosen foe, the samurai can deliver powerful blows that deal devastating amounts of damage.

To use this ability, the samurai first selects a single opponent in a space that he threatens. The samurai then makes a Concentration check (DC = selected opponent’s Armor Class). If successful, he may make a single attack against that creature with a +2 bonus to the hit and damage rolls. Using this ability is a full-round action that does not provoke attacks of opportunity.

If the Concentration check is unsuccessful, the samurai may still make an attack against the target opponent, but the bonus to hit and damage does not apply. In the event of a critical hit, the extra damage from the Focused Strike is not multiplied. Creatures that are not subject to critical hits, as well as creatures whose vital areas are out of the samurai’s reach, do not take extra damage from a Focused Strike, but the bonus to the attack roll still applies.

The bonuses to the attack and damage rolls improves to +4 at 5th level, and increases by +2 for every 5 levels thereafter (+6 at 10th level, +8 at 15th level, etc.) to a maximum of +10 at 20th level.


Staredown (Ex): [modified from "Complete Warrior," page 10.] Beginning at 1st level, a samurai gains a +4 bonus to all Intimidate checks made to demoralize an opponent (see the Intimidate skill description in the SRD for more information).

At 9th level, the samurai may demoralize all opponents within 30 feet, with a single Intimidate check as a standard action. The samurai need not threaten his opponents to demoralize them, although he must be visible to them.

At 14th level, the samurai may demoralize all opponents within 30 feet with a single Intimidate check as above, but may do so as a move action.


Combat Style (Ex): At 2nd level, a samurai selects one of three combat styles to pursue: kenjutsu, kyuba, or sodo. This choice affects the character’s class features, but does not restrict his selection of feats or special abilities in any way.

Kenjutsu (“sword methods”) is a fighting style that focuses on using the katana. If a samurai chooses kenjutsu as his fighting style, he is treated as having the Cleave feat even if he does not have the normal prerequisite for that feat, but only while fighting with the katana.

Kyuba (short for kyuba no machi or “way of the horse and bow”) is a fighting style that focuses on mounted combat and archery. If a samurai chooses kyuba as his fighting style, he is treated as having the Mounted Archery feat even if he does not have the normal prerequisites for that feat.

Sodo (“way of the spear”) is a fighting style that focuses on combat with polearms. If a samurai chooses sodo as his fighting style, he is treated as having the Improved Trip feat even if he does not have the normal prerequisite for that feat, but only when fighting with a polearm. A polearm is defined as a longspear, naginata (glaive), ranseur, or yari (guisarme) for the purposes of this ability.

Unlike the ranger class, a samurai retains the benefits of his combat style while wearing any kind of armor.


Iaijutsu (Ex): At 3rd level, the samurai gains the Quick Draw feat for free as a bonus feat.


Improved Combat Style (Ex): At 6th level, a samurai’s aptitude in his chosen combat style (kenjutsu, kyubi, or sodo) improves.

If he selected kenjutsu at 2nd level, he is treated as having the Great Cleave feat, but only when fighting with the katana. If he selected kyuba, he is treated as having the Ride-By Attack feat. If he selected sodo, he is treated as having the Spring Attack feat, but only when fighting with a polearm. He gains this ability even if he does not have the normal prerequisites for that particular feat.

As before, a samurai retains the benefits of his combat style while wearing any kind of armor.


Damage Reduction (Ex): At 7th level, a samurai gains Damage Reduction. Subtract 1 from the damage the samurai takes each time he is dealt damage from a weapon or a natural attack. At 10th level, and every three Samurai levels thereafter (13th, 16th, and 19th level), this damage reduction increases by 1 point. Damage reduction can reduce damage to zero, but not below 0.


Combat Style Mastery (Ex): At 11th level, a samurai’s aptitude in his chosen combat style (kenjutsu, kyubi, or sodo) improves again.

If the samurai chose kenjutsu as his combat style, he is treated as having the Improved Critical [katana] feat. If the Samurai chose kyuba as his combat style, he is treated as having the Spirited Charge feat. If the samurai chose sodo as his combat style, he is treated as having the Whirlwind Attack feat, but only when fighting with a polearm. He gains these abilities even if he does not meet the normal prerequisites for these feats.

As before, a samurai retains the benefits of his combat style while wearing any kind of armor.


Perfect Strike (Ex): Once per day, the samurai may declare any successful melee attack to be an automatic threat for a critical hit. This threat for a critical hit is then confirmed normally. Items and attacks that are triggered by critical hits (such as icy burst or vorpal weapons) do not function with this ability, although the weapon still scores critical damage if confirmed.


Crippling Strike (Ex): Once per day, the samurai may use his Focused Strike ability to deal a powerful blow that drains his foe’s strength. The samurai must state that he wishes to use this ability before making the attack roll (thus, a failed attack ruins the attempt). If the Focused Strike is successful and the attack hits, his opponent takes damage as normal and also suffers 1d10 points of temporary Strength damage.

Lost strength returns at the rate of 1 point per hour. This ability cannot reduce an opponent’s strength score below 1, and creatures with no strength scores (such as incorporeal creatures) are not affected by this ability.


Combat Style Perfection (Ex): At 17th level, the samurai has become the unequalled master of his chosen combat style (kenjutsu, kyubi, or sodo).

If the samurai chose kenjutsu as his combat style, he gains the Supreme Cleave ability. This ability allows the samurai to take a single five-foot step between cleave attacks, while using his Greater Cleave ability. These five-foot steps count towards the samurai’s allowable movement for the round, and are subject to all normal rules of movement (such as provoking attacks of opportunity, unsure footing, and difficult terrain). As with all kenjutsu abilities, the Mighty Cleave may only be used when the Samurai is fighting with the katana.

If the samurai chose kyuba as his combat style, his mounted archery achieves perfection, allowing him to make ranged attacks while mounted almost as well as he can when standing on the ground. The samurai no longer suffers any penalties for ranged attacks made from the back of a mount moving at its normal speed, and takes only a -2 penalty to ranged attacks made from the back of a running (or charging) mount.

If the samurai chose sodo as his combat style, he gains a special Lunging Strike ability. This ability allows the samurai to attack adjacent foes as well as foes who are 10 feet away, when fighting with a polearm. As with all sodo abilities, the Lunging Strike may only be used when the samurai is fighting with a longspear, naginata (glaive), ranseur, or yari (guisarme).

A Samurai retains the benefits of his combat style while wearing any kind of armor.


Deadly Strike (Ex): Once per day, the samurai may use his Focused Strike ability to slay an opponent in a single blow. The samurai must state that he wishes to use this ability before making the Focused Strike (thus, a failed Concentration check or a failed attack roll ruins the attempt for the day). If the Focused Strike is successful, the opponent takes damage as normal and must make a Fortitude save (DC = 10 + ½ Samurai level + Samurai’s Charisma modifier) or die from massive damage.


Multiclassing Note: Like a member of any other classs, a samurai may be a multiclass character, but multiclass samurai face a special restriction. A samurai who gains a new class level or (if already multiclass) raises another class by a level may never again raise his samurai level, though he retains all of his samurai abilities.


Ex-Samurai (ronin): A samurai who willfully commits an act against his lord, who grossly violates the code of bushido, who ceases to be lawful in alignment, or is released from service by his lord (often when the samurai's lord dies or is removed from power) cannot continue to gain levels as a samurai. Such samurai are known as ronin.

Ronin retain all class abilities of his samurai class, but cannot gain further levels as a samurai until he has properly atoned for his misdeeds. Due to the nature of his offense or release, this could be as simple as a public apology, or as dire as ritualistic suicide. Ronin are able to advance in levels of other classes (becoming multiclass characters), but if they choose to do so, they may never again return to the path of samurai (see Multiclassing Note, above.)


Core Class: Samurai

Lv...BAT.............Fort...Ref...Will...Special

1....+1...............+2....+0....+2.....Focused Strike +2, Staredown
2....+2...............+3....+0....+3.....Combat Style
3....+3...............+3....+1....+3.....Iaijutsu
4....+4...............+4....+1....+4
5....+5...............+4....+1....+4.....Focused Strike +4
6....+6/+1............+5....+2....+5.....Improved Combat Style
7....+7/+2............+5....+2....+5.....Damage reduction 1/-
8....+8/+3............+6....+2....+6
9....+9/+4............+6....+3....+6.....Staredown (30’ range)
10...+10/+5...........+7....+3....+7.....Focused Strike +6
11...+11/+6/+1........+7....+3....+7.....Combat Style Mastery, DR 2/-
12...+12/+7/+2........+8....+4....+8.....Perfect Strike
13...+13/+8/+3........+8....+4....+8.....
14...+14/+9/+4........+9....+4....+9.....Staredown (move action), Crippling Strike
15...+15/+10/+5.......+9....+5....+9.....Focused Strike +8, DR 3/-
16...+16/+11/+6/+1....+10...+5....+10....
17...+17/+12/+7/+2....+10...+5....+10....Combat Style Perfection
18...+18/+13/+8/+3....+11...+6....+11....Deadly Strike
19...+19/+14/+9/+4....+11...+6....+11....DR 4/-
20...+20/+15/+10/+5...+12...+6....+12....Focused Strike +10

I like it a lot... except for focused strike. I think it needs a daily use limit. It's so similar to a smite, but there's no cap on usage. With the concentration roll, you could do it more often - make it 3/day + Con or something.

You might want to rename Lunging Strike, since that implies being able to attack opponents who are even farther away, not closer. Perhaps you could call it Close Strike?

Overall, great work!

Why not just make it a Smite Foe attack, without alignment restrictions (or other types of restrictions)? Simplified usage, well known and balanced mechanic.

Otherwise, all the abilities are combat focused, which I think is wonky. Samurai have so much potential for additional role-play with Leadership functions, Court Intrigue, Renown Status, and not to mention additional fighting styles like Unarmed Fighting.

I hate the previous Samurai incarnations, but I cannot give much more to yours at this time because yours is only a more narrowly focused Fighter. Add mechanics that deal with the Samurai's role, not just their combat ability. Samurai should be Empire Building, conducting war, quelling rebellions, maneuvering for political prestige, inspiring the common folk. That's what I would like to see in a balanced Samurai base class.

[edit] Oh, and don't take it too personally. I am sure you put a lot of work and thought into what you have already.

XCorvis said:

I like it a lot... except for focused strike. I think it needs a daily use limit. It's so similar to a smite, but there's no cap on usage. With the concentration roll, you could do it more often - make it 3/day + Con or something.

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I guess my ultimate goal with this ability was to create something that mimicks the ranger's "favored enemy" ability...but instead of applying a bonus to skills and damage rolls, it applied to attack and damage. And instead of applying to a wide selection of monsters based on type, it applies only to one particular monster at at time and only once per round. I think it is balanced enough; I've been playtesting it for a little more than a week and haven't come across any balance issues.

At higher levels, the Samurai can eventually have enough ranks in Concentration that he is almost guaranteed the bonus. But at these higher levels, he has to choose if he wants to make a single attack with a high bonus to hit and damage, or if he wants to make multiple attacks with the "full attack" option. Four attacks with a katana in a single round is far more damaging than a Focused Strike ever will be...but it might be better to use a Focused Strike against a monster with a high AC.

XCorvis said:

Overall, great work!

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Thanks...it's been fun putting it together. If you would like to playtest it for me, feel free to do so and let me know if you find any balance issues.

Hey there, long time no see...or something.

I was going to say something about the Crippling Strike, but a double-check let me see that it was only once/day. Looks good then, hehe.

I'll have to give it some play-testing time, but it looks pretty good to me, *nod*

smootrk said:

Otherwise, all the abilities are combat focused, which I think is wonky. Samurai have so much potential for additional role-play with Leadership functions, Court Intrigue, Renown Status, and not to mention additional fighting styles like Unarmed Fighting.

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Geez, where were you last week, when I was fishing for non-combat abilities of the Samurai? I want this class to be as true to history as possible, and all I have been able to find so far is combat-related. There was something about a tea ceremony, and a little about the rite of passage of a student and his master, but other than that, all I can find is info on weapons that were used, combat tactics, and the like.

smootrk said:

I hate the previous Samurai incarnations, but I cannot give much more to yours at this time because yours is only a more narrowly focused Fighter.

Click to expand...

Its closer to being a more narrowly focused Ranger, but I get what you are saying.

smootrk said:

Add mechanics that deal with the Samurai's role, not just their combat ability. Samurai should be Empire Building, conducting war, quelling rebellions, maneuvering for political prestige, inspiring the common folk. That's what I would like to see in a balanced Samurai base class.

Click to expand...

The problem I am running into there is, most of these things could be handled through good role-playing. By putting enough points into Diplomacy and taking the Leadership feat, any character could accomplish what you are recommending.

In other words, a character class doesn't need a special ability or class feature in order to do something well. A paladin can summon a special mount...but he is no more skilled at riding it than an ordinary fighter is. Clerics make great diplomats and leaders, but so do bards, rogues, paladins, aristocrats, and experts. It all depends on how much role-playing you intend to do with your character, versus how much dice-throwing you want to do.

smootrk said:

[edit] Oh, and don't take it too personally. I am sure you put a lot of work and thought into what you have already.

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Dude, I never take criticism personally. Okay, maybe not 'never,' but you know what I mean. I appreciate your feedback, and I hope you won't hesitate to offer suggestions on how to improve this class. So far, my gaming group likes what I have come up with...but that doesn't mean I should call it "good enough" and move on.

Kularian said:

Hey there, long time no see...or something.

I was going to say something about the Crippling Strike, but a double-check let me see that it was only once/day. Looks good then, hehe.

I'll have to give it some play-testing time, but it looks pretty good to me, *nod*

Click to expand...

Excellent! I would love to have more play-testers on the project. Let me know if you spot anything funky in the class (especially in the power department...I despise power bugs that players could exploit.)

Maybe you should look to the Marshall class (Mini Handbook) for some ideas for inspiring and commanding. I think in one of OA books there is a class that is something of a Court Official (cannot remember the name), which has abilities that deal with Nobility, Influence, etc.

Samurai ought to have at least some bonus to deal with situations out of combat - just watch some Japanese Samurai movies (ones that at least try to stay close to historical accuracy) and you notice that although they excel at swordplay, they do so as last resort typically.

Using your above comment, maybe a Samurai should get Leadership for 'free' as long as he is actively serving a 'lord' to represent the men he is charged with leading in the name of his lord. Going further, possibly you should delve into the Heroes of Battle book for more 'command' type abilities that may be appropriate for a true Samurai.

I guess what I am trying to say is that the Samurai is much more than a great swordsman, and that should reflect in the class design. There are mechanics out there that play to non-fighting aspects that you can explore. Even Bards, Clerics, etc. are built with specific abilities that work with the 'speaking & influencing' aspects (including the nature of their spell lists). Charisma is naturally a desired stat that they must take to perform their class 'duties' well.

As to the abilities you have presently:

DR? I don't see where this has much relevance historically.

Focused Strike (and its add-ons)? I would prefer a simpler mechanic like Smite, mentioned already above, although special add-ons to the smite are a good idea (like the abilities you already mentioned).

Combat Style? I like this idea, but I would just emulate already established styles like Ranger styles including the expanded choices that appeared in Dragon Magazine - although giving them specific names (like you have) is very cool.

Crippling Strike? why not just make it the same as the rogue ability? Why make a new and different ability when the rogue one would do just fine?

Deadly Stike? why not just make it the same as the Assasin ability? Study the foe for a couple of rounds, fighting defensively (or total defense), then strike hard with a Smite (from above). Seems just fine, but you would need to allow a non-sneak attack (the smite) to work as a tweak to the ability, but I do not think it breaks balance.


In other words, why create new, untested, and potentially unbalanced mechanics to do what is most likely already available (playtested, balanced, and well established)? I don't like when I have create an altogether new ability when I can get essentially the same done with an already established one - someone inevitably points out a flaw in my thinking. Using an existing mechanic, albeit it may need a tweak to suit the class, is probably a better methodology to creation of new classes.

Again, all my comments are meant to be constructive. I know it really takes a lot of work to create a new class.

smootrk said:

In other words, why create new, untested, and potentially unbalanced mechanics to do what is most likely already available (playtested, balanced, and well established)? I don't like when I have create an altogether new ability when I can get essentially the same done with an already established one - someone inevitably points out a flaw in my thinking. Using an existing mechanic, albeit it may need a tweak to suit the class, is probably a better methodology to creation of new classes.

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The biggest reason not to rely on non-SRD material is the copyright issue. I'm not necessarily trying to get this work published at the moment, but it would be nice to have the option if I choose to do so later. Borrowing material from Dragon Magazine, Oriental Adventures, Complete Warrior, and other non-SRD sources is kind of against the rules. Legal issues aside, it is just poor form.

Which is why I'm squeamish about a lot of the samurai's abilities. As you've mentioned, they are barely-modified abilities that were taken from non-SRD sources (like the Supreme Cleave feat from Sword and Fist, the Staredown and Lunging Strike abilities from Complete Warrior, and so on.) I haven't cited my sources or made any footnotes yet, so technically, I am in copyright violation at the moment.

As for Crippling Strike and Deadly strike abilities, changing them to the SRD version isn't such a bad idea. I was brainstorming for new ideas off-the-cuff, and just hammered out some notes. I'll make the changes in the final draft.

smootrk said:

Again, all my comments are meant to be constructive. I know it really takes a lot of work to create a new class.

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So I am learning. :\ But even with the questionable Focused Strike and DR, my players already feel that this class is worlds ahead of the one in Complete Warrior. And that was my goal when I started this project. Maybe for my next project, I will build a better ninja class, and really have everyone's boxers in a wad...

If you are planning on using this for publishing, then I understand your point, but if you are planning on simply having this for self-use or freely distributed over outlets like ENWorld (or elsewhere), then simply referencing or footnoting sources should be fine (and I believe everyone should give credit where credit is due).

I was doing a similar thinking process while designing a Geisha base class, but ultimately I got a bit bogged down and the effort was neglected. I completely understand the thinking and reviewing process. Maybe I can start up the Geisha project again.