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ShortQuests -- individual adventure modules! An all-new collection of digest-sized D&D adventures designed to plug in to your game.

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="drnuncheon" data-source="post: 854995" data-attributes="member: 96">I think the 'duelist culture' is pretty fascinating too.  I once had a campaign where mage schools took the same kind of attitude that opposing martial arts schools did in China and Japan - facing off to prove themselves against each other, insulting the other people's teacher and their honor, etc.I think the key is to put a lot of work into whatever you want the focus of the culture to be.  If you want it to be dueling sword schools, then you need to have a lot of IC information about those sword schools.  It should be the talk of taverns: 'which is better, Agrippa or Capo Ferro?'  The PCs should get to witness duesl in the streets.  They may even be challenged by young toughs who want to prove their school's superiority.  You should make the schools neat, cool, and desirable for PCs, which often means giving the styles benefits that you can't get anywhere else.Rules-wise, here's what I'd do: I'd have a list of feats taught by each school, each list being more or less unique.  Then, I'd have special feats only available to members of that school who have mastered the basic teachings.  You could do this with PrCs, but doing it with feats opens it up to more characters - a rogue could join the school and remain a rogue, for example.You could also do it the same way the martial arts schools are done in OA, with mastery of the school giving you a special benefit.  Mongoose has something similar, as do FFG in their Path of the Sword, and I believe that the Bad Axe books do too.I would make sure that only one 'style mastery' could be in use at any one time.Anyway, I would then devise a new Knowledge skill: Knowledge (Fighting Styles).  Each rank would represent a knowledge of one particular fighting style, much like Perform, and if you were able to make a successful check (DC of their BAB, perhaps?) against someone using a style you were familiar with, you'd get a minor combat bonus that would represent your familiarity with the strengths and weaknesses of the style.  Nothing huge, but maybe on the order of a +2 to Bluff and/or Sense Motive vs. them.  The bonus would of course apply only as long as the opponent was using that style.J</blockquote>

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