Swashbuckling Adventures Prestige Classes

[Azure Trance]

While they are intended for a low magic campaign setting, I think that more then not they are waaay too powerful. So, I'd like to revise them for the standard high-magic Renaissnace world. I'll post them here, and then you can heckle it. Essentially I'm going to tone it down and make it usable for any campaign-setting. My first:

Soldano Swordsman - Edited v1.1
Requirements
BAB: +6
Feats: Improved Initiative, Power Attack, Weapon Focus (Fencing Weapon)

Game Rule Information
Alignment: Any
Hit Dice: d10

	Base Attack	F/R/W	Special
Level 1     +1		0/2/0	Whirling Blades
Level 2     +2		0/3/0	
Level 3     +3		1/3/1	Unstopping Blades
Level 4     +4		1/4/1	
Level 5     +5		2/4/2	Trail of Destruction

Class Features
All of the following are class features of the Soldano school.

-Weapon & Armor Proficiency: A student of this school is proficient with all simple and martial fencing blades. This school doesn't encourage the wearing of medium or heavy armor.*
-Whirling Blades: At 1st level the Soldano Swordsman gets the virtual feat ambidexterity and two weapon fighting while wielding two fencing blades and wearing light or no armor. The offhand fencing blade is also considered to be light.
-Unstopping Blades: At 3rd level the Soldano Swordsman gets the Cleave feat under the same pre-requisites of Whirling Blades.
-Trail of Destruction: At 5th level the Soldano Swordsman gets the Great Cleave under the same pre-requisites of Whirling Blades.

Notes
It looks cool, and gets the basic gist down immediately - you're a two sword wielding menace. Though from mechanics POV it's decent. This PrC gives out what's essentially three feats (The first is even a feat from the Netbook of Feats with a surprisingly high rating of 4.08/5.00) Then you get cleave, and great cleave. Not bad for a 5 level prestige class. But if you were a fighter, for only 6 levels you could get the same 3 feats. I feel like as if I'm missing something to give it just a dash bit more of panache. PrCs are supposed to be a wee bit more powerful then regular classes, and I don't think that this cuts it. Perhaps not something as blatant as an extra feat; should I reinstitute (in some form) the "Marshall The Strength" or Intimidation ability from the Core Book?

*While Swashbucklers / Fencers in stereotype didn't wear armor ... I think ... I'm not sure if they did in real life, if only even the common Leather armor.

 

[CCamfield]

No armour restrictions? How many skill points?

I have played the original 7th Sea but I don't have the Swashbuckling Adventures book. Soldano swordsmen (and in fact all Castillian fencing schools) in the original game had the tagging ability; I don't know if there is an equivalent in Swashbuckling Adventures, but if there is, it would probably be good to include.

 

[maransreth]

The Soldano Swordsman has already been converted in the AEG book Swashbuckling Adventures. I don't know what abilities it has though.

 

[Azure Trance]

The Soldano Swordsman has already been converted in the AEG book Swashbuckling Adventures. I don't know what abilities it has though.

I know. I own it But it's still way to powerful. You get the equivalent of five if not six feats by taking that class. More then I'm comfortable with, though I like the idea behind the different fencing schools.

 

[Azure Trance]

No armour restrictions? How many skill points?

I have played the original 7th Sea but I don't have the Swashbuckling Adventures book. Soldano swordsmen (and in fact all Castillian fencing schools) in the original game had the tagging ability; I don't know if there is an equivalent in Swashbuckling Adventures, but if there is, it would probably be good to include.

Whoops. I'll add 'in light or no armor' for the virtual feats. Tagging meaning by a touch? They didn't have anything of that sort in the D20 SA book, unfortunately.

 

[Marshall]

Whoops. I'll add 'in light or no armor' for the virtual feats. Tagging meaning by a touch? They didn't have anything of that sort in the D20 SA book, unfortunately.

Its a feat in the SAd20 book.

IIRC its just as overpowered as the PrCs are...

 

[Khaalis]

Just a quick comment on Swashbuckling Adventures.

It is NOT meant to fit into a STANDARD D&D game. Keep that in mind. Its not that they are too powerful. They are perfectly balanced.... in its OWN system.

Now as a fan of the material in the book, I DO use the material in a standard game, and as the DM it is quite simple to do, because if the PC's can use it, so can the NPCs/Monsters.

But then I have always been more harsh with combat than most of the base systems. I think the combat system favors the players a wee bit too much. I dont think I shoudl slaughter the party, but if a party of 10-15th level PCs goes Dragon or Demon Hunting - they are going to get a very rude awakening. If monsters like a Balor are played "CORRECTLY" they should increase the "CR" by a good 5-10 - its all about tactics.

Thus I have no real issues with most of the skills in the SBA, although I will agree that Tagging is a bit much and would definately take the DM some work to balance that out.

Just a few rambling thoughts....

 

[Azure Trance]

I know Khaalis If everyone else took those PrCs, it wouldn't be a problem. But it'd be easier for me to convert-down the few SA PrCs I want then convert-up everything else I own

 

[Khaalis]

Eh, I cheat well off the cuff. I have no issue letting a fighter take those classes. If he gets too good, I just add +5 to all my monsters attack and damage rolls, etc.

I as a DM have never had an issue teaching even the most powerful of characters lessons in humility.

 

[Gez]

Eh, I cheat well off the cuff. I have no issue letting a fighter take those classes. If he gets too good, I just add +5 to all my monsters attack and damage rolls, etc.

It's a possibility, of course. Personally, I prefer to avoid this arms race scheme. It disturbs me to have the world "adapt" to the characters: you stroll through a plain and get ambushed by puny goblins, you gain some levels, you stroll through that same plain again and now the goblins are hill giants. I mean, it's like in computer games, even otherwise excellent ones like Morrowind: I explore the dwarven ruins of Arkngthnd, dispatch spectres and mechanical spiders, some levels later I go back to the same ruin and now there are golems everywhere. Why weren't they before, who build them since it's just forsaken ruins of an extinct specie, etc. Lots of questions whose answers are, from a narrative point, pretty stupid (because you weren't high-level enough the first time; noone, they just spontaneously generates for you to have things to fight, etc.).

Besides, they're also a "what's the point ?" factor. I mean, if I get a +2 to attack (let say, +1 fighter level, bonus weapon focus feat) but all enemies simultaneously get a +2 dodge bonus, I don't really feel the progression of the character.