Ronin (TOWW)

Ronin

Making a Ronin

Abilities: Dex, Str, Wis.

Alignment: Any lawful.

Hit Die: 1d10

Class Skills

Acrobatics (Dex), Athletics (Str), Attune (Con), Craft (metalsmithing) (Int), Intuition (Wis), Knowledge (culture, geography, and history) (Int), Perception (Wis), Stealth (Dex), and Travel (Wis).

Skill Points at 1st level: (2 + Int modifier) × 4.

Skill Points at each additional level: 2 + Int modifier.

Table: The Ronin

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Defense Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special	Adrenaline Charges	Dash Speed Bonus	Deflect Per Round
1st	+1	+0	+0	+2	+0	Adrenaline, Armored Agility, Dexterous Combat, Weak Point	5	+0 ft.	0
2nd	+2	+0	+0	+3	+0	Dodge, Quicksilver Strike	6	+0 ft.	0
3rd	+3	+0	+1	+3	+1	Meditate	6	+0 ft.	0
4th	+4	+0	+1	+4	+1	Uncanny Dodge	7	+10 ft.	0
5th	+5	+0	+1	+4	+1	Weak Point +1	7	+10 ft.	0
6th	+6/+1	+0	+2	+5	+2	Meditate +1, Deflect	8	+10 ft.	1
7th	+7/+2	+0	+2	+5	+2	Lunging Thrust	8	+10 ft.	1
8th	+8/+3	+1	+2	+6	+2		9	+10 ft.	1
9th	+9/+4	+1	+3	+6	+3	Opportunity	9	+20 ft.	2
10th	+10/+5	+1	+3	+7	+3	Weak Point +2	10	+20 ft.	2
11th	+11/+6/+1	+1	+3	+7	+3		10	+20 ft.	2
12th	+12/+7/+2	+1	+4	+8	+4	Quicksilver Barrage	11	+20 ft.	2
13th	+13/+8/+3	+1	+4	+8	+4	Meditate +2	11	+20 ft.	3
14th	+14/+9/+4	+1	+4	+9	+4	Adrenal Reserves	12	+30 ft.	3
15th	+15/+10/+5	+2	+5	+9	+5	Weak Point +3	12	+30 ft.	3
16th	+16/+11/+6/+1	+2	+5	+10	+5	Arcing Slash	13	+30 ft.	3
17th	+17/+12/+7/+2	+2	+5	+10	+5		13	+30 ft.	4
18th	+18/+13/+8/+3	+2	+6	+11	+6	Intercept	14	+30 ft.	4
19th	+19/+14/+9/+4	+2	+6	+11	+6	Meditate +3	14	+40 ft.	4
20th	+20/+15/+10/+5	+3	+6	+12	+6	Blur of Steel, Weak Point +4	15	+40 ft.	4

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the ronin.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency

A ronin is proficient with all simple weapons and all swords. A ronin is proficient with light armor and medium armor.

Adrenaline (Ex)

Ronins utilize a unique fighting style that relies on the usage of adrenaline. A ronin may perform normal actions, with costs listed below, and also has several unique abilities. A ronin has a fixed amount of adrenaline that will deplete during combat. Once out of adrenaline, he can no longer use adrenal abilities, and can only perform either a standard action or move action on his turn, but not both, and cannot perform a full round action (except for meditate). If a ronin is performing an attack action without adrenaline, he cannot use an offhand weapon, and can only attack once, without his base attack bonus.

Adrenaline Costs:

One Charge: melee attack, unarmed attack, attack of opportunity, withdraw, run, aid another, bull rush, disarm, grapple, overrun, trip

Two Charges: full attack (feats such as cleave are considered a full attack), charge

If a ronin is fatigued, all adrenaline costs are doubled. If a ronin is exhausted, he is treated as having no adrenaline. All adrenaline can be recovered after a short rest. If a ronin is wearing heavy armor, and does not have the armor proficiency (heavy) feat, all adrenaline costs are doubled. This doubling stacks with the penalty for being fatigued.

Armored Agility

A ronin adds +1 to the maximum dex bonus of any armor. If a ronin is wearing heavy armor and has the armor proficiency (heavy) feat, his run speed is not reduced.

Dexterous Combat

A ronin may use his Dexterity modifier for any attack roll instead of his Strength modifier. If he is wearing heavy armor and does not have the armor proficiency (heavy) feat, its armor check penalty is applied to his attack rolls.

Weak Point

A ronin is able to strike more vital areas of a target when his attacks are more accurate. An attack roll of 15 provides +1 to the damage roll, a roll of 20 provides a +2, and so on. The damage of weak point is doubled if the target is denied their Dexterity bonus to AC, or if the ronin scores a critical hit (The doubling does not stack). The damage of weak point is not doubled when using a two-handed weapon.

The ronin increases the damage of weak point by 1 at 5th level and every 5 levels thereafter.

Quicksilver Strike (Ex)

At 2nd level, a ronin can expend a charge of adrenaline on any attack roll to make his target be denied its Dexterity bonus to AC.

Meditate (Ex)

Beginning at 3rd level, a ronin may take a full round action to enter a meditative trance which recovers two charges of adrenaline. The ronin is unable to make any swift or immediate actions, is flat-footed until the beginning of his next turn, and is denied his defense bonus to AC until his next turn. While meditating, the ronin has damage reduction of 2. Damage reduction can reduce damage to 0, but not below 0.

A ronin can prepare any number of ready actions prior to beginning meditation to be carried out like normal, but cannot take any new actions while meditating. If one of the prepared ready actions is triggered before his next turn, meditate will end and adrenaline will not be recovered. The ronin cannot use combat expertise or other similar actions to increase his dodge bonus to AC.

The ronin increases the amount of adrenaline recovered and his damage reduction from meditating by 1 at 6th, 13th, and 19th levels, for a maximum of 5 charges of adrenaline, and a damage reduction of 5.

Outside of combat, a ronin can meditate to gain a +4 bonus to attune checks, but does not regain adrenaline.

Dash(Ex)

Starting at 4th level, a ronin can expend one charge of adrenaline per move action in a round to increase his movement speed. While dashing, a ronin gains a +2 dodge bonus to AC against attacks of opportunity.

Uncanny Dodge (Ex)

At 5th level, a ronin retains his Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) even if he is caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker. However, he still loses his Dexterity bonus to AC if immobilized. If a ronin is using meditate, he retains his Dexterity bonus to AC, and denies a Thief the ability to sneak attack him while meditating. If a thief would be able to sneak attack the ronin by other means, she is still able to do so.

Deflect (Ex)

When making a defense roll, a 6th level ronin can expend one charge of adrenaline to instead choose to make an attack roll to block an incoming attack (DC=enemy attack roll). If the attacker was using natural weapons or an unarmed strike, the ronin makes a damage roll. A ronin may choose to use quicksilver strike in tandem with deflect to subtract the attacker's Dexterity modifier from the DC (not applicable for attacks made using the target's Strength modifier). A ronin can also choose to attempt to deflect incoming projectiles at a -10 for slow moving projectiles (thrown projectiles, sling shot, etc.), -20 for medium speed projectiles (arrows, crossbow bolts, etc.), and -30 for fast moving projectiles (bullets, etc.). If a ronin is unarmed, he cannot attempt to deflect projectiles, and takes half damage from attackers who are attacking with a melee weapon or natural weapons. If the ronin is wearing gauntlets this damage is ignored.

Lunging Thrust (Ex)

When making an attack, a 7th level ronin may choose to instead make a single attack against a target at his highest base attack bonus, taking a 5-foot step in that direction that does not provoke an attack of opportunity (this is separate from a 5-foot step). The attack is performed as a stab instead of a slash, and simultaneously attacks any target behind the primary target (within 5 feet), as if the weapon were a reach weapon, using the same attack roll. For both enemies, the damage of weak point is doubled (stacking with any currently existing doubling). The targets have independent damage rolls. A ronin can choose to use quicksilver strike in tandem with this ability.

Opportunity (Ex)

At 9th level, a ronin can make an attack of opportunity against the first enemy he passes while dashing.

Quicksilver Barrage (Ex)

At 12th level, a ronin can choose to expend three charges of adrenaline to make a full attack action against a single target. The ronin makes a single attack against the target at his highest base attack bonus. If the attack hits, the ronin can attack again at a -4 to hit (stacking), with the target denied their Dexterity bonus to AC. This continues until the target's hit points are reduced to 0, or the ronin misses an attack. quicksilver strike can be used in tandem with the first attack roll, but not the following rolls.

Adrenal Reserves (Ex)

If a 14th level ronin is out of adrenaline, he can perform actions that would normally cost adrenaline, instead taking 2d6 points of nonlethal damage for each charge of adrenaline the action would have cost. If the ronin's nonlethal damage exceeds his current hit points, he falls unconscious. Once combat ends, the ronin is fatigued.

Arcing Slash (Ex)

A 16th level ronin may choose to expend 5 charges of adrenaline to make a full attack against all enemies in front of him in a 10 foot radius. The ronin makes a single attack roll at his highest base attack bonus against all targets. The targets must make an opposed strength check or be pushed back 5 feet, even if they are not hit. Quicksilver strike can be used in tandem with this ability.

Intercept (Ex)

At 18th level, a ronin can expend 3 charges of adrenaline to use his dash as an immediate action to run to a nearby ally (maximum distance equal to dash speed) and intercept an attack directed at them. The ronin may choose to either attempt to deflect the attack, block the incoming attack with his body using his flat-footed AC.

Blur of Steel (Ex)

At 20th level, a ronin gains the ability to become a blur while attacking enemies. The ronin expends all available charges of adrenaline to take a full round action to move in a 30 foot straight line, gaining 3d4 attacks to use at his highest base attack bonus divided up among any enemies in his path as he chooses. If the ronin has more than 10 charges of adrenaline, he can use quicksilver strike the number of times equal to the amount of adrenaline over 10, divided up among attack rolls as he chooses. If he has less than 10 charges of adrenaline, he spends the next number of rounds equal to the amount of adrenaline less than 10 fatigued.

Ex-Ronins

A ronin who becomes unlawful loses adrenaline and cannot gain more levels as a ronin. He retains all the other benefits of the class (armored agility, weak point, and uncanny dodge), but cannot use any abilities that require adrenaline.

Epic Ronin

Table: The Epic Ronin

Hit Die: d10

Level	Special
21st	Weak Point +5
22nd	Meditate +4
23rd
24th	Adrenaline 16 charges, Bonus Feat
25th	Weak Point +6
26th
27th	Meditate +5
28th	Adrenaline 17 charges, Bonus Feat
29th	Weak Point +7
30th
2 + Int modifier skill points per level.

Weak Point: The epic ronin gains +1 damage to weak point every 4 levels after the 21st level.

Meditate (Ex): The epic ronin's bonus to meditate increases once every 5 levels after 22nd.

Deflect (Ex): The epic ronin loses the remaining penalty to deflecting fast moving projectiles.

Bonus Feats: The epic ronin gains a bonus feat (selected from the list of epic ronin feats) every four levels after the 20th.

Epic Ronin Bonus Feat List: Blinding Speed, Dexterous Fortitude, Dexterous Will, Devastating Critical, Epic Reflexes, Epic Speed, Epic Toughness, Epic Weapon Focus, Great Constitution, Great Dexterity, Improved Combat Reflexes, Improved Whirlwind Attack, Overwhelming Critical, Penetrate Damage Reduction, Perfect Two-Weapon Fighting, Superior Initiative

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