Helm Akodo's page

Brutal Slash (Ex): At 3rd level, a sword saint’s iaijutsu strike becomes even more deadly. If a sword saint threatens a critical hit with his iaijutsu strike, he adds a bonus equal to 1/2 his class level to the attack roll to confirm a critical hit.
This ability replaces mounted archer*.
Challenge (Ex): Once per day, a samurai can challenge a foe to combat. As a swift action, the samurai chooses one target within sight to challenge. The samurai's melee attacks deal extra damage when made against the target of his challenge. This extra damage is equal to the samurai's level. The samurai can use this ability once per day at 1st level, plus one additional time per day for every three levels beyond 1st, to a maximum of seven times per day at 19th level. Challenging a foe requires much of the samurai's concentration. The samurai takes a -2 penalty to his Armor Class, except against attacks made by the target of his challenge. The challenge remains in effect until the target is dead or unconscious, or until the combat ends. Each samurai's challenge also includes another effect, which is listed in the section describing the samurai's order.
Whenever an order of the warrior samurai declares a challenge, he receives damage reduction 1/- against attacks made by the target of his challenge. This DR increases by +1 for every four levels the samurai possesses.
Determined: As a standard action, the samurai can spend one use of his resolve to remove the fatigued, shaken, or sickened condition. If the samurai is at least 8th level, he can alternatively remove the exhausted, frightened, nauseated, or staggered condition. If the condition has a duration longer than 1 hour or is permanent, this ability removes the condition for 1 hour, at which time the condition returns.
Edicts: The samurai must protect the life and lands of his lord with his life. He must be truthful and courageous, respectful to his elders and his masters, and loyal to his friends and liege. He must conduct himself with honor and dignity.
Honor in All things (Ex): At 2nd level, the order of the warrior samurai draws strength from his sense of honor. Whenever the samurai makes a skill check or saving throw, he can call upon his honor as a free action to grant him a +4 morale bonus on the roll. He can use this ability once per day at 2nd level, plus one additional time per day for every four levels beyond 2nd (maximum of five times per day at 18th level).
Iaijutsu Strike (Ex): A sword saint can perform a lightning quick iaijutsu strike against the target of his challenge to inflict devastating wounds while drawing his sword. After the sword saint has challenged a foe but before he has attacked the target of his challenge, he may choose to use his iaijutsu strike as a full-round action, making an attack roll with his weapon as normal. In order to use this ability, the sword saint’s weapon must be sheathed at the start of his turn. If he successfully hits his opponent with an iaijutsu strike, his attack deals an additional +1d6 points of damage. This bonus damage increases by an additional +1d6 at 3rd level and every two levels thereafter to a maximum of +10d6 damage at 19th level. Any extra damage as a result of a successful iaijutsu strike is not multiplied by a critical hit.
After making an iaijutsu strike, a sword saint takes a –4 penalty to his AC until his next turn, but his weapon is now drawn and he may continually to fight normally. Regardless of whether he hits his opponent with the iaijutsu strike, a sword saint cannot use this ability on the same foe more than once per day.
At 10th level, a sword saint learns to focus faster and is able to make an iaijutsu strike as a standard action, and the penalty to his AC is reduced to –2. This ability replaces a samurai’s mount.
Intimidating (Ex): Half-orc receive a +2 racial bonus on Intimidate skill checks due to their fearsome nature.
Order (Ex): At 1st level, a samurai must pledge himself to a specific order, typically the order of the warrior. The order grants the samurai a number of bonuses, class skills, and special abilities. In addition, each order includes a number of edicts the samurai must follow. If he violates these edicts, he loses the benefits of his order's challenge ability for 24 hours. The violation of an edict is subject to GM interpretation. Most samurai belong to the order of the warrior and are dedicated to their lord. Those without a lord, or who chose to abandon their lord, are ronin. A samurai may instead elect to dedicate himself to one of the orders listed under the cavalier description, but such samurai are rare. A samurai who wishes to change his order must undertake a lengthy process to dedicate himself to a new cause. When this choice is made, he immediately loses all of the benefits from his old order. He must then follow the edicts of his new order for one entire level without gaining any benefits from that order. Once he has accomplished this, he gains all the bonuses from his new order. The only exception to this is when a samurai decides to become a ronin. A samurai can elect to become a ronin immediately, losing all the benefits from his old order and replacing them with the new benefits from the ronin order. Once a ronin, however, the only way for the samurai to change to another order is through the method described above. Note that the names of these orders might vary depending upon the campaign setting or GM's preference.
Order of the Warrior: Most samurai swear themselves to the code of the warrior, which emphasizes duty, honor, loyalty, and obedience. This code extends not only to the samurai's lord and master, but also to his comrades and family. Samurai who follow the order of the warrior are among the most trusted and feared warriors in the land.
Skills: An order of the warrior samurai adds Knowledge (history) (Int) and Knowledge (nobility) (Int) to his list of class skills. An order of the warrior samurai can make Knowledge (nobility) checks untrained. If he has ranks in the skill, he receives a bonus on the check equal to 1/2 his samurai level (minimum +1) as long as the check involves the nobles or politics of his land.
Order Abilities: A samurai who belongs to the order of the warrior gains the following abilities as he increases in level. 2nd Level, Honor in All Things; 8th level, Way of the Samurai; 15th level, Strike True
Resolute: Whenever the samurai is required to make a Fortitude or Will save, he can spend one use of his resolve as an immediate action to roll twice and take the better result. He must decide to use this ability before he rolls the saving throw.
Resolve (Ex): Starting at 1st level, the samurai gains resolve that he can call upon to endure even the most devastating wounds and afflictions. He can use this ability once per day at 1st level, plus one additional time per day for every two samurai levels beyond 1st. Whenever the samurai defeats the target of his challenge, he regains one daily use of his resolve, up to his maximum number of uses per day. Defeating the target of his challenge usually involves reducing the target to 0 hit points or fewer, but the GM might rule that an enemy who surrenders or flees the battle is also defeated. He can use this resolve in a number of ways.
Sacred Tattoo: Many half-orcs decorate themselves with tattoos, piercings, and ritual scarification, which they consider sacred markings. Half-orcs with this racial trait gain a +1 luck bonus on all saving throws. This racial trait replaces orc ferocity.
Unstoppable: When the samurai is reduced to fewer than 0 hit points but not slain, he can spend one use of his resolve as an immediate action to instantly stabilize and remain conscious. He is staggered, but he does not fall unconscious and begin dying if he takes a standard action. He does fall unconscious if he takes additional damage from any source.
Samurai Proficiencies: Samurai are proficient with all simple and martial weapons, plus the katana, naginata, and wakizashi. Samurai are proficient with all types of armor (heavy, light, and medium) and shields (except tower shields).
Weapon Expertise (Ex): At 3rd level, a samurai gains an unparalleled expertise with his chosen weapons. At 3rd level, the samurai selects either the katana, longbow, naginata, or wakizashi. The samurai can draw the selected weapon as a free action as if he had the Quick Draw feat. In addition, whenever he threatens a critical hit with the selected weapon, he gains a +2 bonus on the confirmation roll. Finally, his samurai levels count as fighter levels and stack.
Weapon Familiarity (Ex) Half-orcs are proficient with greataxes and falchions, and treat any weapon with the word "orc" in its name as a martial weapon.

A muscular half-orc nods in understanding. He is shorter than others of his kind, being a few inches under six feet in height, but also more compact and agile.

He bears the arms and armor of Tien.

Politely, he responds to the Venture-Captain. "Rest assured that we will complete this task to your satisfaction," he nods.

Born as a peasant to a low-ranking foot soldier, Helm Akodo carried no samurai lineage, and since a samurai’s bloodline played such an integral role in any samurai’s standing amongst his peers, it should have been impossible for him to become the formidable warrior and innovative leader that he has started to become. Helm was awarded no luxuries that were given to noble families of samurai bloodline, and his dignified career began humbly as a sandal-bearer for Oda Nobunaga at the bottom of the Oda clan’s hierarchy, but as Nobunaga dominated the battlefield of Tian Xia and set himself from the competition, Helm also separated himself from his peasant bloodline to become a magnificent warrior under Nobunaga.

Helm was raised by his father, also an accomplished martial artist and swordsman, and trained under his father’s tutelage until the age of seven when his uncle took him in. At thirteen, Helm experienced his first duel against which he won with little difficulty. At age sixteen, Helm took part in the war on the side of his clan against the Tokugawa clan, and following the Toyotomi clan’s defeat at the Battle of Sekigahara, where Helm fought, he fell from the public eye until the age of twenty-one when he surfaced to challenge the renowned Yoshioka School of Swordsmanship, and following several successful duels against the heads of the Yoshioka school where he innovated the niten’ichi sword-fighting style which involved Helm battling with his katana held in one hand and the shorter wakizashi held in the other, Helm set out to travel all across Tian Xia as a part of a developmental pilgrimage where he further improved his skills as a warrior. Most recently, Helm fought in his most famous duel against his most daunting opponent, master swordsman Sasaki Kojiro. Kojiro was exceptional in his precision and speed with the nodachi, a curved sword much like the katana but several feet longer. In an effort to unsettle his opponent, Helm arrived over three hours late for the duel, and after heckling Kojiro and coaxing the first attack out of him, Helm killed him almost effortlessly with a single blow from a wooden sword he had apparently crafted from one of his oars.

Boons and Vanities
Confirmed Field Agent: You may acquire it by spending 1 Prestige Point.
Prized Find: If you would fail to earn a Prestige Point at the end of an adventure due to failing a success condition, you may cross this boon off your Chronicle sheet to remind your superiors of your past breakthroughs and earn the 1 Prestige Point as if you had successfully fulfilled the condition.
Friend of Janira Gavix: You receive a +1 bonus on Knowledge checks attempted while you are in the Grand Lodge.
Inside Knowledge: You gain a +2 bonus on Knowledge (local) checks about the Aspis Consortium and can roll such checks untrained. You can cross this boon of the Chronicle sheet to take 20 on a single Knowledge (local) check about the Aspis Consortium.
Lord Avid’s Recommendation: You gain a +2 circumstance bonus on all Charisma-based skill checks against nobility while on the Isle of Kortos. You can cross this boon of your Chronicle sheet to lean heavily upon your connection to Lord Avid. If you do so, the circumstance bonus on one such Charisma-based skill check increases to +4, and you can apply it while interacting with anyone on the Isle of Kortos.
Kassen’s Blessing: You may reroll a single attack roll, saving throw, or skill check after the roll is made but before the results are revealed.

PFS# 132,076-13
XP 8
Prestige/Fame 4/13
Faction Grand Lodge
-Faction Card [1 goal (defeat Aspis Consortium)]
Scenarios Completed
*Master of the Fallen Fortress [1 XP, 1 PP, 479 gp]
-Bought MW katana (cold iron) [-400 gp], potion of cure light wounds [-50 gp]
*The Wounded Wisp [1 XP, 2 PP, 430 gp]
-Bought wand of cure light wounds [-2 PP]
*The Confirmation [1 XP, 2 PP, 430 gp]
Bought MW darkwood daikyu (+3) [-2 PP], oil of magic weapon [-50 gp]
*Voice in the Void [1 XP, 2 PP, 876 gp]
*The Consortium Compact (1-time application to lvl-2) [1 XP, 2 PP, 470 gp]
-Bought MW O-yoroi armor [-1850 gp], MW sansetsukon [-308 gp], caravan [-5 PP], sold four-mirror armor [+62 gp]
*Crypt of the Everflame [3 XP, 4 PP, 1398 gp, 10 gp day job]

Level 1:
Class Taken: Samurai
Class Feature Gained: challenge 1/day, order, resolve
Hit points Gained: 10 + 2 (Con) +1 favored
Skill Points (3): diplomacy (1), intimidate (1), perception (1)
Feats: power attack

Level 2:
Class Taken: Samurai
Class Feature Gained: order ability
Hit points Gained: 6 + 2 (Con) +1 favored
Skill Points (3): climb (1), knowledge (nobility)(1), perception (1)

Level 3:
Class Taken: Samurai
Class Feature Gained: weapon expertise
Hit points Gained: 6 + 2 (Con) +1 favored
Skill Points (3): intimidate (1), perception (1), swim (1)
Feat: cleave

[dice=MW katana (cold iron)(two-handed)]1d20+7; 1d8+4[/dice]

[dice=MW katana (cold iron)(two-handed, power attack)]1d20+6;1d8+7[/dice]

[dice=MW sansetsukon (silver)]1d20+7; 1d8+4[/dice]
[dice=MW sansetsukon (silver)(power attack)]1d20+6; 1d8+7[/dice]

[dice=MW daikyu (+3 str) attack]1d20+6; 1d8+3[/dice]