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Swordmaster (PFRPG)

4.70/5 (based on 3 ratings)
Swordmaster (PFRPG)

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Meet the swordmaster!

This deadly base class renders Dexterity a viable option on the front lines of combat. His cunning compounds of sword arts emulate dynamic swordplay, requiring players to think several moves in advance and rewarding well-conceived assaults with devastating finishers. A swordmaster's blade is his partner, not his tool, and it awakens as his prowess grows.

This class brings swordplay to life and has been thoroughly playtested.

Design Goals:

  • Render Dexterity a viable option for front-line combatants.
  • Create a flexible system of compounds evocative of swordplay.
  • Imbue dynamic gameplay into melee combat.
  • Foster a compelling relationship between a player and his weapon.

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Are there errors or omissions in this product information? Got corrections? Let us know at store@paizo.com.

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4.70/5 (based on 3 ratings)

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Pure Awesome

5/5 —

The Swordmaster class is not a class for the faint of heart, but for those willing to test their mettle this is the class for you. There are so many ways you can combine the different sword arts together in this class it's insane I love it.

If you've ever wanted to play a lightly armored character who fought with a big blade this is your ticket to doing so. Don't take my word for it they've even got a free preview of the class take a look.

Not for beginners

4/5 —

The Swordmaster is the Swashbuckler you've all been waiting for!
The Swordmaster is the Kensai you've all been waiting for!

I'm not going to delve as deeply as EZ did in his excellent review, because that would be redundant. But I will say that this class is the first Dreadfox product I've ever seen, and I was very impressed. I really believe the work and playtesting that went into the class' development was thorough, and quite likely, exhausting.

Now, to business. This class is not for the faint of heart or most novice or inexperienced players. Although the instructions to use the sword arts are clear, it's just the sheer amount of bookkeeping that's necessary. If a player doesn't stay on top of the action in a combat session he might slow the battle down having to look at the character sheet and decide which art to use on his next turn. These actions need to be worked out as soon the player's turn ends, otherwise this will result in the dreaded "bored player dice stacking" phenomenon while they wait for the next dazzling display of death dealing.

But for a player willing to take the time and set up the character sheet beforehand, this is a brilliant class. It's the acrobatic fighter so many others have tried to develop (with varying degrees of success). A lot of the sword arts, in particular the advanced ones, call to mind some of the maneuvers found in the Tome of Battle (a book I love, by the way). The moves are easy to visualize, as well, helping paint a picture of a dashing, darting warrior cutting through foes like stalks of wheat. It's a class that really fits both the Western and Eastern styles of play, making it easy to be a swashbuckling musketeer or a wuxia master of the deadly arts.

The layout and look of the pdf are really well done, too. Parchment toned, with heavily decorated borders and good interior art. While truly only cosmetic, interior design and artwork plays a large factor in my decision to purchase a product. To me it shows the publishers wanted to go that extra step to cap off a really good effort.

I wanted to give this a 3 and 1/2 stars review, because of the complicated nature of this really flavorful, powerful class. But with great power comes great responsibility, so the player of a Swordmaster must be ready at the beginning of each turn with his chosen sword art. But I'll round up to a 4 star rating, simply because I am so impressed by everything that went into the product's creation. And now that I've seen my first example of Dreadfox's craft, I hope to review more of them.

Have at thee, varlet!!

An Endzeitgeist.com review

5/5 —

This pdf is 23 pages long, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1/2 empty page, 1 page SRD, leaving us with 19 1/2 pages of content, so let's take a look!

Dex-based combatants have always been popular in style, but it is a fact that in d20, the fencing/duelist/swashbuckling characters often felt a bit off. Dervish Dance might be powerful, but it is limited in both fluff and execution and does not manage to offset the investment when compared to a similar str-based build. The Swordmaster seeks to remedy that by providing a dex-based front-line fighter. Does it succeed?

Mechanically, the class comes with d8, 2+Int skills per level, proficiency with all simple and martial swords and the quarterstaff as well as light armors, but not shields, full BAB, good fort- and ref-saves and two values - the intelligent value and the magic value, with the former beginning at 500 GP at second level and going up to 42K GP and the latter starting at 2000 GP at third level and going up to 200K GP at 20th level. These values are crucial, since swordmasters use a partnered blade. They start play with a masterwork sword of their choosing that gains sentience. While usually in line with the swordmaster, it may up to 3 rounds subvert actions of the swordmaster (and vice versa). Changing partnered blades results in 2 negative levels that cannot be cured (but also don't kill the swordmaster). As soon as it becomes intelligent, the blade also gains enhancements to mental attributes whenever its magical "plus X bonus" is enhanced. The blade also gets an ability akin to rite publishing's enhancement of the bladebound archetype, to have the blade devour magic from items it destroys- the second value I mentioned before reflects the blade's capacity to store this power and translate it into enchantments. Also rather interesting is the fact that the swordmaster may, starting at 5th level, treat all swords as intelligent items (There's a hidden darkness in this blade...).

If d8 and the minimalist list of proficiencies were not ample clue for you, swordmasters also start the game with two abilities that are designed to keep them viable on the frontlines, both tied to wearing light or no armor and no shields and only a single sword (sorry, no two-weapon fighting). Tactful Deflections allow the swordmaster to add +1 to AC per swordmaster level as a deflection bonus, up to a maximum of his Int-modifier. This bonus does not work when flatfooted or stack with the duelist's canny defense, though. Tactful strikes allow the swordmaster to use his dex-modifier instead of his str-modifier on attack rolls with swords. Instead, the class may not add their str-modifier to weapon damage, though if they incur a str-penalty, half of that is applied to attack rolls. It's an interesting choice to not have dex apply to damage as well - at least to regular attacks. Sword Arts deal additional damage equal to dex-mod or in the case of a 2-handed sword, 1 1/2 times dex-mod and may not apply str-mod/power attack bonuses to their sword arts damage.

The true meat of the swordmaster-class, though, would be his sword arts. At first level, they start with three of these special attacks and every level after that, they learn a new sword art (or advanced sword art starting level 8). Sword Arts require different actions, from none to a full round and some, though not all, require a trigger to be set off and/or a performance on your part, i.e. for example a 5-foot step, an attack with a -2 penalty etc. Many of these sword arts also have a window, that is upon meeting the performance criteria, they have to be used in a specific window of time. Now the sword arts per se are interesting - they are grouped in three different categories: Openers, Sequiturs and Finishers. Unless otherwise noted, to perform a sequitur, the character must have successfully hit the opponent to be targeted with an opener, and to perform a finisher, he has to follow up on a sequitur. To give you an example, let's take a look at the initial three sword arts every swordmaster starts with: The opener allows as a move action to feint a creature within reach that can see you. This opens a window for you until the end of your next turn to follow up with a sequitur that is an attack versus the feinted opponent and deals the sword art's damage (i.e. with the dex-modifier). Succeeding at the sequitur allows the swordmaster to have another window until the end of his next turn and follow up with a finisher as a full-round action that is resolved as an attack that deals double the sword art's regular damage.

Attentive readers may glean where this is headed - openers are usually weaker than regular attacks, sequiturs are usually on par with them and finishers are more powerful than regular attacks to offset the requirement of setting them up via two attacks.
Design-wise rather interesting, especially due to the fact that the 10 openers provided include ways to get the opener out of the way faster: Opportunist's Feint, for example, allows the swordmaster to feint a creature hit by an ally that flanks it with the swordmaster as an immediate action. Cunning Swordplay allow you to make an opposed intelligence check versus a foe - if the target attacks you or provokes an AoO from you, you may execute a readied sequitur against the foe before the attack is resolved. Another interesting one is "Press in" - as a reaction to being hit by a creature within 10 foot, you may opt to make the hit a critical hit against you to move 5 foot towards the target. It also counts as a opener as a free action, allowing you to perform a sequitur versus the enemy. Also interesting: If you manage to use move actions for 2 rounds to talk with a foe and bait a foe, you may on the third round execute an immediate sequitur, while still allowing you to perform other sword arts while talking to the foe. Also interesting: "Whirling Defense", while not stacking with combat expertise or total defense, allows you to use a standard action to gain +4 deflection bonuses to AC and an additional +4 AC against the creature that missed you. Have I mentioned the option to throw swords?

Among the 10 sequiturs, we have the option to move half your speed through threatened squares of a target with a bonus of 1/2 class level to acrobatics, allowing for quick repositioning that does not provoke AoOs. Measured Strike also features an interesting tactical choice - attack foes at +2 and increase the critical modifier by +1, but only inflict half sword art damage. Another sequitur allows you to react to killing a creature to make 3 5-foot steps toward another opponent. Shallow Cut is yet another intriguing sequitur - upon a successful hit, the target may opt to take a 5-foot step to avoid the damage, but if he/she/it does so, you gain +4 to atk and AC against the target until the end of your next turn. A thus dodged attack can still counts as successful, meaning it can be followed up by finishers...
10 finishers are provided and allow e.g. to do an attack that deals half sword art damage as a free action, add half class level bleed damage to your hits and if you manage to drop 10 feet on your target (Up the walls-psionic warriors will love this) ad incur an AoO from all except the target, you may deal triple damage, but also become staggered for one round. Other finishers allow you to make a bull rushing finisher that doubles as a sequitur for yet another finisher. There are also full attack-based finishers that allow the swordmaster to stack +2 damage bonuses, CMD & CMB, AC and initiative-increase, with the latter potentially allowing you to act twice, by coming in at the bottom of the initiative-ladder.

Among the advanced sword arts, we get 11 openers, 11 sequiturs and 11 finishers - and they are interesting and advanced for a reason. The arcing draw opener for example allows the character in question to draw the partnered blade from a sheathed position to make an attack roll and apply the results to up to 3 creatures, then make a 5-foot step. And just as I get ready to yell "unbalanced", I read that the opener only does half damage. Also damn cool: The opener deathless resolve lets you stand up and arm yourself with a slashing/piercing object in range, allowing you to ignore the disabled, unconscious and even DEAD conditions until you fail to hit and deal damage to the target. Again - the potential for abuse is offset via clever balancing - during this time, you cannot regain hitpoints! Have I mentioned the option to impale foes with a sequitur (potentially abducting them via shadow walk etc.) and allowing them to inflict con-damage to themselves to break free from the impaling? Where I'm honestly not 100% comfortable is with Keen Strike - the sequitur must follow a critical threat or hit and increases your weapon's threat-range by your int-mod. This is slightly too much for my conservative tastes when combined with wide threat-range builds, at least for a sequitur. The more powerful advanced finisher Dance of Storms feels more appropriate for this benefit - it grants the same crit-range enhancement as well as the bonuses from the non-advanced Dance-finishers, provided you have them.

The pdf also offers advice on choosing sword arts, has an expansive two-page table of the sword arts and a sample page to show how to organize sword arts.

Conclusion:
Editing and formatting are top-notch, I didn't notice any glitches. Layout adheres to Dreadfox Games' 2-column standard with its thorn-covered borders and the pdf comes extensively bookmarked. The original full cover artwork and two 2 b/w-line drawings are nice.

This pdf is not a cheap supplement for a new class, but the Dreadfoxes have learned - we get more content than in e.g. the Gypsy and Ritualist-supplements - though comparatively still not that much. I didn't expect to like this class - I bought the Tome of 9 Swords back in the day and loved the idea, but hated the execution. The Swordmaster is not as mystical, being in fact rather down to earth and potentially fitting for low-magic settings (just get rid of the blade's intelligence) and honestly impressed me: The building on attacks, the sequence of openers, sequiturs and finishers should make the swordmaster not only immensely fun to play, it also brings added tactics to melee you wouldn't expect, making it closer to how actual sword fighting works - and I happen to have some experience in that regard, so kudos indeed!
Better yet, the sword arts lend themselves to further expansions that should make adding more to the fray to represent different schools easy. I could e.g. see more magical schools as their very own book beyond the upcoming supplement for this class and the puppetmaster. And then there's the fact that only one of the numerous arts rubs me the wrong way, meaning that I actually not only consider this class a rewarding and intriguing gaming experience, but in fact also consider it balanced. This is, hands down, my favorite Dreadfox Games-product so far, offering a long overdue, smart and complex melee class that should fit the tastes of many players out there. My final verdict will reflect that I consider this class not only smart, but in fact brilliant and clock in at a well-deserved 5 stars + seal of approval.

Endzeitgeist out.

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I think I can answer those:

1) When wielding a weapon made for both 1-handed and 2-handed fighting with 1 hand, you use the regular dex-mod. When using it 2-handed, you use 1.5 times the dex mod. However, bear in mind these only apply when using sword asrts, not regular attacks. At least that's how the bonuses for str are handled and the swordmaster's design is analogue to that.

2) I think piranha strike should work in conjunction with sword arts - it's not different from a str-build using power attack and the stacking prohibition of sword arts + power attack is mainly in place to prohibit a build from utilizing two attributes to increase damage output. For what it's worth - the Swordmaster-PC in my group uses it and it did not shift balance.
Aleron wrote:

Late comer to this, but darn do I love this class! Just fantastic! Had a few things I wanted to clarify quickly:

1) When it says you get 1-1/2 times Dex bonus to damage when using a two handed sword...is that only for weapons like the greatsword (classified as two handed and must be used in two hands) or weapons you can wield in two hands (like katana for example) and you get that bonus when doing so?

2) Power Attack it says doesn't work, is it the same for Piranha Strike?

Thanks for publishing this!

Glad you like the class.

1) What Endzeitgeist said. It works just like Strength, but is specific to sword arts (you must actively use 2 hands to add 1-1/2 times your Dex).

2) Great question. This didn't come up in playtests, and I can't recall that we ever discussed it. It's going to take me a couple of days to explore, but I'll look into it and have a definitive answer for you ASAP. Definitely adding this to the FAQ.

Thanks! I figured that was the intention for the first, but the wording threw me a bit.

As for the second, appreciate all the help and will look forward to the ruling!
Aleron wrote:
Power Attack it says doesn't work, is it the same for Piranha Strike?

2) Piranha Strike applies to sword arts, and Tactful Strikes counts as Weapon Finesse for the purpose of its prerequisites.

We're working on a smoother way to incorporate the same effect. But those playing / building the class before we finish can lean on the above for the time being.

Excellent. Thanks again!
Dreadfox Games wrote:
Aleron wrote:
Power Attack it says doesn't work, is it the same for Piranha Strike?

2) Piranha Strike applies to sword arts, and Tactful Strikes counts as Weapon Finesse for the purpose of its prerequisites.

We're working on a smoother way to incorporate the same effect. But those playing / building the class before we finish can lean on the above for the time being.

So piranha strike works with non-light weapons?

Also can a Swormaster trade ou the fundamental sword arts? Like misdirection for subtle misdirection?

Yes, a swordmaster can trade them out. No rules specify s/he can't.
havoc xiii wrote:
So piranha strike works with non-light weapons?

Yes (in this case)!

By RAW, Piranha Strike only applies to light weapons. But we're making Piranha Strike incompatible with sword art damage as soon as Secrets of Sword & String goes live. We're replacing it with a new feat that has a similar effect, except it works with swords of any weight and only applies to sword art damage. A scaling -1 penalty to attack, +2 bonus to damage with any sword during sword arts at the cost of 1 feat is the intended effect, but in the short-term, you'll have to convince your GM of this. Developer post + GM treats should do the trick ;)

havoc xiii wrote:
Also can a Swormaster trade ou the fundamental sword arts? Like misdirection for subtle misdirection?

Yes!

You can have a completely customized selection of sword arts at level 4 by replacing a fundamental sword art at levels 2, 3 and 4.

But you can only exchange sword arts for sword arts and advanced sword arts for advanced sword arts. Misdirection can't be exchanged for subtle misdirection, but it can be exchanged for any "normal tier" sword art. In other words, you must always have 8 basic sword arts in order to gain an advanced sword art.

Oops, meant to say 9. Must have 9 basic sword arts to gain an advanced sword art.

Ok awesome I thought you probably could but wasn't entirely positive.

If you were to give a tiefling a favored class bonus what would it be?
havoc xiii wrote:
If you were to give a tiefling a favored class bonus what would it be?

Add +1 the critical threat range of swords when performing a sword art that does not allow a target to use his Dexterity modifier to AC. This bonus is always additive (it never increases, even if your critical threat range is doubled). Add 3 as a denominator below future selections of this bonus each time it increases the critical threat range of swords by 1 (i.e. +1 at 1st level, +1/3 at 2nd, 3rd and 4th level, +1/6 at 5th through 10th level and +1/9 at 11th through 19th level, if chosen every level).

havoc xiii wrote:
If you were to give a tiefling a favored class bonus what would it be?

Add +1/2 to sword art damage when denying your target his Dexterity modifier to AC.

In case your GM requires something more traditional, the option above also works. The critical threat range option is much better overall (more balanced, scales more smoothly, never becomes obsolete and synergizes well with many sequiturs and finishers), but it might be a little too unusual or messy for some tastes.

When do we get to see Secrets of Sword & String? Or is those one of those things that if you told us you'd have to kill us?

+1. My group's Swordmaster is damn cool and could require some additional tools. :)

+1 from me too (bouncing over from the Puppetmaster thread).

I blame you two for me asking I saw End mention it so I had to ask. ;)

Just started playing my Elven swordmaster today. So much fun! Any additional resources would be instant buys.

My tiefling Swordmaster is fun even I all I've fought with him so far is a single giant maggot...can't wait for the bigger stuff :)
havoc xiii wrote:
When do we get to see Secrets of Sword & String? Or is those one of those things that if you told us you'd have to kill us?

The Bad News: The expansion is still a few months away.

The Good News: It's getting a thorough QA treatment.

Sadly, no save is required for such nebulous news, but it's the best I can do for now.

It's good to hear that it's not cancelled. Personally, I'd rather wait for awesomeness than get something not up to the awesomeness of the base class. ^^

Does the swordmaster class give the swordmaster any way to contribute to non-combat situations outside of the 2+int skill ranks per level? If it doesn't, is providing the swordmaster with some tools to contribute under consideration?

It does, yeah. You have to remember the class relies pretty heavily on Intelligence (tactful deflections and numerous sword arts) so the 2+Int is actually a bit deceptive. You usually start pretty easily with 4-5 skills per level depending on your class and favored class bonus. Very close to a magus actually in play.

PS: Will Dreadfox be providing favored class bonuses for the various races in the new book? It's something I'd be really interested in!

Anyway, if you look over their skills they have some really good ones too. Acrobatics, Bluff, Perception, Knowledge (Local) have all been very handy for my character and allowed him to take part out of combat often. Not to mention after level 2 you have a sentient blade that can give advice, plot hints, and provide amusing role-play opportunities.

With selective traits you can, of course, pick up some other useful skills as well. Swordmasters can pretty easily fall into a 'face' role (only really need to add diplomacy) or pick up additional knowledge skills (since they usually have a pretty high Int anyway).

So, their non-combat capability is limited to the skill system then? Does the swordmaster their sentient blade get any abilities to help them deal with any of travel, investigation, diplomacy, overcoming obstacles, or other non-combat tasks?

I wouldn't call that limited, but oh well. Judging from my playing experience, my player does A LOT in non-combat environments and essentially is the tough guy who sneaks around with the rogue or guards the casters..

Roleplaying-wise, the intelligent blade is a nice rp-catalyst and since it can essentially eat other item's enchantments, it also has some additional customization options.

Not sure what you're looking for - the Swordmaster is not TPK Games' Investigator-class, but at its focus it imho works well and high int and dex mean a decent skill selection.
Caedwyr wrote:
So, their non-combat capability is limited to the skill system then? Does the swordmaster their sentient blade get any abilities to help them deal with any of travel, investigation, diplomacy, overcoming obstacles, or other non-combat tasks?

Explain?

Caedwyr wrote:
So, their non-combat capability is limited to the skill system then? Does the swordmaster their sentient blade get any abilities to help them deal with any of travel, investigation, diplomacy, overcoming obstacles, or other non-combat tasks?

Yes, what exactly are you after here? Maybe provide examples from other classes. The class itself is overall closer to fighter than a rogue, though it still falls somewhere between the two. Due to the Intelligence focus, I place it closer to magus myself...though without the spells.

Normally, the skill system is good for modelling things at the lower end of the power spectrum, but at higher level starts to fall behind. Pretty much all the high DC checks are for feats that are still fairly mundane in nature at levels where the casting classes have stopped being constrained by the mundane a long time ago (many spells allow auto-success while skill based classes may not be able to boost their skill check high enough or at all in order to succeed at a task).

Sometimes classes do things like give boosts to skills such as giving more skill bonuses to allow them to start to break the skill system out of the mundane at higher levels at the same time as the magic system is breaking the beyond what the mundane can do. The ease of boosting skills high causes problems with the skill system can mean that this is only a stopgap fix.

Other times, you get class features such as tracking of the ranger or the War Master's informant network (information gathering, roleplaying hooks) or organized march (reduced travel times). Essentially, you let the class break the normal rules in some way to give them an out of combat niche. These may be based on the skill system, or may be outside of the skill system.

From how it has been described, the Swordmaster is a class that can expect to get quite a few skill points, which will serve them well at lower levels but start to fall behind at higher levels in being able to contribute non-combat solutions to the problems the party faces at higher levels as the skill system becomes less relevant in the face of auto-successes granted by the magical system.

This isn't a criticism of the Swordmaster class specifically. I was mostly interested in what it gets in the non-combat fields, as it sounds like it has a very solid and interesting set of mechanics for the combat side of the game. My games tend to go up to higher levels and my players frequently face problems or situations at higher levels that can't or do not have to be solved with combat, but some classes such as the fighter tend to have to sit these parts of the game out as they can only make limited contributions.

Ah, now I get it! Thanks for the clarification, Caedwyr!

It's funny, but what you describe didn't happen in any of my campaigns and all of them went to level 20 and beyond. It's perhaps not only due to the magic/mundane discrepancy, but also due to the players and how the world is constructed. With solid magical defenses/elite-squads that have access to detection etc., magic solutions, at least in my experience, became much less popular. That being said, my martial PCs also went for leadership (which all of my PCs tend to do) and dove headfirst into the possibilities offered by the feat. They also are very smart regarding their magic item selection.

Now admittedly, the swordmaster is very combat specific, but it does have one ability that is very unique: Starting at 5th level, he treats all swords as intelligent weapons - even mundane ones. At least in my campaign, I could craft some interesting clues/hooks based on this ability.

Within the skill-system, double-focus on Int and Dex, especially when combined with good mobility, meant that the class could stand well its own in stealth/infiltration-contexts.

Beyond all of that: Are you familiar with Rite Publishing's 101 New Skill Uses? I've been using the book for quite some time now and it greatly increases the options at a DM's disposal for non-combat scenarios and increases the value of the skill system. Ever since they can make autopsies via Heal for example, my players have started actually taking ranks in it.

Hope that helps!

Is there any update on Hero Lab files for this (and other Dreadfox Games) supplement? As per usual with a lot of 3PP products, I see something that looks very interesting, and has excellent reviews, but using it is completely impractical for us - I have two dyslexic players who can't read through lots of text either to establish a character or work out levelling up options. I'd love to offer this class on a trial basis, but Hero Lab is a must have.
theneofish wrote:
Is there any update on Hero Lab files for this (and other Dreadfox Games) supplement? As per usual with a lot of 3PP products, I see something that looks very interesting, and has excellent reviews, but using it is completely impractical for us - I have two dyslexic players who can't read through lots of text either to establish a character or work out levelling up options. I'd love to offer this class on a trial basis, but Hero Lab is a must have.

I'd be happy to send you the swordmaster's working hero lab file so that you can gauge its practicality for your group. Our other classes use a very similar interface.

I've sent you a PM requesting your email address.

Guessing its to early to ask about the expansion? :)

It's never too early to ask! But our next run of releases still isn't ready.

Do you have to be in combat with the target of Tactical Repartee?

As in can I be fighting some minion and use Tactical Repartee against the BBEG so after two rounds I jump into a sequitur that allows me to move and attack him?

The way I'm reading it, yes. It does say it can be used while doing other sword arts. The offset is that it is using up your move actions for those first two rounds.

Yep but I probably won't need that against the minion and then I can use dance of flame/dance of storms on the bigger enemy. Mythic Champion+Swordmaster will be fun.
havoc xiii wrote:
Do you have to be in combat with the target of Tactical Repartee?

You can use tactical repartee even if you're not in combat. You just need to goad your intended target into responding twice to the same topic, then you can follow up with something disconcerting and surprise them with a sequitur.

Roleplaying. Now with free sequiturs.

Shakes magic 8-Ball

Will we be getting Secrets of Sword & String soon?

1= The answer isn't clear. Try again. ;)

I keep getting my hopes up every time I see this thread get bumped.

I'm waiting for Sword and String also, and for the Hero Lab files. We have a lvl 11 Dreadfox-Gypsy in our Crimson Throne party currently and she's a blast too, very different from what is usually at the table. I hope she'll be also covered with Herolab (and more supplements).
The Exchange
Pathfinder Lost Omens, Rulebook, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

I just caught up on this thread. I was curious if Sword and String was going to include an option or archetype or some sort of dicussion on the Swordmaster's Intelligent/Weapon-Eating Sword(s). Specifically, I was hoping for something on being able to take that out of the class to make the class pure martial without any mystical elements.
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Was hoping something like that myself honestly. Add in something Iajutsu (spelled that wrong I'm sure) would be cool I think.

+1 for minus sword-eating archetype; perhaps with minor access to a grit-like pool or rogue talents as a compensation?

Primarily, though, I think the class would immensely benefit from more sword arts. Been creating schools for my home game, but those still require some playtesting on my part.

I wouldn't mind hearing more about these schools you speak of.
2 people marked this as a favorite.
havoc xiii wrote:
Will we be getting Secrets of Sword & String soon?

It's coming later this year.

I am deeply sorry that you guys have to wait so long for the expansion, but we're working hard to give everyone a bunch of free upgrades to our existing products before we unleash our next subscription run.

Aleron wrote:
I keep getting my hopes up every time I see this thread get bumped.

Secrets of Sword & String is our 2nd or 3rd pending release. You can safely reserve your hopes until the advent of another Dreadfox product.

Oliver Volland wrote:
I hope [the gypsy]'ll be also covered with Herolab...

Yes - this is among the free upgrades we're working on.

xevious573 wrote:
... I was hoping for something on being able to take [Partnered Blade] out of the class to make the class pure martial without any mystical elements.

Yes - this is definitely happening.

Endzeitgeist wrote:
Primarily, though, I think the class would immensely benefit from more sword arts.

Yes - this is also happening.

However, as with the ritualist, we feel like we built a house of cards in balancing a multitude of competitive choices within a unique mechanic. In order to preserve that balance, we will probably be more conservative with the number of new sword arts than some players would like. As always, we're working hard to provide as much flavor as possible without detracting from balance.

So excited! This is my favourite class and I can't wait to see the new toys and ...what sounds like a probable archetype. Thanks so much!

*sigh* I'll just continue scratching away the dates on my prison wall.

Scratch scratch scratch away.

Scratches another gash into wall.

this looks like a pretty fun class, I'm curious to hear how it plays in some people's games. If my DM allows I might try this when we start Mummy's Mask
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