Don't just hack and slash like a fresh recruit! Rise above the rank and file to become a true artist of combat with the secrets found within Pathfinder Player Companion: Weapon Master's Handbook! Emulate the fighting style of your patron deity, learn to use your weapons in tricky new ways, or simply enchant your boring old sword with new and exciting magical abilities. Whether you want to perfect the use of a single weapon, become an expert on a whole group of them, or dedicate yourself to a specific fighting style, this player-friendly volume contains everything you need!
Inside this book, you'll find:
Weapon style feats giving characters focusing on one type of weapon or weapon combination new options unavailable to less specialized combatants.
Advanced weapon mastery options that let specialized fighters continue to improve with their chosen weapons, even at higher levels.
Magic item mastery, which pits a character's martial spirit against the essential nature of their magic items, resulting in radically different magic effects.
An expansion of the combat trick and stamina system introduced in Pathfinder RPG Pathfinder Unchained to cover combat feats from several Pathfinder Campaign Setting sourcebooks.
A weapon design system that allows Game Masters to let their imaginations run wild, adding almost any conceivable weapon to their campaigns.
This Pathfinder Player Companion is intended for use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and the Pathfinder campaign setting, but can easily be incorporated into any fantasy world.
ISBN-13: 978-1-60125-796-3
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This book started it all for Fighters in 2106. Finally, the class gets options that lift it from bottom of the barrel.
Combine whats in this book with the combat stamina system from pathfinder unchained, get the armor master handbook and magic tactics toolbox, google "Iron Caster", and enjoy playing fighters that are amazing.
I bought this book from my local game store some time ago and just now bought the PDF so I could have a copy on my tablet. This is, in my opinion, probably one of the best books Paizo has put out including other product lines such as the Core books and APs. It's chock full of interesting options for martial characters, especially the Fighter. The Fighter, which has traditionally been the most boring class in the game, got elevated to one of my favorite classes to tinker with thanks to this book alone. Not everything's a hit, like the weapon creation rules which are kind of funky and seem more like a tool to powergame weapon groups in weird ways, but they're minor enough issues or just not bad enough to detract from the book as a whole.
Absolutely pick this book up, if for no other reason than to support this kind of content in the future.
You have a plethora of worthwhile options to build the fighter you want to. Some things i love. You ever watch a movie and your hero does some neat trick like blind the bad guy by pulling his helmet over his eyes while stabbing someone else, this book legalizes this! There are bunch of trick options to give you legal ways to do neat things in combat.
They have some combat styles that definitely have their niche. More feats for throwing weapons that are long over due, and they are very potent. Almost essential for someone relying on thrown weapons.
They have ways for warrior types to use magical items in ways not intended. Now I do not see this fitting a weapon master thing to use my incredible health to force a goblin fire drum to make me fly! There issue with this, but it is neat if not out of place. I would have used cha for this ability option.
This was a great book done well. Anyone that like variety in their fighters this is a must buy. Great job Paizo!
Have you ever wanted to ricochet a hammer across the skulls of 3 orcs? Are you intrigued by the idea of lockpicking with a crossbow? Do you ever just want to punch a disintegration ray out of your way with a gauntlet while smugly proclaiming "Not today, buddy!" All this, plus more is possible in the Weapon Master's Handbook. Paizo is pushing the limits of what martial characters can achieve in the Pathfinder ruleset, and I freaking love every bit of it.
Highlights from the book include:
Alternate bonuses fighters can take at each tier of weapon mastery, such as adding bravery to all will saves, applying weapon finesse to any weapon group, proficiency with all exotic weapons, replacing skill requirements with BAB, and more.
New style feats. Who says they have to be restricted to monks? These include a style that specializes in whacking people with bows/guns, one that specializes in 5-foot steps and lunges, and a style that turns spears into double weapons.
Butt loads of other feats. What I love about them is just how usable they are. In Ultimate Combat, maybe 10-25% of the feats seemed usable, but in here, I can find uses and potential build ideas for most of the ones in this book. Some of my favorites are Spellcut (substitute base saves with BAB against magic), Smash from the Air (knock away magic attacks and freaking boulders), and Cayden Cailean's Blade and Tankard, which specializes in using a tankard as an off-hand weapon!
The only potential downside I can see to this book, is that a lot of the features are specific to fighters, or require weapon mastery as a class feature to qualify. That being said, I was disappointed by their lack of inclusion in Pathfinder Unchained, so I feel they were overdue for some love.
I really hope Paizo continues in this direction for fun, flavorful, and most importantly, useful combat options. This is probably my favorite player companion of all time, and I can't wait to try out all these new builds swimming around in my head.
A book on martials, in particular Fighters, getting cool things. Like flying without having to rely upon a spellcaster. Or getting more out-of-combat options, which you likely did not expect from a book like this. Excellent, well-thought, innovative material.
The new direction of Player Companions under Owen is excellent. If Armor Master Handbook will be half as good... my only gripe will be that these too should be put together into a hardcover.
I've heard the verdict on Swashbuckler Weapon Training and AWT, but what about the feats like Cut from the Air? Same problem or no? I love the idea of essentially expanding parry to projectiles and eventually spells but would I have to take martial focus first?
I'd rather not talk any more about Ascetic Style more then I already have.
Ah! Music to my ears.
So, who was responsible for the Item Mastery feats?! They actually have me considering making a Fighter for the first time ever! Lore Warden being my archetype of choice...just fits thematically, to me.
Does Slipslinger Style give you proficiency with all slings (i.e. the double sling specifically) ? I assume it should, but RAW its questionable at best.
Missed one melee style:
Spear Dancing style lets you treat any spear or polearm as a double weapon, with off-hand a light mace, losing reach and brace. Next feat lets you finesse it, and treat it as a quarterstaff for feats and abilities. Last feat gives you back reach as a swift action.
I apologize if I missed the answer to this earlier in the thread, but how does this interact with a magic weapon?
Normally, one must separately enchant both ends of a double weapon. Is this an exception?
If not, does the off-hand end always count as a nonmagical mace, or can you enchant the stick end as a weapon in its own right? You cannot normally enchant the haft of a polearm.
Does this mean you need to purchase your polearm with a masterwork haft to add magic bonuses?
I'm not exactly sure where to go to get conversation on this topic but: is it by design or just coincidence that there is not a one-handed 1d10 exotic bludgeoning weapon?
The dwarven style: Turns the hatred bonus from TH to TH/dmg; doubles it to +2/+2; allows it apply to ANYTHING that has hit you until the end of combat; AND allows the +4 AC racial bonus to AC to apply against anything you Hate?
That's terrifying, if it's all true.
==Aelryinth
All correct. It does require something to hit you first, so if you optimize AC too heavily, it will be difficult to get that hit. It also means you won't get the bonuses without first taking some pain.
But this is also awesome if you are turtling up anyway.
For example if you are an AC build Dwarven Hatred Style and Seething are a pretty awesome way to bump your AC even higher.
Dwarven Fury is just Gravy.
I love this book. SO many things for Martial Minded Characters.
Owen, I was disappointed in the weapon masters handbook.
I'm obviously sorry you are disappointed. However, suggestions that change how core rules operate, such as changing Vital Strike so it works on a charge without any other player resource being spent on it, or giving every martial character weapon training as part of the base character classes, just aren;t going to happen in a Player Companion. These books are ways to contextualize the existing rules in Golarion-specific ways, and offer new campaign-specific options that work within the existing rule framework.
We're not going to overturn how the whole games work in a 32-page soft back.
There are, of course, options here that are more than a list of feats. Advanced weapon training specifically looked at a way to expand what kind of fighter builds a player can create without making the fighter give up feats. The divine fighting techniques offer different kinds of alternatives.The stamina and combat tricks boost feats characters already have.
But a straight redesign of martial classes that boosts their baseline power for no swap-out isn't something a Player Companion is ever going to do.
This book is chock full of so much awesome.
The advanced fighter options make it worthe the purchase for anyone who ever plays a fighter.
The divine styles are excellent as are the racial style feats.
My Dwarven Warpriest of Imodae is loving Iomedae's Inspiring Word and the advanced option, along with the Dwarf Hatred Style.
This is working amazing in play and fullfills a fighter/Paladin role.
Being the main frontliner is totally cool as I can Charge and drop a nice +2 to hit and saves on the whole party - a Decent trade for not 2 handing a charge.
It lets me PA on the first hit while dropping a Shaken (flat footed to me). This usually results in me being stuck on the first hit, triggering Dwarven Seething for either AC or Damage.
Then popping Deadly stroke instead when smiting, instead of a full attack is gravy for a class that only gets 2 attacks normally.
“Tempered champions are trained to master their deities’ favored weapons.”
That’s funny considering both the base paladin and the archetype aren’t proficient with the deity’s weapon like a cleric or warpriest are. Can we please make an errata that fixes this? Kind of difficult to “master” a weapon when you’re dumping feats just to be proficient in a deity’s exotic weapon or unarmed strike.
