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Hey guys, I'd like some critique on a monk archetype I designed based on the Bull Dancer characters from Taliesin. The class is designed to utilize acrobatics to avoid danger and to deliver devastating condition inflicting touch attacks. They are NOT damage dealers. Dealing damage is the least of their concern, they are harriers and performers.
Google Docs version
Bull Dancer: A Monk Archetype
Bull Dancers are living sacrifices who specialize in performing daring acrobatics above, around, under, and on top of ferocious beasts. They do this within the bull ring for the crowd as part of a living sacrifice to their chosen god. When a bull dancer retires from the ring, many take up a life of adventuring, utilizing their acrobatic skill to confound their enemies and render them inept. Although bull dancers vow to never raise a weapon against another, they are very potent companions in an adventuring group.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A bull dancer is not proficient with any weapons or armor.
Vow against Weapons: A bull dancer vows to never use a weapon to harm her enemies. A bull dancer who attacks a foe with a weapon loses all class abilities until she has attoned. She may still use her unarmed strikes to attack.
Pit Training: A bull dancer receives 1/2 her class level on acrobatics, bluff, and sense motive, minimum 1. This replaces increased unarmed damage above level 4.
Dodge: A bull dancer receives dodge as a bonus feat, even if she does not meet the prerequisites. The dodge bonus increases by +1 every 10 levels to a maximum of +3 at level 20. This ability replaces the bonus feats at 1st, 14th, and 18th levels.
Danger Sense (Ex): At 1st level, a bull dancer can always act in a surprise round even if she does not notice her enemies, though she remains flat-footed until she acts. In addition, a bull dancer gains a bonus on initiative rolls equal to 1/2 her monk level. At 20th level, a bull dancer’s initiative roll is automatically a natural 20. This ability replaces stunning fist.
Confound the Beast (ex): At second level, whenever a bull dancer moves through an enemy's threatened area and successfully avoids an AOO (either because the target did not or could not take the attack, missed, or the bull dancer's acrobatics check succeeded, etc.), she can make an touch attack to affect her target with a debilitating effect. The effects of this ability do not stack but multiple applications extend the duration. At 10th level she can apply 2 effects with a single touch and at 20th level she can apply 3 effects with a single touch. This ability replaces flurry of blows.
2. Fatigued
4. Sickened
6. Staggered: The target is staggered for 1 round per two levels.
8. Confused: The target is confused for 1 round per level.
10. Exhausted: The target is exhausted.
12. Nauseated: The target is nauseated for 1 round per three levels.
14. Deafened: The target is deafened.
16. Blinded: The target is blinded.
18. Stunned: The target is stunned for 1 round per four levels.
20. Paralyzed: The target is paralyzed for 1 round.
Enhanced Mobility: At 2nd level, a bull dancer may substitute an acrobatics check for her armor class when avoiding AOO caused by movement. this ability replaces the bonus feat at 2nd level.
Spring Attack: A bull dancer receives Spring Attack as a bonus feat, she does not need to meet the prerequisites. This ability replaces Still Mind..
Unarmed Strike: A bull dancer’s unarmed strike damage does not increase at 4th level and above.
The Bigger They Are, The Harder They Fall(ex): beginning at 4th level, a bull dancers enemies do not receive their size bonus on intimidate, CMB, or CMD checks against her. This ability replaces Maneuver Training.
Feint (Ex): At 4th level, a bull dancer receives Improved Feint as a bonus feat. At 7th level, she receives Greater Feint. At 10th level, a bull dancer may feint as a swift action. At 16th level, she may feint as a free action. This ability replaces Ki Strike (Magic, Silver, Cold Iron, Lawful, and Adamantine).
Ki Pool: A bull dancer can spend 1 ki point to gain an additional move action, this replaces the extra attack gained when using furry of blows.
Expert Tumbler (Ex): At 5th level, a bull dancer can uses Acrobatics to move at full speed through a threatened square without provoking an attack of opportunity, the DC of the Acrobatics check does not increase by 10. This ability replaces purity of body.
Moving Target (Ex): At 6th level, when targeted by a charge, bull rush, trample, or overrun a bull dancer may make a reflex save equal to the attacker's (BAB+Dexterity modifier) to avoid the attack. This ability replaces the bonus feat at 6th level.
Untiring (Ex): At 7th level, a bull dancer is immune to fatigue. This ability replaces wholeness of body.
Roll with it (Ex): At 10th level, a bull dancer is gains Roll With It as a bonus feat, she does not need to meet the prerequisites. In addition, she is only staggered if she fails the save. This ability replaces the bonus feat at 10th level.
Part of the reasoning behind the condition touch attacks is that Charis in the book is able to kill an enormous bull who is hell bent on killer her by causing it to over exert itself as she jumped and dodged around him. From an in-game mechanic standpoint, I do not enjoy classes with a lot of book-keeping and I have become somewhat bored with standard combat. I figure this would be a good way of mixing things up.
This seems kind of neat, but I am not sure about feinting as a free action. Wouldn't that allow them to feint every single adjacent opponent repeatedly until everyone was flat-footed? At a bare minimum, you should should change it to "a free action once per round".
Feinting everyone around you at 16 th level isnt all that overpowered really. i feel the vow against weapons balances out against pit training personally, and the unarmed damage limitation is unnecessary.
Infinite never-failing feints against every person the monk can walk by? That is bananas. It is especially bananas with greater feint when every single enemy will be flatfooted forever.
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Good points about feint, I also agree that by level 16 the game is way broken already (8/9th level spells) but I also agree infinite feints on everyone doesn't make sense either. What about
I think that is a lot better, Duke. I would still change the wording to make it clear that the feint only happens once.
feint only makes the opponent flatfooted against YOUR attacks not flat footed in general. also one turn isnt forever and when you only get 3 attacks feinting 5 opponents doesn't mean jack.
feint only makes the opponent flatfooted against YOUR attacks not flat footed in general. also one turn isnt forever and when you only get 3 attacks feinting 5 opponents doesn't mean jack.
Yeah? I thought the wording on greater feint was just that the enemy becomes flat footed.