Martial Versatility & Unarmed Strikes

[Minigiant]

When you select the Martial Versatility feat

Martial Versatility wrote:

Choose one combat feat you know that applies to a specific weapon (e.g., Weapon Focus). You can use that feat with any weapon within the same weapon group.

and select Weapon Focus Unarmed, does that apply to each weapon group unarmed strikes are in or do I have to declare which it is?

FYI Unarmed is in; Close, Monk, Natural, & Tribal

[Scott Wilhelm]

You know my opinion, and I believe you correctly quoted the text of Martial Versatility.

You take Weapon Focus Unarmed.

You take Martial Versatility Weapon Focus.

You want to use a Klar. Do you get to use Weapon Focus with a Klar?

Klar is in the Close Weapon Group.

Unarmed Strike is in the Close Weapon Group, so yes, you can.

You want to use an Urumi.

Urumi and and Unarmed Strike are both in the Monk Weapon Group.

If you aren't proficient with Urumi (an Exotic Weapon), you still suffer the -4 penalty for fighting with a weapon you aren't proficient with, but you also get that +1 for Weapon Focus.

My opinion is based on a literal interpretation of the rules-as-written.

[Name Violation]

Scott Wilhelm wrote:

If you aren't proficient with Urumi (an Exotic Weapon), you still suffer the -4 penalty for fighting with a weapon you aren't proficient with, but you also get that +1 for Weapon Focus.

My opinion is based on a literal interpretation of the rules-as-written.

But weapon focus REQUIRES proficiency.

Is there wording to bypass the requirement?

[gnoams]

I would agree, martial versatility would allow your chosen feat to function for any weapon in any of the weapon groups said weapon belongs. On the other hand, I do not think it allows you to apply feats that would otherwise not function. For example slashing grace would be a feat you could take martial versatility with, but that would not allow you to use slashing grace with a club. (unless you could combine it with weapon versatility making that club a slashing weapon and then it'd work, but I digress).

Side note- advanced weapon training weapon specialist does the same thing as martial versatility, but includes a few more clarifying lines. This could be taken as an argument that martial versatility does allow you to bypass requirements since those lines aren't in that feat. I don't think this is the case, but I can see grounds for arguing that way.

Weapon Specialist wrote:

The fighter selects a number of combat feats that he knows equal to his weapon training bonus with the associated weapon group. The selected feats must be ones that require the fighter to choose a type of weapon (such as Weapon Focus and Weapon Specialization), and the fighter must have chosen weapons that belong to the associated fighter weapon group. The fighter is treated as having the selected feats for all the weapons in the associated weapon group that are legal choices for those feats. The fighter is also considered to have those feats with these weapons for the purpose of meeting prerequisites.

[Scott Wilhelm]

Name Violation wrote:

But weapon focus REQUIRES proficiency.

I'm not suggesting the character is taking weapon focus for a weapon he doesn't have proficiency in. The OP is taking Weapon Focus Unarmed, and his character will be proficient with Unarmed Strikes.

Name Violation wrote:

Is there wording to bypass the requirement?

The text of the Martial Versatility Feat bypasses this requirement.

Martial Versatility wrote:

You can use that feat with any weapon within the same weapon group.

Unarmed Strikes and Urumi are both in the same weapon group: the Monk Weapon Group.

Incidentally, I believe the OP intends to use Martial Versatility to apply Weapon Focus to weapons his is proficient with: Unarmed Strikes, Natural Attacks, and Armor Spikes.