Swordmaster Discipline

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The Swordmaster is a discipline for Fourth World, a "drift" of Dungeon World for playing in the setting of Earthdawn. This text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International license.

Several PDF versions of this playbook can be downloaded from the Fourth World 1.5 page.

Stats

Damage Die: d10
Favored Stats: dex, cha
Load: 12
HP: 10+Constitution

Look

Gaze: fiery, cold, weary
Appearance: adventurous, urbane, secretive
Accoutrement: aristocratic, threadbare, flamboyant
Body: muscular, lithe, agile

Species

Dwarf: When you hack and slash a solitary , large target with a favorite weapon made by dwarven hands, it gains an additional enhancement.

Elf: When you discern realities about a solitary enemy, ask an additional question, even on a miss.

Human: Your personal idiom favors an additional type of weapon.

Obsidimen (+1 armor; only wear living armor): When you defend against a solitary enemy, get +1 readiness, even on a miss.

Ork: When you hack and slash a solitary target with a messy weapon, add +2 damage.

Troll: When you hack and slash on a 10+, always add +3 armor against the enemy’s attack, if any.

T’Skrang: When you defend against a solitary enemy and spend readiness to deal damage, add + DEX to the damage you deal.

Windling (astral sight): When you throw down the gauntlet, take +1.

Flags

Select 2 flags.

Starting Moves

Personal Idiom

When you hold your favorite weapon , your magic improves that weapon, altering it to express your soul and fit your unique fighting style. Choose the type of weapon you favor:

☐ Sword
☐ Axe
☐ Hammer
☐ Polearm
☐ Flail
☐ Dagger
☐ Whip
☐ Fists
☐ Staff/club
Choose two enhancements which apply to any weapon of that type when you use it (and disappear when you don’t). Your magic…

☐ …favors agility over brawn: add precise .
☐ …guides strikes to exposed spots: +2 piercing.
☐ …directs strikes to vulnerable spots: +1 damage.
☐ …favors brutality: add messy and forceful .
☐ …brings you within the enemy’s guard: add hand .
☐ …keeps your enemy at arms length: add close .
☐ …favors lunges and maneuver: add reach .
☐ …harms without killing: add stun .
☐ …you feel at one with the weapon: remove awkward .
☐ …prevents accidental harm: remove dangerous .
☐ …lightens the weapon: −1 weight.
☐ …glows with the light of a torch any time you like.
☐ …alerts you to hated foes, glowing in the presence of one type of creature, your choice.

The Dance

When you hack and slash with your favorite weapon against an enemy wielding a weapon, add the following to the list of choices:

  • You maneuver your target to a nearby spot of your choosing.
  • You maneuver yourself to a nearby spot of your choosing.
  • You embarrass or humiliate your target. Say how.
  • You impress witnesses. Say how.
  • You cause your target to over-commit and stumble.

Perfect Poise

You never lose your balance, even on a high wire, or fall without being pushed. If you are pushed, as long as there is something to break your fall, you can defy danger with DEX to use it and take no damage.

Expressions of Form

When you create art with dancing or acting , take +1. If you perform the result in a successful greeting ritual within a steading, take +1 forward to carouse within that steading.

Talents

You may weave threads into talents, if you meet their requirements:

☐ Artful Dodger

When nothing you wear or carry is clumsy or awkward , get +1 armor.

☐ In Like Flynn

When you meet someone for the very first time and parley with them, improve your result by one step.

☐☐ Laughing, Then Jumping Off Something

When you use your surroundings to perform a flamboyant acrobatic maneuver , choose one outcome, in addition to anything else that may happen. You may spend karma to make one additional choice:

  • You grab something undefended. Now it’s yours!
  • You knock someone down or off-balance.
  • You move from where you are to somewhere else in sight or in reach without difficulty.

Second thread (requires circle 6): Your choices become:

  • You grab something, even if someone else is holding it: Now it’s yours!
  • You knock someone down or off-balance, dealing 1d6 damage to them.
  • You move from where you are to somewhere else in sight or in reach without difficulty. You may take someone else with you.

☐ Throw Down the Gauntlet

When you challenge someone to a duel , roll + CHA . On a 10+ , they choose two if they do not accept. On a 7–9 , they choose one if they do not accept.

  • You take +1 ongoing against them until one of you defeats the other
  • They lose the respect of their peers and underlings
  • They retreat

☐ Cutting Jibe

When you mock, insult or otherwise taunt an opponent right after they damage you, choose one:

  • The target makes a rash decision you can exploit.
  • The target falters or leaves an opening—you or an ally takes +1 forward against them.
  • You take + CHA armor forward against damage from the target.

☐ Disarm

When you use your weapon to disarm an enemy , roll+ DEX . On a hit , the enemy’s damage is halved until they are rearmed. On a 7–9 , you also lose your weapon in the scuffle.

☐☐ Improved Weapon

Choose one extra enhancement for your personal idiom.

Second thread (requires circle 6): Choose an additional enhancement for your personal idiom. Add the following to the choices: your magic…

☐ …favors parry and blocks: gain +1 armor while wielding.
☐ …returns the weapon to your hand if thrown, dropped, or separated from you.
☐ …reaches beyond this world, allowing the weapon to hit insubstantial or astral targets.

☐ Setup Strike

When you hack and slash a solitary target , choose an ally. They take +1 forward to hack and slash the target and, when they do, they add the choices offered by the The Dance.

☐ Staunch Defender

When you defend against a solitary attacker you always hold +1 readiness, even on a miss. Also, you may spend 1 karma to gain +1 readiness.

☐ The Long Climb

When you assess a stretch of dangerous terrain between you and an objective , the GM will sketch out a map or diagram to help you plot your approach. Working together, make note of a number of useful features equal to your circle, and take +1 forward when you make use of them.

☐ They See me Rollin’

When you first enter a steading looking to impress people, roll + CHA . On a 10+ , choose three. On a 7–9 , choose one. You may spend karma to make one additional choice, even on miss:

  • You catch the eye of someone who wants to get intimate.
  • You catch the eye of someone willing to help you.
  • Someone in the steading, of your choice, wants to fight you.
  • You understand some local drama or injustice.
  • You make someone jealous. Say how.

☐ You Seem a Decent Fellow

When you are about to first cross swords with a solitary enemy who uses weapons, you may roll+ CHA when discerning realities about them. If you do, add the following to the list of questions you can ask:

  • What is this opponent about to do?
  • What emotion drives this opponent?
  • What is this opponent trying to hide?

☐ Prepare to Die

When you speak aloud your promise to defeat a solitary enemy , you deal +2d4 damage against that enemy and −4 damage against anyone else. This effect lasts until the enemy is defeated. If you fail to defeat the enemy or give up the fight, you can admit your failure, but the effect continues until you find a way to redeem yourself.

☐ Serpentine

When you employ acrobatics, deft maneuvers, or quick reflexes , you can defend with + DEX instead of + CON .

☐ Walk Between the Raindrops

You may use any of your talents that specify a solitary enemy (i.e. those with the solitary tag) against groups (i.e. enemies with the group tag) as well.

☐ Dance of Death

You may spend karma to:

  • Completely avoid the effects of an attack against you
  • Allow damage dealt from one of your attacks to ignore armor

Gear

appropriate artisan tools (1 weight)
dungeon rations (uses: 5, ration, 1 weight)

Choose your defenses:

☐ leather armor (1 armor, worn, 1 weight)
☐ breastplate (1 armor, worn, 1 weight)
☐ bare skin (0 armor, living)

Choose your armament:

☐ dueling rapier (close, 1 piercing, precise, 2 weight)
☐ short sword, axe, or warhammer (close, 1 weight)
☐ long sword, battle axe or flail (close, +1 damage, 2 weight)
☐ maul, greataxe, or greatsword (close, two-handed, messy, 3 weight)
☐ spear (reach, thrown, near, 1 weight)
☐ dagger (hand, 1 weight)
☐ staff (close, two-handed, 1 weight)
☐ whip (reach, dangerous, entangling, 1 weight)
☐ fists (hand, 1 weight)

Choose two:

☐ adventuring gear (uses: 5, 2 weight)
☐ dungeon rations (uses: 5, ration, 1 weight)
☐ simple mount of appropriate size (beast, mount)