Class: Warrior

The Warrior is a master of combat. Their methods of battle vary greatly, and disciplines of war can be found in any culture. But all Warriors share one thing in common: an almost superhuman ability to excel and persist in combat.

Warriors are not mere fighters. They are not thugs who barely know how to hold a sword. A Warrior is an army of one; a whirlwind of steel. An entire squad of footmen could easily fall to a single Warrior, properly trained.

Warriors often find themselves on the frontlines of dangerous conflicts against supernatural forces or unbeatable odds. Yet they emerge victorious where others would be left drowning in their own blood.

Making a Warrior

Warriors can be found in any civilization. They are the professional bruisers of crime guilds, the valiant royal guard of monarchs, the stalwart mercenaries of lawless lands.

Each Warrior’s story is unique. Some are in their middle years, riddled with scars from battles past. Others are young and impetuous, believing they cannot be bested. There are Warriors that detest violence, and there are Warriors who revel in the bloodlust of battle.

When making a Warrior character, consider where they picked up their fighting abilities. What is their attitude towards combat? What are they fighting for? Do they carry a weapon with personal significance?

Skills

As a Warrior, the Physical skills are largely your focus. Attack-based skills include Accuracy for Ranged Weapons and Finesse or Might for Melee Weapons and Brawling. As for defense, Endurance is primarily useful for heavily armored Warriors, while Reflex is used for dodging.

Your other skill choices can help inform aspects of your character not directly related to combat.

Starting Equipment

Although unarmored and unarmed Warriors are certainly a viable character concept, you will probably want to consider purchasing some combat equipment from the Marketplace page.

Wearing armor will cause you to tire in combat more quickly, but affords you great protection that could save your life. Basic armor comes in three varieties: Light Armor, Medium Armor, and Heavy Armor. Some Warriors own multiple different sets and choose which one to wear depending on the circumstances of the day.

Weapons are distinguished by many different factors, including item deeds, traits, and Burden. Light Melee weapons use your Finesse skill, Heavy Melee weapons use Might, and Flex Melee weapons can use either. Ranged weapons rely on your Accuracy.

Owning a few different weapons can make a Warrior incredibly versatile in combat due to the variety in the unique strengths and weaknesses of each weapon.

Some Warriors also make use of alchemical concoctions to improve their performance in battle or to heal their wounds. Consider purchasing one or more doses of Adrena or Vitala for this purpose.

Warrior Features

Class Trait. You gain the Warrior trait, allowing you to gain abilities that also have the Warrior trait.

Class Skills. You gain 6 physical skill boosts and 3 mental skill boosts. You cannot increase a skill above apprentice (d8) in this way.

Battle Stance. You gain the ◈ Battle Stance ability.

Subclass. Choose Defender, Striker, or Tactician and gain the associated features:

Defender. You are a bulwark; a force that cannot be ignored. You gain the Defender and ◈ Challenge abilities.
Striker. You are a blur of steel and aggression. You gain the Striker and ◈ Dash abilities.
Tactician. Your mind is as honed as your weapons. You gain the Tactician and ◈ Strategize abilities.

Stance (trait)

Stance: You cannot enter a Stance or use a Stance ability if you are prone or vulnerable. If you gain one of these status effects, or if you enter another Stance, the prior Stance ends immediately.

Warrior Stance Move

Move up to half your Speed and enter one of the following Stances.

Offensive Stance: When you Brawl, Shoot, or Strike, roll two Event Dice instead of one and take the higher roll.

Defensive Stance: When you Defend, roll two Event Dice instead of one and take the higher roll.

Balanced Stance: At the start of each of your turns, remove 1 Stress if you aren't vulnerable.

Warrior Subclass

Challenging Attack. When you succeed on an Attack against a creature, you can challenge that creature until the end of your next turn.

Binding Challenge. When a creature that is challenged by you would use a Move ability to leave a Space adjacent to you, you can Strike, Shoot, or Brawl against them as an instant.

Warrior Subclass

When you successfully Brawl, Shoot, or Strike a creature and had +2 or more Edge on the roll, you deal 1 unblockable Damage to them.

Warrior Subclass

At the beginning of each of your turns in Tactical Mode, you lose all unspent Stratagem, then gain 1 Stratagem.

Whenever another creature you are aware of within 20 Spaces would roll to Attack or Defend, you can spend 1 Stratagem before the roll is made to add +1 Edge to the roll.

A roll cannot be affected by more than 1 Stratagem.

Challenged (status effect)

The first time each round that you use an Attack that doesn't include the creature that challenged you as a target, you take 1 Stress. If you become challenged by another effect, you can choose which challenged status effect to keep; the other is removed.

Warrior Move

Move up to half your Speed and challenge up to 2 creatures within 10 Spaces until the end of your next turn.

Special: You cannot use this ability more than once per round.

Warrior Move

Move a distance up to your Speed + 2. If you end this movement adjacent to one or more enemies that was at least 5 Spaces away from you at the start of your turn, one of these enemies of your choice takes 1 Stress.

Special: You cannot use this ability more than once per round.