Samurai

Table

Samurai are the upper subclass of the warrior caste in Asian societies. Most swear allegiance to a daimyo (da-i-MYO) and serve his desires with their life. Samurai are fearsome opponents in battle, but also partake of artistic expressions as well. Indeed, the way of bushi-do, the martial way of life, demands a well-rounded character.

Adventures: Samurai undergo adventuring under the auspices of their daimyo. Aside from that, samurai often adventure to raise their reputation and practice the martial way of life.

Characteristics: Samurai are often stoic, as indeed most train the in Zen philosophy. They'd rather voice their opinions only when necessary and use the self-imposed silence to study others. Most samurai follow an esoteric philosophy that helps them overcome fear in the battlefield.

Alignment: Samurai must be of lawful, though they can choose on the good-evil axis.

Background: Almost all samurai are born in to the class. Indeed, quite a few Aristocrats are samurai in name, if not in deed. It is not unheard of however, for a lower-class person to gain renown in the martial arts and join the class after finding a sponsoring lord.

Races: Samurai can be of any race, though humans and spirit folk show a predisposition toward it.

Other classes: Samurai respect any who display martial authority such as bushi, kensai, monks, and sohei. Additionally, powerful houses are often aligned with wu jen, and a samurai like anybody get along with a favorable shukenja.

Game rule information

Abilities: Being warriors, strength, health, and agility are important to samurai characters. Additionally, some of the samurai's abilities depend on Wisdom. Samurai are also in the position as the head of their party. Likewise, samurai are expected to display proper respect whenever in the presence of superiors. This latter being very important, Charisma is also an important attribute for samurai characters.

Alignment: Samurai must be of any lawful alignment. Samurai who lose their lawfulness become ronin (see hereafter).

Hit dice: d10

Class skills: Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Craft (Calligraphy, Painting, Poetry, Flower arranging; Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Handle animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Knowledge (Royalty & Nobility; Int), Perform (Samisen instrument, Koto instrument, Noh theater; Cha), Ride (Dex), Tumble (Dex).
    Skill points: 2 + Int modifier at 1st, 2 + Int modifier per level

Class features

Note that the samurai class is rather special in that it emphasizes not only martial but also artistic mastery of its members. At second level she must have purchased two ranks in Ride. At sixth level she must have at least two ranks each in two art forms. At twelfth she must have four ranks in two art forms. Martial mastery also figures into this list of requirements. By ninth level the samurai must have taken the Weapon Focus feat. Thus, it pays to look ahead when assigning skill points and choosing feats. The consequences are harsh.

Proficiencies: Samurai gains proficiency with all simple and martial weapons and all light, medium, and heavy armors, but not shields.

Service: Samurai who choose to start under the auspices of a greater house receive provisions. Samurai who don't are called ronin, and are dealt with below. A ronin may also accept service under a greater house and thus gain the benefits (and duties) of service. Essentially, the samurai has become a retainer of her lord, and must never question his daimyo, even if he disagrees, to the point of laying down her life for the cause.

In turn, the lord provides the samurai basic arms and a mount at first level. The weapons received are usually a katana and wakizashi (unless the character already has one of those via inheritance, for example). The samurai also receives a light warhorse as a mount. If the mount dies or the swords are lost, it is up to the samurai to replace them. When an item is no longer needed however (e.g., if the character finds a better blade), then the article must be returned. Essentially, the gifts are open-ended loans.

The samurai can also expect basic lodging and fare when in the vicinity of her master's estate, as well as from any allied houses of her lord, though she is expected to present a suitable gift of (but of small value) when lodging at allies' facilities. Such a gift may be a poem, flower arrangement, or the like.

Weapon mystique: Samurai excel at combat with their specially made blade, the katana, though some samurai choose other martial or exotic weapons, usually the nagimaki, naginata, tetsubo, or daikatana (greatsword). It may take up to a year or longer to forge one of these magnificent blades, and the gift of one is one of the highest honors. If a samurai loses her special weapon, she suffers a loss of honor. Furthermore, she is expected to recover the weapon if possible, even to the extent of risking her life.

At first level a samurai gains the Exotic Weapon Proficiency for the katana, allowing her to fight one-handed with the weapon (though usually two hands are used).

Mounted warfare skill requirement: At second level the samurai must have purchased at least 2 ranks in the Ride skill. Failure to do so disallows further advancement in this class. If the samurai has a free feat not yet assigned, she can meet this requirement with the Skill Focus feat if the +2 bonus granted by that feat is assigned to the Ride skill.

Ki shout: Also at second level the samurai gains the ability to focus her ki with an enormous shout. A ki shout raises the samurai's Strength by a number equivalent to her Wisdom modifier for one round. This is a free action that may be taken only on the character's turn, and she must be able to vocalize and hear herself for the shout to be effective. A ki shout can be performed once for every two samurai levels the character has gained. This is a supernatural ability.

Alertness: At third level the samurai's meditative philosophy allows her to gain the Awareness feat free. Awareness adds a +2 bonus to all Listen and Spot skill checks.

Stoicism: At fifth level the samurai becomes immune to fear. This is an extraordinary ability learned by the samurai's philosophy that enhances her fearsomeness in battle - what foe would not hesitate to face an opponent unafraid to die?

Warrior-artist requirements: A samurai's philosophy postulates that warriors who do not excel in the arts cannot excel on the battlefield. At sixth level the samurai must have purchased a least a total of two ranks in two or more of the following skills: Craft (calligraphy), Craft (painting), Craft (poetry), Craft (flower arranging), Perform (samisen), Perform (koto), and Perform (noh theater). For example, she must have at least two ranks in both Perform (samisen) and Craft (calligraphy) to meet this requirement. Failure to do so disallows her from advancing beyond sixth level in this class. These requirements may also be met with one or two Skill Focus feats devoted to these arts.

At twelfth level she must have a total of at least eight ranks in one or more of these skills (though they can be the same as the ones used to qualify for this requirement at sixth level and the eight ranks can be divided among them as the character sees fit). Again, without the proper ranks, she cannot advance beyond twelfth level if this requirement is not met.

Fearsome presence: At sixth level, the samurai's philosophy and prowess in martial life allows her to instill fear in her opponents. Intelligent creatures within 20' who can see and hear the samurai potentially are susceptible to this supernatural effect. Upon failing a Will save with a DC equal to 10 + half the samurai's level, they flee. If fleeing is not possible, they cower. The samurai can control this power at will, turning it "on" and "off" as it were, although she must be conscious for it to operate. Creatures with HD (or class level) greater than one-fourth the samurai's level are immune to this effect. Thus, a sixth level samurai could affect creatures with 1 HD or less. At eighth level 2-HD creatures could be affected, 3-HD at twelfth, 4 HD at sixteenth, and 5 HD at twentieth.

Weapon mastery: At seventh level the samurai may choose any melee weapon with which she has proficiency that can be used two-handed, such as a katana or tetsubo. She can then add twice her Strength modifier (if positive) to damage when wielding that weapon two-handed in melee combat. The weapon doesn't have to be one that can only be used two-handed, but if she uses it with one hand, she only adds her normal Strength modifier to damage. Normally wielding a weapon that can be used one-handed with two hands allows only one and a half times the Strength modifier to be added to damage.

Weapon focus requirement: By ninth level the samurai character must have taken the Weapon focus feat, though there is no limitation on what weapon it must be for. The samurai cannot advance beyond ninth level in the class until she has this feat.

Kiai: At ninth level the samurai gains a quintessential ability, that of the kiai. Summoning the ki within herself, a samurai can issue this great shout which raises her Strength as per a normal ki shout, though it does not count toward the total number of ki shouts she can perform in one day. A kiai also forces all creatures within 10' to make a Fortitude save against 10 + the samurai's Wisdom modifier + half the samurai's level or be stunned for one round. This effect is not cumulative with a ki shout and can be performed once per day. Creatures that are immune to critical hits (e.g., undead, oozes), are immune to the stunning effect.

At One: At fifteenth level the samurai's philosophy has allowed her insight into the movement of the universe. She is this able to supernaturally sense danger and react to it before she is even conscious of the threat. Samurai of fifteenth level or above no longer suffer a -2 penalty to Ac when flanked. This is a supernatural ability.

Supreme Cleave: At twelfth level the samurai can make devastating attacks while wielding a melee weapon. To perform a supreme cleave, she must use the full attack option, declare the attempt before she attacks, and use her kiai. If successful, she automatically scores a critical hit. If her attack roll actually does score a threat that is confirmed as a critical hit, damage is not multiplied. It is an extraordinary ability that can be used once per day at twelfth level and twice per day at eighteenth level.

Ronin: Samurai who are not daimyo themselves, who become unlawful, or lose their lord (e.g., through death, not disobeyance), become ronin, or wanderers.  They can still advance as a samurai but lose any supernatural abilities associated with the class.  Samurai characters that are not born into at least the upper class also start the game as ronin.  This is especially true for "outsiders" to mainstream Asian societies, like korobokuru.  To gain the supernatural abilities of a samurai, a starting character in this situation must find a lord who will sponsor her.

The Samurai

The Wu Jen