Knight of Iron and Steel (ToB Prc)
KNIGHT OF IRON AND STEEL
Many warriors train with shields an as instrument of defense. But in the hands of a skilled warrior a shield can be so much more. Some spend their time developing such skills – making their shield more than just a slab of steel. In time these warriors are able to push aside strikes and counter with their own in single fluid motion, adjust for the weight of a shield to allow very precise movements and even take advantage of their shield to go on the offensive without sacrificing their defense.
Such warriors train heavily in the schools of Iron Heart and Steel Mountain, granting them the name “Knights of Iron and Steel”.
ENTRY REQUIRMENTS
Base Attack Bonus: +5
Feats: Agile Shield Fighter
Martial Maneuvers: Must know at least 1 Iron Heart and 1 Steel Mountain Maneuver, of which at least one is 3rd level or higher.
Hit Die: D12
Skill Points: 4 + Int Modifier per level.
Class Skills: Balance, Concentration, Climb, Craft, Intimidate, Martial Lore, Ride and Swim.
{table=head]Level|Base Attack Bonus|Fort Save|Ref Save|Will Save|Special|Man Known|Man Readied
1st|+1|+2
|+0
|+0
| Guard and Counter 1/Encounter|1
|0
2nd|+2| +3
|+0
|+0
| Sword and Shield Fusion|0
|0
3rd|+3| +3
|+1
|+1
| Guard and Counter 2/Encounter|1
|1
4th|+4| +4
|+1
|+1
| Stance of Iron and Steel|0
|0
5th|+5| +4
|+1
|+1
| Guard and Counter 3/Encounter|1
|0
[/table]
CLASS FEATURES
Maneuvers: At every odd-numbered level the Knight of Iron and Steel gains a new maneuver known (though this maneuver must be from either the Iron Heart or Steel Mountain school). You must meet the maneuvers prerequisites to learn it. You add your Knight of Iron and Steel level to your initiator level to determine your total initiator level and you highest level maneuvers known. At 3rd level you also gain an additional maneuver readied.
Guard and Counter (Ex): A master practitioner of Iron Heart and Steel Mountain techniques is able to combine the two, using maneuvers from both with a single, fluid motion. Whenever the knight uses a Steel Mountain counter, he/she may also, as a free action, use a single Iron Heart strike. This strike, however, must be directed against the same target as the counter (however, if the strike affects more than one target, such as Steel Wind, only one of the targets must be the target of the Steel Mountain counter).
Both maneuvers must be readied and this action uses up both maneuvers as if they were used normally.
The knight can only use this ability once per encounter at 1st level. At 3rd and 5th level the knight gains an additional use of this ability per encounter.
Sword and Shield Fusion (Ex): A knight of Iron and Steel is taught to use every aspect of his/her shield – both as an instrument of defense and as a weapon. At 2nd level the Knight of Iron and Steel gains a bonus to any damage rolls made from a shield bash equal to his/her Sword of the Steel Heart level.
Additionally, the check penalty of any shield used by the knight is reduced to 0 whilst being wielded by the knight.
Stance of Iron and Steel (Ex): A Sword of the Steel Heart is able to adopt fighting stances from two separate schools, combining their strengths and minimizing their weaknesses. At 4th level the Sword of the Steel Heart can gain the benefits of two stances at once. However, one stance must be an Iron Heart stance whilst the other must be a Steel Mountain stance.
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So how does it look? Any glaring problems within the class I might have missed?
Re: Knight of Iron and Steel (ToB Prc)
No real issues, though it seems rather vanilla. To me it seems a little weak compared to some of the superior Tome of Battle prestige class options, like the Eternal Blade. I could probably justify it being only three levels long with Fusion at first (or second) and the stance at third with +1 maneuvers known at those levels, +1 maneuver readied at second, and G&C being once/encounter per class level. That might not be standard for Tome of Battle, but I think it would work fine.
My only other caveat is I haven't bothered to read the Steel Mountain discipline, though I don't think this really affects what I said above in any significant manner.
Re: Knight of Iron and Steel (ToB Prc)
You sure you don't want to give them Ride and/or Swim? They have a lot of skill points for how many class skills they have... if they are supposed to be true "knights" instead of that just being a nickname, then diplomacy and Knowledge(Nobility) would be good choices. I know that Craft is actually a bunch of different skills but most people never put much into it, and even if they do, it is usually to max out a single skill for RP purposes.
Re: Knight of Iron and Steel (ToB Prc)
Apart from the skill thing already said, it might be a bit strong, being able to use a Tower Shield with no ACP.
Re: Knight of Iron and Steel (ToB Prc)
Eh, they still take the to-hit penalty, and the most likely thing for ACP to come with for such a character is for Balance checks for their maneuvers (which is just fine). By 10th level Armor class starts to become less important/need all the help it can get since everything tends to hit anyway (or at least that is what I hear... AC = useless, Miss-chances = useful).
Re: Knight of Iron and Steel (ToB Prc)
Added Climb and Swim (copy paste error, this class was meant to have them.)
Though the option for a Tower Sheild without ACP might seem a bit powerful, I feel it may still be worth keeping. The reason is that this class is meant to combine a standard warrior discipline with a sheild heavy discipline - and using a tower sheild strips away the option to bash rendering some (if only some) of the sheild maneuvers pointless and negates some of the advantages (such as the bonus to damage via sheild bashing).
It would encourage the use of a Tower Sheild even though warblades do not normally get the proficency, so it would allow a minor degree of variety in the class.
