The Falling Wave discipline has a bit of a narrow focus on aquatic combat, and expands those principles into combat based on the power of water. It can, of course, still be used on the surface, but many of its maneuvers are severely impaired outside of the water. Its maneuvers ignore all penalties associated with underwater combat. It favors the bite, claw, dagger, net, and trident. Its key skill is swim, and it replaces the Desert Wind discipline. It can be learned by all martial adepts through the Lesser Discipline feat.
Level 1
Aquatic Charge Strike - Charge a creature through water
Battering Waves Boost - Attacks reduce enemy's AC
Home in the Water Stance - Gain swim speed, improve ability to hold breath
Level 2
Ocean's Embrace Boost - Summon a Water Elemental to grapple enemy
Watery Dodge Counter - Gain temporary HP
Level 3
Dolphin Dance Stance - Attack freely in water, gain AC bonus
Purifying Spring - Remove effect, heal damage
Sea-dwelling Spirit Stance - Walk on and breathe water
Shark's Frenzy Strike - Attack all adjacent opponents; +2d6 damage in water, -4 AC.
Level 4
Riverine Defense Counter - Gain damage reduction, temporary HP
Undertow Strike - Trip at a bonus, make an attack and target loses next move
Level 5
Cascading Waterfall Stance - Inflict additional damage for previous hits
Dolphin's Rush Strike - Charge for +6d6 damage, more in water
Tangled Kelp Strike Strike - Attack dazes enemy
Level 6
Reflection of the Moon Counter - Attack deals damage equal to damage taken
Sinking Curse Boost - Huge Water Elemental grapples your enemy
Level 7
Fountain of Life Boost - Restore status, recover 2x initiator level HP
Rolling Wave Counter - Gain 75 temporary HP but take more damage
Level 8
Ebbing Wounds Stance - Gain regeneration
Unmerciful Deeps Strike - Inflict 15d6 bonus damage, floating target sinks
Level 9
Tsunami's Mighty Landing Strike - Attack deals 20d6 bonus damage, dazes target in water, and knocks target back
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Aquatic Charge
Falling Wave (Strike)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: 1 full-round action
Range: Melee Attack
Target: One Creature
You spiral through the water, catching your enemy off-guard with a burst of speed
As part of this maneuver, make a charge action through water. You may move at your full base land speed, if you lack a swim speed, provided you make a swim check against the normal DC for the water (at no penalty for swimming faster). If you hit, you inflict +1d6 damage.
Battering Waves
Falling Wave (Boost)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Each of your attacks erodes your enemy's defenses, wearing them down through superior endurance.
Every time you hit an enemy in this round, you inflict a -1 dodge penalty to AC. This penalty is cumulative; the total penalty on an enemy decreases by 1 per round after three rounds, until the penalty is reduced to 0.
Cascading Waterfall
Falling Wave (Stance)
Level: 5
Prerequisite: Two Falling Wave maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance
Your attacks steadily wear your enemy down, each leaving a critical weakness in your enemy's guard for your next to exploit
While in this stance, every time you hit an enemy your subsequent attacks against the same enemy gain a +1 bonus to melee damage. This bonus lasts until you go a round without hitting the enemy affected. If you and your enemy are both underwater, your bonus is doubled.
Dolphin Dance
Falling Wave (Stance)
Level: 3
Prerequisite: One Falling Wave maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance
You whirl around effortlessly under the water, in a complicated dance that uses the water itself as another layer of armor.
You gain the benefits of a Freedom of Movement spell as it relates to the effects of water. Additionally, you gain a +1 Deflection bonus to AC for every four ranks that you have in the Swim skill while underwater.
Dolphin's Rush
Falling Wave (Strike)
Level: 5
Prerequisite: Two Falling Wave maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 full-round action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
You rush forward through the water, leaping and spiralling through it like a dolphin, before slamming your weapon home.
You make a charge attack as part of this maneuver, and may charge while underwater or otherwise swimming even without a swim speed; if this attack hits, it deals 6d6 bonus damage. If your enemy is at least waist-deep in water, and you swam the length of the charge, you inflict 2d6 additional bonus damage, for a total of 8d6.
Ebbing Wounds
Falling Wave (Stance)
Level: 8
Prerequisite: Three Falling Wave maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance
The sea is immortal, as are you; your flesh flows as water when you are wounded, reforming yourself to ignore the damage you would take.
While in this stance, you gain Regeneration 3. This converts all damage that you take into nonlethal damage, and restores three points of nonlethal damage per round. No damage type deals normal damage to you. Note that if you become helpless (including unconcious), you cannot maintain any stances, including this one.
Fountain of Life
Falling Wave (Boost)
Level: 7
Prerequisite: Three Falling Wave maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
The waters of the fountain of life wash over your soul, washing away your wounds and restoring your fighting spirit.
When you initiate this boost, you remove all negative effects currently affecting you, with the exceptions of those that require a Remove Curse, Break Enchantment, Limited Wish, Miracle, or Wish spell to remove (such as Geas), and those that affect an area that you are in (such as Acid Fog or Antimagic Field), instead of affecting you or items on your person directly. Additionally, you recover two hit points per initiator level that you have, to a maximum of 1/2 of your normal maximum hit points.
This maneuver is a supernatural ability.
Home in the Water
Falling Wave (Stance)
Level: 1
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance
You are at home in the water every bit as much as you are on land.
You gain a Swim speed equal to your armored land speed (15 feet if your base land speed is 20 feet, 20 feet from a base of 30, and 30 feet from a base of 40). This can be further reduced for armor, as usual, and provides all of the benefits of having a racial swim speed (such as the ability to take 10 on Swim checks under any circumstances, and a +8 racial bonus to your Swim skill). If you have nine or more ranks in Swim, your Swim speed improves to your base land speed.
Additionally, you can hold your breath for much longer; multiply the length of time you can hold your breath for by 2 if you have fewer than four ranks in swim, 3 if you have 4-7 ranks, 4 if you have 8 or more ranks, and increase the multiplier by one for every 3 ranks beyond 8 that you have.
Ocean's Embrace
Falling Wave (Boost) [Water]
Level: 2
Prerequisite: One Falling Wave maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: 30 feet
Effect: Medium Water Elemental
Duration: End of Turn
You reach out with your mind and call a spirit of the water to help you, and it obliges, holding an enemy down
A Medium Water Elemental appears in the space you designate and acts immediately to attempt to grapple an enemy of your choice, provided that it appears adjacent to that enemy. After its turn ends, you may take the rest of your turn (possibly attacking a flanked or grappled enemy), then it vanishes.
This maneuver is a supernatual ability.
Purifying Spring
Falling Wave
Level: 3
Prerequisite: One Falling Wave maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Personal
Target: You
You focus inward, and let the water of your memories wash over your soul to purify it, allowing you to fight with renewed vigor
You can summon the essence of water to wash your soul clean of negative magic. Select one spell, effect, or other condition currently affecting you and with a duration of one or more rounds. That effect ends immediately. Poison and Disease can only be removed if they were applied in the preceding round, and have their effects removed with them; you cannot remove the damage from poison or disease without removing the cause. You may remove Ability Drain or Level Drain up to three rounds after it is applied (to any one ability score, in the former case). Additionally, your focus allows you to heal one point of damage per initiator level, to no more than half of your maximum HP and not affecting damage taken more than three rounds ago.
Reflection of the Moon
Falling Wave (Counter)
Level: 6
Prerequisite: Two Falling Wave maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 immediate action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
You recover from a grevious blow by striking back in a mirror image of your attacker's technique.
You may initiate this counter only when damaged by a melee attack, immediately after being damaged. This counter allows you to make an immediate melee attack against your attacker. If this attack hits, it deals damage equal to the amount of damage that you took, not your normal melee damage. All hit point damage inflicted by added effects to the attack, such as martial maneuvers or added spells, is included in the tally of damage that you took from the attack. Added effects that do not cause hit point damage, including ability damage, fatigue, stun, and the like, are not reflected. You still take full damage from the attack. This maneuver takes place after damage is determined, but before the effects of that damage are resolved, i.e., you may initiate this maneuver in response to an attack that kills you or renders you helpless.
Riverine Defense
Falling Wave (Counter)
Level: 4
Prerequisite: Two Falling Wave maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 immediate action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: See Below
You roll with your enemies' attacks, absorbing their blows as a river does.
You absorb your enemies' attacks and recover from them near-effortlessly. This grants you Damage Reduction 5/- and 20 temporary HP, both of which you lose at the beginning of your next turn, if you have not lost the temporary hit points already. The damage reduction lasts no longer than the temporary HP.
Rolling Wave
Falling Wave (Counter)
Level: 7
Prerequisite: Three Falling Wave maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 immediae action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: See Below
The attacks of your enemies mean nothing to you as you tumble like a wave, deflecting and softening each attack in an amazing defense.
You gain 75 temporary HP, which last until the beginning of your next turn. However, any attack against you deals five bonus damage or double damage, whichever is less; this bonus damage can only affect your temporary HP.
Sea-dwelling Spirit
Falling Wave (Stance)
Level: 3
Prerequisite: One Falling Wave maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance
You can make water bend to your will, taking on properties of air and earth to satisfy you
You can walk on water, as per the Water Walk spell, and breathe water, as per the Water Breathing spell. You may choose freely between walking on and swimming through water, and switch from swimming to walking by expending 5' of movement to climb from swimming on the surface to standing on it; you may also switch as part of moving 10' along the surface; you may switch from walking to swimming as a free action.
Shark's Frenzy
Falling Wave (Strike)
Level: 3
Prerequisite: One Falling Wave maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: All enemies in range
You lash out like a shark in a frenzy, recklessly tearing at any enemy in reach.
You make a single melee attack against each enemy within your melee attack reach. If the attack hits, you inflict normal melee damage. You cause 2d6 bonus damage if both you and your target are at least waist-deep in water. You then take a -4 penalty to AC for one round.
Sinking Curse
Falling Wave (Boost)
Level: 6
Prerequisite: Three Falling Wave maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: 30'
Effect: Huge water elemental
Duration: 1 round
You move your weapon in an elegant whirling motion, actually the gestures for an ancient spell, while speaking a curse upon your enemy. The sea itself rises to drag your enemy into the deeps.
This maneuver functions as Ocean's Embrace, except that the elemental summoned is Huge rather than Medium, and lasts until just before the beginning of your next turn.
This maneuver is still a supernatural ability.
Tangled Kelp Strike
Falling Wave (Strike)
Level: 5
Prerequisite: One Falling Wave maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 1 round
Saving Throw: Fortitude negates
You focus yourself, then make an attack with the power of the sea behind you, knocking your opponent into disarray and leaving him stumbling, trying to recover
As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack; you have a -1 penalty on this attack if both you and your opponent are standing on the ground, or a +1 bonus if both are in water. If it hits, your opponent must make a fortitude save (DC 15 + your Strength modifier) or be dazed for one round. A successful save does not negate the melee damage from this strike.
Tsunami's Mighty Landing
Falling Wave (Strike)
Level: 9
Prerequisite: Four Falling Wave maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 full-round action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 1d4+1 rounds
Saving Throw: Fortitude negates (see below)
Channelling the force of the ocean behind your single mighty blow, you knock your opponent to the ground.
When you initiate this maneuver, make a single melee attack. This attack inflicts 20d6 bonus damage. If it deals damage, the target must make a Fortitude save (DC 19 + your Strength modifier). On a failed save, the target is dazed for 1d4+1 rounds, and must use its same save result against a modified DC by +2 for each size category bigger than it you are, or -2 for each size smaller; if it fails this save launched 2d6 squares away from you in any direction you choose, so long as it never approaches closer to you in any dimension, and moves at least 1 square away from you along the line between you and its starting point. If it hits an obstacle on its path, it stops immediately; if it ends its movement in a square with a surface it could stand on, it is prone on that surface. A successful save negates the daze, but not the extra damage; the creature must still meet the modified DC to avoid being launched, even if it saves to avoid being dazed.
If you initiate this maneuver on land (less than hip-deep in water), the target cannot be dazed, and can only be launched 1d6 squares. If the target avoids being launched but fails the save against the default DC, it falls prone in its space.
This maneuver functions normally on creatures immune to effects that allow fortitude saves (such as undead and constructs).
Undertow
Falling Wave (Strike)
Level: 4
Prerequisite: Two Falling Wave maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 1 round
You sweep your legs out under an enemy, pulling him to the ground and giving you an opening to attack.
As part of this maneuver, make a trip attempt. You may use your Strength or Dexterity for this attempt; your target opposes with the same ability. You gain a +4 bonus on this check. If you succeed, you may make a melee attack with whatever weapon you are wielding as part of this strike, which inflicts an extra 2d6 damage, and your opponent's speeds (in all movement types) are reduced to 0 for one round. If you fail, your opponent cannot attempt to trip you in turn. This maneuver functions even on enemies that cannot be tripped normally, such as those without legs or who aren't using legs.
Unmerciful Deeps
Falling Wave (Strike)
Level: 8
Prerequisite: Three Falling Wave maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 3 rounds
Saving Throw: Fortitude partial
With a mighty blow sweeping downward, you banish your enemy to the depths beneath you.
As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack. If it hits, it inflicts 15d6 damage and the target must make a fortitude save (DC 18 + your Strength modifier). On a failed save, the target begins to sink at a rate of 60 feet per round for the duration of the maneuver, whenever in water (and not on a solid bottom); the target pushes floating obstacles to their sinking (including other creatures) as though it weighed an extra 200 pounds per initiator level, provided that it is immersed in water (a target standing on a boat does not sink it, but one standing on the side of a submarine would). Additionally, the target may not swim upward for the duration of the maneuver. On a successful save, the target does not sink, and may swim upward, but only at a rate of 5' per round.
Watery Dodge
Falling Wave (Counter)
Level: 2
Initiation Action: 1 immediate action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: See Text
As an attack hits you, you roll with it like water, and let it flow off of you.
When you iniate this maneuver, you gain 10 temporary HP. These temporary HP last until the beginning of your next turn.
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