Blood Sage [ToB Discipline, PEACH](All Maneuvers Up!)

[pyrefiend]

Blood Sage Discipline


True to the ironic nature of the discipline, Blood Sage was first developed and taught at a hospital. For years, the Blood Academy had served as a place of respite for the wounded as well as a school of learning for healers. Founded by a select few scientific thinkers, the teachers at the Academy were among the few to teach that stitches and medicine, while not spectacular, were an accessible resource to the common folk and thus more reliable than prayer and magic. The school was host to a few dedicated students, but never enjoyed spectacular success.

Before too long, it endured tragedy. For some time, dark forces had been gathering in the lands around the school, and more and more frequently, injured wanderers came to the reclusive academy seeking aid. What were apparently random monsters had begun to inexplicably rise up, destroying villages and terrorizing the innocent. At first, the medics of the academy were at a loss as to understand why this was happening. Eventually, however, a terribly crippled warrior came to them, seeking aid and bringing news. The bands of monsters, he told them, were in fact the remains of the Shadow Tiger horde- aimless and largely at the battle of Rasher’s temple, but still concentrated enough to be a threat.

By the time this news came to them, however, it was too late. The attackers had already swept through most of the surrounding villages, and now some of them turned their attention to Blood Academy. The healers and surgeons at the school had no choice to take up arms, but few of them had any military training. In the days leading up to his death, the survivor of the battle at Reshar’s temple did his best to impart his martial knowledge to the medics, but when he did die, their training was far from complete. The students and professors were forced to compensate by utilizing their knowledge of the science of the body and blood- and in fact many found that this knowledge served them far better as warriors than it had as healers. When the hostile creatures arrived, they were soundly defeated. Many of the students left, never to return, but many others remained, turning their back on the old way of life and honing the new fighting style to an art. They transformed their house of healing into a mighty monastery for scientifically-minded martial adepts. Thus was born the Blood Sage discipline.

Associated Weapons: dagger, sickle, war-scalpel, kama
Key Skill: Heal

Because the Blood Sage discipline was never taught at the Temple of the Nine Swords or any well-known center of training, most martial adepts do not know any maneuvers from it, or even know it exists. Only Swordsages and Warblades can learn maneuvers from the Blood Sage discipline. There are two ways to master the discipline. The first is to have been trained in it. If you choose to make a martial adept that has already been trained in the Blood Sage discipline, you simply replace one discipline that adept could normally learn maneuvers from with the Blood Sage discipline. He loses the associated skill of the replaced discipline as a class skill, but gains Heal as a class skill.

The other way is to seek out a master of the Blood Sage Discipline–a martial adept capable of using at least 5th-level maneuvers it–and training under him. You must train for a month under the master, and spend 1,000 xp at the end of your training. You gain the ability to learn maneuvers from the Blood Sage discipline, and add Heal to your martial adept class’s list of class skills. In addition, you may exchange your maneuvers known for maneuvers of the Blood Sage discipline. You may exchange one maneuver of each level, and the new maneuvers you learn must be of the same level as the exchanged maneuvers, unlike normal.
[All the above is copypasta from Demented One's disciplines. Kudos to him!]

The War-Scalpel
Designed specifically for use in the Blood Sage discipline, the war-scalpel is larger than the medical instrument, though still smaller than most weapons. Without special training, a potential wielder would not be able to compensate for the lack of reach.
{table=head]War-Scalpel|60gp|1d4|17-20x2|1 lb.|Piercing or Slashing [/table]


Blood Sage Feats:
Warrior-Medic
Your training in the Blood Sage style included a great deal of learning to heal under pressure. As such, you are able to tend to your allies in a series of practiced, guarded motions.
Prerequisite: One Blood Sage stance
Benefit: While in a Blood Sage stance, you do not provoke attacks of opportunity for making Heal checks so long as they take only a standard action or shorter period of time.

Combat Technician
Your every motion on the battlefield is a calculated effort- you pry at your enemies weaknesses when they are weak, falling back to bolster your own allies when you have lost the upper hand. Through superior knowledge and focus, you strive to maintain delicate, tactical control.
Prerequisites: Warrior-Medic, base attack bonus +6, two Blood Sage maneuvers
Benefit: The Combat Technician fear enables the use of three tactical options.
Operation:You may choose to make Heal checks in place of attack rolls, with a DC equal to your opponent’s Armor Class. For every Heal check that succeeds, the DCs for your Blood Sage maneuvers increase by 2 for that opponent on your next turn
Stalwart Companion:To use this option, you must use the Aid Another action on an ally. If that ally drops below zero hit points at any time until the beginning of your next turn, you may move your base land speed and attempt to stabilize him as an immediate action.
Deep Wounding: To use this option, you must deal at least 1 point of Constitution damage against an enemy with a melee attack on your turn. On your next turn, you deal an additional point of Constitution damage to that foe as long as you hit him with at least one melee attack.

Back Ally Surgeon
You’ve found that you can combine the medical knowledge of the Blood Sage discipline with the rogue’s brutal strikes.
Prerequisites: Sneak Attack 1d6, one Blood Sage maneuver, Heal 5 ranks
Benefit: When you make a sneak attack as part of a Blood Sage strike, you may choose to convert a number of d6s to d8s equal to the level of the strike you initiate.

[pyrefiend]

1st Level:
Calm and Collected: Counter- Make a second saving throw against fear or other effects.
Headshot: Strike- Struck foe takes penalty on Int and Wis- based checks, suffers miss chance.
Quick Incision: Strike- Leave critical wound which continues to bleed.
Steady Hands: Stance- Gain combat bonuses based on ranks in Heal.

2nd Level:
Blade of Pain: Strike- Painful injury causes foe to suffer -2 penalty on attack rolls.
Quick Healing: Make some Heal checks as move actions, swift actions with sufficient ranks.
Weaken: Strike- Foe takes Strength and Dexterity penalty when using one of their limbs.

3rd Level:
Swift Application: Boost- Apply poison to your weapon as a swift action.
Telling Incision: Strike- Deal 2 points of Constitution damage, wound continues to bleed.
Twist of the Knife: Take advantage of a critical hit you’ve already struck.

4th Level:
Bad Medicine: Strike- Force your opponent to ingest poison or other harmful liquid.
Numb Limb: Strike- Render one of your foe’s limbs limp and ineffective.
Wide Wounds: Counter- Stop a creature from being healed.

5th Level:
Blinding Slash: Strike- Foe is blinded, may sacrifice actions to suffer miss chance only.
Dance of Blood: Boost- Your slashing weapons are wounding for one round.
Optimal Patient: Stance- Attempts to heal you are made much easier, you benefit more from magical healing.

6th Level:
Deathly Incision: Strike- Deal 1d4+1 Constitution damage, wound bleeds profusely in latter rounds.
Syringe Knife: Strike- Attack with poisoned weapon in a critical location, optimizing the poison’s effect.
Preparation: Strike- Launch a powerful attack which may knock your foe to the ground, stunned.

7th Level:
Amazing Restoration: Attend to an ally as a full-round action, reversing many debilitating effects.
Brutal Efficiency: Stance- Chance to automatically slay creatures with low hit points on a critical hit.

8th Level:
Sever Ki: Strike- Cut off a creature’s connection to the supernatural.
Perfect Incision: Strike- Deal 1d6+1 Constitution damage, foe bleeds out over time and may eventually suffer from other effects.

9th Level:
Thou Who Curith, Can Makith Ill: Strike- As a full-round action, score an automatic critical hit and reset durations of ongoing debilitating effects.



NOTE: Much of the Blood Sage discipline is focused upon making small, precise cuts which would be impossible to make with heavier weapons. Whenever a maneuver specifies that it is used in conjunction with a melee attack, that attack must be made with a light piercing or slashing weapon.

Level 1

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Steady Hands
Blood Sage (Stance)
Level: Swordsage 1, Warblade 1
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance

A good medic can’t afford to twitch when she makes a vital incision, and initiators of the blood lord discipline are nothing if not good medics. In battle, they can turn their skill into a definite advantage. You gain a bonus on checks made to avoid being disarmed and to confirm critical hits of +1 per three ranks in Heal. In addition, while this stance is active, you also suffer no risk of accidentally poisoning yourself when attacking with a poisoned weapon. If you have 9 or more ranks in Heal, you suffer no risk of poisoning yourself when applying the poison, either.

Quick Incision
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 1, Warblade 1
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 5 rounds or shorter; see text

A small cut in the right place can make all the difference. As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack. You may not use the Power Attack feat in conjunction with this attack- you sacrifice pure power for the chance to make a more telling strike. If you hit and deal damage, the wound you leave bleeds profusely in the following rounds. As long as the cut goes untreated, your foe loses one hit point per round. The bleeding can be stopped with a successful Heal check, DC 11 + your Wisdom modifier, or by restoring a number of hit points equal to the initial damage you dealt with this strike. This strike is useless against creatures without discernible anatomies.

Headshot
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 1, Warblade 1
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 1 minute

You know just the region of your enemy’s brain to strike for maximum effect. A accurate incision with this maneuver robs your enemy of some of their cognitive abilities. As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack. If you hit, your foe suffers a -4 penalty on all Intelligence and Wisdom based skills, as well as Concentration, for 1 minute. In addition, the target creature suffers a 20% miss chance on melee and ranged attacks on its turn unless it succeeds on a concentration check as a move action, DC 11 + your Wisdom modifier. This maneuver is useless against enemies without brains, heads, or both.

Calm and Collected
Blood Sage (Counter)
Level: Swordsage 1, Warblade 1
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: See Text

A surgeon must remain calm and focused even when the situation is out of control. As far as Blood Sage initiates are concerned, so must a good warrior. When you activate this boost, you may reroll a previously failed saving throw against a fear effect or any effect which caused you to suffer a penalty to Intelligence, Wisdom, Intelligence-based skills or Wisdom-based skills. If you succeed on the saving throw, you recover only from those effects, not any other conditions you may be suffering from as a result of the same failed saving throw. For every four ranks you possess in the Heal skill, you gain a +1 bonus on this reroll.

Level 2

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Blade of Pain
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 2, Warblade 2
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 3 rounds

You focus your efforts on generating as much pain as possible, hoping to inflict distracting wounds. As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack. If you hit and deal damage, you cause a particularly painful injury. Your target takes a -2 penalty on attack rolls. Furthermore, the target must make a concentration check, DC 12 + spell/power level, to cast spells or manifest psionic powers. This strike is useless against creatures without discernible anatomies.

Quick Healing
Blood Sage
Level: Swordsage 2, Warblade 2
Prerequisite: Heal 5 ranks
Initiation Action: see text
Range: Melee range only
Target: One creature

You are a medic- but unlike most medics, you have much else to do on the battlefield other than healing. When you do attend to your allies, you do not waste time. When you expend this maneuver, you may make a Heal check as a move action to stabilize an ally, to treat poison, or to treat a caltrop wound. With 9 ranks in Heal, you may make any of these checks as a swift action.

Weaken
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 2, Warblade 2
Prerequisite: 1 Blood Sage maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 3 rounds

A swift, decisive slice along a critical joint seriously detracts from the effectiveness of one of your foe’s limbs. As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack. If you hit, you may immediately make a Heal check with a DC equal to your target’s AC. This Heal check is also made as part of the maneuver. If your check fails, you deal damage normally. If your check succeeds, you weaken one of your target’s limbs of your choice. The foe takes a -4 penalty to Strength and a -2 penalty to Dexterity as it regards to that limb. For example, a melee weapon wielded with that limb would suffer a -2 penalty to damage (due to loss of Strength), and a Use Rope check made using a weakened arm would suffer a -1 penalty (due to loss of Dexterity). This penalty may also restrict the target’s access to some feats; a foe may not be able to utilize their Power Attack feat if their arm’s effective Strength falls below 13 (though they could use another limb to make the attack). Using this maneuver to target a limb the foe uses for propulsion reduces their speed by 10 ft. or to 5 ft., whichever is greater. This strike is useless against creatures without discernible anatomies.

Level 3

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Twist of the Knife
Blood Sage
Level: Swordsage 3, Warblade 3
Prerequisite: 1 Blood Sage maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 1 round

Your understanding of healing and the workings of the body allow you to take advantage of a critical hit you have already struck. While another warrior would move on to the next attack, you seize the initiative and hunt for a major organ from within the wound you have already created. When you score a critical hit, you may initiate this maneuver. You immediately make a Heal check and deal damage equal to the check result. However, this extra effort forces you to revert to normal fighting form less easily. Until the end of your next turn, you suffer a -1 dodge penalty to Armor Class.

Swift Application
Blood Sage (Boost)
Level: Swordsage 3, Warblade 3
Prerequisite: 1 Blood Sage maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Instantaneous

Part of your extensive medical knowledge includes a healthy understanding of poisons, which, like most of your knowledge, has practical applications. With a quick flick of the wrist and a flourish, you can coat your weapon in injury poison. When you activate this boost, you coat your weapon in poison without any risk of poisoning yourself.

Telling Incision
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 3, Warblade 3
Prerequisite: 1 Blood Sage maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 5 rounds or shorter; see text

As your skill progresses, your ability to bleed out your opponent is made far more potent. As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack. You may not use the Power Attack feat in conjunction with this attack- you sacrifice pure power for the chance to make a more telling strike. On top of your normal melee damage, your attack deals 1 point of Constitution damage, though a Fortitude save, DC 13 + your Wisdom modifier, negates this damage. In addition, the wound you leave bleeds rapidly in the following rounds. As long as the cut goes untreated, your foe loses a hit point for every three ranks you have in Heal. The bleeding can be stopped with a successful Heal check, DC 13 + your Wisdom modifier, or by restoring a number of hit points equal to the initial damage you dealt with this strike. This strike is useless against creatures without discernible anatomies.

Level 4

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Wide Wounds
Blood Sage (Counter)
Level: Swordsage 4, Warblade 4
Prerequisite: 2 Blood Sage maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 immediate action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous

Your medical skill allows you to disrupt the healing of others. When a creature in melee range receives healing, either magically or to treat a condition with a Heal check, you may initiate this maneuver. You lunge at the foe’s wounds, attempting to open and aggravate them even as they are stitched back together. Make a Heal check as part of this maneuver. If your target is being magically healed, subtract your Heal check result from the amount by which they are healed. If they are being treated with a Heal check, that check automatically fails if your Heal check result is higher. Nonliving creatures cannot be targeted with this maneuver.

Bad Medicine
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 4, Warblade 4
Prerequisite: 1 Blood Sage maneuver
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous

You have the useful ability to force harmful liquids, and in particular, ingestion poisons, down your opponent’s throat. As part of this maneuver, make a melee touch attack. If this succeeds, make a Heal check with a DC equal to your target’s Armor Class. Success on the Heal check indicates that you have forced one dose of poison (or an equivalent amount of any other liquid) down the target’s throat. Neither the touch attack, nor the Heal check provoke attacks of opportunity. This maneuver relies upon a certain element of surprise and shock- most targets will not fully understand what the martial adept is trying to do until it is too late. Attempting to force targets to swallow overtly harmful liquids is therefore far less simple, as they are liable to struggle far more. Using a liquid that harms the target on contact confers a -5 penalty on the Heal check made as part of this maneuver. Creatures without mouths cannot be targeted with this maneuver.

Numb Limb
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 4, Warblade 4
Prerequisite: 2 Blood Sage maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 1 round

A powerful, decisive jab at the back of a joint can cause a limb to go totally limp for a short time. Luckily, you know just the spot to hit. As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack. If you hit, you may immediately make a Heal check with a DC equal to your target’s AC. This Heal check is also made as part of the maneuver. Success indicates that one of the target’s limbs (your selection as to which limb) becomes numb to the point of ineffectiveness. The target drops whatever it was holding in that limb, and cannot use it in any way for one round. If the limb was used for propulsion, such as a leg in the case of humanoids, the creature’s speed is halved for one round. This penalty may be lessened in the case of creatures with more than two legs and as dictated by the DM. This strike is useless against creatures without discernible anatomies, as well as creatures without limbs.

Level 5

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Optimal Patient
Blood Sage (Stance)
Level: Swordsage 5, Warblade 5
Prerequisite: 2 Blood Sage maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance

Your understanding of medicinal treatment and surgery allows you to assist other’s attempts to heal you. You can lend a hand as a friend stitches your wounds, push vital areas in to place as positive energy does the rest, and even use meditative techniques to focus your natural healing. While in this stance, you gain a number of benefits. Allies attempting to heal you receive a +8 bonus on the check. You may multiply any magical healing you receive by 1.5. Finally, you receive a +1 competence bonus on saving throws against nonmagical diseases and poisons for every three ranks you have in Heal.

Dance of Blood
Blood Sage (Boost)
Level: Swordsage 5, Warblade 5
Prerequisite: 2 Blood Sage maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: 1 round

You are a true battlefield technician, crippling foes with deliberate and decisive attacks. With a flash of insight, you can almost seem to see your foes’ fragile arteries and veins beneath their thick armor or tough carapaces. When you activate this boost, any light slashing or piercing weapon you wield is treated as having the wounding magic property. If a weapon you wield already has this property, it deals an additional point of Constitution damage on a successful hit.

Blinding Slash
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 5, Warblade 5
Prerequisite: 2 Blood Sage maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 2 rounds

With a strong, clean cut above the eyes, you can cause a steady flow of blood to partially blind your foe. As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack. If you hit, your foe is rendered blind. The target may choose to take to clear the blood from their eyes as a move action, which cancels the blinded condition for the rest of his turn. Even if they choose to do so, however, they still suffer 20% miss chance on melee and ranged attack rolls, as well as a -4 penalty on Spot and Search checks for the duration of the effect. This strike is useless against creatures without discernible anatomies, as well as creatures without heads or eyes. Other creatures may suffer fewer penalties or none at all, based on their unique physiology and the DM’s decision.

Level 6

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Deathly Incision
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 6, Warblade 6
Prerequisite: 2 Blood Sage maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 5 rounds or shorter; see text

When you sever a critical vein or artery, your foe would do well to seek medical aid immediately. As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack. You may not use the Power Attack feat in conjunction with this attack- you sacrifice pure power for the chance to make a more telling strike. On top of your normal melee damage, your attack deals 1d4 points of Constitution damage, though a Fortitude save, DC 16 + your Wisdom modifier, halves this damage. In addition, the wound you leave bleeds rapidly in the following rounds. As long as the cut goes untreated, your foe loses a hit point for every two ranks you have in Heal. The bleeding can be stopped with a successful Heal check, DC 16 + your Wisdom modifier, or by restoring a number of hit points equal to the initial damage you dealt with this strike. This strike is useless against creatures without discernible anatomies.

Syringe Knife
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 6, Warblade 6
Prerequisite: 2 Blood Sage maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous

A poisoned weapon is brutally effective in the hands of a Blood Sage initiate. You know just where to stab for maximum effect- the poison will be distributed throughout the body only seconds after the initial cut. As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack with a poisoned weapon. If you successfully hit and deal damage, you add half your ranks in Heal to the saving throw DC to negate the poison’s effect, and any ability damage or drain the poison would inflict is multiplied by 1.5. In addition, the poison’s secondary effect sets in after only 3 rounds, as opposed to the normal 10 rounds. This strike is useless against creatures without discernible anatomies. Whereas this is usually the case for poison effects, a Blood Sage initiate could not gain the benefits of this maneuver when using a positoxin against an undead creature, for example.

Preparation
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 6, Warblade 6
Prerequisite: 2 Blood Sage maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous

When facing a particularly difficult foe, Blood Sage initiates often find it prudent to properly prepare their target before beginning the procedure. The preparation maneuver is designed to overwhelm targets with a sweeping strike that forces them to the ground and even stuns unwary creatures. As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack. If you hit and deal damage, your target must make a Reflex save, DC 16 + your Strength modifier, or be knocked prone. If you use this maneuver against a creature that was flat-footed, and that also failed its Reflex save to avoid being knocked prone, that creature must make an immediate Fortitude save at the same DC or be stunned. Any creature prone as a result of this maneuver suffers a -1 penalty on saves against your Blood Sage maneuvers until the end of its next turn.

Level 7

Spoiler

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Brutal Efficiency
Blood Sage (Stance)
Level: Swordsage 7, Warblade 7
Prerequisite: 3 Blood Sage maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 swift action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: Stance

You waste absolutely no time in killing weakened foes. Whenever you score a telling attack against a foe who is badly injured, you seize the opportunity and sever one of their major arteries. While you are in this stance, your critical hits have the potential to be extremely deadly. Whenever you score a critical hit against a creature that has fewer hit points remaining than you have ranks in Heal, that foe must make a Fortitude save, DC 17 + your Wisdom modifier. If it fails, that foe is instantly slain and brought to -10 hit points. The creature must have taken some amount of damage from your critical hit for this effect to apply. The effect of this stance is useless against creatures without discernible anatomies.

Sudden Surgery
Blood Sage
Level: Swordsage 7, Warblade 7
Prerequisite: Heal 10 ranks, 4 Blood Sage maneuvers
Initiation Action: One full-round action
Range: Melee range only
Target: One creature

You are a master of your craft, a surgeon so insightful and talented that you can identify and treat even the most brutal of injuries in seconds. This maneuver grants additional, more effective uses of the Heal skill. As part of this maneuver, you may choose to take any of the following actions on a willing ally:
• You can make a Heal check to grant creatures with negative hit points a number of temporary hit points equal to your Heal check result (maximum 10 + your ranks in Heal). These temporary hit points disappear after one minute.
• Cancel any effect which is causing the target to suffer damage over time. The DC is equal to the DC to resist the effect that caused the damage over time, or 15 if there was no saving throw allowed.
• Cancel the sickened and nauseated conditions. The DC is equal to the DC to resist the effect that caused the condition, or 15 if there was no saving throw allowed.
• Cancel any debilitating effect that is the result of pain or mundane injury. The DC is equal to the DC to resist the effect that caused the effect, or 15 if there was no saving throw allowed.
• Perform any mundane use of the Heal skill which could be individually executed in one round.

Level 8

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Deathly Incision
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 8, Warblade 8
Prerequisite: 3 Blood Sage maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 5 rounds or shorter; see text

Your understanding of blood circulation is perfect, and with this knowledge comes devastating practical ability. As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack. You may not use the Power Attack feat in conjunction with this attack- you sacrifice pure power for the chance to make a more telling strike. On top of your normal melee damage, your attack deals 1d6+1 points of Constitution damage, though a Fortitude save, DC 18 + your Wisdom modifier, halves this damage. In addition, the wound you leave bleeds rapidly in the following rounds. As long as the cut goes untreated, your foe loses a hit point for every two ranks you have in Heal. The bleeding can be stopped with a successful Heal check, DC 18 + your Wisdom modifier, or by restoring a number of hit points equal to the initial damage you dealt with this strike. The blood loss caused by this maneuver is so rapid that failing to treat the wound results in even more debilitating effects. On the third, fourth, and fifth rounds after you execute this maneuver, if the original wound has still not been treated, the foe suffers an additional 1d6 Strength damage. No saving throw is allowed for this effect. This strike is useless against creatures without discernible anatomies.

Sever Ki
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 8, Warblade 8
Prerequisite: 2 Blood Sage maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: 1 round

You are a student of science, and thus tend to prefer practical strategies and attacks to more occult techniques. Finally, by learning to precisely strike a critical pressure point, you can bring your foes around to your way of doing things. With this maneuver, you literally sever your foe’s connection to outside supernatural forces. As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack. If you hit, make a Heal check opposed by your foe’s Will saving throw. If you fail, you deal normal melee damage. If you succeed, your foe cannot use any spells, psionics, spell-like abilities, psi-like abilities or supernatural abilities for one round. This maneuver does not dispel any ongoing magical effects which were present before your initiating the maneuver. This strike is useless against creatures without discernible anatomies.

Level 9

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Surgeon's Spite
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 9, Warblade 9
Prerequisite: 6 Blood Sage maneuvers
Initiation Action: One full-round action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: see text

Your knowledge of circulation, anatomy, healing and general biology is complete. The most outlandish diseases hold no secrets from you, the most brutal injuries can be mended by your skilled hands. Practically speaking, this means that you are expert at inflicting a huge array of ailments and injuries as well. As part of this maneuver, make an attack roll. If you hit, make a Heal check opposed by your enemy’s Fortitude save. If you fail, you deal normal melee damage. If you succeed, you automatically strike a critical hit. In addition, you deftly and brutally aggravate your foe’s wounds, resetting the durations of many effects already hindering your target. The durations of effects sustained purely by magic are not reset. However, any penalties caused due to non-spell related injuries, magical or nonmagical pain, any damage or ability damage over time, the sickened and nauseated conditions- all these have their durations reset. Targets who have been poisoned, but have not yet suffered the effects of secondary damage, are affected by the secondary damage immediately. This strike is useless against creatures without discernible anatomies.

[Krimm_Blackleaf]

What a strange coincidence.

[Golden-Esque]

This is quite a cool concept for a Discipline fluff-wise. I'll be keeping my eye on this.

[Vic_Sage]

Remove the feat restriction and just make it so you have to drop a Discipline.

[Krazddndfreek]

He means something like this.

[DracoDei]

Personally, I don't see why they would stop being healers... think the Red Cross... or rather what the Red Cross would be if anyone who tried to stop their relief convoys they used for an organ donor.

And hey, if it is a silly campaign:

Spoiler

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Doctor McNinja!!! Bo Yah!!!

[Golden-Esque]

He means something like this.

Oh, that's not fair. If anyone let the fact that "Demented One Did It" stop them, he'd have the absolute monopoly on Martial Disciplines . Except Solaris Arcanum. I think. Is everything I know about my discipline a lie?!?!?!

[pyrefiend]

What a strange coincidence.

Dangit, cool names are always taken! If you care, I can change it back to Surgeon's Blade, as it was when I requested the idea way back during the Vote up a Discipline contest.

Remove the feat restriction and just make it so you have to drop a Discipline.

I guess so. Without the feat, I can't think of any way to do it without copying Demented One's method. I guess that's what I'll do, and put a note up recognizing that it was his idea.

Personally, I don't see why they would stop being healers... think the Red Cross... or rather what the Red Cross would be if anyone who tried to stop their relief convoys they used for an organ donor.

Well, the reason they stopped is because they were never that good to begin with. I mean, they were the only ones who actually knew much about biology, so that's something. But any cleric can just pour positive energy over a wound and call it a day.

Also, on the subject of Dr.McNinja? I'm not sure there's any way to stat up his awesomeness, but if I contributed even in the smallest way, I'll feel pretty darn good.

[DracoDei]

Regarding them quitting:
Well, apparently magic is easier to learn than a similar level of divine magic... (IE Experts are more common than Clerics), and they can apparently charge less... this is ESPECIALLY true for poison and disease (3rd level spells instead of the first level spell being the most efficient).
Also, a single healer can bind more wounds in a day than a lowish level cleric can cast spells in a day probably. When plague, or natural disaster hits, that can be very important...
But yeah, I guess I could see them decided they could do more good with the offensive applications of their art than the curative. At the very least, however, I would expect part of their training to be hiring out their treatment services.

[pyrefiend]

Regarding them quitting:
<stuff>

Yeah, I guess I hadn't thought about it that much, although I suppose you could assume that after the battle, the students who "left, never to return" went off to continue being medics. After the surrounding area was pretty much wiped out, there was little left they could do there. The ones who stayed and established the monastery largely did so because they decided it was more profitable to teach students how to kill than how to heal.

[pyrefiend]

More maneuvers up, third and fourth level.

[pyrefiend]

Sorry to... triple post, but I haven't gotten any feedback on the balance of the maneuvers. Some of them seem pretty suspect to me, but it'd be nice to have another eye look them over. No way are they all perfectly balanced.

[Vauron]

Level 6

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Preparation
Blood Sage (Strike)
Level: Swordsage 6, Warblade 6
Prerequisite: 2 Blood Sage maneuvers
Initiation Action: 1 standard action
Range: Melee attack
Target: One creature
Duration: Instantaneous

When facing a particularly difficult foe, Blood Sage initiates often find it prudent to properly prepare their target before beginning the procedure. The preparation maneuver is designed to overwhelm targets with a sweeping strike that forces them to the ground and even stuns unwary creatures. As part of this maneuver, make a melee attack. If you hit and deal damage, your target must make a Reflex save, DC 16 + your Strength modifier, or be knocked prone. If you use this maneuver against a creature that was flat-footed, and that also failed its Reflex save to avoid being knocked stunned, that creature must make an immediate Fortitude save at the same DC or be stunned. Any creature knocked prone by this maneuver suffers a -1 penalty on saves against your Blood Sage maneuvers until the end of its next turn.

What is the point of the last part of this maneuver? Unless you can get additional standard actions, you will not get an opportunity to use maneuvers before the victim takes his turn.

Near as I can tell, what you mean is that it would go something like this:
Blood Sage uses preparation, victim is knocked prone> victim does whatever on his turn>
Blood Sage uses a maneuver on the turn after using Preparation with the victim getting a penalty to the save> Victim is no longer under the penalty from Preparation once he starts his turn

Is that interpretation accurate?

I'm not the best person to judge Disciplines, but that maneuver just jumped at me due to the mild confusion it gave me.

[Golden-Esque]

Steady Hands: If it were me, I might choose to word it as "+1 bonus per X ranks".

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1st Level:

Precise Slash: I like the concept, but I don't like that this strike doesn't have higher level incarnations (Exact Strike, Deft Strike, etc) that improve the damage as you level. If you were to do something of that sort, you should include how the maneuver reacts with other types of precision damage; for example, can you have a Sneak Attack precise strike?

Headshot: I like the concept, but the overall effect feels rather weak. -4 to Intellect, Wisdom, and Concentration is definitely great against spellcasters, but its rather 'meh' against martial enemies. I'd add the effect that the creature has a 20% miss chance on melee and ranged attacks (sort of like a concussion), but a successful Fortitude save halves the ability damage and negates the 20% miss chance.

Calm and Collected: Your intended effect works much better if you make Calm and Collected into a Counter. Counters can be used whenever you want, while Boosts are only Swift actions.

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2nd Level:

Blade of Pain: I think a static -2 on attack rolls would be acceptable. Either the Book of Vile Darkness or the Book of Exalted Deeds has official rules on pain effects, though. You should look them up if these aren't those official ones :).

Calculated Reaction: Not only doesn't this maneuver feels like it fits in with the rest of your discipline, but the effect itself is rather ... bad. Give your opponent a better chance to hit you, but if they don't, you get an attack back? The maneuver itself is very weak and needs a rehaul.

More to come as I can read them!

[DracoDei]

Calculated Reaction is a lower level (and thus less powerful) version of a Setting Sun maneuver I think.

[pyrefiend]

Is that interpretation accurate?

It is, but that's not how I think it should be, now. Not sure what I was thinking when I wrote it, but it should state that the penalty applies as long as the foe is prone. That way they either get up and suffer an attack of opportunity, or remain prone and take the penalty. I'll fix that now.

Steady Hands: If it were me, I might choose to word it as "+1 bonus per X ranks".

Makes sense, fixing.

Precise Slash: I like the concept, but I don't like that this strike doesn't have higher level incarnations (Exact Strike, Deft Strike, etc) that improve the damage as you level. If you were to do something of that sort, you should include how the maneuver reacts with other types of precision damage; for example, can you have a Sneak Attack precise strike?

Yeah, precise slash is sort of tricky... It was one of the first maneuvers I made, but then later I decided to go for the damage-over-time incision maneuvers. I'm not sure if I should just replace precise slash or create more maneuvers like it at higher levels. I think I know how I'd like it to interact with sneak attack, though.

Headshot: I like the concept, but the overall effect feels rather weak. -4 to Intellect, Wisdom, and Concentration is definitely great against spellcasters, but its rather 'meh' against martial enemies. I'd add the effect that the creature has a 20% miss chance on melee and ranged attacks (sort of like a concussion), but a successful Fortitude save halves the ability damage and negates the 20% miss chance.

Well actually it only affects Intelligence and Wisdom based skills, so yeah, it's really weak. I'll add some concussion-based stuff now.

Calm and Collected: Your intended effect works much better if you make Calm and Collected into a Counter. Counters can be used whenever you want, while Boosts are only Swift actions.

It would be better mechanically, but I don't think the flavor fits. It's meant to reflect a recovering from some debilitating effect, not a defense against it, like Moment of Perfect Mind, for example.

Blade of Pain: I think a static -2 on attack rolls would be acceptable. Either the Book of Vile Darkness or the Book of Exalted Deeds has official rules on pain effects, though. You should look them up if these aren't those official ones :)

A static -2 seems reasonable, but I don't have either of those books.

Calculated Reaction: Not only doesn't this maneuver feels like it fits in with the rest of your discipline, but the effect itself is rather ... bad. Give your opponent a better chance to hit you, but if they don't, you get an attack back? The maneuver itself is very weak and needs a rehaul.

Yeah, I've never been too happy with the fluff, I was afraid I'd get this reaction. I'll probably just replace it entirely. Still though, I don't think the effect is too weak. You're getting another attack in for the round, and that's a pretty big benefit.

[Krazddndfreek]

Calculated Reaction is a lower level (and thus less powerful) version of a Setting Sun maneuver I think.

Wouldn't that make it more powerful than the Setting Sun version?

[DracoDei]

No, why would you think that? He dropped the level, and also changed the mechanics a bit to make it weaker IF I am remembering correctly.

Feigned Opening Level 3 Setting Sun.... upon reading it, it is something you can do when you provoke an AoO (regardless of the reason). You get an AoO at them if they miss, if they hit, your allies in Reach of the enemy each get an AoO at them.

So... not so similar really, although you could always do something silly to provoke if you wanted to go that way (as a GM I would allow provoking as a free action for purposes of that maneuver).

[Krazddndfreek]

Well, if it was identical to the Setting Sun maneuver of a higher level, then it would be stronger. You made it sound like it was weaker because it was of a lower level.

Sorry for the confusion.

[Golden-Esque]

Yeah, precise slash is sort of tricky... It was one of the first maneuvers I made, but then later I decided to go for the damage-over-time incision maneuvers. I'm not sure if I should just replace precise slash or create more maneuvers like it at higher levels. I think I know how I'd like it to interact with sneak attack, though.

Going off of your fluff, Precise Slash makes sense. A surgeon would know EXACTLY where to strike in order to wreck the most harm to a foe (citation: on Lost, Doctor Shepard ransoms his demands by severing an important artery on a certain patient.)

Well actually it only affects Intelligence and Wisdom based skills, so yeah, it's really weak. I'll add some concussion-based stuff now.

You should start by looking up the real-world effects of a concussion and then translating them into the maneuver.

It would be better mechanically, but I don't think the flavor fits. It's meant to reflect a recovering from some debilitating effect, not a defense against it, like Moment of Perfect Mind, for example.

Making it an Immediate Action / Counter doesn't necessarily make it a defense against the Fear Effect; it just means you can use it the turn you get feared, which will make it a lot more useful in the long run. And besides, wouldn't a surgeon need to put down their fear of messing up immediately to save lives? :D

A static -2 seems reasonable, but I don't have either of those books.

I looked it up for you. The Pain effect confers a -2 penalty to attack rolls.

Yeah, I've never been too happy with the fluff, I was afraid I'd get this reaction. I'll probably just replace it entirely. Still though, I don't think the effect is too weak. You're getting another attack in for the round, and that's a pretty big benefit.

Your current wording says that you only get a free attack if the enemy misses you. Yet, you're lowing your Armor Class, making it easier to be struck in combat, thereby making it less likely that you gain the benefit of the maneuver. In all honesty, I'd drop this.

[Golden-Esque]

Round 2

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3rd Level
Numb Limb: Cool idea, but there are some issues. #1 - How do you determine what limb gets hit? If you can pick with no penalty, well that definitely makes the maneuver a little too good, in my opinion. What I would do is have a percentage die roll (1-25 hits the front left leg / left arm, 26-50 hits the front right leg / right arm, 51-75 hits the back left leg / left leg, and 76-100 hits the back right leg / left leg) with a bonus on the Reflex save to single out a specific appendage (-2 if you specify front/back and -2 if you specific right/left). I'd also drop the Strength-based Reflex save thing, because they doesn't really make sense :). Also, since I assume you have no plans of progressing this trike as you level, so I'd make it a boost. It'd look something like this.

This maneuver can be activated as a Swift Action. When the adept succeeds on an attack roll, they must make a Heal check. Then, the creature the adept struck must succeed on a Reflex save (DC equal to the result of your Heal check) or have one of their limbs numbed to the point of impotency. If the creature fails their Reflex save, roll a percentage die to determine which limb is numbed (as shown on Table: Numbed Limbs below). If the limb was carrying any equipment, it immediately drops it as their arm limps. The creature cannot make attacks with that limb, and if the limb is used for movement, the target creature's speed is reduced by 50%. This maneuver only applies to the first successful attack made during the round it was activated on, and this maneuver has no effect on creatures that have no discernible anatomies.

{table=head] Heal Result | Limb affected
1-25 | Front Left Leg / Left Arm
25-50 | Front Right Leg / Right Arm
51-75 | Back Left Leg / Left Leg
76-100 | Back Right Leg / Right Leg[/table]

Twist of the Knife: Cool effect. I don't think the Dodge penalty is needed, personally, and the line about it not working against creatures who can't be critically hit isn't needed since you have to critically hit the creature to use the maneuver in the first place :).

Swift Application: Both eloquent and effective, though it makes your 1st Level Stance redundant, sort of. I don't know if I like how similar these two maneuvers are. I might add on to your Stance that if you have X number of ranks in Heal, you can apply Poison as a Swift Action and place another Maneuver here; maybe Improved Precise Slash? :D

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4th Level:
Wide Wounds: Awesome maneuver. I like it. I'd just change the last line to read "Nonliving creatures are unaffected by this maneuver."
Bad Medicine: This maneuver doesn't fit in well with your discipline. It doesn't feel right, you know?
Deathly Incision: There are several problems with this one. Number 1, you have a strange tendency to "nerf" the Blood Sage adepts in order to make a great effect, which to be frank, isn't fun. You want a certain reliability in your maneuvers, and loosing a chunk of damage, as well as bonus modifier damage, is lame. Sorry, there's no other way to say it. Also, your Bleed Effect possibly will do too much damage for a Strike when it does go off. Strikes don't scale with level; you're supposed to put newer, better ranks of them at higher levels.

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5th Level:
Optimal Patient: Love the maneuver, but you incorrectly have it listed as a strike instead of a stance.
Dance of Blood: This is cool. I really like this maneuver, Actually, what I might consider doing is making this into a stance and turning Optimal Patient into a Counter. The only flaw with Optimal Patient is that for a fighting stance, it doesn't grant many fighting bonuses, and having it Counter a healing spell by making that spell better would be cool. You could even take it further by making it usable on your allies; renaming it Medic's Foresight or something similar and having a maneuver that can literally help save lives. Up to you, though.
Blinding Slash: You list "as a move action" twice, so that needs to be fixed. However, since Headshot can potentially do something similar, this might be another maneuver you could drop for an improved precise slash :P.

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6th Level:
Syringe Knife: Great maneuver. Love it!
Preparation: Interesting. Not sure what I think about this one yet.

Alright. After reading and commenting on all of these, here's my opinion. First off, this Discipline has a very Dexter Morgain feel to it. That's particularly why I love it so much. Second, you're missing some of the key attributes of the Martial Discipline system. Namely, that Strikes do not scale, but Boosts, Counters, and Stances do. A lot of your problems in balance against other Disciplines steam from this issue. You need to go back and figure out what you want to be a unique strike and make sure that it doesn't scale. If it did, what would you use those Re-Pick-Maneuvers every even level for? :). Then make sure that your stances and remaining maneuvers do scale, and scale pretty well at that. The easiest thing to do is make them go up with ranks in the Key Skill (in your case, Heal).

Another thing to keep in mind is that while these guys are great slashers for obvious reasons, it's important to make sure that you do add a little bit of the surgeon into the mix; maneuvers that do some healing or improve the Heal skill would also be great. There were Battle Medics in every major war, after all :).

[pyrefiend]

First off, thanks all for the feedback! Thanks especially to Golden-Esque, really thorough and honest feedback is often hard to come by, and it is certainly appreciated.

Going off of your fluff, Precise Slash makes sense. A surgeon would know EXACTLY where to strike in order to wreck the most harm to a foe (citation: on Lost, Doctor Shepard ransoms his demands by severing an important artery on a certain patient.)

Sure, but I'm going for a bleed-them-out feel here, and besides, flat precision damage is just boring. Also, Jack makes the incision and then announces that his patient has an hour to live before the wound kills him.

You should start by looking up the real-world effects of a concussion and then translating them into the maneuver.

Well, I basically just applied what you suggested. By necessity, I can't have all this be accurate to real-world science and medicine. If I did, than that would mean re-examining most of these maneuvers. They're all based in pseudo-science and thematic appropriateness; for example, Dance of Blood deals constitution damage, as this is the effect of wounding weapons, but bleeding effects are often represented as damage-over-time as well. D&D is inconsistent and vague on a lot of this stuff, so "you strike your foe in the head, they have trouble seeing strait for a bit" is the closest I'm gonna get.

Making it an Immediate Action / Counter doesn't necessarily make it a defense against the Fear Effect; it just means you can use it the turn you get feared, which will make it a lot more useful in the long run. And besides, wouldn't a surgeon need to put down their fear of messing up immediately to save lives? :D

I debated a while whether or not I should change this, and in fact typed up a whole explanation of why it should stay a boost, but then I decided against it. The flavor still doesn't seem quite right to me (how do you recover from an effect that never afflicted you?) but it's better than the alternative.

I looked it up for you. The Pain effect confers a -2 penalty to attack rolls.

Coolio, thanks.

Your current wording says that you only get a free attack if the enemy misses you. Yet, you're lowing your Armor Class, making it easier to be struck in combat, thereby making it less likely that you gain the benefit of the maneuver. In all honesty, I'd drop this.

You're meant to get the attack no matter what, but still, it's bad and I'm gonna change it.

Numb Limb: How do you determine what limb gets hit? If you can pick with no penalty, well that definitely makes the maneuver a little too good, in my opinion.

Yes, you are meant to be able to choose. I'll have to counterbalance that benefit in some way, but I don't think that random limb selection fits. If you're really attacking a random location, why is there no chance of hitting the torso or head? How can you willingly choose to attack a limb, but not a specific limb? Also, there's the issue of using the maneuver to target non-humanoids. I don't understand why this would be a boost, either. Not all strikes need to have higher-level equivalents, as far as I know.

Twist of the Knife: Cool effect. I don't think the Dodge penalty is needed, personally, and the line about it not working against creatures who can't be critically hit isn't needed since you have to critically hit the creature to use the maneuver in the first place :).

The penalty I put there to balance against the Diamond Mind strike Insightful Strike, which allows you to substitute your concentration check for damage. Twist of the Knife, unlike Insightful Strike, has no risk of "missing", as it is initiated after a successful hit. That line about not affecting creatures immune to critical hits is definitely redundant.

Swift Application: Both eloquent and effective, though it makes your 1st Level Stance redundant, sort of. I don't know if I like how similar these two maneuvers are. I might add on to your Stance that if you have X number of ranks in Heal, you can apply Poison as a Swift Action and place another Maneuver here; maybe Improved Precise Slash? :D

Steady Hands removes the risk of poisoning yourself while attacking, but not while applying the poison. I think I might add in that with a certain number of ranks in Heal, the risk is removed for applying as well, but I don't think that stance should allow you to apply poison as a swift action. It already has a scaling benefit.

Wide Wounds: Awesome maneuver. I like it. I'd just change the last line to read "Nonliving creatures are unaffected by this maneuver."

Will do.

Bad Medicine: This maneuver doesn't fit in well with your discipline. It doesn't feel right, you know?

Not really... I was somewhat worried about the mechanics behind that maneuver, but I'm not sure I see how it goes against the theme. It doesn't involve the usual theme of calculated, precise incisions, but a warrior-doctor forcing an enemy to drink a vial of lethal poison seems pretty thematically appropriate to me.

Deathly Incision: There are several problems with this one. Number 1, you have a strange tendency to "nerf" the Blood Sage adepts in order to make a great effect, which to be frank, isn't fun. You want a certain reliability in your maneuvers, and loosing a chunk of damage, as well as bonus modifier damage, is lame. Sorry, there's no other way to say it. Also, your Bleed Effect possibly will do too much damage for a Strike when it does go off. Strikes don't scale with level; you're supposed to put newer, better ranks of them at higher levels.

I don't think I understand. The basis for the maneuver is, like you said, sacrificing bonuses to accuracy and to damage for the benefit of dealing substantial damage in later rounds. What's wrong with that? Also, this maneuver is intended to replace an earlier one with roughly the same effect. It scales, yes, and it replaces a weaker maneuver which scales to a lesser degree. If and when there's a higher level maneuver with the same damage-over-time effect, it will scale better than Deathly Incision.

Optimal Patient: Love the maneuver, but you incorrectly have it listed as a strike instead of a stance.

Will change, thanks for the catch.

Dance of Blood: This is cool. I really like this maneuver, Actually, what I might consider doing is making this into a stance and turning Optimal Patient into a Counter.

I considered this as well, but it's too powerful an effect. The Fiery Assault stance effectively grants the flaming property to the user's weapons- but that's a +1 weapon enhancement and a level six stance.

The only flaw with Optimal Patient is that for a fighting stance, it doesn't grant many fighting bonuses, and having it Counter a healing spell by making that spell better would be cool. You could even take it further by making it usable on your allies; renaming it Medic's Foresight or something similar and having a maneuver that can literally help save lives. Up to you, though.

The problem with that is that your allies will demand you use it every time they are healed out of combat. Sure, you might have to wait five minutes between uses, but if my D&D group's party dynamic is any indication, they will be willing to wait hours if need be. I believe Devoted Spirit has a few maneuvers with similar problems.

Blinding Slash: You list "as a move action" twice, so that needs to be fixed. However, since Headshot can potentially do something similar, this might be another maneuver you could drop for an improved precise slash :P.

Again, thanks for finding all these formatting errors. In a lot of ways, Blinding Slash can be seen as an improved, albeit different, form of Headshot. But I thought you supported the idea of improved maneuvers replacing lower level ones(?)

Syringe Knife: Great maneuver. Love it!

Wooooooo!

Preparation: Interesting. Not sure what I think about this one yet.

It's a tad weird, I know. I created it largely to give this discipline at least one tactic to oppose undead, constructs and the like.

You need to go back and figure out what you want to be a unique strike and make sure that it doesn't scale. If it did, what would you use those Re-Pick-Maneuvers every even level for? :).

Strikes don't have to deal static, non-scaling damage. I know most do, but look at Insightful Strike and Improved Insightful Strike. Both deal scaling damage (they deal damage equal to a skill check), but the latter strike is clearly superior. However, I definitely agree that some of the boosts and counters could benefit from scaling, Heal-based effects.

Another thing to keep in mind is that while these guys are great slashers for obvious reasons, it's important to make sure that you do add a little bit of the surgeon into the mix; maneuvers that do some healing or improve the Heal skill would also be great.

The problem though is that this means infinite healing outside of combat. Still, healing maneuvers would be very flavorful. I'd like to add some if I can avoid the infinite healing issue.


OK! Soon I'll be doing a fairly extensive overhaul. I'm going to make the edits stated above, as well as moving some maneuvers to different levels and removing some entirely. Also, I'll add those last three levels.

[Golden-Esque]

I'll wait until you do those revisions before making any more comments then :).

[Toric]

Bad Medicine: This maneuver doesn't fit in well with your discipline. It doesn't feel right, you know?

Actually, I can see something like this stemming from experience delivering medicine to delirious or otherwise noncompliant patients.

I can't do much in the way of balancing, but I have to say that this is a terrific concept that would be fascinating to roleplay. Positive energy is overrated!

[LunarWolfPrime]

I like the style, um you may need to chance your save dc's I think a few are a little low for there lvl and make sure they are listed by the right maneuver type.

An please finish's this and make feats I so want to use this.

[Golden-Esque]

Actually, I can see something like this stemming from experience delivering medicine to delirious or otherwise noncompliant patients.

I can't do much in the way of balancing, but I have to say that this is a terrific concept that would be fascinating to roleplay. Positive energy is overrated!

Mechanically speaking, the Discipline favors quick slashes and bleed damage. Having a maneuver where you grapple your opponent and shove some pills down their throat makes sense from a fluff perspective; where they're sort of fallen doctors, but it doesn't fit in with the discipline's bleeding and wounding with light slashing weapons focus.

[pyrefiend]

Merry Christmas everyone! All the maneuvers are up now, and a few of the old ones have been moved or replaced. Also, the war-scalpel is finally up, as well as three new feats to be used with the discipline

[Golden-Esque]

Level 7

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Brutal Efficiency: This maneuver is another really awesome one, but you might want to change the wording from "telling attacks" to "whenever you successfully critically hit a target creature" or something similar. I've never heard the phrase "telling attack" used before, but that's just me.

Amazing Restoration: The effect is great, the flavor is good, but in my own opinion, it could use a better name. Something like "Trauma Warden" or something a little more ... dark-sounding.

Level 8

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Deathly Incision: #1; can you still use Combat Expertise with this maneuver? You might want to specify if its just Power Attack or all abilities that require you to lower your Base Attack Bonus, because in Combat Expertise's case, you give up your fighting focus to focus on defense. You also might want to add that its useless against nonliving creatures. Good luck making a zombie bleed out :).

Sever Ki: This is a good idea, but from a phillosophical standpoint (rather than balance) I'm not sure exactly how this ability would sever the ties between a Cleric and their deity. However, the ability itself is good; what more can you ask for?

Level 9

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Thou Who Curith, Can Makith Ill: The ability itself, beyond the insta-critical hit, is kind of confusing. I'd change it to read something like this: "If this maneuver is successful, the target creature instantly takes Hit Point damage and ability damage as if they had failed a saving throw from any diseases active upon them or as if it were there turn and they suffered from a wounding effect and the Fortitude DC to overcome these conditions is increased by 1 for every 4 ranks in Heal you possess. Finally, any dormant diseases or poisons within the target creature instantly activate as if their incubation period ended." Finally, the name is kind of cumbersome. If it were me, I'd make it into something like "Hippocrates' Bane". If you don't know, Hippocrates was a Greek Phillosopher who is credited to writing the Code of Conduct that all doctors must take to this day, which this maneuver single-handed breaks at every level :).

[LunarWolfPrime]

Ok dude it is official this is one cool style.