Martial Art: Spinemeld Warrior Style

Martial Art: Spinemeld Warrior Style

Skarns are a race from Magic of Incarnum for D&D 3.5. They are proud warriors that have an affinity for meldshaping. Their trademark forearm spines make them dangerous even when unarmed. Skarn society prizes their spinemeld warriors, fighters that specialize in imbueing their spines with incarnum. Let's make a style for them!

First, their spines are Sharp Claws (Variant), and claws can only be used with Brawling. Only a few styles in GURPS Martial Arts have Brawling as a prerequisite skill, even though it represents "unscientific" unarmed combat.

Second, we know that battles between spinemeld warriors are showy and highly ritualized, and that the warriors themselves are considered to be of a high status. Let's add Savoir-Faire to the prerequisite skills and Stage Combat to the optional skills.

Lastly, they should be able to imbue their spines with incarnum. Imbuements are a way to go here, so let's add Penetrating Strike (Unarmed) to the prerequisite skills. Imbue 3 (Meldshaping, -30%) [28] is required to learn the Imbuement Skills, and hence the style. The Nuisance Effect part of the power modifier will disable all magical items that are worn on the forearms, such as bracers or armguards, for 1d seconds after the character uses the skill to imbue the spines. Of course, since the spinemeld warriors are specialized in their spines, it's more reasonable and point-effective for them to take Imbue 3 (Meldshaping, -30%; Single Skill, Brawling, -80%) [8]. For thematic reasons the GM may limit it to the spines exclusively. Also, at least 1 point of Energy Reserve (Incarnum) is suggested, since you can't spend normal FP to power incarnum abilities. In addtiton, if the GM wants to delve into the theme even deeper, he might make incarnum imbuements HT-based instead of DX-based.

We're done with the basics. Now let's skim the technique list and pick what looks good for them. Aggressive Parry, Counterattack, and Feint seem to be nice for showy combatants, and Targeted Attacks can make the stylist look more skilled. Bind Weapon looks like something the spines should be able to accomplish, so let's add the Special Setup (Bind Weapon > Striker Parry) perk. This technique should treat the spines as a pair of Jitte/Sai, with the exception that you cannot drop them. Cross Parry (MA, p. 121) also would look great with the spines, so let's add the Skill Adaptation (Cross Parry with the spines) perk.

Spinemeld Warrior Style – 4 points

The Spinemeld Warrior Style is both esthetically pleasing and lethally effective. It is only practiced by the skarn ritual warriors that use their incarnum-imbued spines to fight. Ritualized combats draw large crowds, and the spinemeld warriors become celebrities in their communities.

Skills: Brawling; Penetrating Strike (Unarmed); Savoir-Faire (High Society).

            Techniques: Aggressive Parry (Brawling); Counterattack (Brawling); Feint (Brawling); Targeted Attack (Brawling Striker Attack/Arm); Targeted Attack (Brawling Striker Attack/Neck).

            Cinematic Techniques: Springing Attack (Brawling).

            Perks: Skill Adaptation (Cross Parry with the spines); Special Setup (Bind Weapon > Striker Parry).

Optional Traits

            Primary Characteristics: Improved ST and DX.

Secondary Characteristics: Improved Basic Speed.

            Advantages: Combat Reflexes; Enhanced Parry (Unarmed); Energy Reserve (Incarnum); Extra Attack (with or without Multistrike); Hard to Kill; High Pain Threshold; Status. Imbue 3 (Meldshaping, -30%) [28] is required to learn the Imbuement Skills, and hence the style.

            Disadvantages: Code of Honor; Disciplines of Faith; Sense of Duty; Overconfidence.

            Skills: Body Control; Expert Skill (Incarnum); Meditation; Parry Missile Weapons; Stage Combat.