Martial Artist (4e Class)

By Todd Lockwood

Martial Artist

Class Traits

Role: Defender. Unlike many warriors you don't use heavy armor or rely of weapons. You train until your body becomes a perfect weapon, able to crack stone and bend steel.

Power Source: Martial and Psionic. Martial Artists have varying degrees of psionic power within them that they have managed to draw on. However there primary ability comes from years training and experience.

Key Abilities: Dexterity,Strength, and Wisdom.

Armor Proficiencies: Cloth

Weapon Proficiencies: club, dagger, monk unarmed strike, quarterstaff, shuriken, sling, spear

Bonus to Defense: +1 Fortitude, +1 Reflex, +1 Will

Hit Points at 1st Level: 12 + Constitution score + Constitution score

Hit Points per Level Gained: 5

Healing Surges per Day: 7 + Constitution modifier + Constitution modifier

Trained Skills: From the class skills list below, choose 4 trained skills at 1st level. Class Skills: Acrobatics (dex), Athletics (str), Diplomacy (cha), Endurance (con), Heal (wis) Insight (wis), Perception (wis), Religion (int), Stealth (dex), Thievery (dex)

Build Options: Outer body Mastery, Inner Body mastery

Class Features: Martial Tradition, Unarmed Combatant Expert, Unarmored Protection

Martial artists come from a land where weapons and fighting were strictly prohibited in order to control the population. To protect there land the ancient masters developed a way to turn their own body into a deadly weapon that could never be taken away. Now the history of it has mostly been forgotten, but many techniques still survive. Masters will teach anyone with the resolve and discipline to lean. People learn it for varying reasons, but some become so good at it that even most armed combatants are no match for them.

Martial Artist Overview

Characteristics: You are a master of combat. You have high mobility and the ability to keep opponents in one place. You are not as tough and do not do as much damage as most defenders, so you need to use your high mobility and good defenses to your advantage

Religion: any. Martial Arts dojo are all secular, although Ioun has a large martial artist following.

Races: any, but elves, half-orcs, thri-kreen, and drow are particularly good at it

Creating a Martial Artist

A Martial Artist is a type of monk, a class introduced in Player's Handbook 3. To create a Martial Artist, use the character creation rules in the Rules Compendium or the Player's Handbook. A Martial Artist gain no Monk lv1 at will powers, but instead rely on at-will attack powers granted with there Martial Tradition. They still can pick monk encounter and daily powers, and humans who get a bonus at-will can pick from monk at-wills.

Martial Tradition

Pick Outer Body Mastery or Inner Body mastery

Outer Body Mastery

Martial artist in this tradition tend to rely on raw physical power to overcome there enemies. Masters of this tradition are said to be able to catch swords with there bare hands and kick through solid steal doors. They strive to turn there bodies into a wall that is unfazed by anything.

Suggested Feat: Club Style.

Suggested Skills: Athletics, Endurance, Heal, Perception.

Suggested Encounter Power: Open the gate of Battle

Suggested Daily Power: Masterful Spiral

Irresistible presence: Whenever you attack an opponent with a Martial Monk Attack you can choose to mark them until the end of your next turn.

Grapple mastery: You gain the following attacks.

Surprise Headbutt	Monk Attack 1
You instantly lash out with a body part the opponent doesn't expect
At-Will  Martial, Melee Weapon, Full Discipline
Standard Action	Melee
Requirement: You must make this attack with a Monk Unarmed Strike.
Target: One Creature
Attack: Dex Vs. Fort
Hit: 1[W] damage and you can push the target 1 square and then shift 1 square into the space it left.
Increase damage to 2[W] at 21st level.
Special: This counts as a bull rush attack.

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Movement Technique	Monk Utility 1
'
At-Will  Full Discipline
Move Action	Personal
Effect: Shift two squares.

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Grappling Hold	Monk Attack 1
With a grip of Iron, your mere touch can cause pain
At-Will  Martial, Melee Weapon, Full Discipline
Standard Action	Melee
Requirement: You must make this attack with a Monk Unarmed Strike.
Target: One Creature
Attack: Dex Vs. Reflex
Hit: Dexterity damage and you grab the target until the end of your next turn. You can end the grab as a free action.
Increase damage to Dexterity + Dexterity at 21st level.
Sustain Minor: The grab persists until the end of your next turn.
Special: When making an opportunity attack, you can use this power in place of a melee basic attack.

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Graceful Trip	Monk Attack 1
Reaching your leg behind the opponent you swiftly bring him down.
At-Will  Martial, Melee Weapon, Full Discipline
Standard Action	Melee
Requirement: You must make this attack with a Monk Unarmed Strike.
Target: One Creature you are grabbing
Attack: Dex Vs. Reflex
Hit: 1[W] + Dexterity damage and the target is knocked prone.
Effect: Sustain the grab.
Increase damage to 2[W] + Dexterity at 21st level.

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Bear's reflexive strike	Monk Attack 1
Without thinking you grab a vulnerable enemy
At-Will  Psionic, Full Discipline
No Action	Melee 1
Trigger: An enemy marked by you either shifts or makes an attack that targets an ally of yours but not you.
Target: An enemy marked by you who either shifts or makes an attack that targets an ally of yours but not you.
Effect: The target takes 2 + your Strength modifier damage and if you have a free hand you grab it until the end of your next turn.
Increase to 5 + your Strength modifier damage at 21st level.

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Inner Body Mastery

Martial artists in this tradition tend to rely psionic power more, and defeating opponents by using their own strengths against them. A Inner body master does not resist or push back when pushed, but uses the push to unbalance the opponent. They strive to become like water, in that it goes with the flow but can overcome any obstacle.

Suggested Feat: Staff Style.

Suggested Skills: Acrobatics, Diplomacy, Perception, Stealth.

Suggested Encounter Power: Gentle Rainfall

Suggested Daily Power: Spinning Leopard Maneuver

Irresistible presence: Whenever you attack an opponent with a Martial Monk Attack you can choose to mark them until the end of your next turn.

Ki mastery: You gain the following attacks.

Nerve Strike	Monk Attack 1
Years of Training have taught you the best places to strike.
At-Will  Martial, Melee Weapon, Full Discipline
Standard Action	Melee
Requirement: You must make this attack with a Monk Unarmed Strike.
Target: One Creature
Attack: Dex Vs. AC
Hit: 1[W] + Dexterity damage and the target is slowed until the end of your next turn.
Increase damage to 2[W] + Dexterity at 21st level.
Special: This counts as a melee basic attack.

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Movement Technique	Utility 1
'
At-Will ✦ Full Discipline
Minor Action	Personal
Effect: Move half your speed.

Ki Projection	Monk Attack 1
A ball of pure ki flows from your hand and punches a nearby victim.
At-Will  Psionic, Implement, Full Discipline
Standard Action	Melee 5
Requirement: You must make this attack with a Monk Unarmed Strike.
Target: One creature
Attack: Dex Vs. Ref
Hit: 1d6 + Dexterity damage and until the end of your next turn you get +2 to all defenses vs creatures not marked by you.
Effect: the target is marked until the end of your next turn.
Increase damage to 2d6 + Dexterity at 21st level.
Special: This counts as a ranged basic attack.

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Magnetic Spin	Monk Attack 1
A bubble of Ki pulls all enemies to you who are two slow to escape it.
At-Will  Psionic, Implement, Full Discipline
Standard Action	Burst 4
Requirement: You must make this attack with a Monk Unarmed Strike.
Target: All slow enemies in burst.
Attack: Dex Vs. Ref
Hit: 1d6 + Dexterity damage and pull the target two squares.
Effect: the target is marked until the end of your next turn.
Increase damage to 2d6 + Dexterity at 21st level.

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Movement Technique	Utility 1
'
At-Will ✦ Full Discipline
Move Action	Personal
Effect: You shift up to your speed into a square adjacent to an enemy adjacent to you.

Unstoppable Tide's Reflexive Strike	Monk Utility 6
Your hand automatically strikes where the enemy is weakest.
Encounter  Psionic
No Action	Melee
Trigger:
Target: An enemy marked by you who either shifts or makes an attack that targets an ally of yours but not you.
Effect: The target takes 2 + your Wisdom modifier damage and the target is slowed until the end of your next turn.
Increase to 5 + your Wisdom modifier damage at 21st level.

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Unarmed Combatant Expert

A martial artist never stops training.

Whenever you make a weapon attack you can use the monk unarmed strike, which is a weapon in the unarmed weapon group. This weapon has the off-hand weapon property and a +3 proficiency bonus, and it deals 1d8 damage. You must have a hand free to use your monk unarmed strike.

At level 1 you gain a +1 enhancement bonus to attack and damage rolls of your monk unarmed strike.

At level 6 this bonus increases to +2

At level 11 this bonus increases to +3

At level 16 this bonus increases to +4

At level 21 this bonus increases to +5

At level 26 this bonus increases to +6

Unarmored Protection

While you are wearing cloth armor or no armor and aren't using a shield, you gain a +2 bonus to AC. You also gain the unarmored agility feat.

Heroic Martial Artist Feats

Dagger Style

Prerequisite: Monk, Unarmed Combatant Expert

Benefit: You can used the Dagger for any monk move that requires you to use the monk unarmed strike. Whenever you use a ranged basic attack using the dagger you can mark the opponent until the end of your next turn.

Club Style

Prerequisite: Monk, Bear's reflexive strike

Benefit: You can used the Club for any monk move that requires you to use the monk unarmed strike. Whenever you sustain a grab the creature you've grabbed takes 2 damage.

Staff Style

Prerequisite: Monk, Unstoppable Tide's reflexive strike

Benefit: You can used a staff for any monk move that requires you to use the monk unarmed strike. You can use the staff as a one-handed weapon.

Unarmed Combat Expertise

Benefit: You gain a +1 feat bonus to weapon and implement attack rolls with the monk unarmed strike. This bonus increases to +2 at 11th level and +3 at 21st level. You gain a +1 bonus to damage rolls with weapon and implement attacks you make with the monk unarmed strike when both your hands are empty.

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