Sword & Planet: The Warrior...

Good Morning, All:

This is the first of three posts that describe the basics of the character classes I'm proposing for a Planetary Romance campaign. This particular post describes the Warrior, this being a character who resolves challenges through the use of physical force and endurance. In the end, almost every protagonist of a Planetary Romance series is a Warrior.

The Warrior
As a Warrior, you are a true combatant, a force to be reckoned with on the field of battle. You may come from a number of professions, but when push comes to shove, your skill at arms saves the day.

Prime Attribute: Constitution, Strength
Starting Hit Dice: 3d10, +(3x Con modifier)
Hit Dice/Level: 1d10/level (gains 3 hp/level after 7th)
Armor/Weapons Permitted: All/All.
Saving Throw Bonus: Warriors gain a +2 bonus on Constitution-based saving throws.
Skills: 2 + Int modifier

Table: The Warrior

Level	HD	BAB	DEF	Special
1	3d10	+3	+7	Profession, Weapon Mastery (+1 atk, +0 dmg)
2	4d10	+4	+7
3	5d10	+5	+7
4	6d10	+6	+8	Weapon Mastery (+1 atk, +2 dmg)
5	7d10	+7	+8
6	8d10	+8	+8
7	9d10	+9	+9	Weapon Mastery (+2 atk, +2 dmg)
8	9d10+3	+10	+9
9	9d10+6	+11	+9
10	9d10+9	+12	+10	Weapon Mastery (+2 atk, +4 dmg)

Special
The Warrior's core special ability is Weapon Mastery.

Weapon Mastery: At 1st level, the Warrior selects one weapon group from the following list: Axes, Bows, Claw Weapons, Crossbows, Flails and Chains, Heavy Blades, Light Blades, Maces and Clubs, Personal Firearms, Picks and Hammers, Polearms, Slings and Thrown Weapons, or Spears and Lances. When using a weapon that belongs to this group, the Warrior gains a +1 bonus to attack rolls. This bonus increases to +2 at 7th level. At 4th level, the Warrior gains a +2 bonus to damage with a successful attack from a weapon of his chosen group. This bonus increases to +4 at 10th level.

Profession: At 1st level, the Warrior selects one of the following professions. He immediately gains the profession's special ability, as weill as the profession's skill as a bonus skill.

• Equestrian: The Equestrian is a skilled rider most at home in the saddle. Despite the name, the Equestrian's mounts are not necessarily horses or even horse-like, depending on the setting.
• Martial Artist: The Martial Artist is skilled at unarmed combat, and continuously hones his body to its peak physical condition.
• Mercenary: The Mercenary sells his weapon talents to those willing and able to pay for them, and is skilled at holding the line against attackers.
• Outlander: The Outlander is typically a tribal or nomadic warrior more comfortable with the wilds than the confines of civilization. Most Outlanders are accomplished hunters.
• Pilot: The Pilot is a master of his ship, whether the setting uses airships, sailing ships or dune ships (that "sail" across the surface of a silt-like desert on skids and/or runners.)
• Tactician: The Tactician is highly skilled at massive battles, and inspires courage to those around him.

Table: Warrior Professions

Profession	Skill	Special
Equestrian	Riding	Mounted Combat: Once per round, the Equestrian can negate an attack against his mount by making a Riding check against the attack roll.
Martial Artist	Athletics	Unarmed Combat: The Martial Artist can use his body as a weapon, inflicting 1d6 with a successful unarmed melee attack.
Mercenary	Streetwise	First Strike: Once per round, the Mercenary receives a free melee attack against an opponent that moves into the range of his melee weapon. This attack is resolved immediately, before the opponent finishes his action.
Outlander	Survival	Hunter: On a successful melee attack against a non-humanoid creature more than twice the size of the Outlander, he gains an amount of bonus damage equal to his level.
Pilot	Piloting	Shipborn: The Pilot gains a +1 DEF when fighting on a ship, and ignores any movement penalties for fighting on a slippery or pitching deck.
Tactician	Tactics	Inspire Courage: Once per rest, the Tactician can spend an action to inspire his comrades. For the next five rounds, all characters within thirty feet of the Tactician gain a +1 bonus to saving throws, attacks and melee damage.

I've chosen the professions based on iconic character concepts from Planetary Romance novels. These are not intended to reflect common character options from a fantasy setting, although you could expand the list in that direction if you so desired. For me, however, I wanted to stick with concepts that were closer to the source of inspiration. Please let me know what you think.

With Regards,
Flynn