Awakened Blade

Some wielders of psychic power seek to extend and stretch the depths of their psionic power to assist their abilities in many different ways. Some small select few, those who are quite gifted in the clairsentient arts, find that they are able to distill certain psionic powers into a fighting style of extreme potency.

The style is a deadly mix of precognition abilities coupled with martial techniques that when utilized together, allows for its user to react to danger faster and defend himself while simultaneously mapping out his foe’s defenses for maximum effect. Awakened blades, as they are called, learn to use their precognitive mastery as both offense and defense in pursuit of greater psionic knowledge and personal glory or power.

Entry Requirements

Skills: Arms Lore 5 ranks, Athletics 3 ranks, Psi Lore 5 ranks.
Feats: Psionic Body, Psionic Meditation.
Psionics: Ability to manifest defensive precognition and offensive precognition.
Martial Arts: Ability to initiate 2nd-level martial techniques, including at least one 2nd-level stance.

Table: The Awakened Blade

 Base Attack
Bonus
Fort
Save
Ref
Save
Will
Save
SpecialManifestingMartial Arts
KnownReadiedStances
1st+1+0+0+1Deep Focus, path of the warrior
2nd+2+0+0+1Danger sense, stance of the inner eye+1 level of existing class1
3rd+3+1+1+2Uncanny dodge+1 level of existing class1
4th+4+1+1+2Bonus Feat+1 level of existing class11
5th+5+1+1+3Precognitive defense+1 level of existing class
6th+6+2+2+3Hypercognitive focus111
7th+7+2+2+4Clairsentient counter+1 level of existing class
8th+8+2+2+4Bonus Feat+1 level of existing class1
9th+9+3+3+5Improved uncanny dodge+1 level of existing class1
10th+10+3+3+5Pretercognitive mind+1 level of existing class11
Hit Die: d10
Class Skills (2 + Int modifier per level): Arms Lore, Athletics, Intimidate, Persuasion, Profession, Psi Lore, and Stealth.

Class Features

Weapon and Armor Proficiency

An Awakened Blade gains no proficiency with any type of weapon, armor, or shield.

Martial Arts

You add your full awakened blade class level to your initiator level, using your total initiator level to determine the highest level martial arts techniques you can use.

At 1st level, you gain access to either the Riven Hourglass or the Sleeping Goddess martial discipline in addition to any you already possess and may select techniques from them when you learn a new technique.

Maneuvers

At every even-number level, you gain a new maneuver known from any discipline you have access to. You must meet a maneuver’s prerequisites to learn it.

At 3rd, 6th, and 9th levels, you gain one additional maneuver readied per day.

Stances

At 4th, 6th, and 10th level, you learn a new stance from any of the disciplines available to you. You must meet the stance’s prerequisites to learn it.

Psionic Manifesting

At each level except 1st and 6th, you progress a psionic manifesting class you already possess. If you possess more than one manifesting class, you must decide to which class you add each new level of progression.

Deep Focus

You gain Deep Focus as a bonus feat at 1st level. If you already possess this feat, you gain no additional benefit.

Path of the Warrior

An awakened blade’s trip along the Path of War is one of constant devotion, and for those with a focused aptitude in the field of war with the psionic arts, their discipline is rewarded. If you possesses levels in psychic warrior, then you add your class level to your psychic warrior level for the purposes of determining the trance and maneuver abilities of your path abilities. If you possess levels in the soulknife base class, then you add levels in this class to determine the weapon bonus of your mind blade.

Danger Sense

You gain an innate version of the danger sense psionic power at 2nd level. You gain an insight bonus on Reflex saves to avoid traps and to Armor Class against attacks by traps equal to half your class level, rounded down. You also gain this insight bonus on initiative rolls.

Stance of the Inner Eye

At 2nd level, your precognitive abilities blend with your martial prowess to unlock an all-seeing inner eye hyper-aware of the dangers that surround you and the ways to combat them. This inner sense allows you to react to danger quickly, guides your attacks around the defenses of your enemies, and directs fierce blows as your mind traces out the myriad scenarios that could play out between yourself and your foes. This is a 3rd-level stance of no particular discipline. 

To enter this stance, you must abandon a martial stance you are currently using as a swift action. While in this stance, you gain a +1 insight bonus for every three initiator levels you possess (minimum +1) to your AC, attack and damage rolls, CMB checks, and to all saving throws. If caught flat-footed, these bonuses do not apply.

You inflict an additional 1d6 points of precision damage while in this stance at 2nd level; this bonus precision damage improves to 2d6 at 7th level.

Uncanny Dodge

At 3rd level, you retain your Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) even if you are caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker. However, you still lose your Dexterity bonus to AC if immobilized or helpless. If you already have uncanny dodge from a different class, you automatically gain improved uncanny dodge instead.

Bonus Feat

You gain a bonus combat feat or psionic feat of your choice at 4th level and at 8th level. You must meet all prerequisites for the selected feats.

Precognitive Defenses

At 5th level, the defensive senses of your mind’s eye become capable of reacting to multiple dangerous scenarios at the same time. You may expend your psionic focus as a free action to initiate a readied counter, even if you have already used your immediate or swift action this round. This specifically allows for the use of a free action on another creature’s turn.

Hypercognitive Focus

At 6th level, your mind is able to anticipate your needs and subconsciously works to further your effectiveness. Whenever you recover one or more maneuvers, you may regain psionic focus as a free action as part that action. You may only do this once per round.

Alternately, you may expend your psionic focus when manifesting a psionic power to recover an expended maneuver.

Clairsentient Counter

By anticipating the attack before the attacker ever considers making it, you may act faster than your opponent can even think. To use this ability, you expend your psionic focus as an immediate action; the clairsentient counter is used in response to an attack against you of any sort (be it a melee or ranged attack, spell, power, or other esoteric effect).

Using this counter allows you to immediately initiate one maneuver that you have readied that requires either a move or standard action to initiate. This maneuver is resolved after the attack against you is made but before that attack is resolved.

Improved Uncanny Dodge

At 9th level, you can no longer be flanked. This defense denies a rogue the ability to sneak attack you by flanking you, unless the attacker has at least four more rogue levels than you have class levels. If you already have uncanny dodge from a second class, you automatically gain improved uncanny dodge instead, and the levels from the classes that grant uncanny dodge stack to determine the minimum level a rogue must be to flank you.

Pretercognitive Mind

At 10th level, your reactive capabilities are so intense that your subconscious mind must manage them for you as they otherwise would never give you a moment’s rest. While psionically focused, you are considered to have the benefits of the Stance of the Inner Eye without needing to initiate the stance. You may continue to gain these benefits while you adopt any other martial stance that you know and gain the benefits of both stances.