Martial Artist
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Jutsus are not spells either. A martial artist executes on their turn, masters a deed from another martial tree with every ability, and takes a jutsu or a primal spell alongside it.
Core Fantasy: You've touched something beyond mere training: the architecture of combat itself. Where others learn techniques, you've learned to improvise them. Your body is a weapon that adapts, your mind sees openings before they exist, and you master the secrets of every fighting style you witness.
What Makes a Martial Artist:
- Jutsus are NOT spells. Unaffected by anti-magic, can't be dispelled
- You don't cast. You execute, pulling power from perfect body-mind unity
- You master deeds from other martial trees and make them your own
- Each jutsu is vast. GM determines specifics based on your intent
SPONTANEOUS EXECUTION (Martial Artist Unique Ability): Unlike other martial characters who rely on specific techniques, martial artists do not declare. On your turn, you simply execute whatever jutsu you choose. This represents the instantaneous, reactive nature of true mastery. It comes from within, requiring no preparation or focusing ritual.
- No tactical phase declaration required
- Choose your jutsu and tier when you act
- Can react to battlefield conditions as they unfold
- Cannot be predicted by enemies
This makes martial artists uniquely flexible but also means they cannot benefit from coordinated planning the way declared abilities can.
Primary Stat: Body
Stamina Pool: See core Stamina rules. Martial Artist uses Body as primary stat.
Martial Artist Level: Number of Martial Artist abilities purchased (1-12)
The Three Paths
Each Martial Artist ability grants passives plus 1 Mastered Deed (always) and your choice of either a Jutsu OR a Primal Spell:
| Path | What You Get |
|---|---|
| Mastered Deed | Master one deed from any martial tree. Give it a unique name. Always gained. |
| Jutsu | Learn one jutsu from the 6 Jutsu categories below. Choose this OR Primal Spell. |
| Primal Spell | Learn one spell from the Primal (Druid) spell list. Cast using Body instead of Sense. Choose this OR Jutsu. |
Note: Foundation of Iron (your first ability) grants all three as an exception.
Jutsus
Jutsus are broad martial capabilities with 5 tiers. All tiers are available from the start. Higher tiers are harder but nothing stops you from attempting Tier 5 at level 1.
Execution: Roll Body dice + Tier dice, needing [Jutsu Tier] successes. Success: Free. Failure: Works, but costs stamina equal to tier.
Stamina & Exhaustion:
- Have stamina (1+): Roll normally. Failure costs stamina equal to tier.
- Out of stamina (0): Can still execute. Failure causes exhaustion.
- Already exhausted: Roll at disadvantage. Failure means instant death.
Reaction Execute: Spend 2 stamina to execute as a reaction.
Primal Spells
Martial Artists who walk the primal path learn druid magic, channeling nature through their body rather than their will.
Improvised Casting: Like jutsus, spells are cast on your turn without declaration. Ability Test (d20 + Body die + Tier vs DC). Success: Free. Failure: Spend stamina equal to tier to succeed, or spell fails.
Spell Access: You can only learn spells with tier ≤ your Tier.
Mastered Deeds
Master deeds from other martial trees and make them your own. Give each a unique name that fits your style.
Examples:
- "Iron Mountain Throw" (from Wrestler's Earth Shaker)
- "Void Step Strike" (from Skirmisher's Ghost Step)
- "Dragon's Crushing Palm" (from Grappler's Spine Breaker)
- "Phoenix Rising Fist" (from Berserker's Blood Surge)
The 6 Jutsus
Each jutsu is a broad martial capability that scales with your power. You know all six from the moment you begin training. The question is not which techniques you have, but how deeply you've mastered them.
Outside combat, these jutsus transform you from fighter to something else entirely. A master of Iron Body can survive environmental hazards, endure torture, and demonstrate feats of endurance that inspire legends. A master of Piercing Eye can read people, anticipate danger, and see through deception. The jutsus are tools, and tools work whether or not fists are flying.
Iron Body (Hardening)
Jutsu, Tiers 1-5You have learned to channel force through your body: where it enters, where it pools, where it exits. Your flesh remembers stone.
- T1
Free: Toughen skin. Gain +2 AC for one round.
- T2
Reaction: Reduce damage from one attack by half.
- T3
Free: Ignore one condition (stunned, paralyzed, poisoned, frightened).
- T4
Action: Remove 1 of your wounds. Wounds close visibly.
- T5
Action: Become invulnerable for 1 round. Attacks land but do nothing.
Outside combat: Survive falls, resist torture, endure environmental hazards, demonstrate impossible feats of endurance.
Swift Wind (Movement)
Jutsu, Tiers 1-5Your feet find surfaces that shouldn't hold you. Your body moves faster than thought allows. Physics suggests limits; you respectfully decline.
- T1
Free: Gain +15 feet movement this round.
- T2
Free: Walk on water, walls, or ceilings for 1 round.
- T3
Move: Teleport up to 30 feet to a location you can see.
- T4
Action: Take two actions this round. You exist in overlapping moments.
- T5
Action: Become incorporeal for 1 round. Pass through solid matter.
Outside combat: Run across rooftops, traverse impossible terrain, escape any pursuit, scout ahead instantaneously.
Striking Thunder (Offense)
Jutsu, Tiers 1-5You strike the space between thought and action. Your fists carry the weight of mountains, the precision of needles, the finality of death.
- T1
Free: Your next unarmed strike deals and the target loses 1 Vigor.
- T2
Free: After hitting, target saves or is dazed (move OR action only).
- T3
Free: After hitting, target saves or is stunned for 1 round.
- T4
Free: Strike deals 1 extra Vitality on hit, on top of your rolled damage. Target save negates the extra.
- T5
Free: After hitting a creature of your level or lower, they save or die instantly.
Outside combat: Break objects precisely, strike pressure points for healing, demonstrate power that ends fights before they begin.
Flowing Water (Defense)
Jutsu, Tiers 1-5Your hands read the air like water. Attacks announce themselves before they arrive. You simply reach up and suggest they land elsewhere.
- T1
Reaction: Negate 1 Vitality from a ranged attack; roll your Body die, and on a 5+ you catch the projectile.
- T2
Reaction: Redirect one attack to a different target within 5 feet.
- T3
Reaction: Catch and return a ranged attack at the attacker.
- T4
Reaction: Counter a melee attack with an immediate unarmed strike.
- T5
Reaction: Turn an enemy's attack fully against them. They take their own damage.
Outside combat: Catch thrown objects, deflect falling debris, sense incoming danger through air displacement.
Piercing Eye (Awareness)
Jutsu, Tiers 1-5You've learned to see without eyes, know without being told. Your mind perceives what your body never could.
- T1
Free: Sense hidden creatures within 30 feet.
- T2
Free: Read a target's next combat action.
- T3
Free: Cannot be surprised. Danger sense activates automatically.
- T4
Free: See through illusions, detect lies automatically, recognize disguises.
- T5
Action: Glimpse the next minute of combat. Ask the GM one yes/no question about what will happen.
Outside combat: Investigate crime scenes, verify truth, anticipate danger, read intentions and motives.
Martial Artist Abilities (12 Total)
Choose abilities in any order. Requirements listed where applicable.
Each ability grants passives plus 1 Mastered Deed (always) and choose 1 of 2: Primal Spell OR Jutsu.
Foundation of Iron
The training begins. You have learned to feel the flow of force through your body.
Required: Must be your first Martial Artist ability.
Passive:
- Passive: Unarmed strikes count as magical weapons; +1 crit range at Tier 3, +2 at Tier 5.
- Passive: While unarmored or in light armor, you may use your Body modifier in place of Sense for AC.
Gain All Three: 1 Primal Spell + 1 Jutsu + 1 Mastered Deed
Iron Palm
Your palm becomes a forge hammer. Solid things remember they were always meant to break.
Passive:
- Unarmed strikes deal +1 Vitality to objects
- Advantage when attacking objects or structures
Gain: 1 Mastered Deed + choose 1: Primal Spell OR Jutsu
Swift Feet
You move like something hunting. Your footsteps make less noise than they should.
Passive:
- +10 feet movement speed
- Advantage on Body checks to jump
Gain: 1 Mastered Deed + choose 1: Primal Spell OR Jutsu
Hardened Body
Your skin looks normal but feels subtly wrong, too dense, like touching a statue made of warm stone.
Passive:
- Passive: +1 AC when unarmored or in light armor.
- Passive: Once per combat, negate one wound.
Gain: 1 Mastered Deed + choose 1: Primal Spell OR Jutsu
Centered Mind
Your mind has walked through darkness. Lesser influences find no purchase in its depths.
Passive:
- Advantage on saves vs charm, fear, and mind control
- Cannot be surprised while conscious
Gain: 1 Mastered Deed + choose 1: Primal Spell OR Jutsu
Flowing Stance
You stand where you choose to stand. Wind, water, and enemy hands find no purchase.
Passive:
- Passive: When you succeed on a saving throw, you may immediately move 5 feet without provoking.
- Advantage on saves vs being moved or knocked prone
Gain: 1 Mastered Deed + choose 1: Primal Spell OR Jutsu
Pressure Point Mastery
You have memorized the body's hidden architecture: where nerves cluster, where a single touch can silence limbs.
Passive:
- Passive: Once per turn when you hit with an unarmed strike, the target has disadvantage on its next attack.
- During rest, meditate to recover Stamina equal to Body modifier
Gain: 1 Mastered Deed + choose 1: Primal Spell OR Jutsu
Iron Skin
You have trained your body to redirect force the way rivers redirect around stones.
Passive:
- Passive: Once per round when an attack strips your Vigor, roll your Body die: on a 5+ the Vigor is not lost.
- Passive: Falls and bludgeoning hazards cannot wound you.
Gain: 1 Mastered Deed + choose 1: Primal Spell OR Jutsu
Shadow Step
Shadows are not absences but presences, doorways for those who know how to step sideways.
Passive:
- Passive: You may move through enemies' spaces (you cannot end your movement there).
- After using a jutsu, move 5 feet without provoking
Gain: 1 Mastered Deed + choose 1: Primal Spell OR Jutsu
Grappling Mastery
Your grip is iron. What you seize, you keep.
Passive:
- Passive: Advantage on Body checks to grapple.
- Enemies you grapple have disadvantage to escape
Gain: 1 Mastered Deed + choose 1: Primal Spell OR Jutsu
Battlefield Awareness
You've learned to perceive the battlefield as masters do.
Requires: 6 martial artist abilities
Passive:
- Tremorsense 15 feet
- Passive: Add your Tier to initiative rolls.
Gain: 1 Mastered Deed + choose 1: Primal Spell OR Jutsu
Grandmaster
You have transcended the body by perfecting it. Others argue whether the body is prison or temple; you have made yours a door.
Requires: 11 martial artist abilities (must be your final ability)
Passive:
- Passive: Once per rest, execute a jutsu of any tier regardless of your Tier.
- All jutsu execution checks have advantage
Gain: 1 Mastered Deed + choose 1: Primal Spell OR Jutsu
Martial Artist Ultimates
Choose one ultimate at 4, 8, and 12 abilities purchased.
1st Ultimate (Free at 4 abilities)
Choose ONE:
A. Flowing Strikes
After executing any jutsu, you can immediately move 10 feet without provoking opportunity attacks.
B. Adaptive Defense
When an enemy hits you, spend 1 Stamina to gain advantage on all saves against that enemy until end of your next turn.
C. Jutsu Fusion
Once per round, execute two different jutsus as part of the same action. Make one check at disadvantage for both.
2nd Ultimate (Free at 8 abilities)
Choose ONE:
A. Counter Mastery
When an enemy misses you with a melee attack, immediately execute any Tier 1-2 jutsu against them as a free action.
B. Iron Will
Advantage on all saves. When you fail a save, spend 2 Stamina to reroll (must take new result).
C. Limitless Stamina
During rest, recover all Stamina. Maximum Stamina increases by +4.
3rd Ultimate (Free at 12 abilities)
Choose ONE:
A. Perfect Self
Your body transcends mortality:
- You no longer age
- You don't need food or water
- Immune to disease and poison
- Tier 1-2 jutsus always succeed (no check needed)
B. Death Touch
After hitting with an unarmed strike, spend 3 Stamina to place a death mark. Any time in the next 7 days, use an action to activate: target makes Body save or dies instantly. Success: 2 Vitality.
C. Empty Body
Spend 4 Stamina: Become invisible and intangible for 1 minute. Pass through solid objects. Cannot attack while active. Can end early to make one attack with advantage.
Total at 12 abilities: 6 broad jutsus (all available, scale with tier), 12 mastered deeds, massive passive bonuses, 3 Ultimates
Power Fantasy: Master martial artist who improvises impossible techniques, steals the secrets of every fighting style, and transcends the limits of the body