Brawler

Deadly even with nothing in her hands, a brawler eschews using the fighter’s heavy armor and the monk’s mysticism, focusing instead on perfecting many styles of brutal unarmed combat. Versatile, agile, and able to adapt to most enemy attacks, a brawler’s body is a powerful weapon.

Role: Brawlers are maneuverable and well suited for creating flanking situations or dealing with lightly armored enemies, as well as quickly adapting to a rapidly changing battlefield.

Alignment: Any.

Hit Points: 10 per level

Parent Classes: Fighter and monk.

Starting Wealth: 3d6 × 10 gp (average 105 gp.) In addition, each character begins play with an outfit worth 10 gp or less.

Class Skills

The brawler’s class receives 1 rank in the following; Acrobatics, Artisan, Awareness, Endurance, Feats of Strength, Handle Animal, Intimidate, Knowledge (Dungeoneering and Local), and Ride.

Skill Ranks per Level: 4 + Int modifier.

Table: Brawler

Level	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Damage	Special
							1st	+1	+2	+2	+0	1d6	Brawler’s cunning, martial flexibility, martial training
2nd	+2	+3	+3	+0	1d6	Bonus combat feat, brawler’s flurry
3rd	+3	+3	+3	+1	1d6	Maneuver training 1
4th	+4	+4	+4	+1	1d8	AC bonus +1, knockout 1/day
5th	+5	+4	+4	+1	1d8	Bonus combat feat, magic strike, close weapon mastery
6th	+6/+1	+5	+5	+2	1d8	Martial flexibility (swift action)
7th	+7/+2	+5	+5	+2	1d8	Maneuver training 2
8th	+8/+3	+6	+6	+2	1d10	Bonus combat feat, improved brawler’s flurry
9th	+9/+4	+6	+6	+3	1d10	AC Bonus +2, silver strike
10th	+10/+5	+7	+7	+3	1d10	Martial flexibility (free action), knockout 2/day
11th	+11/+6/+1	+7	+7	+3	1d10	Bonus combat feat, Maneuver training 3
12th	+12/+7/+2	+8	+8	+4	2d6	Aligned strike, martial flexibility (immediate action)
13th	+13/+8/+3	+8	+8	+4	2d6	AC bonus +3
14th	+14/+9/+4	+9	+9	+4	2d6	Bonus combat feat
15th	+15/+10/+5	+9	+9	+5	2d6	Greater brawler’s flurry, Maneuver training 4
16th	+16/+11/+6/+1	+10	+10	+5	2d8	Awesome blow
17th	+17/+12/+7/+2	+10	+10	+5	2d8	Bonus combat feat, adamant strike
18th	+18/+13/+8/+3	+11	+11	+6	2d8	AC bonus +4
19th	+19/+14/+9/+4	+11	+11	+6	2d8	Maneuver training 5
20th	+20/+15/+10/+5	+12	+12	+6	2d10	Bonus Feat, Improved Awesome Blow, Perfect Warrior

Class Features

The following are the class features of the brawler.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency

A brawler is proficient with all simple weapons plus one weapon group of choice (except Exotic). She is proficient with light armor and shields.

Brawlers are considered to have Improved Unarmed Strike for the purpose of feat prerequisites. A Brawler’s Unarmed Strikes start at 1d6 damage at first level, increasing to 1d8 at fourth, 1d10 at eighth, 2d6 at twelve, 2d8 at sixteenth, and finally 2d10 at twentieth.

Brawler’s Cunning (Ex)

If the brawler’s Intelligence score is less than 13, it counts as 13 for the purpose of meeting the prerequisites of combat feats.

Martial Flexibility (Ex)

A brawler can take a move action to gain the benefit of a combat feat she doesn’t possess. This effect lasts for 1 minute. The brawler must meet all the feat’s prerequisites. She may use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + 1/2 her brawler level (minimum 1).

The brawler can use this ability again before the duration expires in order to replace the previous combat feat with another choice.

If a combat feat has a daily use limitation (such as Stunning Fist), any uses of that combat feat while using this ability count toward that feat’s daily limit.

At 6th level, a brawler can use this ability to gain the benefit of two combat feats at the same time. She may select one feat as a swift action or two feats as a move action. She may use one of these feats to meet a prerequisite of the second feat; doing so means that she cannot replace a feat currently fulfilling another’s prerequisite without also replacing those feats that require it. Each individual feat selected counts toward her daily uses of this ability.

At 10th level, a brawler can use this ability to gain the benefit of three combat feats at the same time. She may select one feat as a free action, two feats as a swift action, or three feats as a move action. She may use one of the feats to meet a prerequisite of the second and third feats, and use the second feat to meet a prerequisite of the third feat. Each individual feat selected counts toward her daily uses of this ability.

At 12th level, a brawler can use this ability to gain the benefit of one combat feat as an immediate action or three combat feats as a swift action. Each individual feat selected counts toward her daily uses of this ability.

At 20th level, a brawler can use this ability to gain the benefit of any number of combat feats as a swift action. Each feat selected counts toward her daily uses of this ability.

Martial Training (Ex)

At 1st level, a brawler counts her total brawler levels as both fighter levels and monk levels for the purpose of qualifying for feats. She also counts as both a fighter and a monk for feats and magic items that have different effects based on whether the character has levels in those classes (such as Stunning Fist and a monk’s robe). This ability does not automatically grant feats normally granted to fighters and monks based on class level, namely Stunning Fist.

 

Bonus Combat Feats

At 2nd level and every 3 levels thereafter, a brawler gains a bonus combat feat in addition to those gained from normal advancement. These bonus feats must be ones that affect or improve her defenses or melee attacks. The brawler must meet the prerequisites of the selected bonus combat feat.

Upon reaching 5th level and every 3 levels thereafter, a brawler can choose to learn a new bonus combat feat in place of a bonus combat feat she has already learned. In effect, the brawler loses the bonus combat feat in exchange for the new one. The old feat cannot be one that was used as a prerequisite for another feat, prestige class, or other ability. A brawler can only change one feat at any given level, and must choose whether or not to swap the feat at the time she gains a new bonus combat feat for the level.

Brawler’s Flurry (Ex)

Starting at 2nd level, a brawler can make a brawler’s flurry as a full-attack action. Making a brawler’s flurry is a full-round attack, and doing so allows the brawler to double the amount of attacks she can make but she takes a -2 penalty to all attacks.

Each time an additional attack is gained through Base Attack Bonus (such as at sixth level), the two new attacks are both going off of the attack bonus from a secondary BAB attack. (Example; at sixth level normally a character has a BAB of +6/+1, their secondary attack being five lower than their primary. Thus with Flurry of Blows it instead becomes +6/+6/+1/+1 before the Flurry of Blows penalty, and +4/+4/-1/-1 after the penalty is applied).

Maneuver Training (Ex)

At 3rd level, a brawler can select one combat maneuver to receive additional training. She gains a +1 bonus on combat maneuver checks when performing that combat maneuver and a +1 bonus to her CMD when defending against that maneuver.

At 7th level and every 4 levels thereafter, the brawler becomes further trained in another combat maneuver, gaining the above +1 bonus combat maneuver checks and to CMD. In addition, the bonuses granted by all previous maneuver training increase by 1 each. (For example, if a brawler chooses grapple at 3rd level and sunder at 7th level, her bonuses to grapple are +2 and bonuses to sunder are +1. If she then chooses bull rush upon reaching 11th level, her bonuses to grapple are +3, to sunder are +2, and to bull rush are +1.)

AC Bonus (Ex)

At 4th level, when a brawler wears light or no armor, she gains a +1 dodge bonus to AC and CMD. This bonus increases by 1 at 9th, 13th, and 18th levels.

These bonuses to AC apply against touch attacks. She loses these bonuses while immobilized or helpless, wearing medium or heavy armor, or carrying a medium or heavy load.

Knockout (Ex)

At 4th level, once per day a brawler can unleash a devastating attack that can instantly knock a target unconscious. She must announce this intent before making her attack roll. If the brawler hits and the target takes damage from the blow, the target must succeed at a Fortitude saving throw (DC = 10 + 1/2 the brawler’s level + the higher of the brawler’s Strength or Dexterity modifier) or fall unconscious for 1d6 rounds. Each round on its turn, the unconscious target may attempt a new saving throw to end the effect as a full-round action that does not provoke attacks of opportunity. Creatures immune to critical hits or nonlethal damage are immune to this ability. At 10th level, the brawler may use this ability twice per day; at 16th level, she may use it three times per day.

Brawler’s Strike (Ex)

At 5th level, a brawler’s unarmed strikes are treated as magic weapons for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction. At 9th level, her unarmed attacks are also treated as cold iron and silver for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction. At 12th level, she chooses one alignment component: chaotic, evil, good, or lawful; her unarmed strikes also count as this alignment for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction. (This alignment component cannot be the opposite of the brawler’s actual alignment, such as a good brawler choosing evil strikes.) At 17th level, her unarmed attacks are also treated as adamantine weapons for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction and bypassing hardness.

Close Weapon Mastery (Ex)

At 5th level, a brawler’s damage with close weapons increases. When wielding a close weapon, she uses the unarmed strike damage of a brawler 4 levels lower instead of the base damage for that weapon (for example, a 5th-level Medium brawler wielding a punching dagger deals 1d6 points of damage instead of the weapon’s normal 1d4). If the weapon normally deals more damage than this, its damage is unchanged. This ability does not affect any other aspect of the weapon. The brawler can decide to use the weapon’s base damage instead of her adjusted unarmed strike damage—this must be declared before the attack roll is made.

Awesome Blow (Ex)

At 16th level, the brawler can as a standard action perform an awesome blow combat maneuver against a corporeal creature of her size or smaller. If the combat maneuver check succeeds, the opponent takes damage as if the brawler hit it with the close weapon she is wielding or an unarmed strike, it is knocked flying 10 feet in a direction of the brawler’s choice, and it falls prone. The brawler can only push the opponent in a straight line, and the opponent can’t move closer to the brawler than the square it started in. If an obstacle prevents the completion of the opponent’s move, the opponent and the obstacle each take 1d6 points of damage, and the opponent is knocked prone in the space adjacent to the obstacle. (Unlike the Awesome Blow monster feat, the brawler can be of any size to use this ability.)

Improved Awesome Blow (Ex)

At 20th level, the brawler can use her awesome blow ability as an attack rather than as a standard action. She may use it on creatures of any size. If the maneuver roll is a natural 20, the brawler can immediately attempt to confirm the critical by rolling another combat maneuver check with all the same modifiers as the one just rolled; if the confirmation roll is successful, the attack deals double damage, and the damage from hitting an obstacle (if any) is also doubled.

Perfect Warrior (Ex)

At 20th level, the brawler has reached the highest levels of her art. The brawler’s maneuver training increases by 2 and her dodge bonus to AC improves by 2.