Marshal Revised

8/6/2019 Marshal Revised

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MarshalModified from the original by Tempest Stormwind.

Inspired by RadicalTaoist's Sublime Way Ranger.

Some elements borrowed from Mystyc's retooled marshal.

Kindly rescued from the Archives by blood_of_the_ancient.

It is the intent of this variant to simultaneously give the marshal a boost up to the same approximate power level as other PC classes and make it more

compelling as a PC class choice.

It is intended to completely replace the existing marshal, widely held to be weak, uninteresting or only useful as a dip.

Significant changes to abilities from the original class or other boilerplate text are italicized.

Removed abilities are struck through.

Completely new abilities are not specially formatted.

Notes and non-core/TOB references are footnoted.

Text in green references Heroes of Battle mechanics.

The marshal may still be used if all green text is ignored.

We have done the impossible, and that makes us mighty!~Sir Alerias, Warmaster of the White Raven, to his victorious troops
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ex/20030906bhttp://community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/75882/19519074/Sublime_Way_Variant_Ranger?http://community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/75882/19519074/Sublime_Way_Variant_Ranger?http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ex/20030906b


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Sometimes it is not enough to be a conquering warrior, a champion of all that's right, an experienced sellsword, or an elite

foot soldier. Sometimes the circumstances require a solid commander of soldiers and situations. Sometimes the

circumstances demand a marshal.

Marshals inspire trust in those they lead. They earn that trust by slogging through harsh landscapes, dangerous

battlefields, and haunted catacombs along with those under their command. With a look, they can see where to best

deploy their resources or come up with a sneaky ruse to fool their enemies. A marshal has a tactician's mind, a

cartographer's overview of the disputed landscape (or dungeon warren), and a way with words that can inspire battle-

hardened fighters to give it their all when melee breaks out.

A marshal is not necessarily the greatest individual swordsman, but that doesn't mean his opponents should count him ou

in personal combat. Several marshals act as champions for their units, inspiring their companions by deed, meeting

mighty enemy warriors head-on and challenging opposing generals on the field of battle with their loyal regiments

alongside them, pressing the advantage. That said, a marshal does not belong on his own, questing for personal glory.

His place is with his men, training them, drilling them, and ultimately leading them ever onward towards victory.

Making a Marshal

Marshals work well in front-line combat, but are less able to shine in that role than dedicated warriors like warblades or

crusaders. Instead, a marshal's true strength lies in his ability to direct his allies, providing them with bonuses to particular

tactics through the use of long-range auras. Therefore, most marshals can be found playing a supporting role in combatnear the front lines - able to focus on and respond to larger tactics on the battlefield while still contributing as a warrior.

Abilities: Beyond any shadow of doubt, Charisma is the most important skill for a marshal, as it influences the strength of

his minor auras as well as virtually every command-related mechanic, including the skills necessary to recover his

maneuvers. Like any front-line combatant, Strength and Constitution are important to a marshal, along with some degree

of Dexterity (especially if the marshal or his allies prefer ranged weapons - a marshal should be near the troops he

directs). Intelligence and Wisdom factor in to several of the skills required to be an effective strategist, although a marshal

can probably get by with average values in these scores.

Races: Marshals are represented in any race that has a warrior tradition - and in these violent times, this encompasses

virtually everyone. Human, elf, dwarf, aasimar, and hobgoblin armies are more likely to be led by marshals than other

races due to their military customs.

Alignment: For every cause worth fighting for, there is at least one marshal out there willing to fight for it. Despite the

name "marshal" being reminiscent of regimented armies, marshals themselves can be of any alignment. Although Chaotic

Neutral is probably the least-represented among their number, a few mercenary guerrilla units led by CN marshals do

exist. Truth be told, marshals tend to see other commanders as kin, even if their alignments differ, and are more likely to

divide based on personal reputation or current employer. Even an oppositely-aligned commander is likely to be treated as

a worthy rival rather than a foe to be crushed.

Starting Gold: 6d4 x 10 gp (150 gp).

Starting Age: As paladin.

Special: Marshals count as warblades for the purposes of class- or level-based requirements. (That is, a requirement of

"Warblade level X" is met by a marshal of level X.)

Weapon and armor proficiency: Simple and martial weapons; light, medium, and heavy armor; shields (but not tower

shields).

Hit Die: d8

Class skills: Bluff (Cha), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (architecture

and engineering, geography, history, local, nobility and royalty, religion) (Int), Martial Lore (Int), Listen (Wis), Perform

(Cha), Ride (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), Speak Language (n/a), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis), and Swim (Str).

Skill Points: 6 + Int modifier (x4 as a first-level character).1


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Auras Maneuvers Stances Max

Lv Atk Fort Ref Will Special Minor Major Known Ready Known Level

01 +0 +2 +0 +2 Command style 1 0 3 3 1 1st

02 +1 +3 +0 +3 Command presence +1 1 1 4 3 1 1st

03 +2 +3 +1 +3 2 1 4 3 1 1st

04 +3 +4 +1 +4 Bonus feat 2 1 5 4 1 2nd

05 +3 +4 +1 +4 3 2 5* 4 1 2nd

06 +4 +5 +2 +5 Command presence +2 3 2* 6 4 2 3rd

07 +5 +5 +2 +5 4 2 6* 4 2 3rd

08 +6 +6 +2 +6 Bonus feat 4 2 7 4 2 4th

09 +6 +6 +3 +6 5 3 7* 4 2 4th

10 +7 +7 +3 +7 Command presence +3, 5 3* 8 5 2 5th

battlefield adaptation

11 +8 +7 +3 +7 6 3 8* 5 3 5th

12 +9 +8 +4 +8 Bonus feat 6 3 9 5 3 6th

13 +9 +8 +4 +8 7 3 9* 5 3 6th

14 +10 +9 +4 +9 Command presence +4 7 4* 10 5 3 7th

15 +11 +9 +5 +9 8 4 10* 6 3 7th

16 +12 +10 +5 +10 Bonus feat 8 4 11 6 4 8th

17 +12 +10 +5 +10 9 4 11* 6 4 8th

18 +13 +11 +6 +11 Command presence +5 9 4* 12 6 4 9th

19 +14 +11 +6 +11 10 4 12* 6 4 9th

20 +15 +12 +6 +12 Bonus feat, shining 10 5 13 7 4 9th

beacon of authority

* Swap known aura/maneuver

Class Features

Like all martial adepts, a marshal learns a number of maneuvers as he gains experience. He knows fewer than most other

adepts, though, and draws them from a smaller list of schools (although that list is personalized somewhat). In exchange,

a marshal learns a number of beneficial auras as he progresses, enabling his troops to perform at levels they'd only

dreamed of. Marshals also improve as commanders with experience, and gain some advanced martial training along the

way, although not to the level of a dedicated warrior.

Skill Focus: At first level, a marshal gains Skill Focus (Diplomacy) as a bonus feat.

Auras (Ex): The marshal exerts an effect on allies in his vicinity. He can learn to produce different effects, or auras, over

the course of his career. The marshal may project one minor aura and (starting at 2nd level) one major aura at a time.

Projecting an aura is a swift action. The aura remains in effect until the marshal uses a free action to dismiss it or

activates another aura of the same kind (major or minor). A marshal can have an aura active continually; thus, an aura

can be in effect at the start of a combat encounter even before the marshal takes his first turn (but see below on major

auras).

Activating an aura involves haranguing, ordering, directing, encouraging, cajoling, or calming allies. A marshal sizes up

the enemy, allies, and the terrain, then gives allies the direction that they can use to do their best.

Unless otherwise noted, a marshal's aura affects all allies within 60 feet (including himself). An ally must have an

Intelligence score of 3 or higher and be able to understand the marshal's language to gain the bonus. A marshal's aura is

dismissed if he is dazed, unconscious, stunned, paralyzed, or otherwise unable to be heard or understood by his allies.

(This includes if the marshal is trying to be quiet, such as through the use of the Move Silently skill, as he is unable to

provide vocal feedback to his allies.)2

1. The increase in skill points is due to balance with warblades. They're about as skilled, but warblades have Int synergy while marshals don't.

2. I did write a prestige class merging the marshal and the ranger, focusing on ambushes (and shared maneuvers during ambushes), which allowed

marshals to project auras through gestures, whistled bird-calls, and similar, but the Strike Leader seems to have been eaten by the internets.


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A marshal begins play knowing one minor aura of his choice. At each level indicated in Table: The Marshal, he learns

either a minor or a major aura, as appropriate.A marshal's minor auras are fixed, but he may exchange one major aura

he knows for another major aura at level 6 and every 4 levels after that (10th, 14th, and so on).

All bonuses granted by a marshal's auras are morale bonuses that do not stack with each other. Unlike most effects, a

marshal aura stacks with the marshal's commander aura if applicable. They do not stack with the commander auras of

others.3

Minor Aura: A minor aura lets allies add the marshal's Charisma bonus or commander rating (if any, use

whichever is higher) to certain rolls4. However, a minor aura is limited by experience -- a marshal cannot grant a

bonus higher than his marshal initiator level +1, even if his Charisma bonus or commander ratingis greater than

this.

Accurate Strike: Bonus on rolls made to confirm critical hits.Additionally, if an ally's attack would be

subject to a miss chance (except an incorporeal miss chance), reduce that miss chance by 5% per

point of bonus. If the ally is attacking an invisible target, he still must target the correct square.

Art of War: Bonus on disarm, trip, bull rush, and sunder attempts, including attempts to resist these

techniques.

Defensive Awareness: Bonus on flat-footed and touch Armor Class. An ally's flat-footed or touch AC

cannot exceed their normal AC.

Demand Fortitude: Bonus on Fortitude saves.

Determined Mind: Bonus on Concentration checks androlls to overcome spell resistance.

Fire at Will: Bonus on ranged attack rolls made after the first attack in a full attack. Fire at Will cannot

increase an ally's ranged attack bonus above the bonus of their first attack, but it can offset the

penalty for iterative attacks.

Force of Will: Bonus on Will saves.

Master of Opportunity: Bonus to Armor Class against attacks of opportunity.

Master of Tactics: Bonus on damage rolls when flanking.

MotivateAgility: Bonus on Dexterity checks, Dexterity-based skill checks, and initiative checks.

Motivate Charisma: Bonus on Charisma checks and Charisma-based skill checks.

Motivate Endurance: Bonus on Constitution checks and Constitution-based skill checks.Additionally,

allies gain a number of hit points equal to this bonus, times his command presence (if any) +1. For

example, a second-level marshal (with command presence +1) would grant those under the aura anumber of hit points equal to his Charisma bonus (maximum +3, see above) times 2. These are not

temporary hit points, nor are they bonus hit points per hit die. These hit points go away if Motivate

Endurance ends for any reason, which may prove hazardous or even fatal in some situations.

Motivate Intelligence: Bonus on Intelligence checks and Intelligence-based skill checks.

Motivate Power: Bonus on Strength checks, Strength-based skill checks, and Grapple checks. Those

under the effect of Motivate Power treat their Strength score as 1 higher per point of bonus for

purposes relating to carrying capacity, including lifting and pushing/dragging objects.

Motivate Wisdom: Bonus on Wisdom checks and Wisdom-based skill checks.

Open Fire: Bonus on ranged damage rolls. Open Fire only applies to attacks made as part of a

readied action in response to another affected ally making a ranged attack, and on the damage rolls

made as part of a volley of arrows you command.

Over the Top: Bonus on damage rolls when charging. This only applies to the first attack made after a

charge if the ally is capable of making more than one such attack.Watchful Eye: Bonus on Reflex saves.

Major Aura: Beginning at 2nd level, a marshal can project a major aura in addition to his minor aura. A major

aura lets allies add +1 to certain rolls. This bonus improves by +1 at 7th, 14th, and 20th level.A major aura lets

allies add the marshal's command presence (see below) to certain characteristics.

3. Commander auras are introduced in Heroes of Battle and are adaptations of D&D Miniatures command effects.

4. This is intended to allow uncharismatic brigadier generals to have an influence on the battlefield, and actually allow for a low-Charisma marshal (as

odd as that sounds; imagine a tactician with high Int or a fighter-warlord with high Str and you get the idea). Low-level generals are still confined by the

experience limit, although marshals progress through commander ratings faster due to Command Presence.


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Additionally, an ally under a marshal's major aura adds the marshal's command presence to all morale checks.

If the marshal's aura(s) would otherwise boost these allies' Will saves for that morale check, all pertinent effects

stack (an exception to standard stacking rules).5

The bonus from a major aura only applies during an encounter; although the aura may be active before the

encounter begins, your team is not in the proper state of mind to benefit from it until the encounter starts.

Benefits from an active major aura apply to each affected individual on their first turn with no particular action on

the part of the marshal.6

Hardy Soldiers: The marshal's allies gain damage reduction equal to the marshal's commandpresence. For example, if the marshal is 10th level, everyone affected gains DR 3/-.

In Control: Bonus on melee attack and melee damage rolls for attacks of opportunity. If an ally is

capable of making multiple attacks of opportunity in one round, this only applies to the first.

Motivate Ardor: Bonus on weapon damage rolls.

Motivate Attack: Bonus on melee attack rolls.

Motivate Care: Bonus to Armor Class.

Motivate Urgency: Allies' base land speed is increased by a number of feet equal to 5 x the marshal's

command presence. For example, the allies of a 10th-level marshal (+3 command presence) add 15

feet to their base land speed. Unlike other major auras, Motivate Urgency can also improve allies'

speed when not in an encounter, but only when determiningoverland movement.

Precision Teamwork: When an ally uses the Aid Another action successfully, increase the bonus he

grants the recipient by an amount equal to the marshal's command presence. For instance, if an ally

of a 10th level marshal (+3 command presence) successfully aids another ally's attack roll, that other

ally gains a +5 bonus instead of a +2. Multiple Aid Another attempts stack as normal for Aid Another

(since Precision Teamwork isn't adding a bonus itself); in the example above, if two affected allies

aided a third, the third would gain a +10 bonus instead of a +4.7

Resilient Troops: Bonus on all saves.

Steady Hand: Bonus on ranged attack rolls.

Command Style: Not all marshals are created equal. Marshals gain access to martial maneuvers, but exactly how they

initiate them depends on their style of command. At 1st level, marshals choose one of the following. Once chosen, it

cannot be changed.8

Warrior-Chief: This style is focused on leading by example, fighting right alongside one's troops as a significant

threat on the battlefield. The marshal gains access to the Iron Heart school, adds Balance to his list of classskills, and may take Skill Focus (Balance) or Ironheart Aura as bonus feats (see Bonus Feats, below).

Siege Master: This style reflects defense and sheer brute force. A siege master marshal is always keenly aware

of defenses, either holding or breaching them. The marshal gains access to the Stone Dragon discipline, adds

Balance to his list of class skills, and may take Skill Focus (Balance) or Stone Power as bonus feats (see Bonus

Feats, below).

Crusade Commander: A crusade commander is fiercely dedicated both to a cause and to his men, although how

he views his troops depends on that cause. Crusade commanders draw upon their zeal to inspire themselves

and their troops to supernatural levels. The marshal gains access to the Devoted Sprit school, and may take

Devoted Bulwark as a bonus feat (see Bonus Feats, below).

Strategic Champion: A strategic champion focuses on tactics on many more levels than a typical marshal, often

keeping open games of chess, shogi, go, or similar running while planning troop movements. When he rides to

battle, he does so to challenge enemy champions one-on-one, while his well-trained men deal with the details of

5. Introduced in Heroes of Battle, a morale check is a type of DC 20 Will save against fear. A unit's morale is critical to its success on the battlefield.

6. Notably missing from the major auras (but present in minor) is a spellcaster aura. Assuming you want one, +X dice to damage spells cast from within

range or +X to caster level when dealing with opposed checks (including dispels but not SR) would probably work (but neither has been tested).

One interesting idea, also untested but intended for use with followers against area of effect spells, is -X dice of damage from spells. Combined with the

corresponding minor aura for saving throws, this could actually let a marshal's company advance under fireballs.A final option would be SR 10+twice

your commander rating, although this stretches the limits of credibility for a mere set of battle orders without some serious flavor work.

7. This may seem excessive, but major auras can only provide their benefit during encounters, and DMs are explicitly told to use reasonable limits on

Aid Another.

8. Additional command styles may be developed by the DM if the character design calls for it. For instance, a Guerilla Tactician style that grants access

to Shadow Hand, adds Hide as a class skill, and adds Shadow Blade and Skill Focus (Hide) could be used for the leader of a commando squad if the

DM considers it worthwhile.
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the engagement. The marshal gains access to the Diamond Mind discipline, adds Concentration to his list of

class skills, and may take Skill Focus (Concentration) or Unnerving Calm as bonus feats (see Bonus Feats,

below).

Artillery Captain: A battle's outcome is written in the stars before it even takes place, and masters who can read

the lines of destiny can best command their subordinates to a foreseen victory. Such is the teachings of the

recently rediscovered ancient tenth path of the Sublime Way. Whether they believe this personally or not,

successful marshals cannot argue with the results, and many have studied the path of the artillery captain as a

result, focusing on prediction, position, timing, and distance. The marshal gains access to the Falling Star

discipline and may take Skill Focus (Spot) and Falling Star Shot as bonus feats (See Bonus Feats, below). 9

Maneuvers: A marshal begins his career with knowledge of three martial maneuvers, drawn from the White Raven

discipline and the discipline he gains from his command style.

Once he knows a maneuver, he must ready it before he can use it (see Maneuvers Readied, below). A maneuver usable

by marshals is considered an extraordinary ability unless otherwise noted in its description. Maneuvers are not affected by

spell resistance, and do not provoke attacks of opportunity when initiated.

Marshals learn additional maneuvers at higher levels, as shown on Table: The Marshal. A marshal must meet a

maneuver's prerequisite to learn it.

A marshal counts his full class level towards his initiator level (rather than half, as normal). Marshals qualify for feats and

prestige classes as if they were warblades (for instance, if a feat requires "warblade level 1st", a first-level marshal meetsthat requirement).

Unlike other martial adepts, a marshal focuses his study on coordinating his allies rather than furthering his own personal

might. Thus, he does not use Table 3-1 in the Tome of Battle (which progresses at the same rate a wizard gains access to

new spell levels) to determine the highest level maneuver he may learn. Instead, he uses the maximum level indicated on

Table: The Marshal (which advances at the same rate a sorcerer gains access to new spell levels).

Upon reaching 5th level, and at every two marshal levels after that (7th, 9th, 11th, and so on), a marshal can choose to

learn a new maneuver in place of one he already knows. In effect, he loses the old maneuver in exchange for the new

one. He can choose a new maneuver of any level he wishes, as long as it is not greater than his highest maneuver level

known. For example, upon reaching 11th level, a marshal could trade in a single 1st-, 2nd-, 3rd- or 4th-level maneuver for

a maneuver of 5th level or lower, as long as he meets the prerequisite of the new maneuver. Only a single maneuver canbe swapped at any given level.

Maneuvers Readied: A marshal can ready all of the maneuvers he knows at 1st level, but as he advances in level and

learns more maneuvers, he must choose which maneuvers to ready.A marshal readies maneuvers by discussing tactics

with at least one of his allies for 5 minutes (an "ally" for purposes related to readying and recovering maneuvers is an

intelligent creature who would fight alongside the marshal in combat, and the ally must have a means of communication

with the marshal). A marshal may also attempt to ready maneuvers on his own, but without input and feedback from his

comrades, the process takes longer -- it takes twenty minutes to change readied maneuvers alone, as the marshal

analyzes possible troop movements and devises new battle cues alone. Maneuvers chosen to be readied remain readied

until the marshal decides to discuss a change in plans with his allies again. Rest is not required to ready maneuvers; any

time a marshal could plan new battle tactics, he could change his readied maneuvers.

A marshal begins an encounter with all his readied maneuvers unexpended, regardless of how many times he might havealready used them since he chose them. When he initiates a maneuver, he expends it for the current encounter, so each

of his readied maneuvers can be used once per encounter (unless he recovers them, as described below).

A marshal recovers maneuvers by directing his allies, getting them back into position and signalling that they're ready to

work alongside him again. He must make a successful Diplomacy or Intimdiate check (DC 20) to do so. This check takes

a full-round action. Alternatively, a marshal may elect to speed up this process, taking only a standard action to do so,

although the DC increases to 30. If this check is successful, all of his expended maneuvers become readied; if it fails, no

maneuvers are recovered, but he may try again the following round.

9. If you wish to keep Falling Star's air of mystery, simply restrict its availability - first-level marshals not from the tradition cannot select it, but should

instead look into the Veteran Officer feat (described below). The default fluff above matches that feat.
http://community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/75882/19527602/Falling_Star_style_the_Tenth_Path_of_the_Sublime_Wayhttp://community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/75882/19527602/Falling_Star_style_the_Tenth_Path_of_the_Sublime_Way


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At least one ally must be able to hear the marshal and signal in response for him to recover his expended maneuvers

(gaining the benefit of the marshal's aura is enough to meet this requirement). These Diplomacy or Intimidate checks do

not have any other effect on your allies (such as heartening them or pressing them to work harder); their only effect when

used this way is to attempt to recover your maneuvers. A marshal fighting alone cannot recover his marshal maneuvers

without making use of special feats, such as Adaptive Style or Army of One (see below).

A marshal may change his stance or his auras while recovering maneuvers if he would otherwise be able to do so.

Stances Known: A marshal begins play with knowledge of one 1st-level stance from any discipline open to him. At 6th,

11th, and 16th level, he can choose additional stances. Unlike maneuvers, stances are not expended, and the marshal

does not have to ready them. All the stances he knows are available to him at all times, and he can change the stance heis currently using as a swift action. A stance is an extraordinary ability unless otherwise stated in the stance description.

Unlike with maneuvers, a marshal cannot learn a new stance at higher levels in place of one he already knows.

Command Presence: A marshal literally personifies leadership, and exudes an air of confidence that others find

heartening. From 2nd level on, a marshal projects this presence most commonly through a major aura, although he also

gains a bonus based on his command presence rating to other command-related mechanics. A marshal gains a

competence bonus equal to twice his command presence on Diplomacy checks, opposed Charisma checks (typically to

assert authority), saving throws against fear, rally checks10 and skill checks made as part of a duel of wills11.

Furthermore, he adds his command presence to his Leadership score, and one-half his command presence to his

commander rating (to a maximum effective commander rating of 7)12.

Grant Move Action (Ex): Starting at 4th level, a marshal can direct and motivate his allies to act immediately.... and so onand so forth.

Bonus feat: At 4th level and every 4 levels thereafter, a marshal gains a bonus feat13. He must meet all the prerequisites

for this feat (but see below), which must be one drawn from the following list or the feats mentioned in his command style:

Adaptive Style, Alertness, Battlefield Inspiration, Clarion Commander, Combat Expertise, Combat Reflexes,

Danger Sense, Daunting Presence, Diehard, Endurance, Far Shot, Great Fortitude, Improved Disarm,

Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Landlord^, Leadership (see below), Mounted Combat, Mounted Archery,

Negotiator, Persuasive, Point Blank Shot, Scribe Martial Script, Skill Focus (Diplomacy, Intimidate, or Sense

Motive), Quick Draw, Ride-By Attack, Tactician*, Tower Shield Proficiency, Warlord*, Weapon Focus, White

Raven Defense, White Raven General*.

Introduced in the Tome of Battle. As noted above, marshals count as warblades for the purposes of feat prerequisites.

Introduced in the Miniatures Handbook alongside the original Marshal. Some may also appear in other sources.^ Introduced in the Stronghold Builder's Guide. This feat is unavailable without DM permission.

*Described below.

DMs using Heroes of Battle may also allow marshals to take Leader feats that they qualify for as bonus feats.

A marshal with a Leadership score (character level + Charisma modifier + command presence + other modifiers based on

reputation) of at least 8 can take Leadership as one of these bonus feats, even if he is not yet 6th level. However, if his

Leadership score drops below 8 before he attains 6th level, he loses the feat (his soldiers grow disheartened and desert)

until he meets either prerequisite again. Leadership still requires DM permission to be taken.

Additionally, a marshal with Command Presence +5 and a Leadership score of at least 30 may ignore the character level

requirement for Epic Leadership, treating it as a non-epic feat. He still must meet every other requirement of that feat to

select it. This does not add Epic Leadership to his non-epic bonus feat list. If his Leadership score drops below 30 (even if

it remains above 25, Epic Leadership's usual requirement) before he attains level 21, he loses this feat (his soldiers grow

disheartened and desert) until he meets either prerequisite again.

10. From Heroes of Battle, rally checks allow you to motivate troops, granting them a bonus on saves against fear. It's functionally similar to changing

an NPC attitude, but a bit more involved.

11. A duel of wills is a type of Intimidate check introduced in the Tome of Battle that attempts to dishearten a single significant foe at the start of combat

It's a signature of the Devoted Spirit and Diamond Mind schools.

12. Introduced in Heroes of Battle, commander ratings range from 0 to 7 and are representative, roughly, of rank (they correspond to Private, Corporal,

Sergeant, Lieutenant, Captain, Major, Colonel, and General, respectively). Commander rating factors in to numerous battle commands and can grant a

commander aura.

13. Note that the fighter-type feats included here are only first-tier unless they relate specifically to the marshal's

disciplines. Similar feats, or feats related to leadership, should be accessible through this list too.
http://wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/lists/featshttp://wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/lists/feats


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Battlefield Adaptation (Ex): At 10th level, a marshal has seen enough battles to be able to simultaneously see how to

adjust his personal combat style and direct his troops as the tide of battle shifts. Whenever a marshal projects a major or

minor aura or initiates a stance, he may also project, switch, or activate any combination of his minor aura, his major aura,

or his stance as part of the same action.

For instance, Sir Alerias, a 10th level marshal, is directing his troops aggressively, using the Over the Top minor aura, the

Motivate Attack major aura, and the Leading the Charge stance. After leading a successful charge, he adjusts his tactics

and the orders he gives his team, spending a swift action to change his minor aura to Master of Tactics and his stance to

Tactics of the Wolf (while he could change his major aura as part of this action, he elects to keep using Motivate Attack).

Shining Beacon of Authority (Ex): A 20th level marshal is a thing of beauty and terror on the battlefield. His merest

presence is enough to turn the tides of nearly any war as his troops are inspired to superhuman levels, and enemy forces

cower in terror, fearfully whispering his name amongst themselves.

Shining Beacon of Authority is treated as a special martial stance, and follows all the rules relating to stances, except that

it can only be entered while in an encounter. Exactly how it behaves depends on how it is entered:14

If the marshal enters Shining Beacon of Authority from a stanceless state, he instantly projects another minor

aura and another major aura that he knows. These auras cannot be changed once projected, and last until

Shining Beacon of Authority ends. This effect counts as being in a stance from both the White Raven discipline

and the marshal's command style discipline (for instance, a warrior-chief coud benefit from both the Ironheart

Aura and the White Raven Defense feats while in this form of Shining Beacon).

If the marshal shifts from a White Raven stance into Shining Beacon of Authority, he focuses on his allies,

instilling them with his own supreme sense of confidence. All allies under the effect of his auras have any moralebonuses affecting them doubled, regardless of their initial source. This effect counts as being in a White Raven

stance.

If the marshal shifts from a stance from his command style discipline into Shining Beacon of Authority, he

projects a serious threat to his foes. Warrior-chiefs exhude raw danger with their combat prowess, siege masters

let the earth tremble in their presence, crusade commanders become terrifying zealots of their cause, artillery

captains embody the impersonal, unwavering hand of Fate, and strategic champions project their own presence

to their enemies, exemplifying the single-minded threat of a dedicated foe. Regardless of how his command style

describes this ability, the effect is the same: He chooses one or more currently active auras to invert when

entering this stance. Allies cease gaining the benefit of inverted auras, but enemies feel the effects: an inverted

aura imposes a morale penalty to all enemies in range on whatever it would normally affect (for instance,

inverting Motivate Attack would impose a penalty equal to the marshal's command presence on all enemy attack

rolls in the range of his aura). Each affected enemy is entitled to a Will saving throw (DC 10 + half the marshal's

class level + the marshal's Charisma modifier) to negate this effect each time you engage it. This otherwisefollows all rules relating to auras (for instance, an enemy must have an Intelligence score of 3 or higher and be

able to hear the marshal to be affected). Inverted auras remain that way until Shining Beacon of Authority ends

and cannot be changed while this effect lasts. This effect counts as being in a stance from the marshal's

command style discipline.

Shining Beacon of Authority ends whenever the marshal shifts to another stance as normal, but it also ends when the

encounter does. It is impossible to motivate or demotivate troops to this degree outside of the pressures of combat.

New Character Options

New Feats

Army of One [General]

Left alone, a leader can quickly wane without his allies. Carrying the spirit of your men within your heart, their strength

reinforces your resolve in battle.

Prerequisite: Marshal level 1st15, Intimidate 4 ranks, Martial Lore 4 ranks, must know at least two White Raven

maneuvers.

Benefit: Immediately after you successfully demoralize an opponent with the Intimidate skill, you can recover your

14. It is important to note that stances switch from "active" to "inactive" -- you cannot enter a given stance from the same stance. In order to change

Shining Beacon of Authority from one form to the other, I'd need to end Shining Beacon and either assume a stanceless state or enter another stance

first, and then re-enter Shining Beacon from that other state (which requires another swift action and typically must be done on the following turn).

15. Marshals normally count as warblades for feat prerequisites; this is unique.


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expended marshal maneuvers as a free action.

Additionally, if you ready your marshal maneuvers without discussing tactics with your allies, it only takes five minutes.

Normal: A marshal can only recover maneuvers by spending a full-round action to make a Diplomacy or Intimidate check

(or a standard action at a higher DC), and must have at least one ally nearby to to so. He can ready maneuvers by

discussing tactics with at least one ally for five minutes; doing so alone own takes twenty minutes.

Devoted Commander [General]

Your devotion to your cause is an inspiration to those around you. You lead with the same strength and fervor you put

behind your faith.

Prerequisites: Command Presence +1, Smite Evil.Benefit: If you have levels in paladin and marshal, you add your full paladin level to your marshal initiator level (they still

count half toward any other initiator levels you may have). Your paladin and marshal levels stack when determining your

command presence and your smite evil ability (frequency and damage).

You may freely multiclass between paladin and marshal. You still must remain Lawful Good and abide by the paladin

code of conduct in order to retain your paladin abilities and take paladin levels. You still face the normal XP penalties for

having multiple classes more than one level apart.

Normal: Levels in other classes count as half-levels toward any initiator level. Paladins have intense multiclassing

restrictions and cannot gain their special mount before paladin level 5 (see below).

Special: If you have selected the Crusade Commander command style, you gain the special mount feature as a paladin

of your marshal level + your paladin level. This can grant you the special mount class feature if you didn't already have it,

provided the sum of your marshal and paladin levels is 5 or greater.16

Performing Commander [General]As a militant minstrel or skald, your music flows across the battlefield like a raging torrent, pushing those around you to

greater heights of strength and deeds of valor.

Prerequisites: Command Presence +1, Inspire Courage bardic music ability.

Benefit: If you have levels in bard and marshal, you add your full bard level to your marshal initiator level (they still count

half toward any other initiator levels you may have). Your bard and marshal levels stack when determining the strength of

your Command Presence and your daily uses of Bardic Music.

You still must remain nonlawful in order to take bard levels. You still face the normal XP penalties for having multiple

classes more than one level apart.

Special: If you have the Song of the White Raven feat17, you add your marshal level to your bard caster level. This does

not grant you additional spells, nor can it increase your caster level above your Hit Dice. If you are in a White Raven

stance and use your Inspire Courage bardic music ability, you can project one of your marshal auras as part of the same

action. Additionally, you are considered to have the White Raven Defense feat for the purposes of meeting prerequisites.

Tactician [General]

Your command style is more cerebral than most, focusing on intelligent tactics and competent maneuvering rather than

raw emotion. You instruct your troops in detailed maneuver execution during training, which they recall with crystal clarity

when you issue orders.

Prerequisite: Command presence +1, Intelligence 13+.

Benefit: Allies under the influence of at least one of your marshal auras may treat the benefits they recieve from each of

them as competence bonuses or insight bonuses instead of morale bonuses (thus allowing them to stack with other

morale bonuses, such as a bard's Inspire Courage) as they choose, at no special action to you. Allies individually choose

which type of bonus they receive from each currently active aura as a free action at the start of each of their turns; this

does not require any special effort on your part.

Normal: Aura bonuses are entirely morale bonuses, and thus never stack with other morale bonuses (such as Inspire

Courage, other marshal auras, or certain paladin auras). A marshal's auras stack with that marshal's commander auras.

Veteran Officer [General]18

You have studied the writings of other traditions on command theory, and have embraced their teachings in your own

style.

Prerequisite: Martial Lore 5 ranks, Command Presence +1, Command Style, Martial Study (from a discipline listed under

Command Style that you do not have access to as a marshal).

16. If you are using the rebalanced paladin, the Special benefit instead applies to a paladin's specialization.

17. Marshals count as warblades. However, Inspire Courage is still a Morale bonus, just like most marshal auras.

18. DMs wishing to keep Falling Star mysterious may require this feat to gain access to the Artillery Captain command style. The default Artillery

Captain fluff is written with this in mind.
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Benefit: You gain a second Command Style, in the discipline your Martial Study feat draws from, adding to your list of

potential Marshal maneuvers and bonus feats.

In addition, you learn one stance from your new command style discipline, as a marshal. You must meet all the

prerequisites of this stance.

For example, a Warrior-Chief marshal with Martial Study (Sapphire Nightmare Blade) would gain the Strategic Champion

command style and selects one Diamond Mind stance he qualifies for to learn. From now on, when selecting new

maneuvers, he could choose from White Raven, Iron Heart, or Diamond Mind.

Normal: Marshals may only choose a single command style, and it can never be changed or augmented.

Warlord [General, Leader]You are a mighty force of inspiration on the battlefield, and directly command more troops than other marshals.

Prerequisite: Charisma 15+, Leadership, Command Presence +2 or commander rating 4.

Benefit: If you have marshal auras, their radius doubles, becoming 120 ft. If you have a commander aura (described in

Heroes of Battle), its range doubles to 60 ft.

Additionally, allies no longer need to hear you to benefit from your marshal auras. They must be otherwise able to

perceive your orders: seeing you gesture, sensing your voice in their heads, and so forth. Simply being seen isn't the

same as signalling - your marshal auras still end if you are unable to signal allies (DM's call based on your specific

abilities).

Normal: Marshal auras extend 60 ft, and only affect troops who can hear the marshal. Commander auras extend 30 ft.

White Raven General [General]

As an experienced White Raven adept, you understand that a general is only as good as the troops he leads, and as such

you have learned to adapt your commands to fit the situation, inspiring your troops to execute somewhat morecomplicated tactics than normal.

Prerequisite: Three minor auras, Command Presence +2, White Raven Defense, two White Raven maneuvers, one

White Raven stance.

Benefit: While in a White Raven stance, you may project a second minor aura. Doing so takes a separate swift action

from projecting your other auras or assuming the stance, and may be done any number of times while in the stance. If you

enter a stanceless state or any stance from a school other than White Raven, this second aura fades.

Normal: You may only have one minor aura and one major aura active at the same time.

Special: If you possess the Battlefield Adaptation ability, you may adjust this additional aura at the same time you change

your other auras or your stance. 19

New Maneuvers

Adrenaline Surge20

White Raven (Special)

Level: Crusader 6, marshal 6, warblade 6

Prerequisites: Two White Raven maneuvers

Initiation Action: 1 full-round action

Range: 30 ft.

Targets: You and any living, willing allies within 30 ft.

Duration: Until end of encounter

Delivering an heroic and inspirational roar, you exhort your allies to discover a resovoir of energy they didn't think they

had. Even the most gravely wounded allies grow stronger and more determined to rejoin the fight.

You grant temporary hit points equal to your initiator level to yourself and any or all living, willing allies within range. If an

ally's current hit point total is no more than half his full normal hit points, the number of temporary hit points granted to that

character is doubled (to twice your initiator level). As always, temporary hit points overlap (do not stack with) other

temporary hit points.

Additionally, the surge of adrenaline you inspire effectively counters the short-term effects of fatigue. Anyone affected by

Adrenaline Surge is immune to fatigue and ignores any penalties or other effects from fatigue conditions. When this

maneuver ends, all affected allies move one step closer to unconsciousness (from normal to fatigued to exhausted to

19. Yes, a 20th level marshal in the double-aura form of Shining Beacon of Authority with this feat can project five separate auras if he spends the time

to do so. He's a freaking 20th level marshal.

20. This is an adaptation of the alternate class feature presented in the Player's Handbook 2. The class feature that replaces, Grant Move Action, is

virtually identical to the White Raven maneuver Order from Chaos. Note the targeting here! An unconscious target cannot be considered willing.


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Once successfully initiated, all allies within 30 feet of you who can hear you speak suddenly gain a flash of insight -- the

other maneuver you expended at the start of initiation appears in their minds, exactly as if they'd read it on a martial script

They can initiate this maneuver once, at an initiator level of one-half their character level or their own initiator level,

whichever is higher. They cannot recover this maneuver; it is a one-time effect. This maneuver is subject to Table 3-1 in

the Tome of Battle; 1st-level conscripts cannot hope to initiate a 3rd-level maneuver, although more experienced allies

could.

Most allies of White Raven adepts learn to recognize when a Call to Glory is being initiated, and move into a position to

make optimal use of what they are being told during the round he issues commands.


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In-progress material rescued from the cached thread

(This should be considered unofficial but should give you some ideas. I didn't write all of these but I think they're

interesting.)

Final Drive [General]

You can push your soldiers to the limit as part of a desperate final gambit to secure victory, no matter the cost.

Prerequisites: Command Presence +2, Endurance

Benefit: Once per day, as a full-round action, you can push your troops to the utmost and order a final drive. While

performing a final drive, you project all of your known minor auras simultaneously, as well as an additional major aura for

each point of Command Presence above +1 (for instance, a 10th-level marshal (+3 command presence) in a final drive

would project two extra major auras). A final drive lasts for a number of rounds equal to 1 + your command presence.

After this duration, all of your marshal auras end, and you cannot project another until the end of the encounter. You also

become fatigued until the end of the encounter.

Special: A marshal may take Final Drive as one of his bonus feats. As usual, normal stacking rules apply.

Command Style: Stoic Warmaster: Some tacticians enter a battlefield with supreme patience, observing and countering

the enemy strategem as is needed. Such generals often appear aloof and impassionate, but their dauntless resolve

bolsters their men in the face of the hardest challenges. Stoic Warmasters gain access to the Setting Sun discipline, add

Balance to their list of class skills, and may take Falling Sun Strike, Improved Unarmed Strike, and Stunning Fist as one of

their bonus feats.

Ascetic Commander [General]

You have gone beyond the bounds of your monastic training to incorporate new modes of leading others to enlightment.

By careful example and leadership, you rally together others not around a flag, but around a philosophy.

Prerequisites: Command Presence +1, flurry of blows.

Benefit: If you have levels in marshal and monk, those levels stack for determining the strength of your Command

Presence and your AC bonus. When unarmored and unencumbered, you may add your Charisma bonus to your AC

instead of your Wisdom bonus.

You may freely multiclass between monk and marshal. You still must remain Lawful in order to take monk levels. You still

face the normal XP penalties for having multiple classes more than one level apart.

Special: If you have selected the Stoic Warmaster command style, you add your full monk level to your marshal initiator

level instead of half. Furthermore, marshal levels stack with monk levels when determining your unarmed strike bonus

and speed bonus.23

Daring Commander [General]

While most duelists go it alone, your natural panache lends itself to leadership. After all, when you have gathered a few

brave men with faith in their swords and each other, what can't you accomplish together? One for all, and all for one!

Prerequisites: Command Presence +1, Grace +1

Benefit: If you have levels in marshal and swashbuckler, those levels stack when determining the strength of your

Command Presence, Grace, and Dodge Bonus (potentially granting you the Dodge Bonus class feature if you do not

already have it). You still face the normal XP penalties for having multiple classes more than one level apart.

Special: If you have selected the Strategic Champion command style, Concentration becomes a swashbuckler class skill

for you, and you add your full swashbuckler level to your marshal initiator level (instead of half, as normal). You still add

only half your swashbuckler level to any other initiator level you may have. Furthermore, you gain the ability to quickly

recover your martial maneuvers with flashy, inspirational weapon flourishes accompanied with clever banter. As long as

you have more ranks in Concentration than your character level, you may recover your marshal's Diamond Mindmaneuvers with a witty repartee (DC 20 Diplomacy check) as a swift action, which must immediately be followed by a

melee attack or a standard action spent executing a dramatic flourish with your weapon. If the check fails, you cannot

recover your maneuvers this round. Like a warblade, you cannot change stances or initiate maneuvers during a round you

attempt to recover maneuvers. You may still recover maneuvers as normal for a marshal -- and indeed, must, if you wish

to recover your White Raven maneuvers.

Hunter-Commando [General]

You are a ranger warden, commanding the allegiance of both men and animals in the pursuit of your quarry.

23. The monk support came from a character styled after Sun Tzu.

In hindsight, I think it'd've been more interesting if we'd subbed Wis for Cha (going the other way) for such a character.


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Prerequisites: Command Presence +1, Favored Enemy

Benefit: If you have levels in marshal and ranger, those levels stack when determining the strength of your Command

Presence and for all purposes relating to favored enemies. You still face the normal XP penalties for having multiple

classes more than one level apart. Your animal companion (if any) and animals whose attitudes you have shifted to

Helpful through Wild Empathy also benefit from your marshal auras, even if they have an Intelligence score under 3.

Special: If you have selected the Artillery Captain command style, Diplomacy becomes a ranger class skill for you, and

you add your full ranger level to your marshal initiator level (instead of half, as normal). You still add only half your ranger

level to any other initiator level you may have. Furthermore, your marshal and ranger levels stack for the purposes of your

animal companion (provided you already have the ability to call one), and any animal companion of yours learns the

Savage Renewal maneuver (see below), which it may initiate once per encounter with no recovery method. Commandingyour animal companion to initiate this maneuver is a free action.

Note: This feat is unavailable forSublime Way variant rangers.24

Savage Renewal

Tiger Claw (Strike)

Level: Special (see text)

Prerequisites: Must be an animal companion.

Initiation Action: 1 standard or full-round action (see text)

Range: Melee attack

Targets: One enemy you flank with your master

As part of this maneuver, make a normal attack with a natural weapon. If successful, the attack deals +2d6bonus damage. If your master successfully attacked that enemy on his last turn, your master immediately

recovers all of his expended maneuvers.

You can also initiate this maneuver as a full-round action, making a charge attack with a natural weapon

instead, provided that charge attack ends with you in a position to flank your target with your master.

Outlaw Commander [General]

Although many rogues lurk alone in the shadows, just as many swear fealty to a gang or thieves' guild... and you're a big

name in yours.

Prerequisites: Command Presence +1, Sneak Attack +2d6

Benefit: If you have levels in marshal and rogue, those levels stack when determining the strength of your Command

Presence and your Sneak Attack. You still face the normal XP penalties for having multiple classes more than one level

apart. In addition, you need not activate or maintain your marshal auras vocally - if you are hidden, allies that are alsotrying to remain hidden gain the benefit of your auras until the end of their turn.

Swift Commander [General]

There are some generals that don't think to give high priority to reconnaissance. There are some captains that don't think

of teaching their troops how to exploit the terrain. You know these commanders well; many of them through their letters of

surrender addressed to you.

Prerequisites: Command Presence +1, Skirmish +1d6/+1 AC

Benefit: If you have levels in marshal and scout, those levels stack when determining the strength of your Command

Presence and your Skirmish ability (both damage and AC bonus). You still face the normal XP penalties for having

multiple classes more than one level apart. Allies that start their turn within range of your marshal auras retain the effect of

those auras until the end of their turn, even if they (or you) move out of range.

Warriors' Commander [General]You are a master of many weapons: those composed of steel and leather, those of wood and sinew... and, most

importantly, those made of flesh and blood. You tirelessly drill your soldiers in the art of combat with a distinct "hands-on"

approach that tests yourself as much as your allies.

Prerequisites: Command Presence +1, Weapon Specialization

Benefit: If you have levels in fighter and marshal, those levels stack when determining the strength of your Command

Presence and your effective fighter level for purposes relating to feats. For instance, a Fighter 4 / Marshal 4 with this feat

has an effective fighter level of 8 and qualifies for Greater Weapon Focus. You still face the normal XP penalties for

having multiple classes more than one level apart.

Special25: If you have selected the Siege Master or Warrior-Chief command style, Balance and Diplomacy become

24. Because there are no martial adept multiclass feats (they multiclass well enough already). If you like Savage Renewal, it's already available to

Sublime Way rangers via the Lion Pride Tactics feat in that document.
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fighter class skills for you and you add your full fighter level to your marshal initiator level (instead of half, as normal). You

still add only half your fighter level to any other initiator level you may have. Additionally, when you would gain a bonus

feat from either marshal levels or fighter levels, that feat can be from either class' list of bonus feats. If that bonus feat is

Martial Study in White Raven or your command style discipline, it does not count toward the number of times you can take

Martial Study.

Finally, you gain the ability to quickly recover your martial maneuvers by centering yourself in the purity of your weapon

combat forms. As long as you have more ranks in Balance than your character level, you may recover your marshal

command style maneuvers by asserting proper battle poise (a DC 20 Balance check) as a swift action, which must

immediately be followed by a melee attack or a standard action spent executing a reflexive weapon kata. If the check fails

you cannot recover your maneuvers this round. Like a warblade, you cannot change stances or initiate maneuvers duringa round you attempt to recover maneuvers. You may still recover maneuvers as normal for a marshal -- and indeed, must,

if you wish to recover your White Raven maneuvers.

Tempest's brainstorming - consider all this tentative, to round out the marshal's scaling - i.e. levels 1, 5, 10, and 15. (level

1 marshal auras are capped at +2; and +2 to a single minor aura ability doesn't seem to be as useful as Weapon Aptitude/

Battle Awareness, or Steely Resolve 5 / Furious Counterstrike. (The swordsage's abilities aren't all that hot either, but they

amount to a full base attack bonus equivalent at that level, and the real strength is that many readied maneuvers from

*how* many different schools?.)

Tactical Insight (Ex): Observation is the first step to knowing, and knowing is half the battle. When a marshal's

companions attack, the marshal can observe enemies defensive reactions, and can more readily predict their movements

aiding in landing precise and coordinated attacks. As a swift action that provokes an attack of opportunity, choose an

enemy within 60 feet and within line of sight that you or an ally threaten. Until the end of the encounter, you gain anInsight bonus equal to your Intelligence bonus to attack rolls against this target when initiating a martial strike. This bonus

cannot exceed your class level. You can only maintain tactical insight on one target at a time, but can switch to another

valid target with another swift action at any time.

This is intended to counteract the low base attack of a marshal (most White Raven abilities still need to hit!), and add a type of Intelligence

reward: Currently, a stupid marshal is as good as a genius tactician on the battlefield, with skills being the only difference. Since it only

applies to strikes against a single target, and that target needs to be threatened to use it, a marshal still isn't as good a single combatant as

the warriors, but can nonetheless contribute. Since an ally can be the one doing the threatening, it still supports the Falling Star, mounted,

or second-rank marshal types. It also provokes AoOs, encouraging marshals to hang back and let others fight until they expose a

weakness. (Strategic Champions can bypass this via Concentration, which is actually fitting.)

Possible scaling: at 10th level, the constant tactical training you give your allies pays off - when you gain tactical insight, choose a number

of allies affected by your auras equal to your Command Presence. These allies also gain tactical insight against your target (they add their

Intelligence bonus on strike attacks against the target.)

Make this it available at level 1 as a marshal's signature command ability - note that it takes a swift action, and there's plenty of competition

for those if you're not in the right aura or stance! However, on truly epic battles with big fields, there's enough time to change auras before

you're in range. Since it's introducing Int synergy, and a remarkably useful one right off the bat, drop the skills to 4+Int.

Battlefield Adaptation (variant, scaling): At 5th level, when you change your stance, you can also project a major or

minor aura. Alternatively, if you project a major or minor aura, you can also project the other kind of aura, or you can

change your stance. At 10th, you can change any combination of them, as the existing ability.

On Your Feet! (Ex): Experienced marshals know that a soldier's life is expendable, and that sometimes, losses must be

taken. They also know that sometimes losing a teammate is simply not an option. As a standard action, a marshal can

resuscitate an adjacent, living, unconscious ally by making an initiator level check (DC 10 + the target's HD). If successful,

the target is no longer unconscious, and gains temporary hit points equal to the marshal's Charisma score plus his

Command Presence (maximum one-half the ally's normal maximum hit points). If the target was dying, he isnow disabled, and does not start dying again until he falls below 0 hit points (including any temporary hit points). A

successful Heal check for first aid (DC 15) removes the disabled condition, as does a DC 20 Autohypnosis check to resist

dying and any effect that raises the target's actual hit points above 0.

Resuscitating an ally doesn't change any other conditions on that ally: if the ally post-resuscitation is in a condition that

would make him fall unconscious again, he falls unconscious again.

A marshal may use this ability at will, but each successful resuscitation imposes an additional -2 penalty to his effective

initiator level. This does not prevent him from initiating martial maneuvers, but it does reduce the effect of maneuvers

25. This requires four fighter levels to get, as opposed to two or three in all the other classes. That, and the general suckitude of Fighter, is probably

enough of a balance for a Special this beefy.
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based on his level (such as the Leading the Charge stance), and it lowers the maximum bonus of his minor auras

accordingly. If the marshal's effective initiator level is 0, he cannot use this ability.

The temporary hit points granted from this ability and the penalty to initiator level both last until the end of the encounter. A

given target can only be resuscitated with this ability once per day, even if another marshal uses it.

This is inspired by the Society Mind's ability to use Psychic Reformation to revive network members, balanced for a lower-level game. It

may even accompany another ability, since it only kicks in "on death".

The marshal isn't a healer, but he can supplement the cleric to some extent. Note that combining this with Motivate Endurance can

substitute somewhat (although he needs to be conscious to benefit), and minor auras can persist out of battle. This ability may require the

marshal to gain Heal as a class skill, unless we really want to emphasize teamwork. Note too that a creature with really low hit points - say,

a first-level wizard - simply doesn't have the vitality to be revived this way if he's severely wounded. Also note that a marshal, without the

Status spell, may not know exactly how far into the negatives his allies are.

A full, overly complex example: Timmy is a 1st-level 4 maximum HP wizard, sitting in a pool of his own blood at -5. Sir Alerias (a 6th level

marshal with Charisma 16, on bodyguard duty) knows he could use On Your Feet, successfully rolling 1d20+6 vs DC 11, to make Timmy

conscious and add 2 temporary hit points, but this would raises him to -3, and poor Timmy would fall unconscious again. Sir Alerias moves

adjacent to him, switches his aura to Motivate Endurance and then uses On Your Feet: as before, Timmy is conscious and raised to -3, then

(since he's conscious and benefits from auras) has his HP increased by 7 (Sir Alerias' Charisma modifier, times (his command presence

+1)), raising him to 5 effective HP. Due to the resuscitation, Sir Alerias' initiator level drops to 4, meaning his maximum aura bonus falls to 5

(since Charisma bonus is +3, well below this, no maximums apply even after this drop and Timmy's HP is unchanged). Timmy's now alive,

conscious, and disabled, able to only take standard actions and any strenuous action deals him 1 point of damage. Say he casts a spell

(falling to 4) before the battle ends, but isn't otherwise healed and takes no other strenuous action. He loses his one remaining temporary

hit point, falling to 3, thanks to Sir Alerias' influence. He can still be healed normally. If Alerias was silenced and unable to order Timmy tohold it together, Timmy's HP would drop by 9, falling to -5 again, and he's unconscious and dying.

This only works this way in extreme cases, though - on targets with 18 or more hit points, this scenario will never happen. Most of the time

until the high levels, it'll grant temp HP = 1/2 their max HP, which is enough to raise any target to at least 0, so long as they're still alive. The

level check is there to prevent inexperienced marshals from reviving higher-level characters and to make it less than certain; it could be

removed. The maximum HP limit prevents this from being too useful at the higher levels: A fighter with 120 hp would only recover 30 from a

marshal with 25 Charisma at that level, and it only gets worse from there, in a "What, run out of spells?" sort of sense. But yes, like a martial

maneuver, it *is* available when you run out of spells, and you can use it to get your party out of an AMF if they're unconscious.

Minor final note: This works regardless of the reason for unconsciousness. It's still better for you to simply wake sleepers normally, and it's

nigh-worthless if they're under due to Wisdom damage (say), but if they're down due to nonlethal damage, or knockout poison, or similar,

this gets 'em back on their feet. The basic idea is "remove unconscious, add temp HP, apply Disabled if dying, check condition again for

unconsciousness".

Hmm. That might be enough:

1st: Tactical Insight

5th: On Your Feet, Battlefield Adaptation (any two)

10th: Extended Tactical Insight

15th: Battlefield Adaptation (any three)

20th: Shining Beacon of Authority

Also, for rounding outs' sake, I need one more major aura (there are 15 minors, of which you learn 10, and currently 9

majors, of which you learn 5 and can rotate them throughout). A spellcaster aura is the natural choice. Remember it

scales from 1 to 5, and is available as soon as level 2, and can be inverted at level 20; note that certain minor auras (most

obviously Determined Mind, but also Motivate Endurance, Open Fire, Master of Tactics, and even Accurate Strike)

provide boosts to spells already, particularly weaponlike spells.

Here are some possibilities:+X dice to damage spells cast from within your aura that have an area, provided that area's centered within your aura

+X to caster level when dealing with opposedchecks (including dispels but not SR; that's what Determined Mind is for)

-X dice of damage from spells (or Reflex Half effects, or similar) on a successful save. (Mini-Evasion, i.e. "Take Cover!".

Interesting effect: Fixed AoEs, of which I can only think of one (Inferno Blast), aren't affected by this).

SR 10+2X (perhaps too powerful or breaching verisimilitude).

+X DC on single-target spells cast on enemies within range of your aura (maybe contingent upon a second Will save,

similar to Shadow spells, reflecting shaking off the marshal's influence)

+X DC on a particular school of spells with the same type of targeting limit but without the Will save. Not sure which

school fits the marshal the best - likely Conjuration, but that's known for not having saves.

Documents

Marshal Revised