The Knife Fighter Prestige class for the Iron Kingdoms. This was originally posted to an Iron Kingdoms Yahoo Group some time ago by a Privateer Press core developer. Details may have since changed, but it’s interesting.

Knife Fighter

Vicious knife fights are the entertainment of choice in the squalid pits and filthy back rooms of much of the Iron Kingdoms’ underworld. The most successful knife fighters can often be recognized by the latticeworks of scars that cover their forearms, though these masters of the blade range from the brutally strong and direct, to the whip-thin and graceful. When not drawing blood and crowds in the pit, knife fighters usually find hire as bodyguards to important underworld figures, or put their skills to use as simple thugs or assassins. Though the knife fighter’s weapon of choice may cause the truly foolish to underestimate them, few individuals of any intellect fail to recognize the hard-bitten nature of these individuals.

Hit Die: d8

Requirements:

To qualify to become a Knife Fighter, one must fulfill all the following criteria:

• Alignment: Any non-good.
• Base Attack Bonus: +4.
• Skills: Knowledge (streetwise) 4 ranks.
• Feats: Ambidexterity, Dodge, Weapon Focus (dagger).

THE KNIFE FIGHTER (10 levels)

• Base Attack Bonus: +1, +2, +3, +4, +5, +6, +7, +8, +9, +10
• Fort Save: +2, +3, +3, +4, +4, +5, +5, +6, +6, +7
• Ref Save: +2, +3, +3, +4, +4, +5, +5, +6, +6, +7
• Will Save: +0, +0, +1, +1, +1, +2, +2, +2, +3, +3
• Special:
  1. Paired blades, Savage cut +d4
  2. Point blank shot, Raking blade
  3. Steel wall I, Catch blade
  4. Paired throw, Savage cut +2d4
  5. Returning steel
  6. Steel wall II
  7. Savage cut +3d4
  8. Paired blade master
  9. Steel wall III
  10. Savage cut +4d4

Class Skills:

The Knife Fighter’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Bluff (Cha), Craft (Int), Gather Information (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (streetwise)(Int), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Spot (Wis), and Tumble (Dex). See Chapter 4: Skills in the Player’s Handbook for skill descriptions.

Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.

Class Features:

All of the following are class features of the Knife Fighter prestige class.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Knife Fighters are proficient with daggers. Knife Fighters are proficient with light armor, but no shields.

Note that armor check penalties for armor heavier than leather apply to the skills Balance, Climb, Escape Artist, Hide, Jump, Move Silently, Pick Pocket, and Tumble.

Paired Blades: When wearing light or no armor, and armed with a pair of daggers, the Knife Fighter can fight as if he had the Two-Weapon Fighting feat. If the Knife Fighter already has the Two-Weapon Fighting feat, he gains the benefits of the Improved Two-Weapon Fighting feat when armed with a pair of daggers, and wearing light or no armor.

Savage Cut: At 1st-level the Knife Fighter gains the extraordinary ability to inflict grievous wounds with a dagger in melee, gaining a bonus of +1d4 points of damage added to his normal roll. When making a vicious strike, the Knife Fighter cannot attack with a weapon is his other hand, although he can defend with it (and can use the Steel Wall special ability). Like critical hits and sneak attacks, Savage Cut is ineffective against constructs, oozes, undead, and fortified armor.

Every three Knife Fighter levels gained thereafter, he increases the damage by +1d4. If the Knife Fighter also has the Rogue’s Sneak Attack ability, and utilizes it successfully, the Savage Cut damage stacks with the Sneak Attack damage.

Point Blank Shot: The Knife Fighter gets the Point Blank Shot feat for free.

Raking Blade: The Knife Fighter learns to make more effective use of the dagger, and may choose to make Slashing or Piercing attacks with it.

Steel Wall: The Knife Fighter becomes extremely proficient at using an off-hand dagger as a parrying implement. When armed with a pair of daggers (one in each hand), and wearing light or no armor, the Knife Fighter gets a bonus of +1 to his Armor Class at 3rd level. This bonus increases to +2 at 6th level, and +3 at 9th level. The Knife Fighter does not lose the AC bonus if he uses the off-hand dagger to attack, such is his expertise. The AC bonus is a shield bonus, as the off-hand dagger is essentially being used as a “shield”.

Catch Blade: The Knife Fighter may snatch small thrown weapons, such as daggers, darts, and rocks, out of the air. He must have at least one hand free (holding nothing) to use this ability. Once per round when he would normally be hit with such a thrown weapon, he may make a Reflex saving throw against a DC of 20 (if the thrown weapon has a magical bonus to attack, the DC increases by that amount). If he succeeds, he catches the weapon. He must be aware of the attack, and not flat-footed. Attempting to snatch a thrown weapon doesn’t count as an action.

Paired Throw: A Knife Fighter can throw two daggers simultaneously per attack, providing he has one in each hand. If both are thrown at a single target, make two separate normal attack rolls; if each is thrown at a different target, use standard Two-Weapon Fighting Penalties (taking into account Ambidexterity, Two-Weapon Fighting feat/Paired Blades special ability, etc.)

Returning Steel: If a Knife Fighter with this extraordinary ability makes a successful Catch Blade attempt, he may immediately launch the caught projectile back at the attacker who threw it, making a standard attack roll using that weapon, as a free action.

Paired Blade Master: When wearing light or no armor, and armed with a pair of daggers, the Knife Fighter can fight as if he had the Improved Two-Weapon Fighting feat. If the character already has this feat, he reduces the penalty to his second attack with the off-hand weapon to -2, when using Improved Two-Weapon Fighting.