Pit-Fighter

The life of a pit fighter is often extremely short, depending on the venue. Whether choosing to fight for the chance of glory, riches, and fame, or forced to fight as a slave, prisoner, or indentured servant, a Pit-Fighter most often gives their life for the entertainment of others. For those with the right combination of strength, skill, and luck, there can be life beyond the fighting pits. Some will go on to win their freedom while others become wealthy prize fighters, but more likely a Pit-Fighter will obtain employment outside the pits as hired muscle or enforcers. Even when a Pit-Fighter finds themselves to be the master of their own destiny, a true Pit-Fighter will discover that something within them is inexplicably drawn to the thrill of combat.

Pit-Fighting is a hazardous profession; however, it teaches a brutal yet simple principle: victory at any cost. When life and death are on the line, honor and virtue are cumbersome, only victory has any real value. But Pit-Fighters are not necessarily mindless brutes. They often begin battle in a state of heightened focus, quickly studying their opponent and sizing up their strengths and weaknesses. They will attempt to wear their opponent down, using every weapon at their disposal, all the while building up momentum. Then when the time is right, or when their focus is shattered by an untimely wound from their opponent, they will unleash their fury and mercilessly cut down their foe.

Fighting for sport is commonly perceived to be an uncivilized activity and so it is among the more barbaric cultures that most Pit-Fighters will be found. But amidst the seemingly uncivilized practice of Pit-Fighting, there is a proclivity for close quarters combat. In the right context, this style of combat can be highly effective outside of the fighting pits. While certainly of no use among rank-and-file troops, some armies have been known to train elite forces after the style of Pit-Fighters for specialist close-quarters operations such as boarding enemy vessels at sea. No matter the reason, anyone finding themselves facing off against a Pit-Fighter in a confined space likely has mere moments left to live.

Class Overview

Typical Roles: Melee Damage
Damage Types: Physical
Class Mechanic: Fury and Focus

Default Stats: During Character Creation you may choose to use the default stat line shown below, before racial modifiers. This can be instead of rolling for stats, or if after rolling ten sets of stats you don’t like the results.

During Character Creation you may choose to use the Default Stat Line, before racial modifiers, instead of rolling for stats, or if after rolling ten sets of stats you don’t like the results

Proficiencies

Natural Armor Proficiency: Cloth, Leather
Trainable Armor Proficiency: Mail, Plate
Natural Weapon Proficiency: Knives, Swords, Bludgeons, Axes, Hand Weapons, Polearms, Staves
Trainable Weapon Proficiency: Swords (2-Handed), Bludgeons (2-Handed), Axes (2-Handed), Whips, Firearms

See Equipment section for details. When using a weapon that your class is not proficient with, see Combat Penalties. There is no level or title prerequisite to train in a new proficiency, however you must receive the appropriate Training.

Class Skills

Class Passive Skill: Foul Temper
Class Secondary Skill: (choose one) Dual Wield, Brawler, or Lightning Reflexes (can ignore Initiative requirement)

Primary Skills

Fury

Pit Fighters follow the standard methods of gaining fury in combat by both inflicting and taking damage.

Learning new Vigor Skills is a function of training. The simplest way to learn a new Vigor skill is to pay a Combat Trainer to teach the skill that is of interest. However, Pit Fighters that live in a Ludus or other such training house are often taught new skills as part of their day to day routines by veterans, Doctore or combat trainers hired by their masters. Alternately, while adventuring, they could also pick up new skills from other fury classes such as a Warrior, Barbarian, Vigilante, Berserker, Shaman, or Zealots. Once a skill is learned, it can be improved simply though repeated use.

New fury skills require training unless they are upgrades (i.e. Berserker Strike -> Improved Berserker Strike), see Learning New Fury Skills for details.

Focus

Pit Fighters are trained to make combat a spectacle, this is best achieved with weapons in hand. As such their unique forms of martial arts center on armed attacks, but also incorporate kicks and fist attacks for additional combat flourish. Typically a Ludus or fighting pit will have its own methods for teaching their fighters. As a result most Pit-Fighters receive training in Focus skills as part of their membership, whether voluntary or indentured. Pit-Fighters follow the standard methods for Learning New Focus Skills.

The maximum number of skill points that can be allotted to each focus discipline are as follows:

• Fist: 20 skill points
• Kick: 20 skill points
• Armed: 30 skill points
• Ranged:  unavailable
• Defense: 5 skill points

Level Ups

Pit-Fighters use the following chart for levelling up:

HP Dice (Hearty): Small Race (1d10), Medium Race (1d12), Large Race (1d12)