The Scottish Highlander

Originally Posted by Epic Scotsman of the Wizards Community forums.

On this Thread

There they stand, the armies of England and Scotland, poised again for bloody combat. A battle cry is sounded as the Highlanders charge into the English ranks. With flashing swords and a great clamour of shield upon breastplate, three lines of the English force are cut down by the charging Scots.

“Pull back” yell the English captains, but it is all in vein, for upon their flank charges a horde of claymore wielding Scotsmen, yelling like the demons of hell. In a flash of steel and a cracking of bones, another mass of English falls yelling upon the moist Scottish soil.

“C’mon lads, we’ve finished with these pansy bastards!!! Let’s go home!!!”

Did you ever wonder how the Scots could have defeated the English and claimed their freedom? Well, here in lies the answer. It’s all about tactics and unbeknownst to many, the Scottish Highlanders had many a good one, both for individual and full on army to army combat.

First, foremost and indeed the most well known is the claymore, your basic great sword, if you will. This hefty chunk of steel was most often used in a figure eight fashion in order to break the sweet, sweet collarbones of the English which opposed them. Take that arm movement!!

Second and much less known is the three-stroke combo of the broadsword, shield and Dagger. With the Dagger held in the shield arm’s hand, a shield bash could be performed and quickly followed by a downward stab and a slash of the sword. With this tactic, a line of Scots could cut down three lines of their English aggressors.

Requirements:

Alignment: Any nonlawful
Base Attack Bonus: +8
Feats: Weapon Focus (Long Sword or Great Sword), Power Attack, Improved Bull Rush
Skills: Intimidate (5 Ranks)
Special: Must have a Scottish surname (or change your name)

LVL	BAB	Fort	Ref	Will	Special
1	+1	+2	+0	+0	Scotsman’s Weapon1
2	+2	+3	+0	+0	War Paint
3	+3	+3	+1	+1	Hearty Charge
4	+4	+4	+1	+1	Battle Cry
5	+5	+4	+1	+1	Scotsman’s Weapon2
6	+6	+5	+2	+2
7	+7	+5	+2	+2	Highland Charge
8	+8	+6	+2	+2	War Cry
9	+9	+6	+3	+3
10	+10	+7	+3	+3	Scotsman’s Weapon3

Hit Die: 1D12

Class Skills: Climb (Strength), Intimidate (Charisma), Jump (Strength), Listen (Wisdom), Spot (Wisdom), Wilderness Lore (Wisdom), Intuit
Direction (Wisdom), Knowledge (local).

Skill Points / Lvl: 2 + Intelligence Modifier

Weapon and Armour Proficiency: The Scottish Highlander is proficient with all simple and martial weapons, light and medium armour, and shields.

War Paint (Ex): Beginning 2nd level, the Highlander may apply war paint before the battle begins. If the Highlander does this during battle, it counts as a full round action. When wearing war paint, the Highlander gains a +1 bonus to his attack rolls as well as a +5 bonus to intimidation checks. The war paint must be reapplied before each battle.

Battle Cry (Su): At 4th level, the Highlander may let loose with a resounding Battle Cry, striking fear and dread into the hearts of his enemies. The Highlander gains the Ki Shout feat as class ability.

War Cry (Su): Upon reaching 8th level, the Highlander has become a fearsome presence on the battlefield and his mighty voice strikes great fear into the hearts of his enemies. The Highlander gains the Greater Ki Shout feat as a class ability.

Hearty Charge (Ex): At 3rd level, the Highlander has learned to use his body as well as his weapon while charging his opponent. After a successful charge is made, the Highlander may immediately make a bull rush attempt. The opponent receives no attack of opportunity while this feat is performed.

Highland Charge (Ex): At 7th level, the Highlander has perfected the art of slamming both body and weapon into the opponent. After a successful Hearty Charge, the opponent takes half again the damage of charge attack as he crashes to the ground.

Scotsman’s Weapon: The Highlander may choose his path at 1st level. He may either decide to use the mighty claymore or the more conventional and highly effective broadsword, shield and Dagger.

Claymore Abilities:

Stunning Sword (Ex): At 1st level, the Highlander learns to swing his claymore in a deadly figure eight pattern while charging at his opponent. If the charge is successful, the opponent must make a fortitude save (DC 15 + Highlanders Strength Bonus) or be stunned for 1D4 rounds. This ability can be used in conjunction with Hearty Charge.

Deadly Reach (Ex): At 5th level, the Highlander has come to appreciate the length of his mighty weapon. He may use his claymore as a reach weapon or to attack adjacent targets. This must be designated at the beginning of the round.

The Thick of Battle (Ex): After breaking through the line, it’s important to have the skill and speed to defend yourself against the army which you’ve so rudely entered. With enemies moving in at all angles, the Highlander must use his giant sword to defend against attacks from all sides. At 10th level, the Highlander may make a Whirlwind Attack against all foes within 5 ft as a standard action when using the claymore.

Broadsword (Long Sword), Shield (buckler or Small) and Dagger Abilities:

Shield Bash (Ex): At 1st level, the Highlander gains the Shield Expert and Two weapon fighting feats, even if he doesn’t meet the requirements. The Highlander also gains the ability to perform a shield bash with a buckler shield.

Three out of Two (Ex): At 5th level, the Highlander gains the ability to wield a Dagger in the hand of his shield arm (even when using a small shield). This allows the Highlander to make an attack with his Dagger immediately following a successful shield bash. The Dagger attack is made at the same attack bonus as the shield bash.

The Striking Shield (Ex): At 10th level, the Highlander gains the ability to strike mighty blows with his shield. His shield does damage as if it were a shield of bashing (this includes the +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls). If the Highlander’s shield is already a shield of bashing, then the damage die is upped from 1D6 to 1D8.