Swaggering Buccaneer (Swashbuckler/Gunslinger)

Swashbucklers are dueling masters, ever seeking to challenge their enemies to single combat. However, some swashbucklers seek to combine their swordplay with the use of ranged weapons. The swaggering buccaneer employs a host of deeds to enhance both her dueling skills and their use of crossbows and pistols. (Original Concept by Dustyboy)

Primary Class: Swashbuckler.

Secondary Class: Gunslinger.

Alignment: Any.

Hit Dice: d10.

Bonus Skills and Ranks: The swaggering buccaneer selects three gunslinger skills to add to her class skills in addition to the normal swashbuckler class skills, one of which must be Spellcraft. The eldritch brawler gains a number of ranks at each level equal to 4 + Int modifier.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: The swaggering buccaneer is proficient with all simple and martial weapons and one-handed firearms. She is proficient with light armor and with bucklers.

Buccaneer’s Bravado (Ex): At 1st level, a swaggering buccaneer begins play with a pistol of her choice. Her starting weapon is battered, and only she knows how to use it properly. All other creatures treat her gun as if it had the broken condition. If the weapon already has the broken condition, it does not work at all for anyone else trying to use it. This starting weapon can only be sold for scrap (it’s worth 4d10 gp when sold). In addition, the swaggering buccaneer gains the benefits of the Weapon Finesse feat with light or one-handed piercing melee weapons, and she can use her Charisma score in place of Intelligence as a prerequisite for combat feats. This ability counts as having the Weapon Finesse feat for purposes of meeting feat prerequisites. This ability replaces swashbuckler finesse.

Deeds: This is exactly like swashbuckler ability of the same name, except that the swaggering buccaneer must choose three deeds of each level from either the swashbuckler’s or gunslinger’s deeds. Once the deeds are chosen, they cannot be changed.

In addition, the swaggering buccaneer may choose from the following deeds. If the swaggering buccaneer chooses crossbow as her chosen ranged weapon for her sword and pistol ability, she applies any gunslinger deeds she chooses that normally affects firearms to her crossbow instead.

Melee Shooter (Ex): At 1st level, as a swift action when wielding both a light or one-handed piercing melee weapon and a one-handed firearm, the swaggering buccaneer can spend 1 panache point to avoid provoking attacks of opportunity with the first ranged attack made by the one-handed firearm during her turn.

Up Close and Deadly (Ex): At 1st level, when a swaggering buccaneer hits a target with a crossbow or one-handed firearm that is not making a scatter shot, she can spend 1 panache point to deal 1d6 points of extra damage on her next successful one-handed piercing melee weapon attack made in the same turn. This is precision damage and is not multiplied if the attack is a critical hit. This precision damage increases to 2d6 at 5th level, to 3d6 at 10th level, to 4d6 at 15th level, and to 5d6 at 20th level. This precision damage stacks with sneak attackand other forms of precision damage.

Vigilant Loading (Ex): At 1st level, as long as a swaggering buccaneer has at least 1 panache point, she does not provoke attacks of opportunity when loading a crossbow.

Shooter's Resolve (Ex): At 3rd level, a swaggering buccaneer can spend 1 panache point when making a crossbow attack as a standard action and ignore the effects of concealment (though not total concealment) and cover (other than total cover) against that shot.

Distracting Shot (Ex): At 7th level, a swaggering buccaneer can spend 1 panache point and choose to miss a target that she could normally attack within her range with a crossbow attack. When she does, the target loses its Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) for 1 round.

Fire and Charge (Ex): At 7th level, as long as a swaggering buccaneer has at least 1 panache point, she can fire a crossbow or one-handed firearm, draw a one-handed piercing melee weapon, and then charge. Both attacks are made at the swaggering buccaneer’s highest BAB with a +2 bonus to her charge attack. The swaggering buccaneer cannot use this deed if her movement speed is reduced by armor or encumbrance.

Inexplicable Reload (Ex): At 11th level, loading a crossbow becomes unthinking and automatic for a swaggering buccaneer. As long as she has at least 1 panache point, she always starts each round of combat (even a surpriseround) with her crossbow loaded. Also the amount of time needed to reload a crossbow decreases by one step: a standard action becomes a move action, a move action becomes a swift action, a swift action becomes a free action, and a free actionbecomes not an action.

Twin Shot Knockdown (Ex): At 11th level, when a swaggering buccaneer hits a single target with two or more one-handed firearm attacks during her turn, she can spend 1 panache point to knock the target prone. She can choose to spend the panache point after the attacks are made.

Pinning Shot (Ex): At 15th level, a swaggering buccaneer can spend 1 grit point while shooting a crossbow and attempt to pin down its target with the bolt. If the crossbow attack hits, it pins the target to a nearby object, to a wall, or to the ground, entangling and staggering the target. While pinned by the bolt, the target cannot move out of its space until it takes a standard action to free itself from the pinning bolt, except by means of teleportation.

Panache (Ex): The swaggering buccaneer treats her panache as grit for the purpose of any gunslinger deeds. In addition, unlike other swashbucklers, a swaggering buccaneer regains panache when she confirms a critical hit or makes a killing blow with a light or one-handed piercing melee weapon or a crossbow or one-handed firearm.

Sword and Pistol (Ex): Starting at 2nd level, a swaggering buccaneer learns to effortlessly pair melee and ranged weaponry. She can use a light or one-handed piercing melee weapon with a crossbow or pistol to make a sword and pistol attack. When doing so, a swaggering buccaneer has the Two-Weapon Fighting feat when attacking with any combination of light or one-handed piercing melee weapons and crossbows or pistols. When making a crossbow or pistol attack as part of sword and pistol, the swaggering buccaneer provoke no attacks of opportunity from foes that he threatens with his light or one-handed melee weapon. She must use a light or one-handed melee weapon and a crossbow or pistol to use this ability.

A swaggering buccaneer applies her full Strength modifier to her damage rolls for all melee attacks made with sword and pistol, even if the attacks are made with an off-hand weapon. A swaggering buccaneer can substitute disarm, sunder, and trip combat maneuvers for melee or ranged attacks as part of sword and pistol. A swaggering buccaneer with natural weapons can't use such weapons as part of sword and pistol, nor can she make natural weapon attacks in addition to her sword and pistol attacks.

Whenever the swaggering buccaneer wields a one-handed piercing melee weapon and a crossbow or one-handed firearm, he is treated as having a free hand for the purpose of reloading his crossbow or one-handed firearm. This applies to the Rapid Reload feat and to the Lightning Reload deed.

At 8th level, the swaggering buccaneer gains use of the Improved Two-Weapon Fighting feat when using sword and pistol. When making a pistol attack as part of sword and pistol, the swaggering buccaneer gains the benefits of the Point-Blank Shot feat. At 16th level, she gains use of the Greater Two-Weapon Fighting feat when using sword and pistol. When making a pistol attack as part of sword and pistol, the swaggering buccaneer gains the benefits of the Point-Blank Mastery feat. This ability replaces charmed life 3/day, and the bonus feats gained at 8th and 16th level.

Buccaneer Weapon Training (Ex): At 5th level, a swaggering buccaneer gains a +1 bonus on attack and damage rolls with one-handed or light piercing melee weapons. These attack and damage bonuses increase by 1 for every 4 levels beyond 5th level (to a maximum of +4 at 17th level). She also must select either crossbow or pistol. She gains a bonus equal to her Dexterity modifier on damage rolls when firing a crossbow or pistol. Furthermore, when she misfires with a pistol, the misfire value of that firearm increases by 2 instead of 4. Every four levels beyond 5th (9th, 13th, and 17th), the bonus on crossbow or pistol damage rolls increases by +1. At 13th level, a swaggering buccaneer never misfires with a one-handed firearm. This ability replaces swashbuckler weapon training.

Charmed Life (Ex): This is exactly like the swashbuckler’s ability of the same name, except that the swaggering buccaneer can use this ability once per day at 6th level, plus an additional time per day every four levels thereafter, to a maximum of four times per day at 18th level.

Buccaneer Weapon Mastery (Ex): At 20th level, when a swaggering buccaneer threatens a critical hit with a light or one-handed piercing melee weapon, or a crossbow or pistol, that critical is automatically confirmed. Furthermore, the critical modifiers of such weapons increase by 1 (×2 becomes ×3, and so on). This ability replaces swashbuckler weapon mastery.

Table: Swaggering Buccaneer