Order of the Merciful Sword

A samurai who belongs to the order of the merciful sword has dedicated himself to both a lord and to relieving the pain and suffering of those under his liege’s rule. Samurai of this order seek to protect the innocent, give relief to the sick and afflicted, show compassion to those in need, and show mercy to those unfairly judged and punished. This order complements the Compassionate Warlord multiclass archetype.

Edicts: The samurai must be of good alignment, adhere to the strictures of the faith, uphold the honor of his lord, be compassionate and merciful to those around him, show humility in the face of adversity, and protect the weak from oppression.

Challenge: Whenever an order of the merciful sword samurai issues a challenge, he receives a +1 morale bonus to his AC against attacks made by the target of his challenge. This bonus lasts for 1 minute. The bonus increases by +1 for every four levels the samurai possesses.

Skills: An order of the merciful sword samurai adds Heal (Wis) and Knowledge (religion) (Int) to his list of class skills. If an order of the merciful sword samurai beats the DC of any Heal checks by 5 or more, the time required to perform the task is reduced by half (or to the next action type). For example, If a the samurai succeeds by 5 or more on a Heal (first aid) check, it only takes him only a move action to perform the task instead of the usual standard action, while a successful Heal (treat deadly wounds) takes only 30 minutes instead of the usual 1 hour. If he has ranks in the skill, he receives a bonus on the check equal to 1/2 his samurai level (minimum +1) when making Healing skill checks.

Order Abilities: A samurai belonging to the order of the merciful sword gains the following abilities as he increases in level.

Divine Blade (Su)

At 2nd level, the samurai adds his Charisma modifier to all damage rolls made against the target of his challenge.

Aura of Grace (Su)

At 8th level, the samurai emits an aura of divine grace. Each ally within 10 feet of him (including the samurai) gains bonus to all saving throws equal to the samurai’s Charisma modifier. This ability functions only while the samurai is conscious, not if he is unconscious or dead.

King’s Castle (Sp)

At 15th level, the samurai can cast king’s castle once per day as a spell-like ability.