Bearmen Ripclaw
By danzig138

From the Palladium world came the Bearmen of the North. To Earth, they brought with them a unique style of fighting, called "Ripclaw" by humans. Ripclaw was created by a tribe of the Bearmen who had encountered many human fighters who used odd forms of weaponless combat. The Bearmen thought that this way of fighting was strange, but had potential. They spent some time trying to develop a way of fighting suited to their bodies and ways, but they were unsuccessful. Eventually, they determined that they needed help. So they found a human that was skilled. After many offers of treasures and work, the human accepted the offer to train them.

It took a few years, but they finally succeeded. The end result was a vicious fighting style that the human almost regretted helping to design. Ripclaw is designed to take advantage of the hidden speed of the Bearmen. The Bearman will normally lash out , with blinding speed, with a Thrusting Body Block, and then proceed to grapple and tear at the opponent. The weakness of this style is against long-range fighters. But it does incorporate a leaping attack that looks strange when it occurs.

Entrance Requirements: P.S. 16, P.E. 17
Costume: None
Stance: Crouched down in a stance similar to a three-point football stance. The legs are bent at the knees, and the feet are spread a little more than shoulders-width. The "off" foot is placed a few inches behind the lead foot. The arms are held loosely either at the sides or in front.

CHARACTER BONUSES

Add 30 to S.D.C.

COMBAT SKILLS
Attacks per Melee: 3
Escape Moves: Roll with Punch/Fall/Impact, Maintain Balance
Basic Defense Moves: Parry, Automatic Parry.
Advanced Defenses: Combination Parry/Bite.
Hand Attacks: Claws (2D6), Overhead Claw Strike (The Bearman brings down his claws in a particularly vicious manner. This inflicts 2D8 damage, but it suffers a -3 penalty to strike ).
Basic Foot Attacks: Kick Attack ( can be used with the claws on the feet for an additional +4 damage, and it turns the attack into an edged attack ).
Special Attacks: Death Blow, Crush/Squeeze (1D8), Bite (1D8), Knee, Elbow, Forearm, Body Block/Ram, Thrusting Body Block/ Ram (SPECIAL!This is usually performed from the initial stance. If it is the Bearman's first attack of the round, and the victim has never before encountered this style, then the Bearman gains a +4 Initiative bonus. If successful, treat this as a critical Body Block ), Pin/Incapacitate, Grab and Chew (SPECIAL! The Bearman grabs the victim with both arms --treat as a standard Crush/Squeeze--and then begins to chew on him. The initial grab is at -2 to strike, but if it is successful, the bite hits automatically. The damage is normal for both the Crush and the bite, but it is applied every melee round until the hold is broken),Body Flip/Throw (SPECIAL! This is actually a body slam, where the Bearman picks his opponent up and then throws him to the ground. This uses two attacks, and suffers a -3 to strike, but if it is successful, the victim suffers 3D6 damage, loses initiative, and three attacks), Leap Attack.
Modifiers to Attacks: Pull Punch, Knock-Out/Stun, Critical Strike, Critical Strike from Rear.
Preferred Range: Grappling.

SKILLS INCLUDED IN TRAINING
None

LEVEL ADVANCEMENT BONUSES
Level 1: +3 to roll with punch/fall/impact, +1 parry, +2 leap,Knock-Out/Stun on Natural 20.
Level 2: +2 strike, +1 maintain balance.
Level 3: +1 Attack per Melee, Critical Strike on Natural 19-20.
Level 4: Knock-Out/Stun on Natural 19-20, +3 damage.
Level 5: +1 strike, parry, +2 roll with punch/fall/impact.
Level 6: Death blow on Natural 20.
Level 7: +1 Attack per Melee, Knock-Out/Stun on Natural 18-20.
Level 8: +2 parry, maintain balance.
Level 9: +2 body flip/throw (4D6), +1 crush/squeeze.
Level 10: +1 Attack per Melee, Critical Strike on Natural 18-20.
Level 11: +1 strike, +2 roll with punch/fall/impact, +2 damage.
Level 12: Knock-Out/Stun on Natural 17-20.
Level 13: Death Blow on Natural 19-20.
Level 14: +2 strike, parry, +3 damage.
Level 15: +1 Attack per Melee, +2 maintain balance.

Why Study Ripclaw?

Well, it's designed for the Bearmen, and it has spread among them rapidly, so it's pretty much the only game in town, so to speak.
NOTE: There have been a few instances of non-Bearmen learning Ripclaw, but non-Bearmen suffer a -2 panalty to all the maneuvers.

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