Dance of the Glittering Spirals
By danzig138

A very long time ago, on the homeworld of the elves, there was a mighty warrior named K'Rish-kov. Now, while K'Rish-kov was a warrior through and through, he had a love for the arts, especially dance. He had always felt that the skills gained in dancing were of benefit to any warrior. So he decided to merge his two favorite things, war and dance, into one.

Many years he spent consulting with the greatest warriors and dancers, and finally developed what he believed to be the perfect fighting art, which he named " The Dance of the Glittering Spirals". The name refers to the light reflected from the fighter's swords, which he is trained to use, especially with this form. Today, the art is practiced by many elven people, some of whom have brought it to Rifts Earth.

Entrance Requirements: P.S. 12 (16 for two swords ), P.P. 13 ( 16 for two swords ).
Skill Cost: 10 years.
Costume: The standard fighting costume of a practitioner of this style consists of billowy pants ( similar to hakama ), a colored sash, and a loose, sleeveless shirt, that is the same color as the pants. Often, leather armor, the same color as the shirt and pants, is also worn. The colors are based on the artist's level of ability, as follows:

Levels 1-3: White garments with a black sash.

Levels 4-6: Black garments with a red sash.

Levels 7-10: Red garments with a black sash.

Level 11: Purple garments with a golden sash.

Level 12: Yellow garments with a purple sash.

Level 13: Green garments with a blue sash.

Level 14: Blue garments with a green sash.

Level 15: Black garments with a white sash.

Stance: This varies according to how the artist is armed:

*Bare Handed: Turned sideways, with his feet spread a little more than shoulders-width apart. Weight is carried on the back leg, while the front leg is constantly moving back-and-forth. The back hand is held in front of the face with an open palm, and the front hand is held low, near the groin, with a closed fist.

*One Sword: Turned sideways, with his feet spread a little more than shoulders-width apart. Weight is carried on the front leg. The sword is held low and forward, and the free hand is held loosely at the side.

*Two Swords: Identical to the One-Sword stance, except that the second sword is held high and back, and parallel to the ground.

CHARACTER BONUSES

Add 1 to P.S.

Add 2 to P.P.

Add 1 to P.E.

Add 15 to S.D.C.

COMBAT SKILLS
Attacks per Melee: 2 ( 3 with swords ).
Escape Moves: Roll with Punch/Fall/Impact, Maintain Balance.
Basic Defense Moves: Dodge, Parry, Automatic Parry.
Advanced Defenses: Circular Parry, Combination Parry/Attack.
Hand Attacks: Strike (Punch), Knife Hand, Palm Strike.
Basic Foot Attacks: Kick Attack, Snap Kick.
Advanced Foot Attacks: Jump Kick, Reverse Turn Kick.
Special Attacks: Death Blow, Combination Parry/Attack, Flat Stun ( This is an attempt to strike the opponent on the side of the head with the flat of the blade. It requires a natural 13 or better to be successful. If it hits, it inflicts 1D8+bonus damage, and stuns the victim for 1-2 melee rounds, during which time he suffers a -1 penalty to all attack rolls, loses two attacks and initiative. If the Strike roll is a Natural 20, it is an automatic Knock-Out for 1D4 minutes ).
Weapon Katas: W.P. Sword, W.P. Paired Swords.
Modifiers to Attacks: Pull Punch, Critical Strike, Critical Strike from Rear, Knock-Out/Stun.

SKILLS INCLUDED IN TRAINING
Martial Art Powers: Iaijutsu, and one additional power from either Martial Art Techniques or Specialty Katas ( no Weapon Katas ).
Cultural Skills: Dance (+10%).

LEVEL ADVANCEMENT BONUSES
Level 1: +1 Roll with Punch/Fall/Impact, +2 Parry.
Level 2: +1 Strike, +1 Dodge, +1 Damage.
Level 3: Critical Strike on Natural 19-20, +1 Maintain Balance.
Level 4: +1 Attack per Melee, Select one additional power from Martial Art Techniques or Specialty Katas (No Weapon Katas).
Level 5: +2 Strike, +1 parry.
Level 6: +1 Dodge, +2 Damage.
Level 7: +1 Attack per Melee, +2 Parry, +1 Maintain Balance.
Level 8: Critical Strike on Natural 18-20, +1 Combination Parry/Attack.
Level 9: +1 Strike, +1 Parry/Dodge.
Level 10: +1 Attack per Melee, Death Blow on a Natural 20.
Level 11: Select one additional power from Martial Art Techniques or Specialty Katas (No Weapon Katas ).
Level 12: +2 Maintain Balance, +3 Damage.
Level 13: Flat Stun is a Knock-Out on a Natural 19-20.
Level 14: +1 Attack per Melee, +1 Strike, +1 Parry.
Level 15: Death Blow on Natural 19-20, Death Blow with Swords on a Natural 18-20.

Why Study THE DANCE OF THE GLITTERING SPIRALS?

If you're an elf, and you want to learn inner peace and harmony, this teaches you how to dance and kill people with swords, so you might look elsewhere. But if you want to learn an art that teaches killing, this is for you.

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