KALI (EXCLUSIVE)
By Kuseru
Entrance Requirements: No Attribute or Alignment restrictions.
Skill Cost: 12 years
Kali is the ancient fighting art of the Philippine Islands. It originally featured bladed weapons like the wavy kris sword, as well as a variety of unarmed techniques involving elbows, knees, throws and locks/holds. After the Spanish conquered most of the Phillippines in the late sixteenth century, Kali was banned. The teaching of this art was forced underground and carried out in secret, often strictly between family members. It wasn't until the twentieth century that Kali resurfaced and began gaining worldwide attention. Kali can be one of the most beautiful and exciting Martial Arts, for when two expert Kali artists duel, their clashing sticks sound like machine guns, and you can actually see and smell the smoke coming from their wooden weapons! There are a dozen of Kali styles and forms

Kali attacks are not classified by weapon or delivery style, but by the direction of their energy. This style makes extensive use of geometric shapes, superimposing them on a combat situation, and movement patterns, to teach fighters to use their position and their movement to best advantage. Some styles emphasize line-cutting, while some are very circular. Practitioners learn how to deal with the energy of the attack, and then apply that knowledge to the slight variations that come with different lengths and types of weapons. The style places great emphasis on footwork, mobility, and body positioning. The same concepts (of angles of attack, deflections, traps, passes, etc.) are applied to similar situations at different ranges, making the understanding of ranges and how to bridge them very important. Some styles like to stay at long range, some will move inside as soon as possible. Kali in particular, stresses the importance of disarming an opponent in combat. This is not usually done gently, but by destroying an attacking weapon or breaking that part of the body.

Empty hand techniques are derived from weapon movements. First the weapons are learned, then the empty-handed applications are shown. Most in-fighting is derived from knife techniques, and mixed with panantukan, pananjakman, and dumog. Panantukan is Filipino boxing, considered a from of street fighting, which includes elbows, forearms, headbutts, shoulders, hips, and knees (no kicks). Pananjakman is the art of Filipino kicking; it is the opposite of Panantukan and uses any technique, except the arms can only be used defensively. Pangamut is the synthesis of the two where everything is allowed. Dumog is one of the ancient arts of Filipino wrestling which utilizes pressure points and leverage to manipulate opponents much larger than you. Eskrima and Kali are Filipino weapons arts which teach empty hand techniques based on weapon movements.

Geographically, Kali is associated with the Moros of Mindanao. Training in Kali can only be found in the Phillippines.

THE KRIS
The kris is the sacred blade of Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Phillippines. In the Phillippines, these blades are called Kalis. Kris knives vary in size from the length of a sword, and most have the famous wavy blade pattern. The finest blades were forged from meteorite iron and were believed to have magical powers. Some were said to possess the ability to kill a man just by stabbing his shadow; others were said to have the ability to fly through the air and fight on their own, or even to have the power to cure the common cold. Every Kali artist will have a sacred knife given them by their teacher. If ever they lose this blade it is a great dishonor, many Kali artists have been forced to do terrible things to regain a stolen blade. (whether or not a character's knife has any actual powers is up to the GM). Standard Damage for a Kris Knife is 1D6, for a Kris Sword is 1D8, and for a Short Stick is 1D6.
CHARACTER BONUSES:
Add +3 P.P.
Add +2 P.E.
Add +10 S.D.C.
COMBAT SKILLS:
Attacks per Melee: 4
Escape Moves: Roll with Punch/Fall, Maintain Balance.
Attack Moves: None.
Basic Defensive Moves: Parry, Dodge, Automatic Parry, Entangle.
Advanced Defenses: Circular Parry, Disarm, Power Block/Parry, Combination Parry/Attack, Combination Parry/Lock.
Hand Attacks: Punch, Backfist (The character twists his torso to extend his fist into a target to the rear. He may also bring his fist straight up over his shoulder or down past his thigh to strike close targets to the rear without changing facing direction. Damage is 1D6.), Knife Hand, Palm Strike
Basic Foot Attacks: Snap Kick, Tripping/Leg Hooks, Kick Attack.
Jumping Foot Attacks: None.
Special Attacks: Forearm, Elbow, Knee, Headbutt(1D4), Shoulder Ram (Similar to the one in Mystic China, page 189, except spiked armor is not worn and the higher damage for such does not apply), Hip Strike (A thrust with the hip against an opponent that does 1D4 damage), Death Blow , Body Flip/Throw.
Holds/Locks: Arm Hold, Arm Lock, Wrist Lock.
Weapon Katas: Pick two of the following forms:
Espada y Daga: W.P. Paired--Short Stick or W.P. Kris(sword) & Dagger.
Solo Baston: W.P. Short Stick or W.P. Kris(sword) .
Doble Baston: W.P. Short Stick -Paired or W.P. Kris(sword)-Paired, Scissor Choke: uses the short sticks to choke a person squeezing them together in a motion similar to that of a pair of scissors (1D6 S.D.C.+2D4 HP/melee).
Solo Daga: W.P. Knife.
Doble Daga: W.P. Knife-Paired.
Long Weapons: W.P. Sibat(Staff), W.P. Spear, W.P. Oar (Polearm).
Flexible Weapons: W.P. Chain, W.P. Whip.
Projectile Weapons: W.P. Bow, W.P. Blowgun.
Thrown Weapons: W.P. Thrown
Palm Stick/Double-Ended Dagger: W.P. Knife.
Modifiers to Attack: Pull Punch, Knockout/Stun, Critical Strike, Critical Strike from Behind.
SKILLS INCLUDED IN TRAINING
Martial Arts Powers: Select a total of Two (2) powers from among Atemi, Body Hardening or Martial Art Techniques, or two more Weapon Katas. Powers may be traded one for one for basic skill programs excluding physical.
Language: English, and Tagalog.
Medical: First Aid, Holistic Medicine
Temple Skills: Fasting, Meditation
Weapon Proficiencies: W.P. Paired--Short Stick or W.P. Kris(sword) & Dagger, W.P. Short Stick, W.P. Kris(sword), W.P. Short Stick -Paired, W.P. Kris(sword)-Paired, W.P. Knife, W.P. Knife-Paired, W.P. Sibat(Staff), W.P. Spear, W.P. Oar (Polearm), W.P. Chain, W.P. Whip, W.P. Bow, W.P. Blowgun, and W.P. Thrown.
Philosophy: None.
If this is your Primary Martial Art then the following other styles can be learned in a shorter time: Arnis (2 Years), or Eskrima (4 Years).
LEVEL ADVANCEMENT BONUSES
1st: +2 Strike, +2 Parry, Critical Strike from Behind.
2nd: +2 Roll with Punch/Fall/Impact, +2 Damage.
3rd: +1 Attack per Melee, +1 Maintain Balance, Knockout/Stun on a Natural 19 or 20.
4th: +2 Parry/Dodge, Critical Strike on a Natural 19 or 20.
5th: Select One (1) Martial Art Power from Atemi, Body Hardening or Martial Art Techniques, or a new Kali Weapon Kata.
6th: +1 Attack per Melee, +1 Initiative, +1 Strike.
7th: +1 Parry/Dodge, Death Blow on a Natural 20.
8th: Select One (1) Martial Art Power from Atemi, Body Hardening or Martial Art Techniques, or a new Kali Weapon Kata.
9th: +1 Attack per Melee, +1 Maintain Balance, Critical Strike on a Natural 18, 19 or 20.
10th: +1 Damage, +1 Roll with Punch/Fall/Impact, +2 Parry.
11th: Select One (1) Martial Art Power from Atemi, Body Hardening or Martial Art Techniques, or a new Kali Weapon Kata.
12th: +1 Attack per Melee, +1 Initiative, +1 Strike.
13th: +2 Maintain Balance +2 Roll with Punch/Fall/Impact.
14th: +1 Strike, +1 Parry/Dodge, +1 Damage.
15th: Select One (1) Martial Art Power from Atemi, Body Hardening or Martial Art Techniques, or a new Kali Weapon Kata.
Why Study Kali?
A deadly martial art that is well rounded in everything, from kicks, strikes, and grappling, to weapon skills.