Swords against Evil

Inigo Montoya: You seem a decent fellow. I hate to kill you. 
Man in Black: You seem a decent fellow. I hate to die. 
– The Princess BrideSwords against Evil is an article adding new subtypes to the swashbuckler character class for Dungeon Fantasy. There are many ways to build an agile swordfighter--some say you could make a whole party with them.
== The Aristocrat ==
"Hazel, you follow tightly with Ragnar and keep the undead from pushing past. Ragnar, you give em the axe. If you get grabbed, roll back and Haze and I will cover you. If things get really bad, we fall back to the tower, and if they go really well, we'll have something to tell the folks back at the pub."
A noble hero, or heroic noble, the Aristocrat is what royals wish their heirs will grow to be. Aristos are tactical leaders who can keep the party organized and focused, be it ambush or mortal peril. They tend to be wealthy and connected, and are limited by their bad habits with money and ego.
== The Buccaneer ==
"Ye can make an unfair battle fair by bein' equally unfair. You're fast and they're not. Get up high any time you can, toss whatever you can at em, and if they get too close, knock em into the sea."
The Buccaneer is a well-rounded agile fighter who uses their excellent balance to run across ropes, climb chains, and generally get themselves up onto high ground. They're often excellent at fighting aboard (and operating) ships, and they're often driven by a need for plunder beyond what they can spend. They always seem to follow a Code, although they're said to be more like guidelines...
== The Duelist ==
"The sword doesn't make me a better swordsman. I won it fair an square, in a duel at the crossroads. A pale, elven man with dark eyes said he'd been waiting for a challenge, and we fought each other with simple sticks for smallswords til one of us was hit. When I finally struck him, he pulled this sword from his belt. He said.. don't let it wield you, every strike is a decision. Then he vanished."
The Duelist is a sword purist, overwhelming foes with fast, precise attacks. While a Duelist may have overlap with other swashbucklers, they're most often the more serious sort, who has a love of the art and a driving need to become the best there is. If it has a weak spot, the Duelist can hit it. 
A subtype of the duelist, the scrapper, is more of a big-monster fighter, using Perfect Balance to hop onto monsters and Striking ST to get through their hides/armor.
== The Rogue ==
"It's hard to do the whole sneaky thing in a group, so I carry a few smokebombs and magic powders with me. Get anything you can throw, and have it enchanted, and make sure your pockets are organized, because you're gonna want to hold onto a lot of tricks that take a lot of dexterity to use."
The Rogue is a somewhat thief-like swashbuckler with street smarts and underhanded skills, letting them get ahold of things without necessarily fighting--or at least, without fighting everyone at the same time. Useful for if the GM can handle splitting the party and letting the Rogue turn the tables on those shadowing the player characters.
== Sidebars ==
* One for All, All for One (how you can have a party of all swashbucklers, in different flavors!)
* Ultimate Weapons (get weapons that are Fine, enchanted, or made of unusual materials)
* Choose Your Weapon (a short list of fencing weapons and light to medium swords appropriate for swashbucklers)
* Power-Ups (some suggestions on what to add to improve a swashbuckler subtype further)
** Extra Attack is always good, always pricey, and can always get a bit chaotic when you start bypassing enemy defenses by giving them penalties from multiple parries/dodges/blocks 
== References ==
*Pyramid 3/64 Pirates and Swashbucklers, by Sean "Dr Kromm" Punch
Category:Pyramid Vol 3 Articles
Category:Sean Punch