Clawdancer (Pathfinder Second Edition Archetype)
(art by sonofan on DeviantArt)
A good set of claws can be quite an effective weapon, no matter the type. However, just because one has an inborn weapon doesn’t mean one doesn’t need to practice with it’s use, or better yet, refine it.
That is what the ammurun of Tian Xia did when they saw how the various cultures and ancestries of the continent placed value on martial arts. After all, if such training could turn a blunt, finger-filled hand into an effective striking surface, think what could be done with a piece of anatomy that is actually built for inflicting harm on others.
And so the clawdancer style was born. To be clear, however, while catfolk invented the style, anyone with lasting claws (either natural or created by some fleshwarper’s art) can be trained to turn them from simple natural weapons into a focus for a deadly style.
The clawdancer style has two forms, one focusing on the claws of the hand and their role in digging in and ensnaring prey, ensuring that even escape is not without consequence. The other focuses on the claws of the feet and the power they can be applied with due to mighty leg muscles.
The result is a martial artist that whirls between two punishing stances based on what is required of the situation, so let’s see what that looks like!
The base dedication for this archetype grants two combat stances, the first one being one that focuses on the upper limbs and claws, specializing in grappling and fast attacks. The second one focuses on slashing kicks with the hindclaws, and deals more damage in sweeping strikes, but are less agile.
A common technique of this style involves leaning into instinct while in claw style, digging into grappled foes to make sure they stay grappled and dealing them injury in the process.
Another involves pouncing on the foe, striking with both claws like a cat in ambush.
Don’t think the talon style with their feet is neglected though. One such technique allows them to lash out at a flanking foe with a sweeping kick.
Whether they break off the tip of a claw or simply wrench a wound wide open, many learn to leave gaping, bleeding wounds to exsanguinate their foe.
Further mirroring big cats, grappling clawdancers can lift up their hindlegs on their prey and rend them with their hindclaws.
With an acrobatic spinning kick, these martial artists can fend off attackers as they rise from a prone status, harming them and preventing opportunistic attacks.
An acrobatic tumble can be the perfect setup for a grapple attempt for some of these warriors.
The martial art trains these warriors to be fast on their feet and agile at avoiding attacks. Additionally, they learn forms for fluidly switching between stances as part of such a dodge.
Claws do not just exsanguinate, but also rip muscle and tissue, and some dancers put this to work by targeting tendons and muscles while in claw stance to hobble and weaken foes.
Like cats, their claws are also useful for snagging prey trying to escape, allowing them to hinder and arrest such movement.
By kicking off a foe with one talon slash, they can also learn to immediately bound into a downward kick against another foe nearby.
As they gain mastery, their deadly dance allows them to attack with one stance and shift into the other in the same fluid movement.
With mastery, their claws become especially effective with lucky or precise blows. Their upper claws causing bleeding wounds and their sweeping talon kicks carving into multiple foes.
True masters can unleash a storm of claws in either stance, allowing them to flow around their opponents as they unleash a hail of strikes.
This is a very fun archetype that plays a lot with stances and the properties of both types of granted strikes, and is very thematic for any character that has claws. You can theoretically focus on just one stance if that suits you, or go whole-hog and do both. Either way, monks are most likely to get the most out of this archetype, but any martial class with an agility-focused build can make use of it. Casters might consider taking it if they need an emergency close-combat option. Also, remember that this isn’t limited to catfolk! Anyone with claws they don’t have to activate could make use of it.
This archetype is right up there with the thlipit contestant in demonstrating how nonstandard humanoid anatomy can make for a fun and unique martial art, and can and should serve as inspiration in your own writing and homebrewing for how weird martial arts can get when you’re working with some different anatomy.
While nobody was seriously hurt, a fruit vendor as Amerios Stalls is furious when one of her recent shipments of goods turned out to be an entire swarm of sportlebore. With the damage to her reputation and the risk that some of the fruit-mimicking bug might have slipped into her other stock, she aims to make the seller pay, and she can back it up as a former talon style champion.
Traveling into the extradimensional innards of a cosmic whale, the party happens upon an aged iruxi hermit who has lived in the vast gut of the beast for years. While his social skills have atrophied, his skill in martial arts has not, and he can teach the clawdancing style to any who might seek it, if they can tolerate his eccentricities.
Normally orcs cannot learn clawdancer style, but when Burtag the Bear made his epithet more literal with a fleshgrafting deal, he decided to make the most of it by enrolling in a school. It was long and hard, but he believes he has mastered making his new claws just as effective as any forged weapon.