Homebrew Skills
Wall Running
Z-Running
Iaijutsu Focus
This represents the parkour-esque ability to run along walls, a useful skill considering how many traps there could be in a given dungeon. Keep in mind that Tower Shields cannot be used in Wall Running 1 or 2, but only in 3.
Maximum 3 ranks
1 Skill Point per Rank
Rank 1
Allows the user to wallrun for about 5 seconds, enough to get around one ground-based trap. Allows the user to wallrun with no armor on at all.
Rank 2
Requires Rank 1 Wall Running. Allows the user to wallrun for about 30 seconds or so with a higher (or lower) degree of arc to said run, and to fire off one attack while doing so. Allows the user to wallrun with light or medium armor on.
Rank3
Requires Rank 2 Wall Running. Allows the user to wallrun for about 1 minute in any direction (horizontal, vertical) with no arc at all if need be, and to fire off as many attacks as the user can up to the lowest base attack bonus. Allows the user to wallrun with heavy or worse armor on.
Z-Running is used, and useful for, a lot more than you might think. It's a common skill, but an advanced one, one that allows the user to move in ways that are both unexpected, illogical, and downright physics-defying. Z-Running is a trained skill, but instructors and facilities can be found just about anywhere.
Maximum 3 ranks
1 Skill Point per Rank
Rank 1
Requires Wall-Running Rank 1. This rank represents the user's uncanny ability to simply move in a straight line while running around, over, under, or sometimes through objects that might be in their path without breaking stride. Some people would say that this is the basic philosophy behind the real-life Parkour/Freestyle ability.
Rank 2
Requires Wall-Running Rank 1. This rank represents the user's growing prowess over basic movement and their own anatomy, the ability to maneuver through tough situations while still maintaining stride. This also represents the time when the user's view on situational movement begins to increase in strength and clarity, and provides the user a small bonus on insight rolls, situational modifiers, and other nonsuch.
Rank 3
Requires Wall-Running Rank 3. To put it at it's simplest, reality is your bitch. There is nothing you can't overcome, rebound around, bounce off of, or otherwise maneuver about. Skyscraper rooftops are your friends, you can perform feats of marvels and movement that would astound the normal imagination, and can basically Jackie Chan (on crack, steroids, and chili peppers) your way through any situation provided that you know the environment…which you probably do. Even better, you could dodge from car roof to car roof, building to building, along power poles and scale cliffs, all without breaking stride. Movement modifiers are almost always considered a "Take 20" situation, and this even grants a +2 Reflex save bonus.
The Iaijutsu Focus Skill. Improved by Charisma ability modifier, this is the skill used to determine whether or not the Iaijutsu is performed properly. It is used in place of Attack Roll + Base Attack Bonus, or (later on) it can be used to determine a Double Crit after it's made available in Chapter 7. Iaijutsu Focus Skill is ONLY available to jobs able to use a Iaijutsu Strike.