Fighting Styles

The following fighting styles represent those most commonly chosen by soldiers. Each fighting style lists the style techniques you learn as you gain levels.

Ambusher
The ambusher fighting style focuses on stealth, tactical positioning, and superior reflexes to gain an edge. You must have Stealth as a class skill to select this fighting style.

Vigilance (1st)
You watch for danger and respond swiftly. You gain Improved Initiative as a bonus feat. Whenever you act before an enemy during the first round of combat, you gain a +1 insight bonus to weapon attack rolls against that enemy until the beginning of your next turn.

Cheap Shot (5th)
When you succeed at a Stealth check to hide opposed by a target’s Perception check or when you have improved or total cover against a target, as a full action you can make one ranged attack against that target that deals additional damage equal to half your Dexterity bonus.

Deadly Reflexes (9th)
When an enemy attacks you before you have taken any actions in combat, you can use your quick reflexes to retaliate. As a reaction, you can spend 1 Resolve Point to make one attack with a ranged weapon you are wielding immediately after the enemy’s attack.

Exploit Cover (13th)
When you attempt a Stealth check to hide from an enemy that can see you, you gain a +4 insight bonus to the check if you can move into improved or total cover. In addition, whenever you attempt a Stealth check to hide while sniping (Core Rulebook 148), the penalty to your Stealth check is only –10.

Ambusher’s Edge (17th)
As a full action, you can make one attack that, in addition to dealing its normal damage and effects, causes the target to gain the off-target condition until the end of its next turn. You can also use this ability as a standard action against any creature that is flat-footed.

Armor Storm
The armor storm fighting style focuses on using armor as a weapon by maximizing the damage of armor-based weapons while withstanding enemy fire. You learn to increase the effectiveness of attacks made with your armor and to add equipment normally beyond your armor’s capacity.

Hammer Fist (1st)
You treat any unarmed attack you make while wearing heavy or powered armor as being made with a battleglove (see page 187) with an item level equal to or lower than your soldier level, and you calculate damage for these attacks as if you had the melee striker gear boost (see page 112). If you have the melee striker gear boost, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with your unarmed attacks when using this ability. These unarmed attacks don’t benefit from other abilities that apply specifically to unarmed attacks (such as the Improved Unarmed Strike feat).

Enhanced Tank (5th)
You gain the Powered Armored Proficiency feat and access to improved armor. This might be the result of your own engineering abilities, having earned the trust of contacts that can get you experimental equipment, or a powerful patron giving you gear not available to the general public to help you achieve mutual goals. You can add one more upgrade to your armor than its normal maximum number of upgrade slots. If you add this bonus upgrade to heavy armor, you can select an upgrade normally limited to powered armor. An upgrade placed in this bonus slot costs half the normal credit amount.

Smash Through (9th)
While you are wearing heavy armor or powered armor, you gain a +4 bonus to attack rolls to perform a bull rush combat maneuver (see page 246). If you successfully push the target back 10 feet or more, you can also damage the target with an unarmed attack (and can use your hammer fist ability when doing so).

Mobile Army (13th)
You become a master of all weapons associated with your armor. You deal 1d6 additional damage with any attack from a weapon that is part of your armor, including unarmed attacks using the hammer fist ability and weapons that have been attached to your armor as an armor upgrade. The additional damage is of the same type as the weapon’s normal type. Also, while wearing heavy or powered armor, you gain a +2 bonus to your KAC against combat maneuvers.

On the Bounce (17th)
You learn to control your armor with such ease, you are actually more maneuverable in it than out of it. While wearing heavy armor or powered armor, you can move up to your speed when you make a full attack. You can move before or after all your attacks, but not both. If you have the Shot on the Run feat, you can divide your movement to move both before and after making a full attack as long as all the attacks are ranged attacks. If you have the Spring Attack feat, you can divide your movement to move both before and after making a full attack as long as all the attacks are melee attacks. If you have both feats, your attacks can be any combination of melee and ranged attacks.

Blitz
The blitz fighting style is all about using speed and aggression to get into the thick of melee. You increase your speed and responsiveness, gain abilities that make you better at melee combat than your enemies, and keep on fighting even when surrounded by foes.

Rapid Response (1st)
You gain a +4 bonus to initiative checks and increase your land speed by 10 feet.

Charge Attack (5th)
As a standard action, you can make a charge without the charge penalties (see page 248), and you can substitute a bull rush for the melee attack at the end of the charge. When you gain the soldier’s onslaught class feature, you can make two attacks instead of one at the end of your charge, both with a –4 penalty.

Keep Fighting (9th)
As a move action, you can spend 1 Resolve Point to regain Stamina Points equal to 2d6 + your soldier level. You can’t use this ability again until after you regain Stamina Points from a 10-minute rest. The number of Stamina Points you regain increases by 1d6 at 10th level, 15th level, and 20th level.

Perfect Opportunity (13th)
When you hit a creature with an attack of opportunity, that creature can’t move out of the squares you threaten until the start of its next turn. In addition, when an enemy takes a guarded step (see page 247) out of a square you threaten, you can make an attack of opportunity against it with a –2 penalty to the attack roll. If the target provoked an attack of opportunity by moving, hitting with your attack of opportunity ends the target’s movement immediately, preventing it from carrying out the rest of its movement.

Against the Odds (17th)
You gain a bonus to melee damage rolls equal to double the number of enemies within 10 feet of you. Enemies who don’t constitute a significant threat (those with a CR equal to your level – 4 or less, or as determined by the GM) don’t count when calculating this bonus.

Bombard
The bombard fighting style emphasizes attacking multiple targets, often using grenades, and leverages substantial physical strength to control large weapons with significant recoil. At higher levels, you can use launchers, missiles, and other heavy weapons.

Grenade Expert (1st)
You increase the range increment of your thrown grenades by 5 × your Strength bonus. In addition, you’re able to salvage enough materials to create a grenade without paying for it. Creating a grenade takes 10 minutes. You can create any grenade whose item level is less than or equal to your soldier level, but this grenade is unstable and only you can use it effectively. If anyone else tries to use the grenade, it is a dud. You can have only one grenade created by this ability at one time (if you create a new grenade using this ability, the old grenade no longer works).

Heavy Fire (5th)
You can use your physical power to steady your weapon and make your attacks more dangerous. As a full action, you can make a single ranged attack that deals additional damage equal to your Strength bonus to all targets. You can use this ability in conjunction with the automatic, explode, or unwieldy special property (see pages 180–182).

Debilitating Attack (9th)
When you hit an enemy with a ranged attack or an attack with a weapon with the blast or explode special property, you can spend 1 Resolve Point to inflict a debilitating effect on that enemy for a number of rounds equal to your Strength bonus. You can choose to make the target deafened, flatfooted, or off-target (see pages 275–277), or to reduce its speeds by half (to a minimum of 10 feet). The target can negate this effect with a successful Fortitude save (DC = 10 + half your soldier level + your Strength modifier).

Explosives Acumen (13th)
You increase the DC to avoid attacks you make using weapons with the explode special property by 1. You reduce the amount of any damage you take from any weapon with the explode special property by an amount equal to your Strength bonus.

Impactful Attack (17th)
As a full action, you can make a ranged attack that knocks enemies back. Targets you hit are knocked back 5 feet from you. If you use a weapon with the explode special property, all targets that fail their saving throws are instead knocked back 5 feet from the center of the explosion. An enemy that you critically hit or that rolls a natural 1 on its saving throw is also knocked prone. You can’t make an impactful attack with an automatic weapon, but you can use this ability with a weapon that has the blast special property.

Fourfold Tactician
A fourfold tactician is a master of making use of multiple weapons and still having a spare hand. You must have four arms to select or use this fighting style.

Double Draw (1st)
You gain Double Draw as a bonus feat. If you have Double Draw, you can instead select a combat feat for which you meet the prerequisites. Starting at 9th level, you can draw or sheathe as many weapons as you have limbs, using the same action normally required to do so with one weapon.

Feint and Strike (5th)
While wielding at least two weapons, you can feint and make one attack as a standard action. This ability counts as Improved Feint for meeting prerequisites. If you have Improved Feint, you instead gain a +2 insight bonus to Deception checks to feint while you are wielding at least two weapons.

Instant Reload (9th)
You can expend 1 Resolve Point to reload every weapon you are wielding as a move action.

Run and Gun (13th)
While you are holding two or more weapons, you can move up to your speed before or after a full attack. You can’t move between attacks, and you can make no more than one attack with each weapon you are holding unless another ability, such as the Fusillade feat, allows you to do so.

Overkill (17th)
As a full attack, you can fire two automatic weapons in their automatic mode, taking the same penalty to attack rolls you normally do for making a full attack.

Guard
The guard fighting style focuses on defense. You become adept at wearing armor, protecting against attacks, and enduring damage and other setbacks from attacks that get through your defenses.

Armor Training (1st)
You reduce the armor check penalty of armor you wear by 1 (to a minimum of 0) and increase the maximum Dexterity bonus allowed by your armor by 1.

Guard's Protection (5th)
When an ally adjacent to you is damaged by an attack, you can use your reaction to intercede. You take half the damage, and your ally takes the other half. Any conditions delivered by the attack apply to both of you. In addition, you are now proficient with powered armor.

Rapid Recovery (9th)
You can spend Resolve Points to ignore detrimental conditions. As a move action, you can spend 1 Resolve Point to suppress one of the following conditions for 10 minutes: exhausted, fatigued, frightened, nauseated, shaken, sickened, or staggered (see pages 276–277). After 10 minutes, if the condition’s duration hasn’t ended, the condition’s effects return. You can suppress only one condition at a time; if you are both fatigued and shaken, you can avoid the effects of only one of them, and if you are affected by two different instances of the same condition, you’re still affected by the second one.

Kinetic Resistance (13th)
You gain DR 3/—. At 17th level, this DR increases to 5/—.

Impenetrable Defense (17th)
As a standard action, you can set up a strong defense for yourself and an adjacent ally. Until the start of your next turn, you gain three benefits: your damage reduction increases to DR 10/—; you and the chosen ally each gain a +4 bonus to AC; and if you use guard’s protection, you direct all the damage to yourself such that your ally takes none.

Hit-and-Run
The hit-and-run fighting style focuses on tactical movement as you move in and out of combat. You use ranged weapons but fight close up, and you can even mix ranged and melee attacks. Your abilities allow you to move even when you make full attacks and to avoid getting locked down by your enemies.

Opening Volley (1st)
You gain Opening Volley as a bonus feat. If you already have this feat, choose a bonus combat feat instead. At 9th level, you can use Opening Volley on both your first and second turns in combat.

Nimble Fusillade (5th)
When you make a full attack, you can also either take a guarded step or move up to half your speed. This movement can come before, between, or after your attacks, but it can’t be split up.

Duck and Weave (9th)
When you move or make a ranged attack, you can spend 1 Resolve Point to avoid provoking attacks of opportunity from that movement or ranged attack.

Elusive Target (13th)
On any turn in which you move, you gain a +1 insight bonus to your AC until the start of your next turn.

Harrying Shot (17th)
As a full action, you can make one attack and give the benefit of harrying fire (see page 247) against any creature you hit with that attack. If you use a blast weapon or automatic weapon, the benefit applies against all targets hit. You can also take your nimble fusillade movement before or after this attack.

Hunter
You’re a master of hunting all sorts of creatures, from big-game animals to runaway criminals and similar marks. You may use this expertise as a sniper, trophy hunter, sport enthusiast, or fugitive tracer. Far more focused on skills than other soldiers, your unique talents combine experience in the field with refined combat ability.

Hunter’s Expertise (1st)
You add Perception to your list of class skills, and you gain a free skill rank at each soldier level you can use only for Perception or Survival (this does not allow you to exceed the maximum number of skill ranks in a single skill). If you take the hunter fighting style as your secondary fighting style, you gain a free skill rank for these skills only at 9th level and at each soldier level gained thereafter.

Hunt Foe (5th)
As a move action, you can choose one opponent that you have line of sight to and that you are aware of and attempt a Survival check (DC = 15 + 1-1/2 × the creature’s CR). Alternatively you can attempt this skill check against a creature that you can’t see or aren’t aware of if you’ve discovered and identified a set of tracks belonging to the chosen creature that are within 30 feet of you. If you succeed, you gain a +1 insight bonus to damage rolls against the target, and to Bluff, Perception, Sense Motive, and Survival checks against them, as well as all skill checks to recall knowledge about them. The save DCs of your weapon attacks and soldier class abilities also increase by 1 against the target. You can maintain these bonuses against only one opponent at a time, and the bonuses remain in effect until your target is dead, you hunt a new target, or you end the effect without spending an action. If you fail the check to hunt your foe, you can’t attempt to hunt any creature again for 24 hours.

Fast Hunting (9th)
You take no penalty when using the Survival skill to find or follow tracks while moving at your full speed, and you reduce the penalty for finding or following tracks while moving twice your normal speed to –2.

Hunting Party (13th)
You can hunt two foes simultaneously using the hunt foe fighting technique, though each foe requires a separate move or swift action and a separate successful skill check to hunt. In addition, you can rally your allies to hunt your foes by spending 1 Resolve Point as a standard action, granting each ally within light of sight of you the benefits of your hunt foe style technique against your current designated target for 1 minute.

Peerless Hunter (17th)
You can hunt three foes simultaneously using the hunt foe fighting technique, though each foe requires a separate move or swift action and a separate successful skill check to hunt. In addition, you take no penalty to Survival checks for finding or following tracks at twice your normal speed.

Sharpshoot
The sharpshoot fighting style enables you to excel at making accurate attacks, usually with ranged weapons at a long distance. You can ignore cover and other impediments to your shots, and your attacks are improved by your intense focus.

Sniper's Aim (1st)
When you make a ranged attack against a target with cover, reduce the AC bonus from cover by 2. You can’t use sniper’s aim against an enemy with total cover.

Focus Fire (5th)
When you make a full attack with a ranged weapon, you can make both attacks with a –3 penalty instead of a –4 penalty as long as they both target the same creature. If your first attack kills or knocks out the target, you can instead make the second attack against a different creature at a –4 penalty. Once you have the soldier’s onslaught class feature (see page 112), you can use this ability with it, making three attacks against the same creature at a –5 penalty; if your first or second attack kills or knocks out your target, you can make your remaining attacks against a different creature at a –6 penalty.

Intense Focus (9th)
When you make a ranged attack against a target with cover or concealment, you can spend 1 Resolve Point to negate its AC bonus from cover and reduce its concealment by one category (from total concealment to concealment or from concealment to no concealment). This benefit applies to all ranged attacks you make against that target this round. You can’t use intense focus more than once per round, nor can you use it against an enemy with total cover.

Focused Damage (13th)
When you use focus fire, each attack against the first target deals 2d6 additional damage. Additional creatures you attack after killing or knocking out your first target don’t take this extra damage.

Prepared Shot (17th)
As a standard action, you can study a target before you attack. The target must be within line of sight of you and either flat-footed or unaware of your presence. On the first attack you make against that target on your next turn, you gain a +2 bonus to your attack roll. If your attack hits, the target is staggered for 1 round; if you score a critical hit, the target is instead stunned for 1 round. Once you make a prepared shot, you can’t use this ability again against the same target for 24 hours. You can’t make an attack on the same round you study the target, even if an ability would let you attack without spending a standard or full action.

Shock and Awe
The shock and awe fighting style excels at overwhelming enemies senses with overpowering auditory and visual stimuli. You can modify your weapons to issue thunderous booms or blazing flashes of light, at the same time mitigating these effects with regard to your own senses. This style is strongest with weapons that deal sonic damage or that affect an area.

Loud and Proud (1st)
You gain a +2 bonus to saving throws against effects that would blind or deafen you. Any weapon you wield that has the powered weapon special property or that uses ammunition gains the bright weapon special property; you can activate or deactivate this ability as a swift or move action. Bright weapons you wield gain the blind critical hit effect (see page 31) or the deafen critical hit effect (Core Rulebook 182). If your bright weapon already has a critical hit effect, when you score a critical hit, you apply either the weapon’s normal critical hit effect, the blind critical hit effect, or the deafen critical hit effect.

Awesome Cacophony (5th)
As a full action, you can make a single attack using a weapon that deals sonic damage or has the bright special property. After resolving the attack, as part of the full action you can attempt an Intimidate check to demoralize any one creature within 60 feet of you that the attack hit or damaged. You can spend 1 Resolve Point to instead attempt an Intimidate check to demoralize every creature within 60 feet of you that the attack hit or damaged.

Explosive Entrance (9th)
As a swift action on your first turn of combat or as a reaction after being subject to a critical hit, you can spend 1 Resolve Point to cause your armor, weapons, and other devices’ displays to flash with brilliant lights, blare loudly, or both. This causes all creatures within 10 feet of you to gain your choice of the flat-footed or off-target condition until the end of your next turn. A creature can negate this effect with a successful Fortitude save (DC = 10 + half your soldier level + your Strength modifier). At 15th level, you can affect all creatures within 15 feet of you.

Oppressive Cadence (13th)
When you make a full attack using a weapon that deals sonic damage or has the bright special property, your targets take a cumulative –1 penalty to saving throws against your critical hit effects for each of your previous attacks that hit that target since the beginning of your turn. When a target fails its save against your blind critical hit effect, it also takes 4d6 fire damage. When a target fails its save against your deafened critical hit effect, it also takes 4d6 sonic damage.

Crank It to Eleven (17th)
When attacking with a weapon that deals sonic damage or has the bright special property, you deal an amount of additional damage equal to your Strength modifier to targets with the blinded, deafened, or shaken condition.

Wrathful Warrior
The wrathful warrior style draws upon your emotions— specifically your rage and wrath—to enable devastating attacks. You may have trained yourself to intentionally overload your fight-or-flight adrenaline response, or may just come from a long line of berserker warriors. At higher levels, you’re able to use your anger to ignore damage and strike with impudence.

Frenzied Fighting (1st)
As a swift action, you can enter a frenzy that empowers your attacks and deadens you to fear and pain for a number of rounds equal to 1d4 + half your soldier level (rounded up). While frenzied, you gain a +2 bonus to melee damage rolls and Will saves, as well as a –1 penalty to AC. At 5th level and every 4 levels thereafter, the bonus to melee damage rolls granted by your frenzy increases by 1. While frenzied, you can’t use any ability that requires patience or concentration, or any Charisma-, Dexterity-, or Intelligence-based skills except Acrobatics, Intimidate, and Piloting. After your frenzy ends, you can’t use this ability again until after you rest for 10 minutes to regain Stamina Points.

Ignore Pain (5th)
Each time you use the frenzied fighting technique, you gain a number of temporary Hit Points equal to your soldier level. These temporary Hit Points are lost when your frenzy ends. You also gain a +4 bonus to saving throws against pain effects while frenzied.

Close Enough to Kill (9th)
Whenever you attempt an attack roll against an opponent while frenzied and miss, but your d20 roll is not a 1, you can spend 1 Resolve Point to treat the attack as a successful hit. This attack automatically deals minimum damage. For example, if you would normally deal 4d6+10 damage on a hit and use this ability, you would deal a total of 14 damage.

Shrug Off the Pain (13th)
Choose either kinetic damage or one of acid, cold, electricity, fire, or sonic. If you choose kinetic damage, you gain damage reduction equal to half your soldier level. If you choose acid, cold, electricity, fire, or sonic, you gain energy resistance against that type of energy equal to half your soldier level. If you have the Enhanced Resistance feat or later gain it, you must choose different damage types for each ability.

Adaptive Damage Reduction (17th)
As a swift action, or as a reaction whenever you take damage, you can change which type of damage your shrug off the pain ability applies to. This lasts until the next time you use this ability, but once you use adaptive damage reduction, you can’t do so again until you spend 1 Resolve Point to regain Stamina Points.