Some tonkins focus upon their tonberry aspects to wield a knife with mastery. The knife master is a trained killer who specializes in close-up combat and the wave and weave of knife fighting. In its hands, daggers and other similar light blades become truly deadly instruments.
The knife master is an archetype of the thief class, available only to tonkin thieves.
Archetype Main Ability Scores:
The knife master mainly focuses on DEX for martial combat, INT for their class features, and DEX, WIS, and CHA for optional class features.
Archetype Feature Replacements:
1st – Weapon Proficiencies, Mark, Sneak Attack. 3rd – Danger Sense. 20th – Master Strike.
Weapon Proficiencies
A knife master is only proficient with a brass knife, dagger, butterfly knife, deer horn knife, dueling dagger, kerambit, kukri, kunai, punching dagger, sea-knife, spring blade, starknife, switchblade knife, swordbreaker dagger, and war razor.
This ability modifies and replaces the thief’s starting weapon proficiencies.
Hidden Blade (Ex)
At 1st level, a knife master adds half of its level on Sleight of Hand checks made to conceal a brass knife, dagger, butterfly knife, deer horn knife, dueling dagger, kerambit, kukri, kunai, punching dagger, sea-knife, spring blade, starknife, switchblade knife, swordbreaker dagger, or war razor.
This ability replaces mark.
Sneak Stab (Ex)
A knife master focuses its ability to deal sneak attack damage with daggers and similar weapons to such a degree that it can deal more sneak attack damage with those weapons at the expense of sneak attacks with other weapons. When it makes a sneak attack with a brass knife, dagger, butterfly knife, deer horn knife, dueling dagger, kerambit, kukri, kunai, punching dagger, sea-knife, spring blade, starknife, switchblade knife, swordbreaker dagger, or war razor, it uses d8s to roll sneak attack damage instead of d6s. For sneak attacks with all other weapons, it uses d4s instead of d6s.
This ability is identical in all other ways to sneak attack, and supplements that ability.
Blade Sense (Ex)
At 3rd level, a knife master is so skilled in combat involving light bladed or piercing weapons that, he gains a +1 dodge bonus to AC while wearing light or no armor. Anything that causes the knife master to lose his Dexterity bonus to AC also causes him to lose this dodge bonus. This bonus increases by +1 for every three levels, to a maximum of +6 at 18th level.
This ability replaces danger sense.
Chef’s Knife (Ex)
At 20th level, a knife master masters the technique of his ancestors. As a standard action, the knife master can make a single melee attack with a brass knife, dagger, butterfly knife, deer horn knife, dueling dagger, kerambit, kukri, kunai, punching dagger, sea-knife, spring blade, starknife, switchblade knife, swordbreaker dagger, or war razor. If struck, the target must make a Fortitude save (DC 20 + his Intelligence modifier) or be reduced to -1 hp, stabilized and unconscious. Those who are immune to critical hits are immune to this.
This ability replaces master strike.
Thief Talents
The following thief talents complement the knife master archetype: befuddling strike, offensive defense, surprise attack, and underhanded.
Advanced Thief Talents
The following advanced thief talents complement the knife master archetype: another day, confounding blades, deadly sneak, entanglement of blades, and unwitting ally.
