Stavmester

Stav is a martial art form practiced by the Norse. It relies more on weapons than unarmed conflict and progresses in power through five levels of expertise, including trel, karl, herse, jarl, and konge. Each level has its own signature weapon and technique. A true stavmester has mastered all those weapons along with unarmed combat.

Stavmester Maneuvers

When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you learn maneuvers that are fueled by special dice called stav dice.

  • Maneuvers. You learn two maneuvers, stavtrel and stavkarl. Many maneuvers enhance an attack in some way. You can use only one maneuver per attack. You learn an additional maneuver of your choice at 7th, 10th, and 15th level. Stav maneuvers can only be used with the following weapons: battleaxe, club, greataxe, handaxe, javelin, longsword, shield, short sword, spear, longsword, and unarmed strike.
  • Stav Dice. You have four stav dice, which are d8s. A stav die is expended when you use it. You regain all of your expended stav dice when you finish a short or long rest. You gain another stav die at 7th level and one more at 15th level.

Stavtrel

Although it is in the initiate’s level, it is also the most difficult to learn. The humble weapon of a trel is the club, which offers no sharp edges to intimidate an opponent. As a result, the cudgel strikes only when it can have the most effect. The mindset of the trel is survival—he avoids conflict, but will fight to defend himself. At 3rd level, while you are wearing armor, you gain a +1 bonus to AC.

If you already have the defense fighting style, you can spend one stav die to increase the bonus to +2 for a number of rounds equal to the stav die roll.

Stavkarl

The karl is a member of the Nordic middle-class, including farmers and traders. The karl’s weapon of choice is the axe, a tool of great utility to the Norse for outdoor crafts and personal defense. The karl fights to protect his home and family; he draws a line and refuses to retreat from it. At 3rd level, when a creature you can see attacks a target other than you that is within 5 feet of you, you can use your reaction to impose disadvantage on the attack roll.

If you already have the protection fighting style, you can expend one stav die to add to an attack as a reaction against the attacker with your weapon.

Stavherse

The herse, or huscarl, is a warrior. His weapon of choice is the longsword. At 7th level, when you are wielding a stavmester weapon in one hand and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with that weapon. If you already have the dueling fighting style, you can spend one stav die to increase the damage bonus +3 for a number of rounds equal to the stav die roll.

Stavjarl

Jarls are the landowners and nobility of Nordic culture.

He maintains order by putting himself in the way of danger to defend others. His weapon of choice is the spear. At 10th level, when a creature you can see hits a target that is within 5 feet of you with an attack, you can use your reaction to reduce the damage the target takes by spending one stav die + your proficiency bonus (to a minimum of 0 damage). If you already have the interception fighting style, your stav die increases to d10.

Stavkonge

The konge is the king. It is a title that is indicates the stavmester has mastered the entire martial art spectrum. It is at this level that the konge learns to fight without any weapons at all. Starting at 15th level, you can expend one stav die to deal additional bludgeoning damage with your unarmed strikes + your Strength modifier. If you strike with two free hands, the d8 for the stav die increases to d10. When you successfully start a grapple, you can spend one stav die to add bludgeoning damage to the grappled creature. Until the grapple ends, you can also deal this damage to the creature whenever you hit it with a melee attack. If you already know the unarmed fighting style, have the grappler feat, or are also a monk the stav die damage increases to d12.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

5E RPG: Viking Adventures. Copyright 2020, Mal and Tal, LLC; Author Michael Tresca.