Duelist (Militant Subclass)

[Pheristroch]

The Duelist

The duelist is an individual who has devoted their life to the art of hand to hand combat. They are among the best of their number in the galaxy, yet in a time fraught with Sith and Jedi, the traditional masters of the sword, it takes more than skill, talent, and dedication to compete. Duelists always sport some kind of enhancement, be it cybernetic, biological, or pharmaceutical, along with the downsides such methods of bypassing one's limitations entail. In return, they can fight toe to toe with the Force wielding warriors of the galaxy. They are the cry of the mundane, an example of what dedication and sacrifice can achieve...as well as a grim reminder of the cost of seeking advantage at any price.

 

A canon representation of this class is General Grievous, a single-minded and skilled warrior who replaced his natural body with superior cybernetics in order to fight Jedi.

 

Tech Restrictions (in addition to Militant class): The Duelist is similar to the Guardian and Warrior, in that they cannot carry ranged weapons, the dedication necessary to perfect their skill in melee combat eclipsing any effort they might put into broadening their skillset.

A Duelist may use lightsabers, as their high level of skill and talent makes up for their lack of connection to the Force. However, they may not construct one, nor should they start with one. They may however start with melee weapons constructed of lightsaber-resistant material. Indeed, they are encouraged to branch out and become proficient in a wide range of melee weapons as their character develops, giving them additional options in a fight.

They may use armor if they choose, though many duelists prefer to retain their mobility and forgo bulky armor. Powered armor interferes with their enhancements, so they restrict themselves to more mundane armor. Gaining armor (or cybernetics) of lightsaber-resistant material is under the same restrictions as for Militant, and should never be considered to be so durable or all encompassing as to make a Duelist invulnerable. There's always a weak spot.

They share any other tech restrictions that the Militant has.

 

Enhancements

A Duelist at Grunt level is a highly skilled warrior, one of the best, but lacking any enhancements. Once they graduate from Grunt, they choose a path to push their body beyond its limits. Two paths are detailed below, cybernetics and the chemical enhancement SLV-99.

 

Cybernetics: 

A duelist who chooses the path of cybernetic enhancement prefers the tireless and unrelenting nature of steel in place of their own hard won muscle. A duelist who takes this road has access to combat grade cybernetics, mechanical replacements that not only match the strength and endurance of the original limb but surpass it. As a duelist progresses, they replace more and more of their body, some going so far as to completely remake it in favor of a mechanical edge.

Advantages:

• Increased Strength - The primary advantage of combat grade cybernetics is the incredible strength they provide. The limbs of a user can match the strongest wookie, and are tireless no matter how grueling the combat.

• Cognitive cybernetics - Strength alone isn't enough to compete with the superhuman reflexes of a Force user. To account for this, cranial enhancements loaded with combat programs and heuristic software feed the user prompts that allow them to respond to attacks quicker than any unaugmented mind would be able to. This allows them to keep pace with the lightning fast movements of their Force wielding opponents.

• Altered configuration (Legend only) - A duelist who has progressed far enough down this path finds that their body, even augmented, isn't the limit of the advantage cybernetics can offer. These fighters cross the line between enhancement and reconstruction, and begin making additions to their body. Extra limbs, additional sensors, and completely reconfigured body structures push the duelist to the peak of what machinery can accomplish.

Disadvantages:

• Malfunction - Cybernetics, like any machine, can fail at inopportune times, particularly when subjected to repeated abuse without receiving the proper care. Unfortunately a duelist cannot shrug off damage and power through the way they might with their natural, biological limbs. Once a cybernetic component is damaged, it's far less effective until the duelist has the opportunity to repair it. Cybernetic duelists are urged to pay careful attention to the damage they receive in a duel and how it affects their performance.

 

SLV-99:

The SLV-series serums were originally designed for use on enemy agents, breaking their wills or accessing their secrets through neurochemical manipulation. However, when a maintenance worker brainwashed by SLV-88 into being a sleeper agent managed to take down three Republic troopers with only a plasma torch, the concept of developing a variation of the serum for combat purposes began.

 

SLV-99, the end result of that project, weaponizes the user by pushing their mind beyond its natural limits for up to 2 hours depending on dosage. Those who've taken the serum compare its effects to the incredible focus and sense of "slowed time" one experiences in a moment of crisis, but amplified and sustained. However, it's far from the miracle drug some make it out to be, as the serum comes with severe limitations and consequences that keep it from widespread use.

 

Before a subject ever takes SLV-99 (by injection), there is the issue of compatibility. Only 2% of the human population is capable of using the serum in its base form. For the rest, the serum must be adjusted for their unique neurochemistry, or risk nausea, migraines, and/or death from brain hemorrhaging within seconds of injection. Those who use the serum learn how to make their particular blend.

 

Advantages:

• Increased Reaction Speed - To a user of SLV-99, time seems to move sluggishly, every second that passes feeling like four seconds to the user (making the max dose of two hours mentally exhausting). They can observe, process, and react faster than the best mundane fighter can.

• Dulled Pain - SLV-99 users feel pain, but it no longer carries the urgency it instinctually should. A user often pushes pain to the back of their mind until the serum wears off. While this can be a benefit, it can also be a hazard in battle when they push an injured limb to far and leave it completely useless.

• Peak Strength - While under the effects of the serum, a user's natural limitations on their physical capabilities are removed. This is a double-edged sword, as a user may end up fracturing their own bones or tearing their own muscles in an instant if they push too far. A user must be intimately aware of their own body's limitations, or they risk maiming or killing themselves in the heat of battle without an enemy touching them. This is how most would-be users die, wrenching their own spine in a dodge or bursting their own lungs with a deep breath.

• SLV-100 (Legend only) - After taking SLV-99 repeatedly, three of the original test subjects along with a control group were given a version of the serum with a catalyst added in. The control group died immediately, their brains leaking out their ears as cell walls broke down and liquefied. Two of the test subject group, their brains accustomed to SLV-99, survived for a few seconds before also dying as their autonomic nervous system shut down. One subject however, the one who tested highest with the original serum, was under the effects of the accelerated serum for 3.17 seconds, after which it burnt itself out. During this time, he stacked three wooden blocks edge-to-edge on a table, perfectly balanced. He reported experiencing a state of "near frozen time." Those three seconds had been like agonizing minutes to him. He'd needed to move incredibly carefully to avoid shattering his body with a hasty movement, and he could recall in perfect, excruciating accuracy every moment of that time. However, it had granted him superhuman precision as he processed detail never perceivable even under the effects of SLV-99. The catalyzed serum was then refined and diluted into a form that could be taken as a booster by those already under SLV-99. SLV-100 should only be taken by those who are already very accustomed to SLV-99, and the dose should *never* exceed 4 seconds. When a user takes it (usually through some patch already on their body), time seems to crawl for them. It should be emphasized that, like SLV-99, this does not actually speed up their body, and that they must be extra wary of exceeding their own limits or else break themselves in a moment's mistake. At least 10 minutes must pass after taking a dose of SLV-100 before they can safely receive another dose. Ignoring this and abusing SLV-100 usually results in the brain simply giving up, their heart, lungs, and everything else just stopping. 

 

Disadvantages:

• Mental Stress - A user has crisp, clear memories of every moment under the influence of SLV-99, always ready and available at a thought. Combine that with the fact that the experiences a duelist typically has under SLV-99 are not pleasant, and the added stress of each dose begins to add up.

• Physical degradation - Aside from the risk of self injury, a user who uses SLV-99 repeatedly subjects their body to extreme physical stress over and over, often without realizing it. This takes a toll, both immediately when it wears off as all the extreme effort they've subjected their body to comes crashing back, and long term as their body simply gives out under accumulated wear and tear.

• Withdrawal - As the drug wears off, the subject's mind turns sluggish, followed by every movement seeming painfully slow and feeble to their now unaugmented perception. This is coupled with an elevated stress level, even if there's no perceivable reason for it. For every hour a user spends under SLV-99, they must spend an hour in withdrawal (or take another dose for temporary relief and compound the issue afterwards, though they should still not exceed 2 hours total if they want to live through the experience).