Soldier

Stamina Points 7 + Constitution modifier, 7 HP

Conflict is an inevitable result of life. On every world that harbors complex living organisms, creatures battle one another for dominance, resources, territory, or ideals. Whether you’ve taken up arms to protect others, win glory, exact revenge, or simply earn a living, you are the perfect embodiment of this truth. You’re an expert at combat of all types but tend to prefer

heavy armor and weapons—the bigger, the better. You may be a career soldier, a fresh mercenary recruit, or a lone wolf who rejects authority, but whether rushing in for hand-to-hand combat or firing tactical barrages, you’re a consummate warrior, never hesitating to put yourself in the line of fire to protect your friends.

Key Ability Score

Your Strength helps you attack up close in melee and carry heavier weapons and armor, while your Dexterity helps you fire weapons from a distance and dodge returning fire, so you should choose either Strength or Dexterity as your key ability score. Once made, this choice cannot be changed. A high Constitution score allows you to soak up more damage.

Class Skills

Skill Ranks per Level
4 + Intelligence modifier

Acrobatics (Dex)
Athletics (Str)
Engineering (Int)
Intimidate (Cha)
Medicine (Int)
Piloting (Dex)
Profession (Cha, Int, or Wis)
Survival (Wis)

Proficiencies

Armor Proficiency
Light armor and heavy armor

Weapon Proficiency
Basic and advanced melee weapons, small arms, longarms, heavy weapons, sniper weapons, and grenades

Table 4-9: Soldier

Primary Fighting Style (1st Level)

You have a preferred fighting style that represents the type of soldier you are. Each fighting style is composed of various style techniques that you learn as you gain experience. You must pick one fighting style upon taking your first soldier level, and once made, this choice cannot be changed.

Primary Style Technique (1st Level)

At 1st level and every 4 levels thereafter, you gain a style technique unique to your primary fighting style.

Combat Feat (2nd Level)

At 2nd level and every 2 levels thereafter, you gain a bonus feat in addition to those gained from normal advancement. These bonus feats must be selected from those listed as combat feats.

Whenever you gain a new bonus feat, you can also choose to replace one of the bonus feats you have already learned with a different bonus feat. The feat you replace can’t be one that was used as a prerequisite for another feat or other ability. You can change only one feat at any given level, and you must choose whether or not to swap the feat at the time you gain the new bonus feat.

Gear Boost (3rd Level)

At 3rd level and every 4 levels thereafter, you learn a trick called a gear boost that make you better with a particular type of weapon or armor. Choose from the gear boosts listed below. Some gear boosts require you to reach a certain soldier level to select them; this level is indicated in parentheses after the boost’s name.

Armored Advantage (Ex)

• When you are wearing armor, you gain a +1 insight bonus to your Kinetic Armor Class.

Brutal Blast (Ex)

• You gain a +2 insight bonus to damage rolls with weapons that have the blast special property (such as a scattergun). This extra damage applies only to creatures within 10 feet of you; creatures farther away take the normal amount of damage. This bonus increases by 1 for every 4 soldier levels you have.

Bullet Barrage (Ex)

• You gain a +1 insight bonus to damage rolls for weapons in the projectile category. This bonus increases by 1 for every 4 soldier levels you have.

Laser Accuracy (Ex)

• You gain a +1 insight bonus to attack rolls with weapons in the laser category.

Melee Striker (Ex)

• Add an additional bonus equal to half your Strength bonus to damage rolls with melee weapons.

Weapon Specialization (Ex) (3rd Level)

You gain Weapon Specialization as a bonus feat for each weapon type this class grants you proficiency with.

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.

Arcane Assailant

The arcane assailant fighting style supplements its combat effectiveness with magic powers, drawing on traditions of warrior-wizards dating back to well before the Gap. This allows you to use magic runes to augment your weapons and call on legendary powers, giving you access to arcane options even when you don’t have a magic weapon in your possession.

Rune of the Eldritch Knight (Su) (1st Level)

• You can imbue a weapon with a magic sigil, the rune of the eldritch knight, allowing the weapon to act as a magic weapon for the purposes of bypassing DR and affecting incorporeal creatures. This takes 10 minutes, and you can imbue only a single weapon at a time. If you imbue a new weapon with the rune of the eldritch knight, any previously imbued weapon loses this benefit. When calculating the Hit Points and hardness of a weapon imbued with the rune of the eldritch knight, treat its item level as 5 higher.

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 (Ex) (1st Level)

• You treat any unarmed strike you make while wearing heavy or powered armor as being made with a battleglove 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. If you have the melee striker gear boost, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with your unarmed strikes when using this ability. These unarmed strikes don’t benefit from other abilities that apply specifically to unarmed strikes (such as the Improved Unarmed Strike feat).

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 (Ex) (1st Level)

• You gain a +4 bonus to initiative checks and increase your land speed by 10 feet.

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 (Ex) (1st Level)

• 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).

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 (Ex) (1st Level)

• 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.

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 (Ex) (1st Level)

• 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.

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 (Ex) (1st Level)

• 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.