Swordsage

The Swordsage is a new base class introduced in the Tome of Battle. Like the Warblade and Crusader, the Swordsage is a Martial Adept Class. This means that they utilize the various boosts, counters, strikes and stances available in that book. Swordsages draw only from the Desert Wind, Diamond Mind, Setting Sun, Shadow Hand, Stone Dragon and Tiger Claw.

The Swordsage is granted several class features as it progresses. These class features primarily focus on improving the Swordsage's abilities with particular styles. The swordsage has the option of choosing different styles or focusing on specific styles.

The class's skill list is similar to the Rogue's and the Swordsage gains an above average number of skills per level.

The Swordsage generally focuses on melee combat and can utilize light armor. Despite it's name, many of the Swordsage's styles have unarmed strike available to them and the class can be very Monk-like if the player wishes to go that route. Of the three Martial Adept Classes, the Swordsage has the most cumbersome method of retrieving its various maneuvers. By spending a full round doing nothing the Swordsage may recover one maneuver. This is balanced by the Swordsage having the greatest number of maneuvers to choose from and the largest number of readied maneuvers available at any time. Additionally, by taking a feat the Swordsage can take a full round action to change (and therefore recover) all of his maneuvers.

No currently published race has Swordsage as a favored class.