Escrima!? :D

Originally I wanted to go for tonfas, but when I looked at my bard, he didn't quite have the physique to really handle the more up-close and personal fighting style of them, but with Escrima sticks, he can still get a melee option while keeping out of arm's reach. With a bit of fancy tech he can combined them into staffs (The sticks aren't collapsible). Back when I took martial arts, fighting against a stick was harder than a knife. At least you know the effective distance of a knife; too close. Three feet of wood is all the difference between being able to land a hit on your enemy and eating a face full of stick. Repeatedly. [i]And the jabbing[/i]!