Fighter

Overview & Creation

Well-Rounded Specialists Fighters learn the basics of all combat styles. Every fighter can swing an axe, fence with a rapier, wield a longsword or a greatsword, use a bow, and even trap foes in a net with some degree of skill. Likewise, a fighter is adept with shields and every form of armour. Beyond that basic degree of familiarity, each fighter specializes in a certain style of combat. Some concentrate on archery, some on fighting with two weapons at once, and some on augmenting their martial skills with magic. This combination of broad general ability and extensive specialization makes fighters superior combatants on battlefields and in dungeons alike.   Trained for Danger Not every member of the city watch, the village militia, or the queen’s army is a fighter. Most of these troops are relatively untrained soldiers with only the most basic combat knowledge. Veteran soldiers, military officers, trained bodyguards, dedicated knights, and similar figures are fighters.   Some fighters feel drawn to use their training as adventurers. The dungeon delving, monster slaying, and other dangerous work common among adventurers is second nature for a fighter, not all that different from the life he or she left behind. There are greater risks, perhaps, but also much greater rewards—few fighters in the city watch have the opportunity to discover a magic flame tongue sword, for example.

Class Features

Fighting Style You adopt a particular style of fighting as your specialty. Choose one of the following options. You can’t take a Fighting Style option more than once, even if you later get to choose again.   Archery You gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls you make with ranged weapons.   Defence While you are wearing armour, you gain a +1 bonus to AC.   Duelling When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with that weapon.   Great Weapon Fighting When you roll a 1 or 2 on a damage die for an attack you make with a melee weapon that you are wielding with two hands, you can reroll the die and must use the new roll, even if the new roll is a 1 or a 2. The weapon must have the two-handed or versatile property for you to gain this benefit.   Protection 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. You must be wielding a shield.   Two-Weapon Fighting When you engage in two-weapon fighting, you can add your ability modifier to the damage of the second attack.   Second Wind You have a limited well of stamina that you can draw on to protect yourself from harm. On your turn, you can use a bonus action to regain hit points equal to 1d10 + your fighter level. Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.   Action Surge Starting at 2nd level, you can push yourself beyond your normal limits for a moment. On your turn, you can take one additional action.   Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again. Starting at 17th level, you can use it twice before a rest, but only once on the same turn.   Martial Archetype At 3rd level, you choose an archetype that you strive to emulate in your combat styles and techniques. Choose Champion, Battle Master, or Eldritch Knight, all detailed at the end of the class description. The archetype you choose grants you features at 3rd level and again at 7th, 10th, 15th, and 18th level.   Ability Score Improvement When you reach 4th level, and again at 6th, 8th, 12th, 14th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can’t increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.   Using the optional feats rule, you can forgo taking this feature to take a feat of your choice instead.   Extra Attack Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.   The number of attacks increases to three when you reach 11th level in this class and to four when you reach 20th level in this class.   Indomitable Beginning at 9th level, you can reroll a saving throw that you fail. If you do so, you must use the new roll, and you can’t use this feature again until you finish a long rest.   You can use this feature twice between long rests starting at 13th level and three times between long rests starting at 17th level.   Extra Attack Beginning at 11th level, you can attack three times, instead of twice, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.   The number of attacks increases to four when you reach 20th level in this class.   Extra Attack At 20th level, you can attack four times, instead of three, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

Starting Equipment

You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:  

• (a) chain mail or (b) leather armour, longbow, and 20 arrows

• (a) a martial weapon and a shield or (b) two martial weapons

• (a) a light crossbow and 20 bolts or (b) two handaxes

• (a) a dungeoneer’s pack or (b) an explorer’s pack

Subclass Options

Cavalier The archetypal Cavalier excels at mounted combat. Usually born among the nobility and raised at court, a Cavalier is equally at home leading a cavalry charge or exchanging repartee at a state dinner. Cavaliers also learn how to guard those in their charge from harm, often serving as the protectors of their superiors and of the weak. Compelled to right wrongs or earn prestige, many of these fighters leave their lives of comfort to embark on glorious adventures.   Cavalier Features Fighter Level Feature 3rd Bonus Proficiency, Born to the Saddle, Unwavering Mark 7th Warding Maneuver 10th Hold the Line 15th Ferocious Charger 18th Vigilant Defender Bonus Proficiency When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you gain proficiency in one of the following skills of your choice: Animal Handling, History, Insight, Performance, or Persuasion. Alternatively, you learn one language of your choice.   Born to the Saddle Starting at 3rd level, your mastery as a rider becomes apparent. You have advantage on saving throws made to avoid falling off your mount. If you fall off your mount and descend no more than 10 feet, you can land on your feet if you’re not incapacitated.   Finally, mounting or dismounting a creature costs you only 5 feet of movement, rather than half your speed.   Unwavering Mark Starting at 3rd level, you can menace your foes, foiling their attacks and punishing them for harming others. When you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack, you can mark the creature until the end of your next turn. This effect ends early if you are incapacitated or you die, or if someone else marks the creature.   While it is within 5 feet of you, a creature marked by you has disadvantage on any attack roll that doesn’t target you.   In addition, if a creature marked by you deals damage to anyone other than you, you can make a special melee weapon attack against the marked creature as a bonus action on your next turn. You have advantage on the attack roll, and if it hits, the attack’s weapon deals extra damage to the target equal to half your fighter level.   Regardless of the number of creatures you mark, you can make this special attack a number of times equal to your Strength modifier (minimum of once), and you regain all expended uses of it when you finish a long rest.   Warding Maneuver At 7th level, you learn to fend off strikes directed at you, your mount, or other creatures nearby. If you or a creature you can see within 5 feet of you is hit by an attack, you can roll 1d8 as a reaction if you’re wielding a melee weapon or a shield. Roll the die, and add the number rolled to the target’s AC against that attack. If the attack still hits, the target has resistance against the attack’s damage.   You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Constitution modifier (minimum of once), and you regain all expended uses of it when you finish a long rest.   Hold the Line At 10th level, you become a master of locking down your enemies. Creatures provoke an opportunity attack from you when they move 5 feet or more while within your reach, and if you hit a creature with an opportunity attack, the target’s speed is reduced to 0 until the end of the current turn.   Ferocious Charger Starting at 15th level, you can run down your foes, whether you’re mounted or not. If you move at least 10 feet in a straight line right before attacking a creature and you hit it with the attack, that target must succeed on a Strength saving throw (DC 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Strength modifier) or be knocked prone. You can use this feature only once on each of your turns.   Vigilant Defender Starting at 18th level, you respond to danger with extraordinary vigilance. In combat, you get a special reaction that you can take once on every creature’s turn, except your turn. You can use this special reaction only to make an opportunity attack, and you can’t use it on the same turn that you take your normal reaction.   Champion The archetypal Champion focuses on the development of raw physical power honed to deadly perfection. Those who model themselves on this archetype combine rigorous training with physical excellence to deal devastating blows.   Improved Critical Beginning when you choose this archetype at 3rd level, your weapon attacks score a critical hit on a roll of 19 or 20.   Remarkable Athlete Starting at 7th level, you can add half your proficiency bonus (round up) to any Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution check you make that doesn’t already use your proficiency bonus.   In addition, when you make a running long jump, the distance you can cover increases by a number of feet equal to your Strength modifier.   Additional Fighting Style At 10th level, you can choose a second option from the Fighting Style class feature.   Archery You gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls you make with ranged weapons.   Defence While you are wearing armour, you gain a +1 bonus to AC.   Duelling When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with that weapon.   Great Weapon Fighting When you roll a 1 or 2 on a damage die for an attack you make with a melee weapon that you are wielding with two hands, you can reroll the die and must use the new roll, even if the new roll is a 1 or a 2. The weapon must have the two-handed or versatile property for you to gain this benefit.   Protection 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. You must be wielding a shield.   Two-Weapon Fighting When you engage in two-weapon fighting, you can add your ability modifier to the damage of the second attack.   Superior Critical Starting at 15th level, your weapon attacks score a critical hit on a roll of 18–20.   Survivor At 18th level, you attain the pinnacle of resilience in battle. At the start of each of your turns, you regain hit points equal to 5 + your Constitution modifier if you have no more than half of your hit points left. You don’t gain this benefit if you have 0 hit points.   The Great Shield Knight The Great shield Knight is an amazing defender and asset to the team, bringing a walking fortress onto the battlefield and drawing fire. Great Shield Knights work best when in the thick of it, may be assisted by a Paladin with an aura or Druid reinforcing them with buffs. The GSK does not necessarily need to be a "knight" like with the human woman, they can just be dutiful defenders or maybe a coward that ended up learning how to bash really hard from behind the cover of a shield. Also using the shield as a "weapon" is not required, the buffs and passives work as long as you have it currently equipped, but you will lose the benefits if you wield heavy arms or anything that requires both hands or being restrained, immobilized etc.   Weaponized Shield At level 3: you have gained the ability to attack with your shield. Your shield does 1d6 damage, you are proficient with it and uses your STR modifier. With your shield, you can use STR instead of your DEX on DEX based saving throws.   Bulwark At level 3: You have gained the ability to defend your allies in battle, allies within 5 ft of you have +2 AC and when defending against Dragon Breath Attacks/Fireballs (other DEX based saves) your allies gain advantage on DEX saves if they are within a 15 cone behind you. You have continued to show yourself as the pillar of strength,   Shield Expertise At level 7: You have become aware of your allies needing assistance. As a reaction, you can run 15ft feet and defend an ally. You impose disadvantage on your attacker and if they hit, they strike you instead. Also, your "Weaponized Shield" shield damage is increased to a D8.   Walking Fortress At level 10: You have bolstered your defence, you gain an additional +1 AC when wearing a shield. Your Bulwark ability gives your allies an additional +1 AC and the cone behind you increases to 30ft. You also gain the ability to overpower your enemies with your shield. You gain advantage on STR checks/saves while wearing a shield.   Spell Ward At level 15: When being targeted by a spell, you may use a reaction to attempt to reflect the spell. Roll a D20 1-10 spell targets you as normal, 11-17 You reduce the damage taken by a quarter (if it has damage) if there is no damage you gain advantage against the spell save, 18-20 you reduce the damage by half, (if there is damage) if there is no damage you automatically save against the spell. You may only use this feature 3 times per long rest.   Defender Supreme At 20th level: Your "Spell Ward" now can reflect spells onto the attacker, on 18-20 the spell is absorbed into your shield and is re-cast onto the attacker, using their Spell Save DC. Your "Bulwark" ability increases its effective distance to a 45-foot cone. Your "Shield expertise" when used gives your defended ally temp HP equal to half your fighter level. Finally, your "Weaponized Shield" shield damage is now a d10.