The Warlord seems to be a popular suggestion for homebrews, and as a personal fan of the concept, I thought I'd have a go at trying to make my own. Since I'm never allowed to use homebrew in any of my games though, this will instead be an attempt to piece the Warlord's abilities together from currently existing classes. The thing that prompted me to try this idea was the introduction of the Order domain for Cleric in Guildmaster's Guide to Ravnica, who's first-level feature gives any ally that you target with a spell a free attack using only their reaction. This class feature brings the "giving your allies extra attacks" ability that was previously only available through the inefficient Commander's Strike Manuever. Here's a rough draft of the idea:
Fake Warlord: Half-elf Cleric(1)/Bard(6) Order Domain, College of Blades
Starting Stats 15+1 Str, 10 Dex, 12 Con, 8 Int, 13+1 Wis, 14+2 Cha
The bard isn't a perfect match flavor-wise, but we need the spell slots for Voice of Authority, and Bardic Inspiration could be refluffed as Warlord Inspiration. We have Extra attack, a fighting style (we're taking Dueling), longsword and heavy armor proficiency to help us fight on the front lines, and we can use a bonus action to cast Healing Word on our ally, not only restoring 1d4+3 hit points, but granting them an attack as their reaction.
For those of you who would prefer your Warlord to be a tough Fighter rather than a Bard, here's an alternative built around that class. Eldritch Knight is taken to have access to more spell slots, since Healing Word will once again be our enabler. It's weaker in this build, since it works of our lower Wisdom, but it still allows us to grant our ally a free attack.
Human Cleric(1)/Fighter(6) Order Domain, Eldritch Knight
15+1 Strength, 9+1 Dexterity, 11+1 Constitution, 15+1 Intelligence, 13+1 Wisdom, 8+1 Charisma
Compared to the bard, We're tougher, smarter, and better at weapon-based combat, but we give up most of our spellcasting abilities. If you wanted to stick with Charisma, I'd recommend a Cleric(1)/Paladin(6) (Any oath works) with the same stats as the Bard build.
You could also go Cleric(1)/Fighter(3)/Bard(x) if you know your campaign will reach higher levels. This gives you Action Surge and a second Fighting Style, plus allows you to take Battle Master if you still want Commander's Strike while also having enough spell slots to enable with Healing Word. If you don't want two primary stats, you can dip one level in Hexblade as well for a spell slot that recharges on a short rest plus the ability to attack with your Charisma
Fake Warlord: Half-elf Cleric(1)/Bard(6) Order Domain, College of Blades
Starting Stats 15+1 Str, 10 Dex, 12 Con, 8 Int, 13+1 Wis, 14+2 Cha
The bard isn't a perfect match flavor-wise, but we need the spell slots for Voice of Authority, and Bardic Inspiration could be refluffed as Warlord Inspiration. We have Extra attack, a fighting style (we're taking Dueling), longsword and heavy armor proficiency to help us fight on the front lines, and we can use a bonus action to cast Healing Word on our ally, not only restoring 1d4+3 hit points, but granting them an attack as their reaction.
For those of you who would prefer your Warlord to be a tough Fighter rather than a Bard, here's an alternative built around that class. Eldritch Knight is taken to have access to more spell slots, since Healing Word will once again be our enabler. It's weaker in this build, since it works of our lower Wisdom, but it still allows us to grant our ally a free attack.
Human Cleric(1)/Fighter(6) Order Domain, Eldritch Knight
15+1 Strength, 9+1 Dexterity, 11+1 Constitution, 15+1 Intelligence, 13+1 Wisdom, 8+1 Charisma
Compared to the bard, We're tougher, smarter, and better at weapon-based combat, but we give up most of our spellcasting abilities. If you wanted to stick with Charisma, I'd recommend a Cleric(1)/Paladin(6) (Any oath works) with the same stats as the Bard build.
You could also go Cleric(1)/Fighter(3)/Bard(x) if you know your campaign will reach higher levels. This gives you Action Surge and a second Fighting Style, plus allows you to take Battle Master if you still want Commander's Strike while also having enough spell slots to enable with Healing Word. If you don't want two primary stats, you can dip one level in Hexblade as well for a spell slot that recharges on a short rest plus the ability to attack with your Charisma
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