D&D 5E STR and DEX fighter stupid?

[Xeviat]

By forgoing Heavy armor, you'll effectively take a -1 AC penalty in the end, if you have a Dex of 14 at least, but you will get no stealth penalty and higher initiative, so it has its trade offs. I'm a rather lenient DM, and I'd be willing to give a little something to "give up" your heavy armor proficiency, since you aren't getting anything out of it with a Dex of 14.

Not that you can't use the heavy armor with a Dex of 14; then you're getting better Dex saves and Initiative, which can be nice, but I'd probably rather have the higher HP and Con saves. I think Con is overpowered, though, only because it feels too bad to have it be low.

 

[bedir than]

Stealth is one reason one might choose medium armor and a STR/DEX mix. As well as some multiclassing/feat options. Not a particularly efficient choice, but...

But it's a decent character concept and a bad rolling concept. Stories of characters with some armor but not great armor that strike fast then hard abound. It's the charge of the light brigade (hopefully you don't die like they did) style. Putting a high STR/DEX character into a nautical theme and it makes even more sense. That's the Mariner fighting style.

http://media.wizards.com/2015/downloads/dnd/UA_Waterborne_v3.pdf

It could also be a decent thug type that hangs with Rogues. Do the stealthy stuff as they are picking locks and then smash the town guard that comes along. On a latter mission you are the lookout, again hidden, and you pick off the competition with your longbow.

There are builds that are more effective at dealing damage in close and their are builds that are better at doing damage from a distance. This is a way to do a little bit of both, and there are some fun characters built out of it.

So do it. Have fun with your idea.

 

[Dausuul]

You get a bonus for being proficient with a weapon, but you are not barred from using a weapon (or tools) you are un-proficient with.

Fighters are proficient with every weapon on the list.

 

[Momar]

Bullocks. The system isn't to blame here because not every single concept is optimized against each other. You're also mistaken that quick reflexes (DEX) doesn't help much with heavy armor or weapons because it still impacts initiative no matter what, and with the high number of times your PC needs to make an ability check or saving throw, each ability score is important. Your definition of "reasonable character design choice" certainly doesn't seem to be the same as most people I know, if you think 5e doesn't support "reasonable character choices".

What else could possibly be to blame for it? The way the system is set up taking both STR and DEX as high stats versus either of the two and CON isn't a good choice from a power perspective (given resource scarcity). Maybe you don't particularly care about that, but there's no way that isn't the system's fault. As for character design choices, weren't you the one who brought up a bulky swashbuckler (Porthos?). Do the people you game with never take inspiration from media?

 

[MG.0]

But it's a decent character concept and a bad rolling concept. Stories of characters with some armor but not great armor that strike fast then hard abound. It's the charge of the light brigade (hopefully you don't die like they did) style. Putting a high STR/DEX character into a nautical theme and it makes even more sense. That's the Mariner fighting style.

Light and medium armor fighting types are great in a nautical setting.

Heavy armor wearing characters in a nautical setting are generally known by the more colloquial name of "anchors".

 

[Sacrosanct]

What else could possibly be to blame for it? The way the system is set up taking both STR and DEX as high stats versus either of the two and CON isn't a good choice from a power perspective (given resource scarcity). Maybe you don't particularly care about that, but there's no way that isn't the system's fault.

How about nothing? Why does there have to be blame anywhere? Just because a particular game doesn't do something that fits your personal preferences 100%, doesn't mean that game is doing anything wrong or built badly. That's not a system's fault because it wasn't catered to your particular preference. D&D is built for hundreds of thousands of gamers. Not just powergamers. In fact, I'd posit powergamers are the small minority.

As for character design choices, weren't you the one who brought up a bulky swashbuckler (Porthos?). Do the people you game with never take inspiration from media?

Yeah, and? Not sure what your point is here. Are you trying to say that people who want to play a STR & DEX based theme (like Porthos) can't do it? Or are punished in some way? If so, I'd disagree strongly with that, because again, D&D isn't meant to be a game for powergamers, and lots of people (myself and everyone I know) have been having fun for decades playing the theme they want, even if they aren't maximized PCs. We certainly don't feel punished. The very thought of, "Man, I'd really like to play this type of PC, but if I do I miss out on an extra +1 to my attack rolls down the road so I can't do it" is incredibly alien to me for a game that is all about using your imagination. Especially since giving up on what you want to play for a 5% difference seems a pretty hyperbolic and extreme reaction to take. It's a game about pretend and taking on roles, not analyzing spreadsheets. There's WoW for that if that's your bag. I take that back. You can play D&D for that too, but it's not designed to cater to that, and therefore certainly can't be blamed for that.

 

[Dausuul]

I could certainly see a build that combines, say, maxed-out Strength with 14 Dex and 14 Con, for a medium-armored Strength fighter who's reasonably stealthy and can use a bow effectively if not spectacularly.

However, the question was about Dex as the secondary stat, and I couldn't see going above 14 Dex with this build - I would boost Con, and then maybe Wis, but not Dex. (Medium Armor Mastery is a sad, sad waste of a feat.)

 

[krakistophales]

Thats exactly what I mean. Medium armor master is a waste of a feat, and therefore the small bonuses from dex as 14 are far outweighed by having, say, 14 wis if only for the saves and the skill proficiencies.

 

[Sacrosanct]

Thats exactly what I mean. Medium armor master is a waste of a feat, and therefore the small bonuses from dex as 14 are far outweighed by having, say, 14 wis if only for the saves and the skill proficiencies.

I admit I don't get this, because even without the added AC bonus, you still get initiative bonuses, prof bonuses, and saving throw bonuses. You also have the added bonuses for those times when you're attacking with a ranged weapon

 

[Dausuul]

Thats exactly what I mean. Medium armor master is a waste of a feat, and therefore the small bonuses from dex as 14 are far outweighed by having, say, 14 wis if only for the saves and the skill proficiencies.

Really? I'm not seeing it. If you consider 14 Dex/10 Wis versus 10 Dex/14 Wis, you're looking at +2 to initiative, Stealth, and bow attack/damage (when you fall back on the bow) versus +2 to Perception and Insight. Wis saves are slightly more important than Dex saves, but the difference is not huge. Perception and Stealth are both very valuable; initiative is better than Insight; being able to pull out a bow is a useful backup option. Seems like a wash.

Furthermore, there is a key difference between Stealth and Perception which tilts things in favor of Stealth for a non-specialist PC. When the party is trying to sneak, the only Stealth check that matters is the worst one in the party. But when the party is trying to detect something, the only Perception check that matters is the best one*; and when using passive Perception, the non-specialist can't contribute at all. Thus, it is better for everyone to have a medium-good Stealth than for one person to have godlike Stealth, and better for one person to have godlike Perception than for everyone to have medium-good.

14 is not a huge investment, stat-wise. It's when you go for 16 that you start paying a heavy price.

[size=-2]*Except during an ambush/surprise situation. But in that case, initiative is also of vital importance.[/size]