Arcknight
The Arcknight
| Level | Proficiency Bonus | Features | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th |
|---|
| 1st | +2 | Eldritch Ward, Imbued Weapon | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2nd | +2 | Fighting Style, Spell Strike | 2 | — | — | — | — |
| 3rd | +2 | Arcane Study, Magic Sense | 3 | — | — | — | — |
| 4th | +2 | Ability Score Improvement | 3 | — | — | — | — |
| 5th | +3 | Extra Attack | 4 | 2 | — | — | — |
| 6th | +3 | Arcane Protection | 4 | 2 | — | — | — |
| 7th | +3 | Arcane Study feature | 4 | 3 | 2 | — | — |
| 8th | +3 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | 3 | 2 | — | — |
| 9th | +4 | — | 4 | 3 | 2 | — | — |
| 10th | +4 | Magic Resistance | 4 | 3 | 2 | — | — |
| 11th | +4 | Improved Spell Strike, Arcane Study feature | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — |
| 12th | +4 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — |
| 13th | +5 | — | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — |
| 14th | +5 | Spell Siphon | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — |
| 15th | +5 | Arcane Study feature | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — |
| 16th | +5 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — |
| 17th | +6 | — | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| 18th | +6 | Battle Caster | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| 19th | +6 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| 20th | +6 | Master of Battle Magic | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
Class Features
As an arcknight, you gain the following class features.
Hit Points
Hit Dice: 1d10 per arcknight level
Hit Points at 1st-Level: 10 + your Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d10 (or 6) + your Constitution modifier per arcknight level after 1st
Proficiencies
Armor: All armor, shields
Weapons: Simple weapons, martial weapons
Tools: None
Saving Throw: Constitution, Intelligence
Skills: Choose two from Acrobatics, Arcana, Athletics, History, Insight, and Nature
Equipment
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:
- (a) studded leather armor or (b) scale mail or (c) chainmail
- (a) a martial weapon and a shield or (b) two martial weapons
- (a) five spears or (b) any simple melee weapon
- (a) dungeoneer's pack or (b) explorer's pack
- an arcane focus of your choice
Eldritch Ward
At 1st level, your arcane power allows for you to protect you with a magic shield. As an action, you can give yourself or a creature you touch an amount of temporary hit points equal to your Intelligence modifier plus your arcknight level (minimum of one temporary hit point). While a creature has these temporary hit points, they do not make Concentration checks against damage, as long as they still have at least one temporary hit point after all the damage is dealt.
You may use this feature an amount of times equal to your proficiency bonus, regaining all expended uses when you finish a long rest.
Imbued Weapon
Starting at level 1, your combat magic causes you to have a permanent bond with a melee weapon you hold. When you finish a long rest, you can form an arcane connection with a melee weapon of your choice that you are holding. This bond lasts until you dismiss this effect and imbue another weapon you touch as an action, the weapon is destroyed, or until you finish a long rest.
An imbued weapon cannot leave your hand without you being willing, it counts as a magic weapon for the purposes of ignoring damage resistances and immunities, if it wasn't already, and counts as a spellcasting focus for your arcknight spells. Additionally, if the weapon was a magic weapon that required attunement, you automatically are attuned to it, not counting against the total amount of items you may be attuned to.
Fighting Style
At 2nd level, you adopt a 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 one again.
Arcane Warrior
You learn two cantrips of your choice from the wizard spell list. They count as arcknight spells for you, and Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for them. Whenever you gain a level in this class, you can replace one of these cantrips with another cantrip from the wizard spell list.
Blind Fighting
You gain blindsight out to a range of 10 feet.
Defense
While you are wearing armor, you gain a +1 bonus to AC.
Dueling
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 dice for an attack you make with a melee weapon that you are wielding with two hands, you can reroll the dice and must use the new roll. The weapon must have the two-handed or versatile property for you to gain this benefit.
Thrown Weapon Fighting
You can draw a weapon that has the thrown property as part of the attack you make with the weapon. In addition, when you hit with a ranged attack using a thrown weapon, you gain a +2 bonus to the damage roll.
Two-Weapon Fighting
When you engage in two-weapon fighting, you can add your ability modifier to the damage of the second attack.
Spellcasting
By 2nd level, you have learned how to draw on arcane magic through studying and training in the arcane art, gaining the ability to cast spells. You can channel your spells through magical items, and use your weapons to focus your arcane spells.
Preparing and Casting Spells
The Arcknight table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells. To cast one of your arcknight spells of 1st-level or higher. You regain all spells slots when you finish a long rest.
You prepare the list of arcknight spells that are available for you to cast, choosing from the arcknight spell list. When you do so, choose a number of arcknight spells equal to your Intelligence modifier + half your arcknight level, rounded down (minimum of one spell). The spells must be of a level for which you have spell slots.
For example, if you are a 5th-level arcknight, you have four 1st-level and two 2nd-level spell slots. With an Intelligence of 14, your list of prepared spells can include four spells of 1st or 2nd level, in any combination. If you prepare the 1st-level spell
burning hands, you can cast it using a 1st-level or a 2nd-level slot. Casting the spell doesn't remove it from your list of prepared spell.
You can change your list of prepared spell when you finish a long rest. Preparing a new list of arcknight spells requires time spent in study: at least 1 minute per spell level for each spell on your list.
Spellcasting Ability
Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for your arcknight spells, since their power derives from the devotion to your arcane training. You use your Intelligence whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Intelligence modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a arcknight spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.
Spell save DC = 8 _ your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier
Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier
Arcknight Spell List
Here's the list of spells you consult when you learn a arcknight spell. The list is organized by spell level, not by character level.
These spells are from the
Player's Handbook. If a spell's name is followed by an asterisk, the spell is instead Xanathar's Guide to Everything.
1st Level
absorb elements*
burning hands
chromatic orb
detect magic
expeditious retreat
feather fall
frost fingers
ice knife*
identity
jim's magic missile
jump
magic missile
shield
thunderwave
witch bolt
2nd Level
acid arrow
aganazzer's scorcher*
alter self
blur
dragon's breath*
earthbind*
enlarge/reduce
flaming sphere
hold person
levitate
magic weapon
maximilian's earthen grasp*
melf's acid arrow
misty step
phantasmal force
scorching ray
shadow blade*
shatter
3rd Level
bestow curse
blink
counterspell
dispel magic
erupting earth*
fear
fireball
fly
haste
lightning bolt
melf's minute meteors*
slow
thunder step*
vampiric touch
4th Level
banishment
blight
dimension door
elemental bane
fire shield
ice storm
intellect fortress
leomund's secret chest
mordenkainen's faithful hound
otiluke's resilient sphere
phantasmal killer
sickening radiance*
vitriolic sphere*
wall of fire
watery sphere*
5th Level
bigby's hand
cloudkill
cone of cold
dawn*
dominate person
enervation*
far step*
hold monster
immolation*
steel wind strike*
synaptic static*
telekinesis
wall of force
wall of light*
Spell Strike
At level 2, you can imbue magic weapons you hold with your spells. When you cast a arcknight spell that has a casting time of an action that targets another creature with a harmful effect or creates an area of effect, you can trap it in your weapon instead of instantly releasing it as you normally would. This temporarily delays the spell's effects, trapping them inside one magical melee weapon you are holding. The effects of the spell are unleashed the next time you hit a creature with the weapon. The spell remains inside the weapon for 1 minute, until you lose concentration, or until you hit a creature with this melee weapon, whereupon the spell is released and come it comes into effect. Once you attack with a weapon that has a spell stored in it this way, if the spell has not been released by the end of your next turn, the spell is lost and is wasted. If you store a cantrip in the weapon, if the attack would deal extra damage due to this attack, its damage does not scale when you reach higher levels as it normally would.
If the spell required a saving throw, the creature you hit with this magical melee weapon while the spell is trapped inside automatically fails its saving throw. If the spell required an attack roll, if you hit a creature with the initial attack, you do not have to attack that creature again, and it becomes the target of one of the spell's attacks. If the spell required more than one attack roll, one of these attacks must be targeting the hit creature, and the others come into effect as normal. If the spell creates an area of effect, you can designate your weapon or the hit creature (your choice) as the origin of the area of effect.
If the spell would immediately cause damage when you cast it, this damage is added to the weapon attack's damage. Additionally, if you must use an action or bonus action on further turns to maintain the effects of the spell, you may continue to keep the spell inside your magic weapon, continuing this effect until the duration of the spell ends.
Arcane Study
When you reach 3rd level, you solidify which archetype of arcane combat you will practice. Up to this point, you have been training, practicing, and preparing for this choice, and now it is cemented as part of you. Now, choose the Eldritch Striker, Arcane Bastion, or Spell Herald. This is your subclass, and grants you certain benefits at 3rd, 7th, 11th, and 15th level.
Magic Sense
At 3rd level, your arcane power is attuned to detecting the power in others. As an action, choose one creature you can see within 60 feet of you. You learn if they can cast any spells, and if they can, you learn what level spellcaster they are if they have any levels as a spellcaster, and you learn how many spell slots they have left if they have any.
You may use this feature an amount of times equal to your Intelligence modifier (minimum of once), regaining all uses at the end of a long rest.
Arcane Recovery
At level 3, you have learned to regain some of your magical energy by your blending arcane and martial power. Once per day when you finish a short rest, you can choose expended spell slots to recover. The spell slots can have a combined level that is equal to or less than one-fourth your arcknight level (rounded up).
For example, if you’re a 7th-level arcknight, you can recover up to two levels worth of spell slots. You can recover either a 2nd-level spell slot or two 1st-level spell slots.
Ability Score Improvement
When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 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.
Magic Guard
Starting at level 6, when you use your Eldritch Ward feature, you may expend a spell slot of 2nd-level or higher to use the feature, instead of spending one use of the ability,.
Magic Resistance
At level 10, you have advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
Improved Spell Strike
When you reach 11th level, when you cast a spell into your weapon that has a casting time of an action, you can instead cast it as a bonus action. Additionally, you no longer have to maintain concentration on your Spell Strike feature due to a spell being stored inside of your Imbued Weapon.
Arcane Fighting Style
At level 12, you are able to perfectly blend your arcane magic with your mastery over martial fighting to enhance your chosen style even more. You gain an additional benefit dependent on the Fighting Style you gained from this class.
Arcane Warrior
When you take the Attack action, you may forgo one of the attacks to cast a cantrip you know.
Blind Fighting
You gain truesight out to a range of 10 feet.
Defense
You may don any armor as an action by touching it, as long as you are not wearing armor already.
Dueling
When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls with that weapon.
Great Weapon Fighting
When you roll a 1 or 2 on a damage dice for a spell that was unleashed through your Spell Strike through a melee weapon that you are wielding with two hands, you can reroll the dice and must use the new roll. The weapon that caused the spell to be unleashed must have the two-handed or versatile property for you to gain this benefit.
Thrown Weapon Fighting
While you are not wielding your Imbued Weapon, you may use your reaction to summon it back to your hand.
Two-Weapon Fighting
When you engage in two-weapon fighting, the same bonus action you use to attack may also be used to cast a spell into your weapon using the Spell Strike feature.
Unarmed Fighting
Your unarmed strikes automatically deal force damage.
Spell Siphon
Starting at level 14, when you hit a spellcaster with a magical attack from a melee weapon, you can steal and absorb some of their magical power. As a reaction, if the hit creature is a spellcaster that has spell slots, you can force them to expend a spell slot of a level that you can cast, and regain a spell slot of the expended level or lower.
You may use this feature an amount of times equal to your Intelligence modifier (minimum of once), and regain all uses after a long rest.
Battle Caster
When you gain this feature at 18th level, your concentration cannot be broken unless you become unconscious.
Master of Battle Magic
At level 20, you have mastered the art of combat magic, empowering you further. You gain the following benefits:
- All weapons you are wielding automatically gain the benefit of being your Imbued Weapon, no longer requiring a long rest in order to bestow the benefit upon them.
- When you roll a 20 for an attack roll you make with a magic melee weapon against a creature, you regain a spell slot of your lowest expended level.
- You automatically take no damage from spells that you cast that create an area of effect.
