D&D (2024) 2024 Player's Handbook Reveal #2: "New Fighter"

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"The Fighter is now the weapon master equivalent of the Wizard" (with respect to versatility).

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OVERVIEW

The Fighter seems to have been mostly set in Playtest 7. Most of the features described carry over from there, though Brawler has gone and is replaced by Psi Warrior form Tasha's.

• Ranger and Fighter have the most new features.
• Subclasses provide "different levels of mechanical idiosyncracy".
• Weapon mastery (level1), tactical mind (2), tactical shift (5), studied attacks (13) -- all of these are as in PT7.
• second wind -- increased number of uses (as PT7)
• NEW: Level 9: Tactical master is like mastery of Armaments, but limited to push. sap, and slow. These properties are now always in the fighter's pocket, regardless of the weapon used. These properties add to Battle Master abilities.
• Fighting Styles: new options available: Blindfighting, Interception, Thrown Weapons, and Unarmed fighting (from Tasha's). (YAY for thrown weapons and unarmed fighting!). Protection style "improved".
• NEW: You can change your fighting style when you level up.
• NEW: All classes now get an Epic Boon at level 19, replacing the ASI.

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SUBCLASSES

Battle Master:

• they considered making the maneuvers the core of the fighter, but that would undermine the goal of different playstyles for each subclass.
• ambush, bait and switch, commanding presence, and tactical presence all brought over from Tasha's (as PT7)
• Student of War also gives you a skill proficiency (as PT7)
• Know your enemy has "limited number of uses per day" (PT7 had one, IIRC)

Champion:

• same core identity, focusing on crits.
• Remarkable Athlete: NEW. When you score a crit, you can move without receiving opportunity attacks.
• Remarkable Athlete: advantage on initiative and athletics (as PT7). This works with the new surprise rules, which give you an edge but "defang" the one-sidedness of surprise.
• Additional fighting style at 7, Heroic Warrior at 10, Survivor at 18 (as PT7).

Eldritch Knight:

• for players who played OD&D when Elf was a class...
• with the Psi Warrior are for people who want Fighter and X (mixed).
• no school restrictions (also for Arcane Trickster)
• NEW: you can now use an arcane focus.
• War Magic and Improved War Magic: as in PT7, but at level 18 you can replace two attacks with spells up to level 2 (I think this is new).

Psi Warrior:

• changes from Tasha: changes are primarily in rewording.

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NEW RULES
Epic Boon:

• you may choose a non-epic boon feat. They include an ASI that can go past 20, and include abilities go beyond what feats normally do.
• Example: Boon of Combat Prowess. Once per TURN, you can turn a miss to a hit. Another example: You have Truesight. Another example: when you attack or take the magic action, you also teleport.
• The PHB now has rules to go beyond level 20. Every time you hit some XP threshold, you can choose another Epic Boon (which could take one of your scores to level 30).

Other NEW rules clarifications:

• Heroic Inspiration which lets you re-roll any one die (may be one damage die, but not all damage dice).
• Surprise now gives you disadvantage on your initiative. (Champion, Assassin, and Barbarian are hard to surprise -- they won't have disadvantage on init).
• No school restrictions for Arcane Trickster or Eldrtich Knight.

 

[Zaukrie]

5e initiative is already a slog and only matter once then goes to a boring static order that allows meta game choices that take the thrill out of the game.

I'm all for card based initiative everyone goes in random order. Reshuffle each round. Sure you need players that pay attention and can act decisively, but honestly you need those anyway so this helps force the issue.

I'm all about more random initiative.....ping me and I'll send you a rough PDF with so many options your head will spin.

 

[Zaukrie]

I like popcorn initiative: at the end of turn, the player chooses who goes next, like passing around a bowl of popcorn. It allows the party to set up combos and makes the combat more fluid.

I've been playing around with that, combined with "daggerheart" rolling of an extra d20 to see if the NPCs act next or the party. It works really well for boss fights, in place of legendary actions.

 

[el-remmen]

This works with the new surprise rules, which give you an edge but "defang" the one-sidedness of surprise.

Defang? Weird. I have long thought surprise is not strong enough! I basically make everyone have the ambusher ability in my games. If you are surprised, all attacks against you have advantage!

 

[fluffybunbunkittens]

I'm kind of shocked that Fighter gets to keep the +1d10 to any skill checks, just casually being better at lv3 than Expertise until lv17.

 

[Kurotowa]

I'm kind of shocked that Fighter gets to keep the +1d10 to any skill checks, just casually being better at lv3 than Expertise until lv17.

It's "Potentially stronger but somewhat random and with very limited uses" versus "Reliable strength and free so you can use it on every roll". I'd say that "better" is half a matter of what the player values, and half how the DM runs their game.

 

[Stalker0]

I'm kind of shocked that Fighter gets to keep the +1d10 to any skill checks, just casually being better at lv3 than Expertise until lv17.

Combine that with the battle masters maneuver that can add to Charisma skills for example, fighters can be quite the skill guy when they want to be!

 

[Swarmkeeper]

I'm kind of shocked that Fighter gets to keep the +1d10 to any skill checks, just casually being better at lv3 than Expertise until lv17.

Requires a use of 2nd Wind so... not really better than Expertise which is always on.

EDIT: kinda Ninja'd by @Kurotowa!

 

[Swarmkeeper]

Combine that with the battle masters maneuver that can add to Charisma skills for example, fighters can be quite the skill guy when they want to be!

But I was told that fighters are terrible outside of combat!

 

[DarkCrisis]

I love old school intiative. 50/50 shot if good guys or bad guys go first and then winners make their moves. Then ranged attacks. Then Spells. Then melee. Nice and easy.

 

[fluffybunbunkittens]

It's "Potentially stronger but somewhat random and with very limited uses" versus "Reliable strength and free so you can use it on every roll"

Fighter gets multiple second winds, which recharge on short rests (and aren't expended on failure, so there is no risk). Unless the Fighter is the only one ever rolling skill checks, they won't run out. Having mega-Expertise on demand on any skill sounds a lot better than having a smaller bonus on only two skills.

You'd need a really tortured scenario for the Rogue to be rolling their two Expertise skills ten times within an hour for it to get ahead. I don't mind it making Fighters capable, it just makes Rogue not that great at skills - you need a RogueX/Fighter2 for that.