D&D 5E A Very Simple Fighter

[Chris_Nightwing]

My approach to it has been through the TB combat reaction system. By implementing a simple block/dodge system for all characters built off of the existing AoO concept, there is more design space, more things for the fighter to be good at. Thus, my fighters, besides numerical bonuses and bonus feats, get extra reactions to block/dodge/AoO with, and additional benefits when they do those things. The bottom line is that a fighter can do more useful things in a combat round.

No idea what TB is, but I like the idea of more actions that aren't necessarily actions (and don't need to be tracked). Certainly additional reactions would be an option (though the simple fighter has nothing to do with reactions other than AoO (or are they not reactions?)). Additional actions in turn would have to be something other than I attacks I think, unless you use that as the way to scale damage with level.

 

[Ahnehnois]

No idea what TB is

Sorry. I was referring to Trailblazer (a revision of 3e).

The implementation is that all characters get one reaction per turn, and gain additional reactions for every 5 point of base attack (iterative attacks are actually changed, but this is the same rate at which 3e would have granted iteratives). A reaction can be used to make an attack of opportunity, or to block (gain DR vs. 1 attack), or to dodge (gain AC vs one attack), or to aid an ally (+2 to their attack roll or AC for one attack). If you take an AoO, you leave yourself a bit vulnerable, if you dodge, you might miss a chance to punish an enemy for trying to retreat, if you aid an ally, you might be sacrificing your own defenses in the process. At the beginning, your character is basically the same as 3e (because dodge and block don't do anything at first and you only get 1/round at first), but later the options become more useful. Thus, any martial class can be good at doing these things, because base attack determines their effectiveness. I just gave fighters an extra boost.

To me, the expertise dice, if implemented for all classes, could serve a similar function.

 

[Chris_Nightwing]

[MENTION=17106]Ahnehnois[/MENTION]

Cool, sounds good, and more elegant than expertise dice if you ask me.