D&D (2024) Fighter brainstorm

[UngeheuerLich]

There should be a simple warrior class.

But that should be the barbarian.

There should be a simple expert class as well.
There should be a simple priest class as well.
There should be a simple mage class as well.

I think, the rogue, the paladin and the sorcerer will hopefully fit those descriptions.

 

[Vaalingrade]

There should be a simple warrior class.

But that should be the barbarian.

There should be a simple expert class as well.
There should be a simple priest class as well.
There should be a simple mage class as well.

And they should be in a starter set, far, far away from the real game.

 

[Remathilis]

In our last session, the playtest lvl 5 devotion paladin with bonus action sacred weapon annihilated what should have been a challenging fight by ignoring all resistances and dishing out real damage.

I expect the new fighter to do similar things. If that is so, I rejoyce.

If by that you mean "cast a spell that improved their combat ability" then I don't think it's the fighter you want.

 

[mellored]

There should be a simple warrior class.

But that should be the barbarian.

Thematically, sure.

But you would have to rewrite rage and reckless attack.

Rage: you reduce all damage by X
Reckless attack: you gain a permanent +3 to attack and a permanent -3 to AC.

There should be a simple expert class as well.

Scholar: when you roll a skill check, your minimum bonus is equal to your Scholar level. (I.e. at level 10, all skills have a +10 modifier).
Adds xd4 damage to all attacks and you're set.

There should be a simple priest class as well.

Medic with a much bigger pool of lay on hands would be quite simple. Add a limit to how much you can heal per turn and toss on a self-sanctuary and your golden.

There should be a simple mage class as well.

Hmm... Maybe:

You can cast spells at-will. You cast them at the spell level according to the chart (scaling slower than a wizard).
You do not need to make concentration checks for spells cast this way, though may sill only have one at a time.

1: magic missile, burning hands
2: certain rituals (which are at-will).
3: feather fall
4: feat
5: all spells are cast at level 2
You learn certain utility spells you can cast at will (water breathing, darkvision, fly)
...
11: all spells are cast at level 3. You learn fireball.

 

[UngeheuerLich]

If by that you mean "cast a spell that improved their combat ability" then I don't think it's the fighter you want.

No. He did not cast a single spell. It was just enhancing their attacks.

I can easily imagine the fighter doing similar things. Attack stances. Weapon abilities. Battlemaster maneuvers...

All the paladin did (except for making the attack radiant) could easily emulated with mundane abilities.

 

[deganawida]

I'd personally like to see the "medieval guard or knight with a dash of Conan" layer of the Fighter stripped away and it be rebuilt from the ground up to match pulp fantasy and pulp fiction fighter-types. These guys shouldn't be your bog-standard guards or soldiers, but adventuring warriors, people who do more than simply swing a sword. They should have more abilities related to adventuring than just "Bam! Slash! Poke!". Look at Rick O'Connell from The Mummy, as was mentioned up-thread, and how much he did in the movie, both in and out of combat. Use that as more of a template than what Sir Prancealot's elite guard does.

 

[Minigiant]

Thematically, sure.

But you would have to rewrite rage and reckless attack.

Rage: you reduce all damage by X
Reckless attack: you gain a permanent +3 to attack and a permanent -3 to AC.

Reckless is easier than Action Surge.

DM: You are a barbarian.
Guy: Reckless Attack! I roll twice.

The penalty is even fully on the DM side.

Rage is kinda simple too. Add Rage damage. Half damage Only attack. Brain Shut off. SMASH SMASH SMASH SMASH!

 

[Vaalingrade]

Instead of buffing the fighter, would nerfing the other classes help? I thought the trade-off being a fighter is that you can swing a sword all day/ every day and casters only got a few big things. Problem is that then they want everyone to rest and the fighter is all wasted since he can still swing his sword.

Would nerfing cantrip damage help? The fighter at 5th level gets to swing a sword dealing 1d8+3 or 1d10+5 depending on your style, but there are some builds that likely deal a lot more. A mage can firebolt for 2d10 and deal not that less average damage- every round all day now. Maybe something that lowers the cantrip makes the fighter's worth go up.

Other marshals get 2 attacks at 5th level and more is something a lot are saying. Would cutting their 2nd attack to 7th or 8th level work? Would boosting fighter's attacks to every 4 levels work?

Fighters need to be good in every pillar of play is another thing I see. I think that a lot of classes are not good in all the pillars. I think most of the non-combat pillars depends on the DM more than fighting, Would opening up feats like skill training to the fighter slots help? Would anyone take them?

I'm not a fan of making other classes less fun as a fix for the class that's least fun.

 

[Incenjucar]

The core issue is that martial classes are glorified weed wackers instead of skilled combatants, so making other classes weaker is not the solution outside of tweaks.

A fighter should be able to, for example, trip an opponent of similar or smaller size - if I could sweep kick someone onto their butt as a tubby nerd in high school, surely any level 20 fighter should be able to do so. This shouldn't require a subclass or a feat or a magic item, because literal children can do it.

 

[mellored]

The penalty is even fully on the DM side.

The DM is a player too. So making them keep track of weather you recklessly attacked or not is hardly a solution.