D&D (2024) Fighter (Playtest 7)
mellored
Legend
Some suggestions...
Tactical Fighting Style: level 1 feat
prerequisite, fighting style.
You learn 1 maneuver from the battlemaster list.
Once per turn, when you use a Maneuver, you can use your Intelligence modifier as the die roll instead of expending a Superiority Die.
Martial Adept
You learn 2 maneuver from the battlemaster list.
Once per turn, when you use a Maneuver, you can use your Intelligence modifier as the die roll instead of expending a Superiority Die.
You can take this feat multiple times.
Tactical Fighting Style: level 1 feat
prerequisite, fighting style.
You learn 1 maneuver from the battlemaster list.
Once per turn, when you use a Maneuver, you can use your Intelligence modifier as the die roll instead of expending a Superiority Die.
Martial Adept
You learn 2 maneuver from the battlemaster list.
Once per turn, when you use a Maneuver, you can use your Intelligence modifier as the die roll instead of expending a Superiority Die.
You can take this feat multiple times.
fluffybunbunkittens
Hero
Wait, infinite uses of your maneuvers, powered by an otherwise useless stat? Interesting.
mellored
Legend
While I gave up on it being a class I am still trying to make as much of the warlord happen as possible.
And being able to boost Int and spam commanders strike from level 1 would be a good start.
Marandahir
Crown-Forester (he/him)
I don’t like the Brawler subclass.
I thought I did, but then realised it only works with one default Fighting Style (Defense); is redundant with one Tasha’s Style (Unarmed Fighting — as it is a fighting style feat turned into a whole subclass tree); and only works with two other Tasha’s Styles (Superior Technique and Blind Fighting).
This says to me that it’s really not a full subclass, or if they want it to be, they need to include more than the default 6 Fighting Styles to give them at least some non-Defense options that aren’t traps.
I know at every level I can swap out my Style, so that prevents me from taking say, Archery, and then Brawler, only to realise I don’t get the Archery bonus on thrown improvised weapons, but all of the other PHB.24 subclasses have the full gamut of choice regarding Fighting Styles.
This is unlike the situation with Cleric, where you’d be really weird to choose Thaumaturge Order and then War Domain, as War Domain really wants you to be proficient with Martial Weapons and up on the front line, given that that choice is mitigated by having a species or background or feat that provides training with weapons and armor.
But this choice literally leaves you with only Defense as a viable option in PHB-only play. That would be fine if this was the point and click Fighter Subclass, but this is the Brawler, not the Champion!
FYI, I LOVE the Weapon Mastery System and beyond this one subclass issue, I think 90% of the issues with the Fighter class are mitigated by this playtest. Champion vs Battle Master even feel thematically unique now!
if I’m a Battle Master, I now have maneuvers, weapon masteries, feats, and fighting style features all as dial choices of what to do at any given time, beyond just point and click or use skill check and ask “DM May I?”! This is just about approaching the complexity of a caster if I want it to be, and that’s great. Even the Champion can be complex with weapon masteries and feat choices and fighting styles.
I used to think all Fighters needed maneuvers, but this is a great new dial that not only gives all Fighters something without taking it away from Battle Masters, but also gives it to a lesser extent to all other Martials (even the ones who would be unbalanced if given Fighting Styles as I thought they should — why is Martial Arts not a fighting style, Monk? — Because if it is then I might not focus on unarmed strikes… Why don’t you have a fighting style, Barbarian? Because I’m a barbarian, look at my giant beard!
It works well. Just send Brawler back to the Fighting Style school and give us a different Fighter subclass for slot 4, or allow the weapon-based fighting styles to work with unarmed strikes and improvised weapons!
I thought I did, but then realised it only works with one default Fighting Style (Defense); is redundant with one Tasha’s Style (Unarmed Fighting — as it is a fighting style feat turned into a whole subclass tree); and only works with two other Tasha’s Styles (Superior Technique and Blind Fighting).
This says to me that it’s really not a full subclass, or if they want it to be, they need to include more than the default 6 Fighting Styles to give them at least some non-Defense options that aren’t traps.
I know at every level I can swap out my Style, so that prevents me from taking say, Archery, and then Brawler, only to realise I don’t get the Archery bonus on thrown improvised weapons, but all of the other PHB.24 subclasses have the full gamut of choice regarding Fighting Styles.
This is unlike the situation with Cleric, where you’d be really weird to choose Thaumaturge Order and then War Domain, as War Domain really wants you to be proficient with Martial Weapons and up on the front line, given that that choice is mitigated by having a species or background or feat that provides training with weapons and armor.
But this choice literally leaves you with only Defense as a viable option in PHB-only play. That would be fine if this was the point and click Fighter Subclass, but this is the Brawler, not the Champion!
FYI, I LOVE the Weapon Mastery System and beyond this one subclass issue, I think 90% of the issues with the Fighter class are mitigated by this playtest. Champion vs Battle Master even feel thematically unique now!
if I’m a Battle Master, I now have maneuvers, weapon masteries, feats, and fighting style features all as dial choices of what to do at any given time, beyond just point and click or use skill check and ask “DM May I?”! This is just about approaching the complexity of a caster if I want it to be, and that’s great. Even the Champion can be complex with weapon masteries and feat choices and fighting styles.
I used to think all Fighters needed maneuvers, but this is a great new dial that not only gives all Fighters something without taking it away from Battle Masters, but also gives it to a lesser extent to all other Martials (even the ones who would be unbalanced if given Fighting Styles as I thought they should — why is Martial Arts not a fighting style, Monk? — Because if it is then I might not focus on unarmed strikes… Why don’t you have a fighting style, Barbarian? Because I’m a barbarian, look at my giant beard!
It works well. Just send Brawler back to the Fighting Style school and give us a different Fighter subclass for slot 4, or allow the weapon-based fighting styles to work with unarmed strikes and improvised weapons!
Vaalingrade
Legend
I also feel like a Brawler should have more of a 'wrasslin' component. You should get to grapple increasingly larger things and then do things with that grapple like suplex or noogie.
Marandahir
Crown-Forester (he/him)
Would putting Superior Technique in the PHB suffice?
Neonchameleon
Legend
The brawler is a first draft of a subclass where none of it fits together. To me it needs a few basic things before we even start to polish it:
- Unarmoured AC (barbarian or monk style) for the aesthetic. I'd suggest Str + Dex.
- Improvised weapon damage to be based on unarmed damage as a baseline
- You to get a bonus using an improvised weapon the first time you use it. Not ever time because that just leads to people with odd signature weapons - and that shouldn't be restricted to one subclass.
The fighter still lacks the conceptual scaling of the casters. A level 17 wizard is conceptually much more than a level 9 wizard. A level 17 fighter is someone who does the exact same things as a level 9 fighter but a bit better.
fluffybunbunkittens
Hero
I'm curious how much we can even grapple, now that it's turned into a Str/Dex save vs 8+Strmod+profbonus. So the higher of two stats vs DC 13-16. You'd imagine a grappling subclass would at least give disadvantage to that save.
UngeheuerLich
Legend
It is not bad bad, considering that you can trade a bonus action or a single attack to grab for a whole action to escape (at least against DEX based characters... STR based characters can just push you out of grab range with a single attack).
That is not nothing.
