D&D 5E Fixing the fighter (I know...)

[Manbearcat]

That looks good.

Scale it’s use schedule same as Portent and call it a day.

 

[Bacon Bits]

Expertise is broken IMO. We changed it to advantage a while ago instead of double proficiency bonus. It makes success more likely, but doesn't raise the floor and ceilings of checks.

I think Expertise would be fine if it were +2, or even +1d4. But I don't really like the idea of the range of ability bonuses at level 16 going from -1 to +17. That's basically the same "off the die" problem that 5e was supposed to avoid. Sure, skills don't really matter at high level, but it's still not great.

Actually, I might even prefer it if Expertise were closer to Barbarian's Indomitable Might. Something like, "If your total for an ability check with a skill you have Expertise in is less than 13, you can use 13 in place of the total."

 

[Phion]

I'll going to put an addendum to my post upthread and since this is 5th edition that is being talked about here, I'll use that system to express the concept.

One of the most impactful aspects of an athlete who is the apex predator, the absolute pinnacle of the dominance hierarchy (the proverbial king, or queen, of the jungle), is how the rest of the members of that hierarchy are either emboldened by their presence (if they share cause) or they absolutely wilt in their presence (if they are opposed).

Tiger Woods overwhelmingly won on Friday and Saturday. What happened on Sunday? Being caught in his orbit, his competition wilted under that overwhelming task (playing below, often well below, their natural capabilities) time_after time_after time_after time. Tiger wasn't a comeback king. He was an absolute front-runner with his ability to just hit clutch shots when he needed to just completely debilitating his opponents who were absolutely top of the food chain...if not for one Tiger Woods.

Michael Jordan and the Bulls?

Exact same thing. Teams were beaten before they took the court. Overwhelmingly, opposition (guys who, again, were absolute far, far, far end of the distribution of human capability) spoke in reverential, fearful tones of him (while they were in the freaking league together)...never wanting to draw his ire and give him (and through him, his teammates) cause to grind them into absolute dust.

The weight of his presence, the specter of inevitability through him looming:

1) Moralized allies to heights they would be not be capable of otherwise.

2) Demoralized opposition to depths that they otherwise had no business falling to.

How do you accomplish this in 5e?

Simple,

Reskin the Diviner Subclass ability Portent and have it work mechanically in exactly the same way (because that is effectively what happens in our world).

I like the concept (to be honest it sounds like a warlord subclass) but I disagree with the execution of reskinning the Diviner portent feature, it feels more on the supernatural side. Also it is kind of odd that once the feature is used does the character just stop being inspiring; I would potentially see the style of fighter who either causes fear or inspiration when they accomplish something such as hitting a creature or getting a crit representing the dominance n the presence of the foe. Perhaps when they pass saving throws as well. As long as the character keeps succeeding the party remains emboldened, this would imply small but significant buffs/debuffs to the battlefield.

You could even add features to the social pillar as well with this character archetype, perhaps using the intimidation skill for persuasion as well for their character is quite intimidating even in what they perceive as a casual interaction.

 

[DND_Reborn]

I think Expertise would be fine if it were +2, or even +1d4. But I don't really like the idea of the range of ability bonuses at level 16 going from -1 to +17. That's basically the same "off the die" problem that 5e was supposed to avoid. Sure, skills don't really matter at high level, but it's still not great.

Actually, I might even prefer it if Expertise were closer to Barbarian's Indomitable Might. Something like, "If your total for an ability check with a skill you have Expertise in is less than 13, you can use 13 in place of the total."

I don't mind the bonus, just don't believe only rogues and bards should inherently be better at skills than other classes. It has been discussed before and that is why we decided on advantage. It makes success more likely, but doesn't inflate the numbers.

And I also had no issue with the "off the die" problem--to me that is a problem that was never a problem. BA would have been better bounded around 40 instead of 30 IMO.

Finally, Rogues already have Reliable Talent (i.e. you can't roll less than a 10 on the d20 for any skill you have proficiency in). With most builds, that guarantees DC 15 most of the time and DC 20 for any skill with Expertise RAW.

 

[NotAYakk]

That looks good.

Scale it’s use schedule same as Portent and call it a day.

v2

Tactical Leadership: When you finish a long rest, roll a 1d20 tactical die. When a willing ally rolls a d20 within your line of sight, you may consume your reaction to utter advice. If they hear the advice, their d20 is replaced with your tactical die roll, and they gain temporary HP equal to your fighter level. Similarly, when an enemy rolls a d20 within your line of sight, you may consume your reaction to frighten the creature and replace their d20 roll with your tactical die. The enemy remains frightened until the start of your next turn. Once you have replaced a d20 with your tactical die roll in either of these ways, you may not do it again until you gain another tactical die at the end of your next long rest.

---

Wording is tricky. Note that it is "better" than portent, but also worse as silence shuts down helping an ally, and it consumes your reaction.

 

[Arnwolf666]

I think there is nothing wrong with expertise as long as they leave it for the rogues.

 

[Tony Vargas]

Tactical Leadership: When you finish a long rest, roll a 1d20 tactical die. When a willing ally rolls a d20 within your line of sight, you may consume your reaction to utter advice. If they hear the advice, their d20 is replaced with your tactical die roll, and they gain temporary HP equal to your fighter level. Similarly, when an enemy rolls a d20 within your line of sight, you may consume your reaction to frighten the creature and replace their d20 roll with your tactical die. The enemy remains frightened until the start of your next turn. Once you have replaced a d20 with your tactical die roll in either of these ways, you may not do it again until you gain another tactical die at the end of your next long rest.

Might get more the tactical feel if it were not tagged to the rest, but to spending your first action of the combat surveying the field or something.

Wording is tricky. Note that it is "better" than portent, but also worse as silence shuts down helping an ally, and it consumes your reaction.

"Better" isn't a huge problem, since you're just talking a level 2 feature. Especially not situationally better. I mean, a torch is better than a light cantrip when you're trying to burn down a barn.

 

[cbwjm]

There's an NPC in Descent to Avernus that has a bonus action ability: Master of Tactics: Target ally that can hear you is able to move without triggering attack of opportunities. I can't remember if they can move then or if they have to wait until their turn to move but it might be a good addition for a tactical minded fighter to help allies reposition.

 

[TheCosmicKid]

v2

Tactical Leadership: When you finish a long rest, roll a 1d20 tactical die. When a willing ally rolls a d20 within your line of sight, you may consume your reaction to utter advice. If they hear the advice, their d20 is replaced with your tactical die roll, and they gain temporary HP equal to your fighter level. Similarly, when an enemy rolls a d20 within your line of sight, you may consume your reaction to frighten the creature and replace their d20 roll with your tactical die. The enemy remains frightened until the start of your next turn. Once you have replaced a d20 with your tactical die roll in either of these ways, you may not do it again until you gain another tactical die at the end of your next long rest.

---

Wording is tricky. Note that it is "better" than portent, but also worse as silence shuts down helping an ally, and it consumes your reaction.

If the mechanic involves preparing a die roll beforehand, isn't the more obvious flavor spin "Strategic Planning" rather than "Tactical Leadership"? And then you don't have to mess around with the frightened tag; enemy attacks are simply thwarted by "I had a plan for that one".

That's how I'm using a refluffed Portent on my alchemical assassin class, anyway.

 

[Arnwolf666]

If the mechanic involves preparing a die roll beforehand, isn't the more obvious flavor spin "Strategic Planning" rather than "Tactical Leadership"? And then you don't have to mess around with the frightened tag; enemy attacks are simply thwarted by "I had a plan for that one".

That's how I'm using a refluffed Portent on my alchemical assassin class, anyway.

Nice. I almost like it the original way just to mechanically differentiate it. But I really like your solution.