D&D 5E Fixing the Fighter: The Zouave

[Undrave]

Pillar's of Eternity 2.

That game looks interesting... how is it?

 

[Lucas Yew]

(while not related to the OP class)

Maybe all non-casters should have been merged into a single class, like a "Martialist," and given a ton of numeric bonuses for all things not spellcasting (HD size, save upgrades, # of proficiencies and the like) just to compete with spellcasters in the Out of Combat segment of a typical game...

 

[Paul Farquhar]

That game looks interesting... how is it?

Curate's Egg. Good in parts.

It actually suffers from not being directly based on a PnP ruleset in terms of game mechanics. Too much "this seemed like a good idea at the time" and not enough "tried and tested". It has a very interesting setting and lots of interesting sandbox quests, but the main questline is short, linear, anticlimactic and doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

 

[Coroc]

@OP

It is probably also the fact that everybody can fight somehow, but the fighter is somehow special at it.

So everyone is an adept at the fighters specialty but the fighter is absolutely unknowledgeable in the specialty of the other classes.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

@OP

It is probably also the fact that everybody can fight somehow, but the fighter is somehow special at it.

So everyone is an adept at the fighters specialty but the fighter is absolutely unknowledgeable in the specialty of the other classes.

Not true. The fighter has access to skills, and can use their extra feats to acquire magic or expertise.

 

[Don Durito]

Not true. The fighter has access to skills, and can use their extra feats to acquire magic or expertise.

Feats are optional and classes that are specialists in skills get expertise.

I think there was a thread around here somewhere where these things got pointed out but I can't quite recall which one.

 

[Garthanos]

Sure but you might be giving up a +1 or a +2 for rider which yes caused it to gradually lose its shine.

@Tony Vargas Fighter Powers/Maneuvers that did things like allowed one to perhaps once an encounter gain advantage from any enemy marked during the following round if you attacked with a different weapon than you did the last round (regardless of type) - Perhaps call it Surprise change up. Might help but advantage becomes ubiquitous eventually perhaps a bonus like reroll if it were paragon or epic and similar things.

 

[Garthanos]

To my thinking skills do not answer the disparity unless they can certainly and actualy keep up with caster capability ... not really convinced they do in 5e.

 

[Don Durito]

I think that giving class incentives for characters to change up weapons is a bit of a bandaid solution and gets things the wrong way round.

The issue is that D&D is by it's nature divorced from reality. In reality you'd shoot a bow at anyone with a melee weapon and kite as much as you could - if you faced a foe with reach you'd make sure you had reach yourself. If you were in town you wouldn't be wearing armour and you'd carry something like a rapier for defence (you certainly wouldn't be lugging around a Greatsword or Halberd unless you were a member of the Watch or somebody's paid bodyguard).

But in D&D things get too complex if you try and enforce these things (see the much ingored old weapon vs armour tables), and some characters are virtually crippled if they face combat without their heavy armour. Besides, if you suggest that there may be situations (such as when facing a skeleton) that a rapier may be the best weapon than people will whine and stamp their feet and say "why do you hate fighters?".

 

[Garthanos]

I think that giving class incentives for characters to change up weapons is a bit of a bandaid solution and gets things the wrong way round.

The issue is that D&D is by it's nature divorced from reality. In reality you'd shoot a bow at anyone with a melee weapon

The supremacy of range is well established in reality it pretty much supersedes too many tropes , the supremacy of the heavy armors (until certain forms of ranged weapons supersede that) is well established it also breaks with tropes (and falling shy of tropes both narrows story and is unsatisfying ) which is why we tend to go with counter realistic but emotionally satisfactory patches (surprise I am using a different weapon than you expected) Or light armor is as good as heavy if you are just agile enough.

Is the trope of multi-weapon fighting skill important not so sure.