Overall feedback before specifics:
- OMG. SO MUCH
for writing this up !! You rock 
- Happy with the name and overall approach and it's certainly nice to have a detailed class write-up to critique.
- I would prefer a different term to "Mystic" as to me this has connotations more of the priestly side than the arcane/wizard side. Arcane Tradition, School, Arcane Path, Eldritch Technique, etc etc or anything like that I think would be more thematic. Not a dealbreaker tho IMHO.
| Level | Prof | Features | Techniques Known | Spells Known | Cantrips | Spells |
| 1 | 2 | Spellcasting, Mystic Path | - | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 2 | 2 | Fighting Style, Mystic Technique | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | 2 | Sustained Magic, Mystic Path Feature | 2 | 4 | 2 | 3 |
| 4 | 2 | Ability Score Improvement | 2 | 5 | 2 | 3 |
| 5 | 3 | Extra Attack | 3 | 6 | 2 | 4/2 |
| 6 | 3 | Mystic Path Feature | 3 | 7 | 2 | 4/2 |
| 7 | 3 | War Magic | 3 | 8 | 2 | 4/3 |
| 8 | 3 | Mystic Path Feature | 3 | 9 | 2 | 4/3 |
| 9 | 4 | | 4 | 10 | 2 | 4/3/2 |
Class Features
As an Arcane Warrior, you gain the following class features.
Hit Points
Hit Dice: 1d10 per Arcane Warrior level
Hit Points at 1st Level: 10 + your Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d10 (or 6) + your Constitution modifier per arcane warrior level after 1st
Proficiencies
Armor: Light armor, medium armor, shields
Weapons: Simple weapons, martial weapons
To me, I think there's a conversation to be had about HD (d8 / d10), Armor (Light/Medium/Shields) and Weapons (Simple/Martial).
Certainly paladin & ranger are up the 'fighter' end of these, with both having d10 HD, Martial weapons and Medium/Heavy armor & shields. Just because they do though, I'm not 100% sure that the Gish should, because wizards come from such a lower base. I also think of them somewhere between EK and bladesinger. I'll explain:
My starting point for this has been that the 'hybrid' classes (if it's ok to call them that) should fall somewhere between their two parent classes but at a minimum a step up from the lower one. Here's my worked examples:
Paladin: Fighter has d10 and cleric has d8, and there's no d9, so we round up to d10. Fighter has heavy armor + shields and cleric has medium + shields (but some domains get heavy) so the hybrid gets heavy + shields. Fighter gets martial weapons, cleric gets simple, so the hybrid gets martial.
Ranger: Fighter has d10 and druid has d8, and there's no d9, so we round up to d10. Fighter has heavy armor + shields and druid has medium + shields (but no metal) so the hybrid gets medium + shields (but without the no metal restriction). Fighter gets martial weapons, druid gets a specific limited list (some simple, some martial), so the hybrid gets martial.
Gish: Fighter has d10 and wizard has d6, so the hybrid gets d8. Fighter has heavy armor + shields and wizard has none, so the hybrid gets somewhere in between, maybe the base class gets light, and some subclasses get medium + shields. Fighter gets martial weapons, wizard gets an extremely limited list, so the hybrid gets somewhere in between, maybe the base class gets simple at L1 and then martial at L3, or subclasses grant different specific proficiencies, or maybe it's simple + one or more specific choices (like bladesinger).
So that's how I've been approaching it, which is why I'm thinking they might not necessarily need to get d10, heavy+shields & martial weapons, but can still be significantly better in melee than normal wizards, and a bit better than bladesingers, but not as good as EKs. This could be a good balancing factor for wizard spells being strong, and also allow unarmored / lightly armoured builds that either use Int bonus to AC, or enhanced mage armour, or light armour, or whatever, while still allowing some subclasses to be more heavily armoured for the more traditional githyanki gish style build.
What do you think ?
Tools: None
Saving Throws: Constitution, Intelligence
Skills: Choose two skills from Acrobatics, Arcana, Athletics, History, Insight, Investigation, and Perception
Equipment
- (a) scale mail, (b) leather armor, or (c) chain mail (if proficient)
- (a) a martial weapon and a shield or (b) two martial weapons
- (a) a light crossbow and 20 bolts or (b) any simple weapon
- (a) a dungeoneer's pack or (b) a scholar's pack
Spellcasting
You've studied the workings of magic and how to cast spells, channeling the magic through your masterful technique. To observers, you don't appear to be casting spells in a conventional way; you appear to produce wonderous effects that lash out from your weapons.
Weapons Required
You produce your arcane warrior spell effects through your weapons. You must have a spellcasting focus-specifically some kind of weapon-in hand when you cast any spell with this Spellcasting feature (meaning the spell has an "M" component when you cast it). You must be proficient with the weapon to use it in this way. See the equipment chapter in the Player's Handbook for descriptions of these weapons.
Cantrips (0-Level Spells)
At 1st level, you know two cantrips of your choice from the arcane warrior spell list. At higher levels, you learn additional arcane warrior cantrips of your choice, as shown in the Cantrips Known column of the Arcane Warrior table.
When you gain a level in this class, you can replace one of the arcane warrior cantrips you know with another cantrip from the arcane warrior spell list.
Spells Known of 1st Level and Higher
At 1st level, you know two 1st-level spells of your choice from the arcane warrior spell list.
The Spells Known column of the Arcane Warrior table shows when you learn more arcane warrior spells of your choice of 1st level or higher. A spell you choose must be of a level that you can cast.
Additionally, when you gain a level in this class, you can choose one of the arcane warrior spells you know and replace it with another spell from the arcane warrior spell list, which also must be of a level for which you have spell slots.
I would tend to go for a prepared spell model like the wizard and artificer (& even the paladin). To me this is more thematic for a magic-heavy character, obv not quite as much as a primary caster, but it's still core class concept.
Spellcasting Ability
Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for your arcane warrior spells; your understanding of the theory behind magic allows you to wield these spells with superior skill. You use your Intelligence whenever an arcane warrior spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Intelligence modifier when setting the saving throw DC for an arcane warrior spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.
Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier
Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier
Mystic Path
At 1st level, you choose a path shaped by your history and how it has shaped your fighting style. Your choice grants you features when you choose it at 1st level and additional benefits at 3rd, 6th, 8th, 14th, and 18th levels.
I think a good conversation to have is whether the Archetype needs to kick in at L1, 2 or 3. I don't have a firm view of this but I would think that in order to be at L1 it should have a really good reason why it needs to be L1 like cleric does. What do you think in this case ?
Fighting Style
Starting at 2nd level, you adopt a particular style of fighting as your specialty. Choose one of the following options. You can't take a Fighting Style option more than once, even if you later get to choose again.
-Arcane Ward: When you are wielding a weapon with which you are proficient in one hand and nothing in the other hand and another creature hits you with an attack, you can use your reaction to add your proficiency bonus to your AC for that attack, potentially causing the attack to miss you.
-Arcane Warrior: You learn two cantrips of your choice from the wizard spell list. They count as arcane warrior spells for you, and Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for them. Whenever you gain a level in this class, you can replace one of these cantrips with another cantrip from the wizard spell list.
Love these.
-Blind Fighting
-Defense
-Dueling
-Great Weapon Fighting
-Interception
-Protection
-Two-Weapon Fighting
-Unarmed Fighting
Mystic Technique
As you master the techniques of melding weapons and magic some quirks of the weave have become apparent and you have figured out how to exploit them for your benefit.
Starting at 2nd level, you gain two mystic techniques of your choice. When you gain certain arcane warrior levels, you gain additional mystic techniques of your choice, as shown in the Techniques Known column of the Arcane Warrior table.
Additionally, when you gain a level in this class, you can choose one of the mystic techniques you know and replace it with another mystic technique that you could learn at that level.
Love this.
Sustained Magic
At 3rd level you learn to pull back excess magical energy from your spells and fuse it to your weapon. After casting a spell that deals damage you may use your reaction to infuse your weapon with the remnants of that spell. For the next minute your melee attacks made with that weapon deal extra damage of the same type of damage dealt by the spell. The weapon’s damage increases by an amount based on your level in this class, as shown on the Arcane Warrior Sustained Magic table.
| Arcane Warrior Level | Bonus Magic Damage |
| 3rd | 1d4 |
| 10th | 1d6 |
| 16th | 1d8 |
| 20th | 1d10 |
I like this as one possible idea, but I'm not sure that it should be all builds, maybe one subclass has this ?
Ability Score Improvement
When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can't increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.
Extra Attack
Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.
War Magic
Beginning at 7th level, when you use your action to cast a cantrip, you can make one weapon attack as a bonus action.
I think an excellent conversation is whether to do Extra Attack + War Magic or the Bladesinger version of Extra Attack (sub 1 for a cantrip). I think it's a no-brainer that it needs one or the other, so the germaine question is, which one ?
The EK Extra Attack + War Magic enables easier weaponisation of the BA, which is good for fighters, but I think Gish's will have a much higher level of contention for doing magical things with their BA. So I'd much prefer the bladesinger version of Extra Attack, I think it's a more elegant way of doing it, and explicitly supports a mixing weapon attacks with spells in the same action, which I think is exactly what we're asking for. I'm aware that it's stronger than the EK one though - truth be told I wouldn't object to retro-fitting the bladesinger EA to EK instead of their War Magic, but that's a separate conversation.
Mystic Path Example
Note that the idea of mystic paths based on personal history just seem like one of many ways to do it. This one seemed inoffensive to the idea of a mystic warrior at the very least but I am not particularly attached to the flavor of it over anything else. If it is "How you learned your style" then level 1 subclass seems appropriate whereas if it is "Your specialty within the bigger group" level 3 may be a better starting point.
Path of the City Guard
Lv. 1
-Heavily Armored: You have proficiency in Heavy Armor.
Lv. 3
-Something's Not Right Here: You know the spell Detect Magic and can cast it as a ritual.
-Arcane Bulwark: When you take the Dodge action you add your Intelligence modifier to your AC as well as the AC of all creatures of your choice within 5 feet of you.
Lv. 6
-Stop Right There!: You know the spell Hold Person and may cast it once per short or long rest without expending a spell slot. When cast in this way the duration is "until the end of your next turn."
Lv. 8
-The Full Force of the Law: When you cast a spell that targets a single friendly creature they may use their reaction to move up to half their speed and make a single melee weapon attack. You may use this ability a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus and regain all expended uses on a long rest.
Path of the Psychic Warrior (Jedi)
Lv. 1
-Unarmored Defense: While you are wearing no armor and carrying no shield you may add your Intelligence modifier to your AC.
Lv. 3
-Psychic Assistance: You know the Mage Hand cantrip and the hand is invisible when you cast the cantrip with this trait. You may also cast Jump and Feather Fall each once per short or long rest without expending a spell slot. When cast using this ability these spells may only target you.
Lv. 6.
-Thrown Weapon: You are able to accurately hurl any weapon and cause it to return immediately to your hands. The range of your melee weapon attacks is increased by 30 feet.
Lv. 8
-Intercept Missiles: As a reaction when you would be hit by a ranged attack you may make an attack using a melee weapon you are holding. If your attack roll is higher than the ranged attack roll made against you you cause the attack to miss as you cut the projectile from the air.
Love these !! <3
Mystic Technique Example
The idea of Mystic Techniques is to add at-will magical effects that tie into the fighting style without requiring they be spells so the Arcane Warrior can maintain being a mix of magic and fighting all day and not revert to 'just a fighter but worse' when their spells go out. It was important in my design that they DO NOT INCREASE DAMAGE so ones put in with more rp or exploration focus are not immediately put aside for the ones that boost combat ability. These should increase versatility, not DPS.
-Blink: When you take the attack action you may teleport 10 feet towards a hostile target before making any attacks.
-Draw Forth: When you take the attack action you may pull a medium or smaller creature up to 10 feet towards you before making any attacks.
-Flame Affinity: You may choose for any melee weapon you are wielding to deal magical fire damage instead of its normal damage type.
-Seer's Awareness: You cannot be surprised.
-Gravitic Strike: The first time you hit a creature with a weapon attack on each of your turns that creature's speed is decreased by 10 feet.
-Eldritch Pursuit: As a bonus action you may teleport up to 30 feet towards the last enemy you hit with a weapon attack.
Love these !
As with Paladin 9th, 13th, and 17th should be 'dead' levels for class features because you're getting 3rd, 4th, and 5th level spells at those levels.
I think you've done a great job here mate ! Well done
) gish class.
