I don't think the aegis powers are spells.
In any case if this is true then reflavoring a spell we already have should be fine shouldn't it?
D&D 5E How would you do the sword mage in 5e?
In any case if this is true then reflavoring a spell we already have should be fine shouldn't it?
Are you asking about flavor or effectiveness?
You said you want cast on your weapon and hit someone with it, magic weapon does that.
Spirit shroud does that round after round after round.
I don't know of any spells that makes someone run away. I would agree that the Paladin and Ranger spells have some good effects (especially Wrathful Smite) but they are also poor damage for the slot you are using when you consider the cantrips the Wizard and Ek get and which require no slot.
Booming Blade on a 6th level Bladesinger or 7th level EK adds a D8 and 2d8 more if the enemy moves without a slot, as compared to the 2d6 and being shoved that you get from thunderous smite while using a slot. Additionally the smite spells require you to retain concentration until you hit, which is usually right after you cast them, but anyone who has used these spells often has missed the round you cast it and then lost concentration before you landed it.
Also in addition to spam every round magical weapon attacks, an EK (or any fighter) can pick up menacing attack, trip attack or pushing attack and use it once a short rest. This is going to give you an effect similar to some of the smite spells, with extra damage on top of the cantrip damage that is already higher and once a short rest is going to typically play out as more uses than a mid-level Paladin or Ranger is going to have in available spell slots for a smite spell or ensnaring strike.
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Voadam
Legend
The aegis powers are not spells. Mechanically they are fairly equivalent to 5e cantrips, a magic ability that can happen each round.
4e spells are a bit different from 0e-3e and 5e spells. They are not stuff you spend slots on. You can't double up on any spell, they each have their own recharge (at will, encounter, daily) but you can't decide you really like lightning bolt so you will prepare it twice (0e-3e) or spend two slots to do it twice (3e, 5e), it is an encounter power of a certain level so if you have it as your encounter power of that level you can cast it once per encounter only. Not casting 4e lightning bolt when that is your spell does not allow you to spend the slot on something else.
In 4e spells is the term for arcane class powers. Every character of the same level gets the same number of At will, Encounter, and Daily attack powers and the same number utility non-attack class powers. For example 4e non-essentials fighters and rogues have exactly the same array of at will, encounter, daily attack type of powers as swordmages do at every level, only the fighters and rogue power are termed martial and not arcane spells. This is why some call all 4e classes spell casters even when they do non magical martial things like hit harder with a blade once per encounter.
The Aegis class feature is like a separate pool of at will 4e spells of which the sword mage gets one from the Aegis options that is separate from the level appropriate at wills that all characters get.
Reflavoring an at will 5e cantrip could be pretty close to an Aegis effect in practice. There isn't one in 5e that does most of the things the assault aegis does however (teleport and attack as a reaction, impose a penalty on attacking others). The fighting style interception is mechanically close to a big part of what the aegis shield does, just not at range reflavoring that could kind of work. There are some 5e cantrips that are very similar to 4e swordmage at will attack spells (greenflame blade, lightning lure, etc.)
Reflavoring a spell with somewhat similar mechanics is about as close as you can get in 5e to duplicate an encounter or daily 4e swordmage spell.
Horwath
Legend
I would do some unholy hybrid of Bladesinger/hexblade/eldritch knight.
HD:d10
Saves: Con and Int
Proficiencies:
3 skills,
light, medium armor+shields
all weapons.
Half-caster
channeling ranged spell attacks as melee weapon attacks.
Extra attack at 5th level(blade singer version)
Bonus action attack if using cantrip in Action at 9th level
Bonus action attack if using any spell in Action at 15th level
+1 weapon that can be used as focus at 3rd level(+1 spell attack and DC)
+2 weapon that can be used as focus at 11th level(+2 spell attack and DC)
+3 weapon that can be used as focus at 17th level(+3 spell attack and DC)
using int for attack and damage with focus weapon,
bonus action teleport, prof bonus times per long rest, 7th level
Burning spell slots as reaction to reduce damage taken from a single source. reducing 10 damage per spell level spent.
HD:d10
Saves: Con and Int
Proficiencies:
3 skills,
light, medium armor+shields
all weapons.
Half-caster
channeling ranged spell attacks as melee weapon attacks.
Extra attack at 5th level(blade singer version)
Bonus action attack if using cantrip in Action at 9th level
Bonus action attack if using any spell in Action at 15th level
+1 weapon that can be used as focus at 3rd level(+1 spell attack and DC)
+2 weapon that can be used as focus at 11th level(+2 spell attack and DC)
+3 weapon that can be used as focus at 17th level(+3 spell attack and DC)
using int for attack and damage with focus weapon,
bonus action teleport, prof bonus times per long rest, 7th level
Burning spell slots as reaction to reduce damage taken from a single source. reducing 10 damage per spell level spent.
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Frozen_Heart
Hero
I know the smite spells arn't that effective, but I love them. And they're super flavourful for a gish type character.
My DM has been kind enough to let me take thunderous smite for my earth genasi artificer armourer (he agreed it worked flavourwise). And knocking people across the room with a thunder gauntlet with thunderous smite is so fun.
Flamestrike
Legend
Other than Blade Pact Warlocks (and in particular Hexblades), Eldritch Knights, Bladesingers, Valor and Swords Bards, Battlesmiths and Forge Adepts, plus of course Multiclassing.
doctorbadwolf
Heretic of The Seventh Circle
Blade Pact Warlocks are far from being an actual full time gish. They’re barely more than a mage that can stab in an emergency.
Hexblades are closer, but end up like someone made a gish class with only one subclass, at best, eliminating much of what makes warlocks fun to play, and it’s still not actually that good at being in the frontline.
Eldritch Knight is at best a part time pseudo-gish. Even that is a stretch. Might as well claim all warriors are gish because they can take spell-granting feats.
Battlesmith is fine, again if you put every class resource into being a gish which leaves no room to do anything else with your character, and don’t mind that your base class isn’t really adding much to your gish-ness.
Forge Adept isn’t an official subclass.
Valor Bard!?
Sword Bard is a decent swashbuckling bard, but it’s still very heavily a mage/rogue thing, not a full time gish.
Bladesinger is maybe the closest of those listed, until you actually play one in a game that challenges the PCs complexly and with all three pillars, and you realize that you are just either a bad mage holding a sword or a sword dervish with a spellbook that can’t actually effect the battlefield bc all your spells are spent protecting your squishy self.
But sure, anyone with a weapon who can cast spells is a gish.
Frozen_Heart
Hero
At this point the term gish is so stretched that people will count an evocation wizard with a dagger as a gish.Blade Pact Warlocks are far from being an actual full time gish. They’re barely more than a mage that can stab in an emergency.
Hexblades are closer, but end up like someone made a gish class with only one subclass, at best, eliminating much of what makes warlocks fun to play, and it’s still not actually that good at being in the frontline.
Eldritch Knight is at best a part time pseudo-gish. Even that is a stretch. Might as well claim all warriors are gish because they can take spell-granting feats.
Battlesmith is fine, again if you put every class resource into being a gish which leaves no room to do anything else with your character, and don’t mind that your base class isn’t really adding much to your gish-ness.
Forge Adept isn’t an official subclass.
Valor Bard!?
Sword Bard is a decent swashbuckling bard, but it’s still very heavily a mage/rogue thing, not a full time gish.
Bladesinger is maybe the closest of those listed, until you actually play one in a game that challenges the PCs complexly and with all three pillars, and you realize that you are just either a bad mage holding a sword or a sword dervish with a spellbook that can’t actually effect the battlefield bc all your spells are spent protecting your squishy self.
But sure, anyone with a weapon who can cast spells is a gish.
Then watch people squirm when by that argument, we no longer need paladin as a cleric can hit people with a weapon.
Voadam
Legend
Cleric was the original OD&D Gish, a melee combatant with magic. Not as good at straight fighting as a Fighting Man (weapon restrictions, lower HD) or as good at straight magic as a Magic User (no spells at 1st level, different spell selection with less attack spells), but their combo is pretty good and allows stuff the other two can't (healing and buff spells, etc.).
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