D&D 5E Types of feats you'd like to see in future UA articles and books

[Li Shenron]

If I remember correctly, in previous UA articles the following feats types were explored:

- weapon mastery feats: each feat works with a small number of weapons, provides +1 to attacks and a couple of special effects
- feats for races: each feat requires a specific race or two, most of them grant an ASI, other benefits vary a lot
- feats for skills: each feat grants proficiency OR expertise, an ASI, and one special ability
- feats for tools: each feat grants proficiency OR expertise, an ASI, and a couple of special abilities

The only other UA feat I remember was the special snowflake feat "Dragonmarked", but there might be more...

We are aware that almost all the UA feats didn't pass the mark for inclusion in XGE, except the (slim) majority of the racial feats, but this doesn't mean that they are all gone for good. At least many of those were probably rejected because of mechanical issues rather than concept.

So what type of feats would you like to see re-done in future UA articles and books, and with what kind of changes overall (not looking at the specific feats, but as the whole approach for their type/group)?

An what other types of feats do you feel there is room for in 5e, and you'd like to see them at least attempted in UA?

 

[CapnZapp]

Feats for spellcasters.

Feats that allow you to nibble at other classes look'n'feel.

 

[Li Shenron]

On my own part... I think I'd like to see a few attempts at more of those "snowflake" feats that cannot actually be categorized much. To emphasize the whole idea that 5e feats should represent a lot more than just a small bonus, but rather an identity of the character, IIRC during DnDNext playtest there were some feats that were inspired by unique character concepts, for example the Arcane Archer was one of those feats. Eventually it became a whole archetype, presumably because one feat was still too small to contain the concept properly. But there is a lot of potential to find other character concepts that aren't so large as to require a subclass. For instance, just like the Arcane Archer, there could be other old prestige classes that could be made into 5e feats. The key for success would probably be in picking those few who had a strong conceptual flavor, but also few defining features (otherwise they would be too complex to be captured by a single feat), and at the same time not be tied to a single base class. I'd love to see a few attempts at these...

 

[Leatherhead]

I would be interested in feats that improve movement. Things that grant swimming or climbing would be nice. Even exceptional movement types like burrowing would be cool.

Feats that are tied to some environments. Something that lets people live in harsher environments like tundras or deserts. Something that lets people adapt to the underdark.

 

[CapnZapp]

To clarify, the value of a feat over a subclass in this regard is that it allows existing characters to deepen their builds. Far too much of WotC's new content only widens the options, only applies to new characters.

Adding Arcane Archer as a subclass means you cannot also be, for example, a Eldritch Knight or Valor Bard (or pretty much ANY bard).

Adding Arcane Archer as a feat means you can take it even if you aren't an Arcane Archer The Subclass.

So I great value in adding such feats even if there's already a subclass, and in fact especially if there's already a subclass.

In fact, far too many new subclasses doesn't add anything new mechanically to the table. Subclasses that just grant you existing benefits (mainly advantage) in new combinations are decidedly meh. Developing parallel feats would greatly increase the interest for existing characters.

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

- Feats that work for a specific background, giving you a more substantial bonus for a given background.
- Feats that work better if more than one player in the party has the same.
- Feats that allow you to poach a lesser version of another class features (Enrage: Gain Lvl THP, +2 damage, Immunity to mind-effect for 1 round)

 

[MechaTarrasque]

I think the dragonmarks were more "setting specific feats" than "snowflake" feats. I think that setting specific feats might be a good area for WotC to look into as they try to include more non-FR settings in the future. Like racial feats, the main benefit would be to let players "double down" on something (the setting instead of the race: My fighter is the Dark Sunniest fighter in all of Athas). It would also reduce the mechanical burden for settings like Dark Sun and Planescape if they had something like "all PC's get a feat at first level, but they must pick a feat from the [setting name] feat list."

I think there is also a market for racial feats for the non-PHB races.

 

[TiwazTyrsfist]

I'd like to see some small feat chains.

Obviously we can't have chains on the same scale as 3.X because you can't get nearly as many feats, BUT, I'd like to have options where a character dedicated to a build can advance via taking feats in place of stat-boosts.

Like, take Magic Initiate. Grants 2 cantrips, and 1 1st level spell usable once per long rest.
Add two more feats into a chain
Magic Novice - Prereq: Magic Initiate. You now have two level 1 spell slots and a level 2 spell slot, and know one level 2 spell from the same class you have Magic Initiate for. Your 1st level spell is know a spell known and castable using your slots instead of 1/long rest.
Magic Adept - Prereq: Magic Novice. You now have 3 1st level slots, 2 2nd level slots, and 1 3rd level slot. You gain 1 1st level spell known and 1 3rd level spell known.

These are completely off the top of my head ideas mind you, they need testing and balancing to see if they're worth it, but that's beside the point.

Any way, the most important thing IMO is keeping feats in the power realm of "Worth sacrificing the Stat boost, but not so powerful that they are necessary".

 

[ART!]

If I remember correctly, in previous UA articles the following feats types were explored:

- weapon mastery feats: each feat works with a small number of weapons, provides +1 to attacks and a couple of special effects
- feats for races: each feat requires a specific race or two, most of them grant an ASI, other benefits vary a lot
- feats for skills: each feat grants proficiency OR expertise, an ASI, and one special ability
- feats for tools: each feat grants proficiency OR expertise, an ASI, and a couple of special abilities

The only other UA feat I remember was the special snowflake feat "Dragonmarked", but there might be more...

We are aware that almost all the UA feats didn't pass the mark for inclusion in XGE, except the (slim) majority of the racial feats, but this doesn't mean that they are all gone for good. At least many of those were probably rejected because of mechanical issues rather than concept.

So what type of feats would you like to see re-done in future UA articles and books, and with what kind of changes overall (not looking at the specific feats, but as the whole approach for their type/group)?

An what other types of feats do you feel there is room for in 5e, and you'd like to see them at least attempted in UA?

More racial feats - they're a great way to customize a race to suit a person's or group's ideas about a race and/or to suit their setting.

Tool feats.

I dislike feats that mostly just give you an ability that might work some of the time.

Feats for spellcasters sounds like a great idea.

 

[MechaTarrasque]

I'd like to see some small feat chains.

Obviously we can't have chains on the same scale as 3.X because you can't get nearly as many feats, BUT, I'd like to have options where a character dedicated to a build can advance via taking feats in place of stat-boosts.

Like, take Magic Initiate. Grants 2 cantrips, and 1 1st level spell usable once per long rest.
Add two more feats into a chain
Magic Novice - Prereq: Magic Initiate. You now have two level 1 spell slots and a level 2 spell slot, and know one level 2 spell from the same class you have Magic Initiate for. Your 1st level spell is know a spell known and castable using your slots instead of 1/long rest.
Magic Adept - Prereq: Magic Novice. You now have 3 1st level slots, 2 2nd level slots, and 1 3rd level slot. You gain 1 1st level spell known and 1 3rd level spell known.

These are completely off the top of my head ideas mind you, they need testing and balancing to see if they're worth it, but that's beside the point.

Any way, the most important thing IMO is keeping feats in the power realm of "Worth sacrificing the Stat boost, but not so powerful that they are necessary".

I think feat chains are like prestige classes--too many bad memories for too many people; it would need to be repackaged. They could do something like having a feat with a prerequisite of "the ability to cast a 1st level or higher spell" so that someone with magic initiate could use it or someone with a spellcasting class or subclass could use it without having to have the MI feat.