D&D 5E Why Not? A Variant Captain Fighter

[Garthanos]

Compare trip to distracting strike... I mean sheesh unless your only attacking ally is seriously going to be 1 ranged combatant why ever would you consider it?

I am up for situationally valuable maneuvers but you really need to know a lot more to justify things at all like that never mind its not justified.

Perhaps distracting strike needs to be against an adjacent enemy and affect ranged attacks against them (you take the attention all on yourself leaving the enemy open to attacks which are from outside of its immediate focus) ... hence all ranged attacks are at advantage against them. A distracted enemy would also have disadvantage on reactions / opportunity attacks against anyone but the one who distracted them until there turn.

 

[Garthanos]

Idea
One can write riposte to use opportunity attacks to better integrate with Sentinel for the win. In effect Riposte now defines a new condition one gains an opportunity attack. One might use the meta maneuvers straining or risking an opportunity attack to do this even if you don't have any superiority die available during another creatures turn.

Riposte becomes when a creature misses you or an adjacent ally with a melee attack, you can use your reaction and expend one superiority die to make an opportunity attack against the creature. If you hit, you add the superiority die to the attack's damage roll.

Enhanced form (costing one more CS): doesnt cost a reaction

Basically the default riposte is a striker maneuver edited to the above it works for both defender and striker mindsets.

 

[Garthanos]

The berserk option brought up earlier if written as a maneuver with only the forgo an attack cost (rather than the scan for openings go between) is rather a format for maneuvers that could be used by the Champion without giving them an extra resource to track.

 

[Garthanos]

There is a variant fighter I found out in the wilds which has interesting amounts of my desired goals

 

[Garthanos]

There are elements not in it but a lot that are some I think are marked.

All fighters have maneuvers (however limited by subtype)

It introduces maneuvers which forgo an attack built in and so could be used by a Champion. (though only some are earmarked for that). They also have using superiority as a boost option.

However because it doesn't have meta-maneuvers there is no Bravura concept of triggering an opportunity attack or Straining ie self damage as a alternate costs.

It doesn't have a trip maneuver. this seemed an alternative to changing other maneuvers like distracting strike (which I think needs to remain melee - more later) and other effects to be more multi-affecting of allies as a default (I definitely I prefer fixing others to balance if one is changing this much). AND I think if the idea is to better enable Warlords and the like wherever reasonable we want multi-affecting things instead of restrained ones.

The tactician subtype then has more maneuvers known than the default.

 

[Garthanos]

Distracting Ruse
Expend one superiority die to distract a creature within your reach, giving you and your adjacent allies advantage on subsequent attacks till the creatures turn. The target must make a Wisdom saving throw made at a penalty of your CS die. If it fails the save its attention was captured and focused on something outside of its immediate area. Subsequent attacks creatures within melee reach gain advantage til the beginning of its turn. It also loses its its reaction.

Comparison to trip doesn't involve impairing movement to recover or penalize ranged attacks. It does not add a Superiority Die to the damage of an attack I am not sure about the moving that to making it more certain it will work. I allow it remove the target reaction so this can enable escapes and similar things

Note the above supports a lazy lord who may use distraction to aid allies. (and perhaps no attack)

Trip looks simpler but really is not.

Trip Attack
When you hit a creature with a weapon attack, you can expend one superiority die to attempt to knock the target down. You add the superiority die to the attack's damage roll, and if the target is Large or smaller, it must make a Strength saving throw. On a failed save, you knock the target prone.

Heros are awesome bonus : I am adjusting Trip so that as you level up each 5 levels your maximum trip size rank goes up one.

 

[Garthanos]

AFAIC, it's not about that, at all, because we're starting with Fighter. ;P

I think there are things that are not obvious ... ie elements of the Warlord like Bravura maneuvering collapsing into the core Fighter or into the Battlemaster. Some Battlemaster Maneuvers changing to be possible without attacks. And that one kicker of enabling of allies to spend HD in mid fight. The meta maneuvers I find empowering - they give us at-will maneuvers including at-will inspiration. Ways of integrating mental attributes into the fighters tool kit and so on. Ways of adding Berserker options.... Plans include transfering maneuvers to others like enabling the berserk option in allies. I don't know how far we can take it but seems an interesting experiment if BM maneuvers can be rebalanced and rejiggered satisfyingly.

 

[Garthanos]

The champion could use meta maneuvers bravura and straining to gain an extra attack this round instead of a superiority die.

 

[Garthanos]

Though I am picturing your aura effect cooler for actually a swordmage with an explosive shield . I do want my defending swordmage to be supported. Letting the fighter do it his way and other defenders do some interesting other methods.

That slowing effect in a swordmage might be an apparent increase in weight or is that a druid one.

Slowing might be an effect of the legs quivering when the Druid bear roars at them. Might do some only works if not immune ot fear or other delimiter.

@doctorbadwolf

 

[doctorbadwolf]

That slowing effect in a swordmage might be an apparent increase in weight or is that a druid one.

Slowing might be an effect of the legs quivering when the Druid bear roars at them. Might do some only works if not immune ot fear or other delimiter.

@doctorbadwolf

Too many plates spinning at the moment, Garth. That does sounds cool, though.