Author Topic: [3.5] The fighter, a leader of men  (Read 4448 times)

Offline Prime32

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[3.5] The fighter, a leader of men
« on: May 26, 2013, 08:13:24 PM »
Yep, it's another fighter remake. :p For this one I was trying to create abilities that emphasise team play; among other things, having a fighter in your party makes the idea of a dedicated scout or healer more viable.



FIGHTER

Class Skills (4+Int): Bluff, Climb, Craft, Diplomacy, Handle Animal, Intimidate, Jump, Knowledge (all skills, chosen individually), Listen, Martial Lore, Perform (oratory), Perform (weapons drill), Profession, Ride, Sense Motive, Speak Language (n/a), Spot, Survival, Swim, Use Magic Device

Hit Dice: d10



Level
Base
Attack Bonus
Fort
Save
Ref
Save
Will
Save

Special
1st+1+2+2+2Teamwork, Use your strengths, Vigor
2nd+2+3+3+3Bonus feat, Greater aid
3rd+3+3+3+3Strategy
4th+4+4+4+4Always ready (any trigger), Bonus feat
5th+5+4+4+4Footwork, Grant action (1/encounter)
6th+6/+1+5+5+5Bonus feat, Share skills
7th+7/+2+5+5+5Battlefield control (+1 size)
8th+8/+3+6+6+6Advanced strategy, Bonus feat
9th+9/+4+6+6+6Bonds of loyalty, Guardian
10th+10/+5+7+7+7Bonus feat, Grant action (2/encounter)
11th+11/+6/+1+7+7+7Chain of vigor, Like family
12th+12/+7/+2+8+8+8Bonus feat, Rapid aid
13th+13/+8/+3+8+8+8Battlefield control (+2 sizes), Push
14th+14/+9/+4+9+9+9Bonus feat, Flexibility
15th+15/+10/+5+9+9+9Dual strategy, Grant action (3/encounter)
16th+16/+11/+6/+1+10+10+10Always ready (any action), Bonus feat
17th+17/+12/+7/+2+10+10+10Ultimate bond
18th+18/+13/+8/+3+11+11+11Bonus feat, Swiftness
19th+19/+14/+9/+4+11+11+11Battlefield control (+3 sizes)
20th+20/+15/+10/+5+12+12+12Bonus feat, Grant action (4/encounter, multiple)

Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: Fighters are proficient with light, medium and heavy armor, with simple and martial weapons, and with shields (including tower shields).

Feat Packages: A fighter has a number of feat packages equal to 1 + his Intelligence modifier (minimum 1), one of which may be active at a time. The fighter may switch between feat packages by spending 5 minutes performing physical and mental exercises, or by expending 1 action point as a free action.
Each feat package grants the fighter one bonus feat per two class levels. These feats must be from the fighter list, and the fighter must meet the prerequisites for them as normal. Most fighters possess at least one package of feats specialised in melee combat and one specialised in ranged combat.

Teamwork (Ex): For meeting the prerequisites of teamwork benefits, fighters are treated as having a number of ranks in all skills equal to their fighter level +3, even if they are not class skills. Fighters ignore all prerequisites for teamwork benefits which are not based on skill ranks or BAB. A fighter does not count against the normal limit of creatures which can be part of a single team, and automatically succeeds on Aid Another checks made to assist a member of his team.
A list of most teamwork benefits can be found here.

Use your Strengths (Ex): A fighter applies his highest ability modifier to weapon damage in place of his Strength modifier.

Vigor (Ex): Whenever a fighter is exposed to an effect which restores hit points, he gains additional hit points equal to his class level.

Greater Aid (Ex): At 2nd level, whenever a fighter uses the Aid Another action the bonus increases by an amount equal to half his fighter level. If multiple fighters use Aid Another on the same target in the same round, only the highest-level fighter receives this enhanced bonus.

Strategy (Ex): At 3rd level whenever a fighter can observe a creature for one or more rounds (or receive information from an ally who has done so), he may form a strategy against it as a free action, providing a bonus on certain rolls and checks made against it equal to the number of rounds spent observing (to a maximum of the fighter's Intelligence modifier). Choose one of the following bonus types when the strategy is created:
  • Accuracy: Attack rolls
  • Power: Damage and critical confirmation rolls
  • Defence: Armor Class
  • Resistance: Saving throws against the creature's special attacks
  • Endurance: Damage reduction and energy resistance
  • Mysticism: Caster level checks
  • Stealth: Checks made to escape the creature's notice (including Hide and Move Silently checks)
  • Detection: Checks made to detect the creature's presence (including Search, Spot and Listen checks, as well as caster level checks made to penetrate nondetection and similar effects)
  • Identification: Checks made to identify the creature's abilities (including Knowledge and Spellcraft checks)
The fighter may revise his strategy 1/round as a free action, either to apply the benefits of another round of observation (increasing the bonus by +1), to change the type of bonus, or both. The effects of a strategy are considered insight bonuses, and last for 24 hours after it is invented.
The fighter may share this bonus with his allies as long as he is capable of communicating with them.

Always Ready (Ex): At 4th level a fighter may ready an action without specifying a trigger condition, allowing him to use it at any point in the round he wishes.
At 16th level this ability improves; the fighter may spend any kind of action (full-round, standard, move or swift) to ready an action of that type (rather than requiring a standard action, and only allowing standard or shorter actions to be readied). In addition, he may choose not to specify the type of action until it is performed (eg. he could ready a generic move action and use it to move his speed, ready a shield, or perform any other task which could be performed with a move action).

Footwork (Ex): At 5th level, whenever a fighter makes an attack or combat maneuver he may take an immediate 5ft step before or afterwards. This does not count against his normal 5ft step per round.

Grant Action (Ex): At 5th level, a fighter may take a swift action to grant any one creature within 60ft (including himself) an immediate move action. He may use this ability 1/encounter per five class levels, but no more than once per round. At 20th level this ability may instead affect a number of creatures up to his fighter level.

Share Skills (Ex): At 6th level, for the purposes of skill checks and teamwork benefits every member of the fighter's team possesses skill ranks equal to half the highest ranks in that skill possessed by a member of the team, rounded down (e.g. if one team member possessed 9 ranks in Hide, every other member of the team could choose to treat themselves as having 4 ranks in Hide).

Battlefield Control (Ex): At 7th level, and again at 13th and 19th level, a fighter may choose to exert influence over more of the battlefield than normal. Treat this as if the fighter had increased in size by one category, except that he may shape his space into any number of contiguous 5ft squares (similar to a swarm); the fighter may reshape his space at the start of each turn, treating any square he occupies as the anchor point. Do not adjust his ability scores, or natural armor for increasing in size, but apply all other modifiers as normal (including increased weapon damage). The fighter is still treated as his original size whenever it would be more convenient (such as when determining his size penalty to AC and attack rolls). This stacks with any effects which would increase the fighter's size. The fighter may suppress or resume this effect as a free action.

Advanced Strategy (Ex): At 8th level, whenever a creature gains a Strategy bonus of +3 or higher from the fighter, they gain an additional benefit against the target of the strategy based on the type of bonus:
  • Accuracy: Attacks gain the ghost touch property against the creature
  • Power: Ignore the creature's damage reduction and energy resistance; if the creature is immune to a type of damage (such as fire damage or the added damage from critical hits) then it instead takes half damage from those sources
  • Defence: The creature's attacks suffer a 20% miss chance against you
  • Resistance: When you succeed on a saving throw against one the creature's special attacks, if it would have a reduced effect then it instead has no effect
  • Endurance: Count as one size category larger for resisting the creature's special attacks
  • Mysticism: +2 to DCs of special attacks used against the creature
  • Stealth: Can hide even from special senses possessed by the creature, such as tremorsense
  • Detection: Gain the benefits of the Blind-Fight feat against the creature
  • Identification: Gain the benefits of arcane sight against the creature and any items it held when the strategy was invented
Bonds of Loyalty (Ex): At 9th level, whenever a member of the fighter's team fails a Will save against an effect which would compel them to harm another member of the team, they may make a second Will save at the highest bonus of any teammate; use the results of this second save in place of the first.

Guardian (Ex): At 9th level, allies adjacent to the fighter never provoke attacks of opportunity. If the fighter readies an action to move with the creature, he may provide this protection at every point in their movement.

Chain of Vigor (Ex): At 11th level whenever a fighter is exposed to an effect which restores hit points, all allies within 60ft immediately regain hit points equal to half the amount restored, including any healing in excess of the fighter's maximum hit points (i.e. directing a 100hp healing spell at the fighter would cause his allies to regain 50hp even if the fighter was at full health). This benefit applies even if the allies were already healed by the original effect (including the fighter himself). Healing provided by Chain of Vigor cannot trigger the effects of Vigor or Chain of Vigor.

Like Family (Ex): At 11th level the fighter and the members of his team have picked up on each others' quirks and ways of thinking, gaining a +20 bonus on Sense Motive checks made against each other (or to notice someone impersonating a member of the team), as well as on Bluff checks made to pass secret messages to a teammate. If a member of the team has Spell Resistance then it does not apply to spells cast by teammates unless they consciously will it to (a free action taken when the spell is cast).

Rapid Aid (Ex): At 12th level, a fighter may perform the Aid Another action in place of an attack.

Push (Ex): At 13th level, whenever a fighter makes a successful attack or combat maneuver he may force the target to take an immediate 5ft step in a direction of his choice. This counts as the target's 5ft step for the next round, though the fighter may force them to take multiple 5ft steps beyond this limit.

Flexibility (Ex): At 14th level, a fighter may perform a swift or immediate action as a move action. This allows him to perform multiple swift or immediate actions per round.

Dual Strategy (Ex): At 15th level, when a fighter invents a strategy he may choose to apply two sets of bonuses at once (including the effects of Advanced Strategy for those bonuses).

Ultimate Bond (Ex): At 17th level, the strength of a fighter's bonds with his allies have become truly uncanny. He and his allies within 60ft gain the benefits of a status spell with regards to each other, are aware of each others' exact hit point totals, and may communicate with each other telepathically. The fighter may affect members of his team with this ability at unlimited range, even across planar boundaries or while he or they are dead. As it is based on mutual understanding rather than magical energies, this effect cannot be negated or dispelled by effects which could normally block status or telepathy.

Swiftness (Ex): At 18th level, a fighter may perform an additional swift, immediate, move or standard action per round.
« Last Edit: June 30, 2013, 06:39:40 PM by Prime32 »

Offline RobbyPants

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Re: [3.5] The fighter, a leader of men
« Reply #1 on: May 30, 2013, 08:50:48 AM »
There are a lot of things I like about this class, although it'd be nice to see some out-of-combat ability added in other than class skills and boosting Aid Another.

I also find it interesting that you could totally roll a fighter prioritizing Int ahead of Con and Dex and have it be quite viable. In fact, the weirdest thing about Use your Strengths is that it disincentivizes you from having a high Str, which is often how you picture a fighter.
« Last Edit: May 30, 2013, 08:52:28 AM by RobbyPants »
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Offline oslecamo

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Re: [3.5] The fighter, a leader of men
« Reply #2 on: May 30, 2013, 01:49:58 PM »
Are you sure of that? When I think of high Str-guy, I think about barbarian.

Now altough I also find this aproach quite interesting as well, I would say the title is quite misleading. This makes the fighter  an awesome underling class, not a leader. Multiple lower level fighters buffing a big guy/caster would be pretty scary.:P

Would work great to represent war-advisors/strategists suporting from the sides, not so much for the main guy suposed to pull big stunts.

A simple solution may be making the buffs stronger the lower level your target is (and weaker if you're trying to "lead" someone that's higher level than you).

Offline Craiconn

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Re: [3.5] The fighter, a leader of men
« Reply #3 on: May 30, 2013, 02:11:06 PM »
I like this Fighter variant a lot.  I agree with Oslecamo ... there are a few numerical bonuses that could likely use some boosting.  But there's nothing glaringly weak about this class.

The only concerns I have is the Skills section.  4/Level is good .... but I don't see why UMD and all Knowledge skills should be listed.  Knowledge subsets such as Nobility/Royalty, History, Archietecture/Engineering and Geography I could possibly see.  But not The Planes, Psionics, Arcana, etc.

Also, there are aspects of Bluff & Diplomacy I could see.  But I can't see them being added to a Fighter archetype with this type of flavor/fluff.

Offline RobbyPants

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Re: [3.5] The fighter, a leader of men
« Reply #4 on: May 31, 2013, 07:30:31 AM »
Are you sure of that? When I think of high Str-guy, I think about barbarian.
Yes, although that's likely a hold-over from the type of behavior D&D incentivizes.


Now altough I also find this aproach quite interesting as well, I would say the title is quite misleading. This makes the fighter  an awesome underling class, not a leader. Multiple lower level fighters buffing a big guy/caster would be pretty scary.:P
This is a very good point. You'll probably want the bonuses to not stack to keep this from getting abusive.

Another interesting "leader of men" approach could be to actually give the fighter a growing force of troops that he commands, but don't have them be represented as individual creatures on the board. Have them behave like a swarm or a mob that occupies a certain number of squares based on the fighter's level that can do things like do damage to anyone in their squares, make a ranged attack against everyone within a certain radius circle a certain range away, and block charge lanes. They could also be used for siege engines at higher level, and could be useful out of combat as well for running things.

Still, that may be too much effort to keep that all straight at the table.


The only concerns I have is the Skills section.  4/Level is good .... but I don't see why UMD and all Knowledge skills should be listed.  Knowledge subsets such as Nobility/Royalty, History, Archietecture/Engineering and Geography I could possibly see.  But not The Planes, Psionics, Arcana, etc.
Planes and Arcana make a lot of sense for this class. There are six Knowledge skills that dictate what you know about various creature types, and the Fighter should have all of those. Six skill points per level would not be bad, either.
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Offline veekie

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Re: [3.5] The fighter, a leader of men
« Reply #5 on: May 31, 2013, 08:29:39 AM »
Not too hard I think, you could base it off PF-style animal companion, a stock, aggregate body of armed dudes for you to put all your cool buffs on. As you level you get better dudes and better subcommanders, but in combat they are essentially a mob.
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Offline Prime32

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Re: [3.5] The fighter, a leader of men
« Reply #6 on: May 31, 2013, 03:09:56 PM »
A simple solution may be making the buffs stronger the lower level your target is (and weaker if you're trying to "lead" someone that's higher level than you).
No need for something that complicated. A fixed damage bonus is already more useful on a large number of weak creatures, as long as their to-hit is decent (which can be taken care of by stuff like Missile Volley), and especially since you can ignore DR so that every hit is guaranteed damage.

While it does have army-leading abilities, though, this is meant more as a squad leader - the glue that binds together a bunch of adventurers with wildly different abilities and personalities. To that end, many of the abilities are there to enable classic stuff like wizard-fighter-cleric-thief, and smooth over issues with party balance and potential TPKs (like a low-magic group running into an allip, or a barbarian teammate running into an enchanter, or the party having to bring a dwarven defender when they sneak around).

Offline Aliek

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Re: [3.5] The fighter, a leader of men
« Reply #7 on: June 05, 2013, 08:00:05 PM »
I like this 'fix'(I'd say it's more of a total remake, tough) very much, and it even helps a bit out of combat, as suddenly your whole party can bluff half as good as your bard and so on.

To be fair, there are so many awesome 'fighter fixes' around, one could play a campaign using only those as classes.

...That sounds pretty cool, tbh.