School of Ludology

Board games are not often seen as anything but a pass-time these days. Something for fun, to stimulate your mind, and nothing more. However, the roots of game theory come from war-time strategies. It was a way to simulate a battle with no casualties, to allow those in power to plan out their best courses of action. In modern times, the few who study ludology attempt to reconnect with those core roots in battle, treating combat like a dragonchess match, and the land they fight upon as their board. All they need is the right pieces.

Wizards who enter the school of ludology tend to form play-groups, working together with military forces, and often acting as royal informants. Similarly to a bishop piece in chess, they are close to the royal family, and work at odd angles, being able to put pressure in ways no one else can, and move very freely. However, they are also limited in certain ways that may be frustrating for some, leaving the ludology school to be seen as an extremely niche subset of wizardry, in spite of its potential power.

Setting The Pieces

At 2nd level, you gain the ability to magically alter your surroundings to something befitting a true strategist.

As an action, you can create a Board Field originating from yourself. This Board Field is a sphere with a radius of 30 feet. While you and creatures that are allied with you are within your Board Field, they gain the following benefits:

• Their movement speed is increased by 10 feet.
• Moving through non-magical difficult terrain costs them no extra movement.
• They can add your Intelligence modifier to their melee and ranged weapon attack rolls (minimum 0).

Creatures can not benefit from the effects of more than one Board Field at a time. Each Board Field lasts for 10 minutes, until you dismiss it as a bonus action, or until you fall unconscious or die. You can only have one Board Field active at a time. You can create a Board Field by expending a spell slot of 1st level or higher. Once per long rest, you can create a Board Field without expending a spell slot.

King of the Board

Also at 2nd level, your knowledge of positioning and tactics gives you the advantage in battle. You can take a bonus action during each of your turns in combat to do one of the following actions:

• Take the Dash action.
• Take the Disengage action.
• Cast a cantrip that normally has a casting time of 1 action.

The Martial Attack

Starting at 6th level, you can use your action to target a willing creature within 30 feet that you can see within your Board Field, and that can hear you. That target creature can make a melee or ranged weapon attack at another creature of your choice within the attack's range. Additionally, you can add your Intelligence modifier to damage rolls made with this attack (minimum 0).

King's Gambit

At 10th level, if another creature makes an attack roll against you while you are in your Board Field, you can use your reaction to target a willing creature that is also on the Board Field, and that can hear you. The target creature must move to within 5 feet of you if their speed would allow it. Movement caused by this effect does not provoke opportunity attacks. Additionally, if the target creature is within 5 feet of you after this movement, the attack roll made against you now has disadvantage, and the attack target changes to the target creature. If the target creature would be struck with a critical hit during this, it is instead treated as a normal attack.

Check Mate

When you reach 14th level, your knowledge of real-time combat is advanced enough for you to make tide-turning decisions in an instant.

Attacks made by your Martial Attack feature have advantage. Additionally, you can use your action to remove one of the following conditions from an allied creature on your Board Field: blinded, charmed, deafened, frightened, paralyzed.
While an allied creature is within your Board Field, they also gain the following benefits:

• When they make a damage roll for a melee or ranged weapon attack on their turn, they can add your Intelligence modifier to the damage roll (minimum 0).
• Their melee and ranged weapon attacks score a critical hit on a roll of 19-20, if they would not already.
• Whenever they end their turn in the Board Field, if their HP is above 0, they regain 6 hit points.