Defensive Maneuverist

Defensive Maneuverists are not your typical prototype of a warrior. Instead of taking the offensive to their foes, these fighters prefer to let their enemies strike first, where they aim to exploit their faults and retaliate. They walk a disciplined tightrope of life and death and train rigorously to perfect their skills, because they know that a single error in combat may spell one's fate. 

Level 3: Defensive Arts

Your rigorous training has allowed you to learn specialized maneuvering techniques called Defensive Arts.

Arts. You learn four arts of your choice. These arts each defend you in some way against different attacks. You can only use one art per reaction. 

You learn an additional art of your choice when you reach Fighter levels 7, 10, and 15. Each time you learn a new art you can also replace one art you know with a different one.

Saving Throws. If an art requires a saving throw, the DC equals 8 plus your Strength or Dexterity modifier (your choice) and Proficiency Bonus.

 

Level 3: Focus

Your defensive maneuvers wear down an opponent in battle and present you with opportunities to strike.

Once per turn, when you make a successful reaction, gain a second one that can only be used for Defensive Arts. You also gain proficiency in one Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma skill of your choice.

Focus - Focus points can be expended to follow up Defensive Arts with devastating counterattacks. When you spend Focus, it is used following a Defensive Art reaction and is part of the Attack action. If you have already used your attack action this turn, you can expend two Focus points to follow a Defensive Art. You have a Focus point maximum of 5 that increases by two at levels 10 and 18. On a short rest, recover one Focus point. On a long rest, recover three Focus points. 

Balance Breaker

Immediately after a successful defensive art, you can expend three focus points to make a melee attack that inflicts disadvantage on dexterity throws and advantage on attack rolls against an enemy until the start of their next turn. 

Counterattack

Immediately after a successful defensive art, you can expend one focus point to make a melee attack. If this ability is used after the Riposte defensive art, you add your proficiency bonus to your damage on a hit.

Deathblow

Immediately after a successful defensive art, you can expend five focus points to make a melee attack with advantage. On hit, deals critical weapon damage plus proficiency bonus and fighter level.

Dismembering Deathblow

Immediately after a successful defensive art, you can expend seven focus points to make a melee attack with advantage. On hit, deals critical weapon damage plus proficiency bonus and fighter level and dismembers a limb of your choosing. The creature is immune to this if they are immune to your weapon type’s damage, doesn’t have/need the limb, has legendary actions, or the DM decides the creature is too big for the limb to be cut off. Such a creature takes an extra 15 damage.

Elemental Rebuke

Immediately after a successful defensive art against a spell attack, you can expend three focus points to reflect half of the full damage you would have taken back onto the spellcaster as your choice of radiant, psychic, or force damage. The spellcaster can make a saving throw of their spellcasting ability that is DC 8 plus your proficiency and strength or dexterity modifier. On save, they halve the damage.

Guard Counter

Immediately after a successful defensive art, you can expend three focus points to make a melee attack with advantage that scores a critical hit on a 19 or 20. 

Spell Repulsion

Immediately after a successful defensive art against a spell that does damage, you can expend seven focus points to fully reflect the damage you would have taken back onto the spellcaster as your choice of radiant, psychic, or force damage. The spellcaster can make a dexterity saving throw that is DC 10 plus your proficiency bonus and dexterity or strength modifier. On save, they halve the damage.

Stunning Blow

Immediately after a successful defensive art, you can expend five focus points to make an attack roll. On hit, does normal damage plus proficiency bonus and stuns the enemy.

Vorpal Deathblow

Immediately after a successful defensive art, you can expend nine focus points to make a melee attack with advantage. On hit, deals critical weapon damage plus proficiency bonus and fighter level and decapitate one of the creature's heads. The creature is immune to this if they are immune to your weapon type’s damage, doesn’t have/need a head, has legendary actions, or the DM decides the creature is too big for the head to be cut off. Such a creature takes an extra 30 damage.

Weave Retaliation

Immediately after a successful defensive art against a spell that does damage, you can expend nine focus points to make a dexterity saving throw with advantage against the spellcaster's DC. On a save, you cut through the weave itself and completely cut the magical essence of the spell from existence, and then teleport to a space within 5ft of the caster with the option to use a standard deathblow on them without expending the additional five focus points.

Level 7: Against The Odds

When surrounded by at least two hostile creatures within 5ft, the first used Defensive Art each round grants 1 additional focus.

At the start of your turn, you can use a bonus action to assume a stance.

Defensive Stance. Add half your proficiency bonus to your AC (minimum 1).

Duelist Stance. Remove half your proficiency bonus from your AC (minimum 1) but gain advantage on all defensive arts that advantage is applicable to.

Against The Odds

When you are surrounded by at least two hostile creatures within 5ft, the first used Defensive Art each round grants 1 additional focus.

Level 10: Lightning Reflexes

If you succeed on your second reaction that is used for a defensive art following your first reaction, you gain a third reaction that is used for a defensive art. Additionally, you can choose to gain an additional two focus points upon a successful Defensive Art once per short rest. 

Level 15: Indomitable Resolve

When you use your Indomitable class feature, you automatically succeed on the saving throw instead of rerolling it.

Level 18: Lightspeed Reflexes

If you succeed on your third reaction that is used for a Defensive Art following your first and second reactions, you gain a third reaction that is used for a defensive art. Additionally, all successful Perfect Arts now regenerate one additional focus.

Level 3: Art Options

The arts are presented here in alphabetical order. The arts can be one of three types:

Perfect Arts. Defensive arts that are riskier and require precise technique, but reward in generating Focus points and maximum damage mitigation.

Guard Arts. Defensive arts that are consistent in damage reduction but only generate Focus under niche circumstance.

Movement Arts. Defensive arts that control the battlefield through movement in reaction to a creature's movements.

Arcane Reflection

Perfect art. When hit by a spell attack, take a Reaction and roll 1d20 plus your proficiency bonus. If you equal or exceed the spell attack roll, take half damage and inflict force, radiant, or psychic damage on the spellcaster equal to double your proficiency bonus plus your fighter level, and regenerate one Focus point.

Block

Guard Art. When hit by a melee attack, take a reaction and reduce the damage by double your proficiency bonus plus half your fighter level. If damage is reduced to 0, gain 1 Focus point.

Bulwark

Guard art. When you or allies within 5ft take damage, you can take a reaction to reduce the damage by double your proficiency bonus for all affected by the damage.

Deflect

Perfect art. When hit by a range or spell attack, you can take a reaction and roll 1d20 plus your proficiency bonus and strength or dexterity mod. If you equal or exceed the attack roll, you deflect it and gain 1 focus.

Evasion

Perfect art. When forced to make a saving throw against an area effect, you can take a reaction toa dd your proficiency bonus to the save. If you make the save, regain 1 focus.

Flowing Water

Movement art. When a creature moves within your melee range, you can use your reaction to move up to half your movement speed. Additionally, if a creature leaves your melee reach, you can make an opportunity attack and move up to half your movement speed. On a critical hit, regain one focus point.

Intervention

Guard art. When an ally within 5ft of you is targeted, you can use your reaction to be targeted instead. If the attack misses, gain 1 focus. 

Iron Guard

Guard art. When a creature would gain advantage against you on an attack roll, use your reaction to treat it as a normal roll instead.

Parry

Perfect art. When hit by a melee attack, roll 1d20 plus your proficiency bonus and strength or dexterity modifier. If you equal or exceed the attack roll, it mises and you gain 1 focus. If you roll a critical success and successfully parry the attack, you gain 2 focus.

Pursuit

Movement art. When a creature moves away from you, you can use a reaction to gain movement equal to half your movement speed that does not provoke opportunity attacks but must be used to move towards the creature. 

Retreat

Movement art. When targeted, gain immediate movement equal to half your movement speed that does not provoke opportunity attacks but must be used to move away from the attacker. The attacker will receive their action back if you move outside of their attack range.

Riposte

Guard art. When a creature misses you with a melee attack, make a melee weapon attack against that creature. If the attack is a critical hit, gain 1 focus.

Sidestep

Movement art. When targeted by a melee attack, add half your proficiency bonus to your AC. If the attack misses, you can move half your movement speed away from that creature.

Slip & Cross

Movement art. When targeted by a melee attack outside of your weapon's reach, add half your proficiency bonus to your AC. If the attack misses, move to an unoccupied space within 5ft of that creature, or equal to half your movement speed.

Unbroken Resolve

Perfect art. When you fail a saving throw against being charmed, exhausted, frightened, paralyzed, or stunned, you can spend your reaction to reroll it plus half your proficiency bonus. On a success, ignore the effect until the end of your next turn and gain 2 focus.