Rimebound Juggernaut

Rimebound Juggernauts are warriors who have bound the primordial power of winter into their bodies and equipment. Through practiced runecraft, they inscribe weapons, armor, and treasured possessions with symbols of glacial endurance, frozen destruction, and impossible passage. These runes allow them to cross the battlefield in an instant, imprison enemies in unyielding ice, shield companions from otherwise mortal wounds, and endure punishment that would bring down lesser warriors.

Unlike spellcasters who command winter through incantations, Rimebound Juggernauts express their magic through physical strength, discipline, and relentless forward momentum. Frost gathers around every weapon strike, slowing anything that survives the blow, while their runes provide the tools needed to control the course of battle. As their mastery deepens, they become increasingly resistant to harm, their supernatural cold pierces ordinary defenses, and even grievous wounds close before the deathless power of winter within them.

Winterborn

3rd lvl The power of unyielding winter has permanently changed you, allowing you to endure killing cold and travel through frozen terrain with ease. You gain resistance to cold damage and are naturally adapted to extreme cold. Nonmagical ice and snow do not cost you additional movement. You also gain proficiency with smith’s tools and learn to speak, read, and write Giant. If you already have proficiency with smith’s tools, you gain proficiency with another type of artisan’s tools of your choice.

Rime Rune Carver

3rd lvl You have learned to carve ancient runes that bind the primordial power of winter into your equipment. You know three runes of your choice from the Rime Rune list. You learn one additional rune at 7th, 10th, and 15th level.

Whenever you finish a long rest, you can inscribe each rune you know upon a weapon, shield, suit of armor, piece of jewelry, or another object you can wear or carry. An object can bear only one of your runes at a time. A rune remains until you finish your next long rest, and each rune grants a passive benefit while you wear or carry the object bearing it.

Each rune also possesses a power that you can invoke once. After invoking a rune, you cannot invoke that rune again until you finish a short or long rest. Each rune has its own independent use.

If one of your runes requires a saving throw, your Rune save DC equals 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Constitution modifier.

Aegis Rune

**Passive:** You have advantage on Perception checks made to detect danger, and you cannot be surprised while conscious.

**Invocation:** When you or another creature within 30 feet takes damage, use your reaction to reduce that damage by:

**2d6 + your Fighter level + your Constitution modifier**

Binding Rime Rune

**Passive:** Double your proficiency bonus whenever you make an ability check using a tool with which you are proficient.

**Invocation:** When you hit a creature with a weapon attack, it takes an additional 2d6 cold damage and becomes restrained in runic ice for 1 minute.

While restrained, it takes 2d6 cold damage at the beginning of each of its turns. It can make a Strength saving throw at the end of each turn, ending the effect on a success.

Glacier Rune

**Passive:** You have advantage on ability checks and saving throws made to resist being knocked prone or forcibly moved.

**Invocation:** As a bonus action, you gain resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage for 1 minute.

Rimeway Rune

**Passive:** Your walking speed increases by 5 feet. Magical effects cannot reduce your speed below half its normal value.

**Invocation:** As a bonus action, teleport up to 60 feet to an unoccupied space you can see. You can bring one willing creature within 5 feet of you, provided it appears within 5 feet of your destination.

 

Whiteout Rune

**Passive:** You can see normally through nonmagical fog, mist, falling snow, and similar atmospheric obscurement within 60 feet.

**Invocation:** As a bonus action, create a 15-foot aura of freezing wind around yourself for 1 minute. The aura moves with you and has the following effects:

* It is difficult terrain for hostile creatures.
* Hostile creatures inside the aura have disadvantage on attacks against creatures other than you.

Winterheart Rune

**Passive:** When you spend a Hit Die to regain hit points, treat a roll lower than your Constitution modifier as equal to your Constitution modifier.

**Invocation:** As a bonus action, gain temporary hit points equal to five times your proficiency bonus for 1 minute. While any temporary hit points granted by this rune remain, a creature that hits you with a melee attack takes cold damage equal to your Constitution modifier.

 

Rimeforged Brutality

3rd lvl The runes bound to your weapons draw killing cold into every strike, causing frost to spread through armor, flesh, and anything else caught beneath your blows. Whenever you hit with a weapon with which you are proficient, the attack deals an additional 1d4 cold damage.

This additional damage increases to 1d6 at 7th level, 1d8 at 15th level, and 1d10 at 18th level.

Once during each of your turns when you deal this additional cold damage, you can reduce the target’s speed by 10 feet until the beginning of your next turn.

Piercing Cold

7th lvl  Cold damage dealt by you ignores resistance to cold damage. Whenever you make a saving throw, roll 1d6 and add the result to your saving throw.

If you add this bonus to a death saving throw and the total becomes 20 or higher, you gain the benefit of rolling a natural 20 on that death saving throw.

Frostbound Mastery

10th lvl Your resistance to cold damage becomes immunity. You also gain one additional Fighting Style available to the Fighter class. You cannot select a Fighting Style you already possess.

Master of Runes

15th lvl You can invoke each rune twice between rests instead of once. You also learn your final rune, and your Rimeforged Brutality damage increases to 1d8.
Runic Bulwark. While you have temporary hit points or are under the effects of your Glacier Rune’s invocation, you have resistance to all damage.

Deathless Winter

18th lvl At the beginning of each of your turns, if you have at least 1 hit point but no more than half your maximum hit points, you regain hit points equal to 5 + your Constitution modifier.

Your Rimeforged Brutality damage increases to 1d10. Cold damage dealt by you ignores resistance and immunity to cold damage.