How are y'all doing? I am currently working on a feat that gives new maneuvers for players to toy with. Ideally I would class lock it to the Fighter, but D&D Beyond doesn't have that option so I just gotta roll with it. Anyway, the feat offers 12 new maneuvers, 7 of which you may notice come from the Class Variant Features UA by WoTC. The other 5 of my own creation that I based on the general theme of the UA material and Battle Master. The maneuvers are the following:
Ambush- When you make a Dexterity (Stealth) check or an initiative roll, you can expend one superiority die and add the die to the roll.
Bait & Switch- When you’re within 5 feet of an ally on your turn, you can expend one superiority die and switch places with that ally, provided you spend at least 5 feet of movement. This movement doesn’t provoke opportunity attacks. Roll the superiority die. Until the start of your next turn, the ally gains a bonus to AC equal to the number rolled.
Brace- When an enemy you can see moves within 5 feet of you, you can use your reaction to expend one superiority die and make one weapon attack against that creature. If the attack hits, add the superiority die to the attack’s damage roll.
Defensive Stance- You can expend a superiority die to take the Dodge action as a Bonus Action on your turn. If you are hit by an attack, you can use the superiority die to reduce the damage.
Matter Over Mind- When you make a Dexterity (Acrobatics) check or a Strength (Athletics) check, you can expend o e superiority die and add it to that check.
Restraining Strike- Immediately after you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack on your turn, you can expend one superiority die and use a bonus action to grapple the target (see chapter 9 in the Player’s Handbook for rules on grappling). Add the superiority die to your Strength (Athletics) check. The target is also restrained while grappled in this way.
Silver Tongue- When you make a Charisma (Deception) check or a Charisma (Persuasion) check, you can expend one superiority die, and add the superiority die to the ability check.
Snipe- As a bonus action, you can expend one superiority die and make a ranged weapon attack. You can draw a thrown weapon as part of making this attack. If you hit, add the superiority die to the attack’s damage roll.
Stinger- As a bonus action, you can expend a superiority die and move 15 feet in a straight line to make a melee weapon attack. This does not count against your total movement. If you hit, add the superiority die to the attack's damage roll.
Studious Eye- When you make a Wisdom (Insight) check or an Intelligence (Investigation) check, you can expend one superiority die, and add the superiority die to the ability check.
Sundering Blow- When you attack a creature with a weapon, you can expend a superiority die. If you hit, you drop that creature's AC down by 2. You also gain temporary hit points equal to the roll of the superiority die.
Vicious Strike- When you make a melee weapon attack, you can expend two or a maximum of four superiority dice. If you hit, you add the roll of those dice to the total damage. If you miss, the wagered superiority die are spent anyway.
The feat gives players four superiority dice (can't decide between a d6 or a d8) and allow players to pick three maneuvers from this list. Allowing die recovery on a shirt rest and if the player used the Second Wind ability, they regain a superiority die.
Let me know what you guys think and best to improve the feat or maneuvers.
Public Mod Note
(MellieDM):
Moved to Homebrew & House Rules
Well, there’s already the martial adapt feat which is, basically what you just described the feat to be, gives the players 2 maneuvers and a 1d6 superiority die, but if you where a battle master already it would scale with level, personally I’d just make the maneuvers connected to battle master and the already existing martial adept feat
as for second wind, um...I wouldn’t but if you do chose that then I’d say, regain 1 superiority dice for using second wind
now for the new maneuvers you’ve added
defensive stance, I’d say dodge is to much, dis on all attacks is really good for a ba as a class that is already good at taking hits and having high ac, I’d say just keep the last part of reducing damage, and maybe just dis on the next attack against you
restraining strike: yes, just yes, a maneuver for grappling is just, yes for me on so many levels, only thing I’d change is make the dice just go to damage and not the actual grapple check, cause with a fighters stats and things, it’ll make the check almost always work
stinger, just solid honestly, I like it for the hit and run you can do, but I might say 15 feet of extra movement for free is a bit much, maybe like 10
sundering blow, make it temporary reduction, with a permeant reduction an enemies ac can just completely whittle away over the course of a fight
vicious strike, flavor it’s cool, appealing yes, practical....no, considering most maneuvers add damage to your attacks it just...makes those maneuvers more useful, this one gives more immediate damage but others give a lot of longer term benefits and that extra damage. I’d still keep it cause it’s cool and works but truthfully, but don’t make them lose all those wagered dice
you’ve got a ton of solid ideas here, just needs a bit of polish and I think it’ll be great, might even use a few of these myself
Thank you for your input! I did base the idea of the feat on Martial Adept but if I am being honest, Martial Adept is a really weak feat. One superiority die and two maneuvers? That's one use per combat and there isn't any out of combat utility. The feat that I'm homebrewing gives 4 superiority dice and three maneuvers but also provides new options instead of just picking from Battle Master's plate. The idea was to give a feat that fighters could make the most use out of by giving more tools that enhance what they already are great at and help where they be slacking a bit, while staying in keep with the spirit of the class. Then if a player DOES choose Battle Master, they now have more dice to use and unique new options to give them more play style options.
Now regarding Second Wind. I did say you would only recover a single die. The idea, thematically, is that she a Fighter catches their "second wind" they not only reinvigorate themselves in terms of health but in stamina to perform another maneuver. A fighter can only use the ability at max 2 times a rest if they are high enough level so I didn't think it was OP. That said, I wasn't sure if this was a good ability to add.
Defensive Stance in all honesty is just the Monk's Patient Defense. It even follows the same rules. I think I just forgot to add the last bit about when it ends.
Sundering Blow. This was another mistake on my part. I didn't mean for it to imply that the AC drop is permanent. I was thinking in should only last fir the current combat. I should probably also add that the affect can't be stacked. Thanks for critique here.
For Vicious Strike, I wanted to make the Fighter equivalent to the Fireball spell. You're right that other moves stack superiority die to damage in addition to a effect but I will argue that I don't believe every maneuver NEEDS to have some special effect. A Fighter at the end of day is a class that is meant to hit hard and hit often and sometimes you just want to hit something REALLY hard. But the lost of dice regardless of the hit or miss is meant to be a risk for potential high damage. Imagine a Battle Master that has this maneuver and has d12 Superiority Dice. They could potentially cause 48 damage on those dice alone, now add their weapon attack damage plus their ability mod. That's crazy damage right there.
For vicious strike, just when compared to a lot of other maneuvers, not really stacking up is what I’m seeing, and I see people being easily drawn in to the high instant damage and then potentially just...lose all their dice
defensive stance, yes the fact it’s exactly like monks is, kinda the issue, monk is a class that uses those abilities more, it doesn’t have the health or usually ac to match, fighter however does, giving a fighter the extra survivability features a monk gets is...really strong
the feat....its, kinda too good honestly, you basically get a ton of bonus versatility and with all these.... 8 superiority dice on a short rest, and like 6 maneuvers, martial adept may not be the best feat, but that little boost it can give is pretty good I’d say, more versatility if you’re already a battle master and then let’s just take rogue, bonus action and then like, extra damaging sneak attack
second wind sort of runs into the, 4 a short rest is a decent amount, it’s easy sometimes to underestimate a short rest or the fact that combat in this edition on average lasts around 3 to 5 rounds, so 2 fights a short rest means on average you’ll get a bunch of maneuvers off, this just means more, but not underliningly broken, but let’s just connect this with the feat you’ve got...they can basically just, maneuver a ton now and there’s little reason to use those maneuvers sparingly
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Marvarax andSora (Dragonborn) The retired fighter and WIP scholar - Glory
Brythel(Dwarf), The dwarf with a gun - survival at sea
Jaylin(Human), Paladin of Lathander's Ancient ways - The Seven Saints (Azura Claw)
Urselles(Goblin), Cleric of Eldath- The Wizard's challenge
Viclas Tyrin(Half Elf), Student of the Elven arts- Indrafatmoko's Defiance in Phlan
I do get where you are coming from. But I don't think the average player is planning to short after every combat, Even when I play Battle Master, I rarely spent all my dice in a single combat. And when I did spend dice, I coordinated with my party to get the most bang out it. If you were to combine this feat with Battle Master, at level 15 you 10 superiority dice and 12 maneuvers.
A monk gets 15 Ki Points
Wizards gets 17 spell slots and a crap ton of spells that give them a versatility.
I just like giving fighters having options that aren't just Great Weapon Master, Polearm Master, Sentinel or Shield Master. Maneuvers help a Fighters feel different from one another and Battle Master is supposed to be the epitome of their use but after the 1st five or so, every other option is just bleh. And you don't even get enough resources to spend to really enjoy maneuvers per combat. I will definitely work on toning down the feat a bit.
How are y'all doing? I am currently working on a feat that gives new maneuvers for players to toy with. Ideally I would class lock it to the Fighter, but D&D Beyond doesn't have that option so I just gotta roll with it. Anyway, the feat offers 12 new maneuvers, 7 of which you may notice come from the Class Variant Features UA by WoTC. The other 5 of my own creation that I based on the general theme of the UA material and Battle Master. The maneuvers are the following:
Ambush- When you make a Dexterity (Stealth) check or an initiative roll, you can expend one superiority die and add the die to the roll.
Bait & Switch- When you’re within 5 feet of an ally on your turn, you can expend one superiority die and switch places with that ally, provided you spend at least 5 feet of movement. This movement doesn’t provoke opportunity attacks. Roll the superiority die. Until the start of your next turn, the ally gains a bonus to AC equal to the number rolled.
Brace- When an enemy you can see moves within 5 feet of you, you can use your reaction to expend one superiority die and make one weapon attack against that creature. If the attack hits, add the superiority die to the attack’s damage roll.
Defensive Stance- You can expend a superiority die to take the Dodge action as a Bonus Action on your turn. If you are hit by an attack, you can use the superiority die to reduce the damage.
Matter Over Mind- When you make a Dexterity (Acrobatics) check or a Strength (Athletics) check, you can expend o e superiority die and add it to that check.
Restraining Strike- Immediately after you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack on your turn, you can expend one superiority die and use a bonus action to grapple the target (see chapter 9 in the Player’s Handbook for rules on grappling). Add the superiority die to your Strength (Athletics) check. The target is also restrained while grappled in this way.
Silver Tongue- When you make a Charisma (Deception) check or a Charisma (Persuasion) check, you can expend one superiority die, and add the superiority die to the ability check.
Snipe- As a bonus action, you can expend one superiority die and make a ranged weapon attack. You can draw a thrown weapon as part of making this attack. If you hit, add the superiority die to the attack’s damage roll.
Stinger- As a bonus action, you can expend a superiority die and move 15 feet in a straight line to make a melee weapon attack. This does not count against your total movement. If you hit, add the superiority die to the attack's damage roll.
Studious Eye- When you make a Wisdom (Insight) check or an Intelligence (Investigation) check, you can expend one superiority die, and add the superiority die to the ability check.
Sundering Blow- When you attack a creature with a weapon, you can expend a superiority die. If you hit, you drop that creature's AC down by 2. You also gain temporary hit points equal to the roll of the superiority die.
Vicious Strike- When you make a melee weapon attack, you can expend two or a maximum of four superiority dice. If you hit, you add the roll of those dice to the total damage. If you miss, the wagered superiority die are spent anyway.
The feat gives players four superiority dice (can't decide between a d6 or a d8) and allow players to pick three maneuvers from this list. Allowing die recovery on a shirt rest and if the player used the Second Wind ability, they regain a superiority die.
Let me know what you guys think and best to improve the feat or maneuvers.
Well, there’s already the martial adapt feat which is, basically what you just described the feat to be, gives the players 2 maneuvers and a 1d6 superiority die, but if you where a battle master already it would scale with level, personally I’d just make the maneuvers connected to battle master and the already existing martial adept feat
as for second wind, um...I wouldn’t but if you do chose that then I’d say, regain 1 superiority dice for using second wind
now for the new maneuvers you’ve added
defensive stance, I’d say dodge is to much, dis on all attacks is really good for a ba as a class that is already good at taking hits and having high ac, I’d say just keep the last part of reducing damage, and maybe just dis on the next attack against you
restraining strike: yes, just yes, a maneuver for grappling is just, yes for me on so many levels, only thing I’d change is make the dice just go to damage and not the actual grapple check, cause with a fighters stats and things, it’ll make the check almost always work
stinger, just solid honestly, I like it for the hit and run you can do, but I might say 15 feet of extra movement for free is a bit much, maybe like 10
sundering blow, make it temporary reduction, with a permeant reduction an enemies ac can just completely whittle away over the course of a fight
vicious strike, flavor it’s cool, appealing yes, practical....no, considering most maneuvers add damage to your attacks it just...makes those maneuvers more useful, this one gives more immediate damage but others give a lot of longer term benefits and that extra damage. I’d still keep it cause it’s cool and works but truthfully, but don’t make them lose all those wagered dice
you’ve got a ton of solid ideas here, just needs a bit of polish and I think it’ll be great, might even use a few of these myself
Marvarax and Sora (Dragonborn) The retired fighter and WIP scholar - Glory
Brythel(Dwarf), The dwarf with a gun - survival at sea
Jaylin(Human), Paladin of Lathander's Ancient ways - The Seven Saints (Azura Claw)
Urselles(Goblin), Cleric of Eldath- The Wizard's challenge
Viclas Tyrin(Half Elf), Student of the Elven arts- Indrafatmoko's Defiance in Phlan
Thank you for your input! I did base the idea of the feat on Martial Adept but if I am being honest, Martial Adept is a really weak feat. One superiority die and two maneuvers? That's one use per combat and there isn't any out of combat utility. The feat that I'm homebrewing gives 4 superiority dice and three maneuvers but also provides new options instead of just picking from Battle Master's plate. The idea was to give a feat that fighters could make the most use out of by giving more tools that enhance what they already are great at and help where they be slacking a bit, while staying in keep with the spirit of the class. Then if a player DOES choose Battle Master, they now have more dice to use and unique new options to give them more play style options.
Now regarding Second Wind. I did say you would only recover a single die. The idea, thematically, is that she a Fighter catches their "second wind" they not only reinvigorate themselves in terms of health but in stamina to perform another maneuver. A fighter can only use the ability at max 2 times a rest if they are high enough level so I didn't think it was OP. That said, I wasn't sure if this was a good ability to add.
Defensive Stance in all honesty is just the Monk's Patient Defense. It even follows the same rules. I think I just forgot to add the last bit about when it ends.
Sundering Blow. This was another mistake on my part. I didn't mean for it to imply that the AC drop is permanent. I was thinking in should only last fir the current combat. I should probably also add that the affect can't be stacked. Thanks for critique here.
For Vicious Strike, I wanted to make the Fighter equivalent to the Fireball spell. You're right that other moves stack superiority die to damage in addition to a effect but I will argue that I don't believe every maneuver NEEDS to have some special effect. A Fighter at the end of day is a class that is meant to hit hard and hit often and sometimes you just want to hit something REALLY hard. But the lost of dice regardless of the hit or miss is meant to be a risk for potential high damage. Imagine a Battle Master that has this maneuver and has d12 Superiority Dice. They could potentially cause 48 damage on those dice alone, now add their weapon attack damage plus their ability mod. That's crazy damage right there.
For vicious strike, just when compared to a lot of other maneuvers, not really stacking up is what I’m seeing, and I see people being easily drawn in to the high instant damage and then potentially just...lose all their dice
defensive stance, yes the fact it’s exactly like monks is, kinda the issue, monk is a class that uses those abilities more, it doesn’t have the health or usually ac to match, fighter however does, giving a fighter the extra survivability features a monk gets is...really strong
the feat....its, kinda too good honestly, you basically get a ton of bonus versatility and with all these.... 8 superiority dice on a short rest, and like 6 maneuvers, martial adept may not be the best feat, but that little boost it can give is pretty good I’d say, more versatility if you’re already a battle master and then let’s just take rogue, bonus action and then like, extra damaging sneak attack
second wind sort of runs into the, 4 a short rest is a decent amount, it’s easy sometimes to underestimate a short rest or the fact that combat in this edition on average lasts around 3 to 5 rounds, so 2 fights a short rest means on average you’ll get a bunch of maneuvers off, this just means more, but not underliningly broken, but let’s just connect this with the feat you’ve got...they can basically just, maneuver a ton now and there’s little reason to use those maneuvers sparingly
Marvarax and Sora (Dragonborn) The retired fighter and WIP scholar - Glory
Brythel(Dwarf), The dwarf with a gun - survival at sea
Jaylin(Human), Paladin of Lathander's Ancient ways - The Seven Saints (Azura Claw)
Urselles(Goblin), Cleric of Eldath- The Wizard's challenge
Viclas Tyrin(Half Elf), Student of the Elven arts- Indrafatmoko's Defiance in Phlan
I do get where you are coming from. But I don't think the average player is planning to short after every combat, Even when I play Battle Master, I rarely spent all my dice in a single combat. And when I did spend dice, I coordinated with my party to get the most bang out it. If you were to combine this feat with Battle Master, at level 15 you 10 superiority dice and 12 maneuvers.
A monk gets 15 Ki Points
Wizards gets 17 spell slots and a crap ton of spells that give them a versatility.
I just like giving fighters having options that aren't just Great Weapon Master, Polearm Master, Sentinel or Shield Master. Maneuvers help a Fighters feel different from one another and Battle Master is supposed to be the epitome of their use but after the 1st five or so, every other option is just bleh. And you don't even get enough resources to spend to really enjoy maneuvers per combat. I will definitely work on toning down the feat a bit.
I can see where you’re coming from but at the same time it’s also important to consider that
If a wizard loses their spell slots then they’re down quiet a bit
a monk without ki just kinda turns into a puncher
a fighting without their maneuvers, is still a powerful force on the battlefield with multiple attacks abilities and hp and ac
Marvarax and Sora (Dragonborn) The retired fighter and WIP scholar - Glory
Brythel(Dwarf), The dwarf with a gun - survival at sea
Jaylin(Human), Paladin of Lathander's Ancient ways - The Seven Saints (Azura Claw)
Urselles(Goblin), Cleric of Eldath- The Wizard's challenge
Viclas Tyrin(Half Elf), Student of the Elven arts- Indrafatmoko's Defiance in Phlan
Coooolllll