For stats, top score in str, second on con, then some dex, a good wisdom is always a good choice, dump int and cha. But those are really for optimizers. Str/con as top two you’ll always want. But if your character idea involves being really smart or charismatic, go for it. Whatever will be most fun.
Side note, if you go sword and board, you could do a dex build, where dex/con are your top two. Those also work well. But if you go polearm, you’ll need to go str.
I'm going to recommend Sword and Board with the Shieldmaster feat. It boosts your own defenses, but also gives you a bonus action shove that you can use round after round for some additional battlefield control. You can use it to push enemies into AOE spells or hazards, to push melee combatants away from your squishy spellcasters so they can move without worrying about Attacks of Opportunity, and if you really want to pin someone down you can just shove them prone to give yourself advantage on attacks, which is nice for crit fishing to output some extra nasty maneuvers. It's almost worth it to also take the Skill Expert feat to get expertise on Athletics checks to improve your shoves.
As an alternative, you could take Polearm Master and then one-hand a spear and shield spartan style. You'll get the extra defense and the extra opportunity attacks, though you will be trading reach for defense and some damage.
I like the synergy between the Polearm Master and Sentinel feats, i have a vHuman Vengeance Paladin with this combo and it's pretty effective for battlefield control.
Honestly, I prefer to play ranged fighters; Crossbow Expert, Sharpshooter, the works. My second choice is Polearm Master with Great Weapon Master and/or sentinel depending on the specific build. I don't like sword and board because i feel it limits your options in combat. I agree with the above that if you want good defenses, go Wizard. if you still want good defense as a fighter without multiclassing, going ranged and dumping strength for extra Dex is your best bet, because often being outside melee range is a good defense in of itself. Although, it's hard to go wrong with battlemaster; I use it in all of my martial builds. Keep in mind this is from the point of view of an optimizer. There are other fun choices you could do, these are just the powerful ones.
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I write homebrew and don't publish it. (evil, I know)
From the options it sounds like you are keyed into a melee build, crossbow expert is probably a little bit better but melee can still be quite strong. here is how I would build it out if my focus was on combat.
Starting Array: 15(+1) STR, 12 DEX,15(+1) CON ,8 INT, 13 WIS, 8 CHA | Feat: Polearm Master Weapon: Quarterstaff and Shield | Armor: Heavy
Going off of the above build, i'm a fan of multiclassing, so I'd leave fighter after 4th level for Ranger or Barbarian, picking up levels all 3 eventually. (I prefer to start in Barbarian, but the difference is minimal, and depends on the campaign) Single-classed battlemaster is still fun though.
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I write homebrew and don't publish it. (evil, I know)
Going off of the above build, i'm a fan of multiclassing, so I'd leave fighter after 4th level for Ranger or Barbarian, picking up levels all 3 eventually. (I prefer to start in Barbarian, but the difference is minimal, and depends on the campaign) Single-classed battlemaster is still fun though.
My advice was strictly tailored to a pure Battle Master Fighter; but, multiclassing can add a lot to the build. I would be hard pressed to dip out before lvl 6 just because of how impactful Extra Attack and ASIs are. Barbarian is also not something I would multiclass into as is, because you are relying on Heavy Armor, but you could work stats around to have 14 DEX and only a minimal AC loss with Medium armor. Late game Wisdom Saving Throws become brutal so you might want Resilient Wisdom sooner if you go that track.
Honestly, if I were to consider starting with a different class aside from fighter, it would probably be a level or two dip start in one of the Heavy Armor Clerics like Twilight, Forge, or War Domain. I would consider starting Ranger if this were a crossbow build, but am hard pressed for PAM because this forces you into Medium Armor and grabbing 14 DEX; though going into something like Gloomstalker Ranger after 6 fighter is a strong choice if you work around stats to have at least 13 DEX.
Real Life: Swords are weapons of convenience. They come with sheathes so you can easily carry them without a hand and are small enough to use inside buildings and on ships. In an open battlefield, pole arms (mainly the simple spear) are far better weapon. Shields balance this out a bit, but if you have good armor the ability to parry is worth more than the minimal extra blocking a shield does. Keep in mind that fighting with a main hand and an off hand doing two different things is called MULTI-TASKING, which is harder than people think,
Polearm master from variant human can be quite versatile. With a 16 str score, a spear/quarter staff and shield +dueling fighting style actually out damages a glaive with great weapon fighting style until great weapon master feat is chosen. A Spear/quarterstaff in one hand also can benefit from a shield for +2 AC and potentially more benefits if magic items are taken into consideration.
defense fighting style opens up a bit more weapon versatility without feeling over specialized if you have a slew of magic items that no one else can use.
a Shield, defense fighting style, and the dodge action along with reaction attacks from polearm master can help quite a bit if your attempting to bottleneck monsters away from your party in tight quarters.
Going off of the above build, i'm a fan of multiclassing, so I'd leave fighter after 4th level for Ranger or Barbarian, picking up levels all 3 eventually. (I prefer to start in Barbarian, but the difference is minimal, and depends on the campaign) Single-classed battlemaster is still fun though.
You should really go to five level of a melee class before going multiclass. That 2nd attack is one of the most powerful features of melee characters.
One thing to remember about Polearms is that there aren't any unique/variants like there are for swords. Started kicking myself for taking PAM when we go to higher levels because all the fun loot is pointless to you.
One thing to remember about Polearms is that there aren't any unique/variants like there are for swords. Started kicking myself for taking PAM when we go to higher levels because all the fun loot is pointless to you.
Worth pointing out that in the 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide, most of the magic weapons that were previously listed as being "any sword" can now be glaives, and most of the axe ones can now be halberds.
I'm playing variant human, battle master fighter.
I was wondering what might be the best route and also a good stat lay out for a (27) point buy fighter.
Do you want to focus more on offense or defense?
For stats, top score in str, second on con, then some dex, a good wisdom is always a good choice, dump int and cha. But those are really for optimizers. Str/con as top two you’ll always want. But if your character idea involves being really smart or charismatic, go for it. Whatever will be most fun.
Side note, if you go sword and board, you could do a dex build, where dex/con are your top two. Those also work well. But if you go polearm, you’ll need to go str.
I'm going to recommend Sword and Board with the Shieldmaster feat. It boosts your own defenses, but also gives you a bonus action shove that you can use round after round for some additional battlefield control. You can use it to push enemies into AOE spells or hazards, to push melee combatants away from your squishy spellcasters so they can move without worrying about Attacks of Opportunity, and if you really want to pin someone down you can just shove them prone to give yourself advantage on attacks, which is nice for crit fishing to output some extra nasty maneuvers. It's almost worth it to also take the Skill Expert feat to get expertise on Athletics checks to improve your shoves.
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I like Polearm Master for bonus action attack and additional ways to make Opportunity Attacks.
If you want great damage, grab polearm master and great weapon master (by level 4)
If you want great AC and defense, play a Wizard instead. The way DnD is designed, it only makes sense for casters to use shields.
As an alternative, you could take Polearm Master and then one-hand a spear and shield spartan style. You'll get the extra defense and the extra opportunity attacks, though you will be trading reach for defense and some damage.
I like the synergy between the Polearm Master and Sentinel feats, i have a vHuman Vengeance Paladin with this combo and it's pretty effective for battlefield control.
Honestly, I prefer to play ranged fighters; Crossbow Expert, Sharpshooter, the works. My second choice is Polearm Master with Great Weapon Master and/or sentinel depending on the specific build. I don't like sword and board because i feel it limits your options in combat. I agree with the above that if you want good defenses, go Wizard. if you still want good defense as a fighter without multiclassing, going ranged and dumping strength for extra Dex is your best bet, because often being outside melee range is a good defense in of itself. Although, it's hard to go wrong with battlemaster; I use it in all of my martial builds. Keep in mind this is from the point of view of an optimizer. There are other fun choices you could do, these are just the powerful ones.
I write homebrew and don't publish it. (evil, I know)
From the options it sounds like you are keyed into a melee build, crossbow expert is probably a little bit better but melee can still be quite strong. here is how I would build it out if my focus was on combat.
Starting Array: 15(+1) STR, 12 DEX,15(+1) CON ,8 INT, 13 WIS, 8 CHA | Feat: Polearm Master
Weapon: Quarterstaff and Shield | Armor: Heavy
Lvl 1 Fighting Style: Defense (Alternatively Blind Fighting\Superior Technique, Great Weapon Fighting is surprisingly low DPR)
Lvl 3 Maneuvers: Bait and Switch, Precision attack, Trip Attack
Lvl 4 Feat: Great Weapon Master (Switch Weapon to Halberd)
Lvl 6 ASI: +2 Strength
Lvl 7 Maneuvers: Distracting Strike, Disarming Attack
Lvl 8 ASI: +2 Strength
Lvl 10 Maneuvers: Menacing Attack, Pushing Attack
Lvl 12 Feat: Sentinel\Lucky\Resilient (Wisdom)\Tough
Lvl 14 Feat: Sentinel\Lucky\Resilient (Wisdom)\Tough
Lvl 16 Feat: Sentinel\Lucky\Resilient (Wisdom)\Tough
Lvl 17 Maneuver: Sweeping Attack, Riposte
Lvl 19 Feat: Sentinel\Lucky\Resilient (Wisdom)\Tough
Going off of the above build, i'm a fan of multiclassing, so I'd leave fighter after 4th level for Ranger or Barbarian, picking up levels all 3 eventually. (I prefer to start in Barbarian, but the difference is minimal, and depends on the campaign) Single-classed battlemaster is still fun though.
I write homebrew and don't publish it. (evil, I know)
My advice was strictly tailored to a pure Battle Master Fighter; but, multiclassing can add a lot to the build. I would be hard pressed to dip out before lvl 6 just because of how impactful Extra Attack and ASIs are. Barbarian is also not something I would multiclass into as is, because you are relying on Heavy Armor, but you could work stats around to have 14 DEX and only a minimal AC loss with Medium armor. Late game Wisdom Saving Throws become brutal so you might want Resilient Wisdom sooner if you go that track.
Honestly, if I were to consider starting with a different class aside from fighter, it would probably be a level or two dip start in one of the Heavy Armor Clerics like Twilight, Forge, or War Domain. I would consider starting Ranger if this were a crossbow build, but am hard pressed for PAM because this forces you into Medium Armor and grabbing 14 DEX; though going into something like Gloomstalker Ranger after 6 fighter is a strong choice if you work around stats to have at least 13 DEX.
D&D: Pole arm feats are powerful. Take it.
Real Life:
Swords are weapons of convenience. They come with sheathes so you can easily carry them without a hand and are small enough to use inside buildings and on ships. In an open battlefield, pole arms (mainly the simple spear) are far better weapon. Shields balance this out a bit, but if you have good armor the ability to parry is worth more than the minimal extra blocking a shield does. Keep in mind that fighting with a main hand and an off hand doing two different things is called MULTI-TASKING, which is harder than people think,
Polearm master from variant human can be quite versatile. With a 16 str score, a spear/quarter staff and shield +dueling fighting style actually out damages a glaive with great weapon fighting style until great weapon master feat is chosen. A Spear/quarterstaff in one hand also can benefit from a shield for +2 AC and potentially more benefits if magic items are taken into consideration.
defense fighting style opens up a bit more weapon versatility without feeling over specialized if you have a slew of magic items that no one else can use.
a Shield, defense fighting style, and the dodge action along with reaction attacks from polearm master can help quite a bit if your attempting to bottleneck monsters away from your party in tight quarters.
You should really go to five level of a melee class before going multiclass. That 2nd attack is one of the most powerful features of melee characters.
For some reason I forgot extra attack is at level 5 instead of 4. Yes, I typically multiclass out at 5.
I write homebrew and don't publish it. (evil, I know)
One thing to remember about Polearms is that there aren't any unique/variants like there are for swords. Started kicking myself for taking PAM when we go to higher levels because all the fun loot is pointless to you.
Worth pointing out that in the 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide, most of the magic weapons that were previously listed as being "any sword" can now be glaives, and most of the axe ones can now be halberds.
pronouns: he/she/they