The Shield Master feat seems really shoehorned into being a support feat with the rulings on the bonus action shove coming after all the PC's attacks.
And I think it was a good call, because a bonus action shove on a fighter or Paladin could be a bit much.
But I wonder how people would reinterpret the feat if 5e was made today?
Personally, I really like the defensive bonuses, and could see a decent half feat with those and a +1 to con. Or maybe just keep those bullet points but make the dex saves a bit more general.
One thing I notice about a lot of comments about Feats or abilities is that everyone wants to benefit from their own abilities directly. I really get this, but what I really enjoy is the teamwork aspect of dnd and the fact that so many abilities are meant to inspire teamwork and synergy - I’ve taken Shield Master on so many characters and never once really concerned myself with the fact that I couldn’t use my second attack with advantage.
I guess I’m saying, I’ve never felt the need to re-interpret it.
Buy don’t let that distract from the fact that I’m only one guy - and lots of people will have their own interpretation🙂
The only thing I'd do with Shield Master is, I'd cut the shoving, because who cares about that, and I'd replace it with a feature that lets you throw your shield as a weapon that comes back to you like Captain America.
I would have replaced the Shove with a bonus action attack that deals 1d4 + str bludgeoning damage. I think it would pair really well with Crusher for shield users that want that Spartan feel.
I have seen Shield Master used by several players. It is a very very powerful Feat already. It needs zero buffing, more likely a nerf.
It is half way to the Evasion feature with one bullet point, let alone all the other things it can do.
I would scale it back by removing the first bullet entirely, and just have the 2 bullets. That's it. If I was REALLY feeling generous, I would alter it so donning or discarding shield would be a Bonus Action, as opposed to an Action. But, no, that is still too powerful.
It really isn't halfway to evasion. Evasion is so powerful because it is every single time a dex save effect hits you, not costing your reaction for one use in a round. I've played a rogue that dodged 3 consecutive lightning bolt spells in one round with evasion, and still got off an opportunity attack. This feat isn't nearly that potent.
And the second bullet point about a dex save attack only targeting you is so rare I bet most people forget about it by the time they actually get to use it.
And now, the first bullet point went from having some utility for some martial classes to being an odd support mechanic. You can only shove a creature up to one size larger than you to begin with, and now its really just to set them up for someone else to attack.
I could see taking the feat as is for some kinds of cleric as a support measure for the rest of the party, but even that is subpar since it means the cleric not casting spells in order to make a bonus action shove with one of their weaker stats.
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The Shield Master feat seems really shoehorned into being a support feat with the rulings on the bonus action shove coming after all the PC's attacks.
And I think it was a good call, because a bonus action shove on a fighter or Paladin could be a bit much.
But I wonder how people would reinterpret the feat if 5e was made today?
Personally, I really like the defensive bonuses, and could see a decent half feat with those and a +1 to con. Or maybe just keep those bullet points but make the dex saves a bit more general.
One thing I notice about a lot of comments about Feats or abilities is that everyone wants to benefit from their own abilities directly. I really get this, but what I really enjoy is the teamwork aspect of dnd and the fact that so many abilities are meant to inspire teamwork and synergy - I’ve taken Shield Master on so many characters and never once really concerned myself with the fact that I couldn’t use my second attack with advantage.
I guess I’m saying, I’ve never felt the need to re-interpret it.
Buy don’t let that distract from the fact that I’m only one guy - and lots of people will have their own interpretation🙂
The only thing I'd do with Shield Master is, I'd cut the shoving, because who cares about that, and I'd replace it with a feature that lets you throw your shield as a weapon that comes back to you like Captain America.
I would have replaced the Shove with a bonus action attack that deals 1d4 + str bludgeoning damage. I think it would pair really well with Crusher for shield users that want that Spartan feel.
She/Her Player and Dungeon Master
It really isn't halfway to evasion. Evasion is so powerful because it is every single time a dex save effect hits you, not costing your reaction for one use in a round. I've played a rogue that dodged 3 consecutive lightning bolt spells in one round with evasion, and still got off an opportunity attack. This feat isn't nearly that potent.
And the second bullet point about a dex save attack only targeting you is so rare I bet most people forget about it by the time they actually get to use it.
And now, the first bullet point went from having some utility for some martial classes to being an odd support mechanic. You can only shove a creature up to one size larger than you to begin with, and now its really just to set them up for someone else to attack.
I could see taking the feat as is for some kinds of cleric as a support measure for the rest of the party, but even that is subpar since it means the cleric not casting spells in order to make a bonus action shove with one of their weaker stats.