Updated Commission Information

Updated Commission Information

It’s been some time since I posted my original commission sheet, and a lot of the info there is outdated. Since the above is an image file and not the PDF, I’ve included links below if you want to see examples of my work (the ‘+’s are links to additional examples):

Race + Subclass + +

If tumblr mangles the document, you can view it directly through the homebrewery here.

Check out my full range of content over on The Foundry!

If you’ve got any questions, you can email me at 5eforgemaster@gmail.com.

Trap Masters: New Subclasses for the Rogue and Ranger

These subclasses developed in tandem- players are plenty familiar with suffering at the hands of devious dungeon traps, and most editions have had a means of letting players have a go at it. 5e seemed to be behind in that regard, so here’s my take on it.

The Sapper archetype lets Rogues use existing items in ever more devious ways. Thieves may deploy items on a moment’s notice, but Sappers cause devastating damage long after they’re gone, and reshape battlefields and dungeons alike in their favor.

The Trapper archetype puts the Ranger in a position to harrass their foes constantly, and make them fear each step they take. With a set of unique and powerful designs, and the ability to hide them in unexpected places, the trapper takes foes off guard, and presses that advantage until their foes break.

If tumblr wrecks the document, you can view it directly on the homebrewery here.

Check out my full range of content over on The Foundry! If you’ve got any questions, you can email me at 5eforgemaster@gmail.com.

New Conversion Kit: Battlemaster

Techinically, I posted this a little while ago, but it never got its own post, so here it is again! This Conversion Kit uses the first few levels of the Battle Master fighter archetype to turn any character into a grizzled veteran! 

With a small set of maneuvers, give your character a unique martial style and a toolkit to get them out of tight situations!

Kit Overview

Investment Type: Multiclass Dip

Minimum Investment: Take 3 Levels of Fighter, selecting the Battlemaster archetype at level 3.

Overall Impact: Your character now has a distinct martial style, perhaps breaking them away from the combat archetype of their class. The small but expandable set of maneuvers you gain lets you specialize while remaining tactically flexible.

Investment

There's not a lot to say here. Once you declare the Battlemaster as your subclass, you'll reap the benefits immediately. However, it's worth noting that there's a little more to it than that. Multiclassing does have a few restrictions. Whether you start as a Fighter or take it as your second class, you'll need at least a score of 13 in Strength or Dexterity. Depending on what you're multiclassing as, you may need a score of 13 in another attribute as well.

This isn't a tax though, far from it. These restrictions are more often than not there to save you from yourself- many of the Battlemaster's maneuvers rely on a Strength or Dexterity based DC, so you'll want these stats to be high. If you don't have at least a 14, you may wish to look elsewhere, but 13 is indeed the minimum.

You'll also want to keep in mind that the Battlemaster requires you to think on your feet. You'll get four uses of your maneuvers per short rest, which is plenty. You don't want to burn them for no benefit, but you should be more afraid of missing opportunities than running out of maneuvers. If you have a go-to attack cycle, you'll need to get used to looking for chances to break it.

Narrative Impact

From a narrative perspective, those three short levels of Battlemaster offer a unique martial style. Whatever subset of the Battlemaster's list of 16 maneuvers you choose, it's rather unlikely that anyone at the table will have precisely the same set.

According to my somewhat rusty statistics skills and an internet calculation tool, there are 560 possible combinations of three maneuvers from this short list alone. Of course that doesn't mean that every combination is viable or interesting, but what is absolutely unplayable for one character can easily become game-changing for another. Regardless, your martial style might not be as flashy as a Monk's, but you could easily play with ten or so other characters who dipped battlemaster and not see your precise set of abilities repeated.

This martial style makes your character appear and feel as though they have practiced extensively with their chosen weapons and role. Whether you proclaim your character to be a prodigy, a veteran, or a well-trained elite, three levels of Battlemaster can back up that claim with power.

(Remainder after the cut.)

Mechanical Impact

Mechanically, the Battlemaster offers tactical and strategic flexibility. Since 5e puts your character on a sort of "railroad" after you select your subclass after level 3, many martial builds in 5e rely on repeating the same cycle of attacks every round. Generally, there's little special about the individual attacks on a character's turn. Certain feats and class features offer characters special attacks, but they are likely to use them every chance they get.

The Battlemaster breaks this mold for characters by burning a limited resource to open up new possibilities. Rogues that normally attack only in combination with another character can use Tripping Attack to gain advantage on attacks and go solo, while Sorcerers might use Rally to leverage their high charisma and otherwise stagnant bonus action.

Even better, the Battlemaster maneuvers reduce the chances of a wasted action. Many of the attack maneuvers can't be wasted by a missed attack, since they don't have to be declared until the attack hits, and even if the foe successfully makes their save, you get bonus damage from your superiority die. Rather than burning an entire action to Shove your opponent, you can simply use Tripping or Pushing Attack, opening up the Battlefield Control role to Barbarians and of course, Fighters.

This flexibility does make it difficult to pin down what sort of precise mechanical impact the Battlemaster will have on your character. While this isn't meant to be a guide, I have taken the liberty of categorizing some maneuvers below by Action Type and Role after the body of the article.

Kit Support

The best way to enhance this kit's effects might at first seem to be taking more levels of Battlemaster. While this will work, you'll have to take several levels- one or two won't give you more maneuvers or even a larger superiority die.

Your best alternative is to take the Martial Adept feat. One more level of Battlemaster after the third will give you a feat, and if you take Martial Adept, you'll get two new maneuvers and an additional use of those maneuvers per rest. Quite the shot in the arm for any Battlemaster multiclass.

You could hypothetically mimic a few levels of Battlemaster by taking this feat once or twice, but the main draw is the two maneuvers- the single die makes the choice to use your maneuvers quite difficult if you don't have the Battlemaster's four base superiority die in the first place.

Pitfalls

The Battlemaster dip usually goes wrong in two circumstances:

You've chosen maneuvers that conflict with your character.

You’re frequently taking your turn without thinking to use your maneuvers.

Really, that's it.

In the first case, remember two simple rules. If you're relying on your Bonus Action to attack with an off-hand weapon or a Reaction to make an Opportunity Attack with Sentinel, then you aren't going use maneuvers like Rally or Parry. Similarly, if you aren't making weapon attacks, then the various attack enhancements aren't going to see use.

In the second case, perhaps you prefer a more stable playstyle or employ improvised tactics that don't use the game's existing mechanics at all.

In either case, if you don't want to adapt, you can always talk to your DM about rethinking your choices. However, keep in mind that it will likely be easier to convince your DM to allow you to swap one maneuver for another than to allow you to switch out levels in the Fighter class for another.

Maneuvers Categorized:

Attack Enhancements

Disarming Attack [Debuff]

Distracting Strike [Support]

Goading Attack [Battlefield Control]

Lunging Attack [Self-Buff]

Maneuvering Attack [Support, Battlefield Control]

Menacing Attack [Debuff]

Precision Attack [Self-Buff]

Pushing Attack [Battlefield Control]

Sweeping Attack [Self-Buff]

Trip Attack [Debuff, Battlefield Control]

Bonus Actions

Commander's Strike [Support]

Feinting Attack [Self-Buff]

Rally [Support]

Movement Enhancements

Evasive Footwork [Self-Buff, Battlefield Control]

Reactions

Riposte

Parry

Since there are so many maneuvers to choose from, dipping Battlemaster could be overwhelming for players used to 5e's usual railroad after 3rd level. With that in mind, I'll take the slight risk of overstepping and provide some maneuver sets that support certain playstyles or archetypes:

The Archer: Evasive Footwork, Menacing Attack, and Precision Attack. (If feats are allowed in your game, take the Sharpshooter feat and combo the -5 attack/+10 damage benefit with Precision Attack for a low-cost damage boost.)

The Bully: Menacing Attack, Pushing Attack, and Tripping Attack. (This setup focuses on disrupting your opponents rather than killing them outright. Great for Rogues to help set up Sneak Attack opportunities, or anyone else whose style relies on having foes right where you want them.)

The Defender: Goading Attack, Maneuvering Attack, and Menacing Attack. (You might also consider taking the Protection Fighting Style with your first Fighter level to add another tool to your kit.)

The Duelist/Two Weapon Fighter: Disarming Attack, Riposte, and Parry. (If you frequently find yourself facing unarmed foes, replace Disarming Attack with Menacing Attack for a similar effect. If you're using two weapons, remember that your Bonus Action is accounted for if you try to modify this set!)

Great Weapon Fighter: Riposte, Precision Attack, Tripping Attack (If feats are allowed in your game, take the Great Weapon Master feat and combo the -5 attack/+10 damage benefit with Precision Attack orTripping Attack for a low-cost damage boost.) 

The Leader: Commander's Strike, Maneuvering Attack, and Rally. (Make sure you don't dump your charisma if you use this kit- or any other kit with Rally for that matter. This is a great kit for those of you who aren't using your bonus action, or those of you who don't always need it! Your allies will love you!)

Polearm Fighter:  Menacing Attack, Pushing Attack, and Tripping Attack. (This kit takes advantage of reach- so the classic Polearm Master/Sentinel feat combo works especially well.)

Commissions are Open!

The document may say email me, but feel free to drop me a message here as well! In case tumblr destroys the document, click through here: https://homebrewery.naturalcrit.com/share/Hk5fmNSlr Alternatively, check me out on: https://5eforge.wixsite.com/foundry

This one should please folks that miss the 3.5 era Druid! The Circle of the Emissary, drawing inspiration from the Beast Master Ranger, grants an animal companion whose combat prowess is nothing compared to their support skills! In case tumblr destroys the document, click through here: https://homebrewery.naturalcrit.com/share/B1zWZ6zRW Alternatively, check me out on: https://5eforge.wixsite.com/foundry

The Fighters of DnD 5e are just as adaptable as ever, but some old favorite builds have been left out in the cold by its simplified mecanics. These three archetypes can help support fighting styles that may seem mundane on the surface, but take practice to execute.

The Bastion is a classic fighter archetype, wielding weapons and armor normally reserved for soldiers in formation as personal arms, and putting themselves in harm’s way so that their allies don’t have to.

The Skirmisher relies on thrown weapons, nimble feet, and an even more nimble mind to overcome their foes.

The Shock Trooper is a tank, to be sure. Shock troopers inhibit their foes, making such a nuisance of themselves that they are dangerous to engage, but fatal to ignore. In case tumblr destroys the document, click through here: https://homebrewery.naturalcrit.com/share/SyQyDhOViZ Alternatively, check me out on: https://5eforge.wixsite.com/foundry