Dwarven Defender Remix [PEAR]

[NineThePuma]

DWARVEN DEFENDER

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
Base Attack Bonus: +5
Alignment: Any Lawful
Race: Dwarf
Feats: Goad, Improved Toughness

Class Skills
The Class Name's class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Balance (Dex), Craft (Int), Listen (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis)
Skills Points at Each Level: 2 + int

Hit Dice: d12


LevelBase Attack BonusFort SaveRef SaveWill SaveSpecial
1st
+1
+2
+0
+2Defensive Posture, Damage Reduction 4/-
2nd
+2
+3
+0
+3Uncanny Dodge
3rd
+3
+3
+1
+3Mettle, Damage Reduction 8/-, Deflect Attack
4th
+4
+4
+1
+4Defensive Bulwark, Improved Uncanny Dodge
5th
+5
+4
+1
+4Indomitable, Damage Reduction 12/-

Weapon Proficiencies: A Dwarven Defender gains Light, Medium, and Heavy Armor proficiencies if they did not already possess them. A Dwarven Defender does not gain any weapon proficiencies.

Defensive Posture: Any turn in which the dwarven defender does not move more than 5 feet per class level on their turn, they gain a +2 bonus on all saves, a +4 dodge bonus to AC, and receives temporary HP equal to 2*Con Modifier*Class Level until the end of their next turn.

Damage Reduction (Ex): At 1st level, a dwarven defender gains damage reduction. Subtract 4 points from the damage the dwarven defender takes each time he is dealt damage. At 3rd level, this damage reduction rises to 8/-, and rises again to 12/- at 5th. Damage reduction can reduce damage to 0 but not below 0.

Uncanny Dodge (Ex): Starting at 2nd level, a dwarven defender retains his Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) regardless of being caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker. (He still loses any Dexterity bonus to AC if immobilized.)

Mettle (Ex): At 3rd level and higher, a dwarven defender can resist magical and unusual attacks with great willpower or fortitude. If he makes a successful Will or Fortitude save against an attack that normally would have a lesser effect on a successful save (such as any spell with a saving throw entry of Will half or Fortitude partial), he instead completely negates the effect. An unconscious or sleeping dwarven defender does not gain the benefit of mettle.

Deflect Attack (Ex): Once per round when a dwarven defender would normally be hit with an attack, he may deflect it so that he takes no damage from it. He must be aware of the attack and not flat-footed. Attempting to deflect an attack doesn’t count as an action. Unusually massive ranged weapons can’t be deflected.

Improved Uncanny Dodge (Ex): At 4th level, a dwarven defender can no longer be flanked. This defense denies rogues the ability to use flank attacks to sneak attack the dwarven defender.
The exception to this defense is that a rogue at least four levels higher than the dwarven defender can flank him (and thus sneak attack him).
If a character gains uncanny dodge (see above) from a second class the character automatically gains improved uncanny dodge, and the levels from those classes stack to determine the minimum rogue level required to flank the character.

Defensive Bulwark: At 4th level, a dwarven defender's Defensive Posture improves. They gain a +3 bonus to all saves, a +6 dodge bonus to AC, and an additional 8/- damage reduction.

Indomitable (Ex): When a dwarven defender of at least 5th level is subject to a spell effect other than those involving an attack roll that does not allow a saving throw, the dwarven defender may make a fortitude save against it as though it offered a save. A successful saving throw allows the dwarven defender to ignore the spell effect for one round. In the event that the spell has a persistent effect (such as being an area of effect that lasts multiple rounds), the Dwarven Defender must make a fresh saving throw each round.

[Andion Isurand]

I think the damage reduction values are too high, and shuts down only those who would deal physical damage to these guys. I think the temporary hit points are more than enough on their own.

I have a similar class you are free to borrow from, albeit its for any race and melee equipment set up.

Defiant Defender (http://magerune.blogspot.com/2012/11/defiant-defender-prc.html)

The class about keeping oneself freed up to intercept and disrupt as many attacking enemies as possible.
However, physical size is figured in as part of how well you can play the role.

[NineThePuma]

The DR shuts down people who rely on a Death of a Thousand Cuts; an actual dedicated physical damage dealer of equivalent level will blow through it pretty easily. Being able to soak damage from a mooks and laugh it off is completely intended.


For future reference, it's usually considered bad form to plug your own homebrew in someone else's thread without permission.

[Andion Isurand]

My apologies.. was just sharing the product of some thoughts I had that might be useful.

Its unfortunate that there isn't more to the Iron Heart discipline that makes it harder for an enemy to attack or affect your allies.

Without mobility or the improved capacity to impede your foes from getting to your allies... intelligent enemies will be more likely to leave you alone and save you for last, in favor of attacking more vulnerable allies of yours that are causing them greater harm.

Of course, defending others by non-magical means is not supported very well in 3.5 and the role of defender needs all the help it can get.

-----------------------------

What if you gave the Goad feat as part of the class at level 1, given that many dwarves won't have the 13 Charisma needed to qualify for it?

Then perhaps add +2 to the save DC for the feat so the dwarves can use the ability better than most, and allow them to use it to affect a number of opponents they threaten, equal to their class level with a single use. Or you could base the number of opponents they can Goad at once, on the number of feats they possess from the list of bonus fighter feats.

As for the deflect ability, perhaps you could allow the dwarven defender to deflect an attack that passes through the area he threatens, so that enemies trying to hit allies behind him have a harder time doing so, effectively parrying or batting the attack aside with whatever weapon or shield he's using.