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aumguitarist07
2017-02-17, 08:16 PM
So I'm giving this whole homebrew deal a shot. I've been a big fan of this class for a while, and I (like a number of people, apparently) have been somewhat underwhelmed by the options given to fill the niche thus far in 5e. Even the Hexblade from the most recent Unearthed Arcana falls short for me, because of the Warlock's depressing pool of spell slots. So, I decided to see what I could whip up. You'll likely see a lot of things from existing material, or at least glaringly similar to it; feel free to take that how you will. I just hope you enjoy it! :smallsmile:


THE DUSKBLADE

1st Level: 2 Cantrips Known, 2 Spells Known, Slots 2
2nd Level: 2 Cantrips Known, 3 Spells Known, Slots 3
3rd Level: 2 Cantrips Known, 4 Spells Known, Slots 4
4th Level: 3 Cantrips Known, 5 Spells Known, Slots 4
5th Level: 3 Cantrips Known, 6 Spells Known, Slots 5/2
6th Level: 3 Cantrips Known, 7 Spells Known, Slots 5/3
7th Level: 3 Cantrips Known, 8 Spells Known, Slots 5/3
8th Level: 3 Cantrips Known, 9 Spells Known, Slots 5/4
9th Level: 3 Cantrips Known, 10 Spells Known, Slots 5/4/2
10th Level: 4 Cantrips Known, 10 Spells Known, Slots 5/4/3
11th Level: 4 Cantrips Known, 11 Spells Known, Slots 5/4/3
12th Level: 4 Cantrips Known, 11 Spells Known, Slots 5/4/4
13th Level: 4 Cantrips Known, 12 Spells Known, Slots 5/4/4/2
14th Level: 4 Cantrips Known, 12 Spells Known, Slots 5/4/4/3
15th Level: 4 Cantrips Known, 13 Spells Known, Slots 5/4/4/3
16th Level: 4 Cantrips Known, 13 Spells Known, Slots 5/4/4/4
17th Level: 4 Cantrips Known, 14 Spells Known, Slots 5/4/4/4/1
18th Level: 4 Cantrips Known, 14 Spells Known, Slots 5/4/4/4/2
19th Level: 4 Cantrips Known, 15 Spells Known, Slots 5/4/4/4/2
20th Level: 4 Cantrips Known, 15 Spells Known, Slots 5/4/4/4/3

Class Features
As a duskblade, you gain the following class features.

Hit Points
Hit Dice: 1d8 per duskblade level
Hit Points at 1st Level: 8 + your Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d8 (or 5) + your Constitution modifier per duskblade level after 1st.

Proficiencies
Armor: Light Armor, Medium Armor
Weapons: Simple Weapons, one Martial Weapon of your choice
Tools: None
Saving Throws: Strength, Dexterity
Skills: Choose two from Acrobatics, Arcana, Athletics, History, Investigation, or Nature

Equipment
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:

• (a) scale mail or (b) leather armor
• (a) one martial weapon or (b) one simple weapon
• (a) a dungeoneer’s pack or (b) an explorer’s pack
• A light crossbow and 20 bolts

Alternately, you may start with 4d4 x 10 gp and purchase your starting equipment.

Spellcasting
You have split your time learning to hone your martial prowess as well as your arcane ability. Like the Eldritch Knight, you focused your study of magic on only those spells best suited to enhance your abilities when wading into combat. You learn a comparatively small number of spells, committing them to memory instead of keeping them in a spellbook.

Cantrips
At 1st level, you know two cantrips of your choice from the duskblade spell list. You learn an additional cantrip at 4th level, and another at 10th level.

Spell Slots
The Duskblade table above shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these spells, you must expend a slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest.

Spells Known of 1st Level and Higher
At 1st level, you know 2 1st-level duskblade spells of your choice. The Spells Known column of the Duskblade table shows when you learn more duskblade spells of 1st level or higher.
Whenever you gain a level in this class, you can replace one of the spells you know with another spell of your choice from the duskblade spell list. The new spell must be of a level for which you have spell slots.

Spellcasting Ability
Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for your duskblade spells, since you learn your spells through study and memorization. You use your Intelligence whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Intelligence modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a duskblade spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.

Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier
Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier

Spellcasting Focus
You inscribe runes into your weapon's hilt that glow when you are casting a spell. Doing so requires you to spend one hour etching the runes while concentrating your arcane energies into them. Your starting weapon already has these runes. This feature allows you to use your weapon as your spellcasting focus.

Natural Quartermaster
Your time on the road and solitary lifestyle have, by necessity, made you adept at maintaining your own weapons and armor, even being able to affect minor repairs to them when needed. A duskblade is, after all, only as good as his weapon.
At 1st level, you may spend some of your time during a long rest doing upkeep work on up to three equipment items. When you are done, the items are restored to perfect condition as if by the Mending cantrip. If you work on only one equipment item, you can also remove one -1 penalty that has been applied to the item, such as one taken from a rust monster. This feature cannot repair a weapon or armor that has been destroyed by such penalties.

Fighting Style
You adopt a particular style of fighting as your specialty. At 2nd level, choose one of the following options. You can't take a Fighting Style option more than once, even if you later get to choose again.

Defense While you are wearing armor, you gain a +1 bonus to AC.

Dueling When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with that weapon.

Great Weapon Fighting When you roll a 1 or 2 on a damage die for an attack you make with a melee weapon that you are wielding with two hands, you can reroll the die and must use the new roll, even if the new roll is a 1 or a 2. The weapon must have the two-handed or versatile property for you to gain this benefit.

Protection When a creature you can see attacks a target other than you that is within 5 feet of you, you can use your reaction to impose disadvantage on the attack roll. You must be wielding a shield.

Arcane Strike
At 2nd level, you learn to channel your arcane power into your weapon. As part of the Attack action with a melee weapon you are proficient with, you may choose to expend one of your spell slots. Doing so causes your weapon to glow with magical energy. On a hit, the target takes an additional 2d6 force damage, plus an additional 1d6 per level of spell slot expended above 1st, in addition to your weapon’s normal damage.
Even if you miss with the weapon attack, the target does not escape completely unscathed. The target takes 1d6 force damage from the arcane energies surrounding your blade, regardless of the level of the spell slot used.

Duskblade Order
When you reach 3rd level, you are officially sworn into one of the secret Orders of the duskblades. Theirs is a small and mysterious order, with inscrutable goals. While their members are sworn to secrecy on the initiation ritual and the edicts of their given Order, all duskblades are expected to travel the world, working independently to further the Order's goals and to seek out and recruit others with the potential to become a duskblade.
Your station in your Order rises with your character level, and you gain additional features when you choose an Order at 3rd level, and again at 6th, 11th, 17th, and 20th level; these features are detailed below.

Ability Score Improvement
When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can’t increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.

Extra Attack
Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

Quickened Casting
Your continued training in the arcane arts, and the limited number of spells you know, allow you to cast your spells more quickly. Once per long rest, beginning at 5th level, you may cast any duskblade spell of 1st level or higher that you know and that has a casting time of 1 action as a bonus action. You gain an additional use of this feature at 10th, 15th, and 20th level.

Arcane-Infused Strikes
Beginning at 6th level, you unconsciously channel arcane energy into your weapon when striking. Your melee weapon attacks count as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage.

Arcane Channeling
Beginning at 9th level, you have learned to fuel your strikes with the effects of a spell. As a bonus action, you cast a duskblade spell you know of 1st level or higher, expending a spell slot as normal. Instead of the spell immediately taking effect, it is stored in your melee weapon until the beginning of your next turn. The next time you hit with a melee weapon attack, the attack deals your weapon's normal damage, and the effect of the spell is unleashed on the target. If the spell normally calls for a saving throw, the target may make the appropriate saving throw against the spell's secondary effects (if any) as normal, but not its damage. If the spell has an area of effect, it is centered on the target. If the spell is a line or cone spell, your weapon is the spell's origin point, and the target must be inside the area of effect. Any creatures other than the target that are inside the spell's area of effect (including you) make saving throws for damage and the spell's secondary effects as normal.
Spells that do not normally call for an attack roll (such as fireball) do not have their damage dice doubled on a critical hit using this feature.
If you do not successfully land a melee attack before the start of your next turn, the spell is nonetheless lost, and your used spell slot is not recovered.
Because of the strain of maintaining the spell channeled in your weapon, you cannot use your Arcane Strike feature until after the channeled spell is unleashed. Maintaining a spell channeled in your weapon does not require concentration.

Risk Mitigation
Beginning at 14th level, if you are inside the area of effect of a spell that you use with your Arcane Channeling feature, you gain advantage on the saving throw made to avoid the spell's effects and halve its damage.

Duskblade Orders
The Orders of the duskblades are clandestine organizations whose aims are unknown to all but its own members. Their tenets and tactics are distinct even between each other, but members of different orders view each other with friendly competitiveness; different duskblade Orders are not adversarial towards each other. A duskblade acts with the full confidence of their Order once they are officially initiated into its ranks, free to act as they see fit so long as they successfully complete their prescribed missions.

Order of the Spellsword
The Order of the Spellsword teaches their initiates abilities to strike their foes with vicious savagery, when combat cannot be avoided. Members tend to use their magic to further enhance their considerable martial prowess to aggressively and swiftly bring any altercation to an end.

Bonded Weapon
When you take this feature at 3rd level, you become proficient with a second martial weapon of your choice that is a melee weapon and that deals slashing damage. This weapon is bonded to you, and you to it, through a secret ritual that lasts 1 hour. At the conclusion, you are able to ignore somatic component requirements for the spells you cast as long as you are wielding this weapon. You cannot be disarmed of this weapon unless you are incapacitated. As long as you and the weapon are on the same plane of existence, you know the location of your bonded weapon, and attempts you make to disarm any other creature holding the weapon have advantage. If the weapon is destroyed, you must undergo the ritual again to bond to a new weapon. You may bond to a different weapon at any time, at which point your bond with the previous weapon is lost.

Potent Arcane Strike
Starting at 6th level, your Arcane Strike feature now uses a d8 instead of a d6. This feature does not affect the damage on a missed attack.

Vicious Strikes
Starting at 11th level, you can focus your arcane power and channel it into your swings as a bonus action. While using this feature, you add your Intelligence modifier (minimum of 1) to damage rolls you make with melee weapon attacks, in addition to your Strength or Dexterity modifier. This feature lasts for 1 minute, until you are incapacitated, or until you dismiss it (no action required). You have 2 uses of this feature, which you recover after finishing a short or long rest.

Arcane Channeling Mastery
Starting at 17th level, when you consume a spell slot to fuel your Arcane Channeling feature, the resultant spell counts as one level higher than that of the spell slot used, increasing its power as noted in the spell’s description.

Masterful Arcane Strike
Starting at 20th level, your Arcane Strike feature now uses a d10 instead of a d8. This feature does not affect the damage on a missed attack. In addition, when you use your Arcane Strike feature and land a critical hit, you also recover a spell slot whose level may be up to half that of the slot consumed. This feature does not allow you to have more than your normal maximum number of spell slots for any given spell level.

Order of the Abjurant Champion
The Order of the Abjurant Champion teaches initiates to approach combat in a steadfast, patient manner, bolstering their offensive capabilities with magical defensive augmentations. They emphasize the duskblade's longevity in combat, and the ability to face several foes at once by frustrating their attempts to land blows.

Martial Bulwark
When you take this feature at 3rd level, you become proficient with shields. Your shield is of special make by your duskblade Order, and is magically attuned to you in a secret ritual that lasts 1 hour. At the conclusion, you are able to ignore somatic component requirements for the spells you cast as long as you are wielding this shield. You cannot be disarmed of this shield unless you are incapacitated. As long as you are on the same plane of existence, you know the location of your bonded shield, and attempts you make to disarm any other creature holding the shield have advantage. If the shield is destroyed, you must undergo the ritual again to bond to a new shield. You may bond to a different shield at any time, at which point your bond with the previous shield is lost.

Abjuration Savant
Starting at 6th level, when you cast an Abjuration spell that grants a bonus to AC or temporary hit points, you can choose to gain an additional bonus equal to half your proficiency bonus (for AC) or your duskblade level (for temporary hit points). In addition, for any such spells with a duration of longer than 1 round, the duration of the spell is doubled for you. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Intelligence modifier (minimum of 1). You regain uses of this feature when you finish a long rest. (false life counts as an Abjuration spell for you.)

Steadfast Defense
Starting at 11th level, you can focus your arcane power and channel it into your defense as a bonus action. While using this feature, you add your Intelligence modifier (minimum of 1) to your AC, in addition to any other bonuses. This feature lasts for 1 minute, until you are incapacitated, or until you dismiss it (no action required). You have 2 uses of this feature, which you recover after finishing a short or long rest.

Elemental Defense
Starting at 17th level, your study and practice of Abjuration magic has left its mark on you, resulting in additional effects when you focus your arcane energy on defense. When you use your Steadfast Defense feature, you are also under the effect of the primordial ward spell (no concentration required). If you use the spell feature that allows you to use your reaction to gain immunity to the triggering elemental damage, the effects of the primordial ward spell end, but your Steadfast Defense remains in effect until it ends as normal.

Perfect Defense
Starting at 20th level, your extensive study and practice of Abjuration magic has left its mark on you, leaving you encased in an aura of magical energy that sometimes protects you from harm when you focus your arcane energy on defense. When using your Steadfast Defense feature and you are hit with an attack roll, roll a d6. On a 5 or 6, the attack instead misses you.

Order of the Beguiler
The Order of the Beguiler teaches initiates to utilize stealth and subterfuge, and to take advantage of terrain and placement of other combatants in battle. They teach a unique set of spells that duskblades of this Order use to confound and disorient their opponents, making the most of an opponent’s momentary distractedness to make their spells more difficult to shrug off.

Beguiling Magics
When you take this feature at 3rd level, you gain access to additional spells from the Enchantment and Illusion schools. Starting with this level, when you learn a new duskblade spell, or are able to replace one of your spells known with a new spell, you can opt to select your new spell from the following list. It counts as a duskblade spell for you. As normal, you must select a spell with a level for which you have slots.

Cantrips: minor illusion, vicious mockery
1st Level: charm person, dissonant whispers, hex, Tasha’s hideous laughter
2nd Level: crown of madness, hold person, invisibility, suggestion
3rd Level: fear, hypnotic pattern, major image
4th Level: confusion, phantasmal killer, greater invisibility
5th Level: dominate person, geas, hold onster

Roguish Magic Initiate
Beginning at 6th level, you become proficient with thieves’ tools and the Stealth skill. If you are already proficient, you double your proficiency bonus for checks made using these skills.
In addition, you are able to take advantage of enemies’ poor positioning or your success on a Stealth check to make some of your spells more difficult to resist. When you would have advantage on an attack roll against an opponent, or if another enemy of the target is within 5 feet of it, you add +1 to your spell save DC for a spell you know from the Beguiling Magics list that targets only that creature. If the spell allows multiple saving throws, the DC stays at this higher value for this spell’s duration. Once this feature has been used on a particular creature, that creature is immune to this feature for 24 hours.

Evasive and Strong-Willed
Beginning at 11th level, you can nimbly dodge out of the way of certain area effects, such as a red dragon’s fiery breath or an ice storm spell. When you are subjected to an effect that allows you to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, you instead take no damage if you succeed on the saving throw, and only half damage if you fail.
In addition, your training with mentally disabling spells has made you better equipped to deal with such threats. You gain proficiency with Wisdom saving throws.

Roguish Magic Adept
Beginning at 17th level, if you are not already, you use double your proficiency bonus when making ability checks to use Stealth or thieves' tools.
In addition, when you target a creature that you would have advantage on an attack roll against, or if another enemy of that creature is within 5 feet of it, you add +2 to your spell save DC for a spell you know from the Beguiling Magics list that targets only that creature. If the spell allows multiple saving throws, the DC stays at this higher value for this spell’s duration. Once this feature has been used on a particular creature, that creature is immune to this feature for 24 hours.
The spell save DC bonus for this feature replaces the one from the Roguish Magic Initiate feature.

Roguish Magic Master
Beginning at 20th level, when you cast a spell you know from the Beguiling Magics list, you add +2 to your spell save DC for that spell for any number of creatures the spell allows you to target that you would have advantage on an attack roll against, or that have another enemy creature within 5 feet of them. If the spell allows multiple saving throws, the DC stays at this higher value for this spell’s duration. Once this feature has been used on a particular creature, that creature is immune to this feature for 24 hours.
The spell save DC bonus for this feature replaces the one from the Roguish Magic Adept feature.

Multiclassing Duskblade
Should you wish to multiclass into a duskblade, you must meet the prerequisites, and you gain the proficiencies, listed below.

MULTICLASSING PREREQUISITES
Strength or Dexterity 13 and Intelligence 13

MULTICLASSING PROFICIENCIES
Light armor, medium armor, simple weapons, one martial weapon of your choice

Spell Slots
When determining your spell slots, add half your levels in the duskblade class.

Duskblade Spells

CANTRIPS (0 LEVEL)
acid splash
blade ward
booming blade
fire bolt
frostbite
green flame blade
ray of frost
shocking grasp
true strike

1ST LEVEL
absorb elements
armor of Agathys
burning hands
color spray
false life
inflict wounds
searing smite
shield
shield of faith
thunderwave
thunderous smite

2ND LEVEL
Aganazzar’s scorcher
blur
branding smite
magic weapon
Melf’s acid arrow
mirror image
ray of enfeeblement
scorching ray
warding wind

3RD LEVEL
blinding smite
elemental weapon
erupting earth
fireball
haste
lightning bolt
protection from energy
vampiric touch

4TH LEVEL
death ward
elemental bane
fire shield
ice storm
stone skin
vitriolic sphere

5TH LEVEL
banishing smite
circle of power
cone of cold
destructive wave
immolation

Deleted
2017-02-17, 08:21 PM
My first question is...

Why isn't this a subclass?

aumguitarist07
2017-02-17, 08:33 PM
My first question is...

Why isn't this a subclass?

It's a great first question. I honestly don't think that the class, or, at least my idea of what the class should be, really fits within the chassis of any class we've seen thus far. Not with the features I had in mind, which would be a little high-octane for a subclass, especially for a true Fighter-type class with a d10 hit die. I have a similar thought thinking about the d8 hit-die spellcasting classes (this would be rather antithetical for a Druid, and the Warlock's sad joke of a spell slot pool would, right off the bat, make this a poor subclass choice as written). Cleric could possibly work, but as much as I think this guy would be too much of a subclass for a Fighter-type, it would be even worse with a full caster's slots.

On top of that, I already had ideas for subclasses that I thought would fit very nicely with what I developed for the base class itself, which obviously wouldn't work if I made a duskblade subclass.

It's mostly mechanics, and a touch of selfish craving for creative license.

Thanks for your question.

Gr7mm Bobb
2017-02-18, 06:19 PM
I gotta say it looks good. It's polished and simple in a lot of ways. Your version of arcane strike is neat and i can even see it being made 1/2 the attacks original damage, making it an odd version of the Mystics Psionic weapon feature: ethereal strike (name accuracy?).

Heavyfuel had posted their version of a duskblade a couple of years ago in the forums. It was the chassis for my version of the Duskblade that I started back in 2014 and have been updating and tweaking ever since. Its gone through its process of nerf oblivion followed by accidental overtuning. If your interested the thread is kind of recent, maybe it can (or has) be used to provide some design ideas.

Quick note on the Beguiler you've got going though. As it stands the Arcane Trickster was, imo, a fantastic amalgam of the various "magical rogue" classes and prestige classes of 3.5. It contains elements of rhe original arcane trickster, the spellthief, and the beguiler all in a nice little package. I dont feel that a more combat oriented "beguiler" is something this class can contribute that provides interesting flavor. Final minor nit-pick on the Beguiler, the 17th level feature states that it overwrites the previous version of itself... but the previous roughish magic also granted proficiencies and such beyond a +1 to spell save DC's. As written it looks like as though by gaining more power they loss previous knowledge, which does not strike me as the original intent.

Anyway, I'll keep an ear our, if you want any help or have criticisim for my rendition of a missing class, please feel free to fire away. I'll post more as i read over again.

aumguitarist07
2017-02-18, 06:58 PM
@ Gr7mm Bobb

Thanks very much for reading and leaving your thoughts. I did do a precursory search for other 5e duskblade ports as research for what had been done, what looked like it worked, and what didn't.... It provided a good starting point for making the class, on top of (obviously) the Duskblade and Beguiler classes from the PHBII, and the Arcane Strike feat and AbChamp from the CW. I'm not sure if during that research I came across your rendition, but I'll be sure to take a look at it! :smallbiggrin:

That's a great catch on the Roguish Magic Adept feature description; I definitely didn't take that into account. I will likely change the wording there to "The bonus to spell save DC in this feature replaces that of the Roguish Magic Initiate feature" so there is no confusion. Thanks a ton for that. And I agree with you about the subclass as a whole, to be honest. I didn't think it fit the Duskblade base class chassis as I had written it all that well, but a friend of mine who helped me as a first pair of eyes when I drafted this up (originally I only had the Spellsword and Abjurant Champion Orders included) said that Beguiler would be a nice third option. Taking a look at the class in 3.5, it really didn't have much in the way of class progression, so I agreed with him that it would make a better subclass in 5e, and I thought that making it more combat-oriented as in this case would provide a needed differentiation from the Rogue's Arcane Trickster archetype.

Anywho, I'm still in the tweaking phase of this guy; posting it on the forum here was my attempt to get some initial thoughts. Since those are exactly what you provided, I guess it has been a success thus far. Thanks again for your input and observations!