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Rerem115
2018-07-20, 02:33 PM
It took me the better part of a week, but I finally managed to come up with a Dragon Rider-esqe class that I would tentatively allow at my table. If you find anything that you feel needs some tweaks or revisions, feel free to let me know!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UYGnDKw2i8I6g2v-U-pcwvnGqNHXQx1G4XazP3NUrwA/edit?usp=sharing

Lalliman
2018-07-22, 03:08 PM
I see you took my suggestion! Looks good at first sight.

I went and compared this class to the fighter at some key levels, see below. And it looks pretty good. It tends to have more total HP and damage than the fighter, at the cost of lower AC and the fact that it loses half to 2/3 of its damage output when one of the two goes KO, which is a very significant factor.

Level 1 Fighter (Champion)
16 Dex, 16 Con
HP 20 (including Second Wind), AC 18 (scale mail, shield)
DPR 10, +5 to hit (rapier, duelling style)

Level 1 Dragon Tamer (Warrior)
Tamer: 16 Dex, 14 Con, 14 Wis
HP 10, AC 18 (scale mail, shield)
DPR 7, +5 to hit (shortsword)

Dragon: Str 14, Dex 11, Con 14
HP 8, AC 15 (13 + 2)
DPR 6, +4 to hit

Total HP 18, average AC 16.5
Total DPR 13, average +4.5 to hit

Level 5 Fighter (Champion)
18 Dex, 16 Con
HP 60 (including Second Wind), AC 19 (half plate, shield)
DPR 22, +7 to hit (rapier, duelling style)

Action Surge, Improved Critical

Level 5 Dragon Tamer (Warrior)
Tamer: 18 Dex, 14 Con, 14 Wis
HP 38, AC 19 (half plate, shield)
DPR 11, +7 to hit (rapier, duelling style)

Dragon: Str 16, Dex 11, Con 14
HP 38, AC 16 (13 + 3)
DPR 16, +6 to hit

Total HP 76, average AC 17.5
Total DPR 27, average +6.5 to hit

Dragon’s Breath 3d8 1/SR, Duo Tactics 2/LR

Level 11 Fighter (Champion)
20 Dex, 18 Con
HP 131 (including Second Wind), AC 20 (half plate, shield, defence style)
DPR 36, +9 to hit (rapier, duelling style)

Action Surge, Improved Critical, Indomitable, Remarkable Athlete

Level 11 Dragon Tamer (Warrior)
Tamer: 20 Dex, 14 Con, 14 Wis
HP 80, AC 19 (half plate, shield)
DPR 12, +9 to hit (rapier, duelling style)

Dragon: Str 18, Dex 11, Con 14
HP 92, AC 17 (13 + 4)
DPR 26, +8 to hit

Total HP 172, average AC 18
Total DPR 38, average +8.5 to hit

Dragon’s Breath 6d8 1/SR, Duo Tactics 2/LR, Mutual Defence, Battle Dance
That being said, it's still a little unsatisfying. The dragon is statistically powerful enough, but since all it does is bite and use dragon's breath maybe once per encounter, it doesn't feel very convincingly like a dragon. Its stats will never be very impressive (whereas dragons are known for having high stats across the board), and it never learns to attack with the myriad other weaponized body parts that dragons are known for (claws, wings, tail).

I would suggest a few things that I don't think would turn the class overpowered.

1. When the dragon hits medium size, give it a tail attack that deals low damage but has a Strength save to knock prone. When it hits large size, add some kind of wing attack that pushes nearby enemies away (probably without dealing damage). This would provide some versatility and add to the feel of being a true dragon without significantly adding to power.

2. Boost the dragon's mental stats when it advances its age category. Maybe +2 to all, or +1 / +1 / +2 since Charisma tends to be highest. Should be pretty trivial for its power, but adds to the perception of being a true dragon. A adolescent dragon shouldn't be stuck at 9 / 12 / 11. (As an aside, from which dragon did you get this particular stat array? I thought it was usually Cha > Int > Wis for dragons.)

3. Add a once per short rest Frightful Presence somewhere at high level. Could afford to be a late game feature since other dragons don't get it until they hit huge size (which this one never does), but it's a shame not to put it somewhere in there.

Rerem115
2018-07-22, 03:34 PM
Thanks for the feedback! I actually like all the points you set out; I'll see what I can do to implement them when I have the time.

As for the dragon's array, I kinda just winged it; originally it was going to be a slightly modified Pseudodragon, but then I nixed that when I took a closer look at its stats. In the end, I wound up looking at all the Wyrmling stat arrays, but then I decided I didn't want to stat up a different Hatchling for each color, so I give middle-of-the-road stats that were maybe slightly above average (Your Hatchling is actually pick of the litter, or something like that if you want fluff), and were a little diverse so you might actually use the two +1 option for ASIs.

*EDIT* As for the overall stats being unimpressive, my thought process was that even if you were accelerating the Hatchling's growth, it still wouldn't have the experience of years/decades/centuries it would normally have in the wild. It still winds up much more powerful than any other dragon of its age, and while I never anticipated a character raising the dragon for the years and years and years it would take to grow to its true size, I could write something up that could allow for that.

BerzerkerUnit
2018-07-28, 12:20 PM
I like what you've done here. I'm a massive fan of pet type classes and have gone to great lengths to write a few myself. I don't have any critique that wasn't mentioned up thread, just thought I'd tell you good job and point you toward my own pet class, The Overlord (http://www.dmsguild.com/product/246120/Class-Option-The-Overlord) if you want to see an alternative take where you use the MM stats as they are and a much greater focus on the bonded creature as the main actor in combat. Have look if so inclined!