Fighter

Description

Fighters all share an unparalleled mastery of weapons and armor. Intense expertise in the arts of combat. Anyone from Knights, Overlords, Royal Champions, Elite Soldiers, Mercenaries, and even Bandit Kings had to start somewhere.
As a fighter, you will be focused on one-handed blades of many types, along with the optional use of shields. Armor is like a second skin to you and you wear it well.

Indrid's Information

Stat Priority

Primary: Vitality
Secondary: Strength
Tertiary: Grit
Perks:

• Armor Specialization
• Epic Toughness
• Infantry Training
• Charge Attack
• Swiftness

Roleplay Redux Information

Stats:

• +2 Strength or Dexterity, can be selected with the Might or Finesse focus
• +1 Constitution or Intelligence; base Fighter gets +1 Constitution but Eldritch Knight and Psi Warrior get +1 Intelligence instead.




A Closer Look at Fighters

A human in clanging plate armor holds her shield before her as she runs toward the massed goblins. An elf behind her, clad in studded leather armor, peppers the goblins with arrows loosed from his exquisite bow. The half-orc nearby shouts orders, helping the two combatants coordinate their assault to the best advantage.

A dwarf in chain mail interposes his shield between the ogre’s club and his companion, knocking the deadly blow aside. His companion, a half-elf in scale armor, swings two scimitars in a blinding whirl as she circles the ogre, looking for a blind spot in its defenses.

A gladiator fights for sport in an arena, a master with his trident and net, skilled at toppling foes and moving them around for the crowd’s delight—and his own tactical advantage. His opponent’s sword flares with blue light an instant before she sends lightning flashing forth to smite him.
All of these heroes are fighters, perhaps the most diverse class of characters in the worlds Thuria. Questing knights, conquering overlords, royal champions, elite foot soldiers, hardened mercenaries, and bandit kings—as fighters, they all share an unparalleled mastery with weapons and armor, and a thorough knowledge of the skills of combat. And they are well acquainted with death, both meting it out and staring it defiantly in the face.


Well-Rounded Specialists

Fighters learn the basics of all combat styles. Every fighter can swing an axe, fence with a rapier, wield a longsword or a greatsword, use a bow, and even trap foes in a net with some degree of skill. Likewise, a fighter is adept with shields and every form of armor. Beyond that basic degree of familiarity, each fighter specializes in a certain style of combat. Some concentrate on archery, some on fighting with two weapons at once, and some on augmenting their martial skills with magic. This combination of broad general ability and extensive specialization makes fighters superior combatants on battlefields and in dungeons alike.


Trained for Danger

Not every member of the city watch, the village militia, or the queen’s army is a fighter. Most of these troops are relatively untrained soldiers with only the most basic combat knowledge. Veteran soldiers, military officers, trained bodyguards, dedicated knights, and similar figures are fighters.
Some fighters feel drawn to use their training as adventurers. The dungeon delving, monster slaying, and other dangerous work common among adventurers is second nature for a fighter, not all that different from the life he or she left behind. There are greater risks, perhaps, but also much greater rewards—few fighters in the city watch have the opportunity to discover a magic flame tongue sword, for example.


Culture

Among the most common adventurers, fighters came from an innumerable set of backgrounds. Some were knights in the service of a quest or elite foot soldiers whilst others were ambitious would-be overlords or hardened mercenaries. What brought fighters together, however, was their common roots as warriors who put themselves in the thick of battle, between their comrades and harm's way; while many fighters could be called disreputable, few, if any, were true cowards.
All fighters drew on a wealth of experience built by others who'd come before them, though some had more formal training than others. Many fighters came to their profession through membership in a militia or army, while others acquired their skills in military academies. Others were more or less self-educated, their skills hardened through hard-earned experience rather than formal instruction. Some fighters were brought to the ways of martial combat by a threat to their home and others were a part of a long family tradition. These diverse backgrounds and motivations meant most fighters did not see themselves as part of a greater brotherhood or fellowship. Instead, fighters perceived their friends and brothers in those with whom they'd faced danger together, distinguishing little by profession.
Fighters were common in nearly every part of Thuria and though they were sometimes overlooked due to their widespread nature, truly skilled fighters were well-respected for their abilities. While many fighters operated on their own or as parts of informally organized groups, others held themselves to a higher ideal and were part of knightly orders. These included such renowned groups as the Black Dragons of Aquilonia, the Asshuri of Shem, and the Kshatryia of Vendhya.
Likewise, fighters came from a wide variety of races. Among humans, dwarves, high elves (particularly moon elves), halflings (lightfoot or strongheart halflings), and orcs fighters were particularly common, drawing on the military traditions of each race. Half-orc fighters were also common, though less so, and were typically outcasts among both humans and orcs who'd taken their hardships and channeled it into a force for discipline and martial skill. Among the goblinoid races, hobgoblins were most commonly fighters, the other races typically lacking the discipline for a strong martial tradition. Drow and duergar fighters were also somewhat common.



Abilities

Fighters of all varieties were skilled in the use of the most commonly used weapons and armor, making them highly proficient in the ways of battle. All fighters were adept at both melee and ranged combat, though many fighters put the emphasis of their training on melee. Every fighter had, in addition to their broad knowledge of most weapons, a particular style of fighting that they preferred. Some were specialists in the use of armor or shielding their allies from harm. Others were particularly skilled in the use of great or single-handed weapons. Still others, like rangers, were specialized in the use of ranged weapons or dual wielding.
In addition to their proficiency in the use of particular weapons, fighters had a number of other useful combat abilities. Incredibly durable and courageous, fighters were capable of recovering from blows that might kill other warriors, allowing them to sustain themselves for prolonged stretches of combat. Experienced fighters were likewise more resilient to the effects of poisons, spells, or other debilitating effects. Additionally, fighters could push themselves beyond their normal limits every few hours in a burst of energy, allowing them to act and move more quickly. Similarly, experienced fighters were capable of attacking more quickly, up to about four times as quickly as other warriors.
Many fighters worked best fighting alongside others and were trained to protect the flanks of allies. When an enemy attacked a friend or ally of these fighters, the fighter was prepared to leap to the ally's defense and distract the foe, decreasing the effectiveness of their attacks. Fighters were also better able to take advantage of flaws in enemies' defenses than most other warriors.



Fighter Archetypes available in Roleplay Redux

While all fighters shared a number of generalized combat skills, the direction their abilities took as they gained more experience varied considerably. Three of the most common archetypes fighters followed are listed below.

Firstly, you will be able to select one fighting style among this list:

• Archery (Increased damage with ranged weapons)
• Defense (Passively gain 1 AC bonus as long as you hold a shield)
• Dueling (If your off-hand is empty, have higher power scaling on your attacks with your one-handed weapon.)
• Great Weapon Fighting (Increased damage with two-handed weapons)
• Superior Technique (Lets you pick a single combat maneuver from the Battlemaster's abilities)
• Thrown Weapon Fighting (Increased damage with thrown weapons)
• Two Weapon Fighting (Increased damage on your off-hand attacks when Dual-Wielding)
• Unarmed Fighting (Gain the grapple strike ability, allowing to punch a target you have grappled as a free action)

Afterwards, you will be able to select your subclass:

Battle Master

Those who emulate the archetypal Battle Master employ martial techniques passed down through generations. To a Battle Master, combat is an academic field, sometimes including subjects beyond battle such as weaponsmithing and calligraphy. Not every fighter absorbs the lessons of history, theory, and artistry that are reflected in the Battle Master archetype, but those who do are well-rounded fighters of great skill and knowledge.

Champion

The archetypal Champion focuses on the development of raw physical power honed to deadly perfection as well as fierce leadership in battle. Those who model themselves on this archetype combine rigorous training with stalwart leadership and selflessness to lead their allies headfirst into combat, inspiring them and acting as a tactician for them.

Eldritch Knight

The archetypal Eldritch Knight combines the martial mastery common to all fighters with a careful study of magic. Eldritch Knights use magical techniques similar to those practiced by wizards. They focus their study on two of the eight schools of magic: abjuration and evocation. Abjuration spells grant an Eldritch Knight additional protection in battle, and evocation spells deal damage to many foes at once, extending the fighter's reach in combat. These knights learn a comparatively small number of spells, committing them to memory instead of keeping them in a spellbook.

Psi Warrior

Awake to the psionic power within, a Psi Warrior is a fighter who augments their physical might with psi-infused weapon strikes, telekinetic lashes, and barriers of mental force. Many githyanki train to become such warriors, as do some of the most disciplined high elves. In the world of Eberron, many young kalashtar dream of becoming Psi Warriors.
As a Psi Warrior, you might have honed your psionic abilities through solo discipline, unlocked it under the tutelage of a master, or refined it at an academy dedicated to wielding the mind's power as both weapon and shield.

Rune Knight

Rune Knights enhance their martial prowess using the supernatural power of runes, an ancient practice that originated with giants. Rune cutters can be found among any family of giants, and you likely learned your methods first or second hand from such a mystical artisan. Whether you found the giant's work carved into a hill or cave, learned of the runes from a sage, or met the giant in person, you studied the giant's craft and learned how to apply magic runes to empower your equipment.

Fighters

A human male fighter

FIGHTER