DO NOT send hate to this guy. I am putting this up here to demonstrate what kind of criticism is worthless. And also... I mean c'mon. This is pretty funny. Especially if you look at his other comments, had me dying
Last week I was running a Bone Devil bossfight encounter for my players. It was partially homebrewed, since I added lair actions. It's only lair action was to infuse stalactites with his own mana, which made them deal extra 1d4 force damage when a player was hit by them when they fell (The devil had to use another action to make them fall after they were infused). Our sorcerer, the only player that consistently paid attention to stuff that happened in enemy turns that wasn't damage, asked if he could try to hit an infused stalactite cluster to drop them on top of the fiend. I said yes, he rolled a 20 when aiming and a 9 on damage. Long story short, the devil was already at 12 HP, it got hit by a stalactite which dealt a total of 15 damage. He roleplayed how it fell and pierced the beast's skull and blew it up from the inside.
This is one of my favorite archetypes, and the current game I’m in I’m playing a blade singer wizard. I roll incredibly bad in especially in combat so my usual action is activate my bladesong, buff my allies with concentration spells and shield when something might hit me. Last session I enlarge our Goliath and he smashed bandits with their own cart while the captain and archers couldn’t land a hit on me and I was catapulting loose objects at them. When I first was thinking up the character he was a competent fighter but my rolls made that not happen so he uses magic a lot more than his whip.
Mechanically speaking, the bladesinger is a spellcaster on its core, despite the extra AC and the 6th level multiattack feat may tell you. You will always be better at casting spells than sharing slashes to your foes. So this video may perfectly apply to a character who knows its own limits in combat and magic.
Among Spellcasters I'd say Bladesinger and Colleges of either Valor or Swords, as well as Peace or War Domain Cleric, with those more leaning into the tactical Leader role and helping the Party win by strategy
I do this with my War Mage. With his INT and battlefield experience/focus I play him like he's mentally always five steps ahead of his opponent. With my bonuses (Tactical Wit, Gift of Alacrity, Observant Feat) I almost always roll highest in initiative, so I use battlefield control spells to swing the encounter in the party's favor from the very beginning. Being able to reliably hit the bad guys with Fireball/Hypnotic Suggestion/Faerie Fire before the melee characters rush in make a huge difference. Locking down the enemy wizard with Counterspell/Dispel Magic/etc. looks and feels like I'm anticipating every move and countering it.
@@bradwoodard8289 thats an amazing way to emulate this Feeling. I absolutely forgot about War Wizards, a subclass that really doesnt get enough Love, atleast at my usual table
Honestly, when I started listening to this channel a month or so ago I thought this was a huge D&D channel because of the quality of the content. I've learned a ton about D&D and your content has inspired me in my own campaign I'm DMing.
First of all. I enjoy hearing about your gunslinger. Second, I love fighting smart. One of my favorite moments in all of DnD was when my group was trying to hold off an assault by giants on a fort. It wasn't going well and at one point a fire giant had lept onto the top of the battlements where we were and had double critted our ranger. I knew just trying to hit it wouldn't work, so I used some stone cunning (as a bonus action, my dm runs similar rules.) To figure out a weak spot in the stone under its feet. I rolled well and then proceeded to smash that spot repeatedly with my maul, fracturing it and causing it to tumble away, taking the giant with it. That play gave the cleric the time he needed to heal the ranger. After that the ranger went nuts and his dice were on fire. The rest of those giants were naught but pincushions by the end of it.
This couldn’t be more perfectly timed. I’m playing Call of The Netherdeep tonight (2 year perma DM getting to play in an ongoing campaign hype) and I’m playing a 53 year old hobgoblin echo knight who has a past as a grizzled hit man and is always analyzing people and surroundings to look for the advantage in the case of a fight breaking out.
I absolutely love this advice! Too many people think that optimized combat only means having a character made with abilities and feats which have a net mechanical bonus that applies in generic combat encounters, but I always encourage players to analyze situations before diving right in and then looking around their environment in the midst of a fight in order to find the optimal means of ending it. The idea of having the players describe how an enemy attack misses is also very unique and I definitely approve.
So happy the algorithm suggested this video! I'm playing a character who was this exact type in a former life and I've been struggling with roleplaying this aspect.
You have a great presence in front of the camera, and your mannerisms / charisma combined with your insight make your videos very enjoyable. You should be very proud!!
This is the content I like the most from your channel. The descriptions are always well done and help flush out the ideas that knowing mechanics won't at the table.
Another class that would really fit this mold nicely would be the blade singer wizard. You are an intelligence caster but also have the grace and prowess of a dex fighter. If I step out from behind the screen in the future, I definitely want to give this a go. The idea of a criminal or investigator blade singer really gets my creativity churning.
I'm currently playing a Bladesinger in an online Adventurers League who is an archaeologist (technically Sage background because he also loves libraries, not just ruins). He is an adventurous young Half-Elf and started with a single level of Rogue for the extra proficiencies, expertise in Arcana and History and the decent damage boost via Sneak Attack. He's a blast to play and roleplay !
Something I find important is having a character, whatever the class, that has OPTIONS, some form of ability or toolset that capitalizes on the character's smarts Of my favorite forms of flexible battlefield manipulation is push and pull mechanics Really lets you use the battlefield to your advantage
It might seem counterintuitive but I played this archetype with a dwarven barbarian who was a bandit along roads for a few decades. Goated at positioning and always getting his friends to flank, or get the enemy’s back against the cliff side. Stuff like that.
Jay is quickly becoming the thing I watch the most on UA-cam, vids like this are the reason why. So yeah I like this kind vid, and yes I want some more,😆
A good example of this is Nathaniel from Jocat's necrohunt series. Dude's a bard who dumped Con yet uses intelligence and deception to face their challenges.
I like these kind of videos, as they're kind of unique in D&D videos on youtube as well. I really like how you present simple ideas to make better & more motivated players!
Definitely sending this to my DM and trying for that added proficiency/bonus action checks rule. I really like that. Also, I know you said it's not easy with magic based classes, but I'm definitely going for it with my new sorcerer 😂
I had a armorer artificer armorer wizard dip (for shield) who had this sort of archetype. I got him enough spells that basically any attack against him either won't hit, or deal minimal damage. I always flavored all his stuff as technology he has made so he can be ready to stand and face nearly any appointment he faces. I still am using them. Their a damn fun person to rp and play as and he now is seen as a person who will not fall at opposition. Only those who truly out match him can take hom down. It is a really fun arctype as long as you plan out how you do it!
“If you like this content let me know” Yes. Yes I love this content. I already knew some of it but seeing you talk about these things is refreshing because it reminds me just how intense and engaging these various roles can be while playing.
The Plasmoid Horizon Walker Ranger I'm playing as in Lost Mine of Phandelver I based her personality off of Nathan Drake and part of that is being a mistress of adaption and that includes using the spells when needed.
I play a Ratfolk Fighter/Rouge Champion that was trained by his uncle who took him on as his squire. I'll spare you the story and say that his uncle helped him train to fight enemies taller then him. Thus, I made him pretty technical when it comes to fighting and once described him using his tail to knock an enemy off balance so he could open the enemies guard up for a slashing attack to the hip.
I totally agree with the quick check bonus action! Though I rule it that you can try any skill check within reason, even without proficiency. My reasoning is that it opens up my players' ability to make an informed decision with their actions.
This is one of my favorite character types, and I think my personal favorite example is Mike Ehrmantraut from Breaking Bad/B.C.S. He's slower and older than all his opponents, but he is always love step ahead of them without even losing his cool.
Played a seasoned veteran fighter and wanted to play this, ended up having a party of meta gamers who just blew everything up. He had a more protective personality/playstyle so my favorite move with my dual shields was a leg sweep into a bash down to the chest
I really like this tip. If and when I DM I will add something like this as a house rule. I currently play with a group and the DM doesn’t like combat. Now maybe that just isn’t your cup of tea, but the reason he doesn’t like combat is because it “feels boring”, to which I say: you’re the DM. If combat is boring to you, make it more interesting and I think stuff like this: tactics and strategy rather than just raw damage make battles more interesting.
My favorite way to role play the strategic genius is simply to study some historical examples and general advice of battlefield commanders to see how I might apply it in game. You don’t have to actually be a genius. Just know a lot of principles/examples and apply them when appropriate. Although, this kind of strategist doesn’t need to be as much of a front-liner as you seem to have in mind.
Not sure if this counts cause strength is big for this character but I built a pugilist(homebrew) 3/barbarian 3 in aurora, he essentially focuses on grappling and knocking prone. I remember one fight I kept a gryphon held down while my party laid into it and two cyclops. After the gryphon died I used its bodies in an improvised attack knocking the first cyclops down, which my dm ruled as a pugilist strike, because shes awesome. This meant I could attack again and seeing as I hadn't used full movement that turn, I ran and high jumped at the other cyclops, punching it in the eye, also knocking it prone. And as the ranger, druid and cleric finished off the first cyclops, me and the fighter finished off the second.
Monster Slayer Ranger gets the Hunter's Sense feature, which lets you size up your opponents vulnerabilities, resistances, etc. Definitely something to consider for the fighter smarter type character.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the Hexblade fits this right? They've got good CC, the push and pull eldritch blast, the smite that insta downs an opponent, and all the other zone control spells warlocks get and they're decently tanky. And going Variant human and taking an extra feat always helps! ( I usually love taking the bastard combo of sentinel and Polearm master and just being a zoner.)
played a sailor warlock. used my strengths of knowing to control the ship battles like normal combat. kite poke with polearm mastery, kite, set aoe, and eldritch blast push into aoe. the called me the captain. i would lead the group and try to call out battle strategies. when i multiclass into paladin my supportive role grew as well." i have a plan. not good one." catch phase
In December, I will be playing a robe-wearing fighter who wields a sleek scythe, who has a high AC through tons of dexterity. +9 in Stealth, level 12 character. His goal is to find Old Zealand, and will do anything to do so. Speaking of which, he is wanted in several kingdoms for mass-murder in search of Old Zealand. He’s a joke character, but also extremely serious.
First of all, to whoever reads this, I hope you have had and continue to have a good day! Secondly, this is a perfectly timed video! I'm preparing to play the only full-martial in a mildly home-brewed game, and I've sacrificed some of my damage output both for roleplay reasons and to try something different. Instead of trying to play an inefficient damage build, I'm hoping to run crowd-control, tanking, and generally making it hard for the enemy to get anything done. I really do want to try play smarter, rather than hit harder. Session zero/one is this Sunday, and this video has provided some new ideas and thoughts. Thank you so much!
Hey this is me. I'm usually the one that give the pace to the fight. I use a Dao Genie Human Warlock (spell sniper). My trade is to get me and my comrades in the best tactical position for the encounter. Of course I have to work with what I have. My companions got charmed by spidergirls, I threw darkness on them to break the effect and then blast off from the black hole. An earth elemental is summoned by the goblin shaman, I, a warlock, went 1 on 1 with it and keep it engaged while I blast the smaller ones and let the elemental kill himself against my armor of agathys. I also move to give an opportunity attack at each of my turns. Young black dragon appears. Capture his polymorphed mouse version and make it a pet. Then do it again. Tavern fight with 12 bandits? Summon undead and use the ghost to make the mob boss shit his pants and whimp like a girl in front of his men. Sewer's gelatinous cubes? Blast Sewer's ghouls? Blast Assassins using invisibility? Mage hand around the room some clothes and look how they move. Sewers giant flies? Concentrate them into a corridor with more bends possible and light them up with Sickening Radiance which is literally the most Chernobyl spell of all time. Didn't even need to mind the flies, only the mimics at our backs lol.
Fun scenario. I was playing a CG (evil must die, no matter the cost) fighter and was taking on a parymander (evil paladin) in an old mill. After kicking up flour into face (DM ruled he couldn't dodge or deflect since he was using a twohander and in heavy armor.) my character proceeded to knock his helmet off while he was blinded, then rolled under his swing, grabbed a handful of flour, and blew it right back in the poor guys face as he spun to meet my character. Using the extra chance to wrap a mill chain around his kneck, my character kicked the counter weigh, hauling the parymander off his feet and attacking him while he couldn't fight back. When the group saw my character emerge from the mill unscathed and cheerful they asked what happened to the parymander. My character simply responded with a wry grin. "Oh, he's hanging out in the mill," XD
Monster Hunter Ranger is my favorite tactical combatant. Being able to discern enemy weaknesses and resistances made me my party's favorite guy in a tough one-shot
Sometimes you don’t need a check to get a good ballpark of there strength. If you’ve heard they’ve wrestled a adult dragon into submission there muscles are going to show that
I think the best title for this type of character is the "pragmatic fighter". Guts from Berserk and Bronn from Game of Thrones are good examples of this type of character.
I have a request. Do you have any ideas for a character that always seems to have the right items for the encounter in question, particularly through crafting? I'm playing a 3.5 game as a Rogue who also specializes in crafting Alchemical items, but i am admittedly worried that I may find myself making the wrong items for the given encounters
Use whatever you make in a creative way! There will be no wrong use, even if you can guarantee even a slight battleground control, it will be useful. If everything goes south, you can try different concoctions or as your own experience and narrative as a character to become a better alchemist/resourceful ally. Creative people always try to optimize and fix what went wrong, go all in
@@diogosalgado One thing that'll definitely help is alchemist fire. 1, because we have a goliath barbarian, and 2, it can kinda work like alternative caltrops if i really need to deny access somewhere (like Halo 3 firebombs) but admittedly while looking through alchemical items, I get kinda giddy AND intimidated at the possibilities. So many of em, kinda afraid of buyer's remorse
@@KazanmaTheSilverWind for sure, it can be a little intimidating. But don't worry, start small, with like 3 options (you have one down already) with a stock of 2 to 3 each. Make it so that you learned the recipes from your family/mentor. As you adventure try to fit different concoctions with the environment, like you find a curious creature that fit a potion, so you make the recipe yourself, or actively search recipes from NPCs. It looks like loads of fun to me. We always look at the optimal setting to use the resources, so I'll encourage you to defy that feeling in the name of experimentation, that's why a little stock of each can help you try some, but still keeping the last one for the most dire of moments, for example. If you want a challenge to confront the buyers remorse, try using at least one per encounter, even easy ones can go like a breeze with a creative use! This will emphasize your character and even show the DM and the group what kind of experience you want. I bet you will be rewarded for living it Also, if you have the alchemical kit, nothing is stopping you from preparing on the field with what you find there, using your rests to chat a bit while restocking
I understand if D&D 5e is your game of choice, but I do encourage you to look at PF2 and maybe steal some stuff. In this particular case, look at the Investigator's Devise a Stratagem. I think it could be converted to 5e and mechanical support the "smart fighter" build.
Thus makes me kind of think of how I usually play a Ranger. They're smart, or at least wise so I play them as a specialis, ha gingerly back for just a moment to size up the enemies in an encounter and making sure to shut down, eliminate, or otherwise counter the biggest immediate threat to the party, whether that be sniping out a spellcaster or getting in close to lock down a stronger martial foe in combat. They have a lot of utility and they know it, they're not the best at anything but they're good enough all around to handle whatever situation comes their way.
My level 13 bard is going up against her level 30 brother ( 20th level paladin, 10th level hexblade)I’ve disarmed him with Thunderwave and bear trap on a phantom steed, but he just used destructive wave so he can use the sconce attached the wall the broke off as a sheild and a large splinter from the pews as a spear.
Erica is a character who is not intelligent but is very smart, and we have another character who is very intelligent. And there was one combat where we both came up with the same plan but had completely different executions and his was better. I had a grapling hook, he had a gun, and the gun one. But I have a feeling we are going to be the ones coming up with strategies a tactics and it should be fun.
Oh thank god thank you so much for this😂😭 My paladin/hexblade *can* be strong, but there's an issue called he hates that he's a warlock and avoids using it, meaning my raw damage output is way lower than the rest of my party most of the time. I recently started looking more into being the tactical one of the group, especially with focusing on feld control to make up for the smaller raw numbers. Issue being I have no idea how to rp as said character in dnd😂 thank you so much for all this😆😆😆
I'm kind of doing this with a sorcerer I'm playing. We're level 4, so sorcerers aren't crazy power (I think? First time playing a sorcerer). We were fighting a nest of cave spiders/web golems. Spiders crawling on the wall? Chill Touch to pull it off the wall and knock it prone for the heavy hitters. Web golem wading through a river? Freezing Ray to freeze the water, force it to rip it's leg off and halve it's movement. Last but not least, Wither and Bloom to get in some chip damage, but most importantly heal the tank by one of this hit die+modifier. I didn't do big damage in that encounter, but playing smart was almost more satisfying.
sorcerers are pretty great, metamagic is such a great feature that even if the sorcerer abilities are absolute garbage(which it isnt) it still makes sorcerers strong. Strong in terms of damage, not utility.
Great video, I love it. But I have some questions, considering that English is not my first language 😅 When you talk about this kind of character, are you talking to players or to gms? And, when you describe the scene with the hilt block and the elbow, who is describing the move? The gm or the player?
Either players or DMs could use the tips presented here, but I think the video is aimed at players. Also I believe he meant that the player was describing the hilt block, in response to the DMs question about AC.
I normally just let my players pole-vault over their enemy as part of their movement action with an athletics check included, or make an arcana check to recognize some magic as a free action. Making those into bonus actions doesn't seem right to me. There are other things they would rather use their bonus action on, after all.
A great shortcut for the type of descriptions mentioned is to work out what elements of your AC contribute to a miss. So for my AC20 Barbarian: 21+ = hit 16-20 = Dex and magic items 11-15 = Con 1-10 = plain miss So if the attack is in the Dex range, I can describe nimbly avoiding the attack, playing up the influence of my items. If it's in the Con range, I might describe blocking an attack, or just shrugging off a lesser blow. A plain miss will earn a derisive taunt. You can do all of this as a DM as well, if you know your players setups well enough. Adds a ton of value for relatively little work!
I'm kind of scratching my head about this. Wouldn't sizing up your opponent be investigation since its about logical deductions about what they are capable of, whereas insight would tell you how they feel about their odds?
Everytime I make a new character you make the perfect video. I'm making a gun wielding warlock/artificer and am focusing on a more tactician/support build rather than a straight damage build, so this really helps.
Don’t worry it’s not just you, I’m really getting sick of *Everyone* asking me to like subscribe and turn the bell on. I get it, it’s a basic built in feature for UA-cam you don’t have to remind me about it every damn video. Heck, even some of my favorite content creators say this stuff all the time and I’m already subscribed to them. I’m really glad you’re at least admitting that it’s getting really annoying.
When you're playing Dungeons & Dragons, You don't always have to outright kill your enemies. Sometimes you can simply outsmart them! Great info! New subscriber here!
But at the same time she's the only dedicated melee fighter and is also not a tank so it dose make sense that she is getting hurt all the time. The party have had 5 fights and she has almost gone to zero in 3 of them. But that's kinda what being a martial character is right? Getting the shit kicked out of you so the others don't get the shit kicked out of them. I don't think anyone has taken as many hard hits and she and some of them wouldn't have walked away from them.
What's funny. My Female Goliath warlock's father, who is a warlock himself is known to be able to read his opponents, because he's not physically imposing. I dont know if this is would first with the subject of the video, under mastermind
Maybe it's the fault of my expectations, but the title made me believe this was gonna be a video about using underused game mechanics outside BIG DAMAGE to fight more efficiently. Not all this fluff stuff. At least you enthusiastic attitude made the video entertaining. 😀
My Husband helped me make a Quick draw Bunny Rogue swashbuckler for a new game we are playing in. I got to flavor my Rapier as a Katana I get to fight like Virgil from Devil May Cry as I have a 80 movement speed, people don't have AOO against me and I can sometimes one shot people where I can dash, slash, put away sword, they die. Shut up I know I'm a loser.
Fail Video
DO NOT send hate to this guy. I am putting this up here to demonstrate what kind of criticism is worthless. And also... I mean c'mon. This is pretty funny. Especially if you look at his other comments, had me dying
@@PlayYourRole no worries man, most of us know what a pin of shame is. Now we get laugh at him through our screens.
i'd rather say lame, but that would be a bit much.
i really wasn't inspired, but at least it gave me something to think about.
pin of shame lol
@@KrillAndGrill U peepee smol
This is quickly turning into my favorite DND channel. Love the frequent uploads :D
That means the absolute world to me, thank you so much!!!
@@PlayYourRole you have a great youtube channel, and very unique content, keep it up
Last week I was running a Bone Devil bossfight encounter for my players. It was partially homebrewed, since I added lair actions. It's only lair action was to infuse stalactites with his own mana, which made them deal extra 1d4 force damage when a player was hit by them when they fell (The devil had to use another action to make them fall after they were infused). Our sorcerer, the only player that consistently paid attention to stuff that happened in enemy turns that wasn't damage, asked if he could try to hit an infused stalactite cluster to drop them on top of the fiend. I said yes, he rolled a 20 when aiming and a 9 on damage. Long story short, the devil was already at 12 HP, it got hit by a stalactite which dealt a total of 15 damage. He roleplayed how it fell and pierced the beast's skull and blew it up from the inside.
This is one of my favorite archetypes, and the current game I’m in I’m playing a blade singer wizard. I roll incredibly bad in especially in combat so my usual action is activate my bladesong, buff my allies with concentration spells and shield when something might hit me. Last session I enlarge our Goliath and he smashed bandits with their own cart while the captain and archers couldn’t land a hit on me and I was catapulting loose objects at them. When I first was thinking up the character he was a competent fighter but my rolls made that not happen so he uses magic a lot more than his whip.
Mechanically speaking, the bladesinger is a spellcaster on its core, despite the extra AC and the 6th level multiattack feat may tell you. You will always be better at casting spells than sharing slashes to your foes. So this video may perfectly apply to a character who knows its own limits in combat and magic.
1:02 Don't forget the Mastermind subclass for the Rogue.
Damn you're so right!
@@PlayYourRole also, dont forget the inquisite rogue
Among Spellcasters I'd say Bladesinger and Colleges of either Valor or Swords, as well as Peace or War Domain Cleric, with those more leaning into the tactical Leader role and helping the Party win by strategy
So true! Valor and War specifically have awesome buffing abilities that can be flavored that way
I do this with my War Mage. With his INT and battlefield experience/focus I play him like he's mentally always five steps ahead of his opponent.
With my bonuses (Tactical Wit, Gift of Alacrity, Observant Feat) I almost always roll highest in initiative, so I use battlefield control spells to swing the encounter in the party's favor from the very beginning. Being able to reliably hit the bad guys with Fireball/Hypnotic Suggestion/Faerie Fire before the melee characters rush in make a huge difference.
Locking down the enemy wizard with Counterspell/Dispel Magic/etc. looks and feels like I'm anticipating every move and countering it.
@@bradwoodard8289 thats an amazing way to emulate this Feeling. I absolutely forgot about War Wizards, a subclass that really doesnt get enough Love, atleast at my usual table
among
Honestly, when I started listening to this channel a month or so ago I thought this was a huge D&D channel because of the quality of the content. I've learned a ton about D&D and your content has inspired me in my own campaign I'm DMing.
First of all. I enjoy hearing about your gunslinger. Second, I love fighting smart. One of my favorite moments in all of DnD was when my group was trying to hold off an assault by giants on a fort. It wasn't going well and at one point a fire giant had lept onto the top of the battlements where we were and had double critted our ranger. I knew just trying to hit it wouldn't work, so I used some stone cunning (as a bonus action, my dm runs similar rules.) To figure out a weak spot in the stone under its feet. I rolled well and then proceeded to smash that spot repeatedly with my maul, fracturing it and causing it to tumble away, taking the giant with it. That play gave the cleric the time he needed to heal the ranger. After that the ranger went nuts and his dice were on fire. The rest of those giants were naught but pincushions by the end of it.
This couldn’t be more perfectly timed. I’m playing Call of The Netherdeep tonight (2 year perma DM getting to play in an ongoing campaign hype) and I’m playing a 53 year old hobgoblin echo knight who has a past as a grizzled hit man and is always analyzing people and surroundings to look for the advantage in the case of a fight breaking out.
I absolutely love this advice! Too many people think that optimized combat only means having a character made with abilities and feats which have a net mechanical bonus that applies in generic combat encounters, but I always encourage players to analyze situations before diving right in and then looking around their environment in the midst of a fight in order to find the optimal means of ending it. The idea of having the players describe how an enemy attack misses is also very unique and I definitely approve.
So happy the algorithm suggested this video! I'm playing a character who was this exact type in a former life and I've been struggling with roleplaying this aspect.
You have a great presence in front of the camera, and your mannerisms / charisma combined with your insight make your videos very enjoyable. You should be very proud!!
This is the content I like the most from your channel. The descriptions are always well done and help flush out the ideas that knowing mechanics won't at the table.
Another class that would really fit this mold nicely would be the blade singer wizard. You are an intelligence caster but also have the grace and prowess of a dex fighter. If I step out from behind the screen in the future, I definitely want to give this a go. The idea of a criminal or investigator blade singer really gets my creativity churning.
I'm currently playing a Bladesinger in an online Adventurers League who is an archaeologist (technically Sage background because he also loves libraries, not just ruins). He is an adventurous young Half-Elf and started with a single level of Rogue for the extra proficiencies, expertise in Arcana and History and the decent damage boost via Sneak Attack. He's a blast to play and roleplay !
Something I find important is having a character, whatever the class, that has OPTIONS, some form of ability or toolset that capitalizes on the character's smarts
Of my favorite forms of flexible battlefield manipulation is push and pull mechanics
Really lets you use the battlefield to your advantage
It might seem counterintuitive but I played this archetype with a dwarven barbarian who was a bandit along roads for a few decades. Goated at positioning and always getting his friends to flank, or get the enemy’s back against the cliff side. Stuff like that.
I love intelligent fighters. It's a good reason to invest some points into Int.
Jay is quickly becoming the thing I watch the most on UA-cam, vids like this are the reason why. So yeah I like this kind vid, and yes I want some more,😆
A good example of this is Nathaniel from Jocat's necrohunt series. Dude's a bard who dumped Con yet uses intelligence and deception to face their challenges.
Osp red talks about leverage and now you maybe I should watch this show.
Red talked about leverage??? YO what video?
@@PlayYourRole the trope talk about power houses
I like these kind of videos, as they're kind of unique in D&D videos on youtube as well. I really like how you present simple ideas to make better & more motivated players!
Definitely sending this to my DM and trying for that added proficiency/bonus action checks rule. I really like that.
Also, I know you said it's not easy with magic based classes, but I'm definitely going for it with my new sorcerer 😂
At least when it comes to sizing up other mages/magic creatures 😂
I love what you do! Keep up the amazing work!
And thank you for the kind words!
I had a armorer artificer armorer wizard dip (for shield) who had this sort of archetype. I got him enough spells that basically any attack against him either won't hit, or deal minimal damage. I always flavored all his stuff as technology he has made so he can be ready to stand and face nearly any appointment he faces. I still am using them. Their a damn fun person to rp and play as and he now is seen as a person who will not fall at opposition. Only those who truly out match him can take hom down. It is a really fun arctype as long as you plan out how you do it!
“If you like this content let me know”
Yes.
Yes I love this content. I already knew some of it but seeing you talk about these things is refreshing because it reminds me just how intense and engaging these various roles can be while playing.
The Plasmoid Horizon Walker Ranger I'm playing as in Lost Mine of Phandelver I based her personality off of Nathan Drake and part of that is being a mistress of adaption and that includes using the spells when needed.
This was an awesome video, totally can't wait to use this archetype for my next character!
I play a Ratfolk Fighter/Rouge Champion that was trained by his uncle who took him on as his squire. I'll spare you the story and say that his uncle helped him train to fight enemies taller then him. Thus, I made him pretty technical when it comes to fighting and once described him using his tail to knock an enemy off balance so he could open the enemies guard up for a slashing attack to the hip.
Great vid, lots of practical, flavorful suggestions for entertaining combat, regardless of your character
I totally agree with the quick check bonus action! Though I rule it that you can try any skill check within reason, even without proficiency. My reasoning is that it opens up my players' ability to make an informed decision with their actions.
This is one of my favorite character types, and I think my personal favorite example is Mike Ehrmantraut from Breaking Bad/B.C.S.
He's slower and older than all his opponents, but he is always love step ahead of them without even losing his cool.
It is fun watching that patron list grow!
I've wanted to have an npc like this, great food for thought.
Played a seasoned veteran fighter and wanted to play this, ended up having a party of meta gamers who just blew everything up. He had a more protective personality/playstyle so my favorite move with my dual shields was a leg sweep into a bash down to the chest
I really like this tip. If and when I DM I will add something like this as a house rule. I currently play with a group and the DM doesn’t like combat. Now maybe that just isn’t your cup of tea, but the reason he doesn’t like combat is because it “feels boring”, to which I say: you’re the DM. If combat is boring to you, make it more interesting and I think stuff like this: tactics and strategy rather than just raw damage make battles more interesting.
Smart heroes always have been a favorite of mine in books! It sounds fun to play!
My favorite way to role play the strategic genius is simply to study some historical examples and general advice of battlefield commanders to see how I might apply it in game.
You don’t have to actually be a genius. Just know a lot of principles/examples and apply them when appropriate.
Although, this kind of strategist doesn’t need to be as much of a front-liner as you seem to have in mind.
I’m commenting bc I want more of your content on my home page !! Also I love this type of character
Not sure if this counts cause strength is big for this character but I built a pugilist(homebrew) 3/barbarian 3 in aurora, he essentially focuses on grappling and knocking prone.
I remember one fight I kept a gryphon held down while my party laid into it and two cyclops.
After the gryphon died I used its bodies in an improvised attack knocking the first cyclops down, which my dm ruled as a pugilist strike, because shes awesome.
This meant I could attack again and seeing as I hadn't used full movement that turn, I ran and high jumped at the other cyclops, punching it in the eye, also knocking it prone.
And as the ranger, druid and cleric finished off the first cyclops, me and the fighter finished off the second.
Monster Slayer Ranger gets the Hunter's Sense feature, which lets you size up your opponents vulnerabilities, resistances, etc. Definitely something to consider for the fighter smarter type character.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the Hexblade fits this right? They've got good CC, the push and pull eldritch blast, the smite that insta downs an opponent, and all the other zone control spells warlocks get and they're decently tanky. And going Variant human and taking an extra feat always helps! ( I usually love taking the bastard combo of sentinel and Polearm master and just being a zoner.)
played a sailor warlock. used my strengths of knowing to control the ship battles like normal combat. kite poke with polearm mastery, kite, set aoe, and eldritch blast push into aoe. the called me the captain. i would lead the group and try to call out battle strategies. when i multiclass into paladin my supportive role grew as well." i have a plan. not good one." catch phase
OH DAMN THE LEVERAGE REFERENCE!!!! That was my FAVORITE show years past
In December, I will be playing a robe-wearing fighter who wields a sleek scythe, who has a high AC through tons of dexterity. +9 in Stealth, level 12 character. His goal is to find Old Zealand, and will do anything to do so. Speaking of which, he is wanted in several kingdoms for mass-murder in search of Old Zealand. He’s a joke character, but also extremely serious.
First of all, to whoever reads this, I hope you have had and continue to have a good day!
Secondly, this is a perfectly timed video! I'm preparing to play the only full-martial in a mildly home-brewed game, and I've sacrificed some of my damage output both for roleplay reasons and to try something different.
Instead of trying to play an inefficient damage build, I'm hoping to run crowd-control, tanking, and generally making it hard for the enemy to get anything done. I really do want to try play smarter, rather than hit harder.
Session zero/one is this Sunday, and this video has provided some new ideas and thoughts. Thank you so much!
Hey this is me. I'm usually the one that give the pace to the fight. I use a Dao Genie Human Warlock (spell sniper). My trade is to get me and my comrades in the best tactical position for the encounter. Of course I have to work with what I have.
My companions got charmed by spidergirls, I threw darkness on them to break the effect and then blast off from the black hole.
An earth elemental is summoned by the goblin shaman, I, a warlock, went 1 on 1 with it and keep it engaged while I blast the smaller ones and let the elemental kill himself against my armor of agathys. I also move to give an opportunity attack at each of my turns.
Young black dragon appears. Capture his polymorphed mouse version and make it a pet. Then do it again.
Tavern fight with 12 bandits? Summon undead and use the ghost to make the mob boss shit his pants and whimp like a girl in front of his men.
Sewer's gelatinous cubes? Blast
Sewer's ghouls? Blast
Assassins using invisibility? Mage hand around the room some clothes and look how they move.
Sewers giant flies? Concentrate them into a corridor with more bends possible and light them up with Sickening Radiance which is literally the most Chernobyl spell of all time. Didn't even need to mind the flies, only the mimics at our backs lol.
I like that proficiency as a bonus action bit.
Fun scenario. I was playing a CG (evil must die, no matter the cost) fighter and was taking on a parymander (evil paladin) in an old mill. After kicking up flour into face (DM ruled he couldn't dodge or deflect since he was using a twohander and in heavy armor.) my character proceeded to knock his helmet off while he was blinded, then rolled under his swing, grabbed a handful of flour, and blew it right back in the poor guys face as he spun to meet my character. Using the extra chance to wrap a mill chain around his kneck, my character kicked the counter weigh, hauling the parymander off his feet and attacking him while he couldn't fight back.
When the group saw my character emerge from the mill unscathed and cheerful they asked what happened to the parymander. My character simply responded with a wry grin. "Oh, he's hanging out in the mill,"
XD
Monster Hunter Ranger is my favorite tactical combatant. Being able to discern enemy weaknesses and resistances made me my party's favorite guy in a tough one-shot
Monk Way of the Cobalt Soul works great for this concept
Sometimes you don’t need a check to get a good ballpark of there strength. If you’ve heard they’ve wrestled a adult dragon into submission there muscles are going to show that
I think the best title for this type of character is the "pragmatic fighter". Guts from Berserk and Bronn from Game of Thrones are good examples of this type of character.
I have a request.
Do you have any ideas for a character that always seems to have the right items for the encounter in question, particularly through crafting?
I'm playing a 3.5 game as a Rogue who also specializes in crafting Alchemical items, but i am admittedly worried that I may find myself making the wrong items for the given encounters
Use whatever you make in a creative way! There will be no wrong use, even if you can guarantee even a slight battleground control, it will be useful.
If everything goes south, you can try different concoctions or as your own experience and narrative as a character to become a better alchemist/resourceful ally. Creative people always try to optimize and fix what went wrong, go all in
@@diogosalgado One thing that'll definitely help is alchemist fire. 1, because we have a goliath barbarian, and 2, it can kinda work like alternative caltrops if i really need to deny access somewhere (like Halo 3 firebombs)
but admittedly while looking through alchemical items, I get kinda giddy AND intimidated at the possibilities. So many of em, kinda afraid of buyer's remorse
@@KazanmaTheSilverWind for sure, it can be a little intimidating. But don't worry, start small, with like 3 options (you have one down already) with a stock of 2 to 3 each. Make it so that you learned the recipes from your family/mentor. As you adventure try to fit different concoctions with the environment, like you find a curious creature that fit a potion, so you make the recipe yourself, or actively search recipes from NPCs. It looks like loads of fun to me.
We always look at the optimal setting to use the resources, so I'll encourage you to defy that feeling in the name of experimentation, that's why a little stock of each can help you try some, but still keeping the last one for the most dire of moments, for example. If you want a challenge to confront the buyers remorse, try using at least one per encounter, even easy ones can go like a breeze with a creative use! This will emphasize your character and even show the DM and the group what kind of experience you want. I bet you will be rewarded for living it
Also, if you have the alchemical kit, nothing is stopping you from preparing on the field with what you find there, using your rests to chat a bit while restocking
I understand if D&D 5e is your game of choice, but I do encourage you to look at PF2 and maybe steal some stuff. In this particular case, look at the Investigator's Devise a Stratagem. I think it could be converted to 5e and mechanical support the "smart fighter" build.
I like your content. Looking forward to your next video
I suggest you play with a DM who rewards player creativity and doesn’t get upset and vengeful when you outsmart their villains.
Thus makes me kind of think of how I usually play a Ranger. They're smart, or at least wise so I play them as a specialis, ha gingerly back for just a moment to size up the enemies in an encounter and making sure to shut down, eliminate, or otherwise counter the biggest immediate threat to the party, whether that be sniping out a spellcaster or getting in close to lock down a stronger martial foe in combat. They have a lot of utility and they know it, they're not the best at anything but they're good enough all around to handle whatever situation comes their way.
Using spells that effect your environment is one way to do this. the battle master disarms someone? launch their sword right at them with catapult.
My level 13 bard is going up against her level 30 brother ( 20th level paladin, 10th level hexblade)I’ve disarmed him with Thunderwave and bear trap on a phantom steed, but he just used destructive wave so he can use the sconce attached the wall the broke off as a sheild and a large splinter from the pews as a spear.
Erica is a character who is not intelligent but is very smart, and we have another character who is very intelligent. And there was one combat where we both came up with the same plan but had completely different executions and his was better. I had a grapling hook, he had a gun, and the gun one. But I have a feeling we are going to be the ones coming up with strategies a tactics and it should be fun.
Oh thank god thank you so much for this😂😭 My paladin/hexblade *can* be strong, but there's an issue called he hates that he's a warlock and avoids using it, meaning my raw damage output is way lower than the rest of my party most of the time. I recently started looking more into being the tactical one of the group, especially with focusing on feld control to make up for the smaller raw numbers. Issue being I have no idea how to rp as said character in dnd😂 thank you so much for all this😆😆😆
Funny you should mention 3:03 …
I did that as a paladin, and I soloed it… this was pathfinder…
I loved Leverage! It was an awesome show.
While this is DnD focused i like the videos that can be taken into other tabletops just as easily.
Tips for role playing a lich ?
I'm kind of doing this with a sorcerer I'm playing. We're level 4, so sorcerers aren't crazy power (I think? First time playing a sorcerer). We were fighting a nest of cave spiders/web golems. Spiders crawling on the wall? Chill Touch to pull it off the wall and knock it prone for the heavy hitters. Web golem wading through a river? Freezing Ray to freeze the water, force it to rip it's leg off and halve it's movement. Last but not least, Wither and Bloom to get in some chip damage, but most importantly heal the tank by one of this hit die+modifier. I didn't do big damage in that encounter, but playing smart was almost more satisfying.
sorcerers are pretty great, metamagic is such a great feature that even if the sorcerer abilities are absolute garbage(which it isnt) it still makes sorcerers strong. Strong in terms of damage, not utility.
Great video, I love it. But I have some questions, considering that English is not my first language 😅
When you talk about this kind of character, are you talking to players or to gms? And, when you describe the scene with the hilt block and the elbow, who is describing the move? The gm or the player?
Either players or DMs could use the tips presented here, but I think the video is aimed at players. Also I believe he meant that the player was describing the hilt block, in response to the DMs question about AC.
was not expecting Elliot Spencer to come up lol
Use dodge action
Abuse aoe control spells
Sometimes grapple is good too
Okay but leverage is such a good show.
I like that shirt, would love to have it as well
I normally just let my players pole-vault over their enemy as part of their movement action with an athletics check included, or make an arcana check to recognize some magic as a free action. Making those into bonus actions doesn't seem right to me. There are other things they would rather use their bonus action on, after all.
A great shortcut for the type of descriptions mentioned is to work out what elements of your AC contribute to a miss. So for my AC20 Barbarian:
21+ = hit
16-20 = Dex and magic items
11-15 = Con
1-10 = plain miss
So if the attack is in the Dex range, I can describe nimbly avoiding the attack, playing up the influence of my items. If it's in the Con range, I might describe blocking an attack, or just shrugging off a lesser blow. A plain miss will earn a derisive taunt.
You can do all of this as a DM as well, if you know your players setups well enough. Adds a ton of value for relatively little work!
My group uses a similar system with the added effect of equipment taking damage when hit. It's pretty cool :)
I'm kind of scratching my head about this. Wouldn't sizing up your opponent be investigation since its about logical deductions about what they are capable of, whereas insight would tell you how they feel about their odds?
you talkin' bout "Flukey Pete."
Everytime I make a new character you make the perfect video. I'm making a gun wielding warlock/artificer and am focusing on a more tactician/support build rather than a straight damage build, so this really helps.
I FREAKIN LOVE ELLIOT!
I love your shirt !
Thank you! It came from Epoch Tiles!
If your playing a gunslinger, look up the video series tacticool reloads
Leverage is my jam!
I will be playing an older Dwarf knight, so this will be helpful.
This archetype is also very cool as a spellcaster, like shikamaru from naruto
And it often makes sense, at least in wisdom-based ones, since wisdom is the stat that really controls a lot of the stuff in-game
You got to know when to hold them and know when to EAT YOUR BEANS.
Fuck yeah, Eliot Spencer shout out!
maybe this archetype could be named as "battle savant"?
It works great with arcane trickster really
I like this content
Maybe the tactician?
Don’t worry it’s not just you, I’m really getting sick of *Everyone* asking me to like subscribe and turn the bell on. I get it, it’s a basic built in feature for UA-cam you don’t have to remind me about it every damn video. Heck, even some of my favorite content creators say this stuff all the time and I’m already subscribed to them. I’m really glad you’re at least admitting that it’s getting really annoying.
I think the name your looking for is tactician.
When you're playing Dungeons & Dragons, You don't always have to outright kill your enemies. Sometimes you can simply outsmart them!
Great info! New subscriber here!
But at the same time she's the only dedicated melee fighter and is also not a tank so it dose make sense that she is getting hurt all the time. The party have had 5 fights and she has almost gone to zero in 3 of them. But that's kinda what being a martial character is right? Getting the shit kicked out of you so the others don't get the shit kicked out of them. I don't think anyone has taken as many hard hits and she and some of them wouldn't have walked away from them.
Thanks.
No thank you!
I am trying to make a character like this but so far she just get's the shit beat out of her.
👍🏻
What's funny. My Female Goliath warlock's father, who is a warlock himself is known to be able to read his opponents, because he's not physically imposing. I dont know if this is would first with the subject of the video, under mastermind
Be me,
I'm smart and badass
We love the algorithm
It truly is a strange force
Maybe it's the fault of my expectations, but the title made me believe this was gonna be a video about using underused game mechanics outside BIG DAMAGE to fight more efficiently.
Not all this fluff stuff.
At least you enthusiastic attitude made the video entertaining. 😀
Perfect for Naruto... Not to smart but has battle IQ of over 9000
My Husband helped me make a Quick draw Bunny Rogue swashbuckler for a new game we are playing in. I got to flavor my Rapier as a Katana I get to fight like Virgil from Devil May Cry as I have a 80 movement speed, people don't have AOO against me and I can sometimes one shot people where I can dash, slash, put away sword, they die. Shut up I know I'm a loser.