Bastion
Bastion
As the otyugh’s head slams into the ground, the crowd roars; the beast was strong, but their warrior was unbreakable.
Both ironclad and unscathed, this hero revels in the cheers. Without the audience’s energy, how could he have pushed harder than ever before? How could he have forced the unstoppable monster into submission?
The monster had intended to break free, hoping to strike a bystander. However, the great beast was too slow — a towering greatshield had planted itself in the way of the attack. Under his protection, none shall fall.
Bastions are goliaths on the battlefield, invincible juggernauts wielding only their massive shields. Through their tremendous might, bastions inspire allies and demoralize enemies, using great fortitude and charm to quite literally change the tide of battle. Initially beasts of the arena, these mighty fighters were slowly adapted into armies. With their intense combat prowess, they quickly helped their fellow soldiers, giving them the boost to morale all warriors desperately need. Bastions who set their sights on adventure quickly find their unique charisma draws a particular type of attention from commoners, one that spreads their popularity and names across the land.
Unbreakable Shield
In eras past, the champions of arenas would be put to the test against the greatest challenges. From great monsters to criminals, bastions fought off countless enemies in a plethora of intricate battles. In turn, the bastion soon became the greatest crowd-pleasers. Because bastions were uniquely trained to inspire the masses — performing impressive feats and accomplishing seemingly impossible tasks with sheer might alone — they oftentimes exude an endless amount of bravado. Even more impressive is their unique weapon of choice: the shield. Despite the lack of a clear weapon, bastions overcame this seemingly insurmountable disadvantage, utilizing their shields in creative manners. While spectators would watch with bated breath as these brawlers charging headfirst into the battlefield without second thought, bastions were actually expertly trained to utilize their shields offensively. Slamming their great shields with all of their weight, bastions crushed enemies against walls, sending the weak flying and the strong crawling. While today many bastions have started training with weapons of war, their core identity still revolves around their mastery of the shield, remaining unchallenged by even the most experienced soldiers of highest renown.
Imperative Axioms
Endless endurance and peerless physique make up the heart of a bastion, but upkeeping the body is only half of the bastion’s training regiment. Each bastion must become a champion of the people, not only able to defend those they watch, but also able to inspire those they protect. Additionally, these stalwart soldiers must have the spirit to shatter the resolve of those who stand against them. To help strengthen their spirit, each bastion decides for themselves at least one axiom. These axioms, powerful statements which bastions aspire to live by, serve to bolster a warrior’s spirit, utilizing the power of a concrete mentality to inspire action within themselves. While many bastions follow the imperative “I shall protect the weak,” any concrete promise to oneself will work, serving as the sturdy building blocks for the mighty fortress that is the bastion. Breaking one’s axiom is to betray the self — the greatest sin to any formidable warrior. As such, any bastion who finds themselves willing to break their own axiom will surely find their strength — both inner and outer — beginning to decay.
Creating your Bastion
When creating your bastion, consider why they chose to become a bastion specifically. Unlike other fighters, bastions typically do not use lethal weapons or spells. Consider if your bastion is a pacifist, or in a similar vein, a character who does not abide by violence unless absolutely necessary. Alternatively, your character may value protecting those close to them instead of killing their enemies. Does your bastion revel in popularity, or does the constant attention weigh heavily on their minds? Does your bastion struggle with the reputation they believe they must uphold? Most importantly, what are your character’s axioms? Your character should follow their axioms ardently, and as such, these axioms should be based on your character's morals and philosophies. While your bastion does not have to be lawful or good, they must have some concrete beliefs they choose to follow. For example, these types of characters may be selfish or brutal warriors that simply enjoy taunting and playing an audience. Regardless of your character's alignment, you should put thought into how your axiom applies to them. Finally, your axioms are not locked to your backstory. Along your adventure, your bastion may choose to create new promises to themselves, adding and changing the foundation of their being, and furthermore, strengthening their soul as they continue to discover themselves and their core identity.
Quickbuild
You can make a bastion quickly by following these suggestions. First, make Constitution your highest ability score. Secondly, make Charisma your next-highest. While many physical classes rely on their Strength or Dexterity in combat, bastions instead rely on their heartiness, utilizing their Constitution to fight, and their Charisma to inspire. Finally, choose the Folk Hero background.
A Greatshield item has been constructed as a companion for this class.- AC: 3
- Category: Items (Cost 50 gp)
- Item Rarity: Standard, Two Handed, Heavy
- Weight: 20
- Require Greatshield Prof
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:
- (a) A Greatshield, or (b) a shield and a club.
- (a) A buckler, and a shortsword or (b) 10 javelins
- (a) Explorer's Pack or (b) A Dungeoneer’s Pack
- Chainmail
Shield Bash
A bastion wields its shield to protect, and sometimes that requires force. At 1st level, you gain the ability to use a shield or great shield to make a melee weapon attack. You may only Shield Bash once each attack action.
- You may use your Constitution instead of your Strength for the attack and damage rolls of your shield bashes.
- Shields and Bucklers use 1d6 for their damage dice, and are treated as a one handed weapon. Bucklers are treated as light weapons.
- Greatshields use 1d10 for their damage dice, and are treated as two-handed weapons.
- The damage rolls of your bashes with bucklers and shields gain an extra 1d6, and damage rolls with greatshields gain 1d10 respectively at levels 7, 15, and 19.
Shield Mastery
Your training with weapons allows you to use the Mastery property of one type of shield. Whenever you finish a short Rest, you can practice weapon drills and exchange it for another. Each shield has two properties, you may only select one to train at a time. The shield masteries are listed below in a their own table.
Great Defender
At 2nd level, you are a staunch defender of your allies. In combat, if an ally other than you within 5 feet would be hit with a melee or ranged weapon attack, you can impose your shield to defend them as a reaction. This grants them the AC. benefits of your shield for that attack, possibly causing it to miss instead.
At 5th level, you may add your proficiency bonus to this AC.
Heart of Iron
At 2nd level, your shield embodies your very will. As a bonus action on your turn, you may give a willing creature within 5 feet of you Temporary hit points equal to your double your shields AC bonus, this temporary HP lasts until the beginning of your next turn. You may use this ability an amount of times equal to your proficiency modifier.
You may choose to not expend a charge of this ability as you use it. If you do, the next attack against you is at advantage until your next turn.
Defender Archetype
At 3nd level, you have finished your training, and now begin to specialize in your work. Decide on your Defender Archetype from the list of available archetypes. Your choice grants you features at 2nd level and again at 6th, 10th, and 14th level.
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 a score above 20 using this feature.
Steel Visage
Upon reaching 5th level, your will becomes infused into your strength. While you are under the effects of Your Heart of Iron, your shield bashes deal extra damage equal to your remaining temporary HP.
Additionally, if you would take cold, fire, lightning, force, acid, radiant, or necrotic damage, until the end of your next turn, you may choose to have your next shield bash deal that damage type.
Impregnable Barrier
At 9th level, you can become an immovable object. As an action you may use 15 feet of movement and choose a direction. You plant your shield into the ground and entrench yourself. During this time, you and allies behind you are treated as three-quarters cover from that direction.
If you are using a greatshield, you may extend this cover to 5 feet left and right from your chosen direction.
Almighty Fortitude
By 11th level, you have refined your endurance to rigid perfection. Whenever you make a Constitution saving throw. you can treat a d20 roll of 9 or lower as a 10.
Stunning Bash
At 13th level, the force behind your bashes has begun to carry more and more ferocity. When you land a bash while you have temporary hit points, it must succeed on a constitution saving throw or become stunned until the beginning of your next turn. You may only use this feature a number of times equal to your charisma modifier before taking a short rest. (Minimum 1)
Charging Mountain
By 16th level, you plow through enemies with all the charging force of an ogre. If you move at least 20 feet in a single direction before making your shield bash attack, you may add your Constitution modifier and proficiency bonus to the damage roll, and you gain +6 to the attack roll.
If you land your shield bash against a creature with a size class smaller than yours, it becomes trampled and you may continue moving. all creatures other creatures must succeed on a DC 18 Strength saving throw or be launched 30 feet in the direction you were moving, after which you come to a stop.
Paragon of Steel
At 17th level, you and allies within 5 feet of you, or under the effect of your Heart of Iron, become immune to being feared. If a feared ally enters this range, they are no longer feared and gain immunity to becoming feared until they leave the radius of this effect. They also gain advantage on all saving throws against being feared, poisoned, or stunned.
Immortal Vanguard
At 20th level, If you are dropped to 0 hp but not outright killed, your endurance keeps you moving. Instead of being knocked unconscious, you may choose to take 1 level of exhaustion and regain 1d12+con hit points instead.
Shield Masteries:
Buckler: Nick
When you make the extra attack of the Light property, you can make it as part of the Attack action instead of as a Bonus Action. You can make this extra attack only once per turn.
Buckler: Graze
If your attack roll with this weapon misses a creature, you can deal damage to that creature equal to the ability modifier you used to make the attack roll. This damage is the same type dealt by the weapon, and the damage can be increased only by increasing the ability modifier.
Shield: Sap
If you hit a creature with this weapon, that creature has Disadvantage on its next attack roll before the start of your next turn.
Shield: Slow
If you hit a creature with this weapon and deal damage to it, you can reduce its Speed by 10 feet until the start of your next turn. If the creature is hit more than once by weapons that have this property, the Speed reduction doesn’t exceed 10 feet.
Greatshield: Push
You can launch a creature you hit (up to a Large size) 10 feet away from you.
Greatshield: Topple
If you hit a creature with this weapon, you can force the creature to make a Constitution saving throw (DC 8 plus the ability modifier used to make the attack roll and your Proficiency Bonus). On a failed save, the creature has the Prone condition.
The Steadfast Warden
The wardens are protectors of the weak, and of their allies. They heroically leap into danger to save others and do so with a jovial smile upon their faces. Class FeaturesHeroic Leap
At 3rd level, When using your Great Defender feature as a reaction, you extend its radius to an ally within 15 feet of you, and you move to that ally's side when the attack resolves.
Additionally, you may reduce any damage you take from allied spells or features down to 1.
Vigilant Watcher
At 6th level, you gain a sixth sense for danger. You may use your Great Defender feature whenever a creature would be subject to a Dexterity Saving Throw. You take half of that damage and they take no damage instead.
Interceptor
At 10th level, when using Great Defender for a ranged weapon or spell attack, you may choose to make yourself the target instead. You may use this ability a number of times equal to your charisma modifier between short rests. (Minimum 1)
Grand Protector
By 14th level, you gain 2 more reactions each round. These reactions may only be used to activate Great Defender
The Great Knight
Sometimes, a Bastion must accept that in order to protect something, they must prevent the strike first. Using their mighty strength and heart, they lift their mighty shields and powerful weapons.
Combat Titan
At 3rd level, you gain proficiency with simple and martial weapons. Additionally, the armor and weapons you carry require fortuitous Strength. You count as one size larger when determining your carrying capacity and the weight you can push, drag, or lift. Finally, wielding a versatile weapon counts as using its two-handed damage, even if wielded in one hand.
Weapon Mastery (1):
Upon gaining your new proficiencies, you may choose a weapon you are proficient with, and gain its weapon mastery. You may exchange this mastery each time you finish a short rest.
Eternal Sentinel
At 6th level, Whenever you make a shield bash you may follow through and attack with any other weapon in hand. If this attack hits, you may reduce that creature's speed by 10.
The Living Fortress
At 10th level, your body has normalized to the weight of your equipment. You may use two-handed weapons using only one hand.Glorious Crusade
By 14th level, a second wind envelops you whenever you strike down an enemy. Whenever you reduce a hostile creature to 0 hp, you regain 1d12 Hit points. If you are at full hp, you gain temporary hp instead.
The Living Siege
Some take the title of immortal, juggernaut, very seriously. They stride into battle, battering those around them like flies as they turn the tide of battle.
Class FeaturesEnduring Strength
At 3rd level, you may use your heart of iron as a reaction. Additionally, when you use Heart of Iron, you may expend a hit die, roll it, and add it to the temporary hp you would gain.
Tithe of Combat
At 6th Level, you take your dues from the stamina of your opponent as you barge into them during battle. While you are under the effects of Heart of Iron, any creature making a melee attack roll against you that fails to damage your current HP with an attack (I.E. Missing, or not breaking through your Temporary hit points.) receives 1d6 bludgeoning damage.
Indomitable Titan
At 10th level, while you are under the effects of Heart of Iron you have resistance to Piercing, Slashing, and Bludgeoning Damage from non-magical weapons.
Glancing Blows
At 14th level, when you use your Heart of Iron Feature, you may choose to raise your shield higher than ever. This state lasts for one minute, during which, Whenever you would take damage less than your heart of iron, you may choose to ignore it. Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.
The Legionnaire
There is a glaring weakness in the strategy of the bastion, they can only protect at arm’s reach. The Legionnaire has found a… way around this, the shield toss.
Class featuresShield Toss
At 3rd level, you gain the bread and butter of the Legionnaire. While using a shield or a buckler, your shield bash gains the following benefits:- 30ft range, using your shield as a projectile.
- You may have your shield or buckler return to you immediately after, regardless if the attack hits or misses. You immedieatly re-equip it.
Heart of a Hero
At 6th Level, your pride in your allies overwhelms you. You may use this feature to give your Heart of Iron Gains a range of 30 feet, affecting all allies within said range. Additionally, creatures no longer lose this Hp when they are not within 5 feet of you. You may use this feature once per short rest. Finally, if an unconscious ally is within range when you use this feature, they immediately regain one hp.
Astute Mind
At 10th level With your Shield Toss, you may target a number of creatures up to your proficiency bonus, using one attack roll against each creature. If you do, each creature must be within 30 feet of the last target. The shield returns to you, regardless of how many creatures are hit, or missed. Allies may be ricocheted too, potentially allowing you to extend the range. Your allies do not receive an attack if you use them as targets.
Inspiring Call
by 14th level, you've learned the language needed to deeply inspire your allies. When you use your Heart of Iron, you may add your Charisma modifier and Proficiency bonus to the Temporary Hp your allies gain. Once you use this feature, you must finish a long rest before you can use it again.
The Parmularius
Harkening back to the early days of the bastion, the parmularius fights spectacularly. With crafty maneuvers and seemingly underhanded techniques, they rouse the crowd in search of eternal glory.
Defensive Offense
When you choose this Archetype at 3rd level. You gain the following features while wielding only a buckler.Prize Fighter:
You gain proficiency in simple weapons as well as shortswords, and you may use your dexterity modifier instead of strength for attack and damage rolls. Additionally, attacks made using your Shield Bash feature may use Dexterity in the place of Constitution or Strength for attack and damage rolls.Follow Up
Once on each of your turns, after making a Shield Bash attack. You may use your bonus action to make a single weapon attack with a weapon wielded in your off hand.Roar of the Crowd
When you choose this Defender Archetype at level 3, you learn gimmicks that are fueled by special dice called glory dice.Gimmicks
You learn three gimmicks of your choice, which are listed under “Gimmicks” below. Many gimmicks enhance an attack or shield bash in some way. You can only use one gimmick per attack. You learn two additional gimmicks at 6th and 10th level.Glory Dice
You have four glory dice, which are d8s. A glory die is expended when you use it. You regain all of your expended glory dice when you finish a short or long rest. Optional Rule: When you perform an exceptional feat of glory, your DM can choose to refund one of your expended glory dice.Saving Throws
Some of your maneuvers require your target to make a saving throw to resist the gimmick's effects. The saving throw DC is calculated as follows: Gimmick save: DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Strength or Dexterity modifier (your choice)Gimmicks:
you learn new gimmicks from the Gimmick ListAdditional Gimmicks
At 6th level you learn two additional gimmicks of your choice.Additional Glory Die
You gain another glory die at 6th level.Duelist’s Heart
At 6th level, any creature benefitting from your Heart of Iron feature gains advantage on all Martial Checks.Additional Gimmicks
At 10th level you learn two additional gimmicks of your choice.Greater Glory!
At 10th Level, your glory dice turn into d10s.Unerring Glory
Starting at 14th level, when you roll initiative and have no glory dice remaining, you regain 1 glory die.Additional Gimmicks
At 14th level you learn two additional gimmicks of your choice.Additional Glory Die
You gain another glory die at 14th level.| Level | Proficiency Bonus | Features | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | +2 | Shield Bash, Shield Mastery, | ||
| 2nd | +2 | Great Defender, Heart of Iron | ||
| 3rd | +2 | Defender Archetype | ||
| 4th | +2 | Ability Score Increase | ||
| 5th | +3 | Steel Visage, Great Defender Improvement | ||
| 6th | +3 | Defender Feature | ||
| 7th | +3 | Shield Bash Improvement | ||
| 8th | +3 | Ability Score Increase | ||
| 9th | +4 | Impregnable Barrier | ||
| 10th | +4 | Defender Feature | ||
| 11th | +4 | Almighty Fortitude | ||
| 12th | +4 | Ability Score Increase | ||
| 13th | +5 | Stunning Bash | ||
| 14th | +5 | Defender Feature | ||
| 15th | +5 | Shield Bash Improvement | ||
| 16th | +5 | Charging mountain | ||
| 17th | +6 | Paragon of Steel | ||
| 18th | +6 | Ability Score Increase | ||
| 19th | +6 | Shield Bash Improvement | ||
| 20th | +6 | Immortal Vanguard |
