Fighter
The baseline martial class, plus the Fighting Style choice that defines a build at level 1. Runs on the homebrew engine in the Core Rules using the Martial Discipline power model, the same family as the Cavalier but without the mount, the bloodline, or any gimmick. Numbers tunable.
1. What a Fighter is
The Royal Guard and Adventurer's Guild of Suncoast, sworn to House Sunflare and serving the Celestial Court directly. "Merit Over Bloodline." Where the Cavalier inherits a gryphon and the Sea Shepherd inherits the sea, the Fighter inherits nothing and earns everything. Sunflare takes any worthy member of any class up to level 7 and trains them into a reliable hand: weapon, shield, bow, whatever the work needs. This is the versatile, no-gimmick martial that anyone can be, and the standard the other classes are measured against.
Power model: Martial Discipline. Abilities are trained maneuvers, not spells. No environmental gating, no magic, no inherent mount, no bloodline tricks. The set is re-trainable on a long rest (a soldier drills new techniques), so the loadout is swappable. Fueled by Stamina. The strength of the class is flexibility and reliability: weapon mastery, a chosen combat style, controlled bursts of extra action, and the ability to keep standing when others fall.
2. Stamina (the resource)
Stamina is a pool that refills on rest like any other (base column of the core pool table). It is plain conditioning, not valor or bloodline, so it does not build from heroics in combat the way the Cavalier's Conviction does. Instead it has the thing no other martial has:
- Second Wind. Once per short rest, spend Stamina to heal yourself (see the core maneuvers table). A Fighter sets their own pace and patches their own wounds.
- Long rest restores Stamina and HP fully; short rest restores 25% and recharges every 1/short-rest ability, including Second Wind and Action Surge.
Spent on maneuvers and on the burst abilities. A Fighter who manages Stamina well outlasts everyone in the room. That endurance is the point.
3. Fighting Style (pick one at level 1)
Every Fighter chooses a Fighting Style the day they are sworn in. It is a small permanent bonus that shapes the build and never changes (the one fixed choice in an otherwise swappable kit). Strength is the listed key stat, but a Dexterity-based build is equally valid, the Archery and Dueling styles exist precisely so a finesse or ranged Fighter is a first-class citizen. Pick one:
| Style | Permanent bonus |
|---|---|
| Archery | +2 to action rolls with a bow or thrown weapon |
| Defense | +1 to your defense rolls while you carry a shield or wear heavy armor |
| Dueling | +2 damage when you wield one weapon and no shield (the finesse and one-hand path) |
| Great Weapon | reroll a 1 or 2 on any damage die when you wield a two-handed weapon, keep the second roll |
| Protection | when an adjacent ally is struck, you may impose -2 on that attack once per round |
| Two-Weapon | when you fight with a weapon in each hand, add your Strength or Dexterity modifier to the off-hand strike |
4. Progression (levels 1 to 10)
| Level | Title | Stamina (base) | Unlocks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 to 2 | Recruit | 8 to 10 | at-will drills + tier-1 maneuvers; Fighting Style chosen; Second Wind |
| 3 | Guardsman | 14 | tier-2 maneuvers; Action Surge (1/short rest) |
| 4 to 5 | Veteran | 18 to 22 | pick a specialization at level 4; tier-3 begins |
| 6 to 7 | Vanguard | 28 to 34 | tier-3 maneuvers; second Fighting Style may be added at level 7 |
| 8 | Warmaster | 42 | tier-4 maneuvers; Action Surge usable twice per short rest |
| 9 to 10 | Sunflare Champion (guild head) | 54 to 68 | capstones, staff managed |
Same pool curve as the core. Stamina uses the base column, no leyline or Azura bonus.
5. At-will drills (free, no cost, no roll)
The everyday habits of a trained soldier, always available.
| Drill | Effect |
|---|---|
| Salute | a crisp display of bladework or guild colors on the parade ground; pure flair, no combat (the Fighter's tell) |
| Sure Stance | never knocked off balance by mundane jostling, slick footing, or a crowd |
| Read the Field | judge a foe's skill and the threat of a fight at a glance |
| Soldier's Word | your report and your oath carry formal weight with the Guard and the Court |
| Maintain Arms | keep weapon and armor in perfect order; a blade never sticks and a strap never fails at the wrong moment |
| Sound Off | call a clear order or warning across a battlefield that allies hear over the din |
Salute is the Fighter's answer to the Cavalier's Flourish and the Sea Shepherd's Spindrift: the parlor trick that announces what you are without throwing a punch. A Sunflare guard who can spin a longsword through a full salute on the palace steps has put in the hours, and everyone watching knows it.
6. Core maneuvers (every Fighter)
| Maneuver | Lv | Cost | Cast DC | Res DC | Save | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Precise Strike | 1 | 1 | 9 | 11 | Reflex | weapon dice + 1d4; ignores the Defense style bonus and shield cover of the target |
| Brace | 1 | 1 | 8 | none | self | +2 to your next defense roll and you cannot be knocked prone until your next turn |
| Second Wind | 1 | 1 | 8 | none | self | heal yourself for 1d8 + level mod; once per short rest |
| Push Kick | 1 | 1 | 9 | 11 | Fortitude | weapon dice and shove a foe back; on a fail they are knocked prone |
| Disarming Strike | 3 | 2 | 10 | 12 | Reflex | weapon dice and apply Disarmed on a failed save |
| Sweep | 3 | 2 | 11 | 12 | Reflex | strike all adjacent foes for weapon dice |
| Action Surge | 3 | 2 | none | none | self | take one extra action this turn; once per short rest (twice at level 8) |
| Rally | 5 | 3 | 10 | none | self/ally | you or an adjacent ally heals 1d8 and clears one of Frightened or Staggered |
| Riposte | 5 | 3 | 12 | 12 | Reflex | after a successful defense, counter for weapon dice + 1d6 |
| Commanding Shout | 6 | 3 | 11 | none | allies | allies in range gain +1 to attack and saves for one round |
| Overwhelming Blow | 7 | 4 | 14 | 15 | Fortitude | 2d8 + weapon; on a fail the target is Staggered for one round |
| Unbreakable | 8 | 4 | 14 | none | self | for one round incoming damage is halved and you cannot be reduced below 1 HP |
7. Specializations (pick one at level 4)
Locked once chosen. Each refines a different face of the soldier. The branch unlocks slot into the tier-3 and tier-4 levels.
Weapon Master, the edge. Raw offense and weapon versatility. The damage dealer of the three, equally happy with a greatsword, a rapier, or a longbow. Branch unlocks: Master Strike (Lv6, Precise Strike adds 1d6 and crits on a natural 19 or 20), Versatile Arms (Lv7, swap your Fighting Style benefit to fit the weapon in hand for the scene, free), Flurry (Lv8, after a kill or downed foe, make one extra strike at no cost). The build that turns weapon mastery into the highest raw output in the class.
Sentinel, the wall. Defense, protection of allies, and control of the foe in front of you. The anchor of a line. Branch unlocks: Guardian (Lv6, when an ally within reach is struck, redirect that hit to yourself and take it at half damage), Lockdown (Lv7, a foe you strike is Rooted until your next turn on a failed Fortitude save), Last Wall (Lv8, while you hold the line, allies behind you gain +2 to defense rolls). Low damage, the highest survival value to the party.
Tactician, the voice. Battlefield commands and buffing allies' positioning. The force multiplier. Branch unlocks: Maneuvering Order (Lv6, an ally may immediately reposition and gain +2 to their next action), Coordinated Assault (Lv7, mark a foe; allies striking it gain +2 to their action rolls for one round), Master Plan (Lv8, at the start of a fight grant the whole party advantage on their first action). Turns a group of individuals into a unit.
8. Capstones (levels 9 to 10, guild head, staff managed)
| Ability | Lv | Cost | Cast DC | Res DC | Save | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tireless | 9 | 6 | none | none | self | for one minute every maneuver costs 1 less Stamina (minimum 1), and Second Wind has no short-rest limit; you simply do not tire |
| Master of War | 10 | 8 | 16 | 17 | Fortitude | for one scene you act twice each round, your strikes deal +1d8, and the first time you would be downed each scene you instead heal to half HP and stand |
Master of War is Sunflare's merit made literal: no bloodline, no mount, no magic, just a soldier who has trained past the point anyone else can reach.
9. Class traits
- HP tier: Heavy. Key stat: Strength (a Dexterity build is fully equal, supported by the Archery, Dueling, and Two-Weapon styles). Saves as core.
- Swappable loadout: maneuvers can be re-trained on a long rest. Only the Fighting Style is permanent (a second may be added at level 7).
- Magic gear: a Fighter may attune and use martial magic items (enchanted weapons and armor) but not arcane casting items. They are not blooded and learn no spells.
- Stamina from conditioning: the pool refills on rest and recovers a chunk on a short rest through Second Wind (section 2), it does not build from valor in combat.
- The guild (RP layer): Sunflare is the Royal Guard and Adventurer's Guild serving the Celestial Court. Standing, rank, and the open-door recruitment of any class up to level 7 live in skills and standing, the HUD surfaces guild rank and does not reduce that role to a damage number.
Open for your sign-off
- Level titles (Recruit, Guardsman, Veteran, Vanguard, Warmaster, Sunflare Champion). Rename freely.
- Specialization names (Weapon Master, Sentinel, Tactician).
- Whether a second Fighting Style at level 7 is the right reward, or whether that slot should hold something else.