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Dungeons and Dragons Classes

If you have ever needed a way to understand each class and their subclasses without bothering with the number crunch, here it is! Fighters!

By Michael GaydosPublished 3 years ago 3 min read
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ART OF BOB KEHL (https://www.bobkehl.com)

The fighter is the character that most people would associate with the rugged ex-military mercenary type. These martial characters are the backbone of the weapon-wielding classes presented in Dungeons and Dragons and examples of these can be found in many books and movies as well. Gimli from the Lord of the Rings trilogy is an excellent example of a fighter. Strong, resilient, armored, shield and one-handed weapon. But in DnD this isn't the limit of the fighter either, they can also be the brutes with the large two-handed claymores or glaives, they could also be a highly trained crossbowman in leathers and attacking from range. Fighters allow you to be flexible in what kind of combatant you wish to play as they have been trained in all forms of weaponry and armor in the game.

Fighters also start by gaining a fighting style as soon as you take a level in the class, allowing you to pick a specialty as soon as you start playing them! Some examples of these are two-weapon fighting (aka Dual wielding), archery and defensive. Most larger and bulkier characters that want to play that front line style will want to pick a race that gives Strength or Constitution, but ideally both. If you want a ranged archer fighter or even a nimble dual wield character, just swap the priority of Strength with Dexterity!

Races that work well into that first category are the: Dwarf, Half-Orc, Dragonborn, Human, Half-Elf, Bugbears, Centaurs, Earth Genasi, Goliath, Lizardfolk, Loxodon, Minotaur, Orc, Simic Hybrid, Triton, Warforged and Leonin.

Races that work well into that other category are the: Aarakocra, Bugbear, Elf, Air Genasi, Goblin, Halfling, Half-Elf, Human, Kenku, Simic Hybrid, Tabaxi and Warforged.

Link to art location here.

Overall the class is the paragon of martial combat and the subclasses mirror that when you see titles such as Champion and Battle Master! The Champion fighter is a threat with every swing having a higher chance to crit and also has a few more survivability traits later on. The Battle Master picks and chooses the best moments to engage a target and uses maneuvers to quickly gain the advantage on the battlefield, whether from at range or in melee. There is also the Eldritch Knight who pulls magic from the wizard class and can become the ultimate melee caster in heavy armor!

With all this in mind, making a fighter should probably be one of the first classes you dive into using in the world of Dungeons and Dragons due to their relatively simple mechanics, high damage and durability on the battlefield. You may even learn to become the knight in shining armor on a warhorse, charging into battle with your sword drawn and warcry screaming fear into the hearts of your enemy! But there can still be more to your fighter than just, well fighting. Based on your background as well, you might even have some fun role-playing scenarios you can have with the local guard, a band of mercenaries nearby or even the blacksmith. Sharing stories of adventure and combat that will remind them of why you are a good guy or gal to have around! Or you could have some bonding moments with a little girl in town that reminds you of yourself when you were younger and more innocent to the world.

By Ryunosuke Kikuno on Unsplash

I hope this helps you learn a bit more about the fighter class in Dungeons and Dragons and that you get to try one out in your own games! The fighter provides a wonderful introduction to the world of martial combat in Dungeons and Dragons. See you in the next one when we start our first look into magic casters with, Warlocks.

Art found at top of page located HERE.

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About the Creator

Michael Gaydos

Just writing stories that speak to me and hopefully you find them interesting as well!

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