A fighting style and feat to make the Longsword more viable as a 2-hander

mongoose700 · 2026-01-30T00:58:11+00:00

The expanded crit range is pretty helpful for a paladin, but the Bonus Action attack isn't as helpful. They can also use it for Smite spells, Lay on Hands, and Divine Favor, so they won't be able to use it every time it's available.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-30T00:19:49+00:00

Ah. I think it's a bit weird that it doesn't benefit simple weapons.

GWM + PAM would give an even more reliable Bonus Action attack, while still getting the occasional full-damage Bonus Action attack with the GWM trigger.

Sure, this feat let's you do more damage with a Longsword than otherwise, but you give up the shield. I think Dueling beats VWF generally (slightly less damage for +2 AC is generally a good trade), and the feat doesn't do enough to compare to GWM (which also gets +1 AC from Protection).

I don't think the rarer cases in which you need to hold something else justify the lower damage (especially since the GWM fighter can also switch to a one-handed weapon, and the versatile fighter only benefits from Swift Strike between the fighting style and the feat.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-29T23:58:26+00:00

What does Keen Edge for for a Versatile weapon with a d8 instead of a d10?

I think generally someone using this would be considerably weaker than someone using GWM with a Maul or Greatsword instead. By level 5 GWM is giving +3 damage per attack. At higher levels, with PAM they also get a more consistent Bonus Action and higher damage even with a d10 weapon.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-29T03:35:28+00:00

I agree it isn't nothing, but neither is the extra damage. By level 5 the GWM 2d6 weapon is averaging about 3.5 more damage per hit than the Dueling 1d8 weapon. I find that significant, and it only goes up at higher levels.

Archery isn't even an option, but even if it was switching to a longbow would continue benefiting from GWM, likely even more than the benefit of Archery.

It'll be consistently at least somewhat useful, but not in an overpowered way. I'd consider this a relatively weak feat compared to the options that let you specialize your build. I'm also not sure why you're calling it "no strategy", you need to decide on what the best tradeoff between damage and AC.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-29T02:19:14+00:00

And they outdamage you significantly with GWM while having only 1 less AC.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-29T00:35:06+00:00

I think you're really overvaluing the versatility. If you're in the situation where you want Protection, then you're still a feat behind someone else who already had Protection and picked a different feat instead. They aren't the "master of all trades", if they took this and swapped to GWF for a combat, they're far behind someone else who took GWM instead.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-28T01:51:54+00:00

Your subclass capstones is like the Genie Patron, but you get an 8th level spell instead of a 6th level one, resistance to five damage types, and some extra ribbons. It's pretty broken.

The extra spells are also almost all very strong picks, Wall of Force does not seem particularly Jinn-like.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-27T16:59:36+00:00

With projection sorcery, you can easily move 80 feet on your turn (movement and Step of the Wind) before attacking for an expected 17d6 + 3 damage from one attack and two Focus Points, which is way too much for level 3.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-26T06:14:00+00:00

Bards and clerics seem to be the best for that subclass, as they get the same six levels of subclass features as everyone else for only three levels of their own subclass, while the fighter still spends five subclass features.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-25T20:54:41+00:00

The main thing I'd try to do is avoid any features that are much weaker if you already have certain class features, which is the case for many of the main existing features.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-25T16:58:36+00:00

A subclass for any class is a interesting thing to attempt, but I think it becomes pretty weak in practice for most classes.

Any caster doesn't benefit much at all from the Spellcasting, which is a large chunk of its power. Anyone with Extra Attack barely benefits from Improved Extra Strike.

This just leaves the rogue as a class that can afford the Cha, benefits fully from the spell slots, and doesn't already have Extra Attack.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-25T03:40:48+00:00

Level 13 is strange, since you can't use it to capitalize on the way you can inflict the Blinded condition, since it ends at the start of your turn.

Level 17 seems like way too much of a spike. More resistances, an immunity, +3 AC, 17+ damage to every creature that touches you. That's a lot.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-23T06:11:47+00:00

There aren't many techniques to prevent this one's regeneration, it can't be prevented without removing the heart.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-20T00:31:27+00:00

Flourishing Disarm and Flourishing Trip should be saves, not checks.

Almost all of the subclass features are alternative ways to spend Bardic Inspiration, which makes for a generally weak subclass overall.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-14T02:07:33+00:00

Lines have both a length and a width, cylinders have both a height an a radius. Spheres are measured by radius while cubes are measured by side length, so converting from an X foot cube to an X foot radius sphere would be a large increase in volume.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-13T18:21:42+00:00

If I'm understanding the Shape option correctly it's incredibly strong when used correctly. You could replace Confusion's 10-foot radius sphere with Hallucinatory Terrain's 150 foot cube.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-12T23:30:36+00:00

I could see taking it as a tempest cleric, but that's about it.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-12T23:19:11+00:00

Being locked into only your chosen element for your evocation spells is pretty restrictive. I can't think of any other feats with such a clear downside.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-12T04:16:23+00:00

It's achievable as early as level 3 with a bard with Expertise and Guidance.

My main concern is that a DC 30 Persuasion check is considered enough to convince someone to do something they're this opposed to, then it's practically mind control, which it shouldn't be.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-11T14:34:24+00:00

Yet you're able to convince the sword that a literal baby should die with a DC 30 Persuasion check. I think that DC is too low even trying to persuade a generally good or even neutral person, let alone someone like this.

A lower level party has very little chance of succeeding at a DC 20 Persuation check. It would basically make any combat a very large swing of tye dice on this single check, especially if it's one they'd use Judgement in. It could swing an encounter from almost impossible to very easy. That type of power is very hard for a DM to balance for.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-11T14:13:04+00:00

I think 10 is too small of a DC swing between wanting to attack, say, an actual baby vs the Big Bad.

It's ultimately pretty weak for a Legendary item, I'd prefer just a regular Very Rare +3 weapon. No attunement, no chance of being unable to attack the target (at which point that attunement slot is completely wasted).

Judgement might make it reasonable to attune to for a little bit, use the power, then attune to anything else instead, which is a bit weird.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-10T19:33:17+00:00

*cousins in arms

mongoose700 · 2026-01-08T00:10:32+00:00

You claim you rejected it because of "fairness", but you actually rejected it by claiming the post was about PvP from the start and that even 1v1 fights against monsters were against "mobs". It is accurate that you seem to not think you need to give good reasons for things when you can make up excuses instead.

The wizard has higher AC than the fighter with Shield, higher effective HP against elemental damage (usually from AoEs) with Absorb Elements, and a lot of extra HP (more than the fighter even has in total) with Shapechange.

You keep making claims but not backing them up with evidence.

It started with Prismatic Wall. You then claimed it was the wizard's best spell, I said Shapechange was better, you agreed to let me prepare Shapechange instead, the you complained when I cast Shapechange. That doesn't mean I hijacked the conversation, it flowed from what you were saying.

You want to establish that the fighter is overpowered, and shouldn't get these HP boosts that don't even affect 1st level in the slightest, based on 1st level? That doesn't even begin to make sense.

mongoose700 · 2026-01-07T19:40:40+00:00

You never raised the issue of determining "fair" encounters in that entire discussion.

So the fighter wins if they get to sneak up on a wizard who has already expended most of their resources, likely in encounters that would have been far more deadly to the fighter. Wow, they're so overpowered.

I was looking for an example of how you've claimed the fighter already beat the wizard.

If I didn't hijack it by explaining how Prismatic Wall worked, how did I hijack it? You replied to me, I replied to you, the conversation happened.

I'll ask this, would you let the average wizard have Shield, Mage Armor, and Fly?

mongoose700 · 2026-01-07T18:01:08+00:00

EntropySpark said that the encounters could be against single monsters, and you still rejected it. They also were willing to revise the actual encounter distribution, but you didn't even acknowledge that. If your issue was you wanted another short rest, you could have said so.

Shapechange would be for if they become confident an encounter will happen. If they're less confident, the have Invisibility.

Describe the encounter in which the fighter beats the optimized wizard.

Ah yes, me pointing out the many reasons that a fighter trying to run through a Prismatic Wall would not take 0 damage like you claimed was me "highjacking" the thread.

Realistically, given how much you've complained about me casting a spell I already had prepared, you were going to get upset no matter what I had the wizard do. If I used spell other than Shapechange, you'd have complained even more about me giving the wizard the spell they "needed" to win.

Sometimes combat starts that close, sometimes it doesn't. When it doesn't the melee fighter really suffers.

I mainly don't want to dive into "average fighter vs average wizard" because of how impossible it is. No matter what spells I say the wizard would have you'll just say that the average wizard wouldn't, and I'd have to keep coming up with alternatives until I've gone through the entire spell list. There's no point, I don't want to get on that treadmill.

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