Path of the Bolter Witch [Barbarian Subclass]

[Amechra]

Path of the Bolter Witch [Primal Path]

http://media.moddb.com/cache/images/groups/1/3/2055/thumb_620x2000/f855c8cbc427469e0901c0e6aad4f6b5.jpg

3 :- Hand of the Emperor
You add your rage bonus to damage to any ranged weapon attack you make against a creature within 15ft. Whenever you use Reckless Attack, you gain advantage on any ranged weapon attacks you make against creatures within 15ft that you make before the start of your next turn.

3 :- My Sword, Hatred
You ignore the Two-Handed quality of crossbows you wield, allowing you to wield even heavy crossbows in one hand. While you are raging, you also ignore the Loading quality and may load one-handed weapons without having a hand free.

6 :- My Armor, Contempt
Whenever you use Reckless Attack, you also have advantage on saves you make against magic until the start of your next turn. In addition, you do not have disadvantage on ranged weapon attacks you make against creatures within 5ft.

10 :- My Shield, Disgust
Whenever you would make a Charisma or Wisdom save, you may make a weapon attack against the source of the effect instead. If you hit it, you automatically pass your save; otherwise, you automatically fail.

14 :- Let None Survive
Whenever you make a weapon attack with Advantage, you may forgo Advantage on that roll to roll an additional weapon damage die for that attack.


3 :- My Sword, Hatred
While Raging, you may treat any ranged weapon attack you make against a creature within normal range as if it were a melee weapon attack for the purposes of Barbarian class features. In addition, you may ignore the Loading and Two-Handed properties of any crossbow you wield, and may use your Strength in place of your Dexterity score for the purposes of attack and damage when making attacks against creatures within melee range with a crossbow.

6 :- My Armor, Contempt
Whenever you use Reckless Attack, you gain Advantage on Saves against spells until the beginning of your next turn. In addition, you may make opportunity attacks with crossbows against creatures within melee range, and have +1 AC as long as you are wielding a Light crossbow in your off hand.

10 :- My Shield, Disgust
You may ignore the Charmed condition if doing so would protect your Ideals or Bonds. In addition, you immediately receive an additional save to end any effect that would force you to act against your Ideals or Bonds. Finally, you no longer suffer Disadvantage on ranged weapon attacks due to a hostile creature being within 5ft.

14 :- Let None Survive
On any turn where you've used Reckless Attack, you may make a ranged weapon attack as a Bonus action if you've already made a melee weapon attack with another weapon this turn, and vice versa. In addition, you may treat crossbows as if they had the Reach property, and may treat ranged attacks made with crossbows within 10ft as also being melee weapon attacks for all intents and purposes.


=---=

If you're playing in a setting that has guns, treat them as crossbows for the purposes of this Primal Path. Oh, and SoBs for life - if you can't get behind nuns in power armor, I don't know what to tell you.

13-07-2019: Almost three years later, I've revised this. The key changes are that I've consolidated the features for using crossbows, and I made My Shield, Disgust a little less weird.
15-10-2016: Updated with some balance fixes. Among other things, Let None Survive doesn't let you mow people down with 5d10~6d10 damage Heavy Crossbow attacks.

[khadgar567]

Realy. I mean realy sisters of battle as barbarian path sorry mate but jna made them class already

[Amechra]

Realy. I mean realy sisters of battle as barbarian path sorry mate but jna made them class already

Yes.

Look, I'm sorry that you apparently have strong opinions about the matter, but I don't care that JNA Productions made a Sister of Battle class. Not one little bit - among other reasons, I didn't like his class very much.

Now, does anyone want to weigh in with feedback that isn't self-entitled passive-aggresiveness?

[khadgar567]

Yes.

Look, I'm sorry that you apparently have strong opinions about the matter, but I don't care that JNA Productions made a Sister of Battle class. Not one little bit - among other reasons, I didn't like his class very much.

Now, does anyone want to weigh in with feedback that isn't self-entitled passive-aggressiveness?
sorry amechra. seeing you in first making mythos equivalent race, then mtg card fan and know warhammer fan takes lot to digest

[Final Hyena]

Reloading
The class seems to be designed around having a crossbow in one hand and something else in the other, so how do you reload?

Maybe add in;

Martial Ranged Weapon
bolter bow - 100 gp - 1d10 piercing - 20 lb. Ammunition (range 100/400), reload (20 shots), two-handed

It still has the two handed property so that other classes can't abuse it.

Bows in melee
The class gives you part of the crossbow feat (ignore loading), but not the avoiding disadvantage in melee bit. It is only treated as a melee weapon for barbarian features (as far as I could see).


if you can't get behind nuns in power armor, I don't know what to tell you.
How about pics?
To be serious nuns can be insane, don't **** with them.

[Arkhios]

Really. I mean really sisters of battle as barbarian path. sorry mate but jna made them class already

Yes.

Look, I'm sorry that you apparently have strong opinions about the matter, but I don't care that JNA Productions made a Sister of Battle class. Not one little bit - among other reasons, I didn't like his class very much.

Now, does anyone want to weigh in with feedback that isn't self-entitled passive-aggresiveness?

HA! Nice punch!

I, for one, am not a big fan of making new classes (although I have tried my claws in the endeavor) when the core classes have a lot to give as a chassis for new subclasses, so I can appreciate the attempt of making a subclass instead. While I'm not thoroughly experienced with Warhammer (neither Fantasy Battle nor 40K), I have made a peek into Space Wolves and while not the same thing as Sisters of Battle I can relate to the idea of a Barbarian being the chassis for them.

Now for the actual feedback. As already mentioned, ignoring Loading property for a crossbow doesn't mean you can ignore the actual requirement of having a free hand to load the weapon if (and when) you run out of ammunition. With guns the issue is almost non-existent, but with crossbows it's a bit more difficult. I'm afraid I don't have a suggestion to give to fix this issue.


sorry amechra. seeing you in first making mythos equivalent race, then mtg card fan and know warhammer fan takes lot to digest

The fact that you can't fathom people having multiple interests doesn't justify for being a jerk.
Also, fixed your grammar errors* for there were quite a few of those.

[Revlid]

This is seriously cool. Let's take a look...

I notice that My Armor, Contempt does nothing against spells that are just attacks – in fact, they still have advantage on their attack rolls.

My Shield, Disgust seems... bizarre. I can't recall the last time I faced an active Charisma check from someone, and it seems like a Barbarian could just get around it by entering an unreasoning Rage. Also, surely it ought to key off whether I can see them, considering the feature is rooted in my contempt?

Getting Inspiration from doing something suboptimal because of your ideals is how that (optional) rule is already supposed to work, so it shouldn't take up a feature.

I'm always supremely wary of free autocrits, especially for Barbarians. Bolter Witch 14 + Rogue 5 + Fighter 1, for instance, means I can deal 5d10+8 damage with any attack I make, adding +6d6 once per turn, with no resource expenditure. If the GM rules that Great Weapon Fighting applies, I can even swap out the probably-redundant Archery Style for that style, and re-roll all 1s and 2s on my 11-dice roll. Or take a level of Warlock instead for a free Hex (another +2d6 on my attacks).

[Amechra]

Alright, let's see:

1) Space Wolves aren't all that close to the Sisters of Battle - other than being badasses. Though if I make a Space Wolf subclass, it'd have Because Wolves Are STRONK as a feature name.

2) I completely forgot that you suffer Disadvantage when attacking people in melee with ranged weapons - oops. I might tweak it so that Reckless Attack removes Disadvantage when making ranged attacks with people in your face.

3) My Armor, Contempt is straight-up situational Magic Resistance. I can't think of any spells that have attack rolls and no saving throw that aren't just pure damage - which is fine by me.

4) None Shall Survive needs to be adjusted - I agree that free crits are a bit much. I'm thinking of changing it to a reverse threat kind of thing - creatures within your reach have Disadvantage on attack rolls as long as you are wielding a ranged weapon.

5) If you're asking how you load a crossbow if both of your hands are full (of crossbows)... I assume sick crossbow twirls are involved. It's crossbow magic! More seriously, the whole "have a free hand to reload thing" isn't actually part of the rules for the ammunition property - if you need a fictional justification, they're just that good with crossbows.

6) My Shield, Disgust is a weak point - the idea is that you are so fanatical that it warps social interaction around you. I'll go back to the drawing board there.

[Gr7mm Bobb]

Alright, let's see:
2) I completely forgot that you suffer Disadvantage when attacking people in melee with ranged weapons - oops. I might tweak it so that Reckless Attack removes Disadvantage when making ranged attacks with people in your face.

I thought that was your intent originally. To provide the ability to gain adv to negate the Disadv of ranged in melee. Keeping that as is is not a terrible idea, especially for low levels, you are trading out your aim penalty for an effective AC penalty. You could have this upgrade at later levels (like maybe 9th) so you now no longer suffer that penalty. The feat Crossbow Expert is really potent and probably necessary for the class unless you splice in the patrs of the feat you find useful (like SCAG's swashbuckler and the mobile feat). Overall though the design that allow the class to function without the existence of feats is a good way to go about it IMO, as feats were designed around classes.



3) My Armor, Contempt is straight-up situational Magic Resistance. I can't think of any spells that have attack rolls and no saving throw that aren't just pure damage - which is fine by me.

I really like that feature, Another version you could do is like half of evasion for the other stats where passing a save allows you to ignore the secondary effects as well. Kind of a call back to 3.5 and the hexblades Mettle feature.

The ability to (as written) make 30ft and longer ranged Oppurtunity attacks is nuts. That being said, I think i know the intent. You might want to specify the range that you threaten and may therefore may make OA's from. Based on your 14th level feature, I think its only 5ft to start.

The crossbow as a shield though is a tad much though. I would recommend following the +1 AC that duel wielder feat does for using 2 Melee weapons.


4) None Shall Survive needs to be adjusted - I agree that free crits are a bit much. I'm thinking of changing it to a reverse threat kind of thing - creatures within your reach have Disadvantage on attack rolls as long as you are wielding a ranged weapon.

Holy cowbats, the Barbarian has the nastiest crits available. These are only beaten by the assassin rogue. Auto-critting is a serious deal and the assassin gets to do maybe once a combat. The barbarian paths are supposed to have mean and cool things as a capstone, but that capstone still occurs at 14th level.

Giving anything that gets close to you disadv is very powerful and seems very redundant with the barbarians already defensive soak style chassis. The extended threaten area out to 10ft seems ok to me. If i recall though, they were known for using a chain sword in one hand and a bolter in the other, why not set them up to be able to make a melee attack if they shot as an attack and a shot if the swung as an attack. Kinda like the Berserkers extra swing/shot as a bonus action. Kinda like the CB expert feat, but expanded beyond hand crossbows.



6) My Shield, Disgust is a weak point - the idea is that you are so fanatical that it warps social interaction around you. I'll go back to the drawing board there.

Why not have something that allows them to continue with their convictions. Like being able to shake off brain doodles. Or even for out of combat being able to ritually cast Augury for guidance, or even the Spell Commune. Or maybe let them have proficiency with Insight, Perception, or Investigation so that they can better weed out heretics and the unfaithful.

Overall, I love the 40k fluff and the effort you're putting forth here.

[khadgar567]

Amechra did you give permission on mtg regulars trear

[Final Hyena]

5) If you're asking how you load a crossbow if both of your hands are full (of crossbows)... I assume sick crossbow twirls are involved. It's crossbow magic! More seriously, the whole "have a free hand to reload thing" isn't actually part of the rules for the ammunition property - if you need a fictional justification, they're just that good with crossbows.

The errata added it in;
Ammunition
Loading a one-handed weapon requires a free hand.

[Amechra]

@Gr7mmBob

2) I think I might throw "you don't have disadvantage on attacks with ranged weapons against people up in your grill" in as part of My Shield, Disgust.

3) Derp. I forgot that Shields are a +2 and not a +1. I'll fix that. Plus, yeah, I keep forgetting that "your reach" is not really standalone concept in 5e. I have a feeling, though, that +1 AC AND make attacks of opportunities with ranged weapons AND ignore the effects of passed saves AND advantage on saves vs. spells is a bit much.

4) Something like "On any turn where you've made a ranged attack, you may make a melee attack with a different weapon as a Bonus action. On any turn where you've made a melee attack, you may make a ranged attack with a different weapon as a Bonus action"? I put in the "different weapon" clause because otherwise you can trigger the bonus ranged attack with crossbows, which the feature makes both a ranged weapon and a melee weapon.

6) I'd prefer keeping it less than magical - the Sisters are kind of noted for not being Psykers. What if being forced to take actions against their Ideals or Bonds gave them an additional Wisdom save with Advantage? Combined with "oh, and you can shoot people in the face without Disadvantage if you're within 5-10 feet of them", I think that's a solid feature.

And this is fun to work on, I have to say.

@khadgar567:

Yes, I did.

[khadgar567]

@khadgar567:

Yes, I did.
then ı humbly request your to visit the vestige treat in 3.5 edition forum

[Amechra]

I was looking over some of my old homebrews, and I decided to dredge this back up with a revised version - it should work more smoothly now. Also, I find My Shield, Disgust to be pretty hilarious now.

"I cast Charm Person on the Barbarian!"
"In response, she shoots you in the face."

[BerzerkerUnit]

I’m liking the new version. Most of the path 3 Features provide a bump to Rage defenses of some sort. I guess it’s not necessary but maybe Resist Psychic damage wouldn’t be too far out of place given the source. I don’t think it’s necessary though.

[Sparky McDibben]

I have no mechanical feedback other than this is just friggin' cool, man! Also, where did that image come from? If there's a WH40K animated special, I need it in my life.

[Bjarkmundur]

I have no mechanical feedback other than this is just friggin' cool, man! Also, where did that image come from? If there's a WH40K animated special, I need it in my life.

+1 this message has to be 10 characters long

[Amechra]

I’m liking the new version. Most of the path 3 Features provide a bump to Rage defenses of some sort. I guess it’s not necessary but maybe Resist Psychic damage wouldn’t be too far out of place given the source. I don’t think it’s necessary though.

I mean, they kinda get a defensive feature in the sense that they can smack things from a range while still getting their Rage bonus. I'm OK with it living in the same space as the Ancestral Guardian, where the 3rd-level feature is more of a gameplay-shift than a defensive boost.


I have no mechanical feedback other than this is just friggin' cool, man! Also, where did that image come from? If there's a WH40K animated special, I need it in my life.

It's a fake screenshot, sadly - the original is here (https://www.deviantart.com/deadxcross/art/Ordo-Hereticus-Army-of-me-255893448).