What to do with dwarf cavalier at lvl 6?

[warsawwombats]

How would you guys progress a Shield Master mountain dwarf Cavalier after level 5? I'm really struggling with mechanical optimization, although it's always a blast to roleplay a dwarf.

We haven't had any opportunities to acquire mounts yet, so the build feels a little lackluster.

I'm playing with a tabaxi sorceror, elf swashbuckler, dwarf zealot barb, and a human glamour bard. My role is pretty much drawing aggro while the zealot smashes stuff in the face.

My stats are 17, 14, 16, 10, 10, 8. A +1 STR feat would make sense, but none of them sound very exciting. Heavy Armor Master might help me tank, but -3 physical dmg isn't that consequential at Tier 2. Also, I could take Mounted Combatant and just hope for a mount down the road. We have sufficient gold for mounts, but haven't been to a town with stables yet.

What do you guys think?

[Crgaston]

I think HAM is severely underrated. Many monsters have multi attack, so, for instance, on a claw/claw/bite routine, you could potentially be soaking 9 points of damage. Per round. With zero resource expenditure.

As to feats, if UA is on the table, then the Brawny feat would be quite valuably on a Shield Master build.

[warsawwombats]

Hadn't thought about HAM that way. Sounds much more useful that way. Hmmmmm...

We're allowed to take anything that's available in D&D Beyond, so I think Brawny is an option.

I was also looking at Squat Nimbleness to bump my movement up. The advantage to escape grapple is really tempting too.

Tough call!