elemental melee user

[zegram 33]

I‘d like to open by saying that I’ve never played a game of dnd in my life, so this class may be terribly unbalanced, or even already exist in one form or another. also, since this is my first post, im sorry for not knowing how to spoiler anything lol. However, I do like to have a browse of the forums and check out some of the homebrews, and I don’t remember seeing anything along these lines, so I thought id knock up a quick class.
Again, before I go too far into this, I have no idea what stats would be good for the class levels.
I was thinking of basing the elemental abilities off of maybe wisdom, but basing them off of dexterity would be a neat way of showing that these aren’t true “spells”, simply manifestations of this persons skill with a blade/scythe/spear, as well as not compromising this persons melee skills, because I don’t want it to be totally outclassed (heh) in melee, just more flexible and flashy
I was envisaging this as like a wanderer who discovered latent magical abilities, thus being able to use magic of various forms to enhance there fighting style.
As their powers progress, they become strong enough to draw from the land itself in there abilities, eventually being able, in the strongest level of abilities, to pseudo-summon elemental creatures for a split second during the strike.

Class skills: Parry, concentration, Knowledge(Arcana), tumble, jump, balance, climb. Swim
Skill points at each level: 6 + Int modifier, x4 at first level
Pick 2 melee weapon types, one primary, one secondary auto specialisation + focus for primary, auto specialisation only for secondary, and if unarmed is chosen, improved unarmed strike granted free

class ranks

Spoiler

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1) Choose an elemental style, gain 1st melee ability and 1st ranged ability
2) Can, as a full round action, imbue your weapon with your chosen element, multiplying any damage dealt by x1.5 (rounded down) while converting all damage to damage of that type
effect lasts until dismissed, but while weapon is imbued, elemental ranged attacks cannot be used, as your concentration is taken up focusing on your weapon, and using an elemental melee ability will cancel the effect
3) Can, as a full round action, concentrate your elemental power into your off hand, multiplying any damage dealt by your ranged skills by 1.5 (rounded down), but not allowing any melee combat whatsoever until cancelled , also as a full round action.
4) Gain styles 1st support ability
5) 2nd level melee ability, and fighter bonus feat
6) 2nd level ranged ability, also/or flurry of 3 level 1 ranged abilities at -2 to hit
7) Gains +½ class level modifier to “skilful fighting” checks (disarm, parry, and trip, any others iv forgotten?)

8) Fighter bonus feat, and gain a +3 bonus to all noncombat rolls when in terrain corresponding to your elemental affinity (desert or volcano for fire, sea, rivers lakes for water, mountains and caves for earth, “evil” planes for darkness, open plains for wind/air, etc)
9) 3rd melee ability for primary elemental style
10) Can choose an additional elemental style, gaining your level 7 benefits in that kind of landscape as well
11) 3rd ranged ability, or 1st ranged ability in bursts of 5 at -2 to hit, bursts of 3 no longer carry an accuracy penalty
12) Primary styles second supportive ability
13) Fighter bonus feat
14) 2nd melee ability for secondary elemental style, 2nd ranged ability for 2nd elemental style, and ability to fire 1st ranged ability in bursts of 3 at -2 to hit. Also, your elemental power is now such that you can “bleed” from the terrain your passing through, allowing you to use the first tier of melee, ranged, and supportive skills of the style of the terrain you’re currently in, if there is one.

15) when in terrain corresponding to your elemental style(s), you now ignore the effects of difficult terrain, and gain +5 on rolls to hit with your elemental attacks of that style
16) gains a bonus to disarm, parry and trip checks of equal to your class levels, but gain - ½ your class levels for grapples and bull rushes. As a full round action, you can enable or disable the effect of this skill. Does not stack with 6)
17) can now use ranged elemental attacks while your weapon is imbued with elemental energy, melee elemental attacks no longer cancel the imbuing, and the “bleeding” effect from the terrain you travel now means that you can also use 2nd level melee and ranged moves from the terrain your travelling through
18) gains the movement bonus of your primary elemental style, and focusing your elemental power into your off hand no longer precludes you from using ranged attacks.
19) gains 4th melee skill for your chosen element
20) gains 4th ranged skill for your chosen element

21) elemental mastery: you can now use a mighty support ability that calls upon your elemental affinity in a way which most supports this aspect

[zegram 33]

Elements

Spoiler

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Fire
Fire is the basic direct damage style, it doesn’t really have any clever tricks or sneaky ploys, it just burns things down. Fire style focuses more on melee strikes and empowered weapons, rather than ranged attacks, although those can also be potent
However, because of the magical/supernatural properties of these flames, weapons you have imbued with flames can be used to cut through structures with ease, cutting through an amount of structure equal to the weapons length with each strike.
At 1st level, dirt can be burned through with empowered melee attacks, leaving trenches and chasms in the ground. At 4th level, wood provides no more resistance to the flame imbued weapon than air. At 7th level, even stone cannot withstand the fury of the flames. And at level 11, steel will split before the sword.
however, if a steel or stone weapon is being wielded by an opponent, the fire user must complete a knowledge(Arcana) check against dc= 10+(“+value of the weapon” x5) or fail his attempt at destroying the weapon, and be left open for an attack of opportunity from that enemy.
(ie: a +5 steel sword would result in a dc of 35, a +3 steel sword would result in a dc of 25)
If an iron object is the target. These values are reduced by a flat -3 dc, and a flat -5 for bronze
This ability cannot be negated while the weapon is imbued, meaning care must be taken during fights in woods, etc or trees may collapse on combatants.
Fire abilities

Lv1 melee: burning brand
Your blade glows red hot
Melee strike with equipped weapon dealing normal weapon damage plus 2 burning damage per round for three rounds
Lv2 melee : blazing blade
Ignites your weapon with furious flames
Melee strike with an equipped weapon dealing both normal weapon damage+1d6 fire damage and increases the damage taken by this enemy by fire damage by 50% for a number of rounds equal to your class level.
Lv3 melee: immolating slash
Brilliant flames burn forth from the blade of your weapon, scorching everything it touches
Melee strike with an equipped weapon dealing normal damage, +2d6 fire damage
Lv4 Melee: Phoenix talon
Your blade burns so hot that the flames cannot be seen. The blade of your weapon glows faintly white, and the air around it shimmers and distorts
Melee strike with an equipped weapon dealing normal damage + 2d8 fire damage. Heals 1/2 of the hit points dealt by the fire damage as temporary hitpoints lasting 1 hour In duration. (when blade is imbued with flame, all damage dealt will be flam damage and therefore ½ of all damage dealt will be healed.
Lv1 Ranged: Scattered embers
Fires a burst of scorching embers dealing no damage, but with a chance of reducing the enemies fire resistance by 25% (does not stack with blazing blade) (con resists with a dc equal to your class level +5)(DOES stack when fired as a flurry, and becomes 35% when your power is charged for ranged attacks) range =20ft
Lv2 ranged: fireball
Throws a basic fireball, dealing 1d4 damage range=3ft per class level

Lv3 ranged: Flame lance
Fires a spear of flame, dealing 1d4 damage to the target and everything within 10ft per class level range: 2ft per class level
Lv4 ranged: great conflagration
Fires a sphere of flame that expands greatly upon contact, surrounding the target in a sphere of flames. Deals 1d8 dmg, 50 ft range
Water
As you’d expect of an element opposed to fire, water takes the exact opposite route, focusing mainly on finesse and keeping the opponent off balance with sprays of sea foam and waves to temporarily blind or knock down the opponent, then finish them off with intricate weapon attacks.
That isn’t to say it can’t do the damage directly, however, and at higher levels the gushes of water it releases with its attacks can be as strong as a tidal wave.

As with fire, it’s more effective in close range combat, to be more able to take advantage of the momentary lapses in enemies caused.
The water style also allows you to raise and lower water(as the raise lower/water cleric spells) for a foot per class level, usable as a swift action a number of times per day equal to half your class level, and as a full round action an unlimited number of times per day), and incurs no penalties when fighting in water of any depth

Ice
Ice is something of a balanced style of element, with a balanced mix of ranged, melee, and stat and direct damage capabilities.
However, as a result of this, an ice wielder will never be quite as proficient at each individual task as a more specialized style
This style can freezes water within 3ft per class level to a depth of ½ ft per class level, allowing this class to negotiate rivers and the like with a blast of ice. This capability can be suppressed down to 1ft from the pc, but not turned off, limiting the use of the player in underwater operations.

Wind
Wind style emphasises hanging back and using ranged techniques to stun the enemy, then leaping in a gust of wind to attack, before darting away again.
At any point, the wind elemental user may jump 1ft per class level on top of their usual jumping capability as a full round action.
Other than that, after a wind ability has hit, they may “surf” the wind backlash to immediately jump, at a maximum jump distance of 1ft per class level if a 1st level spell was used, 2ft per class level if a 2nd level spell was used, and so on. Note that your characters normal jump is not applied on top in this case. This can be used after a flurry of wind “spells”
Sonic
Sonic style involves hanging back and delivering powerful ranged attacks, with a tendency to reduce enemy constitution, until the enemy is forced to charge, then defeating the weakened enemy with melee weapon skills.
The sonic tree’s latent bonus is identical to the fire tree’s, except it must attempt the dc check on inanimate objects too, and triggers them with ranged attacks rather than melee ones, and with a -1,-2,-3, or -4 to the dc check depending on how powerful the spell used is. The check can be intentionally failed, but this must be announced before the attack is fired (ie if an unannounced spell is fired at an enemy, but misses and hits an allied castle, you cannot then change your mind and announce it).
Earth
Earth magic is a counterattacking style, focused on outlasting your opponent and throwing them off balance with shifting earth spells, before striking them with your blade. A number of times per day equal to their class level, they can cast “transmute mud to stone”, and “transmute stone to mud” as the cleric spell, but in a 1ftx1ftx1ft area, increasing by 1ftx1ftx1ft with every class level. It can be cast a number of times per day equal to ½ your class level as a swift action, and as a full round action an unlimited number of times per day, however, your character cannot be farther than20ft from at least one “corner” of the effect.

Creation
The creation style focuses on the power of creation in all its myriad and powerful forms, and excels at dealing status effects and other styles of generally non-conventional damage, from both long range and melee combat.
To accentuate this, she may cast “animate tiny object” with a range of touch, a number of times per day equal to her class level x2.
However, she may choose to use up “slots” of this power to animate larger objects, as per the “animate objects” spell
Destruction
The destruction style opposes the creation style, and focuses on pure, direct damage at both melee and range, using void strikes and blasts.
There are few tricks or special skills to this style, it’s all about focusing the incredible skill with a sword with the destructive energies of the void.
As a side effect of these special skills, destruction skills can unwind the fabric of antimagic fields, allowing destruction skills to be used in them as normal.
By announcing an attack against the antimagic field, the destruction style user can initiate a skill check of “knowledge(arcane)” versus the dc of the spell, to completely nullify the field for the entire party.

as you can see, iv only added stats for the fire element, and even then only partial stats, not the support or movement type skills.
this is primarily because, like i said, i dont really know anything about it, and would value some perspective on whther this class has potential or if its broken one way or another (ie: if iv put far too high/low damage values on the moves)

thanks for your replies everybody!

[Eldest]

One of the things you may want to do is look up how to make a table on the forum, then lay out the BAB (base attack bonus), reflex/fortitude/will saves, class abilities gained at each level, etc. I'll go steal borrow a table from somebody else to show you what I mean.
It'll be here in a little bit.

[Howler Dagger]

please make a table for this. here is a guide to table-making

[zegram 33]

i agree for the table, thats just something i didnt know, so thanks for the help there you guys.
the reflex/fortitude/will type stuff is the type of thing im talking about when i say i dont really know enoug about the battle system to give that.

if im honest im pretty much translating everything into "white knight chronicles II" to understand it anyway haha

[Howler Dagger]

i agree for the table, thats just something i didnt know, so thanks for the help there you guys.
the reflex/fortitude/will type stuff is the type of thing im talking about when i say i dont really know enoug about the battle system to give that.

if im honest im pretty much translating everything into "white knight chronicles II" to understand it anyway haha

first, do you imagine this character as the quick type, the strong type, or the intellectual type, or a mix between thoose? if you choose quick, use the good formula for reflex, strong type would have fortitude as good, and intellectual would have will as good save.
A good save is level/2+2 so, at level one the good save would be 2, at level 10 it would be 7, at level 20 it would be 12. Bad save (ie, the saves that are not good) are level/3, rounded down. If the formulas are too complicated, you culd use one of the presets, or a table generator website.

[Hiro Protagonest]

Class skills: Parry, concentration, Knowledge(Arcana), tumble, jump, balance, climb. Swim
Skill points at each level: 6 + Int modifier, x4 at first level

Oookayyy. You play GURPS? I'm guessing you play GURPS, seeing as how that's THE skill-based system.

Pick 2 melee weapon types, one primary, one secondary auto specialisation + focus for primary, auto specialisation only for secondary, and if unarmed is chosen, improved unarmed strike granted free

I try to understand, but I can't. The only words I recognize are "melee" and "improved unarmed strike".

7) Gains +½ class level modifier to “skilful fighting” checks (disarm, parry, and trip, any others iv forgotten?)

Yeah, parry doesn't exist.

8) Fighter bonus feat, and gain a +3 bonus to all noncombat rolls when in terrain corresponding to your elemental affinity (desert or volcano for fire, sea, rivers lakes for water, mountains and caves for earth, “evil” planes for darkness, open plains for wind/air, etc)

Cue good-aligned assassins killing you in your sleep in 3, 2, 1.

14) 2nd melee ability for secondary elemental style, 2nd ranged ability for 2nd elemental style, and ability to fire 1st ranged ability in bursts of 3 at -2 to hit. Also, your elemental power is now such that you can “bleed” from the terrain your passing through, allowing you to use the first tier of melee, ranged, and supportive skills of the style of the terrain you’re currently in, if there is one.

GURPS again?

16) gains a bonus to disarm, parry and trip checks of equal to your class levels, but gain - ½ your class levels for grapples and bull rushes. As a full round action, you can enable or disable the effect of this skill. Does not stack with 6)

Wait, what about your level 7 ability that grants you bonuses to these?

I'm just gonna guess GURPS separated these from the others.

19) gains 4th melee skill for your chosen element
20) gains 4th ranged skill for your chosen element

There aren't any fighting "skills". There are class features, feats, and weapon proficiencies, but there aren't any skills. Guessing you're still stuck on skill-based systems.

At 1st level, dirt can be burned through with empowered melee attacks, leaving trenches and chasms in the ground. At 4th level, wood provides no more resistance to the flame imbued weapon than air. At 7th level, even stone cannot withstand the fury of the flames. And at level 11, steel will split before the sword.
however, if a steel or stone weapon is being wielded by an opponent, the fire user must complete a knowledge(Arcana) check against dc= 10+(“+value of the weapon” x5) or fail his attempt at destroying the weapon, and be left open for an attack of opportunity from that enemy.
(ie: a +5 steel sword would result in a dc of 35, a +3 steel sword would result in a dc of 25)
If an iron object is the target. These values are reduced by a flat -3 dc, and a flat -5 for bronze
This ability cannot be negated while the weapon is imbued, meaning care must be taken during fights in woods, etc or trees may collapse on combatants.
Fire abilities

Are the rules for striking things that aren't weapons going to come later?

Lv2 melee : blazing blade
Ignites your weapon with furious flames
Melee strike with an equipped weapon dealing both normal weapon damage+1d6 fire damage and increases the damage taken by this enemy by fire damage by 50% for a number of rounds equal to your class level.

I get that it does an extra 1d6 damage, but what's the "increase damage taken by this enemy by fire damge by 50%"? does it mean that if he hits me with fire damage, he deals an extra 50% damage to me? Because that's how I'm reading it.

Lv2 ranged: fireball
Throws a basic fireball, dealing 1d4 damage range=3ft per class level

Lv3 ranged: Flame lance
Fires a spear of flame, dealing 1d4 damage to the target and everything within 10ft per class level range: 2ft per class level
[...]
Ice
Ice is something of a balanced style of element, with a balanced mix of ranged, melee, and stat and direct damage capabilities.
However, as a result of this, an ice wielder will never be quite as proficient at each individual task as a more specialized style
This style can freezes water within 3ft per class level to a depth of ½ ft per class level, allowing this class to negotiate rivers and the like with a blast of ice. This capability can be suppressed down to 1ft from the pc, but not turned off, limiting the use of the player in underwater operations.
[...]
Earth magic is a counterattacking style, focused on outlasting your opponent and throwing them off balance with shifting earth spells, before striking them with your blade. A number of times per day equal to their class level, they can cast “transmute mud to stone”, and “transmute stone to mud” as the cleric spell, but in a 1ftx1ftx1ft area, increasing by 1ftx1ftx1ft with every class level. It can be cast a number of times per day equal to ½ your class level as a swift action, and as a full round action an unlimited number of times per day, however, your character cannot be farther than20ft from at least one “corner” of the effect.

I don't think you should start homebrewing until you know 1 square = 5 feet.

[Jude_H]

I don't want to be offensive, but this is gibberish.

It's cool that you've got an idea you want to work into the system, but I'd recommend learning to play the game before writing new material for it.

The most successful existing take on this concept is the Swordsage in the Tome of Battle. Given the modularity of that book's system, it's also one of the easiest models to write for and expand on.

[Hanuman]

I will devour you (* ___* )

Sounds like you want fire to act as though it were a lightsaber as a spell like ability.

The closest thing it SOUNDS like is mountainhammer strike which doesn't haxxor through objects but instead is a Maneuver that ignores hardness and damage reduction.

Feel free to jump on the flowdancer project as it sounds similar and has enough room for lots of concepts.

[blackjack217]

Cue good-aligned assassins killing you in your sleep in 3, 2, 1.

Assassin requires an evil alignment.

I'm just gonna guess GURPS separated these from the others.There aren't any fighting "skills". There are class features, feats, and weapon proficiencies, but there aren't any skills. Guessing you're still stuck on skill-based systems.

I blame these schmucks.

[zegram 33]

yeh, it just doesnt work then
oh well, seemd like it might be handy, but as someone said, you presumaly need to know more than "reads Oots, darths and droids, and enjoys levcel 5's stuff" to right a class

[Hiro Protagonest]

yeh, it just doesnt work then
oh well, seemd like it might be handy, but as someone said, you presumaly need to know more than "reads Oots, darths and droids, and enjoys levcel 5's stuff" to right a class

Darths And Droids isn't D&D. It's a combination of D&D, GURPS, HEROES, and more. And you've never actually looked at the core rules!? No wonder.

Assassin requires an evil alignment.

Only that tier 4 PrC.