The Pugilist - a Fighter/Monk Hybrid for Str-based Brawling (Work in Progress)

[Ziegander]

The Pugilist

Level	Proficiency Bonus	Features	Grit	Brawl Dice
1st	+2	Brawling, Unarmored Defense	--	1d4
2nd	+2	Fighting Style, Grit	1	1d4
3rd	+2	School of Hard Knocks	2	1d4
4th	+2	Ability Score Improvement	3	1d4
5th	+3	Extra Attack	3	1d6
6th	+3	Ability Score Improvement, Warrior Spirit	4	1d6
7th	+3	School Feature	5	1d6
8th	+3	Ability Score Improvement	6	1d6
9th	+4	Danger Sense	6	1d8
10th	+4	School Feature	7	1d8
11th	+4	Dirty Fighting (1d6)	8	1d8
12th	+4	Ability Score Improvement	9	1d8
13th	+5	True Grit	9	1d10
14th	+5	Ability Score Improvement	10	1d10
15th	+5	School Feature	11	1d10
16th	+5	Ability Score Improvement	12	1d10
17th	+6	Improved Dirty Fighting (2d6)	12	2d6
18th	+6	School Feature	13	2d6
19th	+6	Ability Score Improvement	14	2d6
20th	+6	Undefeated	15	2d6

HIT POINTS
Hit Dice: 1d10 per Pugilist level
Hit Points at 1st Level: 10 + your Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d10 (or 6) + your Constitution modifier per Pugilist level after 1st.

PROFICIENCIES
Armor: Light, shields
Weapons: Simple
Tools: None

Saving Throws: Strength, Constitution
Skills: Choose two from Acrobatics, Athletics, Insight, Intimidation, Perception, and Survival.

EQUIPMENT
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:

• Studded leather armor and one simple weapon
• A light crossbow and 20 bolts
• (a) A shield, or (b) another simple weapon
• (a) A Dungeoneer's Pack, or (b) an Explorer's Pack

Brawling
You've got plenty of experience in street fights, bar brawls, and fisticuffs and know how to best make use of your own body or improvised objects as weapons.

• You add your proficiency bonus to attack rolls you make with improvised weapons.
• You deal at least as much damage as shown in the Brawl Dice column in the table above when you hit with an unarmed strike or improvised weapon.
• When you use the Attack action on your turn and hit a creature with a simple weapon, unarmed strike, or improvised weapon, as a bonus action you may make one attack with an unarmed strike or improvised weapon against that creature, or Shove that creature.

Unarmored Defense
While you are not wearing any armor, your Armor Class equals 10 + your Dexterity modifier + your Constitution modifier. You can use a shield and still gain this benefit.

Fighting Style
At 2nd level you gain a Fighting Style chosen from among the following -- Defense, Dueling, Great Weapon Fighting, Mariner, Protection, Tunnel Fighter, or Two-Weapon Fighting.

Grit
Starting at 2nd level you are able to draw upon inner reserves of stamina and will to push through injuries and punish your foes. You have a number of Grit points as shown in the Grit column in the table above that you can spend to use certain abilities. After you complete a short or long rest, you recover all expended Grit points. At 2nd level you may spend Grit points to use the following abilities:

• Endure - You can spend 1 Grit point to gain resistance to all bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage dealt to you by one weapon attack as a reaction.
• Extreme Effort - You can spend 1 Grit point to gain advantage on one Strength or Dexterity based ability check or attack roll.
• Psych Up - You can spend 1 Grit point to gain temporary hit points equal to your Pugilist level + your Constitution modifier as a bonus action on your turn.
• Resist - You can spend 1 Grit point to reroll a saving throw you just made against a spell or other magical effect as a reaction.

School of Hard Knocks
At 3rd level, you begin to leverage your unique experiences and forge ahead with a bold new fighting style informed by the hard lessons life has taught you. Choose one of the following -- School of the Back Alley, School of the Crusher, or School of the Stinger. Your chosen School grants you features at 3rd, 7th, 10th, 15th, and 18th levels as described below.

Warrior Spirit
6th level; as Ki-Empowered Strikes.

Danger Sense
9th level; as Barbarian feature of the same name.

Dirty Fighting
Starting at 11th level, whenever you attack a creature with an unarmed strike, or improvised weapon and have Advantage, that attack deals 1d6 additional damage if it hits.

At 17th level this additional damage increases to 2d6.

True Grit
At 13th level, whenever you succeed on a Strength or Constitution saving throw and would suffer a lesser effect on a successful save, instead you suffer no effect.

Undefeated
Starting at 20th level, when you have 4 levels of exhaustion or fewer and are reduced to 0 hit points you regain half of your maximum hit points, half of your maximum Grit points, and gain a level of exhaustion. You cannot use this feature again until you complete a long rest (Credit for this feature goes to Benjamin Huffman, author of his own, original Pugilist class).

PUGILIST SCHOOLS

[SilverStud]

It is a good idea, I think. But you should know that it has been thoroughly explored in another homebrew class of the same name.

Take a look at it; it might just the thing you're thinking of. http://www.dmsguild.com/product/184921/The-Pugilist

It's a pay-what-you-want, and the "full size preview" button should give you a pretty darn good idea of what's in there.

[Ziegander]

Thanks, I pulled my capstone from their class. It's a solid class, just goes in slightly different directions (and leans a little too hard on being just a Str-Monk), but it certainly helps for inspiration. I'll credit the author in my original post.

[SilverStud]

I'm glad my comment was at least somewhat useful.

On the grit: I like how you're using Grit to endure/put in extra effort, instead of special abilities. To me, it goes a lot better with the word "grit" than fancy attacks would. Did you consider calling "Extreme Effort" "Maximum Effort" for the cheeky Deadpool reference?

For Dirty Fighting, you could shorten it up by just saying:
"Your melee attacks deal an additional 1d6 damage if you had Advantage on the attack roll."
Unless there is another kind of melee attack I don't know about?

For True Grit, does this mean damage? I can't think of any spells that allow a Save and deal non-damage effects on a success.

Back at the top, I think that the third bullet of Brawling is a bit weak. It's a bit like the monk, but your Pugilist has to hit in order to make the bonus action attack. Also, you didn't specify, so the general TWF rule of "no ability mod to damage on off hand attack" would hit him too. Might consider shoring that up.

[Ziegander]

I'm glad my comment was at least somewhat useful.

Yep! Thanks!

On the grit: I like how you're using Grit to endure/put in extra effort, instead of special abilities. To me, it goes a lot better with the word "grit" than fancy attacks would. Did you consider calling "Extreme Effort" "Maximum Effort" for the cheeky Deadpool reference?

Lol, I actually did.

For Dirty Fighting, you could shorten it up by just saying:
"Your melee attacks deal an additional 1d6 damage if you had Advantage on the attack roll."
Unless there is another kind of melee attack I don't know about?

Actually, spell attacks, but yeah, I want to change it to trigger only on unarmed and improvised weapon attacks.

For True Grit, does this mean damage? I can't think of any spells that allow a Save and deal non-damage effects on a success.

You know I'm not actually sure, but at least this way it's better safe than sorry. You know what, I think there are entangle type effects on a Str save that still slow you or something even if you save vs restrained.

Back at the top, I think that the third bullet of Brawling is a bit weak. It's a bit like the monk, but your Pugilist has to hit in order to make the bonus action attack. Also, you didn't specify, so the general TWF rule of "no ability mod to damage on off hand attack" would hit him too. Might consider shoring that up.

That was actually intentional. With d10 HD and better unarmored defense I couldn't in good conscience make Brawling as good as Martial Arts. Brawl Dice also eventually get one step stronger, and improves faster, than Martial Arts dice.

[SilverStud]

That was actually intentional. With d10 HD and better unarmored defense I couldn't I'm good conscience make Brawling as good as Martial Arts. Brawl Dice also eventually get one step stronger, and improves faster, than Martial Arts dice.

At least let the poor Pugilist add his ability modifier to the damage. "Yeah, I've been in a lot of fights, tons of scraps, but only my first strike in a flurry reliably hurts people."

[Ziegander]

At least let the poor Pugilist add his ability modifier to the damage. "Yeah, I've been in a lot of fights, tons of scraps, but only my first strike in a flurry reliably hurts people."

I will consider it. That's why I gave him TWF in the Fighting Styles. If you don't think it's overly strong compared to the Monk with that and Fighting Style at 2nd (rather than Unarmored Movement, I consider FS a more vertical power upgrade while Unarmored Movement is more of a lateral move).