Noble

Some adventurers work their whole lives to become great rulers, but to others, nobility is just the beginning of the adventure. The noble background provides a starting point, but what if you want your character concept to be mechanically supported from levels 1 through 20? The noble character class gives you this choice, allowing you to play and create valiant scions, naïve princes, and highborn generals.

Contents

Creating a Noble

Most nobles prefer to achieve victory by empowering and strengthening comrades rather than doing dirty work themselves.

Multiclassing

To qualify for new class levels as a noble, you must have Strength, Intelligence or Charisma 13 or better.

You gain no proficiencies.

Class Features

As a noble, you gain the following class features.

Hit Points

Hit Dice: 1d6 per noble level
Hit Points at 1st Level: 6 + your Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d6 (or 4) + your Constitution modifier per noble level after 1st

Proficiencies

Weapons: Simple weapons
Armor: None
Tools: None
Saving Throws: Wisdom, Charisma
Skills: Choose two from: Deception, Insight, Medicine, Performance, and Persuasion

Equipment

Nobles start with the following equipment in addition to the equipment granted by their background. Alternatively, noble characters can start with 5d4 × 10 gp to buy equipment.

  • Fine clothes.
  • A diplomat’s pack, priest’s pack, or scholar’s pack.
  • A melee martial weapon and scale armor, or two sets of artisan’s tools.
The Noble
Level Proficiency Bonus Features
1st +2 Noble Path, Rallying Word
2nd +2 Path Feature, Direct Ally
3rd +2 Spur Ally, Rallying Word (2 allies)
4th +2 Ability Score Improvement
5th +3 Coordinated Attack
6th +3 Path Feature
7th +3 Rallying Word (short rest)
8th +3 Ability Score Improvement
9th +4 Direct Ally (extra action)
10th +4 Noble Renown
11th +4 Path Feature
12th +4 Ability Score Improvement
13th +5 Spur Ally (short rest)
14th +5 Path Feature
15th +5 Expertise
16th +5 Ability Score Improvement
17th +6 Direct Ally (bonus action)
18th +6 Path Feature
19th +6 Ability Score Improvement
20th +6 Devoted Commander

Noble Path

Your noble path defines what kind of noble you are. You can choose between Path of the Brave, Path of the Heart, and Path of the Tactician. your noble path gives you access to unique features and characteristics at first level, and more at 2nd, 6th, 11th, 14th and 17th level.

Rallying Word

At 1st level, you can use a bonus action to make an ally within 30 feet of you to regain hit points. The amount healed is equal to 1d8 + your noble level.

After you use this ability, you must complete a long rest before you can use it again.

Starting at 3rd level, you can target two allies with this ability.

Starting at 7th level, you may use this feature again after only a short rest.

Direct Ally

You are better at guiding allies than engaging the enemy personally. Starting at 2nd level, you can use your action to allow an ally that can hear or see you to make a single weapon attack, cast a cantrip, or move up to half their movement on your turn as a reaction. You can only use this feature once per short or long rest. At 9th level, your ally may instead choose to take the Attack action or cast a spell with a casting time of 1 action as a reaction.

Starting at 17th level, you may use this feature as a bonus action.

Spur Ally

Beginning at 3rd level, you can use your reaction to allow an ally to re-roll a failed saving throw or ability check. You can only use this feature once between long rests. Starting at 13th level, this feature may be used again after a short or long rest.

Ability Score Improvement

When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can’t increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.

Coordinated Attack

Starting at 5th level, your leadership allows you and your allies to strike in unison. Once per turn when you take the Attack action, one ally within 30 feet of you can use their reaction to make a single weapon attack against a valid target of your choosing.

Noble Renown

By 10th level, tales of your fame (or infamy) have taken root in the hearts of the people. your reputation precedes you in any civilized settlement.

By revealing your identity, you gain advantage on all Charisma (Persuasion or Intimidation) checks in that settlement for the next hour. You may not use this feature again until you complete a long rest.

Expertise

At 15th level, you may double your proficiency bonus to three of your skills or tool proficiencies.

Devoted Commander

When you reach 20th level, your connection to your party runs so deep that you can find and exploit the precise moment for a final attack. Once per long rest, your Direct Ally grants an action to up to 5 allies at the same time.

Noble Paths

Path of the Brave

Few nobles possess the courage and selflessness to walk the Path of the Brave. Those who do often won their rank through deeds of valor, or are descended from someone who did.

When you first choose the Path of the Brave you gain the following features:

Bonus Proficiencies

You gain proficiency with martial weapons, all armor, and shields.

Resilient Leader

Your hit point maximum increases by 2, and you gain 2 additional hit points whenever you gain a noble level.

Dauntless

Starting at 2nd level, you have advantage on saving throws against spells and effects that would cause you to become frightened.

Fighting Style

At 6th level, you gain one Fighting Style from among those available to the fighter.

Extra Attack

Starting 11th level, you may make two attacks instead of one whenever you take the Attack action.

Overwhelming Blow

At 14th level, you learn to focus all of your heroic strength into a single blow. When you declare an Overwhelming Blow, make a single weapon attack against a creature you can see as an action. If this attack hits, the target must make a Strength saving throw with a DC equal to 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier. On a failure, the target is knocked prone and stunned until the end of your next turn. This feature may be used three times, and uses are regained after a short or long rest. If your Overwhelming Blow misses, it still counts against your three uses of this feature.

Lionheart

Beginning at 17th level, you cannot be frightened and allies who can see or hear you have advantage on saving throws made to resist becoming frightened.

Path of the Heart

Nobles who follow the Path of the Heart lead on subtle ways. They inspire loyalty out of their empathy, kindness, and even their own ingenuity.

A noble who follows the Path of the Heart may lack ambition, but they make up for it in honesty and charm.

Noncombatant

You are the heart of your group, and you never draw a weapon except in dire circumstances. You have disadvantage on all attack rolls, and while wearing armor or holding a shield, you have disadvantage on all Strength and Dexterity checks. When you cast a spell that requires its target to make a saving throw, it makes the saving throw with advantage.

Aura of Innocence

When unarmored and not wearing any shield, you reflect an air of vulnerability and innocence that makes even the most heartless monster hesitate to attack you. Your AC equals 10 + your Dexterity modifier + your Charisma modifier.

Bonus Proficiencies

You gain proficiency with a set of artisan’s tools of your choice and two skills. These skills can be from the noble class list or from the following: Animal Handling, History, Investigation, Nature, and Religion.

Vicarious Attack

When you take the Attack action, you can choose not to make any attack. If you do this, one of your allies can choose an enemy and make a single weapon or spell attack against that enemy.

Cry Out

Starting at 2nd level, you can cry out to influence enemies and allies. You can use two cries between short or long rests, but only one per round.

  • Cry for Attention. As a bonus action, you may select a hostile creature. Until your next turn, that enemy has advantage on attacks against you and disadvantage to attack anybody else.
  • Cry for Help. When an enemy attacks you, you may cry for help as a reaction. An ally can use their reaction to move up to 30 feet towards you and make a single weapon or cantrip attack against that enemy.
  • Cry for Life. When an ally is reduced to 0 hit points, you may use your reaction to allow your ally to spend a number of Hit Dice equal to half your noble level. They regain hit points equal to the result + their Constitution modifier + your Charisma modifier.
  • Distracting Cry. As a reaction when an ally is about to be attacked, you may impose disadvantage on the attacker on all attacks made against that ally this turn.

Starting at 14th level, you can use your cries three times between short or long rests.

Force of Personality

At 6th level, you gain proficiency in the Persuasion skill. Additionally, you add your Charisma bonus (minimum 1) to the hit points recovered by your Rallying Word.

Tears of the Pure-Hearted

The gentleness of your heart and the strength of your love infuses your tears with magical power. 

Starting at 6th level, you can use your action to shed tears so they touch a friendly creature next to you.

The creature can spend any number of Hit Dice to recover hit points, and if they are blinded, charmed, deafened, paralyzed, or poisoned; the condition ends. You must finish a long rest before you can use this feature again.

Stirring Words

Starting at 11th level, your allies add your Charisma bonus to their attack rolls when they are granted attacks through your Vicarious Attack, Cry for Help, Coordinated Attack, or Direct Ally features.

Loved by the People

Starting at 14th level wherever you go people are charmed by your love and compassion; they put grudges aside and go out of the way to help you and your allies to achieve peaceful goals.

As long as you are within civilization, you and your allies only need a tenth of the time needed for downtime activities.

Heart’s Redemption

Starting at 17th level, your words gain the ability to turn even the darkest of monsters to your cause. As an action, you may select a single hostile creature that can hear you and shares a language with you.

That creature makes a Charisma saving throw with a DC equal to 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier. On a failed save, the target can’t attack or cast spells targeting your allies that turn. On a success, the target acts normally.

At the beginning of your turn, you may use your action to sustain the effect, requiring the target creature to make a Charisma saving throw at the

Beginning of each of its turns. After three failed saves, the target stops being hostile to you and your allies, and may flee or fight by your side at the GM’s discretion. You cannot use this feature again until you complete a long rest.

Abandoning Path of the Heart

A noble can abandon the Path of the Heart at any time. You lose all Path of the Heart features and can choose a different Noble Path, or a different character class, at the GM’s discretion. These changes can be made at different speeds depending of the needs of the campaign. About 250 days of training during downtime is enough for more open-world campaigns, but in more cinematic campaigns, a particularly dramatic moment could inspire a Path of the Heart noble to instantly retrain noble levels into fighter levels.

Path of the Tactician

Nobles who follow the Path of the Tactician are often seen as entitled, lazy warlords, reaping the benefits of their allies’ labor. This couldn’t be farther from the truth. Tacticians lead from the sidelines, analyzing the battle and guiding others with erudition and strategy while keeping their distance from danger.

Tactical Adaptability

When you roll for initiative, you can switch your initiative roll with that of any ally you can see.

Bonus Proficiencies

You gain proficiency with martial weapons, with heavy armor, and with shields.

Maneuvering Command

Starting at 2nd level, you gain knowledge of tactical maneuvers that you can direct your allies to use in combat.

Maneuvers. You know two martial maneuvers. You can choose any maneuver except for Rally, Commander’s Strike, Riposte, and Parry. You learn one additional maneuver at 6th, 11th, 14th and 17th level. You cannot use these maneuvers yourself. If the maneuver requires a saving throw, the DC is equal to 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier.

Superiority Dice. You have four superiority dice, which are d6s. As a bonus action, you may give a superiority die to an ally to allow that ally to use a maneuver you know. If the ally already has the Combat Superiority or Improved Combat Superiority class features, they use a superiority die of the appropriate size for their level instead of a d6. If the maneuver is not used in a number of rounds equal to your Intelligence modifier, the maneuver is lost. You regain all spent superiority dice when you complete a long rest. You gain another superiority die at 6th level and again at 14th level.

Rules of Engagement

Starting at 6th level, you and all of your allies within 30 feet of you add your Intelligence modifier to their initiative.

Focused Fire

Starting at 11th level, you can spend one superiority die as a bonus action to select an enemy. Until the end of your next turn, creatures of your choice within 30 feet may deal extra damage equal to your superiority die when they damage the chosen target.

Renewed Superiority

Starting at 14th level, you regain a number of superiority dice equal to your Intelligence modifier each time you take a short rest. You cannot exceed your normal maximum this way.

Tactical Mastery

At 17th level, you can effortlessly identify your enemies’ weaknesses. As a bonus action, you can spend any number of superiority dice to expose a single creature’s fatal weakness. Until the end of your next turn, all weapon and spell attacks against that creature have advantage and deal extra damage as if all the superiority dice you spent rolled the maximum result.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

EN World EN5ider Presents: A Touch of Class. Copyright 2017 EN Publishing.

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