Juggernaut

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Overview & Creation

A lone warrior stands amid a slew of fallen bodies. He turns his gaze up towards the horizon, spotting another band of furious enemies. He raises his maul and adopts a savage stance, bracing himself against the second storm. An armor-clad maiden stands surrounded by enemies, her allies scattered across the battlefield. With a grin on her face, she slams her shield into the earth. With a wave of force the enemies are sent flying and taking their place around her are her wounded, but now safe allies. A large orc clad in plate armour stands hunched over a table of a mock battlefield. Outside the safety of the tent rings a warning bell. taking up his greatsword, the warrior strides out of the tent, ready to put his long hours of planning to its final test.

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Class Features

Iron Bond   At 1st level, you gain the ability to form a powerful bond with your weapon. You can bond with a weapon over the course of 1 hour, which can be done during a short rest. You must be holding the weapon for the duration, at the conclusion of which you gain the following benefits while holding the bonded weapon. Your bonded weapon is indestructible by nonmagical means, weighs nothing for you, and weighs 3 times the normal weight for other creatures. You know the general direction of your bonded weapon provided it is on the same plane of existence, and you can pinpoint its exact location if you are within 30 feet of it.     Bonding with a Shield You can also form an Iron Bond with a shield, and doing so gives it the additional properties: The bonded shield counts as a simple melee weapon that does 1d6 bludgeoning damage You can don and doff the shield using an Interact with an Object action.   Battlecry   When you unlock this at 1st level, as a bonus action you can either taunt people into fighting you, or rally the spirits of your friends. Once you have used your battlecry the number of times shown for your juggernaut level in the battlecry column of the juggernaut table, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use your battlecry again. Your juggernaut save DC is 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Constitution modifier.

• Taunt. Choose one creature within 30 feet of you who can see or hear you. The affected creature must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw against your Juggernaut save DC or have disadvantage on any attack they make against anyone except you until the end of their next turn. Targets are immune to this effect if they can't see or hear you or if they can't be frightened.
• Rally. Creatures of your choice within 30 feet of you gain temporary hit points equal to your juggernaut level.

  Juggernaut Specialty   At 2nd level, you gain a Juggernaut Specialty. Choose one of the following below:

• Heavy Handed. Your attacks are brutal and unexpectedly harsh. When you score a critical hit with a melee weapon attack, the creature has disadvantage on their next attack roll.
• Reckless Defense. If you see a big hit coming in, you know how to throw it aside with all your might. The strain from this leaves you open for a counterattack, however. When a creature hits you with an attack, you can use your reaction to force the creature to reroll the attack roll, and it must use the new roll. When you do so, the next time a creature makes an attack against you before the start of your next turn, it has advantage on the attack roll.
• Unyielding Strength. You're strong enough to actually trust people as far as you can throw them. Shove attacks you make on your turn push creatures 10 feet. Additionally, if a creature one size category larger than you or smaller makes a melee attack against you, you can use your reaction to make a shove attack against them.

  Superior Health   When you gain this feature at 2nd level, your hit point maximum increases by 2 points, and it increases by 1 every time you gain a Juggernaut level. At 13th level, your hit point maximum increases by an additional 13 points, and it now increases by 2 every time you gain a Juggernaut level.   Juggernaut Ideal   At 3rd level you must choose an ideal to strive for, which are described below. You gain an ideal feature from this path at 3rd level, 7th level, 11th level and at 15th level.   Mighty Physique   At 5th level, you learn to put your mighty strength to use for offense and control. You are considered proficient in Athletics, and use double your proficiency bonus for Athletics checks. If you are already proficient in Athletics, choose another proficiency from your class list.   Extra Attack   At 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.   Improved Iron Bond   Starting at 6th level you gain the following benefits: If your bonded weapon is within 30 feet of you, you can use your bonus action to summon it to your hand. As a bonus action, you can shunt your bonded weapon into a pocket dimension and re-summon it using a bonus action. You can only send your bonded weapon to the pocket dimension if you are holding it, and the weapon can stay in this pocket dimension forever with no ill effects on it. Additionally, your bonded weapon counts as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to non-magical attacks and damage.   Stockade   Starting at 6th level, in combat, the area within 5 feet of you is considered difficult terrain for creatures you choose. In addition, whenever you make an opportunity attack, you can attempt to grapple or shove the creature instead of making a melee attack.   Indefatigable   Starting at 9th level, you gain a bonus equal to your proficiency bonus to all saving throws to avoid exhaustion, stage 5 of exhaustion for you now reduces your speed to 5, and you now have 7 stages of exhaustion, instead of 6. Stage 6 is now unconsciousness, and 7 is death.   Improved Grapple   At 10th level, when grappling a creature, you can drag them with you with no penalty to your movement.   Improved Shove   Starting at 13th level, whenever you successfully shove a creature, you can push it away from you as well as knock it prone.   Jötungrip   At 14th level, you can wield two handed melee weapons in one hand, but you can only add half your proficiency bonus to attacks with them. Additionally, if you are wielding a weapon with the versatile property in one hand, you can use the two- handed die instead. If you are Small, you can now wield weapons with the heavy property in two hands with no penalty.   Improved Juggernaut Specialty   At 17th level, the specialty you chose at the beginning of your adventure has grown more powerful.

• Heavy Handed: On a critical hit, use the maximum die results on your damage dice.
• Reckless Defense: When you use your reaction to force the attacker to reroll their attack, they do so with disadvantage. If the attack still hits you, you can make a melee weapon attack against the attacker as part of the same reaction.
• Unyielding Strength: Creatures that you grapple are considered restrained.

  Steeled Nerves   At 18th level, you've sustained so many wounds, you're almost numb to the big hits. Any critical hit against you becomes a normal hit.   Unstoppable Force   At 20th level, as an action you can become the ultimate paragon of force, gaining the following benefits for 1 minute:

• You have resistance to all damage.
• You are immune to being grappled, paralyzed, petrified, restrained and stunned, and you can't be knocked prone.
• You can't be forcefully moved, your speed can't be reduced by any means, and you can walk through any creature's space.
• Attacks with a bonded weapon deal double damage to objects and structures.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

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Starting Equipment

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

• (a) chain mail or (b) scale mail
• (a) a martial weapon and a shield or (b) 2 martial weapons
• (a) an explorer's pack or (b) a dungeoneer's pack

 

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Subclass Options

Defenders are juggernauts that seek to protect and heal those around them. Whether they are on the front lines holding back the enemy, or sticking in the back keeping a wizard or archer safe, they are welcome additions to any team for taking and dealing damage.   Health Sacrifice   Starting at 3rd level, as an action, you can sacrifice a small portion of yourself to heal your allies or demolish your foes. You can spend an amount of Hit Dice per round equal to half your proficiency bonus.

• Heal. As an action, you can touch one creature and heal them by expending some of your hit dice. Roll the dice and add your Constitution modifier to each, restoring a number of hit points equal to the total.
• Harm. When you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack, you can expend some of your hit dice to infuse your attack with a burst of radiant energy. Roll the dice and add your Constitution modifier to each, dealing extra radiant damage equal to the total, in addition to the weapon's damage.

Shelter   Starting at 7th level, you can make Medicine checks as a bonus action on your turn, and you gain proficiency in Medicine. If you are already proficient in this skill, you can choose to be proficient in one of the following skills: Intimidation, Insight, Perception or Survival. Additionally, you have advantage on checks to diagnose diseases and other medical conditions or to identify a creature's wounds or cause of death.   Bastion   Starting at 11th level, while holding your bonded shield, you can use your action to create an impenetrable dome of force in a 15-foot radius around you, and lasts until the end of your next turn. When you create the dome, choose any number of willing creatures you can see within 120 feet of you. Each creature teleports to an unoccupied space of its choice inside the dome and can move through the dome freely, including yourself. A hostile creature that is in the dome's area when you create it is pushed to the nearest unoccupied space and must make a Constitution saving throw against your juggernaut save DC or take 2d8 force damage. The dome prevents hostile creatures from passing or reaching through it and it prevents their spells and attacks made with ranged or reach weapons from entering it. Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.   Hospice   Starting at 15th level, you gain the power to bring someone back if they've died recently. You can cast revivify once per long rest.   The phrase: "Your best defense is offense" embodies this class. Ravagers are juggernauts who seek the path to defense in violence. Their goal is to end fights as quickly as possible, dealing consistent damage whether attacking or positioning their enemies.   Ruthless   Starting at 3rd level, your shove attacks deal bludgeoning damage equal to your Strength modifier. Additionally, when you successfully start a grapple and at the start of each of your turns, any creature you have grappled takes bludgeoning damage equal to your Strength modifier.   Determined   Starting at 7th level, little can stand in the way between you and your goals. You ignore nonmagical difficult terrain, and you gain climbing and swimming speeds equal to your walking speed. Additionally, you can move through a hostile creature's space, though you can't end your movement in an occupied space.   Oh No You Don't   Starting at 11th level, when a hostile creature successfully ends your grapple, you can use your reaction to make a grapple attack against any creature within 5 feet of you.   Relentless   At 15th level, even as your strength begins to fade, you keep fighting. Having 0 hit points doesn’t knock you unconscious, but you must still make death saving throws, and you suffer the normal effects of taking damage while at 0 hit points.   Giantslayers focus all of their strength and skill with weapons into single powerful strikes meant to cripple the largest of foes. With their size and bulk they can effectively grapple, pin, and submit far larger opponents. They prize themselves on their unique tactics to fight these monsters and their resistance to their attacks, while striking back with equal ferocity.   Enlarge   Starting at 3rd level, you have the ability to grow to an immense size to fight your enemies. You can use a bonus action to gain the following benefits for one minute:

• Your size doubles in all dimensions, and your weight is multiplied by eight.
• Your size increases by one category. If you were Small, now you are Medium. If you were Medium, now you are Large.
• You have advantage on Strength checks and Strength saving throws.
• Your weapons also grow to match your new size. While these weapons are enlarged, you deal 1d4 extra damage when you make melee weapon attacks with them.
• Everything you are wearing and carrying changes size with you. Any item dropped returns to normal size at once. If there isn’t enough room for you to double in size, you attain the maximum possible size in the space available.
• This effect can not be counterspelled or dispelled.

You can use this feature twice per long rest. At 11th level you regain all your expended uses of this feature when you finish a short or long rest.   Starting at 7th level, you've enlarged yourself so much, that some of the growth has stuck around even after you shrink to normal size. when you gain this feature, roll 3d4. You grow a number of inches in height equal to the roll. In addition, you count as one size larger when determining your carrying capacity and the weight you can push, drag, or lift.   Titanic Strike   Starting at 11th level, you merrily crush your opponents to dust. When you make a melee weapon attack, you can choose to make the attack with disadvantage. If you hit, the attack is a critical hit. You can't use this feature if you already have disadvantage on the attack roll.   Titan-Sized   At 15th level, you can use a bonus action to consume two uses of Enlarge, instead of one, to grow even larger. You can also use a bonus action consume an extra use of Enlarge if you are already Enlarged. While you are Titan-sized, you gain the following benefits in place of the Enlarge feature's benefits:

• Your normal size quadruples in all dimensions, and your weight is multiplied by sixty four.
• Your size increases by two categories of your original. If you were Small, now you are Large. If you were Medium, now you are Huge.
• Your weapons also grow to match your new size. While these weapons are titan-sized, you deal 2d4 extra damage when you make melee weapon attacks with them.

  Some juggernauts are beaten and battered for their entire life, but this gives them an ideology of survival, that outlasting an enemy in combat is a guaranteed path to victory. The dreadnought does just that, shrugging off mighty blows endlessly until their opponent eventually tires and is dealt the killing blow. Consummate professionals among juggernauts, dreadnoughts never seem to let up. Even in the biggest and bloodiest battles, they and their squad are always the last ones standing.   Defensive Formation   Starting at 3rd level, all allies within 5 feet of you gain half cover, and when a creature you can see attacks a target other than you that is within 5 feet of you, you can use your reaction to impose disadvantage on the attack roll. If the attack hits, you can deal bludgeoning damage equal to your Strength modifier to the attacker.   Bolstering Ranks   At 7th level, when you take the Help action to assist with a Charisma check, the creature you helped gains a bonus to the roll equal to the number of allies you can see within 10 feet of you (maximum bonus of +5) Additionally, you gain proficiency in one of the following skills of your choice: Deception, Intimidation, Persuasion, Performance.   Grit   At 11th level, all damage except for psychic damage that you take is reduced by an amount equal to your Constitution modifier.   Resolute   At 15th level, at the start of each of your turns, if you have no more than 3 times your character level in hit points remaining, you regain hit points equal to your Constitution modifier + half your Juggernaut level. You don't gain this benefit if you have 0 hit points.   Sanguinaires tend to be unlucky adventurers who were bitten by a vampire to gain life-draining power. These juggernauts are usually thralls for more powerful vampire lords, but some though, through research, planning, or good(or bad) luck, stumbled upon similar powers. No matter how they came across the power, they are fierce, intimidating, and despite all the injuries they face, they seem to sow themselves back together in front of your very eyes.   Draining Strikes   Starting at 3rd level, your attacks gain a life draining aura. Once per turn when you hit a living creature with a melee weapon attack, you gain temporary hit points equal to your Constitution modifier, and the creature's hit point maximum is reduced by the same amount. The reduction lasts until the target finishes a long rest. The target dies if this effect reduces its hit point maximum to 0. Additionally, at level 15, you can use Draining Strikes twice per turn, and the temporary hit points gained from this feature stack.   Bloodsense   At 7th level, you have advantage on any checks to see through an illusory disguise within 10 feet of you, and on all checks to find the location of living humanoids that involve scent or blood. Additionally, if there is a living humanoid within 10 feet of you, you know their location.   Supernatural Charm   Starting at 11th level, as an action you can target one humanoid you can see within 30 feet of you. If the target can see you, they must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or be charmed by you. The charmed target regards you as a trusted friend to be heeded and protected. Although the target isn't under your control, it takes your requests or actions in the most favorable way it can. If you or your companions harm the charmed target, the effect ends. Otherwise, the effect lasts 1 minute or until you are unconscious, are on a different plane of existence than the target, or take a bonus action to end the effect. Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.   Misty Escape   At 15th level, if you drop to 0 hit points, you instead drop to 1 hit point and immediately are under the effects of the spell gaseous form for 1 minute. Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

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