**Artist:** mad-jojo.deviantart.com, titled "Lieutenant"

**Artist:** stgspi.deviantart.com, titled "Battlefield"

**Artist:** A. Stokes, titled "The Black Scrolls of Ahm"

``` ```

## Tactician Standing proudly and fearlessly in front of his foe, a human dodges out of the way of an oncoming axe and retaliates with a perfectly placed strike, predicting his opponent's moves with remarkable accuracy and striking with precision. An elf stands tall above the battlefield from her carefully-chosen vantage point. Using the high ground to her advantage and her surroundings as cover, she lets loose a single arrow as many more fly towards her, clattering against the surroundings harmlessly. Shouting orders to their allies, a dragonborn rushes into the fray toward the enemy leader. With a signal to their compatriots, a barrage of attacks find their way toward the commander, simultaneously striking in an overwhelming show of coordination. Tacticians are masters of the battlefield. Their keen minds and martial training make them a powerful ally and a fearsome enemy for any troop that finds themselves in the midst of armed conflict. Far departed from the traditional soldier, a tactician relies on their brains more than their brawn when faced with adversity. ### Battlefield Strategist A tactician finds purpose in determining the outcome of armed conflict. When two armies of equal strength clash, the victor is often the side with the more experienced tactician. Different tacticians employ their own strategies, varying wildly between ferocious assault and carefully planned ambushes, but all are united by their ability to quickly and logically decide the best course of action for themselves and their allies. Tacticians are not born, they are bred. A tactician must learn the dynamics of combat in order to be effective, most often through intense study or rigorous training over many years. Though most tacticians receive martial training and can hold their own when thrown into battle, their true strength lies in their knowledge of warfare and their ability to analyze and exploit their oppenents weakness while simultanouesly predicting their actions. ### Astute and Analytical Due to their nature, most tacticians find themselves seeking battle. Their intellect drives them to seek new challenges and learn new strategies from friend and foe alike. Whether employed by an army, travelling the world as an adventurer, or seeking new knowledge in the military libraries of the world, true tacticians are few and far between. In order to be regarded as an accomplished tactician, an individual must

THE TACTICIAN | BY MATTHEW ECKART

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##### The Tactician | Level | Proficiency Bonus | Features | |:---:|:---:|:---|:---:| | 1st | +2 | Tactician's Strike, Tactician's Expertise | | 2nd | +2 | Fighting Style, Analytical Mind | | 3rd | +2 | Tactician Stratagem | | 4th | +2 | Ability Score Improvement | | 5th | +3 | Tactician's Strike improvement | | 6th | +3 | Tactician's Expertise | | 7th | +3 | Stratagem Feature | | 8th | +3 | Ability Score Improvement | | 9th | +4 | Tactician's Defense | | 10th | +4 | Stratagem Feature | | 11th | +4 | Informative Strikes | | 12th | +4 | Ability Score Improvement | | 13th | +5 | Tactician's Defense improvement | | 14th | +5 | Vault of Tactics | | 15th | +5 | Stratagem Feature | | 16th | +5 | Ability Score Improvement | | 17th | +6 | Stolen Technique | | 18th | +6 | Stratagem Feature | | 19th | +6 | Ability Score Improvement | | 20th | +6 | Master of Tactics |

not only possess extraordinary intellect and knowledge of war, but also be able to hold their own in the heat of battle. Most military strategists can create a plan and order troops to execute it while remaining safe behind their war rooms, but a true tactician must be able to hold their own on the battlefield, survive and fight back while simultenously analyzing the situation and adapting as necessary. Most adventuring tacticians find themselves among capable allies in need of a decisive leader. Most adventurers are capable of extraordinary feats of martial prowess or raw power, but the mind of the tactician can focus those elements into a finely-tuned machine of combat. Due to their upbringing, most tacticians find the adventuring life is well-suited to them, not all too different from the life they previously led. There are greater risks associated with the life of the adventurer, but the rewards available, both material and in the form of further knowledge, make it well worth the risk for those that choose the adventurer's path.

##### Tactician Version 1.3 01 November 2017

``` ``` ### Creating a Tactician As you create a tactician, consider two elements of your character's background: Where did you study military strategy, and what did those studies teach you about how battle is won? Do you approach your encounters through favorable numbers and overwhelming strength? Do you rely on planning and positioning to gain the upper hand? Do you seek strength through your allies, and rely on their unique gifts to create optimal strategies? Whatever stratagem you employ, a tactician always has a logical reason for the choices they make, and this can influence how your character is played. You might have studied under the tutelage of a great general of wars long ended. Maybe you studied in a military school, but found yourself drawn to the books rather than the weaponry. Perhaps you are self-taught, finding that your intellect has aided you throughout your travels, and that even physical conflict is easier won when you rely on that intellect. Did you learn to fight out of necessity, or for personal gain? Perhaps you are part of a long line of proud tacticians, and are seeking to honor that legacy. Whatever your reason for finding yourself here, you are now a force to be reckoned with, carrying with you strategies for whatever conflict may find you. ## Class Features As a tactician, you gain the following class features. #### Hit Points **Hit Dice:** 1d10 per tactician level
**Hit Points at 1st Level:** 10 + your Constitution modifier
**Hit Points at Higher Levels:** 1d10 (or 6) + your Constitution modifier per tactician level after 1st #### Proficiencies **Armor:** Light armor, medium armor, shields
**Weapons:** Simple weapons, martial weapons
**Tools:** Cartographer's tools

**Saving Throws:** Intelligence, Constitution
**Skills:** Choose three skills from Arcana, Deception, History, Insight, Investigation, Perception, Persuasion, and Survival #### Equipment You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background: - (*a*) scale mail or (*b*) leather armor - (*a*) a light crossbow and 20 bolts or (*b*) two handaxes - a martial weapon and a shield - A diplomat's pack and cartographer's tools ##### Multiclassing Prerequisites | Ability Score Minimum | |:----| | Strength 13 or Dexterity 13, Intelligence 13 | ##### Multiclassing Proficiencies | Proficiencies Gained | |:----| | Light armor, medium armor, shields, simple weapons, martial weapons, one skill from the class's skill list |

THE TACTICIAN | BY MATTHEW ECKART

\page ### Tactician's Strike Starting at 1st level, you have a mind for analyzing oppenents and quickly discerning their weaknesses in the heat of battle. Once per turn, you can use Intelligence for the attack and damage rolls of your weapons. If you have advantage on the attack roll, you add your proficiency bonus to the damage dealt by the attack. At 5th level, you gain access to a special attack using this feature. As an action, you make a single weapon attack, using Intelligence for the attack and damage rolls. You gain a bonus to the damage of this attack equal to one of the weapon's damage die + your Intelligence modifier (minimum 1). If you have advantage on the attack roll, you add your proficiency bonus to the damage dealt by the attack. ### Tactician's Expertise At 1st level, choose two skills from the Tactician skill list. You gain proficiency in the chosen skills. If you are already proficient in the skill, you add double your proficiency bonus to checks you make with it. Additionally, you can use the Search action as a bonus action on your turn. At 6th level, you can choose two more skills from the list to gain this benefit. ### Fighting Style At 2nd level, you adopt a style of fighting as your specialty. Choose one of the following options. You can't take a Fighting Style option more than once, even if you later get to choose again. #### Archery You gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls you make with
ranged weapons. #### Defense While you are wearing armor, you gain a +1 bonus to AC. #### Disengagement When you make a weapon attack on your turn, you can use the Disengage action as a bonus action. When you do so, your speed increases by 10 feet until the end of the current turn. #### Dueling When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with that weapon. #### Great Weapon Fighting When you roll a 1 or a 2 on a damage die for an attack you make with a melee weapon that you are wielding with two hands, you can reroll the die and must use the new roll, even if the new roll is a 1 or a 2. The weapon must have the two-handed or versatile property for you to gain this benefit. #### Protection 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. You must be wielding a shield. ``` ``` ### Analytical Mind Beginning at 2nd level, you learn to observe behavior in order to inform your words and actions, and to aid in recollection of information you've come across throughout your years. If you spend at least 1 minute observing a creature, you gain advantage on the next Wisdom, Intelligence, or Charisma check made to analyze the creature, interact with it, or recall or discern information about it. Once you have used this feature, you may not use it again on the same creature for 24 hours. ### Tactician Stratagem At 3rd level, you choose a stratagem that will guide your thinking during combat. Choose the Stratagem of Coordination, the Stratagem of Might, or the Stratagem of Preparation, all detailed at the end of the class description. The archetype you choose grants you features at 3rd level and again at 7th, 10th, 15th, and 18th level. ### 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. ### Tactician's Defense By 9th level, you have learned to predict an opponents movements in order to better defend yourself. When a creature you can see makes an attack against you, you can use your reaction to gain a bonus to AC against the triggering attack. The bonus is equal to your Intelligence modifier. At 13th level, you learn to defend yourself against threats both physical and mental. When you are subjected to an effect that forces you to make a Dexterity, Wisdom, or Charisma saving throw, you can use your reaction to gain a bonus to that saving throw equal to your Intelligence modifier. You can use this feature twice, and regain all expended uses when you complete a short or long rest. ### Informative Strikes Beginning at 11th level, whenever you successfully hit a creature with the special attack granted by your Tactician's Strike feature, you can learn one of the creature's stats of your choice from the following list: Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, Charisma, armor class, current hit points, senses, damage resistances, damage immunities, damage vulnerabilities. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Intelligence modifier (minimum 1). You regain all expended uses when you complete a short or long rest. ### Vault of Tactics By 14th level, your mind has become a fortress in which you hide your strategies from those that seek to learn them. You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed, divination spells, and effects that would read your thoughts.

THE TACTICIAN | BY MATTHEW ECKART

\page ### Stolen Techniques At 17th level, you have discovered how to use an enemy's tactics and abilities against them. Choose one class feature gained at 3rd level or lower from any other class, including that class's archetypes. You gain the benefits of that feature, and it counts as a Tactician feature for you. The following rules apply: - If the feature has dependancies, such as the Barbarian's Totem Spirit feature from the Path of the Totem Warrior, which requires the Barbarian's Rage feature to activate, you do not gain those dependancies. - If the feature uses class levels to determine its effects, such as the Fighter's Second Wind feature, you use your Tactician level. - If the feature gains additional effects or uses at higher levels, you gain the benefits as if you were 3rd level within that class. For example, Rogue's Sneak Attack feature would deal 2d6 damage. - If you take the Spellcasting or Pact Magic feature, you learn three spells of your choice from the class's spell list. If the class gains access to cantrips, you learn two cantrips from the class's spell list. You have a number of spell slots as if you had three levels of the associated class, and you can cast spells gained from this feature using those spell slots. You regain all expended spell slots when you complete a long rest, or a short rest if you chose Warlock's Pact Magic feature. Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for these spells. ### Master of Tactics At 20th level, you have become an unrivaled strategist with countless victories to your name. You gain the following benefits: - Your Intelligence score increases by 4, and your maximum for that score is now 24. - When you roll for initiative, and at the beginning of each round of combat thereafter, you choose your place in the initiative order. - Your Informative Strikes feature reveals up to three pieces of information per hit instead of only one. ## Tactician Stratagems A tactician's mind can be born of many circumstances, and those circumstances lead to differing tactics and maneuvers. For some, the path to victory is one of careful planning and positioning, for others, it is in recognizing the weaknesses opponents may have and exploiting them. Others find comfort in relying on their allies, protecting and guiding them toward victory. ### Stratagem of Coordination Your observations about the nature of warfare have revealed to you a simple truth: small groups that fight well together are often more powerful than entire armies. Using this observation to fuel your strategies, you've learned to lead and coordinate your allies toward victory in a way that makes most veteran groups look like amateurs. ``` ``` #### Commander's Strike Beginning when you choose this stratagem at 3rd level, you learn to guide your ally's strikes to most effectively dismantle the enemy. As a bonus action on your turn, you can direct one of your companions to strike. When you do so, choose a friendly creature who can see or hear you. That creature can immediately use its reaction to make one weapon attack. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Intelligence modifier (minimum 1). You regain all expended uses when you complete a long rest. #### Watchful Commander At 3rd level, you gain proficiency in the Medicine skill. If you are already proficient in the skill, you add double your proficiency bonus to checks you make with it. #### Rally the Troops Starting at 7th level, you gain the ability to rally your companions in preparation for whatever lies ahead. During a short rest or long rest, you discuss the victories of battles past and plans of future glory in order to lift spirits and recoup morale. Creatures that can see and hear you throughout the rest gain advantage on their next ability check, attack roll, or saving throw made within the next hour. Initiative rolls do not benefit from this feature. #### Coordinated Movement At 10th level, you can manipulate the battlefield to provide your allies with advantageous positioning. As a bonus action on your turn, you can choose a number of friendly creatures other than yourself up to your Intelligence modifier (minimum 1). Chosen creatures can use their reactions to move up to half their speed without provoking opportunity attacks, or to stand up if they are prone. A creature must be able to see or hear you to benefit from this feature. You can use this feature twice, and regain all expended uses when you complete a short or long rest. #### Coordinated Assault Starting at 15th level, your Commander's Strike feature regains all expended uses when you complete a short or long rest. Additionally, you can forgo your action on the turn that you use your Commander's Strike to choose two additional creatures to benefit from the feature. #### Commander's Nova By 18th level, you've spent so much time among allies that you have learned how to perfectly time and execute a deadly coordinated strike should it ever be necessary. As an action on your turn, choose a number of friendly creatures who can see or hear you up to your Intelligence modifier (minimum 1). Each of those creatures can use their reactions to immediately make one weapon attack or cast one cantrip against a single creature of your choice. If the target is out of attack range of any of your allies, they may move up to their speed without provoking opportunity attacks as part of the same reaction, but only if it would put them in range to attack the target. If you choose yourself as one of the creatures, you can use your Tactician's Strike without expending your reaction. Once you have used this ability, you may not do so again until you finish a short or long rest.

THE TACTICIAN | BY MATTHEW ECKART

\page ### Stratagem of Might Your time on the front lines of many hard-won fights has led you toward one simple conclusion: the stronger party wins. Be it strength in numbers or strength through superior training, the strongest always survive. Your idea of a battle well fought is one in which you're on the front lines cutting through the enemy yourself and showing them your strength. #### Improved Critical Beginning when you choose this stratagem at 3rd level, your attacks score a critical hit on a roll of 19 or 20. #### Intelligent Solutions When you reach 7th level, you learn how to accomplish certain tasks with creative intellect rather than brawn or finesse. When making a Strength (Athletics) check to climb or swim, a Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check to conceal an action, or a Dexterity (Stealth) check to hide, you gain a bonus to that check equal to your Intelligence modifier (minimum 1) as long as you have at least 1 minute to consider the action beforehand. #### Battle-Hardened By 10th level, you have learned to hide your own weaknesses as well as you identify an opponent's. Any critical hit against you becomes a normal hit. Additionally, when you use your Tactician's Defense feature, you have resistance to any damage you take from the triggering effect. #### Exposed Weakness By 15th level, you have learned to analyze a combatant's movements in a matter of seconds, determining the optimal time and place to strike them. If your attack roll for the special attack granted by your Tactician's Strike is less than the target's AC and you did not roll a 1 on the d20, the target takes half damage from the attack instead of none. #### Precision Strike At 18th level, you have reached the pinnacle of might, able to make a single strike that can devastate an exposed enemy. The special attack granted by your Tactician's Strike feature changes to the following: - As an action, you make a single weapon attack, using Intelligence for the attack and damage rolls. You gain a bonus to the damage of this attack equal to two of the weapon's damage die + twice your Intelligence modifier (minimum 1). If you have advantage on the attack roll, you add your proficiency bonus to the damage dealt. ``` ``` ### Stratagem of Preparation Your study of military tactics and the battlefield has taught you that superior positioning and well-timed, well-placed strikes can overcome even the most disadvantageous of situations. You've learned to carefully make use of whatever resources you have available to you during a battle. #### Advantageous Positioning Beginning when you choose this stratagem at 3rd level, you can use a bonus action to deploy or retract a barrier of your own invention to act as cover. It is made of wood and metal, and is 5 feet wide and 4 feet tall when deployed. It weighs 10 pounds and folds into a cube 1 foot on each side when retracted. It grants half cover to anyone positioned behind it. It has an AC of 15, 20 hit points, resistance to non-magical piercing and slashing damage, and immunity to poison and psychic damage. You can repair up to five barriers or create a new one in two hours. It costs 10gp to create a new barrier. Additionally, you gain a +2 bonus to the attack roll of your Tactician's Strike if you make that attack from cover. #### Keen Awareness When you reach 7th level, you learn to identify where other creatures may position themselves for a strike. You gain advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks made to detect hidden creatures, and you cannot be surprised as long as you are conscious. #### Terrain Specialist Starting at 10th level, moving through nonmagical difficult terrain costs you no extra movement. You can also use the Dash or Hide action as a bonus action on each of your turns during combat. In addition, you have advantage on saving throws caused by environmental hazards or lair actions. #### Take Cover Starting at 15th level, when you are subjected to an effect that allows you to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage and you are benefitting from cover, you instead take no damage if you succeed on the saving throw, and only half damage if you fail. Up to two allies within 5 feet of you also gain this benefit if you are benefitting from cover, unless that ally is providing the cover. #### Master of Preparation At 18th level, you have achieved a new level of readiness, seemingly prepared for any physical or mental assault that may cross your path. You gain the following benefits: - You have advantage on Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma saving throws. - While behind cover, you have advantage on Strength and Dexterity saving throws, and attack rolls against you are made at disadvantage.

**Artist:** ice-wolf-elemental.deviantart.com, titled "To Battle"

THE TACTICIAN | BY MATTHEW ECKART

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