Encroacher (5e Class)

Introduction

The Encroacher is a martial class that sacrifices single target capabilities to focus on making very wide swings to cleave many targets, and disrupts enemies by getting in their personal space. Whether you take the positional dominance of the Keeper, the devastating damage of the Spinner, or the flexibility of the Piercer, you will always feel like you are an incredible threat for large crowds of enemies.

Creating an Encroacher

When creating an encroacher you must decide whether you wish to be Strength or Dexterity focused. Strength is the favorable option as it has higher damaging weapons, but dexterity will allow you to wield a shield or a second weapon. Your second stat priority is constitution as you will be spending your time in the frontlines, unless you choose the Piercer subclass. Past those two things you won't benefit from any other stat increases so go wild with those.

Class Features

As a Encroacher you gain the following class features.

Hit Points

Hit Dice: 1d10 per Encroacher level
Hit Points at 1st Level: 1d10 + Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d10 (or 6) + Constitution modifier per Encroacher level after 1st

Proficiencies

Armor: Light, Medium, Heavy, Shield
Weapons: Weapons with the Heavy or Finesse Property
Tools: None
Saving Throws: Strength and Dexterity
Skills: Choose two from Acrobatics, Athletics, History, Insight, Intimidation, Perception, Sleight of Hand

Equipment

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

• (a) A weapon with the Heavy property or (b) A weapon with the Finesse property
• (a) Leather Armor or (b) Scale Mail
• (a) Explorer's Pack or (b) Dungeoneer's Pack
• Pack of 100 Ball Bearings

Table: The Encroacher

Level	Proficiency Bonus	Features
1st	+2	Encroach, Wide Swings
2nd	+2	Sudden Swing
3rd	+2	Infiltration Type
4th	+2	Ability Score Improvement
5th	+3	Extra Attack, Fast Movement
6th	+3	Infiltration Feature
7th	+3	Space Partner
8th	+3	Ability Score Improvement
9th	+4	Critical Sweep
10th	+4	Infiltration Feature
11th	+4	Fighting Style
12th	+4	Ability Score Improvement
13th	+5	—
14th	+5	Infiltration Type
15th	+5	Vorpal Strike
16th	+5	Ability Score Improvement
17th	+6	—
18th	+6	Personal Space
19th	+6	Ability Score Improvement
20th	+6	Mastery

Encroach

The name of the class, this feature allows you to share the space of all creatures, unless one of their features specifically says you may not share a space with that creature, or if sharing a space with that creature would harm you (such as a Gelatinous Cube). The creature can be an ally or an enemy and you may end your turn on the same space as them.

While sharing a space in this way the creature suffers the effects of squeezing, and they may use their reaction to move 5ft in any direction to avoid the squeezing effect, provoking opportunity to those who are able to benefit.

You are immune to the negative effects of Squeezing.

Wide Swings

You know how to wield weapons of great sizes and light weight and use their properties differently than most warriors.

When you make a melee attack with a weapon that has the Heavy or Finesse property you now attack in a 10ft section where all 10ft must be in a surrounding space to your space, making only one attack roll for all of the creatures in that section.

You may not make attacks of opportunity, and you can't choose to not hit something that is in your section.

Damage you deal in this way is halved and rounded down. (Creatures still benefit from their resistances)

The range of the section increases as you gain levels in this class, 15ft at level 5, 20ft at level 7, 25ft at level 9, 30ft at level 13, 35ft at level 17, and 40ft at level 20

Sudden Swing

Starting at 2nd level you may push yourself in order to swing your weapon unexpectedly faster and stronger than usual.

When doing so you make a weapon attack in your normal attack range granted by Wide Swings, and roll your normal damage, but instead of rolling an attack roll the targets must make a Dexterity Saving Throw (DC: 8 + STR or DEX mod+ Proficiency Bonus) taking half damage on a success, and taking full on a fail.

You may use this feature as many times as your proficiency bonus per long rest

Infiltration Type

At 3rd level, you chose an Infiltration Type. Choose between Keeper, Spinner, Or Piercer, detailed at the end of the class description. Your choice grants you features at 3rd level and again at 6th, 10th and 14th 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.

Extra Attack

At 5th level when you take the attack action on your turn you may attack twice.

Fast Movement

At 5th level you gain an additional 10ft of movement speed.

Space Partner

At 7th level while sharing a space with a creature you may use your bonus action to impose disadvantage on attacks against them negating the advantage that they would normally be affected by from squeezing until the start of your next turn.

They may also move out of your space as a reaction moving half of their speed without provoking opportunity.

Critical Sweep

At 9th level on a critical hit, damage from your wide swing is no longer halved, and the creatures hit do not benefit from any of its original resistances.

Fighting Style

After a moderate time of practicing this unique fighting style, at 11th level you develop a specific style from the list below:

Great Weapon Style: When making an attack with a heavy weapon you choose 5ft of your section's range to be the Edge of the weapon, the Edge deals full damage instead of halved.

Finesse Weapon Style: When making a wide swing with a finesse weapon you add an extra 5ft to your section’s range that may extend from any of the existing section.

Blind Style: You have a blind sight equal to the radius your wide swing range could make if it were to be in a straight line, EX: at this level you would have a 25ft blindsight. (Piercer's range extensions doesn’t improve this feature)

Defensive Style: While wearing armor and when sharing the space of an enemy you may add +1 to your AC, these bonuses stack.

Vorpal Strike

Your attacks are practiced and lethal, you are close to mastery.

At 15th level when missing an attack you may choose to use two uses of sudden swing in order to replace that missed attack with one use of sudden swing.

You may not use this effect more than once a turn until level 17.

Personal Space

At 18th level When sharing a space with a creature you may choose to forcefully move it as a bonus action, they must succeed on a strength save vs your dc. This movement provokes opportunities from those who can benefit.

Additionally you may now make opportunity attacks as a reaction.

Mastery

The mastery of your weapon and your dedication to your style allows you to defy logic when attacking.

At level 20 When attacking with Wide Swing you may spend 4 uses of sudden swing to add 10 to an attack roll, or use 10 in order to land a critical strike.

Keeper

The Keeper focuses on its positional capabilities to ensure the safety of themselves and others, or to keep something in danger and in harm's way.

Hostage

Any creature you deem an enemy can no longer use their reaction to leave the space you are sharing with them, and must instead on their turn as an action make a strength or dex saving throw (DC = 8+Prof+Str/Dex) to leave the space you're sharing with them. Additionally any creature you deem an ally sharing your space doesn't suffer the effects of squeezing, instead gaining a +4 AC. If an attack misses because of the AC increase you get hit instead, taking half damage.

Guardian

At level 6 any attack made against your space partner is now made with disadvantage, and is treated like they have resistance to all damage against attacks, but psychic, with you taking the other half of the damage. Additionally if you use your bonus action for “Space Partner” if the target succeeds on a dexterity saving throw in order to dodge an effect such as fireball, they take no damage instead of half.

Living Shield

At level 10, when an attack is made against you and you are sharing a space with an enemy as a reaction you can choose to allow the attack to have advantage, and add 4 to your AC. If the attack misses because of this increase the enemy you're sharing a space with takes the damage from the attack. Additionally if you are sharing a space with an enemy and you succeed on a dex save to dodge an effect such as fireball, you can take no damage instead of half and as a reaction you can impose disadvantage on the enemy's saving throw.

Indomitable Protector

At level 14, you have advantage on Saving throws against effects that attempt to enforce movement, such as a shove attack, or the spell fear, anything that would enforce movement.

You cannot be knocked prone against your will.

Once every long rest, if you fail any saving throw, you can choose to succeed instead. Additionally if your space partner fails a saving throw you can choose to suffer the effects of their failure for them if you succeeded.

Spinner

The Spinner sacrifices their safety in order to make additional attacks spinning constantly to deal devastating damage.

Spin to Win

On your turn as an action you can choose to begin to spin. When you do so, you may only move up to half your movement, all adjacent spaces suffer the effects of “Sudden Swing,” and any creatures who start their turn in those spaces, or enter those spaces for the first time that turn also suffer the effect. You can sustain this for 3 turns every long rest and end the effect as a bonus action on your turn or as a reaction not on your turn. The duration you are able to sustain this effect increases by one each Encroacher level after this one, 4 at level 4, 5 at level 5, and so on.

Dizzying Dismay

While you are sharing a space with a creature, and you activate your “Spin To Win” feature, you also spin the creature you are sharing your space with. When you end Spin to win, or leave that creature's space the creature is now considered “Dizzy" and must roll a d8 to determine the direction it moves in for its movement. 1 is north of the creature and you move around clockwise till 8, the creature can then only move that direction on its next turn. Creatures who are immune to being stunned are immune to this effect

Extra Extra Attack

At level 10 when you take the attack action on your turn you may now make 3 attacks, spinning with precision each strike.

Brutal Spinning Mass

At level 14 when you take the attack action and you hit a creature with all three of your attacks you can choose to activate “Spin To Win". (Vorpal strike and sudden swing don't activate this effect)

While Spin To Win is active melee attacks made against you are at disadvantage, and you add half your proficiency bonus to your AC, if a melee attack would miss you without the AC bonus, you can use your reaction to make a wide swing in their direction, ending your Spin to Win.

Piercer

The Piercer uses its arcane edge to greatly extend its sweeping range, and add additional effects to its attacks.

Enchanting

You have a pool of d8s equal to half your encroacher level called Enchant Charges that allow you to alter the nature of your Wide and Sudden swings. When doing so you may spend a charge and a bonus action to activate one of the enchantments off of the following list, increasing your damage done by 1d8 on your next attack that hits. You can stack up to three enchantments on a single weapon attack (In case you miss three times), any other enchant added replaces the earliest enchant. You regain all Charges after a long rest, and gain 2 after a short rest.

Draining Strike: You swing with primal ferocity, your weapon glowing red. When you hit with this attack you heal for the 1d8 of extra damage caused by this attack.

Weaving: You can choose to exclude an amount of creatures equal to your proficiency bonus from an attack made with your wide swing, and grant them temporary hp equal to the d8 of extra damage dealt

Adaptive Force: You choose any damage type, which your weapon will do for this attack. The d8 deals an extra amount of that damage type.

Pierce: You can choose to extend all of your section into a straight line that pierces through every creature in it. You roll the d8 of extra damage before the attack, extending its range by 5ft for every point of extra damage.

Pressure: You shove all who are hit inside of your section's range in a straight line from yourself. The d8 of damage determines the amount of the creatures you can affect.

Arcane Grasp

At 6th level any weapon you hold is considered magical for the effect of overcoming nonmagical resistances.

Additionally at level 10 you can spend 5 Enchant Charges to gain advantage on an attack roll. At level 20 you may spend all 10 charges to deal maximum damage on a damage roll.

Magical Casing

At level 10 weapons you hold look much greater as a magical shell forms around them, allowing your sections to travel 5ft outwards from themselves symmetrically. These extra sections deal force damage equal to half of your already halved damage. This additional section can be used for the Pierce Enchantment, and the Unbound Feature. (Not applicable to Blind Fighting)

Unbound

At level 14 when you make a wide swing attack you can now extend your section however you wish within a 30ft range around you, as your weapon bends and extends outwards to hit creatures you could never dream of hitting. Doing This Uses 5 Enchant Charges, and allows you to apply two enchantments to the attack as a bonus action.

Multiclassing

Prerequisites. To qualify for multiclassing into the Encroacher class, you must meet these prerequisites: A Strength or Dexterity score of 15 or higher, a constitution score of 14 or higher, and a martial weapon proficiency

Proficiencies. When you multiclass into the Encroacher class, you gain the following proficiencies: Athletics and Acrobatics

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