Prime Guardian (5e Class)

Prime Guardian

A towering Goliath strides through a crowd of battle ready Paladins, with each step the ground shakes, the air around them ripples with divine power. The Goliath, spotting their enemy ahead, produces an enormous shield and with a fierce war cry charges into battle, plowing through their enemies as their holy aura heals their brethren.

A man in shimmering armor slams their mighty shield into their enemy, throwing them back, the man pounds their shield with their fist and shouts damnation in the name of their God.

A lean Elf walks alone through a dark desolate forest, without warning she slams her shield on the ground sending pillars of holy light shooting up into the sky, illuminating her unseen foes as they fall from their hiding places, scorched by holy light.

Prime Guardians are beyond rare, these divine warriors are hand picked by Gods, who they serve until the day they die, Prime Guardians are called on by Gods to assist them in combat or defend their domains or temples. Most people are unaware that such mighty warriors even exist, and even fewer people have actually encountered one. Prime Guardians are masters of defence and divine power, they are what Paladins wish they could be.

Passive Annihilation

Prime Guardians don't do much for attacking, they often prefer to wield massive shields, becoming an impregnable defence for both themselves and others around them. They have potent divine auras that burn all who would dare attack one of these holy giants. Prime Guardians often focus on protecting and boosting their party members, leaving any actual fighting to his or her companions. But don't take their lack of attacking as a sign of weakness, if these divine warriors so wished it they could obliterate almost any enemy that would dare face them.

Creating a Prime Guardian

Prime Guardians are almost solely masters of defence, wielding massive shields that can block most anything and devastate almost anyone. Where did they get their shield? Did someone give it to them? Did they craft it themselves? Was it a gift from their god? Their power over divine energy is unparalleled among mortals, they wield both good and evil forces with near perfection. But where did this power come from? Why was it bestowed upon them? How did they find it?

Quick Build

You can make a Prime Guardian quickly by following these suggestions. First, Constitution should be your highest ability score, followed by Strength. Second, choose the Soldier background. Third, choose Explorer's Pack, 2 Shields, and Chain Mail.

Class Features

As a Prime Guardian you gain the following class features.

Hit Points

Hit Dice: 1d12 per Prime Guardian level
Hit Points at 1st Level: 12 + Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d12 (or 7) + Constitution modifier per Prime Guardian level after 1st

Proficiencies

Armor: Medium armor, Heavy armor, Shields
Weapons: Simple melee weapons, Martial melee weapons
Tools: Smith's Tools
Saving Throws: Constitution, Strength
Skills: Choose two from: Acrobatics, Animal Handling, Athletics, Medicine, Intimidation, Insight, Perception, Survival

Equipment

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

• (a) 2 simple melee weapons or (b) 1 martial melee weapon or (c) 2 shields
• (a) Chain Mail or (b) Half plate armor
• (a) Explorer's Pack or (b) Priest's Pack
• a shield emblazoned with the symbol of your god.
• If you are using starting wealth, you have 5d4 x 5 in funds.

Table: The Prime Guardian

Level	Proficiency Bonus	Features	Divine Essence
1st	+2	Master of Defense, Divine Aura, Divine Essence	2
2nd	+2	Helping Hand	4
3rd	+2	Guardian Path	6
4th	+2	Ability Score Improvement	8
5th	+3	To Those In Need	10
6th	+3	Path Feature	12
7th	+3	Mighty They Stand	14
8th	+3	Ability Score Improvement	16
9th	+4	Blessing Of The Divine	18
10th	+4	Uncanny Recovery	20
11th	+4	Path Feature	22
12th	+4	Ability Score Improvement	24
13th	+5	God's Bliss	26
14th	+5	Divine Healer	28
15th	+5	Pillars of God	30
16th	+5	Ability Score Improvement	32
17th	+6	Path Feature, Savior	34
18th	+6	God's Blessing	36
19th	+6	Ability Score Improvement	38
20th	+6	Gods Among Us	40

Spellcasting Ability

Constitution is your spellcasting ability for your Prime Guardian spells and abilities, since your power is limited only by what your body can handle. You use your Constitution whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Constitution modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a Prime Guardian spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.

Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Constitution modifier

Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Constitution modifier

Master of Defense

Starting at 1st level, you are a master at using a shield of any type and can in turn use shields to their maximum potential. You gain the following benefits:

• When you are using a Shield its bonus to your AC increases by +1.

• You are proficient in the use of shields as weapons. Any shield you wield counts as a simple melee weapon that deals 1d4 bludgeoning damage.

• You can choose to impose disadvantage on attacks made against allies within 5ft of you.

Divine Essence

Starting at 1st level, you gain 2 Divine Essence points, which you can expend to activate abilities. The maximum number of Divine Essence points you can have increases by two each level.

Any expended Divine Essence points can be regained by finishing a long rest.

Divine Aura

Starting at 1st level, a god has hand picked you to be their eternal servant, they have given you strength and wisdom beyond your wildest dreams and your blood courses with divine power, so much so that your divine energy expands outwards from you, giving you a divine aura. You can use your bonus action and spend 1 divine essence point to activate your Divine Aura. The aura emanates in radius around you equal to your proficience bonus x 2 (minimum 5 feet), and lasts for 1 minute or until you are knocked unconscious. You can end your aura early as a bonus action. When your aura is active, you can choose one of the following effects:

• Healing Presence:

You produce a warming light that mend wounds of your allies. Any friendly creature that starts its turn inside your aura regain a number of hit points equal to 1d4 + your Constitution modifier. You can spend additional divine essence points up to your proficiency bonus +2 when you activate this aura to increase the amount of hit points restored in 1d4 + constitution per point spent.

• Divine Protection:

Choose two creatures inside your aura range, without spending an action. The chosen creatures gain a bonus of +1 to their AC as long as they stay in range. You can spend additional divine essence points up to your proficiency bonus +2 when you activate this aura to increase the bonus to the AC of chosen creatures by 1 per point spent.

• Aspect of Vengeance:

Raw holy power pulses from you. You may spend additional Divine Essence equal to your Proficiency Bonus +2. Any hostile creature that starts or ends its turn within your aura range must make a Constitution saving throw against your Spell DC. On a failed save, it takes 1d4 + your Constitution modifier multiplied by the amount of Divine Essence you have spent, or half as much damage on a successful save. Each creature may only take this damage once per turn.

Helping Hand

When you reach 2nd level, your presence on the battlefield give your allies hope and inspiration. Once on each of your turns, you can use your bonus action to chose an ally within 60 feet and give them advantage on the next attack roll, ability check, or saving throw they make.

You can use this feature a number of times equal to 1 + your Constitution modifier (Minimum of 2), regaining expended uses when you finish a short or long rest.

Guardian Path

At 3rd level, you chose a Guardian Path. Choose between Path of The Two Towers or Path of The Giant's Blade detailed at the end of the class description. Your choice grants you features at 3rd level and again at 6th, 11th, and 17th.

Ability Score Increase

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.

To Those in Need

When you reach 5th level, you can channel pure healing energy into a creature you touch, including yourself. You can spend 1 divine essence point and use your action to touch a creature, causing it to regain a number of hit points equal to 2d8 + your Constitution modifier.

You can increase the amount of hit points restored by spending additional divine essence points. You restore 1d8 + constitution additional hit points for each additional point spent.

Alternatively, you can spend one divine essence to heal a disease with your touch.

Mighty They Stand

A god has given you a portion of their power, your blood runs with divine might. When you reach 7th level, you can choose one of the following options:

• You lose 5 feet of movement, but you may add Strength modifier to your AC and dexterity saving throws, instead of your Dexterity modifier, while wearing armor. In addition, you gain +3 to your AC when wearing armor, and you become resistant to two of the following damage types: piercing, magical , slashing, bludgeoning, radiant, or necrotic.

• You gain +10 movement, and you can add a +3 to all melee attacks with weapons you are proficient with.

Blessing Of The Divine

Divine energy is a part of you it shields your body from harm, it protects you from the evils of the natural world and of mortal whim. At 9th level, you are immune to all diseases, poison damage, and the poisoned condition.

Uncanny Recovery

The divine power coursing through you mends your wounds quicker and recovers your stamina and strength fast than a normal person. At 10th level, you regain all expended divine essence after a short or long rest. Additionally whenever you roll hit dice during a short rest, you may re-roll 1s and 2s.

God's Bliss

A God has graced you with strength, wisdom, and courage. They have given you a part of themselves which courses through you for the rest of your days. At 13th level, you no longer need to eat or drink and you do not suffer the effects of old age and you cannot be aged magically. You can still die of old age.

Healing Surge

You have mastered the ability to channel your divine power into others to heal them. At 14th level, as an action you can expend 5 divine essence. When you do, you may heal up to 2 target creatures within 30 feet of you that you can see. They heal for a number of d6 equal to half your level. After you take this action, you cannot do so again until you finish a long rest.

Pillars of God

At 15th level, you summon the divine power of your deity, massive pillars of light shoot into the sky, sending fear into the hearts of all those who oppose you. As an action you can expend 20 Divine Essence. If you do, you slam your shield on the ground and with a mighty boom, and summon 3 pillars of pure holy power that are 15 ft in diameter and up to 75 feet tall. They can be placed wherever you choose within 120ft of you, and these pillars last a number of rounds equal to your Constitution modifier. Any ally in the pillar when it first appears or that starts its turn in a pillar regains 2d8 + your Constitution modifier hit points. Any enemy in the pillar when it first appears or that starts its turn in a pillar must make a constitution saving throw, on a failure it takes 2d8 + your Constitution modifier points of radiant damage or half damage on a success. Any aberrations, fiends, undead, or evil creatures take an additional 1d8 from this ability and if they can see the pillars they become frightened of you until the pillars disappear. You can use this ability once per long rest.

Savior

At 17th level, you can send protective holy power coursing through yourself and your shield. When you or an ally within 5ft of you needs to make a saving throw, you can use your reaction to expend 5 divine essence to give yourself or the ally advantage on the saving throw.

God's Blessing

You are a master of channeling divine energy and holy power through your body and your mind, you shine with your God's might and wisdom. At 18th level you gain the following features.

-You become resistant to one of the following damage types: piercing, slashing, bludgeoning, radiant, or necrotic.

-You can not be frightened or Charmed.

-You also start to age slower, for every 10 years that pass, your body only ages 1 year.

Gods Among Us

You have dedicated your life and soul to the protection of your deity and the protection of their followers and all that is good. At 20th level, as an action, your armour, weapons, and shield glow with power and holy energy as a beam of white light shines upon you from the heavens. For 10 minutes, all enemies have disadvantage on saving throws against your Prime Guardian abilities and characteristics, and you make all attack rolls, skill checks, and saving throws with advantage. Additionally, you can cast Resurrection. While using this feature, you can choose to ignore the usual material components but instead lose hit points equal to the maximum of the resurrected target. If this results in you being reduced to 0 hit points, you will count as having failed two death saving throws. Once you use this feature you will not be able to use it again until you finish a long rest.

Path of The Two Towers

You have trained to not only use one shield, but two and to wield them with relative ease and grace, but also a destructive potency. You are a walking fortress of your deity, your might towers over all others, your attacks devastate enemies and your defenses are impenetrable. It was not easy, but your strength has surpassed that of most mortals.

Tower Shield Master

At 3rd level when you choose this path, you can dual wield shields, when you do, you gain the AC benefit from both the shields equipped, not just one.

Shield Slam

Additionally at 3rd level, you can treat any shield you wield as a simple melee weapon with the light property that deals 1d8 bludgeoning damage.

Dual Shield Style

At 6th level you have learned how to swing your shields to devastate your enemies, when you take the attack action while using a shield, you may use your bonus action to make an attack with your second shield. You may add your strength modifier to the damage of the second shield.

Impenitrable Fortress

At 11th level if you are wielding a shield in both hands, you can use your reaction to take a defensive stance, if you do, you gain an additional +1 bonus to AC and hostile creatures that start their turn or move within your reach cannot move towards any creature other than you.

Shield of The Gods

At 17th level you and your shields become one, shields you wield are considered magical for the purposes of overcoming resistances and immunities. They also gain the additional features:

-Shields you wield gain the versatile(1d10) property.

-Your shields gain the reach property.

-The range of your Master of Defense feature increases to the reach of your shields.

-If you move in a straight line for 20 ft before attacking, the creature you hit must make a strength saving throw DC (8 + proficiency bonus + strength mod) or be knocked prone, along with taking the shields damage. On a successful save, the target is not knocked prone.

Path of The Giant's Blade

The rarest of Prime Guardians, wielders of the Giant's Blade are no less than myth or legend, they are told to have unfathomable strength and immense destructive ability. Easily wielding blades as large as an adult human. but in the process, they lose some of their defensive capabilities.

Divine Great Sword

At level 3, when you choose this path, your god grants you the ability to summon an enormous great sword. You cannot lose this great sword and it cannot be broken by anything except the power of a god. You are proficient with this weapon, the Divine Great sword is a melee martial weapon with 10ft of range that deals 2d8 + Constitution slashing damage. While wielding this weapon, any shield it becomes weightless.

Reaching Radiance

At 3rd level, you gain the ability to fire a beam of light from the tip of your Divine great sword. While wielding this weapon, you may use a ranged attack using your constitution mod. This beam of holy light deals 2d6 + constitution mod Radiant Damage and costs 1 divine essence to fire. This attack has a max range of 60 ft. For 1 minute or until you fall unconscious, after using this ability you gain advantage on all attacks with the Divine great sword and other creatures provoke an opportunity attack from you when they enter the reach you have with that weapon.

Divine Extra Attack

At 6th level you can attack twice, instead of once, and you can add a +3 to all melee attacks, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn, and your Divine great sword counts as magical for the purposes of overcoming resistance and immunity to non magical attacks and damage. Additionally the damage from your blade does Radiant damage, instead of slashing.

Heavy Momentum

At 11th level add a +2 to all attacks. You can use your action to cleave through up to 5 tiny creatures, 4 small creatures, 3 medium creatures, or 2 large creatures within range. To do so you must roll your attack and the attack roll must hit each enemy's ac or it will fail against that enemy. If this attack is used and fails on the first creature, it cannot cleave into the next creature in the line.

Blade of The Gods

At 17th level your sword becomes empowered by your connection to your God, it shimmers with holy light, extending the blade and sheathing it in radiant energy. For the cost of 4 divine essence, your Divine Great Sword deals an extra 2d8 radiant damage on a hit, this effect lasts for 1 minute.

Multiclassing

Prerequisites. To qualify for multiclassing into the Prime Guardian class, you must meet these prerequisites: You must be hand picked by a God and granted this power, good luck with that. You also need a strength and constitution score of 16 or higher.

Proficiencies. When you multiclass into the Prime Guardian class, you gain the following proficiencies: Martial Weapons, Heavy Armor, and Shields

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