How to create a Warrior in D&D

Introduction

One of the main features of any role-playing game (D&D in particular) are classes. The class is the fulcrum of our PG (player character) who is in the game world, his job if we want, and characterizes him in whatever action he takes. Each class in the world of D&D has a fair number of skills and competencies, which are given to them at character creation and will gain others as they level up. We will start from being novices in the subject, until we become the absolute masters of it capable of performing the most amazing feats.

This column isn't just about understanding how a D&D class works. By owning the Player's Handbook we can have a general smattering of the skills for each class. What we want to do is show you how we can make the best of classes by avoiding investing skill points in features that don't interest us, instead aiming to improve the ones we actually need.

Each class can be divided into two separate macro classes:

• "Enchantress" or caster classes such as wizard, druid or bard, who prefer to use their mental characteristics (intelligence, wisdom and charisma) to make their presence known in battle;
• "martial" or fighter classes such as warrior, barbarian or monk, who prefer old and healthy hard-nosed beatings.

There would actually be a third macro class, that is, the one that includes the "hybrid" classes. The "hybrid" classes are those classes that, despite being practically melee (hand-to-hand fighters), possess magical qualities that they can exploit in battle to make their opponents cry, making them regret the day they decided to take the path of evil .
These classes are represented by the Paladin and the Ranger, plus a subclass of the warrior and the thief, but we will return to these later, I'm already going on too long.

Zero to Hero

In this chapter I want to talk to you about the melee class par excellence, the Warrior. The one who took "sword art" and transformed it into a real profession, having almost no rivals.

I'll start with the warrior because it is one of the simplest classes to play if you are a beginner, mind you, I said simple, no longer scarce. Compared to other classes, the Warrior is the one who, in terms of abilities, has the ones with the shortest description ever. A Warrior can do very few things compared to any other class but is the absolute best at doing them.
His combat turn generally goes like this:

• I enter melee (get close to each other) with a creature and beat it until it goes from solid to liquid, then move on to the next;
• If instead I decided to attack him from a distance, I continue to shoot arrows/darts/whatever he throws at him, until I change his breed to porcupine;
  This is the Warrior.

Ability Scores

The Warrior is made to be in battle, he craves it and it is his sole purpose to stay there as long as possible. To do this he needs characteristics set in such a way as to allow him to take the blows well and give back everything he has taken.
I therefore advise you to set the characteristics in this way:

• Strength and Constitution first of all, not only because it has the saving throws (i.e. those scores that can help it resist any effects) but also because they determine its attack rolls ( Strength ) and hit points ( Constitution );
• Dexterity immediately after, because it determines how good he is at hitting with ranged weapons and his turn in the battle initiative (i.e. the turn in the combat phase);
• Wisdom , extremely useful when it comes to noticing things in your surroundings, but also for making informed decisions that aren't: "I'll charge the opposing army myself!" which is quite annoying for the rest of the party (game group).
  Furthermore, most control spells require a Wisdom saving throw and not having this characteristic below 10 is a good thing;
• I would leave Intelligence and Charisma for last, there are people in the party who know how to exploit them better.

If you wanted to make a warrior based on Dexterity instead of Strength you can do so, just reverse the scores and that's it.
But if I invest in Dexterity , what do I do with Strength ?
Excellent question.
In fact, the latter is not only useful for attack rolls and saving throws, but also for wearing heavier armor, given that they require a decent Strength score to be worn.

Ability

During the session (the game) they will often ask you to make skill checks to perform certain actions. Every player, regardless of class, can carry out these tests even if they do not have the specific skills, however the result could be poor.

These skills will be given to you during character creation, choosing from those listed in the aforementioned class. The number may vary based on some factors such as race, subclass, background (your character's history) and any talents. The Warrior has 2 at the time of creation, and will be able to choose between:

• Aerobatics;
• Training animals;
• Athletics;
• Intimidate;
• Intuition;
• Perception;
• Survival;
• History;

The ones that I consider the best for this class are Athletics if you focus on Strength, Acrobatics if you focus on Dexterity and Perception to interact with the surrounding environment, so as to avoid ambushes and to realize the suspicious movements of that guy who claims to be a bum (but who has ever seen a bum with a gold tooth?)

Choose your PC's skills well, they are essential for the success of your game. Yes, it's possible to pass every skill roll they ask you to make if you get a high enough score, even without proficiency, but why push your luck?

Fighting style

Now that we know which statistics and which skills to prioritize for our PC, it's time to make it all happen by choosing the fighting style. The latter is not an indissoluble choice of our PC, but rather a starting point for us players on how we would like to set up our Warrior.
If we wanted to create one that attacks with a bow and arrow, we would choose a fighting style that rewards ranged attacks.
Fighting styles are small bonuses that we get at the beginning of our Warrior career. They are not extremely strong but a solid enough starting point for our PG's growth.
They are divided into offensive styles, such as:

• Fighting with powerful weapons, which allows you to reroll the 1s and 2s on the damage that the Warrior inflicts;
• Dueling, which gives +2 to the damage the Warrior does if he only holds a one-handed weapon;
• Two-Weapon Fighting, which adds the Fighter's ability modifier to the damage of the second attack when holding a weapon in each hand;
• Shooting, which gives you a +2 to attack rolls made with ranged weapons;

And defensive styles, which can be a help for you or your teammates, such as:

• Defense, which gives the Warrior +1 to AC (armor class) as long as he is wearing armor;
• Protection, which gives your Warrior the chance to inflict disadvantage on an enemy's attack roll, when attacking an ally who is 1.5m away from you, if he is holding a shield;

They may seem weak, but as mentioned above they lay the foundation for the Warrior you want to be. Don't underestimate them, because even the most difficult battles are won by one point in the end. That extra point of armor class that allowed you to avoid a deadly attack, the same point that instead allowed you to overcome your opponent's defenses or that extra damage that crashed him to the ground. Small numbers but they decide big things.

Equipment

So, what do we want to use to defeat our enemies?
The Warrior is one of the classes that in terms of equipment is among those with the widest choice.
It has available:

• Simple and war weapons;
• Light, medium and heavy armor;
• Shields;

Personally, with a warrior I prefer a more direct approach, opting for a two-handed heavy weapon or even a weapon in each hand, protecting myself with heavy armor. Nothing stops you from opting for something a little more solid, wielding a shield and a martial weapon while significantly increasing your AC (Armor Class).
In addition to this, a warrior begins his adventure with a decent arsenal of weapons which include:

• A long bow and 20 arrows;
• A light crossbow or two throwing axes;
• An Adventurer or Explorer loadout

In short, a nice arsenal for all situations, after all, you never know how a session can evolve.

Equipment is your calling card, the one that is noticed first by evildoers, and it is right that they know that their name is written on your warhammer.

Talents

Feats are the most fun part of character creation.
However, they are not given to us at the creation of the PC (except for the human), but we could acquire them once we reach levels 4, 8, 12, 14, 16 and 19 of our class. At these levels each character gets increased ability scores, allowing us to increase one of our statistics ( Strength, Dexterity, Constitution etc.) by 2 points or two statistics by 1 point.
Alternatively, you can acquire a talent by choosing it from those listed in the player's manual. They can give you a small bonus to your characteristics, provide you with new skills and new particular actions that cannot be obtained without the talent.
The talents a Warrior needs are different and vary based on our playing style, whether more aggressive or more defensive.
If, like me, you prefer your Warrior to be an unstoppable weapon of war, the talents you need to pay attention to are:

• Charge, you are not barbarians, but nothing stops you from shooting headlong at your enemies. If you use the Dash action by moving at least ten feet in a straight line, you can use a bonus action to take a swing at your target, gaining a +5 to your attack roll. Alternatively, you can push him three meters and, if by chance he finds himself near a ledge... I didn't tell you anything;

• Fighting with two weapons, defense? What is defense? I want to attack and I want to do it often.
  Throw your shield behind you, grab two beautiful weapons of war and throw yourself into the fray. The only thing they will remember about you is your weapon on their teeth;

• Master of Mighty Weapons, for the man who must not aim...EVER! For him a -5 to attack roll and +10 to damage.
  You don't have to worry about your enemy if he's fertilizing the plants now, plus if you were to kill one, why not hit his friend too with a bonus action?

• Sharpshooter, like Master of Mighty Weapons, but it works on ranged weapons, because you don't stoop to enter melee with the rabble. Get yourself a high ground and it will be like shooting ducks at a county fair;

• Wizard Slayer, remind those wizard nerds that they should have spent a few more hours at the gym.
  If they cast a spell near you with a bonus action you hit them, if you hit them while they are concentrating on a spell they have disadvantage on the concentration roll, if they want to cast a spell on you that requires a saving throw while they are near you, you have advantage on saving throw.
  Bullying wizards has never been so fun.

You might think that playing a Warrior isn't just about dealing damage, and you would be right, you would still be seen very badly by everyone.
Luckily we live in a democratic country and each of us has the right to play what we want, even a Warrior who does no damage.
BAH happy you.
Jokes aside, supporting a warrior can be extremely fun, but here too you need to know how to choose the right cartridges.
Personally I would choose:

• Defensive duelist, if we wield weapons that improve with Dexterity, it can be extremely useful, given that we can increase our AC (armor class) by a score equal to our competence bonus;

• Shield Master, the first thing you pick up when you wake up in the morning is your trusty shield? This is the talent for you.
  You can push a 5-foot creature as a bonus action when you attack it, you can use your shield's AC when you make a Dexterity saving throw, and, by overcoming it we will not take any damage.
  In short, you will not have a shield, but a multipurpose object given to the Swiss army;

• Sentinel, simply one of the strongest talents that D&D has made available for a martial class.
  It gives you several benefits:
• The speed of a creature hit by an attack of opportunity is reduced to zero;
• You can hit a target that used the disengage action to move (an action that allows you to leave a creature's attack zone without it trying to hit you);
• You can attack a creature near you that is trying to attack your companion, unless it also has this feat.

Among the myriad of talents that D&D has made available to us, there are some that are extremely useful regardless of the type of game. What I am going to list for you are the best talents that you can acquire whether you are a Wizard, a Warrior or a Barbarian.
Excellent both in the combat and role play phases, these are:

• Lucky: Simply the most broken talent in the entire game.
  It gives you three dice that you can use on any roll they ask you to make, even after knowing the result, potentially turning a failure into a success, with the only limit of three times per day.
  The only thing it can't make is coffee, but if you already have a coffee maker, it makes it so good.

• Sturdy: One of the best choices if you don't plan on defending yourself behind a shield.
  Two hit points at each level may not seem like a lot, but trust me when I tell you that they can save your life.

• Resilient: Is there a saving throw proficiency that they didn't give you but that you really, really, really want? Take it!
  A +1 to an ability and proficiency in that saving throw.
  What more do you want?

The right talent can transform your Warrior into the hero of the crowds, the companion everyone would want by their side. Yes, it's true, only a few are taken, but by taking the right ones you will give even the most expert masters a hard time.

Conclusion

The Warrior is the perfect class for D&D novices, as it has very few things to remember but is extremely functional.
The subclasses can give a little spice to everything but the basic concept will always be the same, yesterday you were zero but today you are a Warrior, if you give me the Hercules quote. Believe in yourself and your sword even more, you couldn't hope to have a better partner.

Thank you for listening to a poor fool who still gets excited talking about the mechanics of a fantasy world.
D&D is not just a game, it is a cognitive experience that helps bring people together, if used in the right way. It helps us all detach ourselves from harsh reality for those few hours when we play someone else. It makes us forget the problems of everyday life that are always there behind our bedroom door, put in stasis, waiting for everything to flow again.
D&D was one of my first loves, it helped me a lot in decidedly less than happy moments of my life and continues to do so a little more every day.
I hope I have been explanatory and clear enough for all players, novices and otherwise, who needed to clarify the mechanics and character builds.
It was a pleasure for me to tell this story which is only just beginning, one chapter is done, 12 to go.

- Uriel