The Fighter Class

Fighter

Hit Dice: 1d6+2 (+3 hp per level after 9^th level.)

Armor: Any armor, shields.

Weapons: Any weapons.

Skills: Fighters are skilled at feats of strength and endurance.  A fighter may select up to three additional skill areas.

Class Features

Applied Force: A fighter adds her full Strength bonus to her attack rolls as well as to her damage rolls.

Dominate: Against creatures with one hit die or less, a fighter makes one attack per level each round.

Weapon Mastery: At first level, the fighter selects one class of weapons: axe, bows, club, crossbows, dagger, darts, flail, mace, pole arm, sling, spear, sword, and two-handed sword.   She receives a +1 bonus to hit and damage with these weapons.  This increases to +1/+2 at 3^rd level; +2/+2  damage at 5^th level; +2/+3 at 7^th level; and +3/+3 at 9^th level.

Alternatively, the fighter can select a new weapon group at 5^th level (and/or 9^th level), gaining a +1/+1 with the new group, which increases to +1/+2 at 7^th level.  Either group, or a new group, may be advanced at 9^th level.

Parry: At 3^rd level, the fighter gains the ability to parry, adding her base to-hit bonus to her armor class.  She cannot attack on any round that she parries.

Shield-bearer: At 7^th level, a fighter gains a 1^st-level fighter henchman.  If the squire dies, another will replace him the next time the fighter gains a level, depending on the circumstances surrounding the death of the previous squire(s).  Frequent or suspicious deaths are likely to incur repercussions, particularly if the shield-bearer is from a powerful household.

Stronghold: At 9^th level the fighter may establish (or have conferred upon her) a stronghold and with it a body of loyal men-at-arms who will swear fealty to her. 

Flurry of Steel: At 11^th level, the fighter gains a second attack per round.  If she chooses to parry instead, she gain an additional +2 bonus to her parry bonus.

(The terms advantage, knack, and skilled are defined on the Game Design page above.  The license for this entry is located in the Legal page above.)

On Classes: Martial classes

I'm a "iconic concept" sort of guy when it comes to class design.  Every class should express a core, iconic concept clearly and as simply as possible, and without infringing on other classes except by design.

At the moment, I've come up with four martial/warrior classes, with the potential for at least three more.  They all share the same save progression, to-hit chart, and hit points (yes, even the barbarian), but they do different things.

The fighter is the most generic.  She gets a weapon mastery bonus that slowly progresses as the character levels up; this bonus can be applied to one, two, or three weapon groups.  Concentrating on one weapon gives the highest bonus.  She also has strong defensive ability that can be used in place of an attack, and finally gains a second attack per round.  Fighters can also apply their Strength bonus to their to-hit chance, currently the only class that can do so.

Barbarians don't gain weapon mastery, but they do rage.  This gives a bonus equal or better than the fighter's, but has a limited duration and some potentially serious penalties as well.  Barbarians are also the best at slaughtering massed hordes of weaker creatures, with cleave and whirlwind of steel abilities.

Rangers are the implacable foe, and gain a bonus versus certain types of opponents.  The bonus and number of opponents increases at 5th and 9th level, both to reflect the ranger's increasing expertise and the likelihood of encountering certain creature types.  This bonus applies not only to attacks and damage, but saves and checks as well.  The creature types can easily be changed in different campaigns: evil or outlaw humans, monstrous humanoids, monstrous creatures, spellcasters, etc.

Paladins are the divine opponents of supernatural evil, and hew reasonably close to what's been done before.

Knights, soldiers, and swashbucklers aren't fully defined at the moment, but the concepts are visible.  If barbarians are the masters of brute combat, knights are the elite one-on-fighters of the battlefields, duking it out with the big bad boss monster.  Soldiers are tough, adaptable survivors - sturdy and reliable.  Swashbucklers emphasize dexterity and movement over force and stamina - the chief problem with this class is that it could be very similar to the fighter in execution.