Updated:
07 Dec 2024
Echo Knight is a Fighter subclass that keeps winding up in my articles, because it happens to be my favorite Fighter subclass.
They provide the unique ability of the Echo - an alternate version of yourself that you can summon to aid you in combat (and even sometimes in non combat missions).
As an Echo Knight, you can literally be in two places at once, effectively at will, as it only takes a bonus action to summon an Echo. This ability makes the Echo Knight stand out against all the other Fighter subclasses.
1- The One-Man Army
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Wizards of the Coast
Half-Orcs are a great choice for this build - and the one depicted here is mighty!
To put this really simply, this is a level 20 Echo Knight build designed to make you a very effective combatant. This takes you all the way through the leaving to gain all of the echo knight abilities.
The Echo Knight is a good subclass for multiclassing, but I really enjoy playing it just on its own. It’s really well built, and I find it really fun to play as a solo subclass. It also comes with a lot of abilities to manage, so not having a multiclass on top of it makes it easier to learn and maneuver.
How to play this build:
- I recommend a Strength build and large weapons - but it can be made a Dexterity build
- You can play this as a front-line build, but echoes allow you hang a middle distance away, which is beneficial to your character
- The Echo(es) should always be the closest to enemies
Choose this build if:
- You want to play only a Fighter
- I talk a lot about multiclassing, but I often like to play a Fighter without multiclassing. An Echo Knight is really fun to play and a great option for a subclass for someone who doesn’t want to multiclass
- You fight a lot of enemies when you have combat encounters
- Being able to be in three places at once at really high levels helps you take out enemies especially, but even just being able to split your attention at lower levels can help make combat less overwhelming
- You are playing in an Exandria game
- This is where Echo Knights come from! You can tie yourself into the lore the best with this subclass in an Exandria game
Build details:
- Race: Half-Orc (Player’s Handbook)
- +2 to Strength, +1 to Constitution
- Speed of 30 feet
- Darkvision - Thanks to your orc blood, you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray
- Menacing - You gain proficiency in the Intimidation skill.
- Relentless Endurance - When you are reduced to 0 hit points but not killed outright, you can drop to 1 hit point instead. You can't use this feature again until you finish a long rest.
- Savage Attacks - When you score a critical hit with a melee weapon attack, you can roll one of the weapon's damage dice one additional time and add it to the extra damage of the critical hit
- Stats (in order of importance)
- Strength
- Constitution
- Wisdom
- Intelligence
- Dexterity
- Charisma
- Weapons
- Greatsword
- Maul
- Two handaxes
- Armor
- Chain mail or plate
- Items
- Explorer’s Pack
- Backpack
- Bedroll
- A mess kit
- A tinderbox
- 10 torches
- 10 days of rations
- A waterskin
- 50 ft of hempen rope
- Fighter Levels: 20
- Fighter Abilities
- 1st level
- Fighting Style
- Great Weapon Fighting - When you roll a 1 or 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
- Second Wind - You have a limited well of stamina that you can draw on to protect yourself from harm. On your turn, you can use a bonus action to regain hit points equal to 1d10 + your fighter level.
- Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.
- Fighting Style
- 2nd level
- Action Surge - Starting at 2nd level, you can push yourself beyond your normal limits for a moment. On your turn, you can take one additional action.
- Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.
- Action Surge - Starting at 2nd level, you can push yourself beyond your normal limits for a moment. On your turn, you can take one additional action.
- 3rd level - Subclass Level
- Manifest Echo - At 3rd level, you can use a bonus action to magically manifest an echo of yourself in an unoccupied space you can see within 15 feet of you. This echo is a magical, translucent, gray image of you that lasts until it is destroyed, until you dismiss it as a bonus action, until you manifest another echo, or until you're incapacitated. Your echo has AC 14 + your proficiency bonus, 1 hit point, and immunity to all conditions. If it has to make a saving throw, it uses your saving throw bonus for the roll. It is the same size as you, and it occupies its space. On your turn, you can mentally command the echo to move up to 30 feet in any direction (no action required). If your echo is ever more than 30 feet from you at the end of your turn, it is destroyed.
- As a bonus action, you can teleport, magically swapping places with your echo at a cost of 15 feet of your movement, regardless of the distance between the two of you.
- When you take the Attack action on your turn, any attack you make with that action can originate from your space or the echo's space. You make this choice for each attack.
- When a creature that you can see within 5 feet of your echo moves at least 5 feet away from it, you can use your reaction to make an opportunity attack against that creature as if you were in the echo's space.
- Unleash Incarnation - At 3rd level, you can heighten your echo's fury. Whenever you take the Attack action, you can make one additional melee attack from the echo's position. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Constitution modifier (a minimum of once). You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.
- Manifest Echo - At 3rd level, you can use a bonus action to magically manifest an echo of yourself in an unoccupied space you can see within 15 feet of you. This echo is a magical, translucent, gray image of you that lasts until it is destroyed, until you dismiss it as a bonus action, until you manifest another echo, or until you're incapacitated. Your echo has AC 14 + your proficiency bonus, 1 hit point, and immunity to all conditions. If it has to make a saving throw, it uses your saving throw bonus for the roll. It is the same size as you, and it occupies its space. On your turn, you can mentally command the echo to move up to 30 feet in any direction (no action required). If your echo is ever more than 30 feet from you at the end of your turn, it is destroyed.
- 4th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 5th level
- Extra Attack - You can now attack twice in one action
- 6th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 7th level
- Echo Avatar - Starting at 7th level, you can temporarily transfer your consciousness to your echo. As an action, you can see through your echo's eyes and hear through its ears. During this time, you are deafened and blinded. You can sustain this effect for up to 10 minutes, and you can end it at any time (requires no action). While your echo is being used in this way, it can be up to 1,000 feet away from you without being destroyed.
- 8th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 9th level
- Indomitable - Beginning at 9th level, you can reroll a saving throw that you fail. If you do so, you must use the new roll, and you can't use this feature again until you finish a long rest
- 10th level
- Shadow Martyr - Starting at 10th level, you can make your echo throw itself in front of an attack directed at another creature that you can see. Before the attack roll is made, you can use your reaction to teleport the echo to an unoccupied space within 5 feet of the targeted creature. The attack roll that triggered the reaction is instead made against your echo.
- Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
- Shadow Martyr - Starting at 10th level, you can make your echo throw itself in front of an attack directed at another creature that you can see. Before the attack roll is made, you can use your reaction to teleport the echo to an unoccupied space within 5 feet of the targeted creature. The attack roll that triggered the reaction is instead made against your echo.
- 11th level
- Extra Attack cont. - You can now attack three times per action
- 12th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 13th level
- Indomitable cont. - You can use this ability twice per long rest now
- 14th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 15th level
- Reclaim Potential - By 15th level, you've learned to absorb the fleeting magic of your echo. When an echo of yours is destroyed by taking damage, you can gain a number of temporary hit points equal to 2d6 + your Constitution modifier, provided you don't already have temporary hit points. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Constitution modifier (a minimum of once). You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.
- 16th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 17th level
- Indomitable cont. - You can use this ability three times per long rest now
- 18th level
- Legion of One - At 18th level, you can use a bonus action to create two echos with your Manifest Echo feature, and these echoes can co-exist. If you try to create a third echo, the previous two echoes are destroyed. Anything you can do from one echo's position can be done from the other's instead. In addition, when you roll initiative and have no uses of your Unleash Incarnation feature left, you regain one use of that feature.
- 19th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 20th level
- Extra Attack - you can attack four times per action now
- 1st level
2 - The Low Level
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Wizards of the Coast
Yet another Half-Orc! What can I say, they're just so compatible with Echo Knights!
This is exactly what it sounds like. This is a build of a low-level Echo Knight for low level one shots or for campaigns that start at lower levels. It can actually be harder to build low level characters because this is the foundation of your crazier, higher-level builds. Sometimes it’s easier to see the best outcome rather than the starting point!
The Echo Knight is one of the few subclasses that is really, really great at low levels too. I fully recommend playing one if you’re starting at a lower level, because you can still feel really useful starting out.
How to play this build:
- Make sure to use your ASI to improve your Strength score if it is not an 18 or higher
- Utilize your Echo and hang back from combat. Even as a Fighter (who generally have higher HP), at lower levels it can be easier to go down in combat
Choose this build if:
- You are starting at a low level
- This build is designed to be low level and foundational after all. It probably feels a little redundant to say it but it helps to reiterate the point. Echo Knights are also really strong even at lower levels
- You are playing in a low level oneshot
- Like mentioned above, Echo Knights are really capable, even at lower levels
- You are multiclassing into Fighter and don’t intend to prioritize the Fighter class
- This build gives you enough of the good Fighter skills (a great subclass, an ASI or feat, and Extra Attack) but doesn’t make you make Fighter take the front seat
Build details:
- Race: Half-Orc (this race is good for Fighters in general)
- +2 to Strength, +1 to Constitution
- Speed of 30 feet
- Darkvision - Thanks to your orc blood, you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray
- Menacing - You gain proficiency in the Intimidation skill.
- Relentless Endurance - When you are reduced to 0 hit points but not killed outright, you can drop to 1 hit point instead. You can't use this feature again until you finish a long rest.
- Savage Attacks - When you score a critical hit with a melee weapon attack, you can roll one of the weapon's damage dice one additional time and add it to the extra damage of the critical hit
- Stats (in order of importance)
- Strength
- Constitution
- Wisdom
- Intelligence
- Dexterity
- Charisma
- Weapons
- Greatsword
- Longsword
- Two handaxes
- Armor
- Chain mail
- Items
- Explorer’s Pack
- Backpack
- Bedroll
- A mess kit
- A tinderbox
- 10 torches
- 10 days of rations
- A waterskin
- 50 ft of hempen rope
- Fighter Levels: 5
- Fighter Abilities
- 1st level
- Fighting Style
- Great Weapon Fighting - When you roll a 1 or 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
- Second Wind - You have a limited well of stamina that you can draw on to protect yourself from harm. On your turn, you can use a bonus action to regain hit points equal to 1d10 + your fighter level.
- Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.
- Fighting Style
- 2nd level
- Action Surge - Starting at 2nd level, you can push yourself beyond your normal limits for a moment. On your turn, you can take one additional action.
- Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.
- Action Surge - Starting at 2nd level, you can push yourself beyond your normal limits for a moment. On your turn, you can take one additional action.
- 3rd level - Subclass Level
- Manifest Echo - At 3rd level, you can use a bonus action to magically manifest an echo of yourself in an unoccupied space you can see within 15 feet of you. This echo is a magical, translucent, gray image of you that lasts until it is destroyed, until you dismiss it as a bonus action, until you manifest another echo, or until you're incapacitated. Your echo has AC 14 + your proficiency bonus, 1 hit point, and immunity to all conditions. If it has to make a saving throw, it uses your saving throw bonus for the roll. It is the same size as you, and it occupies its space. On your turn, you can mentally command the echo to move up to 30 feet in any direction (no action required). If your echo is ever more than 30 feet from you at the end of your turn, it is destroyed.
- As a bonus action, you can teleport, magically swapping places with your echo at a cost of 15 feet of your movement, regardless of the distance between the two of you.
- When you take the Attack action on your turn, any attack you make with that action can originate from your space or the echo's space. You make this choice for each attack.
- When a creature that you can see within 5 feet of your echo moves at least 5 feet away from it, you can use your reaction to make an opportunity attack against that creature as if you were in the echo's space.
- Unleash Incarnation - At 3rd level, you can heighten your echo's fury. Whenever you take the Attack action, you can make one additional melee attack from the echo's position. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Constitution modifier (a minimum of once). You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.
- Manifest Echo - At 3rd level, you can use a bonus action to magically manifest an echo of yourself in an unoccupied space you can see within 15 feet of you. This echo is a magical, translucent, gray image of you that lasts until it is destroyed, until you dismiss it as a bonus action, until you manifest another echo, or until you're incapacitated. Your echo has AC 14 + your proficiency bonus, 1 hit point, and immunity to all conditions. If it has to make a saving throw, it uses your saving throw bonus for the roll. It is the same size as you, and it occupies its space. On your turn, you can mentally command the echo to move up to 30 feet in any direction (no action required). If your echo is ever more than 30 feet from you at the end of your turn, it is destroyed.
- 4th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM, but I recommend leveling up your strength
- 5th level
- Extra Attack - You can now attack twice in one action
- 1st level
3 - The Protector
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Wizards of the Coast
Aasimar, though they can sometimes be frightening, are also great protectors! Look at this Aasimar helping a kid!
This is the Echo Knight half of an Echo Knight/Oath of Devotion Paladin multiclass. The Shadow Martyr ability Echo Knights get on top of the varying defensive and buffing things Paladins can do make this a very good build balanced for utility/healing and combat.
This is great for parties with talented casters but no healer, or a party of people that require a lot of healing (lower hit point maximums). Fighter/Paladin can also be a very, very fun build to play when well balanced.
How to play this build:
- This can be a front-line build, but try to be close enough to allies that your abilities of protection are actually beneficial for them
- This build is an even 10/10 split, level up each class in an alternating pattern
Choose this build if:
- You have a lot of “squishy” characters in your party
- Squishy party members are PCs with lower hit point maximums that go down quicker and easier. Making a build that can help balance that out by both being able to take hits and keep your squishy members from taking as much damage makes combat more manageable
- You fight a lot of heavy hitting enemies
- Even if your party isn’t super squishy, it can be really nice to have someone help offset some of the damage dealt by particularly harsh enemies
- You fight a lot of enemies in general
- This can help offset large amounts of damage dealt because everyone has to split their attention between several enemies at once
Build details:
- Race: Aasimar (Protector) (Volo’s Guide to Monsters)
- +2 to Charisma
- 30 ft speed
- Darkvision - Blessed with a radiant soul, your vision can easily cut through darkness. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.
- Celestial Resistance. You have resistance to necrotic damage and radiant damage.
- Healing Hands. As an action, you can touch a creature and cause it to regain a number of hit points equal to your level. Once you use this trait, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.
- Light Bearer. You know the Light cantrip. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it
- Protector subrace
- +1 Wisdom
- Radiant Soul - Starting at 3rd level, you can use your action to unleash the divine energy within yourself, causing your eyes to glimmer and two luminous, incorporeal wings to sprout from your back.
- Your transformation lasts for 1 minute or until you end it as a bonus action. During it, you have a flying speed of 30 feet, and once on each of your turns, you can deal extra radiant damage to one target when you deal damage to it with an attack or a spell. The extra radiant damage equals your level.
- Once you use this trait, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest
- Stats (in order of importance)
- Strength
- Charisma
- Constitution
- Wisdom
- Dexterity
- Intelligence
- Weapons (from the Fighter options)
- Longsword
- Two Handaxes
- Armor
- Chain mail or plate
- Items (from the Fighter options)
- Explorer’s Pack
- Backpack
- Bedroll
- A mess kit
- A tinderbox
- 10 torches
- 10 days of rations
- A waterskin
- 50 ft of hempen rope
- Shield
- Fighter Levels: 10
- Fighter Abilities
- Level 1
- Fighting Style
- Interception (TCE) - When a creature you can see hits a target, other than you, within 5 feet of you with an attack, you can use your reaction to reduce the damage the target takes by 1d10 + your proficiency bonus (to a minimum of 0 damage). You must be wielding a shield or a simple or martial weapon to use this reaction
- Second Wind - You have a limited well of stamina that you can draw on to protect yourself from harm. On your turn, you can use a bonus action to regain hit points equal to 1d10 + your fighter level.
- Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.
- Fighting Style
- 2nd level
- Action Surge - Starting at 2nd level, you can push yourself beyond your normal limits for a moment. On your turn, you can take one additional action.
- Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.
- Action Surge - Starting at 2nd level, you can push yourself beyond your normal limits for a moment. On your turn, you can take one additional action.
- 3rd level - Subclass Level
- Manifest Echo - At 3rd level, you can use a bonus action to magically manifest an echo of yourself in an unoccupied space you can see within 15 feet of you. This echo is a magical, translucent, gray image of you that lasts until it is destroyed, until you dismiss it as a bonus action, until you manifest another echo, or until you're incapacitated. Your echo has AC 14 + your proficiency bonus, 1 hit point, and immunity to all conditions. If it has to make a saving throw, it uses your saving throw bonus for the roll. It is the same size as you, and it occupies its space. On your turn, you can mentally command the echo to move up to 30 feet in any direction (no action required). If your echo is ever more than 30 feet from you at the end of your turn, it is destroyed.
- As a bonus action, you can teleport, magically swapping places with your echo at a cost of 15 feet of your movement, regardless of the distance between the two of you.
- When you take the Attack action on your turn, any attack you make with that action can originate from your space or the echo's space. You make this choice for each attack.
- When a creature that you can see within 5 feet of your echo moves at least 5 feet away from it, you can use your reaction to make an opportunity attack against that creature as if you were in the echo's space.
- Unleash Incarnation - At 3rd level, you can heighten your echo's fury. Whenever you take the Attack action, you can make one additional melee attack from the echo's position. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Constitution modifier (a minimum of once). You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.
- Manifest Echo - At 3rd level, you can use a bonus action to magically manifest an echo of yourself in an unoccupied space you can see within 15 feet of you. This echo is a magical, translucent, gray image of you that lasts until it is destroyed, until you dismiss it as a bonus action, until you manifest another echo, or until you're incapacitated. Your echo has AC 14 + your proficiency bonus, 1 hit point, and immunity to all conditions. If it has to make a saving throw, it uses your saving throw bonus for the roll. It is the same size as you, and it occupies its space. On your turn, you can mentally command the echo to move up to 30 feet in any direction (no action required). If your echo is ever more than 30 feet from you at the end of your turn, it is destroyed.
- 4th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 5th level
- Extra Attack - You can now attack twice in one action
- 6th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 7th level
- Echo Avatar - Starting at 7th level, you can temporarily transfer your consciousness to your echo. As an action, you can see through your echo's eyes and hear through its ears. During this time, you are deafened and blinded. You can sustain this effect for up to 10 minutes, and you can end it at any time (requires no action). While your echo is being used in this way, it can be up to 1,000 feet away from you without being destroyed.
- 8th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 9th level
- Indomitable - Beginning at 9th level, you can reroll a saving throw that you fail. If you do so, you must use the new roll, and you can't use this feature again until you finish a long rest
- 10th level
- Shadow Martyr - Starting at 10th level, you can make your echo throw itself in front of an attack directed at another creature that you can see. Before the attack roll is made, you can use your reaction to teleport the echo to an unoccupied space within 5 feet of the targeted creature. The attack roll that triggered the reaction is instead made against your echo.
- Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
- Shadow Martyr - Starting at 10th level, you can make your echo throw itself in front of an attack directed at another creature that you can see. Before the attack roll is made, you can use your reaction to teleport the echo to an unoccupied space within 5 feet of the targeted creature. The attack roll that triggered the reaction is instead made against your echo.
- Level 1
4 - The Steppe Archer
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Wizards of the Coast
Verin Thelyss is an Echo Knight, and a high ranking one at that. Not much is known about him, but it's nice to put a face to a subclass. He's a Drow - the most compatible race with this build - to boot!
This is the obligatory Dexterity build. I have decided to call it The Steppe Archer because the inspiration was the Mongolian archers of the Steppe! Which means this build can be (and should be) designed for mounted combat as much as archery. Like two other builds on this list, this build is designed to get you to level 20 with Echo Knight.
This build is really good for an Exandria campaign. You could build a very interesting Echo Knight that ties into that world if you pick this build.
How to play this build:
- Get a mount! Whether it be a moorbounder or a horse, a mount really makes this build
- If you do not have that mount, try to stay away from enemies. Without the mount this is not a front-line build
Choose this build if:
- You are playing in an Exandria campaign
- You can tie yourself into the Kryn Dynasty by making yourself a soldier and getting a moorbounder! Great for world building and Echo Knights are the best Fighter choice in that setting
- You prefer Dexterity builds
- This is a really reliable, damage dealing Dexterity build that will make playing this subclass better for your preferences
- You want a new approach to Echo Knights
- I like to play Strength based Echo Knights, but this is a good way to change things up! As said before, this build is very skilled and capable
Build details:
- Race: Drow
- Charisma +1
- Superior Darkvision. Your darkvision has a range of 120 feet, instead of 60.
- Sunlight Sensitivity - You have disadvantage on attack rolls and Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight when you, the target of the attack, or whatever you are trying to perceive is in direct sunlight.
- Drow Magic - You know the Dancing Lights cantrip. When you reach 3rd level, you can cast the Faerie Fire spell once with this trait and regain the ability to do so when you finish a long rest. When you reach 5th level, you can cast the Darkness spell once and regain the ability to do so when you finish a long rest. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for these spells
- Drow Weapon Training - You have proficiency with rapiers, shortswords, and hand crossbows
- Stats (in order of importance)
- Dexterity
- Constitution
- Wisdom
- Intelligence
- Strength
- Charisma
- Weapons
- Longbow with 20 arrows
- Rapier
- Shortsword
- Light crossbow with 20 bolts
- Armor
- Leather
- Items
- Explorer’s Pack
- Backpack
- Bedroll
- A mess kit
- A tinderbox
- 10 torches
- 10 days of rations
- A waterskin
- 50 ft of hempen rope
- Fighter Levels: 20
- Fighter Abilities
- 1st level
- Fighting Style
- Archery (PHB) - You gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls you make with ranged weapons
- Second Wind - You have a limited well of stamina that you can draw on to protect yourself from harm. On your turn, you can use a bonus action to regain hit points equal to 1d10 + your fighter level.
- Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.
- Fighting Style
- 2nd level
- Action Surge - Starting at 2nd level, you can push yourself beyond your normal limits for a moment. On your turn, you can take one additional action.
- Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.
- Action Surge - Starting at 2nd level, you can push yourself beyond your normal limits for a moment. On your turn, you can take one additional action.
- 3rd level - Subclass Level
- Manifest Echo - At 3rd level, you can use a bonus action to magically manifest an echo of yourself in an unoccupied space you can see within 15 feet of you. This echo is a magical, translucent, gray image of you that lasts until it is destroyed, until you dismiss it as a bonus action, until you manifest another echo, or until you're incapacitated. Your echo has AC 14 + your proficiency bonus, 1 hit point, and immunity to all conditions. If it has to make a saving throw, it uses your saving throw bonus for the roll. It is the same size as you, and it occupies its space. On your turn, you can mentally command the echo to move up to 30 feet in any direction (no action required). If your echo is ever more than 30 feet from you at the end of your turn, it is destroyed.
- As a bonus action, you can teleport, magically swapping places with your echo at a cost of 15 feet of your movement, regardless of the distance between the two of you.
- When you take the Attack action on your turn, any attack you make with that action can originate from your space or the echo's space. You make this choice for each attack.
- When a creature that you can see within 5 feet of your echo moves at least 5 feet away from it, you can use your reaction to make an opportunity attack against that creature as if you were in the echo's space.
- Unleash Incarnation - At 3rd level, you can heighten your echo's fury. Whenever you take the Attack action, you can make one additional melee attack from the echo's position. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Constitution modifier (a minimum of once). You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.
- Manifest Echo - At 3rd level, you can use a bonus action to magically manifest an echo of yourself in an unoccupied space you can see within 15 feet of you. This echo is a magical, translucent, gray image of you that lasts until it is destroyed, until you dismiss it as a bonus action, until you manifest another echo, or until you're incapacitated. Your echo has AC 14 + your proficiency bonus, 1 hit point, and immunity to all conditions. If it has to make a saving throw, it uses your saving throw bonus for the roll. It is the same size as you, and it occupies its space. On your turn, you can mentally command the echo to move up to 30 feet in any direction (no action required). If your echo is ever more than 30 feet from you at the end of your turn, it is destroyed.
- 4th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 5th level
- Extra Attack - You can now attack twice in one action
- 6th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 7th level
- Echo Avatar - Starting at 7th level, you can temporarily transfer your consciousness to your echo. As an action, you can see through your echo's eyes and hear through its ears. During this time, you are deafened and blinded. You can sustain this effect for up to 10 minutes, and you can end it at any time (requires no action). While your echo is being used in this way, it can be up to 1,000 feet away from you without being destroyed.
- 8th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 9th level
- Indomitable - Beginning at 9th level, you can reroll a saving throw that you fail. If you do so, you must use the new roll, and you can't use this feature again until you finish a long rest
- 10th level
- Shadow Martyr - Starting at 10th level, you can make your echo throw itself in front of an attack directed at another creature that you can see. Before the attack roll is made, you can use your reaction to teleport the echo to an unoccupied space within 5 feet of the targeted creature. The attack roll that triggered the reaction is instead made against your echo.
- Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
- Shadow Martyr - Starting at 10th level, you can make your echo throw itself in front of an attack directed at another creature that you can see. Before the attack roll is made, you can use your reaction to teleport the echo to an unoccupied space within 5 feet of the targeted creature. The attack roll that triggered the reaction is instead made against your echo.
- 11th level
- Extra Attack cont. - You can now attack three times per action
- 12th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 13th level
- Indomitable cont. - You can use this ability twice per long rest now
- 14th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 15th level
- Reclaim Potential - By 15th level, you've learned to absorb the fleeting magic of your echo. When an echo of yours is destroyed by taking damage, you can gain a number of temporary hit points equal to 2d6 + your Constitution modifier, provided you don't already have temporary hit points. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Constitution modifier (a minimum of once). You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.
- 16th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 17th level
- Indomitable cont. - You can use this ability three times per long rest now
- 18th level
- Legion of One - At 18th level, you can use a bonus action to create two echos with your Manifest Echo feature, and these echoes can co-exist. If you try to create a third echo, the previous two echoes are destroyed. Anything you can do from one echo's position can be done from the other's instead. In addition, when you roll initiative and have no uses of your Unleash Incarnation feature left, you regain one use of that feature.
- 19th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 20th level
- Extra Attack - you can attack four times per action now
- 1st level
5 - The Mage Slayer
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Wizards of the Coast
Humans can be kind of inevitable in FIghter builds, and they make the most sense for this one!
This build is inspired by the feat Mage Slayer, and it is intended to deal with magic enemies better. Being a martial character can be difficult in magic heavy campaigns, and this build could help you handle it.
This comes with a lot of fun roleplay opportunities. Making a character heavily against magic or one who was actively trained to compete with it can come with a lot of really interesting plot hooks you and your DM can come up with together.
How to play this build:
- I recommend a Strength build and large weapons
- This is very much a front-line build
Choose this build if:
- You are playing in a magic heavy campaign
- A Mage Slayer build is going to help you target magic casting enemies much easier and tackle combat more successfully
- Your party needs a front line combatant
- This build is a good way to put yourself right in the thralls of danger and know you’ll still be capable enough to handle it
- You want to play a unique human
- Humans can be kind of hard to make interesting, but with the backstory plots you could give yourself with this, you could find a unique way to play a human that can otherwise be kind of boring
Build details:
- Race: Variant Human
- Speed of 30 ft
- +1 to two different ability scores
- Skills - You get a free proficiency for one skill of your choice
- Feat - You choose a free feat
- Mage Slayer - You have practiced techniques in melee combat against spellcasters, gaining the following benefits.
- When a creature within 5 feet of you casts a spell, you can use your reaction to make a melee weapon attack against that creature.
- When you damage a creature that is concentrating on a spell, that creature has disadvantage on the saving throw it makes to maintain its concentration.
- You have advantage on saving throws against spells cast by creatures within 5 feet of you
- Mage Slayer - You have practiced techniques in melee combat against spellcasters, gaining the following benefits.
- Stats (in order of importance)
- Strength
- Constitution
- Wisdom
- Intelligence
- Dexterity
- Charisma
- Weapons
- Greatsword
- Glaive
- Two handaxes
- Armor
- Chain mail or plate
- Items
- Explorer’s Pack
- Backpack
- Bedroll
- A mess kit
- A tinderbox
- 10 torches
- 10 days of rations
- A waterskin
- 50 ft of hempen rope
- Fighter Levels: 20
- Fighter Abilities
- 1st level
- Fighting Style
- Great Weapon Fighting - When you roll a 1 or 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
- Second Wind - You have a limited well of stamina that you can draw on to protect yourself from harm. On your turn, you can use a bonus action to regain hit points equal to 1d10 + your fighter level.
- Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.
- Fighting Style
- 2nd level
- Action Surge - Starting at 2nd level, you can push yourself beyond your normal limits for a moment. On your turn, you can take one additional action.
- Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.
- Action Surge - Starting at 2nd level, you can push yourself beyond your normal limits for a moment. On your turn, you can take one additional action.
- 3rd level - Subclass Level
- Manifest Echo - At 3rd level, you can use a bonus action to magically manifest an echo of yourself in an unoccupied space you can see within 15 feet of you. This echo is a magical, translucent, gray image of you that lasts until it is destroyed, until you dismiss it as a bonus action, until you manifest another echo, or until you're incapacitated. Your echo has AC 14 + your proficiency bonus, 1 hit point, and immunity to all conditions. If it has to make a saving throw, it uses your saving throw bonus for the roll. It is the same size as you, and it occupies its space. On your turn, you can mentally command the echo to move up to 30 feet in any direction (no action required). If your echo is ever more than 30 feet from you at the end of your turn, it is destroyed.
- As a bonus action, you can teleport, magically swapping places with your echo at a cost of 15 feet of your movement, regardless of the distance between the two of you.
- When you take the Attack action on your turn, any attack you make with that action can originate from your space or the echo's space. You make this choice for each attack.
- When a creature that you can see within 5 feet of your echo moves at least 5 feet away from it, you can use your reaction to make an opportunity attack against that creature as if you were in the echo's space.
- Unleash Incarnation - At 3rd level, you can heighten your echo's fury. Whenever you take the Attack action, you can make one additional melee attack from the echo's position. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Constitution modifier (a minimum of once). You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.
- Manifest Echo - At 3rd level, you can use a bonus action to magically manifest an echo of yourself in an unoccupied space you can see within 15 feet of you. This echo is a magical, translucent, gray image of you that lasts until it is destroyed, until you dismiss it as a bonus action, until you manifest another echo, or until you're incapacitated. Your echo has AC 14 + your proficiency bonus, 1 hit point, and immunity to all conditions. If it has to make a saving throw, it uses your saving throw bonus for the roll. It is the same size as you, and it occupies its space. On your turn, you can mentally command the echo to move up to 30 feet in any direction (no action required). If your echo is ever more than 30 feet from you at the end of your turn, it is destroyed.
- 4th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 5th level
- Extra Attack - You can now attack twice in one action
- 6th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 7th level
- Echo Avatar - Starting at 7th level, you can temporarily transfer your consciousness to your echo. As an action, you can see through your echo's eyes and hear through its ears. During this time, you are deafened and blinded. You can sustain this effect for up to 10 minutes, and you can end it at any time (requires no action). While your echo is being used in this way, it can be up to 1,000 feet away from you without being destroyed.
- 8th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 9th level
- Indomitable - Beginning at 9th level, you can reroll a saving throw that you fail. If you do so, you must use the new roll, and you can't use this feature again until you finish a long rest
- 10th level
- Shadow Martyr - Starting at 10th level, you can make your echo throw itself in front of an attack directed at another creature that you can see. Before the attack roll is made, you can use your reaction to teleport the echo to an unoccupied space within 5 feet of the targeted creature. The attack roll that triggered the reaction is instead made against your echo.
- Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
- Shadow Martyr - Starting at 10th level, you can make your echo throw itself in front of an attack directed at another creature that you can see. Before the attack roll is made, you can use your reaction to teleport the echo to an unoccupied space within 5 feet of the targeted creature. The attack roll that triggered the reaction is instead made against your echo.
- 11th level
- Extra Attack cont. - You can now attack three times per action
- 12th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 13th level
- Indomitable cont. - You can use this ability twice per long rest now
- 14th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 15th level
- Reclaim Potential - By 15th level, you've learned to absorb the fleeting magic of your echo. When an echo of yours is destroyed by taking damage, you can gain a number of temporary hit points equal to 2d6 + your Constitution modifier, provided you don't already have temporary hit points. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Constitution modifier (a minimum of once). You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.
- 16th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 17th level
- Indomitable cont. - You can use this ability three times per long rest now
- 18th level
- Legion of One - At 18th level, you can use a bonus action to create two echos with your Manifest Echo feature, and these echoes can co-exist. If you try to create a third echo, the previous two echoes are destroyed. Anything you can do from one echo's position can be done from the others instead. In addition, when you roll initiative and have no uses of your Unleash Incarnation feature left, you regain one use of that feature.
- 19th level - Ability Score Improvement
- Can take a feat instead with permission from the DM
- 20th level
- Extra Attack - you can attack four times per action now
- 1st level
All ability descriptions are credited to Wizards of The Coast.
