Welcome back to the weekly Tabletop Games thread! This thread is where we can talk about all kinds of RPGs, card games, board games, etc. Whether you gather around a physical table in the real world, or use a virtual space to play with friends who may live far away from you, this is where you can discuss your favorites, ask for and/or receive recommendations, recap your recent adventures, or even find some people to play games with!

Discussion Prompt: This week I’m taking a look at the 5.5e Fighter class.

The Fighter is kind of the default option for a D&D adventurer, and is one of the simplest classes to play. They’re built to swing their sword (or axe, or hammer, or what-have-you) in combat and not do a whole lot else. The new PHB gives Fighters a little more tactical complexity and non-combat utility, though they still remain one of the easier classes to learn.

Notably, of all the classes, the Fighter gets the most use out of the new Weapon Mastery system. They start with 3 masteries at level 1, and eventually scale up to 6, plus they can swap out one at every long rest. There will be very little reason to ever use a weapon without using its mastery property. And at higher levels, the Tactical Master ability means Fighters can always choose to use the effects of the Push, Sap, or Slow mastery no matter what weapon they use.

Fighters also get their bonus action self-heal ability, Second Wind, at 1st level and now have multiple uses of it per long rest. As you level up, you can expend uses of Second Wind for different effects. For instance, at level 2, Tactical Mind lets you use Second Wind to get a bonus to an ability check. At level 5, Tactical Shift lets you move without provoking opportunity attacks any time you activate Second Wind.

The Fighter still gets more attacks per action and more feats than any other class in the game. The Champion subclass is still largely defined by passive abilities that make the Fighter hit harder. The Battle Master provides even more options in combat that could stack with Weapon Mastery for some super fun effects. The Eldritch Knight combines martial prowess with spellslinging, and the Psi Warrior gives your Fighter a psionic flavor.

Share your thoughts about Fighters in any edition of D&D, or similar characters from other games, in the comments!

If you would like to suggest a prompt or contribute a write-up or discussion topic of your own, let me know in the comments!