Elemental Pugilist (5e Class)

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Elemental Pugilist

Elemental Pugilists are warriors of (primarily) magical hand-to-hand combat. They get their power through a diety or demon who, more often than not, chose them at a time where these magics were needed. Demons are more likely to make these deals for power over the recipient, though Pugilists of the gods are not unheard of. Most Pugilists make deals with demons who ask little in return, though not all have that luxury. Tieflings are often found with these abilities for this reason though other races have sported flaming hands before.

Creating an Elemental Pugilist

An Elemental Pugilist would typically be a strong, capable fighter (not that one) who is unafraid of combat. They would either seek out a demon or diety seeking power, or find themselves in a predicament where a curious eye could intervene.

Quick Build

You can make a Pugilist quickly by following these suggestions. First, Strength should be your highest ability score, followed by Charisma. Second, choose the Outlander background. Third, choose your preferred Light Armour, and an element that makes sense for your character - do they enjoy the crackle of a good fire? Are they more adapted to the cold of the mountains?

Class Features

As a Elemental Pugilist you gain the following class features.

Hit Points

Hit Dice: 1d8 per Elemental Pugilist level
Hit Points at 1st Level: 1d8 + Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d8 (or 5) + Constitution modifier per Elemental Pugilist level after 1st

Proficiencies

Armor: Light
Weapons: Simple
Tools: None
Saving Throws: Strength and Constitution
Skills: Choose 2 from the following; Arcana, Athletics, Intimidation, Nature, Perception, Persuasion, Religion, Survival, and Stealth.

Equipment

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

• Leather Armor
• (a) spear or (b) Any simple weapons
• (a) Explorer's Pack or (b) Scholar's Pack

Table: The Elemental Pugilist

Level	Proficiency Bonus	Improved Unarmed Combat	Features	Spells Known	—Spell Slots per Spell Level—
					1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th
1st	+2	1d4	Elemental Combat, Elemental Stream	—	—	—	—	—	—
2nd	+2	1d4	Spellcasting,Primordial Smite,	2	2	—	—	—	—
3rd	+2	1d4	Combat School	3	3	—	—	—	—
4th	+2	1d4	Ability Score Improvement	3	3	—	—	—	—
5th	+3	1d4	Extra Attack	4	4	2	—	—	—
6th	+3	1d6	Shield of Energy, Primal Magic	4	4	2	—	—	—
7th	+3	1d6	Combat School	5	4	3	—	—	—
8th	+3	1d6	Ability Score Improvement	5	4	3	—	—	—
9th	+4	1d6	—	6	4	3	2	—	—
10th	+4	1d6	Elemental Ride	6	4	3	2	—	—
11th	+4	1d8	Primeval Limb	7	4	3	3	—	—
12th	+4	1d8	Ability Score Improvement	7	4	3	3	—	—
13th	+5	1d8	—	8	4	3	3	1	—
14th	+5	1d8	Elemental Tolerance	8	4	3	3	1	—
15th	+5	1d8	Combat School	9	4	3	3	2	—
16th	+5	1d8	Ability Score Improvement	9	4	3	3	2	—
17th	+6	1d10	—	10	4	3	3	3	1
18th	+6	1d10	Elemental Ride Improvement	10	4	3	3	3	1
19th	+6	1d10	Ability Score Improvement	11	4	3	3	3	2
20th	+6	1d10	Combat School Feature	11	4	3	3	3	2

Elemental Combat

Elemental Combat At 1st level, you begin you start to control the elements, combining them with your unarmed combat to create a unique martial style. You gain the folloing benefits:

Elemental Attunement. You can attune with the elements that surround you. At the first level, you can choose one bettween the four elements: fire, air, water or earth. You can choose, alternatively, to attune to an specific element. The type of element you chose is used by features you gain later.

Variant Rule: You can chose to attune to a damage type chosen between the following: acid, fire, lighting, thunder or cold. All features related to an element will use the chosen damage type as the basis for the damage dealt and to resistances or immunities.

Unarmed Combat. You learn how to use your unarmed strikes efficiently. You can roll a d4 in place of the normal damage of your unarmed strikes. This die changes as you level up in this class, as shown in the Elemental Combat table.

Elemental Strike. You can use your elemental combat die to make elemental strikes. You can use this die in each of your turns to add to your unarmed strike damage. Also, you can forgo your attacks during the attack action to make a special ranged spell attack, adding your charisma modifier to the damage of the attack. The type of damage is determined by your elemental attunement.

Elemental Attunement Table Element Damage Type Damage Resistance Fire Fire Cold Water Slashing Acid Earth Bludgeoning Slashing Air Bludgeoning Lightning Elemental Stream Starting at 1st level, you can use a bonus action to magically control the elements around you, creating an elemental stream. You can use this feature twice. You regain expended uses when you finish a short or long rest. The stream is a elemental mass, in constant orbit around you, lasting until for 1 hour, until you dismiss it as a bonus action, until you manifest another stream or until you're incapacitated. The stream has a number of hit points equal to your level x 5 and is resistant to the type of damage indicated by the Elemental Attunement table. The stream is immune to all conditions, and if it has to make a saving throw, it uses your saving throw bonus for the roll. On your turn, you can cause the stream to move up to 30 feet in any direction (no action required). Controlling the stream requires at least one free use of one hand. If the stream is ever more than 60 feet away from you at the end of your turn, it is destroyed. The elemental stream is amorphous, being able to move trough a space narrow as 1 inch wide without squeezing. You can use the stream in the following ways: While the stream occupies your space, it provides you half cover. You can cast your Elemental Pugilist spells as though you were in the elemental spirit space, but you must use your own senses. While the elemental stream is within 5 feet of a creature (including you), every damage taken by that creature is divided equally between her and your elemental spirit. Spellcasting By the time you reach 2nd level, you have learned to call forth the elemental magic from the natural forces around you to cast spells. Spell Slots The pugilist table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these spells, you must expend a slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest. For example, if you know the 1st-level spell burning hands and have a 1st-level and a 2nd-level spell slot available, you can cast burning hands using either slot. Spells Known of 2nd Level and Higher You know two 1st-level spells of your choice from the pugilist spell list. The Spells Known column of the pugilist table shows when you learn more pugilist spells of your choice. Each of these spells must be of a level for which you have spell slots. For instance, when you reach 5th level in this class, you can learn one new spell of 1st or 2nd level. Additionally, when you gain a level in this class, you can choose one of the pugilist spells you know and replace it with another spell from the pugilist spell list, which also must be of a level for which you have spell slots. Spellcasting Ability Charisma is your spellcasting ability for your pugilist spells, since you control the elements by bending them to your will. You use your Charisma whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Charisma modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a pugilist spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one. Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier Primordial Smite At the 2nd level, when you hit a creature with a unarmed strike, you can expend one spell slot to deal extra damage to the target, in addition to the unarmed strike damage. The extra damage is 2d8 for a 1st-level spell slot, plus 1d8 for each spell level higher than 1st, to a maximum of 5d8. You can choose the type of damage from the any type you can use on your Elemental Combat feature. Combat School At 3rd level, you have to specialize in one school of combat that will define your fighting style for now on. Choose one of the following schools: School of the Primordial Fist. School of the Storm Fighter The Combat School you chose grants you features at 3rd level and again at 7th, 15th and 20th levels. 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. Extra Attack Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn. Primal Magic At 6th level, your unarmed strikes count as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage. Shield of Energy At 6th level, you can use your Elemental Stream to protect you and your allies. As a reaction, choose a creature you can see within 60 feet that has taken damage. The damage taken is reduced by the number of hit points your Elemental Stream currently has. Elemental Ride At 10th level, you gain the ability to use your Elemental Stream to boost your movement. While summoned and within 5 feet of you, you can use your bonus action to dash. This movement ignore difficult terrain. At 18th level, you can use your Elemental Ride in all creatures within 5 feet of you. Primeval Limb At 11th level, you can master your control over the elements. As a bonus action, you can make an melee weapon attack from your stream position. It deals damage equal to your elemental combat die and, on a hit, you can chose to shove or grapple a creature. You use your Charisma and add your proficiency bonus to the contested check. A creature grappled by your primeval limb take your Elemental Combat damage on the end of each of his turns. All other rules still apply as normal. Elemental Tolerance At the 14th level, you can shield yourself from any harm caused by elements. You become resistant to the damage type related to the element you are attuned with. Elemental Pugilist Spell List 1st Level burning hands, chromatic orb, feather fall, hellish rebuke, thunderwave, jump, grease, absorb elements, create or destroy water 2nd Level barkskin, acid arrow, blur, flaming sphere, gust of wind, heat metal, scorching ray 3rd Level elemental weapon, gaseous form, fireball, fly, wind wall, water walk, protection from energy 4th Level fire shield, control water, ice storm, stoneskin, wall of fire 5th Level flame strike, cone of cold, wall of stone, telekinesis Multiclassing Prerequisites. To qualify for multiclassing into the Elemental Pugilist class, you must meet these prerequisites: Strength and Charisma 13 Proficiencies. When you multiclass into the Elemental Pugilist class, you gain the following proficiencies: Intimidation and Religion Elemental Pugilist Schools Primordial Fist <descriptive text> 3rd level feature When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you begin your journey to master all the elements. You can learn a second element to control, and when you summon your Elemental Stream, you can choose what element to use, without taking an action. 7th level feature 15th level feature 20th level feature Storm Fighter <descriptive text> Rain Child When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you can constantly feel the presence of the Storm God. You have now attunement to lighting and thunder damage types, for the purposes of using your Elemental Pugilist features. Additionally, the storm fighter can detect the approach of a natural storm 24 hours in advance of it reaching the character's current location. Storm Warrior At 3rd level, you learn how to summon the power of the storm. As a bonus action, you can spend one use of your Elemental Stream to become the storm warrior. For 10 minutes, you can add a bonus equal to your Charisma modifier to all your unarmed strikes. One with the strom At 7th level, you can walk through natural or magical storms at your regular speed, completely unaffected by high winds (including magically or psionically created high winds), pounding precipitation or waves, objects driven by the wind (which always seem to miss you), great claps of thunder, natural bolts of lightning, or any other natural storm phenomena. In addition, you gain a flying speed equal to your walking movement. You must end your turn on the ground. Tempestous Body At 15th level, you gain resistance to lightning and thunder damage. When your resistance reduces damage from a effect, you can use your reaction to cause creatures of your choice that you can see within 30 feet of you to take lightning or thunder damage (depending on what type of damage you have reduced) equal to your Charisma modifier + your proficiency bonus. Storm God Rage At 20th level, you can spend one use of your Elemental Stream feature to, instead, let a glimpse of the storm god fury. For 10 minutes, electricity sparks around your body. In outdoors, a faint rain start to fall from the darkened sky; on indoors, dark clouds appear from thin air, and you get the following benefits: You generate an eletric aura, and any creature within 10 feet of you must make a Dexterity saving throw, or take damage equal to your Elemental Combat die. You can summon a lighting from the dark clouds, in each of your turns. As a bonus action, you summon a line with 30 feet long and 5 feet wide, from you. The lighting causes damage equal do 1d6 + half of your level in this class, and the damage is lighting, to all creatures that fail a Dexterity saving throw against your spellcasting DC . After hit, the point of impact of the lighting explodes in a soundwave affecting all creatures within 5 feet, causing damage to all creatures that fail a Constitution saving throw against your spellcasting DC equal to your Elemental Combat die. Once you use this feature, you can't do it again until you complete a long rest. Back to Main Page → 5e Homebrew → Classes