Halcyon (Barbarian Dex-Based Variant)
Halcyon Class Table
| Level | Proficiency Bonus | Features | No. Trances | Trance Bonus |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 2 | Trance, Unarmored Defense, Masterful Form | 2 | 2 |
| 2nd | 2 | Focused Aiming, Danger Sense | 2 | 2 |
| 3rd | 2 | Hyperfocus | 3 | 2 |
| 4th | 2 | Ability Score Improvement | 3 | 2 |
| 5th | 3 | Extra Attack, Fast Movement | 3 | 2 |
| 6th | 3 | Indomitable Mind | 4 | 2 |
| 7th | 3 | Attuned Instinct | 4 | 2 |
| 8th | 3 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | 2 |
| 9th | 4 | Focused Critical (1 die) | 4 | 3 |
| 10th | 4 | Controlled Presence | 4 | 3 |
| 11th | 4 | Painless Trance | 4 | 3 |
| 12th | 4 | Ability Score Improvement | 5 | 3 |
| 13th | 5 | Focused Critical (2 dice) | 5 | 3 |
| 14th | 5 | Retaliation | 5 | 3 |
| 15th | 5 | Persistent Trance | 5 | 4 |
| 16th | 5 | Ability Score Improvement | 5 | 4 |
| 17th | 6 | Focused Critical (3 dice) | 6 | 4 |
| 18th | 6 | Indomitable Will | 6 | 4 |
| 19th | 6 | Ability Score Improvement 6 | 4 | |
| 20th | 6 | Transcendent | Unlimited | 4 |
Halcyons believe in mind over matter. They enter a mental state of extreme calm and focus, called a trance, and channel all their mental and emotional energy into their bodies to enhance their strength, coordination, reflexes, and senses in battle. They often describe the experience as following the flow of the universe.
Quick Build
You can make a halcyon quickly by following these suggestions. First, put your highest ability score in Dexterity followed by Constitution. Second, choose the hermit background.
Class Features
As a class_name, you gain the following class features
Hit Points
- Hit Dice: 1d10 per halcyon level
- Hit Points at 1st Level: 10 + your Constitution modifier Hit Points
- Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d10 (or 6) + your Constitution modifier per Halcyon level after 1st
Proficiencies
- Armor: Light armor, medium armor, shields
- Weapons: Simple weapons, martial weapons
- Tools: None
- Saving Throws: Dexterity, Constitution
- Skills: Choose two from skills
Equipment
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:
- (a) a greataxe or (b) any martial melee weapon
- (a) two handaxes or (b) any simple weapon
- An explorer's pack and four javelins
Trance
In battle, you fight with unnerving calm. On your turn, you can enter a trance as a bonus action. While trancing, you gain the following benefits if not wearing heavy armor:
- You have advantage on Dexterity Checks and Dexterity Saving Throws
- When you make an attack with any weapon that uses dexterity, you gain a bonus to the attack roll that increases as you gain levels in halcyon, as shown in the Trance Bonus column of the Halcyon table.
- You have resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage.
If you are able to cast spells, you can’t cast them or concentrate on them while trancing. Your trance lasts for 1 minute (6 turns). It ends early if you are knocked unconscious or if your turn ends and you haven’t attacked a hostile creature since your last turn or taken damage since then. You can also end your trance on your turn as a bonus action. Once you have tranced the number of times shown for your Halcyon level in the Trances column of the Halcyon table, you must finish a long rest before you can trance again.
Masterful Form
You may use all weapons in which you are proficient that don’t possess the two-handed property as if they have the finesse property.
Unarmored Defense
While you are not wearing any armor, your Armor Class equals 10 + your Dexterity modifier + your Constitution modifier. You can use a shield and still gain this benefit.
Focused Aiming
Starting at 2nd Level, you can choose to gain advantage on Dexterity-based attack rolls for that turn, but you cannot move on that turn or use reactions until your next turn. This ability can be used either in or out of trance, and gains the Trance Bonus to dexterity attacks when in trance.
Danger Sense
At 2nd level, you gain an uncanny sense of when things nearby aren’t as they should be, giving you an edge when you dodge away from danger. You have advantage on Dexterity saving throws against effects that you can see, such as traps and spells. To gain this benefit, you can’t be blinded, deafened, or incapacitated.
Hyperfocus
Starting at 3rd level, can can go into a hyper-focused state when you trance. If you do so, for the duration of your trance you can make a single melee weapon attack as a bonus action on each of your turns after this one. When your trance ends, you suffer one level of exhaustion (as described in appendix A).
Ability Score Improvement
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.
Fast Movement
Starting at 5th level, your speed increases by 10 feet while you aren’t wearing heavy armor.
Stillness of Mind
Beginning at 6th level, you can’t be charmed or frightened while in trance. If you are charmed or frightened when you enter your trance, the effect is suspended for the duration of the rage.
Attuned Instinct
By 7th level, your instincts are so honed that you have advantage on initiative rolls. Additionally, if you are surprised at the beginning of combat and aren’t incapacitated, you can act normally on your first turn, but only if you enter trance before you do anything else on that turn.
Focused Critical
Beginning at 9th level, you can roll one additional weapon damage die when determining the extra damage for a critical hit with any attack roll. This increases to two additional dice at 13th level and three additional dice at 17th level.
Controlled Presence
Beginning at 10th level, you can use your action to frighten someone with your sociopathically calm presence. When you do so, choose one creature that you can see within 30 feet of you. If the creature can see or hear you, it must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw (DC equal to 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier) or be frightened of you until the end of your next turn. On subsequent turns, you can use your action to extend the duration of this effect on the frightened creature until the end of your next turn. This effect ends if the creature ends its turn out of line of sight or more than 60 feet away from you. If the creature succeeds on its saving throw, you can't use this feature on that creature again for 24 hours
Painless Trance
Starting at 11th level, your trance can keep you fighting despite grievous wounds. If you drop to 0 hit points while you’re raging and don’t die outright, you can make a DC 10 Constitution saving throw. If you succeed, you drop to 1 hit point instead. Each time you use this feature after the first, the DC increases by 5. When you finish a short or long rest, the DC resets to 10.
Retaliation
Starting at 14th level, when you take damage from a creature that is within 5 feet of you, you can use your reaction to make a melee weapon attack against the creature.
Persistent Trance
Beginning at 15th level, your trance is so solid that it ends early only if you fall unconscious or if you choose to end it.
Indomitable Will
Beginning at 18th level, if your total for a Dexterity check is less than your Dexterity score, you can use that score in place of the total.
Transcendent
At 20th level, you embody the power of the still mind. Your Dexterity and Constitution scores increase by 4. Your maximum for those scores is now 24.