5e rune knight done properly

# Rune Knight
Rune Knights enhance their martial prowess using the supernatural power of runes, an ancient practice that originated with giants. Rune cutters can be found among any family of giants, and you likely learned your methods first or second hand from such a mystical artisan. Whether you found the giant's work carved into a hill or cave, learned of the runes from a sage, or met the giant in person, you studied the giant's craft and learned how to apply magic runes to empower your equipment.

### Bonus proficiencies
When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you gain proficiency with smith’s tools, and you learn to speak, read, and write Giant.

### Rune Carver
Starting at 3rd level, you can use magic runes to enhance your gear. You learn two runes of your choice, from among the runes described below, and each time you gain a level in this class, you can replace one rune you know with a different one from this feature. When you reach certain levels in this class, you learn additional runes, as shown in the Runes Known table.

| Fighter level  | Number of Runes |
|:---:|:-----------:|
|  3  | 2 |
|  7  | 3 |
|  11  | 4 |
|  15  | 5 |

Whenever you finish a long rest, you can touch a number of objects equal to the number of runes you know, and you inscribe a different rune onto each of the objects. To be eligible, an object must be a weapon, a suit of armor, a shield, a piece of jewelry, or something else you can wear or hold in a hand. Your rune remains on an object until you finish a long rest, and an object can bear only one of your runes at a time.
___
The runes  available for you are detailed at the end of the subclass description. If a rune has a level requirement, you must be at least that level in this class to learn the rune. 
___
If a rune requires a saving throw, it uses your Constitution ability:

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 <font face='scalysans' size='2'>
 
 <center> 
 
 **Rune Magic save DC** </font> = <font face='scalysans' size='2'> 8 + your proficiency bonus + 
 
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 <div style='margin-top:-8px'></div>
 
 <center> your Constitution modifier </center>
 
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### Giant's Might
At 3rd level, you have learned how to imbue yourself with the might of giants. As a bonus action, you magically gain the following benefits, which last for 1 minute:

* If you are smaller than Large, you become Large, along with anything you are wearing. If you lack the room to become Large, your size doesn't change.

* You have advantage on Strength checks and Strength saving throws.
* Once on each of your turns, one of your attacks with a weapon or an unarmed strike can deal an extra 1d4 damage to a target on a hit. This extra damage increases by an additional 1d4 at fighter levels 7 (2d4), 11 (3d4) and 15 (4d4).

___
You can use this feature twice, and you regain all expended uses of it when you finish a short or a long rest.

### Runic Shield
At 7th level, you learn to invoke your rune magic to protect your allies. When another creature you can see within 60 feet of you is hit by an attack roll or fails a saving throw, you can use your reaction to flare your runes, and materialize a temporary shield around your target, giving it a bonus to its saving throw or to its AC against the triggering attack, equal to your proficiency bonus.

You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Constitution modifier, and you regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.

### Blood of Giants
By 10th level, the magic of your runes permanently alters you. When you gain this feature, roll 3d4. You grow a number of inches in height equal to the roll.

___
Additionally, other giants can sense this change, and a strange kinship. You gain advantage on all Charisma checks when interacting with giants.

### Master of Runes
At 15th level, you can invoke each rune you know from your Rune Carver feature twice, rather than once, and you regain all expended uses when you finish a short or long rest.

### Runic Juggernaut
At 18th level, when you use that Giant's Might, your size can increase to Huge, and while you are that size, your reach increases by 5 feet, and the dice size for its bonus damage increase to d6s (4d6). Once you use your Giant's Might to become Huge, you cannot do so again until you finish a long rest.

<div class='footnote'>Part 1 | Class overview</div>

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## Runes
The following runes are available to you when you learn a rune. If a rune has a level requirement, you must be at least that level in this class to learn the rune.

Each rune has a passive effect, and an active effect. You can invoke a rune's active effect once per short or long rest.

#### Stone Rune 
This rune's magic channels the judiciousness associated with stone giants. While wearing or carrying an object inscribed with this rune, you have advantage on Wisdom (Insight) checks, advantage on Intelligence checks you make to appraise a work of art, and you have darkvision out to a range of 120 feet.

In addition, you can use an Action to invoke the shamanistic magic of the Ash Giants, creating a burst of ash around you. You can designate a number of targets equal to your Constitution modifier within 15 feet of you, to be camouflaged with this ash, gaining advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks. The ashes fade away after 1 hour.

#### Frost Rune

This rune's magic evokes the might of those who survive in the wintry wilderness, such as frost giants. While wearing or carrying an object inscribed with this rune, you have advantage on Charisma (Intimidation) checks, and you gain a bonus to your initiative rolls equal to your Constitution modifier.

In addition, when you hit a creature with an attack using a weapon, you can invoke the rune to summon icy chains, reminiscent of the Bolas of the Frost Giants: the target takes an extra 2d6 cold damage, and it must succeed on a Strength saving throw or be restrained for 1 minute. While restrained by the shackles, the target takes 2d6 cold damage at the start of each of its turns. The target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, banishing the shackles on a success.

#### Fire Rune

This rune's magic channels the masterful craftsmanship of great smiths, and the fearlessness of great warriors. While wearing or carrying an object inscribed with this rune, your proficiency bonus is doubled for any ability check you make that uses your proficiency with a tool, and you gain advantage on saving throws against being frightened.

In addition, as an action you can channel one of the Fire Giants sorcerous detection spells. You cast the spell *Faerie Fire*, with the following differences:

* the lights takes on hues of orange and red, as specks of ember fill the square
* if a creature or object that is outlined by the spell is moved away from you, you have advantage on any checks made to track or follow it for 10 minutes even after the the spell has ended.

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#### Storm Rune 
Using this rune, you borrow the storm giants' insight into otherworldly signs, and their physicality. While wearing or carrying an object inscribed with this rune, you gain advantage on any checks you make to decipher, decode or in any way understand the intentions of extraplanar entities, and gain resistance to lightning damage.

In addition, you can tap into the power of the greatest Runecasters, to create momentary portals, that although may not reach Ysgard,  it can still open new possibilites. When you or a creature you can see within 30 feet of you is hit by an attack roll, you can use your reaction to invoke the rune and choose a different creature within 30 feet of you, other than the attacker. The chosen creature becomes the target of the attack, using the same roll. This magic can transfer the attack's effects regardless of the attack's range. Once you invoke this rune, you can't do so again until you finish a short or long rest.

___

#### Cloud Rune (7th Level or Higher)
This rune emulates the nobility of most cloud giants. While wearing or carrying an object inscribed with this rune, you have advantage on  Charisma (Persuasion) and Charisma (Performance) checks.

In addition, you can use this rune to combine the cloud giants invisibly slight manipulations with their Runecasting abilities. You can use your bonus action to invoke this rune, entering a state that allows you to channel this magic. This state lasts for 1 minute. While in this state, when a creature makes an attack roll or a saving throw, you can use your reaction to impose disadvantage on that roll. You must use this reaction before the roll is made.
___
#### Hill rune (7th Level or Higher)
This rune's magic bestows a resilience reminiscent of a hill giant. While wearing or carrying an object that bears this rune, you have advantage on saving throws against being poisoned, and you have resistance against poison damage.

In addition, you can invoke the rune as a bonus action,
gaining resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage for 1 minute. Once you invoke this rune, you can't do so again until you finish a short or long rest.

<div class='footnote'>Part 2 | Runes</div>

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# What I changed and why

### Giant's Might
Took level 7 and level 18, and condensed into the level 3 thing. Psi Knight can clearly declare the psionic dice increasing in its level 3 thing, without having to burn separate features for it.

Other than that, made it scale. +1d6 dmg at level 3 is good, when Im hitting for 2d6+3 at best. However, when Im hitting for 2d6+4 3 times a turn (and thats lowballing it), +1d10 is nothing.

Also made 2/SR like original bladesong. AFAIK fighter is already seen as a shortrest class, so what the hell.

### Runic Shield
Flavor-mechanic conflict. Forcing a reroll is making the enemy slip on a patch of grass, not giving your ally a forcefield. I chose profmod because it is a slow scale. Either +profmod conmod times, or the reverse. I dont care witch, I think this one is better, but feel free to switch it up. But I honestly think it needs both - conmod bonus conmod times would make that stat way too important, profmod bonus profmod times would make it scale way too slow.

### Blood of Giants
I took away the main thing from here and put into giants might. Had to fill it up with something, thats the best one I could came up with. Also didnt help that the rest of fighter 10 things are all over the place, wasnt sure what was a good point of reference.

### Master of Runes
Kept it the same

### Runic Juggernaut
A capstone should feel like a capstone. Placing the scaling here was dumb, and making it cap out at 1d10 only was just insulting.

### Frost Rune
Almost nothing made sense. Animal handling in the middle of the frozen nothing? Frost giants get drunk, boast and fight. Usually in that order. So I switched animal handling with conmod to initiative.

Also, their magic doesnt revolve around buffing the body. Yes, they have shamans and witch doctors, and they have spells, but nothing that would work like the +2 consave for 10 min suggests.

They do, however, like to use bolas. And a great chunk of their magic is weather controll based, so I gave them the OG fire chains, just made it cold chains.

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### Fire rune
Expertise is nice, but I do not believe it to be enough. Bravery is very important to them though, one of the highest virtues possible. Advantage vs fear is obvious here.

The active was strong, but was out of place. Yes, they have magic, but not an "upcast" controll flames. The sorceries they employ detect intruders, so I gave the rune Faerie Fire.

###  Stone rune
Darkvision is fine, but I dont know where insight advantage comes from. They are artists. Channel their mastery in art into appraisal.

The active was weird. Volos mentions these dreamwalkers, but I could not really find anything concrete about them. Why are they being used as a reference?

Ash giants are a subspecies of stone giants. They have much more lore behind them than the dreamwalkers. They like ambushes, and use many ash and fire related effects. Makes more sense to me.

### Cloud rune
Deceptive magic? Cloud portals? They see themselves as nobility, wearing jewelry, playing instruments, screwing with those beneath them. Their "deceptive magic" is placing bets if they can manipulate lesser races into the most random situations without being discovered. So sleight of hand doesnt work, because they are not cheating on a dice game.

The cloud portal thing is a nice effect, if not really established. But since people will complain if storm rune loses the active or gets nerfed too much, Ill just try to use that here to preserve that effect. Strength and Dex saves need an active physical effort that can be interfered with, the other 4 not so much, but that would be a very big nerf, so just put that active here.

### Storm rune
The MM mentions seers. Only the MM. So once again a rune relies on something that has no substance behind it. And gives arcana advantage to fighters, making wizard the 3rd, if not the 4th place in actually knowing magic. Arcana expertise rogue is already a thing, and bard got jack of all trades. Let the wizard be the theoretical experts FFS.

Storm giants have strong beliefs in fate, so its not really a "seer" thing as much as pointing to random things saying "that is a sign". Other than that, they are the strongest runecasters, so I took inspiration from the rune with the longest crafting time, that could open a portal to Ysgard.

> ##### Giantcraft
> Written by Ray Winninger, 1995, for 2E. Its a good book if you need giant lore.

<div class='footnote'>Part 3 | Runes</div>