Class Idea - Field Marshal

[Renevent]

This is my idea for basically the main 'pet class' for Grim Dawn. Most arpg's have pet classes using animals, demons, or other non-human pets...since the later time period (Victorian era) thought it might be cool to have some kind of leader character who commands human soldiers.

The main idea behind the class is you are a Field Marshal, which from my knowledge is the highest rank in the British military at the time. Your primary weapons are your pets, which really are soldiers.

From what we know mankind has been pretty much decimated in Grim Dawn, so there probably isn't any armies to command. Rather this was his position prior to the 'cataclysm' and he uses his command experience to fight back at the invaders and inspire men to take up arms once again.

Just a small note...this is not some pseudo RTS class it will play exactly like any other pet focused class in TQ.



Some skill ideas for the class, I'll probably expand on them later but this should give a basic idea of the class and how it would play:

Passives

Advanced Training - Adds % health and damage to all units summoned by Field Marshal

Command - Increases the number of soldiers Field Marshal can enlist. Also gives small bonus to their stats


Pets/Summons

Enlist - Summons regular soldiers, each take one command point
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|-Requisition Order - Improves soldiers equipment every 5 levels invested which add armor and defense as well as visible improvements to soldier.
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|--Grenades - Gives soldiers grenades to use in battle

Rifleman - Summons a rifleman to assist in ranged combat, each take one command point
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|-Bayonets - Gives units bayonets that does major damage when enemy comes into melee range. Adds + damage and % bleeding.
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|--Smooth Bore Rifles - Upgrades units rifle to add more damage and faster firing speed

Field Medic - Summons a field medic who adds % health regeneration soldier summoned by the Field Marshal, each takes a command point
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|-Field Surgery - Heals X amount of health to all units
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|--Medicine - Improves units resistances by % to all damage types but especially to poison damage


Active Skills

Riposte - Quick attack with sword causes high damage and chance to cause critical

Artillery Strike - Calls in an artillery strike at a specific location more points invested increase blast radius and damage
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|-Shrapnel - Adds fragments the explosion that cause bleeding damage and slowed movement
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|--Incendiary Shells - Adds fire damage to explosion and leaves burning patch after initial explosion

Inspire Courage - The Field Marshal throws down the unit's battle standard, inspiring them to fight harder increasing all soldiers damage and granting them damage resistance for a short time

Sally Forth - Causes all units to charge nearby enemies (even ranged ones) and engage in melee combat, also gives small chance that hits can daze enemies


Auras/Buffs

Tactics - Improves attack speed and movement by % of all in aura radius

[ASYLUM101]

Seems ok, perhaps a bit too self-sufficient for a single mastery. :P

It's actually quite similar to a mastery I created for my mod in TQ... druid mastery, summons tons of pets, tons of pet buffs, pet skill upgrades, etc.

[Renevent]

Of course skills need to be balanced and everything, it's just a rough idea of some potential skills and the general outline for how it could play.

I think the balance is offset by restricting the class to only a few offensive skills and maybe their use as well. For instance, maybe artillery is powerful but is on a long cooldown.

I actually based this somewhat on the nature mastery in TQ but switched up some of the general ideas behind that class...like healing being a pet skill rather than the characters skill ect.

[ASYLUM101]

Originally Posted by Renevent

I actually based this somewhat on the nature mastery in TQ but switched up some of the general ideas behind that class...like healing being a pet skill rather than the characters skill ect.

Lol, it's fairly obvious.

I'm not saying it's a bad class at all, it's pretty cool. I prefer playing a nuker class, but I do go for pet builds now and then and this looks like a neat (different) one. I prefer summoning monsters/creatures than PEOPLE, that just seems odd haha.

Also, something I wanted to highlight earlier but forgot:

Just a small note...this is not some pseudo RTS class it will play exactly like any other pet focused class in TQ.

Sometimes, dedicated pet builds like this actually DO play as pseudo RTS classes, even though they don't seem like they would. In fact, when I play soothsayer or other nature-based classes in TQ, it's mostly me spamming regrowth on pets, keeping my summons up (liche king, nightmare, wolves, nymph, whatever class pets I have), ctrl moving my pets(for focused fighting)spreading plague, and kiting! That's how pro RTS players do it!

[Renevent]

I can see what you are saying about the RTS thing...though I was just trying to make it clear I wasn't trying to add some kind of RTS mechanic to the game.

And yeah totally agree that pets usually are cooler as monsters/demons/animals/whatever but maybe a change could be fun

Anyways, I added a new passive skill called 'Command'...basically instead of the number of summons be based on those individual skills, you raise your command level to give the character more unit slots.

So for instance, maybe max level command gives you 5 slots, you could have 2 soldiers, 2 riflemen, and a medic. Or maybe 5 riflemen. Or maybe 3 soldiers and 2 medics...lol you get the idea

I think that could be really cool as the player would be given the opportunity to go for more damage, survivability, ranged, melee, or a balance of their own choosing.

[ASYLUM101]

Ok that's a cool idea!

I love these skills that have unique effects, it's one of the reasons I love LoL and HoN - there's a lot of event specific skills and stuff.

I'd probably be the tard who maxes that skill first and just summons 20 medics.


One of these days I'm gonna make my own mastery page! I've been saying this for a while, and now that I'm just being lazy at home I have the time.. just not the patience to type it out lolol