Watcher v16 [Class]

by Rachayz

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Class: Watcher

Credits

Thanks to GM Binder for allowing me to format this so nicely.

Also thanks to Weirdo Whoever for creating their artificer class which I used to help formating, and /u/Charrmeleon who crated the scholar class which I drew inspiration for older editions and used wording from.

And a great deal of thanks to the Discord of Many Things which helped me immensely with this project. If you are struggling with your own homebrew, I highly recommend you give them a look!

What Happened?

The class continues to be innovated upon, changing and growing as I learn new brewing styles and get more ideas. If you were using a previous version and wish to continue to do so, look at the bottom of the class document to find time-frozen links to previous class versions.

Watcher

A mail clad warrior surveys the battlefield. They note the positions of the enemies, and watch their skill with the blade. They see an opening, and take it. Exploiting the weaknesses they spotted in the enemy's swordsmanship, they swiftly maneuver to the back lines where they spot the general. The general draws a blade to fight, unaware the fight is already over. The warrior knows every move they are about to make.

A tiefling approaches the guarded keep in broad daylight. Archers look over the side of the walls on vigilant watch, scanning the numerous bodies full of arrows that they have already felled but don't notice the bright blue tiefling walk through the front door. The blue intruder makes her way unimpeded through the keep, searching rooms until they find the hostage guarded by two powerful guards in full plate. The guards stand stoically as the tiefling picks up the hostage, and whispers an incantation before vanishing in a puff of smoke. "See? It sometimes is as easy as walking in the front door," she jokes to the freed prisoner, who only now realized she was here.

The battle had taken a sudden turn, and despite every advantage somehow the bandits defending the wall couldn't manage to land a single arrow. Ever since the shielded combatant had arrived, nothing seemed to work right. But there was one final trick, as the adventurers approached the front gate and opened it, a set of explosive traps were detonated, sending countless pieces of shrapnel flying. But as the smoke cleared, it seemed fate still had its favorite as the party had hardly a scratch.

The watchers are experienced warriors and mages who have learned how to turn simple understanding into powerful attacks and spells. A watcher's specialty is making openings in hopeless situations, and poking holes in enemy strategies.

To Watch the World Unfold

Watchers pursue understanding just as a wizard hunts knowledge. To know the world and the creatures which inhabit it is their greatest goal, leading most watchers into a life of adventure. A watcher never stops pursuing wisdom, never stopping to settle down. The slower their lives become, the stronger their desire to journey forth becomes.

Creating a Watcher

When creating a watcher, it is important to know who you were before you took the path of the watcher. Were you a simple warrior, a doctor, or an urchin? Was the mantle of watcher thrust upon you by a mentor, or did you find and choose this path yourself?

A watcher can be any alignment, but they are never lazy. Sometimes they are driven by a single question or goal, while others are driven by the desire to understand everything they can. What do you search the world for? Why?

Quick Build

You can make a watcher quickly by following these suggestions. First, Dexterity should be your highest ability score, followed by Wisdom. Second, choose the Soldier or Acolyte background.

Watcher Table
Level Proficiency Bonus Features
Understood Bonus
1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th
1st +2 Eyes from Beyond, Trained Eye, Understanding 2
2nd +2 Fighting Style, Spellcasting, Unerring Mark 2 2
3rd +2 Prying Eyes, Watcher Specialty 2 3
4th +2 Ability Score Improvement, Picked Apart 2 3
5th +3 Extra Attack 3 4 2
6th +3 The Watcher's Gaze, Mimic 3 4 2
7th +3 Watcher Specialty feature 3 4 3
8th +3 Ability Score Improvement 3 4 3
9th +4 Eye for an Eye 3 4 3 2
10th +4 Eyes from Further Beyond 3 4 3 2
11th +4 Watcher Specialty feature 4 4 3 3
12th +4 Ability Score Improvement 4 4 3 3
13th +5 4 4 3 3 1
14th +5 Psychosis 4 4 3 3 1
15th +5 Watcher Specialty feature 4 4 3 3 2
16th +5 Piercing Gaze, Ability Score Improvement 4 4 3 3 2
17th +6 5 4 3 3 3 1
18th +6 Shooting Daggers 5 4 3 3 3 1
19th +6 Ability Score Improvement 5 4 3 3 3 2
20th +6 Complete Comprehension 5 4 3 3 3 2

Class Features

As a Watcher, you gain the following class features

Hit Points


  • Hit Dice: 1d10 per Watcher level
  • Hit Points at 1st Level: 10 + your Constitution modifier
  • Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d10 (or 6) + your Constitution modifier per Watcher level after 1st

Proficiencies


  • Armor: light armor, medium armor, shields
  • Weapons: simple weapons, hand crossbows, longbows, longswords, rapiers, shortswords
  • Tools: none
  • Saving Throws: Intelligence, Wisdom
  • Skills: Choose two from Arcana, Athletics, History, Insight, Investigation, Medicine, Religion, Survival

Equipment

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

  • (a) a longsword or (b) any simple weapon
  • (a) a hand crossbow with 20 bolts or (b) 3 javelins
  • (a) leather armor or (b) a chain shirt
  • (a) a diplomat's pack or (b) an explorer's pack
  • an arcane symbol, a simple weapon, and a shield

Eyes from Beyond

At 1st level, as you begin to learn the ways of the watcher your sight becomes far more powerful. You gain the following features.

  • You gain darkvision for 60 feet. If you already had darkvision, increase it's range by 30 feet.
  • You gain proficiency in Perception.
  • You add double your proficiency bonus to all Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight.
  • You can take the Search action as a bonus action.

Trained Eye

Also at 1st level, one of the first things you have mastered is the art of dissecting a foe as it fights. As a bonus action, choose a creature you can see. You consider that creature understood for 1 minute, or until the target dies or you choose a new target with this feature.

Understanding

You always have an edge when fighting an understood foe. At 1st level, the first weapon attack roll you make on your turn against an understood creature gains a +2 bonus. If you are targeted by an understood creature you see, you can use your reaction to gain a +2 bonus to your AC and saving throws until the end of that creature's turn.

This bonus increases as you level, as shown in the Understood Bonus column of the Watcher table.

Fighting Style

At 2nd level, you adopt a particular style of fighting as your specialty. Choose one of the following options. You can't take the same Fighting Style option more than once, even if you get to choose again.

Arcane Discipline

You learn two cantrips of your choice from the wizard or bard spell list. They count as watcher spells for you, and Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for them. Whenever you gain a level in this class, you can replace one of these cantrips with another cantrip from the wizard or bard spell list.

Defense

While you are wearing armor, you gain a +1 bonus to AC.

Dueling

When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with that weapon.

Overwatch

If you use your action to make an attack with a ranged weapon, you can choose a direction at the end of your turn, aiming an attack down a 60 foot line. If any creature you can see moves into a space in your line of fire, you can use your reaction to make a ranged attack using the held weapon against the creature. The damage from this attack does not include your ability modifier.

Protection

When a creature you can see attacks a target other than you that is within 5 feet of you, you can use your reaction to impose disadvantage on the attack roll. You must be wielding a shield.

Two-Weapon Fighting

When you engage in two-weapon fighting, you can add your ability modifier to the damage of the second attack.

If you have TCE, you also have the additional options of Blind Fighting, Interception, and Superior Technique

Spellcasting

By the time you reach 2nd level, you have learned to use your perceptive power to cast watcher spells. See chapter 10 for the general rules of spellcasting and the bottom of the class sheet for the watcher spell list.

Spell Slots

The Watcher table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells of first level or higher. To cast one of these spells, you must expend a spell slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest.

Preparing and Casting Spells

The Watcher table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells. To cast one of your watcher spells of 1st level or higher, you must expend a slot of the spell’s level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest.

You prepare the list of watcher spells that are available for you to cast, choosing from the watcher spell list. When you do so, choose a number of watcher spells equal to your Wisdom modifier + half your watcher level, rounded down (minimum of one spell). The spells must be of a level for which you have spell slots.

For example, if you are a 5th-level watcher, you have four 1st-level and two 2nd-level spell slots. With a Wisdom of 14, your list of prepared spells can include four spells of 1st or 2nd level, in any combination. If you prepare a 1st-level spell, and you can cast it using a 1st-level or a 2nd-level slot. Casting the spell doesn’t remove it from your list of prepared spells.

You can change your list of prepared spells when you finish a long rest. Preparing a new list of watcher spells requires time spent in silent meditation: at least 1 minute per spell level for each spell on your list.

Spellcasting Ability

Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for your watcher spells. Your magic comes from your powerful understanding of the world. You use your Wisdom whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Wisdom modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a watcher spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.

Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus +
your Wisdom modifier

Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus +
your Wisdom modifier

Spellcasting Focus

You can use an arcane symbol of an eye as a spellcasting focus for your watcher spells. You must wear it visibly, or bear it on a shield.

Ritual Casting

You can cast a watcher spell as a ritual if that spell has a ritual tag and you have that spell prepared.

Unerring Mark

Also at 2nd level, you learn the hunter's mark spell. You can cast it once without expending a spell slot, and must complete a short or long rest before you can do so again.

A creature under the effects of hunter's mark cast by you is also considered understood for the duration of the spell.

Prying Eyes

Watchers keep watch on their foe, but to be seen is a feeling that watchers also know well. At 3rd level as an action, you can focus your senses to detect unwanted attention. If any creature within 60 feet of you is focusing it's eyes and attention on you, you are immediately aware of it and its location. If the observer is invisible or magically created (such as a the arcane eye spell's sensor, or a creature summoned by find familiar) you are instead only aware that you are being watched, but not the creature's location.

After using this ability, you must complete a short or long rest before you can use it again.

Watcher Specialty

At 3rd level, you choose a specialty to focus on. Your choice grants features at 3rd level, and again at 7th, 11th, and 15th level.

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.

Picked Apart

Also at 4th level, when you understand a creature you can choose one piece of information from the following list. The DM will tell you the related information about the creature.

  • Highest ability score
  • Lowest ability score
  • Whether the creature has more than half of its maximum hit points
  • Its vulnerabilities, resistances, and immunities.

Extra Attack

Beginning at 5th Level, you can Attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on Your Turn.

The Watcher's Gaze

At 6th level you learn how to focus your power into special abilities. You learn two Gaze abilities of your choice. Additionally, when you gain a level in this class, you can choose one of the Gaze abilities you know and replace it with another Gaze ability that you could learn at that level. A level prerequisite in a Gaze Ability refers to watcher level, not character level.

When you take the Attack action, you can replace one of your attacks granted by extra attack with a gaze ability that requires an action to use.

Mimic

At 6th level, you have studied the way creatures move and react to danger, and can now mimic its response. If you fail a saving throw which at least one other creature also subjected to the effect succeeded, you may choose to attempt the saving throw again.

Once you use this feature, you can't do so again until you finish a short or long rest.

Eye for an Eye

At 9th level, when you roll a 20 on a weapon attack roll against a creature, the target must make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC or become magically blinded until the end of your next turn.

Eyes From Further Beyond

At 10th level your already incredible vision improves to incredible levels.

  • You can see normally in darkness, both magical and nonmagical, to a distance of 60 feet.
  • You can add double your proficiency bonus for Wisdom (insight) checks made to determine if a creature is lying.
  • You open your third eye, and can now learn a total of three gaze abilities instead of two.
  • Your eyes can be used as a spellcasting focus in place of your arcane symbol for watcher spells, and you can ignore somatic components for spells cast with your eyes.

Psychosis

At 14th level as an action, you summon countless eyes in the air and on surfaces around you which gaze maddeningly at creatures of your choice within 30 feet, forcing each to make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. Choose one of the following effects.

  • Stricken. A stricken creature is blinded and deafened.
  • Muddled. A muddled creature automatically fails Perception checks and can't gain any benefit from blindsight or truesight.
  • Silenced. A silenced creature can't speak or concentrate on spells.

On failure, a creature is subjected to the condition you chose for 1 minute or until you end the effect as a bonus action. On success, a creature is subjected to the condition you chose until the end if its next turn. Affected creatures can use their action to try to push your influence away, allowing it to repeat the saving throw. On success, the effect ends on that creature.

When you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Piercing Gaze

At 16th level, your sight becomes so powerful that even physical obstructions do not limit your sight. As an action, you can see through most barriers up to a range of 60 feet for 1 minute, but are blocked by 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of common metal, a thin sheet of lead, or 3 feet of wood or dirt.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.

Shooting Daggers

At 18th level, your very focus causes those you wish to suffer. When an understood creature you can see starts its turn, you can choose to deal 4d8 psychic damage to it.

Complete Comprehension

At 20th level, you have learned how to completely dissect the strengths and weaknesses of your foe with just a glance. When you understand a creature, you can choose to use this ability on it as well. All of your attacks have advantage against the creature, and the creature has disadvantage on all saving throws you force it to make. Additionally, every weapon attack you make that hits this creature is considered a critical hit. This effect lasts as long as the creature remains understood.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Watcher Specialties

Watchers come from many different places and are good at many different things. There are currently three specialties for watchers: the True Watcher, the Watchblade, and the Seer.

True Watcher

Watchers who's focus is purely on their purpose are given the title of True Watchers. True Watchers appear as pacifists to others, while in reality they are waiting for the right moment to strike.

Ever Watchful

When you choose this specialty at 3rd level, your understanding of a creature grants you insight into its company. Once a turn when you understand a creature, you can choose an ally of that creature within 30 feet of it you can see. You understand that creature as well for 1 minute.

Deep Understanding

Also at 3rd level, your understanding goes deeper than physical, allowing you to better deceive or overpower creatures you understand. When a creature you understand attempts to contest a skill check you have made, it suffers a penalty to its check equal to your Understood Bonus.

Hidden in Plain Sight

At 7th level you have learned how to cause enemies to ignore you, as if you weren't even there. You may spend 1 minute in meditation. Afterwards all creatures with passive perception lower then your spell save DC cannot perceive you for 10 minutes, considering you invisible. If you perform a simple movement in clear view of an affected creature -such as opening or closing doors or performing somatic/verbal components for spells- the creature makes a perception check against your spell save DC, and on success this feature ends. If you make an attack, deal damage, or force a creature to make a saving throw this feature ends.

At the end of this duration, all creatures that would've seen you suddenly remember seeing you and any actions you preformed while you were in their line of sight.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

All Eyes on You

As an action at 11th level, thousands of magical eyes appear around you, flitting about and taking in information about all creatures near you. The eyes remain for 1 minute, or until you choose to dismiss them (no action required). While the eyes remain, all creatures within 60 feet of you that you can see are considered understood. You have advantage on all attacks made against creatures understood in this way.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Eyes of Truth

At 15th level, your eyes can see the world and the creatures within it with clearer eyes than ever. You gain truesight at a range of 60 feet.

You also gain immunity to the Charmed and Frightened condition, having seen and heard it all.

Watchblade

The warriors of the watchers are known as the Watchblades. They use their powerful eyes to spot openings in combat and weaknesses in an enemy's defense.

Live Dissection

At 3rd level, after dealing damage with a weapon attack against a creature you do not currently understand, you can choose to understand the creature. The creature remains understood until the start of your next turn.

Push the Advantage

Also at 3rd level, when you damage a creature you understand with a weapon attack, you deal additional damage equal to your Understood Bonus.

Flow of Battle

At 7th level, you have learned how to turn dodging one attack into dodging them all. If a hostile creature misses an attack against you, you can use your reaction to instantly take the dodge action.

Perfect Opening

At 11th level, you can spot rare but advantageous moments in combat to exploit. As an action, you move in a straight line in a direction of your choice a number of feet equal to your walking speed. You can make a melee attack against every creature or object that comes into your melee range during this movement, and your reach with melee weapons is considered 10 feet if it is not already higher. Any opportunity attack made against you while moving in this way is made with disadvantage.

If the direction chosen would not allow you to move your full movement, you instead move the maximum possible distance. You can use this action only if you haven't moved during this turn, and after you use the action, your speed is 0 until the end of the current turn.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Critical Understanding

At 15th level, you know exactly how to make the most out of an attack against an enemy you understand. Attacks against an understood creature score a critical hit on a roll of 18-20.

Seer

Most watchers simply look around to learn about the world they live in, but seers are different. They seek to learn more about the world than the present can tell, and have found ways to peer into the near future to unleash new kinds of power.

Comprehend Beyond

At 3rd level, when you cast a divination spell from the watcher spell list, you can target up to three creatures within 60 feet of yourself. The targets are considered understood until the end of your next turn as you peer into the possible future and glean insight into the creatures' potential.

If the spell was a cantrip, you only target one creature instead of three.

Stolen Fate

Also at 3rd level, you have learned how to give luck from one creature to another. As a reaction when an understood or willing creature is about to make an attack roll or ability check with advantage, you cause that roll to loose its advantage. As part of that same reaction choose a creature within 30 feet of yourself. That creature has advantage on the next attack roll or ability check it makes.

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

Foreseen

At 7th level, your ability to sense the near future allows you to anticipate danger and counter it. When you or a non-hostile creature within 15 feet of yourself take damage, you can use your reaction to reduce the severity of the damage, causing all creatures within 15 feet of yourself to instead take the minimum possible roll of that damage.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Bend Fate

At 11th level, you have learned how to not only see into the future, but how to change it. If you or a creature you can see makes an attack roll, ability check, or saving throw, you can choose to give it advantage or disadvantage (your choice). This can be done even after a result is determined as you were only seeing a possible future.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Diviner

At 15th level, you can choose three divination spells in any spell list from 1st to 3rd level. These spells become watcher spells for you and are always prepared, and do not count against your maximum prepared spells. You may cast each chosen spell once at its lowest level without using a spell slot, and regain the ability to do so when you complete a long rest.

Mystic

Mystic watchers have learned how to turn their understanding and magical abilities into powerful psionic feats that twist reality and force their foes to question everything they thought they understood.

Open Book

At 3rd level you gain telepathy up to a range of 30 feet. This range increases to 60 feet at 7th level, and 120 feet at 15th level.

If a creature within this range makes an attack, you can choose to understand it for 1 minute, or until it moves outside of this range. You can only have one creature understood in this way at a time.

Psychic Claws

Also at 3rd level, you can manifest a weapon or claws on your hands made of psionic energy as a bonus action. This weapon can be used as a spellcasting focus, has the light and finesse property, and has a reach of 10 feet. It deals 1d6 psychic damage, dealing additional damage equal to your Wisdom modifier to understood creatures. You can cause the weapon to vanish with a bonus action.

This weapon's damage increases by 1d6 when you reach 5th Level (2d6), 11th level (3d6), and 17th level (4d6).

Mind Over Body

At 7th level, you can alter reality such that an effect targets a creature's mind instead of its physical body. When you or an understood creature within your telepathy's range is forced to make a Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution saving throw, you can change the saving throw to Intelligence or Wisdom (your choice).

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

Psionic Surge

At 11th level, you can release a surge of powerful psionic energy, enfeebling enemies and bolstering allies. As an action, choose any number of creatures within 30 feet. A chosen creature gains an additional action on its next turn, which cannot be used to cast a 1st level or higher level spell. Creatures not chosen can’t make more than one melee or ranged attack during its next turn, regardless of abilities or magical items on. If a creature that was not chosen attempts to cast a spell with a casting time of 1 action on its next turn, it fails.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Mental Master

At 15th level, you can cast the spell telekinesis once without expending a spell slot, regaining the ability to do so when you finish a long rest. When you cast telekinesis and whenever you use your action to use the spell, you can take an additional action on your turn to use it again.

Additionally, when you affect a creature with telekinesis and succeed the skill contest, you can choose to deal 4d6 psychic damage to the creature as well.

Watcher Spells

Spells not from the PHB have their source listed. The source ND is for New Dawn, more of my homebrew.

1st Level
  • alarm
  • cause fear (XGE)
  • color spray
  • command
  • compelled duel
  • cure wounds
  • detect evil and good
  • detect magic
  • detect poison and disease
  • disguise self
  • eyes abound (ND)
  • faerie fire
  • find familiar
  • identify
  • presence of mind (ND)
  • sleep
  • tasha's hideous laughter
  • zephyr strike (XGE)
2nd Level
  • alter self
  • blindness/deafness
  • blur
  • continual flame
  • crown of madness
  • detect thoughts
  • find traps
  • hold person
  • invisibility
  • knock
  • lesser restoration
  • levitate
  • locate object
  • mind spike (XGE)
  • mirror image
  • misty step
  • pass without trace
  • power word pause (ND)
  • reposition (ND)
  • see invisibility
  • silence
  • suggestion
  • unveiling eye (ND)
3rd Level
  • blinding smite
  • blink
  • clairvoyance
  • counterspell
  • enemies abound (XGE)
  • fly
  • focus (ND)
  • gaseous form
  • glyph of warding
  • haste
  • hypnotic pattern
  • locked eyes (ND)
  • major image
  • nondetection
  • protection from energy
  • revivify
  • sending
  • slow
  • twist fate (ND)
  • thunder step (XGE)
  • water breathing
4th Level
  • arcane eye
  • banishment
  • confusion
  • death ward
  • dimension door
  • divination
  • dominate beast
  • fabricate
  • freedom of movement
  • greater invisibility
  • hallucinatory terrain
  • locate creature
  • phantasmal killer
  • smoke and mirrors (ND)
  • stolen thoughts (ND)
  • stoneskin
  • withdraw (ND)
5th Level
  • animate objects
  • circle of power
  • contact other plane
  • creation
  • dominate person
  • from whence one came (ND)
  • geas
  • hold monster
  • legend lore
  • mind shield (ND)
  • mislead
  • passwall
  • scrying
  • steel wind strike (XGE)
  • telekinesis
  • wall of force

Gaze Abilities

Arcane Meditation

When you complete a short rest, you can recover one 1st level spell slot. Once you use this feature, you cannot do so again until you finish a long rest.

Charming Personality

You learn the spell charm person. You always have this spell prepared and it doesn't count against the number of Spells you can prepare each day. You can cast it once without expending a spell slot, and can't do so again until you finish a long rest.

Defenses Laid Bare

Prerequisite: Watchblade subclass

Your weapon attacks ignore resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage. In addition, you treat your weapons as magical for the purposes of immunity to non-magical bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage.

Defensive

Your Armor Class cannot be lower than 13 + your Dexterity modifier.

Devil's in the Details

The following options are added to the list of information you can request when using Picked Apart;

  • Creature Type
  • Armor Class
  • Spells the creature is under the effects of, if any
  • Highest level spell the creature can currently cast, if any
  • If the creature has legendary resistance or legendary actions
  • Senses of the creature
  • Condition Immunities

Distracting Eyes

You can spend 1 minute in conversation with a creature in an attempt to distract it. The creature must make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. Creatures immune to the charmed condition automatically succeed this saving throw. On success, a creature is immune to this effect for 1 hour. On failure, the creature automatically fails Wisdom (Perception) checks made for the next 10 minutes, or earlier of you choose to end the effect. While under this effect the creature is always considered surprised if attacked.

Eye of Erasure

Prerequisite: 13th level

As an action you focus your gaze on a creature you can see within 60 feet, forcing it to make a Wisdom saving throw. On failure, it becomes unable to cast spells for a number of rounds equal to your Wisdom modifier. You must concentrate on this ability (as though you were concentrating on a spell) to maintain the effect for the duration, and the creature can repeat the Wisdom saving throw at the end of each of their turns for the duration.

When you use this feature, you can't use it again until you complete a long rest.

Eye of Fear

Prerequisite: 9th level

You can cast fear once using a watcher spell slot. You can't do so again until you finish a long rest.

Gift of Sight

You can cast darkvision at will without expending a spell slot.

Impair

As a reaction to when you are targeted by an attack roll from a creature you understand, you give the attack disadvantage. This must be done before the attack is made.

Improve

As a reaction to an ally within 30 feet making an attack roll against a creature you understand, you give the attack advantage. This must be done before the attack is made.

Light Read

Prerequisite: Mystic subclass

You learn the spell detect thoughts. You always have this spell prepared and it doesn't count against the number of spells you can prepare each day. You can cast it once without expending a spell slot, and can't do so again until you finish a long rest.

If the target is understood, it has disadvantage on the Wisdom saving throw when you probe deeper into the creature's mind with this spell.

Magi

Prerequisite: Seer subclass

When a creature is casting a spell with verbal or somatic components, you immediately learn the name of the spell being cast (no action required).

Additionally, you can attempt to use a spell scroll from any class list, treating it as a watcher spell.

Make Alone

Prerequisite: 9th level

As an action you force one creature you can see to make an Intelligence saving throw against your spell save DC. On failure, the creature can no longer perceive any allies around it, as if they didn't exist. The target rationalizes any effects the allies cause in this state as natural occurrences or caused by your power.

An ally of any affected creature can end this effect by spending an action alerting it to their presence (slapping or shaking it, yelling, etc). This effect lasts 1 minute, or you can end it as a bonus action.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.

Measured Approach

As a Watcher no enemy can cause you to waver from your goals. You have advantage on any saving throw to resist being charmed or frightened.

Medusa's Gaze

Prerequisite: 17th level

As an action, you can force a creature within 30 ft. of you that can see you to make a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC. If the saving throw fails by 5 or more, the creature is instantly petrified. Otherwise, a creature that fails the save begins to turn to stone and is restrained. A creature restrained by this effect must make another Constitution saving throw at the end of its next turn. If it successfully saves against this effect, the effect ends. On failure it is turned to stone. This effect also ends if you use your action to do anything else other than continue this effect, lasting up to 1 hour.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.

Peaceful Aura

Prerequisite: True Watcher subclass

You learn the spell calm emotions. You always have this spell prepared and it doesn't count against the number of spells you can prepare each day. You can cast it once without expending a spell slot, and can't do so again until you finish a long rest.

Power of Kings

Prerequisite: 17th level

When casting Geas, you reduce the casting time to 1 action.

Scopaesthesia

You can use Prying Eyes as a bonus action, and can use it twice before needing to rest to use it again.

Additionally, when using Prying Eyes, you can sense the exact location of even invisible or magical creatures.

Truth of the Beholder

You can cast zone of truth once without expending a spell slot, and regain the ability to do so when you finish a short or long rest.

Unrestricted Gaze

Prerequisite: 8th level

You gain immunity to the blinded condition, and treat lightly obscured areas as though they were unobscured.

Multiclassing

On the DM's discretion, you can multiclass in the Watcher class, as described in a book most players should have (page 163-165). If you do so, the following rules are applied.

Prerequisites

To qualify for an Watcher class, you must meet the ability score proficiencies for the Watcher class, as shown in the table below.

Table: Multiclassing Prerequisites
Class Ability Score Minimum
Watcher Strength or Dexterity 13, Wisdom 13

Class Feature: Spellcasting

When you multiclass into the Watcher class and gain the Spellcasting feature from both the Watcher class and other classes, you add half your levels (rounded down) in the Watcher class when you determine your available spell slots.

Spells

Some spells that are added to the Watcher's spell list are not from an official source, and instead are credited to New Dawn. This is my homebrew setting/general term for much of my content. Such spells are listed here for your convenience. Some spells have the school of "shattering", which is my homebrew school for spells that break time, space, and minds alike.

As this is homebrew within a homebrew, it is well within a DM's right to refuse this additional content. The class should operate fine without it, but it will provide new options.

Eyes Abound

1st-level enchantment


  • Casting Time: 1 action
  • Range: Self
  • Components: V, S
  • Duration: 1 hour
  • Classes: Watcher

Magical eyes appear all over your body and the items you wear or carry, granting you a supernatural sense for danger. Once before the start of each of your tunrs for the duration, the first time a creature would have advantage on an attack against you it looses this advantage.

Presence of Mind

1st-level shattering


  • Casting Time: 1 action
  • Range: Self
  • Components: S
  • Duration: 1 hour
  • Classes: Sorcerer, Watcher, Wizard

You send magic into your future, readying yourself should you be placed in sudden danger. If you are surprised while under the effects of this spell, you immediately cease to be. Also, if your initiative is below 15 you can choose to make it 15. Once these effects occur, the spell ends.

Power Word Pause

2nd-level shattering


  • Casting Time: 1 reaction, taken when you or a creature within range is about to take damage
  • Range: 15 feet
  • Components: V
  • Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute
  • Classes: Cleric, Paladin, Sorcerer, Watcher, Wizard

You shout a magical command, freezing the instance of damage that triggered this spell before it takes effect. Once this spell ends, the damage is applied.

Reposition

2nd-level shattering


  • Casting Time: 1 bonus action
  • Range: 30 feet
  • Components: V, S
  • Duration: Instantaneous
  • Classes: Artificer, Sorcerer, Watcher, Wizard

Reality shifts for a moment, as you teleport a willing creature that you can see within range up to 15 feet to an unoccupied space that you can see.

Unveiling Eye

2nd-level conjuration


  • Casting Time: 1 action
  • Range: Self
  • Components: V, S, M (a sliver of a beholder's eye)
  • Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute
  • Classes: Watcher

You summon a magical floating eye that appears up to 30 feet above you, and moves with you. Any invisible creature within 30 feet of yourself is revealed to you, and you are aware if there is a creature hiding within this area but not its exact location.

As a bonus action for the duration, you can choose a creature you can see within 15 feet of yourself to focus the eye's gaze upon. That creature cannot benefit from a spell with a spell level of 2nd level or lower. This effect lasts until this spell ends, the creature moves more than 15 feet away from you, or you use this action on another creature.

At Higher Levels: When you cast this spell with a spell slot of 3rd level or higher, a creature with the gaze focused upon it cannot benefit from a spell with a spell level equal to the level of this spell.

Focus

3rd-level enchantment


  • Casting Time: 1 bonus action
  • Range: Self
  • Components: S, M (a leaf of lavender)
  • Duration: 1 minute
  • Classes: Artificer, Bard, Cleric, Druid, Paladin, Ranger, Warlock, Watcher, Wizard

For the duration of the spell, you focus your mind on one particular topic. Any concentration check you make for the duration of the spell has advantage.

At Higher Levels: When you cast this spell with a spell slot of 3rd level or higher, you gain a +1 bonus to all concentration checks made for the duration of the spell per spell slot level above 2nd.

Locked Eyes

3rd-level enchantment


  • Casting Time: 1 action
  • Range: 60 feet
  • Components: S
  • Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute
  • Classes: Watcher

Choose a creature you can see within range, forcing it to make a Wisdom saving throw. On failure the creature must stare at you for the duration of the spell, limiting its vision to a 20-foot radius sphere centered on yourself. Anything outside this area is considered heavily obscured to the target. This effect is suppressed if the creature is unable to see you or is outside of the spell's range.

At Higher Levels: When you cast this spell using a 2nd level spell slot or higher, you can target one additional creature per spell level above 1st.

Twist Fate

3rd-level shattering


  • Casting Time: 1 reaction, which you take when an attack, saving throw, or ability check is determined to be a success or failure
  • Range: 30 feet
  • Components: S, M (a set of bone dice worth at least 1gp)
  • Duration: Instantaneous
  • Classes: Bard, Warlock

You attempt to try fate once more. When a creature makes an attack, saving throw, or ability check within range and the result is determined but no damage has been rolled you may force that creature to attempt the roll anew.

At Higher Levels: If you cast this spell with a spell slot of 4th level or higher, you can force the new roll to no longer have advantage or disadvantage if it had it.

Smoke and Mirrors

4th-level illusion


  • Casting Time: 1 action
  • Range: 30 feet
  • Components: V, S, M (a silver hand mirror worth at least 10gp)
  • Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute
  • Classes: Bard, Sorcerer, Watcher, Warlock, Wizard

Choose a point on a surface within range. A thin fog fills a 20 foot radius from this point, rising no more than 10 feet off the ground. This fog lightly obscures the area. While in this fog you are invisible and hidden from any creature also within the fog, and attacking or casting a spell does not reveal your location to creatures as you cause the attack or spell to seem to originate from elsewhere.

A creature can take the Search action to attempt to locate you, making a Wisdom (Perception) check against your spell save DC. On success, the creature learns your location until the end of its next turn.

Stolen Thoughts

4th-level divination


  • Casting Time: 1 action
  • Range: 30 feet
  • Components: S
  • Duration: Special
  • Classes: Bard, Watcher, Warlock

Target a creature within range that is concentrating on a spell, attempting to steal its control over the spell. Make an ability check with your spellcasting modifier against the creature's spell save DC. The targeted creature can use its reaction to give you disadvantage on this saving throw. On success, you gain control of the spell the creature was casting as you begin concentrating on the stolen spell and the creature looses concentration on it.

If the spell is of equal or higher level than your highest spell slot, you loose concentration on it at the end of your turn.

Withdraw

4th-level shattering


  • Casting Time: 1 action
  • Range: Self
  • Components: V, S
  • Duration: 1 hour
  • Classes: Sorcerer, Warlock, Watcher, Wizard

You prepare yourself to avoid upcoming danger. If you are subjected to any damage while this spell is active, you can choose to use your reaction to instead take no damage, sending yourself a little ways into the future. You vanish and reappear in the nearest unoccupied space from where you left at the start of your next turn. When you use this feature of the spell, the spell ends.

At Higher Levels: When cast using a spell slot of 6th level or higher, you can target any number of willing creatures within 15 feet of yourself to also disappear, reappearing at the start of your next turn.

From Whence One Came

5th-level abjuration


  • Casting Time: 1 action
  • Range: 60 feet
  • Components: V, S, M (an object from the caster's birthplace worth at least 1cp, consumed upon casting the spell)
  • Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute
  • Classes: Cleric, Paladin, Sorcerer, Warlock, Watcher, Wizard

You attempt to send one creature that you can see within range back to where it was born. If the target is unwilling it must succeed on a Charisma saving throw or be teleported to the loaction of its birth or creation for the duration of the spell, at which point the target reappears in the space it left or in the nearest unoccupied space if that space is occupied. If you maintain concentration for the full duration of the spell, the creature does not return.

If the location of the target's birth or creation is destroyed or on another plane of existence, the spell sends them to as close as possible to that location that is safe. The target will return when the spell ends regardless of if you held concentration.

At Higher Levels. When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 6th level or higher, you can target one additional creature per spell slot level above 5th.

Mind Shield

5th-level shattering


  • Casting Time: 1 action
  • Range: Self
  • Components: V, S, M (a small piece of a mammal's brain)
  • Duration: 1 hour
  • Classes: Artificer, Bard, Cleric, Paladin, Sorcerer, Warlock, Watcher, Wizard

You shield your mind from the outside world. For the duration you gain resistance to psychic damage, and have advantage on Wisdom saving throws and saving throws caused by a shattering spell.

Making Your Own Content

Hey! If you want to make your own content for this class, here's a few references that might help.

Spells

Spells that the watcher gets should be information gathering, status inflicting, or controlling. Not all need to follow this pattern, but thats the vibe I went for in picking the spell list.

Subclass

The subclasses follow this pattern in their features;

  • 3rd level feature. A new way to understand
  • 3rd level feature. A new way to use understanding
  • 7th level feature. Free space, typically defensive oriented
  • 11th level feature. A powerful 1/lr feature
  • 15th level feature. A simple yet powerful feature that reinforces and assists the "playstyle" of the subclass

Gaze Abilities

These are roughly balanced the same as Eldritch Invocations, so those are a good comparison. However, gaze abilities shouldn't be a cornerstone of a build, and simply help an existing build flourish (or be cooler).

More to Come

Things that are being worked on:

  • Watcher exclusive spells (maybe done?)
  • Revamp to Gaze Abilities

Versions History

Version 16 (current)
  • Fighting style Agile Marksman replaced with Overwatch
  • Changed Trained Eye to only allow one target understood with it at a time, but it no longer has limited uses
  • Added Mystic subclass
  • Added Light Read gaze feature for the Mystic
  • Buffed Picked Apart and Devil's in the Details to provide full information about creature immunities/resistances/vulnerabilities
  • Moved Picked Apart to 4th level
  • Supreme Comprehension replaced with Shooting Daggers
  • Nerfed Eye for an Eye to now only blind on nat 20's, not any crits
  • Further cleaned up and spiced up wording
  • Reworded Deep Understanding to only affect skill contests, wording was unclear as to what checks it may affect
  • Changed the Quick Build section to prioritize Dex and forget Strength
  • Moved Unerring Mark to 2nd level to calm down 1st level
  • Removed Paralytic Glance gaze feature
  • Added hold person, hold monster, and scrying to the Watcher spell list
  • Added Watcher exclusive spells to the spell list; eyes abound, unveiling eye, locked eyes.
  • Changed Defensive Measures to Defensive, now just gives the effects of mage armor instead of letting you cast it mage armor.
  • Improve and Impair gaze abilities are now unlimited use, but only work on understood creatures
  • Unrestricted Gaze now has an 8th level requirement
  • Eye of Erasure is less random now, but also allows the target to repeat the saving throw and is 1/long rest now
  • Added and removed several spells from the spell list at all levels

Thanks!

Special thanks to the discord of many things and its many brewers who helped me as I made this class, it wouldn't be nearly as polished as it is now without them!

 

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