Watcher [Class]

by Rachayz

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The Watcher
Made by Rachayz

Credits

Class is created by /u/Rachayz unless noted otherwise. Special 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 and used wording from.

I wish I could credit the artist of the amazing blue eye picture I used, but the only sources I can find are wallpaperplay.com or pexels.com or even cutewallpaper.org with no credit to the original artist.

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!

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. As the general draws their blade to fight, it is already over. The warrior knows every move they are about to make.

A tiefling approaches the guarded keep in broad daylight. Bodies of those who attempted to enter the keep scatter the ground around them, full of arrows. Archers look over the side of the wall, but don't notice the bright blue tiefling as they casually enter the keep. The tiefling makes their way unimpeded through the keep, searching rooms until they find the hostage guarded by two powerful guards in full plate. The tiefling ignores the guards, picks up the hostage, and whispers an incantation as they vanish.

The forest erupts in flames as a fireball tears the trees apart. As the smoke clears, revealing an unscathed warmage, much to the archmage's frustration. The warmage continues to approach as the archmage throws every spell they know at them, attacking their body, mind, and spirit. The warmage continues, indifferent to the arcane show, and proceeds to separate the archmage's head from their body with an arcane flash of their own.

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, Wisdom should be your highest ability score, followed by Strength, or Dexterity. Second, choose the Soldier or Acolyte background.

Watcher Table
Level Proficiency Bonus Features 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th
1st +2 Eyes from Beyond, Foreseen (one use) — — — — —
2nd +2 Spellcasting, Understand Your Enemy 2 — — — —
3rd +2 Prying Eyes, Watcher Specialty feature 3 — — — —
4th +2 Ability Score Improvement 3 — — — —
5th +3 Extra Attack, Disabling Advantage 4 2 — — —
6th +3 The Watcher's Gaze, Mimic 4 2 — — —
7th +3 Watcher Specialty feature, Greater Understanding 4 3 — — —
8th +3 Ability Score Improvement 4 3 — — —
9th +4 — 4 3 2 — —
10th +4 Eyes from Further Beyond 4 3 2 — —
11th +4 Watcher Specialty feature, Foreseen (two uses) 4 3 3 — —
12th +4 Ability Score Improvement 4 3 3 — —
13th +5 — 4 3 3 1 —
14th +5 Lesson in Pain 4 3 3 1 —
15th +5 Watcher Specialty feature 4 3 3 2 —
16th +5 Piercing Gaze, Ability Score Improvement 4 3 3 2 —
17th +6 — 4 3 3 3 1
18th +6 Supreme Understanding 4 3 3 3 1
19th +6 Ability Score Improvement 4 3 3 3 2
20th +6 Complete Comprehension 4 3 3 3 2

Class Features

As a Watcher, you gain the following class features

Hit Points

  • Hit Dice: 1d8 per Watcher level
  • Hit Points at 1st Level: 8 + your Constitution modifier
  • Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d8 (or 5) + your Constitution modifier per Watcher level after 1st

Proficiencies

  • Armor: Light armor, medium armor, shields
  • Weapons: Simple weapons, hand crossbows, longswords, rapiers, shortswords
  • 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 and a shield

Eyes from Beyond

At 1st level when you pick this class, your eyes become far more perceptive than before as you start to see things you never noticed.

  • You gain darkvision for 60 feet. If you already had darkvision, increase it's range by another 60 feet.
  • You gain proficiency in Wisdom (Perception) checks.
  • You can take the Search action as a bonus action.

Foreseen

Your incredible ability to understand situations allows you to react to danger and nearly nullify its threat. At 1st level as long as you are not surprised, you can use this ability as a reaction when you or a willing creature within 30 feet of yourself are about to take damage from an attack, spell, or ability. You quickly speak a warning, disrupt the spell, or otherwise weaken the strength of the triggering damage. As a result, the triggering attack deals the minimum possible damage.

Every time you use this ability after the first you suffer one level of exhaustion, and you must complete a short or long rest to regain all uses of this feature.

You can use this ability twice before suffering exhaustion at 11th level.

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 3rd-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 five 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.

Understand Your Enemy

At 2nd level you have an uncanny ability to learn about your foe just by watching them. After a creature that you can see makes an attack or casts a spell, you can use your reaction to choose one piece of information from the following list. The DM will tell you the related information about the creature.

  • Which ability score is highest
  • Which ability score is lowest
  • Whether the creature has more than half its hit points
  • Average damage the creature can do with the attack/spell that triggered the reaction
  • Class levels, if any
  • One random vulnerability, if any
  • One random resistance/immunity, if any

After using this ability the chosen creature is considered 'understood' for the purposes of other abilities until your next rest.

You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Wisdom modifier, after which you must take a short or long rest to use this feature again.

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 that you can see is purposely watching you, you immediately are aware of them and their location. If the creature 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.

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.

Extra Attack

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

Disabling Advantage

At 5th level, when you hit an understood creature with an attack that had advantage on the roll, the creature's next attack has disadvantage. This effect does not stack.

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.

Using a Gaze ability that requires an action can replace one of your attacks.

Mimic

At 6th level you learn how to watch how others avoid danger and mimic their reactions. If you and one or more creatures are simultaneously subjected to a saving throw, you can choose to automatically succeed at the saving throw if at least one of the other creatures succeed. Additionally, if the other creature has an ability such as evasion that would allow it to take no damage on success, you also take no damage.

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

Greater Understanding

At 7th level you improve your ability to understand your foe. The first time you make an attack roll against an understood creature you gain advantage on the roll regardless of any other disadvantages. You cannot use this feature against a creature more than once unless you understand them again.

Eyes From Further Beyond

At 10th level your vision improves even further.

  • You can see normally in darkness, both magical and nonmagical, to a distance of 60 feet.
  • You can use double your proficiency bonus in Wisdom (insight) checks made to determine if a creature is lying.
  • You open your third eye, and can now have three gaze abilities instead of two.
  • Your eyes can be used as a spellcasting focus in place of your arcane symbol.

Lesson in Pain

At 14th level, you can cause a creature to feel the same pain that you just experienced. As a reaction when you take damage, force the creature that dealt the damage to make a Wisdom saving throw. On failure, the creature takes half the damage in the same type of damage that you just received. On success, the creature takes no damage.

This ability only transfers damage, and copies no other effects. You can use this ability a number of times equal to your Wisdom modifier, and regain all uses after 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.

Supreme Understanding

At 18th level you have mastered your ability to learn a creature's skills in combat. When using Understand Your Enemy you can choose two choices from the list instead of one.

Additionally, if using Understand Your Enemy could reveal multiple traits, such as multiple resistances, you learn all of the traits instead of a random one.

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 use Understand Your Enemy on a creature, you can choose to use this ability on it as well. Any time you use Understand Your Enemy on the affected creature it does not use a charge. Additionally, all of your attacks have advantage against the creature, and the creature has disadvantage on all saving throws you force them to make. 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 three typical specialties for Watchers: the True Watcher, the Watchblade, and the Lore Seeker.

True Watcher

Many Watchers only adhere somewhat to the ideals of their kin. Those who focus on the core of what makes a Watcher so strong 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 make a move.

Unending Watch

When you choose this specialty at 3rd level, you add double your proficiency bonus when making Wisdom (Perception) checks.

You no longer need sleep. To gain the benefits of a long rest you can spend the entire time doing light activity, such as keeping watch.

You also have advantage on all Wisdom (Perception) checks made when keeping watch during short or long rests.

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 spend 1 minute in meditation, then for the next 10 minutes all creatures who's passive perception is lower than your spell save DC will consider you invisible other than creatures of your choice. Creatures that are not alerted get a -5 to their passive perception to detect you. Affected creatures will not react to any simple movements you perform, such as opening or closing doors or performing somatic/verbal components for spells. If you make an attack, deal damage, or force a creature other than yourself to make a saving throw this effect 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 short or long rest.

Watching Undisturbed

At 11th level, you can enter a special meditation that surrounds you with an aura of peace. At the end of a rest, you and a number of willing creatures up to your Proficiency modifier gain the effect of a sanctuary spell that lasts until the start of your next rest (the spell can end early as normal).

The saving throw DC for the spell is the same as your spell save DC.

Eyes of Truth

At 15th level, your eyes can see the world for how it really is. You gain truesight at a range of 60 feet.

You also gain immunity to the Charmed and Frightened condition.

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.

Push the Advantage

At 3rd level, whenever you deal damage with a weapon attack when you had advantage on the attack roll, you deal additional damage equal to half your Watcher level (rounded up). If the attack deals multiple types of damage, you can choose which damage type to add to.

Exploitative Movement

At 7th level, when you use your reaction to use Understand Your Enemy, you can also move up to half your speed as part of that reaction. When moving in this way, you do not provoke attacks of opportunity.

Perfect Opening

At 11th level, you can spot rare but advantageous moments in combat to exploit. As an action on your turn before you have used any movement, use your full movement in a single direction. 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 are 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 a wall or other obstacle blocks you from traveling your full movement, you stop at the obstacle.

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.

Lore Seeker

Lore Seeker Watchers specialize in learning about the magical side of the world.

Learned Scholar

At 3rd level, when taking a short rest you regain up to two 1st level spell slots. At 11th level, you instead regain up to four.

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

You can also use Understand Your Enemy outside of combat by spending 1 minute observing a creature.

Unfailing Observation

At 7th level, you can instantly use Understand Your Enemy on a creature that you miss with an attack or on a creature that successfully saves against a spell you cast (no reaction required). You can only use this ability once per round.

Arcane Resilience

At 11th level, your knowledge of how magic works allows you to better overcome their effects. Whenever you are affected by a spell or spell like ability that forces you to make a saving throw to take only half damage, you instead take no damage if you succeed on the saving throw, and only half damage if you fail.

Epiphany

At 15th level, you have made a breakthrough in the way you cast spells. Whenever you cast a Watcher spell that can be cast at a higher level for additional effects, you can choose to have it cast at one level higher than the spell slot you use to cast it.

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 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.

Watcher Spells

1st Level
  • alarm
  • (XGE) cause fear
  • color spray
  • command
  • compelled duel
  • cure wounds
  • detect magic
  • disguise self
  • faerie Fire
  • find familiar
  • hunter's mark
  • sanctuary
  • sleep
  • tasha's hideous laughter
  • thunderwave
  • (XGE) zephyr strike
2nd Level
  • alter self
  • blindness/deafness
  • blur
  • continual flame
  • crown of madness
  • invisibility
  • knock
  • lesser restoration
  • levitate
  • (XGE) maximilian's earthen grasp
  • (XGE) mind spike
  • mirror image
  • misty step
  • see invisibility
  • silence
  • suggestion
3rd Level
  • blinding smite
  • blink
  • clairvoyance
  • counterspell
  • (XGE) enemies abound
  • fly
  • gaseous form
  • glyph of warding
  • protection from energy
  • revivify
  • sending
  • slow
  • (XGE)thunder step
  • water breathing
4th Level
  • arcane eye
  • banishment
  • confusion
  • death ward
  • dimension door
  • dominate beast
  • fabricate
  • freedom of movement
  • hallucinatory terrain
  • phantasmal killer
  • stoneskin
5th Level
  • animate objects
  • circle of power
  • contact other plane
  • creation
  • dominate person
  • geas
  • legend lore
  • mislead
  • passwall
  • telekinesis
  • wall of force

Gaze Abilities

Charming Personality

You can cast Charm Person using a Watcher spell slot.

Defensive Measures

You can cast Mage Armor on yourself without expending a spell slot.

Devil's in the Details

You gain the following additional options to choose from when using the Understand Your Enemy Ability;

  • Creature Type
  • Armor Class
  • If the creature is under the effects of a spell
  • Highest level spell slot the creature can cast, if any
  • If the creature has legendary resistance
  • The senses of the creature
  • One random condition immunity, if any

Distracting Eyes

You can spend 1 minute talking with a creature in an attempt to distract them. The creature must make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. On failure, the creature is distracted by you and will automatically fail any perception check made for the next 10 minutes, or earlier of you choose to end the effect. Additionally, while under this effect the creature is always considered surprised if they are attacked. Creatures immune to the charmed condition cannot be targeted by this feature.

Eye of Erasure

Prerequisite: 13th level

As an action you focus your gaze on a creature within 60 feet of yourself. That creature must make a Wisdom saving throw, and on failure it cannot cast any spells for 1d4 rounds. You must use your action on subsequent turns to keep this effect active, and if you use your action to do anything else the effect ends and the creature can use spellcasting as normal. A creature that successfully saves from this effect is immune to it for 24 hours.

You can use this ability a number of times equal to your Wisdom modifier, and regain all uses after a long rest.

Eye of Fear

Prerequisite: 9th level

You can cast Fear using a Watcher spell slot

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, you can give the attack roll disadvantage. This cannot be done after the dice is rolled. You gain the ability to use this again when initiative next begins.

Improve

As a reaction to an ally within 30 feet making an attack roll, you can give the attack roll advantage. This cannot be done after the dice is rolled. You gain the ability to use this again when initiative next begins.

Magi

Prerequisite: Lore Master subclass

When a creature is casting a spell with verbal and/or somatic components, you can tell what spell is being cast as well as the spell level it is being cast at.

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

Magical Burst

While you have this ability you know one cantrip from the Wizard or Bard class spell list of your choosing. You can change this cantrip each time you pick this ability.

Make Alone

Prerequisite: 9th level

As an action you force one creature of your choosing to make an Intelligence saving throw against your spell save DC. On failure, the creature can no longer perceive any allies around them, treating them as if they were invisible.

An ally of any affected creature can end this effect by spending an action alerting them to their presence (slapping or shaking them, yelling, etc). This effect lasts 1 minute, or can be ended by you using 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: 11th 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.

Paralytic Glance

You can cast Hold Person using a Watcher spell slot

Peaceful Aura

Prerequisite: True Watcher subclass

You know 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.

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.

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

Shooting Daggers

As a bonus action on your turn you can create daggers of psychic energy that strike a foe. Make a melee spell attack roll against a creature within 15 feet, dealing 1d6 psychic damage on a success and none on failure. This ability's damage increases by 1d6 when you reach 5th level (2d6), 11th level (3d6), and 17th level (4d6).

Once you use this feature a number of times equal to your Wisdom modifier, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.

Truth of the Beholder

You can cast Zone of Truth without expending any spell slots.

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

Unrestricted Gaze

You cannot be blinded by any means, and treat lightly obscured areas as normal.

Versions History

Version 13 (current)
  • Replaced Helpful Eye with Disabling Advantage. I felt that helpful eye was too similar to paladin smite and felt out of theme
  • Modified Understand Your Enemy to only understand a creature until next rest, and added a new option (avg damage)
  • Changed Exploit Weakness to Exploitative Movement (instead of no OA from understood, u can move when understanding)
  • Modified Prying Eyes to be able to detect any creature watching you, not just magically enchanted ones. Also no longer linked to search action
  • Added Scopaesthesia Gaze Ability to improve Prying Eyes
  • Allowed the damage from Push the Advantage to be applied to any damage type the weapon deals
  • Replaced Spell Fusion with Epiphany. Watchers already get so few spell slots that fusion wasn't worth it
  • Improved Arcane Resilience to apply to all spell saves
  • Changed the 3rd paragraph of the opening text to better reflect the new Lore Seeker
  • Replaced the component pouch in the equipment with the arcane symbol.
  • Changed Lesson in Understanding to Lesson in Pain and changed it to target attacker instead of creature of choice
  • Removed Prepare Gaze Ability
  • Reworded Improve and Impair to only be usable before the attack is rolled
  • Changed Distracting Eyes so that it is no longer a charm ability, and instead creatures immune to charm cannot be targeted
  • Exploit Weakness no longer gives an extra attack, instead allows you to dodge understood creatures better
  • Critical Understanding no longer gives guaranteed crits, instead increasing the crit range

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