The New 2024 Fighter: DnD 5e Class Changes
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As one of the most popular of all DnD 5e classes, the Fighter is a central part of Dungeons & Dragons and arguably one of the most straightforward and reliable options when it comes to character creation. The DnD 5e Fighter, however, has remained essentially untouched for over a decade, with the class seeing only a few minor adjustments and the introduction of just a handful of new subclasses.
With the release of the new 2024 Player’s Handbook, however, Wizards of the Coast is getting a second wind when it comes to the legendary warriors. Many of the changes to the Fighter stem from the One D&D playtest, which saw both minor tweaks and major adjustments to how the class plays and were generally well received by fans during testing.
So just what key changes can Fighters expect as the updated edition of DnD finally roles out? Below we slice and dice all the details.
What’s changed in the new 2024 DnD 5e Fighter?
Below are the key changes from the 2014 Fighter to the new 2024 Fighter.
| Fighter Feature | Level | Changes to the 2024 Fighter Class |
|---|---|---|
| Fighting Style | 1 | Fighting Styles are now feats, and some have seen minor tweaks. |
| Second Wind | 1 | Gain more uses of Second Wind as you level up |
| Weapon Mastery | 1 | – Choose three weapons. You gain use of their mastery properties. – May change your chosen weapons each Long Rest. – Gain access to more mastery properties as you level up |
| Tactical Mind | 2 | Expend a use of Second Wind to add 1d10 to a failed ability check.If you still fail, the use of Second Wind isn’t expended. |
| Fighter Subclass | 3 | – Battle Master: Maneuvers from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything have been included, and some options have been revamped. – Champion: Become a paragon of the battlefield with improved athleticism, Heroic Inspiration, and the ability to defy death. – Eldritch Knight: More easily walk the line between casting spells and making multiple attacks. – Psi Warrior: Gain a simple overview of your energy dice and small tweaks from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything. |
| Tactical Shift | 5 | Move half your Speed without provoking Opportunity Attacks when you use Second Wind as a Bonus Action. |
| Indomitable | 9 | Add your Fighter level to rerolls made with Indomitable. |
| Tactical Master | 9 | Replace a weapon’s mastery property with Push, Sap, or Slow for that attack. |
| Studied Attacks | 13 | Get Advantage on attacks against a target creature after you miss an attack. |
| Epic Boon | 19 | Choose one Epic Boon feat or another feat of your choice. |
How will the 2024 Fighter changes impact gameplay?
Level 1: Fighting Style
The biggest change is that Fighting Styles are now considered Feats. At level 1, however, you get to choose which Fighting Style/Feat to take and each Fighter level you advance you can swap out for a new Fighting Style. In addition, all of the Fighter options from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything have been included.
Level 1: Second Wind
Second Wind now has two uses and increases as you level up. Each Short Rest, you regain one expended use of the feature. On a Long Rest, you regain all expended uses.
Level 1: Weapon Mastery
Fighters are going to be one of the classes to use the new Weapon Mastery feature, which allows you to tap into distinctive properties of Simple and Martial weapons during combat. Each weapon has its own specific property from the list below:
- Cleave: If you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack, you can make a second attack against a creature within 5 feet that is also within your reach. When you hit with the second attack, you can roll your weapon’s damage, but you don’t add your ability modifier unless it’s negative.
- Graze: If you miss a creature with your weapon, you deal damage equal to the ability modifier you used to make the roll.
- Nick: You can make an additional attack against a target creature if your first attack was made while wielding two Light weapons.
- Push: You can launch a creature you hit (up to a Large size) 10 feet away from you.
- Sap: An enemy you hit has Disadvantage on their next attack roll before the start of your next turn.
- Slow: When you hit a creature and deal damage, you can reduce its Speed by 10 feet until the start of your next turn.
- Topple: When you hit a creature, you can force it to make a Constitution saving throw or fall Prone. The DC for this save is 8 plus the ability modifier used to make the attack plus your Proficiency Bonus.
- Vex: When you hit a creature and deal damage, you gain Advantage on your next attack roll before the end of your next turn.
Level 2: Tactical Mind
When you fail an ability check, you can now expend a use of Second Wind to add 1d10 to the roll. Notably, your Second Wind isn’t expended if you still end up failing the roll.
Level 5: Tactical Shift
Using your Second Wind allows you to move up to half your Speed as part of the Bonus Action, and you don’t provoke Opportunity Attacks.
Level 9: Indomitable
When you fail a saving throw, you can reroll with a bonus equal to your Fighter level. This means that at Level 9 you would get to add +9 to your rerolls.
Level 9: Tactical Master
When you attack with a weapon you’ve chosen as part of your Weapon Mastery feature, you can swap out the mastery properties for Push, Sap, or Slow (see Weapon Mastery above).
Level 13: Studied Attacks
If you make an attack against a creature and miss, you get Advantage on your next weapon attack against the same creature until the end of your next turn.
Level 19: Epic Boon
Epic Boons are a new type of feat introduced in the revised 2024 core rules. The Fighter is able to choose from 12 Epic Boons in total. For example, the Boon of the Combat Prowess increase one ability score by 1 to a maximum of 30. Additionally, whenever you miss an attack roll, you automatically hit instead (once you use the ability, you can’t use it again until the start of your next turn).
What are the changes to the 2024 Fighter subclasses?
In the new 2024 Player’s Handbook there are four official Fighter subclasses: Battle Master, Champion, Eldritch Knight, and Psi Warrior. Notably, the Battle Master, Champion and Eldritch Knight were featured in the 2014 Player’s Handbook, while the Psi Warrior first appeared in 2020’s Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything. As with the 2014 rules, players choose their Fighter subclass at Level 3.
That being said, there have been a few changes to how these subclasses function:
- Battle Master: The number of Superiority Dice and maneuvers you receive are the same, as is the scaling of your Superiority Dice. The feature Know Your Enemy now no longer has the 1-minute observation condition and only reveals Immunities, Resistances and Vulnerabilities. Additionally, at level 15 Relentless Presence now allows you to use a free d8 instead of spending your regular Superiority Dice for maneuvers during your turn.
- Champion: The Remarkable Athlete feature is now available at Level 3 and now gives you Advantage on Initiative rolls and Athletics checks. You also get access to a new feature at level 10 called Heroic Warrior, which gives you Heroic Inspiration whenever you start your turn without it.
- Eldritch Knight: Instead of getting to attack once as a Bonus Action when you cast a cantrip as an action, you can now replace an attack with a cantrip. Improved War Magic follows also allows you to use two attacks to cast a level 1 or level 2 spell.
- Psi Warrior: This subclass remains the same as its appearance in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything in terms of its key features.
Final Thoughts on the New Fighter
The Fighter is easily one of the most popular DnD 5e classes, so it’s great to see it getting some major attention in the new 2024 Player’s Handbook. While none of the changes are massive (with the exception perhaps of the Weapon Mastery feature and introduction of Tactical Mind and Tactical Shift), the tweaks that have been made look solid and are legitimate improvements to the class. It remains to be seen, however, just how well these updates will be received by the larger DnD 5e community.
Full details on the new Fighter can be found in the new 2024 Player’s Handbook, which you can pre-order now on D&D Beyond and Amazon.
Below is also a video from the official Dungeons & Dragons YouTube channel that features an interview with lead designer Jeremy Crawford who discuss the changes to the Fighter class in greater detail.
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Cameron Nichols is a Senior Editor who lives in Boston, Massachusetts, and has been playing D&D since the early 90s, when he was introduced by his older brother and cut his teeth on AD&D 2nd Edition. Since then he’s played virtually every RPG he could get his nerdy little mitts on (including a weird Goth phase in the early 2000s when he rocked Vampire: The Masquerade pretty hard). His favorite D&D campaign setting is the Forgotten Realms and his favorite character to play was a Half-Orc Barbarian named Grug (who was unfortunately devoured by a gelatinous cube).
