SHDL#06 Swordsman

Bran, the Swordsman, is our first character-class. A fighter-type, perfectly able to solo the game, with enough patience. Good at everything, great at nothing.

As with most fantasy RPGs, the swordsman is the intended tutorial-character. No blatant weaknesses, no special combos or status effects, just average DPS and basic survivability to allow a beginner to learn the ropes of the game while playing solo without major issues.

I wanted to make this character as fun to use as possible within the design limitations, easy to learn but still played by experiencied players that like it and know how to use him well so I gave him a lot of mobility and some interesting skills that can be used in clever ways.

Bran has enough direct damage to handle the bosses well, along with some area damage and crowd control to manage the mobs effectively while clearing. His sustain is modest but reliable and he can even give some support to allies in a pinch.

His first skill is Bold Comet.

Bran jumps forward dealing damage to all enemies close to where he lands.

Not only a good mobility skill to jump over mobs and gaps, it has enough base damage to defeat small-fry in a single hit but also scales up with enemy health, hitting tougher enemies harder, being a perfect initiator.

His second skill is Battering Lance.

A quick charge forward that damages and knocks enemies away. A good way to clear paths or get out of tough situations, it can even push enemies out of boundaries and to their deaths.

Knockbacked enemies can also hit other enemies and damage them as well.

The effect varies from enemy to enemy, being weaker on tougher mobs, and bosses can't be pushed back at all (although they still get damaged).

Bran's third skill is Backlash Barrier.

He channels a shield for a second that absorbs damage from all sides while active, redirecting it all to each mob in front of the user at the end and stunning them.

When activated, any ally standing close enough will also get their own shield and backlash wave.

His fourth skill is Sharp Resolve.

It activates health regeneration on the user for a few seconds, and its duration can be extended by keeping a combo going.

Bran has enough movement speed and basic damage that when coupled with a good use of his skillset makes him a useful character for all players, from beginners to veterans.