The Bladesharp: A Rogue Subclass for 5E
One inspiration for my Swords & Sorceries adventures and the Broken Empire setting was Fritz Leiber’s stories of Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. The Mouser especially feels like he doesn’t quite have a niche in 5E. He is clearly a rogue, expert at stealth and burglarly. But he is also a famously expert swordsman, and not just when his opponent isn’t looking. You could handwave that by saying he’s a hero in a novel, so he breaks the rules; but I want players to be able to play those kinds of heroes! And you could call him a multiclass character, a little good at this and a little good at that, but that doesn ‘t feel right to me. This subclass is meant to fit between fighters and rogues: a rogue whose trickery is with blades, not cards. Feedback and playtesting are welcome. The Bladesharp archetype is © Shane Ivey.
You have learned to apply your roguish expertise to battle. Swordsmanship is no hobby or flourish for you but a deadly serious passion, perhaps even an art. Your technique lay not in darting in and out of the fight but in outfighting your opponent, skill against skill.
In the Broken Empire setting, Bladesharp rogues are especially prominent among halflings and gnomes who live in the teeming human cities around the Sea of Storms. The most adventurous among them developed long, thin, thrusting swords to accentuate their agility and extend their reach in dark alleys where footpads lurk. The halflings call such a sword a “needle” in their own language, with r̃aphíes as the closest pronunciation in the Common tongue. The name has evolved with use to “rapier.” Other folk soon adopted their swords and skillful fighting.
Bladesharp rogues are also common in and around the Sunlands, where quick-handed fighters of the deserts and plains often use the shotel. The shotel is a thin, clawlike sword with a long, elaborate curve that can whip around defenses. It is equivalent to a rapier that inflicts slashing damage.
