PLAYTEST CONTENT

Hello! This is Playtest Content! As such, it might change in time, this is not a final release.
There’ll be channels to give feedback on this article and future articles soon!

DISCLAIMER: This material is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of
America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is
prohibited without the express written permission of its author.
This product is a work of fiction.

The Partner System

Rules to Incorporate Partners into your Games
By Pointy Hat

A Word of Warning:
All Pointy Hat content is considered playtest content and is subject to change, but the partner
system more than any other is a work in progress and will change and grow with time.
Information that you see here will be updated and modified with time.

I. The Basics
Here you’ll find the baseline information on what partners are and the role they play in the
game.

Your Loyal Companion:

Partners are companions to a Player Character. While other party members can be friends,
acquaintances, or even rivals, and have their own goals and motivations, a partner, as their
name implies, follows your player character. They have their own personalities, but they listen to
 your commands and trust you to command them both in and out of combat. Imagine partners
being somewhere between a familiar and an allied player character.

Simplicity Above All:

Partners are supposed to be extremely easy to run. They have a much-reduced set of actions
they can take compared to a PC, and can only take one action per turn. The point of this is
twofold. Firstly, running your PC along with their partner should not make the game harder than
it is. Secondly, we don’t want to bloat combat and slow it down by adding an entire extra PC to
the initiative order. The goal with combat involving partners is to make it as fast and simple as
possible to run them alongside your fully-fledged player character.

Help, not Overshadow:

The point of partners is to help the heroes on their journey. They are not meant to be as strong
as them or as useful, and this is baked into their design. Don’t compare what a partner can do to
what a player character can do; rather, compare what different classes of partners can bring as
additional resources to your arsenal.

Partner Moves and Classes:

The bread and butter of the Partner System is the Partner Moves and the Partner Classes. All
partners belong to one of three classes, and these classes influence what abilities they can
perform, as well as many details on their character sheet, such as hit dice, damage dice, or AC.

II. Partner Building:

Here you’ll find all the information you need to build your Partner.

Class:
All partners belong to one of three classes. Partners are not able to multiclass, so choose
wisely!
● Caster: Partners that specialize in ranged attacks and magical effects. They are the
weakest in terms of damage-dealing and HP, but compensate for this with their very high
utility, able to alter the battlefield or attack from a distance.
● Bruiser: Partners that specialize in up-close combat and damage dealing. They are the
highest damage-dealers of all classes, and also bring utility to the table at the cost of a
lower HP pool.
 ● Tank: Partners that specialize in protecting their allies by taking the enemy’s attacks.
They have the highest HP pool and decent damage, but lack utility.
A partner’s class influences all aspects of what that partner can do both in and out of combat.
From AC, to HP, to available skills and ability scores.

Initiative and Speed:

Your partner goes immediately before or after you on the initiative turn, your choice.
Your partner’s speed is 30 feet.

Levels and Proficiency Bonus:

Your partner gains a level at the same time that their player character gains a level. Partners
grow similarly to cantrips, getting different bonuses at 5th, 11th, and 17th levels.
Your partner’s proficiency bonus equals your proficiency bonus.

Armor Class:
A partner’s natural armor class depends on their class. At level 1:

● Caster: AC 11 + Proficiency Bonus

● Bruiser: AC 13 + Proficiency Bonus
● Tank: AC 16 + Proficiency Bonus

A partner’s AC increases by one when they reach 5th level, 11th, level, and 17th level.

Equipment has been severely simplified, since the goal of the system is not for you to manage
both your player character’s and your partner’s inventory. Equipment for partners tends to be
pricier than for player characters, since it has to be made to size to account for their wildly
different shapes (this also allows your players to have something to spend their gold on):

Armor Type AC Price Available To

Light Armor +1 20gp Casters, Bruisers, Tanks

Medium Armor +2 50gp Bruisers, Tanks

Heavy Armor +3 100gp Tanks

Hit Dice:
 Partners have a hit dice pool equal to their level. The same rules for calculating HP that apply to
player characters apply to partners. Their hit die depends on their class:

● Caster: d6
● Bruiser: d8
● Tank: d10

Your partner adds a +1 to their hit dice rolls, including those made to increase their maximum
HP when they level up. This increases to a +2 at level 5, a +3 at level 11, and a +4 at level 17.

If your partner’s HP reaches 0, they drop unconscious and use the death saving throw rules.

Abilities, Skills, and Saving Throws:

Your partner has a Main Ability, the ability in which they shine the brightest. A partner’s main
ability depends on their class. A partner’s Main Ability influences their ability checks, skills, and
saving throws, but also the moves available to a partner.

● Caster: your choice of Charisma, Intelligence, or Wisdom

● Bruiser: your choice of Dexterity or Strength
● Tank: Constitution and Strength.

Ability Checks and Saving Throws are equal to your partner’s proficiency bonus. If the check or
saving throw is made with their Main Ability, they double their proficiency bonus.
Skill checks: add half the partner’s Proficiency Bonus, rounded up. If it’s one of the skills
associated with their Main Ability, they instead double their proficiency bonus.

For example, a caster partner with Intelligence as their Main Ability and a proficiency bonus of
+3 would have a +6 to their Arcana, History, Investigation, Nature, and Religion checks; a +2 to
all other skill checks; a +6 to their Intelligence checks and saving throws; and a +3 to all other
saving throws.

III. Partner Attacks:

Here you’ll find all the information on your partner’s primary attack in combat: a Partner Attack.

Action Economy:
Partners only have an action and a reaction per turn. They can use their action to make a
Partner Attack or use one of the moves that consumes their action, as well as to perform any
 action that any player character can do, such as help, hide, dash, disengage, etc. When your
partner makes an opportunity attack, they use their Partner Attack.

Partner Attacks:
A Partner Attack is the basic attack. They perform this attack using their Main Ability, and it
grows in accuracy and power as they level up. The range and damage die depend on the
partner’s class:

● Caster: PB+1 to Hit. Range 60 ft. 1d6+1 damage

● Bruiser: PB+1 to Hit. Range 5 ft. 1d12+1 damage
● Tank: PB+1 to Hit. Range 5 ft. 1d8+1 damage

The bonus to attack and damage rolls changes to a +2 at 5th level, +3 at 11th level, +4 at 17th
level.

The damage type you inflict depends on the partner’s class:

When creating a Caster partner, choose two of the damage types available for casters. Your
caster partner will then choose which one of the two damage types available to them they wish
to inflict whenever they use their Partner Attack.

When creating a Bruiser or Tank partner, choose one damage type among the damage types
available for Bruisers and Tanks. That will be the damage dealt by your partner’s Partner Attack.

● Caster: Choose two: cold, fire, lightning, necrotic, psychic, or poison

● Bruiser: Bludgeoning, slashing, or piercing damage.
● Tank: Bludgeoning, slashing, or piercing damage.

At level 5, your partner’s Partner Attacks count as magical for the purpose of overcoming
resistance and immunity to non magical attacks and damage. Caster Partner Attacks count as
magical for this purpose from level 1.

IV. Partner Moves:

Here you’ll find everything you need to know about your partner’s special moves they can use to
battle foes, help allies, or interact with the world around them.

Learned Moves:
Your partner knows two moves at level 1. They learn an additional move at levels 5, 11, and 17.

Passive and Active Moves:

Your partner can learn two types of moves. Passive moves are similar to monster abilities: they
are buffs that are always in effect, like increased range or a bonus to their AC. Active moves
take an action to perform and can range from attacks to magical effects.

Move Save DCs:

If a move forces its target to make a saving throw, the DC equals: 11 + your partner’s
Proficiency Bonus.
Concentration rules do not apply for partner moves.

Limited Moves and Main Abilities:

Some partner moves can only be performed a certain number of times before taking a long rest
or a short rest. If a move is marked with 3/LR, your partner can only use this move three times,
regaining all uses of this move after taking a long rest. If a move is marked with 3/SR, your
partner can only use this move three times, regaining all uses of this move after taking a short
rest.

Some moves can only be taken with a specific main ability, such as Strength or Dexterity. There
are more moves that only those partners with Strength as their Main Ability can take to make up
for the fact that those with Dexterity as their Main Ability have more skills associated with their
main ability.

V. Move List:
The moves available to your partner depend on their class.

Caster Moves:
Sharpshooter: passive move
The range of your partner's Partner Attack is 120 feet.

Expert: passive move

Choose one of the skills associated with your partner’s Main Ability. When rolling a skill check
with the skill chosen, your partner triples their proficiency bonus and adds it to the roll instead of
doubling it.

Melee Caster: passive move

Your partner does not make ranged attacks at disadvantage against a creature within 5 feet of
them.

Healing Wind: active move, 3/LR

Select a creature within 30 feet of your partner. Your partner heals that creature for 1d4+PB hit
points.

Agility: active move, 3/LR

Select a creature your partner can see within 30 feet of them. Until the end of their next turn,
that creature adds half of their movement speed to their total movement speed and can make
one additional weapon attack or Partner Attack.

Empower: active move, 3/LR

Select a creature your partner can see within 30 feet of them. That creature can now roll a d4
and add the result of that die to any skill check, saving throw, or attack roll it does within the
next minute. The die becomes a d6 at 5th level, a d8 at 11th level, and a d10 at 17th level.

Barrier: active move, 3/LR

Your partner’s AC is increased by 2 for 1 minute.

Alter Terrain: active move, 3/SR

Choose a point within 100 feet of your partner. The terrain in a 20-foot radius centered on that
point becomes magical difficult terrain for 8 hours. Any subsequent uses of this move return the
previously affected terrain to normal.

Teleport: active move, 3/SR

Your partner teleports to a point they can see within 30 feet of them.

Flamethrower: active move, 3/LR

All creatures in a 20 foot cone starting from your partner must make a Dexterity saving throw
against your partner’s move save DC. They take 3d6 fire damage on a failure and half of that on
a success. The damage increases to 4d6 at 5th level, 5d6 at 11th level, and 6d6 at 17th level.

Curse: active move, 3/LR

Select a creature that your partner can see within 60 feet of them. The target must make a
Charisma saving throw. Whenever a target that fails this saving throw makes an attack roll or a
saving throw before the spell ends, the target must roll a d4 and subtract the number rolled from
the attack roll or saving throw. The target can repeat this saving throw at the end of each of its
turns. On a success, the effect ends. You add +1 to the d4 roll at 5th level, +2 at 11th level, and
+3 at 17th level.

Puppetry: active move, 3/LR

Select a creature that your partner can see within 60 feet of them. The target must make a
Wisdom saving throw. On a failure, you select a cardinal direction: the target must use as much
of its movement as possible to move in that direction on its next turn. It can take its action
before it moves. After moving in this way, it can make another Wisdom saving to try to end the
effect. A target isn't compelled to move into an obviously deadly hazard, such as a fire or pit, but
it does provoke opportunity attacks to move in the designated direction. This effect repeats on
each subsequent turn. The target can make a Wisdom saving throw at the end of each of its
turns. On a success, the effect ends.

Bruiser Moves:
Reach: passive move
The range of your partner's attack is 10 feet.

Runner: passive move

Your partner’s speed is increased by 10 feet.

Leader of the Pack: passive move

If you are within 5 feet of your partner, your partner makes one attack per round with advantage.

Phalanx: passive move

If your partner is within 5 feet of an ally, your partner gains +1 to their AC.

Indomitable: passive move, Strength as Main Ability

Your partner adds a +1 to their damage rolls.

Dexterous Combatant: passive move, Dexterity as Main Ability

If your partner makes a Partner Attack against a creature during your partner’s turn, that
creature can’t make opportunity attacks against your partner for the rest of your partner’s turn.

Flanker: passive move, Dexterity as Main Ability

Your partner benefits from flanking rules. If you always play with flanking rules, taking this move
adds +1 to your partner’s attack rolls while they are flanking.

Push: active move, 3/SR, Strength as Main Ability

When your partner uses this move, they immediately make a Partner Attack. On a hit, the
creature is pushed 5 feet away from your partner.

Berserk: active move, 3/LR, Strength as Main Ability

When your partner uses this move, they immediately make a Partner Attack. Your partner adds
a +1 to the attack and damage rolls of all their Partner Attacks for 1 minute. Your partner must
make a Partner Attack on each of their subsequent turns or lose the berserk status. Once they
lose their berserk status, they gain one point of exhaustion. Your partner loses one point of
exhaustion with a short rest instead of a long rest. The bonus to your partner’s attack and
damage rolls increases to a +2 at 5th level, +3 at 11th level, and +4 at 12th level.

Tank Moves:
Reach: passive move
The range of your partner's attack is 10 feet.

Battle Stance: passive move

Your partner has two reactions per turn.

Bodyguard: passive move

When a creature makes an attack against a target other than your partner, and your partner is
within range of the attacking creature, they can use their reaction to make a Partner Attack
against the attacking creature.

Protector: passive move

When a creature makes an attack against a target other than your partner, and your partner is
within 5 feet from the attacking creature or the creature receiving the attack, your partner can
use their reaction to direct the attack towards themselves instead.

Relentless Companion: passive move, 1/LR

When your partner is reduced to 0 hit points but not killed outright, they drop to 1 hit point
instead.

Battle-Hardened: active move, 1/LR

Your partner rolls a hit die without consuming one from their hit dice pool.

Taunt: active move, 1/LR

When your partner uses this move, they immediately make a Partner Attack. On a hit, the
creature has disadvantage on all attacks against a creature that isn’t your partner until the end
of your next turn.