With this, I have completed the team for the characters that were part of the team in the 2003 Teen Titans cartoon! Unlike most of his team, Nightwing has grown a lot beyond that role. As always, this build is conceptualized entirely in a vacuum, with choices made in an attempt to fit the character. These choices might not hold up in a campaign with different themes and should be adjusted accordingly.
Let's get into the build for Nightwing from DC Comics!
NIGHTWING
CHARACTER Richard ‘Dick’ Grayson
SOURCE DC Comics
BUILD GOALS
o In his earliest days, Dick Grayson was the son of a family of acrobats who performed with his father and mother until they were murdered by a mob boss
o He was taken in by Bruce Wayne, but was driven to solve the mystery of his parents’ death, which led to an altercation he was saved from by Batman who he then discovered was the man that adopted him
o Seeing some of himself in the boy, Batman offered to take him on as a sidekick and temper his rage with compassion and justice, leading to Dick taking on the identity of Robin after taking on intensive training
o He went on to found the Teen Titans alongside other sidekicks, of which he was the leader through several iterations of the team
o On the suggestion of Superman, Dick left behind his identity of Robin following an injury and became Nightwing, moving out of Batman’s shadow though he still works with him and has even assumed the mantle at certain points
o Nightwing is a prodigious athlete and acrobat
o While working with Batman has taught him deception and intimidation, he particularly excels at leadership and forming allies and is one of the most universally liked heroes among his peers
o He is a master martial artist, able to fight bare-handed though he favors his eskrima sticks or batarangs for thrown weaponry
o For a time, he worked as a police officer in Bludhaven in his civilian identity
LEVEL 1
Ancestry & Heritage: Skilled Human
o Ability Boosts & Flaws: +Dexterity, +Charisma
o Ancestry Feat: Natural Ambition
o Skill Increase: Stealth (trained)
Background: Acrobat
o Ability Boosts: +Dexterity, +Charisma
o Skill Increase: Acrobatics (trained), Circus Lore (trained)
o Background Feat: Steady Balance
Class & Subclass: Wit Swashbuckler
o Class Ability Boost: +Dexterity
o Skill Increase: Athletics (trained), Deception (trained), Diplomacy (trained), Intimidation (trained), Occultism (trained), Society (trained), Thievery (trained)
o Class Feat: Flying Blade, One for All
o Skill Feat: Bon Mot
Details
o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Dexterity, +Intelligence, +Charisma (Str 12, Dex 18, Con 10, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 16)
Naturally, Nightwing is the token human of the Teen Titans and the skilled heritage will let him raise one of the many skills that he has to invest in for his build. Stealth specifically works for the man who has taken on the mantle of Batman at least once. Acrobat reflects his time in Haly’s Circus and specifically the acts that he performed with his parents. Out of all the Robins and even as he has taken on his own identity, Dick has been prone to teasing and mocking his foes, most exemplified in the Young Justice cartoon, and is identifiable as Batman for his more jocular personality. Given that he is a more acrobatic fighter than his mentor and fitting his natural agility, swashbuckler is a good fit with the wit style fitting his jocular attitude. Picking up Flying Blade with his ancestry feat allows him to deliver finishers with his wing-dings (I can’t believe that’s what he calls them), which will be represented by shurikens though his main fighting style will be his classic dual eskrima sticks, represented by nightsticks to reference his civilian job as a police officer. One For All fits with his place as a leader of the team-ups he tends to take part in while still playing into his status as a charmer.
LEVEL 2
o Class Feat: Tumble Behind
o Skill Feat: Acrobatic Performer
o Gear: ring of discretion
LEVEL 3
o General Feat: Fleet
o Skill Increase: Diplomacy (expert)
o Stylish Trick: Cat Fall
o Gear: +1 nightstick, psychopomp mask, ring of discretion
LEVEL 4
o Class Feat: Twin Parry
o Skill Feat: Group Impression
o Gear: doubling rings, +1 nightstick, +1 shuriken, ring of discretion
LEVEL 5
o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Constitution, +Dexterity, +Charisma (Str 14, Dex 19, Con 12, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 18)
o Ancestry Feat: Courteous Comeback
o Skill Increase: Athletics (expert), Stealth (expert)
o Gear: +1 striking nightstick, doubling rings, returning weapon rune, +1 shuriken, psychopomp mask, ring of discretion
Acrobatics is an important skill to Nightwing and he is even able to take advantage of it in combat with Tumble Behind. Twin Parry is mostly to make use of the fact that he’s dual wielding weapons that have the parry trait, providing him with a handy boost to AC. Acrobatic Performer is meant to further represent his time in the circus and Cat Fall is to save him from a similar fate suffered by his foes. Nightwing is very well-regarded in the superhero community, second to Superman, even if he doesn’t always share that reputation with the public, but Group Impression enhances his ability to interact with others. For actual skill increases, this block focuses on his Diplomacy, to better use One For All, and Athletics, to better leap and flip across rooftops. As somebody trained by Batman, he should at least have expert proficiency in Stealth, which is handily granted by his heritage. Fleet simply felt more appropriate than other general feats and will hopefully help him get through difficult terrain when he Tumbles Through an enemy. Finally, Courteous Comeback is intended to take advantage of his high Diplomacy when bad luck strikes.
LEVEL 6
o Class Feat: Swaggering Initiative
o Skill Feat: Quick Jump
o Gear: +1 leather armor, +1 striking nightstick, +1 striking shuriken, doubling rings, Jack’s tattered cape, necklace of knives
LEVEL 7
o General Feat: Feather Step
o Skill Increase: Acrobatics (expert)
o Stylish Trick: Hobnobber
o Gear: vaultbreaker’s harness, +1 leather armor, diplomat’s badge, +1 striking nightstick, doubling rings, +1 shuriken
LEVEL 8
o Class Feat: Dual Finisher
o Skill Feat: Powerful Leap
o Gear: boots of bounding, vaultbreaker’s harness, crown of the companion, +1 leather armor, +1 striking nightstick, +1 striking shuriken
LEVEL 9
o Ancestry Feat: Cooperative Nature
o Skill Increase: Acrobatics (master)
o Gear: +1 resilient leather armor, boots of bounding, cloak of elvenkind, vaultbreaker’s harness, +1 striking shuriken, +1 striking nightstick
LEVEL 10
o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Constitution, +Dexterity, +Wisdom (Str 16, Dex 20, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 12, Cha 18)
o Class Feat: Attack of Opportunity
o Skill Feat: Kip Up
o Gear: armbands of athleticism, +1 resilient leather armor, lover’s gloves, boots of bounding, +1 striking shuriken, +1 striking nightstick
As a disciple of the Bat, Nightwing is used to getting the drop on his adversaries and Swaggering Initiative helps with that while also allowing him to draw a weapon for free, aiding the dual-weapon build. Dual Finisher takes advantage of these paired weapons and works especially well representing the gang of mooks he often has to face. Somewhat at a loss for a 10th level feat, Attack of Opportunity is a handy one that lets him capitalize on foe’s leaving an opening, but other suitable options are Nimble Dodge or Flamboyant Athlete for players that are more interested in that idea. As a vigilante in Gotham, Nightwing naturally needs Quick Jump to better traverse the rooftops, which is further enhanced by his Powerful Leap. Hobnobber lets him Make an Impression when time is short, and Kip Up simply seems like a must-have feat for any build that gets its Acrobatics high enough. Feather Step reflects how light he is on his feat. With the Cooperative Nature ancestry feat, Nightwing gains a large bonus on Aid checks, increasing the likelihood of activating the secondary effect of One For All that grants him panache.
LEVEL 11
o General Feat: Toughness
o Skill Increase: Diplomacy (master)
o Gear: +2 striking nightstick, armbands of athleticism, greater shadow armor rune, +1 resilient leather armor, boots of bounding, +1 striking shuriken
LEVEL 12
o Class Feat: Flamboyant Athlete
o Skill Feat: Titan Wrestler
o Gear: +2 resilient leather armor, +2 striking nightstick, +2 striking shuriken, armbands of athleticism, lover’s gloves, shock weapon rune
LEVEL 13
o Ancestry Feat: Cooperative Soul
o Skill Increase: Athletics (master)
o Gear: +2 greater striking nightstick, +2 resilient leather armor, greater doubling rings, +2 striking shuriken, armbands of athleticism, inspiring spotlight
LEVEL 14
o Class Feat: Twinned Defense
o Skill Feat: No Cause for Alarm
o Gear: 13, +2 greater striking nightstick, +2 greater striking shuriken, +2 resilient leather armor, daredevil boots, cape of the mountebank
LEVEL 15
o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Dexterity, +Wisdom, +Charisma (Str 18, Dex 21, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 14, Cha 19)
o General Feat: A Home in Every Port
o Skill Increase: Diplomacy (legendary)
o Stylish Trick: Legendary Negotiation
o Gear: +2 greater resilient leather armor, eye of fortune, +2 greater striking shuriken, +2 greater striking nightstick, greater doubling rings, greater boots of elvenkind
For those that took Flamboyant Athlete instead of Attack of Opportunity, Mobile Finisher isn’t a bad option increasing Nightwing’s mobility, which works for a character who often flips and slides around foes. But otherwise, Flamboyant Athlete helps with that in regards to more varied forms of movement. By picking up Twinned Defense, Nightwing always keeps himself protected once he is in his stance, matching the preparedness that Batman likely taught him. While his hands are typically full with his weapons, it still feels appropriate for Nightwing to pick up Titan Wrestler especially considering that he has fought the likes of Killer Croc, Solomon Grundy, and Mammoth. Picking up Cooperative Soul is just an improvement of the Cooperative Nature that he picked up earlier. No Cause for Alarm is a feat that I’ve picked up for a couple of ‘superhero’ builds because it just feels appropriate and it is an especially good fit for a character who focuses on Diplomacy. Legendary Negotiation follows similar reasoning while A Home in Every Port is meant to both represent his connections in the superhero community and the vast amounts of resource that he has thanks to his association with Batman.
LEVEL 16
o Class Feat: Reflexive Riposte
o Skill Feat: Wall Jump
o Gear: greater shock weapon rune, +2 greater resilient leather armor, greater boots of bounding, eye of fortune, +2 greater striking nightstick, +2 greater striking shuriken
LEVEL 17
o Ancestry Feat: Heroic Presence
o Skill Increase: Acrobatics (legendary)
o Gear: +3 greater striking nightstick, dragonscale amulet, greater shock weapon rune, +2 greater resilient leather armor, eye of fortune, +2 greater striking shuriken
LEVEL 18
o Class Feat: Parry and Riposte
o Skill Feat: Glad-Hand
o Gear: anklets of alacrity, +3 greater striking nightstick, +3 greater striking shuriken, greater shock weapon rune, +2 greater resilient leather armor, greater boots of bounding
LEVEL 19
o General Feat: Fast Recovery
o Skill Increase: Athletics (legendary)
o Gear: +3 greater resilient leather armor, anklets of alacrit, major shadow armor rune, +3 greater striking nightstick, +2 greater striking shuriken, greater shock weapon rune
LEVEL 20
o Ability Boosts: +Dexterity, +Constitution, +Intelligence, +Charisma (Str 18, Dex 22, Con 16, Int 14, Wis 14, Cha 20)
o Class Feat: Panache Paragon
o Skill Feat: Shameless Request
o Skill Increase: Survival (trained)
o Gear: +3 major striking nightstick, +3 greater resilient leather armor, mercurial mantle, greater armbands of athleticism, +3 greater striking shuriken, speed weapon rune
Reflexive Riposte and Parry and Riposte work together to grant Nightwing a chance to strike back at any foe that misses him. With Twinned Defense, he is constantly benefiting from a circumstance bonus to AC, and so simply needs to damage at least one creature with a finisher on his turn. In particular, Reflexive Riposte will allow him to strike back at clumsy foes while still giving him reaction to Aid with for One For All. For his capstone feat, he could increase his ability to do this with Inexhaustible Countermoves, but I actually prefer Panache Paragon so that he always has an option to Tumble Through or deliver a witty remark with Bon Mot. For his final ancestry feat, Heroic Presence is a natural fit for a leader and a ‘superhero’ that I’ve picked for that exact reason at least once or twice before. While Nightwing doesn’t have any ability of enhanced regeneration, he is much hardier than most people and bounces back from physical trauma much quicker due to being a comic book main character, and Fast Recovery helps capture that idea. On the topic of skill feats, he has demonstrated Wall Jump in several comic panels. Glad-Hand and Shameless Request delve deeper into his Diplomacy though possibly a bit too late for some people.
FREE ARCHETYPE SUGGESTIONS: An obvious free archetype is the Acrobat Dedication as this feat alone will free up an entire line of skill increases, which can be used to get Stealth to legendary proficiency. While Dick was a trapeze artist in the circus, he might have gotten some training to justify picking up Contortionist. Much further down the line, Tumbling Opportunist gives him a chance to Trip foes when he Tumbles Through, meaning he’ll earn panache and be able to leave a target sprawled across the ground for only a single action. Much of his fighting style is based on his acrobatics training, but a dip into the Rogue Dedication captures that feel of training under Batman and will allow him to expand his proficiency with his skills through feats such as Skill Mastery. Uncanny Dodge and Sneak Attacker are both solid feat choices for him. However, for those who want to focus more on Nightwing being a leader of the Teen Titans and Outsiders, they can instead consider the Marshal Dedication, which at least on the first instance of taking the feat will help his skill proficiencies. For those that decide to make use of the Marshal, I still advocate for at least squeezing in the Acrobat Dedication for that scaling Acrobatics skill.
BUILD CONCLUSION
The acrobat background is a beautiful fit for Dick’s history, even providing him with Circus Lore. He melds his teachings from the circus with training from Batman to form a highly acrobatic fighting style represented by the swashbuckler class. With a slightly more jocular attitude, highlighted in Young Justice, and his position as the leader of the Teen Titans, as well as a few other superhero teams throughout the years, make the wit style an easy choice for him. One For All fills the idea of him working alongside his team and is enhanced by feats such as Cooperative Nature. His traditional eskrima sticks are represented by a pair of nightsticks, which serves as a reference to the police occupation he has held in some continuities, while shuriken stand in for his wing-dings. Unsurprisingly for a member of the Bat family, Nightwing has many skills that would be appropriate to have at a high proficiency, but I opted to focus on Diplomacy (to cover his leadership and how well-liked he is in the superhero community), Acrobatics (given his background), and Athletics (to cover his roof-hopping means of transportation). Stealth would probably be the next most important skill given the lessons of Batman, and the skilled heritage at least gets it to expert proficiency. With all that, we have a suave, acrobatic dual wielder ready to fight on the side of justice.
Be sure to lemme know what you think of the build and who else you might like to see!
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Until then, have a fantastic Friday!
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