Hello folks... here's another specimen from my CC Laboratory. I'm open to supportive criticism and communal brainstorming. For skimming ease, I've divided the post into three sections:
I. The Frakah - For the skimmer: a quick explanation of the basic concept, attributes, strengths, weaknesses and originality.
II. Tactics - For those with some time on their hands, a brief illustration of a few battle strategies.
III. Skills - For the ambitious reader, a tentative list of skills.
I. THE FRAKAH

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Background:
A Frakah in melee combat is simply unmatched. His light armor allows him incredible mobility, which he uses to deftly avoid the attacks of his foes. As incoming weapons are dodged, their owners meet flawlessly lethal counters… either a crushing blow from a heavy gauntlet or a slicing jab from wrist-mounted claws. No fighter of any sort should engage a Frakah if retreat is an option. Frakahs’ singular pursuit of perfecting physical form is only matched by their contempt for magic, which the school regards as ignoble. The martial artists haughtily refuse to understand or respect the arcane, and this ignorance is their greatest weakness. Their blind pride leaves Frakahs woefully defenseless to wizardry of any sort.
Function:
The Frakah is a melee unit that specializes in dispatching weapon-based classes. She inherently dodges weapons and has an attribute devoted to counterattacks. However, she has low armor and is very vulnerable to magic. When threatened, the Frakah enters defensive trances which, when finished, feed into a variety of offensive frenzies. Trances and frenzies couple with the Frakah's ability to mix and match gauntlets and claws allow her to quickly switch between offensive and defensive modes.
Attributes:
Evasion (Primary Attribute) – Improves the inherent chance to dodge attacks as well as dodge-related skills.
Reflex – Improves counterattack skills.
Poise – Affects a variety of defensive trances and defensive skills.
Ferocity – Augments offensive frenzies and offensive skills.
Strengths:
1) The Frakah inherently dodges weapon attacks.
2) The Frakah's claws counter all dodged attacks.
3) Gauntlets increase the Frakah’s chances to dodge.
4) The Frakah can quickly switch between offensive and defensive modes in the middle of battle.
Weaknesses:
1) The Frakah has little armor.
2) When activating a skill, gauntlets cannot dodge weapon attacks.
3) With movement impaired, gauntlets cannot dodge weapon attacks'
Originality:
Weapons
The Frakah has two weapons at her disposal: claws and gauntlets. Both options are one-handed and have the same attack speed. In terms of damage dealt, two claws are roughly equivalent to a sword (each does 7-12 damage every 1.33 seconds). Gauntlets deal about half of that damage (3-7 damage per 1.33 seconds), but with an added benefit: they increase the Frakah’s ability to dodge attacks. Investing more points into the Evasion attribute increases each gauntlet’s ability to exchange an attack for a dodge. Furthermore, the Frakah is truly dual-wielding. She is freely able to use two claws, two gauntlets, or one of each. For a more detailed explanation of this versatility, look below at the 'Anti-Melee' tactic.
Dodging
The cornerstone innovation with this class is dodging. The Frakah’s primary attribute increases the inherent chance to avoid weapon attacks (0%...25%). It also increases each gauntlets’ chances to exchange an attack for dodging a weapon (0%...25%). Although she takes significant damage when hit, she dodges enough blows to make up for her weakness. The result: a melee fighter that tanks weapon attacks far more effectively than a Warrior, but is seriously threatened by other forms of damage.
Countering
A third novelty further defines the Frakah’s role as an anti-weapon class: Countering. For every dodged attack, the Frakah deals a counterattack (only melee range, of course). This mechanic essentially restricts the enemy’s options for self-defense. Attempting to fight back will only increase the Frakah’s number of attacks. As a consequence, the victim will lose life even quicker than before.
New skill types: Trances and Frenzies
Trances and Frenzies are interlinked skill sets which allow the Frakah to switch between purely defensive and purely offensive modes. Trances focus on strictly passive defense, while Frenzies increase attacking ability at the expense of defense. A Frenzy’s duration is dependent upon an immediately preceding Trance; it only lasts for as long as that Trance was maintained. While in a Trance, you can’t attack. While in a Frenzy, your claws counter all weapon attacks but you are unable to dodge. Only one Trance or Frenzy may be active at a time.
II. TACTICS
Anti-Melee
The Frakah is lethally adept at taking out weapon fighters. To maximize her efficiency, she should have one claw and one gauntlet. If she wants to go for the quick kill, she'll opt for two claws. If she's running low on life, two gauntlets will provide great protection. All of this is before using any Trance/Frenzy skills.
Here are the some quick numbers, for those who are interested (the math is in Post #7). Remember that a Sword-using Warrior deals 417 damage in 30 seconds. Now let's see how he does against a Frakah with maximum Evasion:
Against a Frakah with two claws, the Warrior deals 312 damage and receives 507 damage (a 1.625 ratio).
Against a Frakah with two gauntlets, the Warrior deals 104 damage and receives 169 damage (also a 1.625 ratio).
Against a Frakah with one claw and one gauntlet, the Warrior deals 208 damage and receives 388 damage (a 1.865 ratio).
Keep in mind that although this may all seem very overpowered, the Frakah is still very vulnerable to magical damage.
More tactics to come...
III. SKILLS
Evasion
Bizarre Dodge – Stance. For the next 3...10 seconds, your gauntlets’ ability to dodge ranged weapon attacks is doubled.
Alertness – Stance. For the next 2...6 seconds, your gauntlets’ ability to dodge melee attacks is doubled.
Sword Defense – Stance. For the next 3...10 seconds, your gauntlets’ ability to dodge sword attacks is tripled.
Dagger Defense –Stance. For the next 3...10 seconds, your gauntlets’ ability to dodge dagger attacks is tripled.
Axe Defense – Stance. For the next 3...10 seconds, your gauntlets’ ability to dodge axe attacks is tripled.
Hammer Defense – Stance. For the next 3...10 seconds, your gauntlets’ ability to dodge hammer attacks is tripled.
Scythe Defense – Stance. For the next 3...10 seconds, your gauntlets’ ability to dodge scythe attacks is tripled.
Reflex
Stunning Dodge – Stance. For 5 seconds, every melee attack dodged by gauntlets stuns that attacker for 2...6 seconds.
Barricade – Stance. For 5 seconds, every melee attack dodged by gauntlets deals 5...15 blunt damage to that attacker.
Sweet Revenge – Preparation. For the next 3…10 seconds, each claw deals two counters for each dodged attack.
Precision – Preparation. For the next 3...8 seconds, your claw counters deal +5 damage.
Breakneck Reflex – Preparation. For the next 1…5 times you dodge a melee attack, you deal 3 claw attacks in response.
Catch Arrows – Preparation. For the next 5…15 seconds, you throw all dodged arrows back at their source.
Pent-up Rage – Preparation. For the next 2…8 seconds, your claw attacks deal no damage. When this enchantment ends, all damage is dealt.
Poise
Improved Reflexes – Trance. For 5...15 seconds, Gauntlets' chance to block weapon attacks is 100%.
Breakneck Speed - Trance. For 5...15 seconds, Gauntlets speed is tripled.
Magic Attunement - Trance. For 3...8 seconds, you are able to dodge spells.
Internal Composure – Trance. For 5...15 seconds, Gauntlets' chance to block weapon attacks is 100% and you gain +1...+3 health regeneration.
Quickness – Trance. For 10 seconds, Gauntlets move 50%...100% faster and you move 25% faster.
Ferocity
Vehemence – Frenzy. Cancel Trance. Deal +5...+20 damage with each counterattack.
Blood Lust - Frenzy. Cancel Trance. For every successful attack, each of your claws gains +1...+3 damage.
Berserk - Frenzy. Cancel Trance. Your claws' attack speed is improved by 25%...100%.
What is important is coming up with a fundamentally new role that works within the current framework, and I think the Frakah does the job. What do you guys think? Please, no flaming?
*** I'd like to give recognition where it's due. System_Crush pointed me in the direction of Dubby's Duelist to help out with the gauntlet mechanic. He also helped to smooth out the Trance/Frenzy relationship. I'd especially like to thank jademonkeyx88... he brings the Frakah to life with his awesome artwork.
Like what you see? Check out my CC Laboratory for more examples of my work. Any feedback is greatly appreciated!