How can I gain resistance to piercing, bludgeoning, and slashing damage while in heavy armor?

Question

I am theory-crafting a character that takes very little damage. I want to use the Heavy Armor Master feat to help with damage reduction from non-magical attacks, as well as the Battle Master fighter's Parry maneuver, and the Goliath trait Stone's Endurance.

How can I gain resistance to piercing, bludgeoning, and slashing damage while also using the Heavy Armor Master feat?

I am most interested in answers that don't depend on external sources, such as other characters and magic items, but I'd like to hear answers including those as well. Multi-classing is an option.

Answer 1

I'm going to assume that you want to remain functional, so no being turned into stone or Feign Death.

Ways to gain resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage while also wearing Heavy Armor:

• War Cleric's Avatar of Battle ability
• Oath of the Crown Paladin's Exalted Champion ability (Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide)
• Blade Ward cantrip
• Investiture of Stone spell (Elemental Evil Player's Companion)
• Stoneskin spell
• Armor of Invulnerability
• Boon of Resilience
• As Zso points out, the Oathbreaker Paladin's Supernatural Resistance feature, from the DMG

Answer 2

A 19th-level Goliath Eldritch Knight can independently achieve your requirements.

Feats:

• Heavy Armor Master
• Martial Adept (for Parry)

At 19th-level, an Eldritch Knight can cast a 4th-level spell, which, in your case, should be Stoneskin.

Pros:

• Independent of other characters
• No multi-classing
• Still functional and viable
• No Magic Items needed

Cons:

• Can only cast Stoneskin once per long rest (this can be mitigated by spell-storing items like the Ring of Spell-storing)
• Can only Parry once per short rest
• High level required to achieve this (EKs get 4th level spells at 19th-level)

Answer 3

If your DM allows you to take it, the Oathbreaker Paladin (Dungeon Master's Guide p.97) gains resistance to bludgeoning, piercing and slashing damage from nonmagical weapons as a level 15 class feature.

Answer 4

You can become a werebear. Immunity to nonmagical bludgeoning, resistance, and piercing.

Werebears change your alignment to neutral good, while the weretiger gives you a neutral option.

Answer 5

It is high level but you can use Wish. One for each type you want resistance.

You grant up to ten creatures that you can see resistance to a damage type you choose.

The crux is that each time you cast it for this there is a 1 in 3 chance the caster can't use wish again, assuming mortal caster and not from something like a Genie.

Answer 6

The new unearthed arcana Samurai fighter archetype can gain resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing as a bonus action on their turn until the end of their next turn, three times per short rest, at level 3.

You would have to take the Martial Adept feat in order to get a superiority die to use for parry, but the emphasis on willpower, the ease of access to heavy armor mastery at level 4 might be appealing.

Answer 7

The "Haug (Hill Rune)" option for the Rune Magic feature of the Rune Knight fighter (from UA: Fighter, Ranger, and Rogue) also provides such resistances (emphasis mine):

Haug (Hill Rune). This rune’s magic bestows a resilience reminiscent of a hill giant. While wearing or carrying an object inscribed with this rune, you have advantage on saving throws against being poisoned, and you have resistance against poison damage.

In addition, you can invoke the rune as a bonus action, gaining resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage for 1 minute. Once you invoke the rune, you can’t do so again until you finish a short or long rest.