Runepriest

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Due to the Dwarves' natural dislike of magic, but the fact that some people would want a mage that could take a hit, the Rune Priest was invented during the earlier years of Dungeons & Dragons. It essentially works the same way a wizard would...except you use (wait for it, wait for it) runes.

4e

The Runepriest was introduced in PHB3 and are classed as a Divine Leader, which meant that they had to go head-to-head with Clerics in regards to usefulness in their role. While Clerics were pretty much stuck to either going for combat or going for support, the Runepriest tried to make use as both through the use of Runes; whenever a Runic-keyword power is used, you pick between Protection or Destruction, add in whatever effects that adds to the power, and then enter that rune's state (or others depending on which Paragon Path or items you pick up). Of course, they can also do medic stuff with the Rune of Mending power with extra perks based on runes. The one diverging point is the Runic Artistry class:

• Defiant Word takes advantage of a careless enemy by adding Wis to your next attack's damage if they miss you. This is a bit of a trap option considering that without extra proficiencies, you'll only have simple weapons to hit people with.
• Serene Blade gives proficiency with military heavy blades while also allowing you to use your Wis to determine AC. You also gain THP every time you're hit, scaling from Wis to Wis+5 to Wis+10 depending on which tier you're in.
• Wrathful Hammer gives proficiency with mauls and military hammers. You also gain Con to damage against the an enemy that hit you.

Compared to a Cleric, it is a bit tricky to nail down, but it does give some useful switch-hitting while also being a reliable frontliner all the time.