Short notice help making a 5e character

[Prophes0r]

Hello all.


I was invited to a game this Sunday (it is Friday evening as I type this) and I need a bit of help working out a character. I haven't played any tabletop games for about 18 months, and up until then we were playing Pathfinder/3.5/Warhammer/Gamma World/D&D(without the A) depending on who was DMing that night. So I'm a bit out of practice.

I have browsed through the PHB but I'm having trouble seeing the obvious synergies that must be there, and also the flaws/pitfalls that must also be there.

I'm looking for a little input that will both keep me at roughly (or slightly above) the currently party power level, and keep me useful by having me fill a roll that no one else can.
The world is has a "Pirates of the Caribbean" feel. Thousands of islands covered in dense tropical jungle and/or volcanoes, most are only a few miles across. The largest islands are 40-50 miles across and are essentially city states. Most islands can see other islands on the horizon and sometimes are clustered into small groups. As you travel further from the central city islands, everything thins out until there is only ocean. As far as anyone knows, there is nothing out there.

Maybe no one has gone out far enough.
Maybe there are continents out there (That idea itself is foreign to these people)
Maybe the ocean pours off at a planar boundary. Who knows?

A few changes have been made to base races.

All Elves are "Island Elves" which are Wood Elves with+1 Str +2 Dex instead of +2 Dex +1 Wis. These Elves live on some of the larger islands, but choose to leave them mostly untamed. They live in sprawling canopy cities and prefer to wear minimal, natural clothing. Curiously, when a new child is born, they abandon it in front of wolf dens so that their children are LITERALLY raised by wolves. Groups of hunters watch these children from afar, and keep the wolves and children safe from outside influence. Once the children become 15-20, the children are captured in their sleep, and forcibly reintegrated into Elven society. The Elves don't remember exactly why they started this process. They think it might be part of a pact with some god, or other powerful being, but they have been doing it for thousands of years.

Half-Orcs are Lucha libre. Seriously. All known monks are Half-Orcs, and ALL Half-Orcs have levels of Monk. They have their own island, and their entire society AND their religion revolves around training for, or attending, the wrestling matches. They relate everything to wrestling, and wrestling solves everything.

Most families have their own moves, or fighting style, that they developed to relate their everyday lives to "The Shows". Farmers teach their sons about how the roots can show them the secrets of strong footing. Sailors teach their daughters that the rocking of a boat can teach them to be agile and fluid to avoid their opponents. Smiths teach their children how, just as steel will yield when struck enough times under the right conditions, so to will their opponents.

Even prospective husbands/wives are expected to gather a group, then wait outside the home of their mate, hurling over the top insults and flexing, until their challenge is accepted and they rush in to fight the family and take the husband/bride away. They also consider weapons to be the tools of the weak, and all REAL fighting is done bare handed.

All male Dragonborn are blue, and all female Dragonborn are white. I don't know why.

There are no Dwarves. I don't know if they existed at some point and are now extinct, or if they are just completely absent.
As is tradition, on the first of the month (Crewing Day), anyone looking for work at sea lines up on the docks at dawn where ships looking for fresh crew can pick over them. Shortly before sundown (when Crewing Day ends), after nearly every other able body has been chosen, a ragged captain comes by and picks the 4 current party members as they were about to leave. Right now the party consists of:


Elf Fighter Outlander - 17 dex. Chainmail / Shortsword / Pistol / Whip
Half-Elf Rogue Charlatan - 15 Dex / 15 Cha - Leather Armor / Rapier / Shortbow
Human Paladin - 16 Str / 15 Cha - Chainmail / Shortsword / Spear
Human Wizard SpellCook(?) - 9 / 16 / 16 / 16 / 9 / 9 - Dull Cleaver - Probably crazy

So...


Multiclassing and feats are fair game.
Characters will start at level 1. Will probably max out at level 6 at most.
Playing the long game is OK, but character needs to be viable at every level, and be good at something.
No Dwarves.
All Elves are 'regular' +2 Dex elves and are a little 'wild'.
Half-Orcs must start as a level 1 Monk. I MAY be able to convince my DM to let me start with 1 level of...

Barbarian or
Cleric (War Domain)

But the second level would NEED to be Monk.
All Monks must be Half-Orcs
Dragonborn must be blue or white.
27 point buy. Prefer no stats less than 10.
Remember that most combat will be on ship decks, Wild jungle, or cramped shantytowns/cities. Mobility is important, but might be drastically reduced once combat is joined without flying/climbing.


Random Ideas.


Half-Orc Cleric (War) 1 / Monk x
Half-Orc Barbarian ?/ Monk ?
A Grappling character? Maybe
Barbarian ? / Rogue ?
Monk ? / Barbarian ? / Rogue ?

An Omni-Melee-Caster? Cleric (War) 1 / Warlock 2 / Druid (Moon) 2 / ?



I'm still at a loss. I don't want to be overpowered, but I want to be able to hold my own from the very start without having to get hand-held till level 3-4.

Suggestions?

[Sartharina]

All Elves are 'regular' +2 Dex elves and are a little 'wild'.No subrace? That's a problem. Why did he make elves half a race?

[Prophes0r]

No subrace? That's a problem.

Because he wanted to? I really don't know. I think the players and he just made the world up at the table the first night. Honestly I don't understand why all elves aren't Wood Elves. But there is no Underdark, or even very many deep mines. I'm not surprised that everything that lived underground like Drow/Dwarves are out.

Anyway. we are only playing from 1-5, so I'm not looking for any crazy nova or anything. Just a solid build, that stands out in some way to make it unique.

[Suichimo]

First off, you don't really have to be worried about being overpowered. The power gap is much lower here than it is in 3.5.

Second, I hate your DM for no dwarves. :D

Third, I'm away from my PHB right now, but I'll try and help the most I can.

Looking at the backgrounds of your companions who have them, you're going to want Sailor. The biggest thing here is the free ship passage, if you ever get separated from your crew for whatever reason. Also, you're a sailor and can do sailor-y stuff in a sailing based campaign. Sailing.

Athletics would be super important in this setting, so you probably want a decent strength UNLESS you are a Druid. I don't remember it exactly, but I don't believe Wildshape limits your ability to gain a swim speed, and a Druid of the Moon that likes to Wildshape into a Water Elemental sounds perfect for this campaign. Unfortunately I don't think you'll go high enough to get Elemental Wildshape.

Still, I like the idea of a sailing Druid.

[Sartharina]

I suggest Wood Elf Druid. Plenty of "Wild" there.

[8wGremlin]

Halfling Rogue - Sailor (pirate background)

[Yorrin]

I notice nobody with healing abilities. You could do this with Cleric, Druid, or Bard, assuming you've got the spell slots.

Between Cleric and Druid... honestly Clerics are better in 5e. They do melee caster pretty well if that's what you want, especially since a lot of them give you proficiencies right off the bat. Given that you're going be mostly low level I'd suggest either Nature, Tempest, or War. All give you Heavy Armor Prof, Tempest & War get you martial weaps, and Nature can get you Shillelagh. For race, since Dwarf and Wood Elf are out that leaves you with Human, really. Could go Dex+Wis instead of Str+Wis on any of them, which could help with mobility.

Bard is another interesting option. Feels very "pirate-y" to me, just go Dex+Cha on, for example, a Half Elf, working with Studded Leather + Rapier and/or Crossbow. If you're stopping before 6 then both colleges have about the same to offer (higher levels favor Valor, but until 6 Lore is probably more useful, imo.)

[Prophes0r]

I suggest Wood Elf Druid. Plenty of "Wild" there.

You...I.../sigh

Thank you for your suggestion. If Wood Elves are ever discovered, I'll play one as a druid.

[Prophes0r]

I don't remember it exactly, but I don't believe Wildshape limits your ability to gain a swim speed...

I'm almost positive I can get the DM to let me have a swimming wild shape. Most druids are probably of the Ocean or Shore areas anyway. I think he already had to add various sea creatures to his bestiary anyway.


I notice nobody with healing abilities....Bard is another interesting option.

Oh yeah. I totally forgot to write down Bard. I looked into them quite a bit. But if I read them right, they start off pretty sub standard, and don't come into their own until 4-5 though right?

One of the characters was hired on as the ship doctor, as she is a physician (One of the medical skills?), plus they have a paladin. But you really cant have TOO much healing now can you?

EDIT: I remembered why I left Bard off. Even though we have nothing mechanically similar to it, we have a character that is thematically almost identical. Our Dex/Cha Rapier/Shortbow Rogue.

EDIT2: I also got an evil-ish grin from my DM when I mentioned I was considering a heavy armored cleric. I have a feeling he might just try to drown me...

[DCraw]

I'm almost positive I can get the DM to let me have a swimming wild shape. Most druids are probably of the Ocean or Shore areas anyway. I think he already had to add various sea creatures to his bestiary anyway.



Oh yeah. I totally forgot to write down Bard. I looked into them quite a bit. But if I read them right, they start off pretty sub standard, and don't come into their own until 4-5 though right?

One of the characters was hired on as the ship doctor, as she is a physician (One of the medical skills?), plus they have a paladin. But you really cant have TOO much healing now can you?

EDIT: I remembered why I left Bard off. Even though we have nothing mechanically similar to it, we have a character that is thematically almost identical. Our Dex/Cha Rapier/Shortbow Rogue.

EDIT2: I also got an evil-ish grin from my DM when I mentioned I was considering a heavy armored cleric. I have a feeling he might just try to drown me...

It's worth noting that by the book Druids don't get access to wild shape forms with swimming speed until level 4. If you can get that restriction houseruled away, great - but I wouldn't count on it. I'd also add that most Clerics don't get proficiency with heavy armour any more.

My suggestion would be to play a Stout Halfling Cleric (Tempest). Lucky is amazingly useful, and being able to weave around people can come in handy in tight conditions. Tempest Clerics get access to martial weapons, can use their channel divinity to maximise one lightning or thunder based spell per short rest, and get a number of potentially useful spells. I have an hilarious mental image of using Thunderwave to push an attacking pirate overboard. This also makes sense from a roleplaying perspective; sailors are most likely to worship either the god of the oceans (not given in the PHB) or the god of weather/winds/storms (Tempest), so of course your cleric would take this domain.

I wouldn't bother with heavy armour. Dex saves are probably going to be quite common, so investing in it is a good idea anyway. I'd say 10 / 16 / 16 / 8 / 14 /10 would be a decent statline, although probably a bit defensive. 12 / 14 / 16 / 9 / 14 / 10 gives you better saves at the expense of your melee attacking stat.

The other option would be to play a variant human. Most of the feats aren't great for this concept, although Elemental Adept may come in handy as it lets you ignore resistance to one element of your choice. For this version, I'd go with 10 / 14 / 14 / 10 / 16 / 10.

[Prophes0r]

OK so. A correction and clarifications.


All Elves are "Island Elves" which are Wood Elves with+1 Str +2 Dex instead of +2 Dex +1 Wis.
If I pick a druid, I can trade my land movement speed for a fly speed or swim speed when I gain my first level of Druid. This seems pretty fair to me. Birds seem like they would offer the most mobility, but have the least combat viability initially. Fish might have utility, but most people would probably try to avoid being in the water anyway.
In those places where I was saying I would get heavy armor on my cleric, I was assuming I would take one of the domains that would give it to me.

[Shadow]

If I were in that group I'd be rolling a bard.
I'm having a hard time not trying to toss two levels of rogue and/or warlock onto just about everything (rogue for anything, warlock for anything Cha based), because cunning action and eldritch blast are just so darned good, but in a game designed for only about 6 levels, multiclassing a caster's probably not the best idea.