Best Solo Character

[JNAProductions]

What character is best for solo work?

My thought is a Half-Orc (for the not dying ability) Rogue 1 (for skills)/Fighter 1 (for Armored style and Second Wind)/Rogue X.

You get 1d10+1 HP every short rest, and have all the skills needed to handle most challenges as a Rogue.

Admittedly, this is probably far from the best (I'm not a good optimizer), so who's got a better solo build?

[Brendanicus]

Probably Variant Human Fighter 1/Ranger 1/Light Cleric X. Get Action Surge and armor and weapon proficiencies, with the blasting of a Light cleric, decent skill selection, ability to navigate the campaign's terrain and deal with popular baddies, and the spellcasting of a normal cleric.

[Shining Wrath]

Half-elf Valor Bard. Lots of skills, melee ability, full caster, ability to steal the spells you need to fill in gaps.

[Bohrdumb]

Probably Variant Human Fighter 1/Ranger 1/Light Cleric X. Get Action Surge and armor and weapon proficiencies, with the blasting of a Light cleric, decent skill selection, ability to navigate the campaign's terrain and deal with popular baddies, and the spellcasting of a normal cleric.

I think most of it would depend on how you want to handle the game.

High Perception and Stealth would allow you to bypass much of the combat. Add good Charisma and you converse with just about anyone. Some sort of Rogue/Bard with a way to get advantage on Perception checks would be nice.

[Shining Wrath]

I think most of it would depend on how you want to handle the game.

High Perception and Stealth would allow you to bypass much of the combat. Add good Charisma and you converse with just about anyone. Some sort of Rogue/Bard with a way to get advantage on Perception checks would be nice.

Start with Elf for proficiency in Perception, but I think the only way to get advantage is to have someone else who is proficient aid you.

[Brendanicus]

I think most of it would depend on how you want to handle the game.

High Perception and Stealth would allow you to bypass much of the combat. Add good Charisma and you converse with just about anyone. Some sort of Rogue/Bard with a way to get advantage on Perception checks would be nice.True, but there are times when you just have to blow stuff up. I'm going to change my pick to Wood Elf Fighter 1/Lore Bard X.

When stealth is involved, Mask of the Wild OP. Also, increased move speed is nice. I imagine that would make stealth and fleeing much easier.

[Mandragola]

Paladins work. They are tough, can heal and can damage anything. Possibly a dex-based paladin with the ability to pick locks through his background. Something like a former criminal-turned-vengeance paladin would be pretty good I think. Plus you eventually get a horse you can ride around on.

[Brendanicus]

Paladins work. Honestly, the fact that there are no classes that can seriously stand out as excellent solo options says a lot of good things about 5e.

Making many buffs require concentration, while often frustrating, has made the game much better in the grand scheme of things.

[ChubbyRain]

Cleric x/rogue 5... 9th level spells are lost but really for a cleric they tend not to be missed.

If you want more spells then go Rogue 2/Cleric 18.

Actually with the new spells out there...

Dex/Con/Wis build. Pick up magic initiate with Magic Stone and Shillelagh (grab Earth Tremor for the fun if it). Keep Dex at 14 (medium armor), boost con and wis. Your attack stat will always be Wis and you are focused on the three big saves. Go Cleric first and then Rogue 5. Depending on your build you can pick up resilient in Dex or Con (I would go Con, perhaps use Vuman).

You don't really need to boost your scores over 18.

If you get killed then either the DM hates you or you need to burn your dice.

[Easy_Lee]

It depends on your DM and the campaign. The only two things I've seen a lot are that both stealth and ranged attacks are quite useful for solo. Having a way to heal yourself is not bad either. My personal choice would be a monk or rogue, but that's mostly just because I like those classes.

[Jamesps]

For low to mid levels I'd say Warlock. The normal thing that tempers them is that when they cast darkness and use their devil's sight, it screws the entire party. A solo warlock though can keep the darkness up for a few encounters (it's a ten minute spell) and combine it with stealth to basically be invulnerable to most enemies.

You won't have healing persay, but you can have a never-ending supply of temp hp if you take false life as an invocation early on, then later just rely on your fiendish abilities. They'll fall off later on as enemies start being able to operate in darkness, or worse yet, gain magic resistance. For levels 3-7ish though a warlock with stealth gonna be a really effective "cheater" build.

[CNagy]

What character is best for solo work?

My thought is a Half-Orc (for the not dying ability) Rogue 1 (for skills)/Fighter 1 (for Armored style and Second Wind)/Rogue X.

You get 1d10+1 HP every short rest, and have all the skills needed to handle most challenges as a Rogue.

Admittedly, this is probably far from the best (I'm not a good optimizer), so who's got a better solo build?

Off the top of my head, I'd say Oath of the Ancients Paladin 8 / Swashbuckler Rogue 12. It's a little MAD, so perhaps Half-Elf rather than Variant Human. A standard array would yield 13 Str, 16 Dex (15+1), 13 Con (12+1), 8 Int, 10 Wis, 16 Cha (14+2).

Benefits of this build:
6 ASIs. (Pal4/8, Rog4/8/10/12)
Fighting Style (Defensive/Mariner)
Healing (Lay on Hands, 40 HP)
Divine Smite (for when it really needs to die)
Spellcasting (options, plenty of options)
Extra Attack (always good to have)
Aura of Protection (survivability rate just shot through the roof)
Aura of Warding (Resistance vs. Spell damage!)

Sneak Attack 6d6 (Swashbuckler making solo sneak attacking as easy as... just hitting someone.)
Expertise (Perception? Acrobatics? Stealth? Persuasion? Lots of good choices)
Cunning Action (always nice to have options!)
Uncanny Dodge (more damage mitigation)
Evasion (freaking Evasion! Synergizes with Aura of Warding--take 1/4th damage on a failed save)
Initiative bonus (Swashbuckler--it's always better to go first, but especially for the solo adventurer)
Reliable Talent (you've got 7 skill proficiencies that just had the randomness taken out of them)

Feats: Alert (never get surprised, deny advantage to unseen attackers, more Initiative bonus,) Resilient Constitution (needed Con save proficiency, more HP), +4 Cha, +4 Dex (or +2 Dex and another Feat)


There are probably better builds, but this one came to mind as a very durable solo adventurer.

[XmonkTad]

Warlock has my vote for "all around best", due to the short rest recharge as well as their ability to mitigate damage almost entirely at low levels.

The best solo character depends on the kind of campaign. For a social-heavy one, bard would almost certainly be king. Warlock can kind of do this just by virtue of having high Cha.

For a combat heavy one, I would pick moon druid pretty much hands down. The ability to get hour-long water breathing at 4th level is very helpful for a solo adventurer, goodberry makes a great healing spell, find traps can stop you from getting killed, transport via plants gets you around at higher levels, and you have enough summoning capability to make your own allies when you really need it.

Of course, you could be a solo adventurer as almost anything (barbarian would probably be the worst), so that's always nice.

[JNAProductions]

What makes you say Barbarian is the worst?

[Easy_Lee]

What makes you say Barbarian is the worst?

Presumably its the barbarian's total focus on hitting and taking hits. However, since those are the two most important facets to D&D combat, I would actually say that barbarians would be a fine choice. It might even make sense to take frenzy, just because solo means that you can rest whenever you want (DM dependent).

[Mandragola]

I honestly think you could manage ok with most classes. Backgrounds give you way more flexibility in skills.

Something I've been looking at is a sorceror with quicken spell and polymorph. You can be a sort of super-druid, who turns into a dragon instead of a bear. Annoyingly my own sorceror didn't take quicken but I might grab it at lvl 10 if we get that far. By that time she'll be able to turn into a young silver dragon, which is cool because she's a silver dragon sorceror.

[Symphony]

I honestly think you could manage ok with most classes. Backgrounds give you way more flexibility in skills.

Something I've been looking at is a sorceror with quicken spell and polymorph. You can be a sort of super-druid, who turns into a dragon instead of a bear. Annoyingly my own sorceror didn't take quicken but I might grab it at lvl 10 if we get that far. By that time she'll be able to turn into a young silver dragon, which is cool because she's a silver dragon sorceror.

Polymorph is limited to beasts of CR 8 or lower. Sorcerers do not get True Polymorph (or Shapechange, for that matter).

Sadly, no changing into a dragon.

[Shining Wrath]

Polymorph is limited to beasts of CR 8 or lower. Sorcerers do not get True Polymorph (or Shapechange, for that matter).

Sadly, no changing into a dragon.

Sorcerers get everything in every class level 8 and lower. It's called "Wish, no-risk usage". So no TP, but lots of other fun stuff.

[XmonkTad]

What makes you say Barbarian is the worst?

Pretty much what Easy_Lee said, but to expand: They lack any real ability to self heal, so things like reckless attack become even more reckless to use. No spellcasting means that you're going to be doing a lot of hitch-hiking at higher levels. It is very difficult for them to make up for their lack of utility even when dealing with simple obstacles (water comes to mind). While they can certainly be the Kings of Damage (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1d-9xDdath8kX_v7Rpts9JFIJwIG3X0-dDUtfax14NT0/edit#gid=1473051734), they're probably the least versatile.

Doesn't mean you couldn't do it. I would just rather be anything else.


Presumably its the barbarian's total focus on hitting and taking hits. However, since those are the two most important facets to D&D combat, I would actually say that barbarians would be a fine choice. It might even make sense to take frenzy, just because solo means that you can rest whenever you want (DM dependent).

Even one level of exhaustion is crippling (if you take frenzy) when you need to rely on your own perception checks to survive ambush. I wonder how a solo campaign interacts with the 15 minute adventuring day.

[Easy_Lee]

Even one level of exhaustion is crippling (if you take frenzy) when you need to rely on your own perception checks to survive ambush. I wonder how a solo campaign interacts with the 15 minute adventuring day.

This is a good point. There are some campaigns for which a solo barbarian just isn't going to have the right skills or spells to solve.

Like any campaign, it would take an agreement between the DM and the player that the DM won't put the player in an unwinnable situation. Unlike a normal campaign, it would take a very active DM, introducing characters as necessary in order to assist our Conan-like friend on his quest throughout the world. However, the DM may be more willing to do these things with a solo barbarian than some other classes, particularly since he doesn't have to worry about the barbarian doing any world-breaking, plot-derailing things like mind controlling an NPC or casting detect lies at an opportune moment.

[-Jynx-]

They lack any real ability to self heal, so things like reckless attack become even more reckless to use. No spellcasting means that you're going to be doing a lot of hitch-hiking at higher levels. It is very difficult for them to make up for their lack of utility even when dealing with simple obstacles (water comes to mind).

Grappling would be an option to help you against certain creatures, and reckless attacks with the bear totem resistance is going to mean you're hurting them more than their hurting you. It's hard to say whether you not being able to self heal is really a hindrance. Maybe the DM lets you buy potions for cheap, maybe you'll by a town, things like that will influence your lack of healing and where you go and how you prepare will be the defining factor rather than your lack of healing ability.

Eagle totem eyes will help give you an edge on things from a distance. I don't think that it's a bad option per say, you just have to be fully aware of what you can and can't do, but that holds true for every class.

[Symphony]

Sorcerers get everything in every class level 8 and lower. It's called "Wish, no-risk usage". So no TP, but lots of other fun stuff.

While true, what is your point? Dragons aren't beasts, and both True Polymorph and Shapechange are level 9 spells.

Like I said, no changing into a dragon for your draconic sorcerer.

[DragonBaneDM]

Pretty much what Easy_Lee said, but to expand: snippedWhile they can certainly be the Kings of Damage (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1d-9xDdath8kX_v7Rpts9JFIJwIG3X0-dDUtfax14NT0/edit#gid=1473051734), they're probably the least versatile.
snipped


This might be the sexiest data I've ever seen. Thank you so much.

[XmonkTad]

This is a good point. There are some campaigns for which a solo barbarian just isn't going to have the right skills or spells to solve.

Like any campaign, it would take an agreement between the DM and the player that the DM won't put the player in an unwinnable situation. Unlike a normal campaign, it would take a very active DM, introducing characters as necessary in order to assist our Conan-like friend on his quest throughout the world. However, the DM may be more willing to do these things with a solo barbarian than some other classes, particularly since he doesn't have to worry about the barbarian doing any world-breaking, plot-derailing things like mind controlling an NPC or casting detect lies at an opportune moment.

Now that you mention it, not having a bunch of plot derailing tools might make the DM's job a lot easier. If the DM isn't trying to to kill you off, then having very well defined capabilities means it's easier to plan encounters, so there might not be an encounter that is "only winnable with the fly spell and you're out of luck if you didn't prepare it" sort of things.


Grappling would be an option to help you against certain creatures, and reckless attacks with the bear totem resistance is going to mean you're hurting them more than their hurting you. It's hard to say whether you not being able to self heal is really a hindrance. Maybe the DM lets you buy potions for cheap, maybe you'll by a town, things like that will influence your lack of healing and where you go and how you prepare will be the defining factor rather than your lack of healing ability.

Eagle totem eyes will help give you an edge on things from a distance. I don't think that it's a bad option per say, you just have to be fully aware of what you can and can't do, but that holds true for every class.

Thing with grappling well is that it often requires a feat/class mix to do really well, and when it doesn't work, it really doesn't work. This would require even more DM cooperation because you have no native way of making yourself larger/dealing with ranged fliers or ethereal creatures.
But yeah, the DM has to really tailor the game to a solo barbarian to make it fun. Doesn't mean it can't happen.

I don't know if it's worth talking about a "standard" game because I'm not sure such a thing exists. However, if the OP is about a solo character running, say, a published module, then things like druids, bards and warlocks really do well compared to a barbarian. The "solo barbarian campaign" looks very different from any sort of published adventure whereas the "solo druid campaign" looks fairly similar to what a party would be dealing with when they can rely on a wide variety of talents and abilities (because a druid can bring a wide variety of talents and abilities in a single character).

[Mandragola]

Oh didn't see you could only polymorph into beasts. Well, a Tyrannosaurus Rex at lvl 8 could still be fun :)

[Jamesps]

Huge Ape has 7 intelligence though. If your sorcerer dumped intelligence, you could basically play the same character!

[MaxWilson]

Probably Variant Human Fighter 1/Ranger 1/Light Cleric X. Get Action Surge and armor and weapon proficiencies, with the blasting of a Light cleric, decent skill selection, ability to navigate the campaign's terrain and deal with popular baddies, and the spellcasting of a normal cleric.

You don't have Action Surge with this build. That comes at Fighter 2 and you're Fighter 1.

My favorite solo build, if you happen to have the Dex/Cha for it via rolled stats, is Half-elf Fighter 1-2 (Fighter 2), then Fiend Warlock 3-4 (Warlock 2), then Necromancer 5-10 (Necromancer 6), then Eldritch Knight 11-15 (Eldritch Knight 7). Starts off strong, can fight or run from almost anything from very early on, AC 21, has at-will (3x1d10 + CHA) + (1d10 + DX) at level 15, gets 6-7 temp HP on every kill, can bulk up with tons of minions doing 1d6 + 7 points of damage when fighting tough things like beholder ships, can self-heal cheaply using Grim Harvest (Vampiric Touch: 90+ HP for 1 3rd level spell slot and 10 cp worth of chickens), also has access to defensive magic like Shield/Blink/Blur/Absorb Elements/Mirror Image, good at negotiation/diplomacy due to strong CH. If I were going to play a solo campaign, that would be my character of choice. And I even occasionally roll stats good enough to work with that concept, too. (Specifically, in two of my test parties, I've had characters with stats good enough to be Fighter/Necromancer/Warlocks as described, although only one of them got made into one.) Note that since you're using Wizard mainly for self-buffs and raising skeletons, you don't actually need to pump Int, which reduces MAD.

YMMV though. Play what you enjoy.

[squab]

Polymorph is limited to beasts of CR 8 or lower. Sorcerers do not get True Polymorph (or Shapechange, for that matter).

Sadly, no changing into a dragon.

You mean I can't play a dragon-blooded dragonborn sorcerer who transforms into a dragon?

Booooooooo -burns all my books-

[some guy]

I'd at least take 2 levels of rogue, cunning action allows for a retreat in most situations. Extra skills and expertise don't hurt either.

[Mandragola]

You mean I can't play a dragon-blooded dragonborn sorcerer who transforms into a dragon?

Booooooooo -burns all my books-

My thoughts exactly.

[meltodowno]

Divination wizard.

- Summon Familiar for advantage on pretty much every roll (aid actions).
- Banking 3 dice rolls to either enforce Save Failure on monsters or ensuring you make your own saves.
- Run/teleport whenever you think you are getting in too deep

All the power of a wizard, advantage on any skill checks granted by your owl moonwalking beside you.

[Easy_Lee]

All the power of a wizard, advantage on any skill checks granted by your owl moonwalking beside you.

Subject to DM approval, of course. Technically, having a familiar in one's pocket makes a rogue qualify for sneak attack on all non-disadvataged attacks. But I wouldn't actually try to use that in a game. Similarly, the help action grants advantage on everything, but you may have to explain how the moonwalking owl is helping you.

[meltodowno]

That's largely just a matter of flavoring the aid action appropriately.

For most instances - it flaps around distracting/harassing people.
For most other instances - it gives you extra intel from its senses via telepathy.

The only one's they conceivably would flat never be able to help with with is knowledge checks (barring nature).

[MaxWilson]

Grappling would be an option to help you against certain creatures, and reckless attacks with the bear totem resistance is going to mean you're hurting them more than their hurting you. It's hard to say whether you not being able to self heal is really a hindrance. Maybe the DM lets you buy potions for cheap, maybe you'll by a town, things like that will influence your lack of healing and where you go and how you prepare will be the defining factor rather than your lack of healing ability.

Or even just take the Healer feat and medic yourself every short rest. That's generally more efficient than spell-based healing anyway, and as a solo character you'll have lots of cash to buy healing kits.

[Ardantis]

So, solo barbarian with the Criminal background for stealth and thiefs tools, perception and athletics or survival as skills, and totem path? Sounds like a remedial vision quest.



Edit: best solo single class is probably Ranger

[SharkForce]

minor correction: you're not limited to CR 8 from polymorph, so much as there simply are no beasts of a CR higher than that (yet). the CR limit is actually your level, so in theory if there was a CR 15 beast out there (dire allosaurus?) you could turn into it provided you are level 15 or higher with regular polymorph.

[Longcat]

My vote goes to Half-Elf Urchin Moon Druid.

Reasons:

Covers a wide variety of skills, including roguish and social
Can dish out and take punishment
Has a versatile spell list, which includes healing, battlefield control and summons
Is inconspicuous and fits into most societies as well as the wilderness
Is self-sufficient

[Grek]

You could probably make a pretty good case for Death Domain Cleric, if your DM allows you to be evil. Is it a Solo adventure if you bring your skeletons?

[Ardantis]

My vote goes to Half-Elf Urchin Moon Druid.

Reasons:

Covers a wide variety of skills, including roguish and social
Can dish out and take punishment
Has a versatile spell list, which includes healing, battlefield control and summons
Is inconspicuous and fits into most societies as well as the wilderness
Is self-sufficient


Agree with all aspects! Buuut sub Druid for Ranger.

EDIT: plus Beastmaster solves loneliness