Support Caster

[Luna_Mayflower]

I'm currently in the process of creating a 5th level character. I'm looking to make her a completely support based caster, in that most of her spells will be buffs for other party members, and a few will be debuffs for enemies (eg Bane, rather than Charm Person).

I was wondering what would be the best class/classes to take for this character, and what the best buff and debuff spells would be to take. I was thinking perhaps something like Wizard 3 / Bard 2, but I'm somewhat new to 5th edition, so I'd love some help with the build. I'm not looking for a powerful character in her own right, but one that can really give some interesting buffs and debuffs both in and out of battle.

Thanks for any help,

Luna.

[MadGrady]

If you are going straight up support, you can't go wrong with Bard class. I wouldn't even multiclass it (though this will depend on your overall concept).

Not only is it one of the best skill monkeys in the game, but Inspiration is GREAT for party support. Their spell list is decent, and filled with buffs/debuffs. Just be cognizent of the spells that require concentration, as you can only have one of those active at a time.

As a secondary option, clerics make some decent party support casters as well.

[coredump]

Probably wizard or bard, but likely as single class.

[Millface]

I'm currently in the process of creating a 5th level character. I'm looking to make her a completely support based caster, in that most of her spells will be buffs for other party members, and a few will be debuffs for enemies (eg Bane, rather than Charm Person).

I was wondering what would be the best class/classes to take for this character, and what the best buff and debuff spells would be to take. I was thinking perhaps something like Wizard 3 / Bard 2, but I'm somewhat new to 5th edition, so I'd love some help with the build. I'm not looking for a powerful character in her own right, but one that can really give some interesting buffs and debuffs both in and out of battle.

Thanks for any help,

Luna.

Nothing more supporty than Life Cleric/Lore Bard. Lore Bard has the most versatility. Inspiration and Cutting Words, lots of crowd control, heals, and tons of spells from any list you want with magical secrets.

Dear lord whatever you do please do NOT multiclass Wizard with Bard. What would the point of that be? If you're new I'd stay straight classed this time around.

[pibby]

You've got yourself three options: Cleric, Wizard, Bard.

Clerics- They've got good buff spells (Bless, Guidance, Enhance Ability) and can heal party members. They can also fend themselves off very well with Medium or Heavy Armor and are proficient with decent weapons. They can even emulate as the frontliner if they need to with the use of the spells Spiritual Weapon (which doesn't need concentration) and Shield of Faith.
However they don't have good battlefield control spells/debuffs compared to the wizard. Some of this may be mitigated by taking a Domain which may provide spells and abilities that give you options you otherwise wouldn't have.

Wizards- They are the kings of battlefield control and are probably the hardest to use out of the three suggested. They get good debuff spells like Tasha's Hideous Laughter and Slow, good buff spells like Haste and Fly, spells that can be used as debuffs or buffs like Levitate and Enlarge/Reduce, nice battlefield control spells like Fog Cloud and Grease, and a great way to deal area of effect damage with spells like Shatter and Fireball.
The downside is that Wizards are nothing without their spells and can only contribute so much with their cantrips. They also need to spend spell slots to build a decent defense for themselves as they are not proficient with armor at all.

Bards- They're kind of the inbetween of Clerics and Wizards while having a unique roll of their own. They get healing abilities as the Cleric does and some interesting debuffs and battlefield control spells like Tasha's Hideous Laughter and Stinking Cloud. I recommend taking the College of Lore over the College of Valor based on what you've asked as the former gives you access to Magical Secrets at level 6 which can be used to take strong spells from not only full casters such as the Wizard and Cleric but also spells from half casters such as Rangers and Paladins. In addition you can use Bardic Inspiration to not only preemptively buff an ally but also use it to interfere with an enemy's attack.
The downside to Bards is that their spell list is not as powerful as the Wizard's or the Cleric's; they're not as good at buffing with spells as the Cleric or as good at battlefield control/dubuffing as the Wizard. College of Lore does mitigate that a bit but that kicks in at 6th level.

Note: I decided to not mention the druid because I personally don't have first hand experience using them and the druids that I know of use Circle of the Moon, which is a melee druid, as opposed to Circle of the Land which is meant to be the more spellcaster focused subclass.

[Luna_Mayflower]

Nothing more supporty than Life Cleric/Lore Bard. Lore Bard has the most versatility. Inspiration and Cutting Words, lots of crowd control, heals, and tons of spells from any list you want with magical secrets.

Dear lord whatever you do please do NOT multiclass Wizard with Bard. What would the point of that be? If you're new I'd stay straight classed this time around.

I'm new to the edition, rather than D&D in general. I was interested in mixing the buffs of the two classes.



You've got yourself three options: Cleric, Wizard, Bard.

Clerics- They've got good buff spells (Bless, Guidance, Enhance Ability) and can heal party members. They can also fend themselves off very well with Medium or Heavy Armor and are proficient with decent weapons. They can even emulate as the frontliner if they need to with the use of the spells Spiritual Weapon (which doesn't need concentration) and Shield of Faith.
However they don't have good battlefield control spells/debuffs compared to the wizard. Some of this may be mitigated by taking a Domain which may provide spells and abilities that give you options you otherwise wouldn't have.

Wizards- They are the kings of battlefield control and are probably the hardest to use out of the three suggested. They get good debuff spells like Tasha's Hideous Laughter and Slow, good buff spells like Haste and Fly, spells that can be used as debuffs or buffs like Levitate and Enlarge/Reduce, nice battlefield control spells like Fog Cloud and Grease, and a great way to deal area of effect damage with spells like Shatter and Fireball.
The downside is that Wizards are nothing without their spells and can only contribute so much with their cantrips. They also need to spend spell slots to build a decent defense for themselves as they are not proficient with armor at all.

Bards- They're kind of the inbetween of Clerics and Wizards while having a unique roll of their own. They get healing abilities as the Cleric does and some interesting debuffs and battlefield control spells like Tasha's Hideous Laughter and Stinking Cloud. I recommend taking the College of Lore over the College of Valor based on what you've asked as the former gives you access to Magical Secrets at level 6 which can be used to take strong spells from not only full casters such as the Wizard and Cleric but also spells from half casters such as Rangers and Paladins. In addition you can use Bardic Inspiration to not only preemptively buff an ally but also use it to interfere with an enemy's attack.
The downside to Bards is that their spell list is not as powerful as the Wizard's or the Cleric's; they're not as good at buffing with spells as the Cleric or as good at battlefield control/dubuffing as the Wizard. College of Lore does mitigate that a bit but that kicks in at 6th level.

Note: I decided to not mention the druid because I personally don't have first hand experience using them and the druids that I know of use Circle of the Moon, which is a melee druid, as opposed to Circle of the Land which is meant to be the more spellcaster focused subclass.

This is a huge help. I've decided to go for Wizard, as the versatility of buffs and debuffs seems the most prudent, though I may take a level or two in Cleric later on to get the buff spells it offers.

What would be the best arcane tradition for me to take?

[charlesk]

Just be cognizent of the spells that require concentration, as you can only have one of those active at a time.


As someone currently playing a support bard in a campaign, let me emphasize this as well. The concentration mechanism was instituted for good reason, but it has hit support casters especially hard. The pure buff/debuff caster is pretty much gone in 5e, and you will find yourself having to choose spells based more on whether or not they require concentration than on how good the spell itself is.

It can still be fun to do, but you need to have other plans for what to do when your concentration is being used (as it will be, nearly all the time).

[Citan]

I'm new to the edition, rather than D&D in general. I was interested in mixing the buffs of the two classes.




This is a huge help. I've decided to go for Wizard, as the versatility of buffs and debuffs seems the most prudent, though I may take a level or two in Cleric later on to get the buff spells it offers.

What would be the best arcane tradition for me to take?
Hi :) Welcome in DD 5. ^^

I concur with the very good description of Pibby about these casters.
Let me add a little something about Druids.

Druid
Druid could be seen a bit like a central point between Cleric, Bards and Wizards.
Like the Cleric, they automatically know every spell available to their class once they get to a new spell level. They also know nearly as many healing spells as the Bard, only in the latest levels will Bard (and evenmore so Clerics) outshine Druid.
Their main spellcasting strong point lie in their conjurations though, which are useful in any situation, and a few other exclusive spells such as Moonbeam.
Also, Land Moon like Wizards can regen a few spell slots and get some very good spells that are otherwise unavailable to them.
Finally, WS can be either good in RP (Land Druid) or become a winning feature in itself (Moon).

If you intended to dip into Life Cleric, Druid has the advantage of sharing the same main stats. If in general you want to be good spellcaster at offense AND defense AND buff AND debuff AND healing, Lore Bard is probably the best choice since you can cherrypick good spells from any class.

If you don't mind not being a healer/buffer, stick to Wizard: by far the most versatile spelllist (with Conjurations, some good Bard debuffs, most Druid/Bard low-level utilities, exclusive Wizard spells etc). And if you have a generous Game Master, potentially a number of spell known far surpassing any other class (since you can learn spells you find on scrolls/spellbooks).

As for the School...
Evocation is a no-brainer choice: you can use AoE spells without endangering allies, you get bonus damage on most damage dealing spells.
Abjuration is its counterpart, emphasizing defense, with a rechargeable ward and magic resistance.
Divination is another very good one because of Portent ability, which lets you reroll a few dices when it really counts, spell regen when you cast a Divination spell and Third Eye which provide free nice benefit.
Transmutation finally is a fine choice if you're not sure how to specialize: the minor alchemy is great for RP and 6th/14th Transmuter Stone provides various and powerful benefit for whoever carries it. You also get a toned down WS 1/short rest which is still great for many purposes, if only to get flying speed for an hour.
Artificer: idea is nice but I feel abilities are too limited. Ability to enchant weapons/armor is nice though.

Other schools are very good but are much more focused on their own spells and playstyle. So if you're unsure stick with one of the first four.

In short, Wizard is tremendously fun. :) But you're really lacking in the buff department and you have absolutely no healing. If that is a problem for you, go Bard instead. Many of the best buffs/debuffs, nice healing, Magic Secrets to get offensive goodness.

[WickerNipple]

though I may take a level or two in Cleric later on to get the buff spells it offers.

This doesn't really work in this edition, especially given the Concentration mechanic. Dipping cleric is only going to give you lvl 1-2 cleric spells, and it isn't going to give you more slots to cast them with. You don't get cleric slots and wizard slots in this edition, it's all just one big mix of the same pool. Choosing between using concentration on Bless vs some high level wizard option isn't even a no brainer. Wizards also have the most spells of anyone, by the time you're lvl 5+ you won't even want those cleric spells.


What would be the best arcane tradition for me to take?

Diviner assuming you'll be buff and debuff. Nothing is more powerful to a debuffer than being able to dictate your opponents' rolls.

And for the record I support Bard as the best support character. Choice of the best spells in the game (Lorebard can steal spells from any class) plus inspiration and healing and an at-will enemy debuff cantrip is the best Support this edition can muster. You're also a skillmonkey for party support out of combat too.

Should also be noted that if your Support metric is purely using spells to buff the party, then the sorcerer is the best buffer. Twin spell lets them double the number of Haste targets, and you're not gonna get more buffy than that in this edition.

[Shining Wrath]

I think the class most designed to support is Lore Bard. You get a class ability, Inspiration, whose entire purpose is helping your friends make difficult rolls of any sort. It's hard to top that for support.

The spell list is also very buff-ish, less debuff.

Wizards, as noted, bring the debuff. That makes a Bard / Wizard somewhat interesting, but you need good rolls to pull it off, and 5e does not reward multiclassing like 3.5 did. You'll have spell slots of higher level than the spells you know.

Any class that gets the Guidance cantrip is capable of some decent buffing (D4); clerics and druids IIRC.

The drawback to wizards is that they can't melee without heavy investment of resources (i.e., hurting your ability to be a wizard), so if someone is down and needs to be healed ASAP the wizard is a very poor choice to run into the front lines and save them. Bards and Clerics, OTOH, have spells that let them do that from a distance, and have D8 HD and armor.

[pibby]

If you really wanted to be a wizard with a few cleric spells, then I would recommend taking Magical Adept (I'm afb I'm sure that's what it's called though). Get Bless as your level 1 spell to cast once per day and have the Guidance cantrip along with another cantrip that doesn't depend on spell save dc like Stabilize.
But beware, taking a feat or multiclassing delays your opportunity to raise your spell casting stat to 20.

[MadGrady]

If you really wanted to be a wizard with a few cleric spells, then I would recommend taking Magical Adept (I'm afb I'm sure that's what it's called though). Get Bless as your level 1 spell to cast once per day and have the Guidance cantrip along with another cantrip that doesn't depend on spell save dc like Stabilize.
But beware, taking a feat or multiclassing delays your opportunity to raise your spell casting stat to 20.

That is, unless you go variant Human with bonus feat (depends if DM allows of course)