What team would you come up with for my world?

[Albions_Angel]

Ok lads and lasses, a bit of fun.

I am 2 sessions into my 3.5e campaign and I am running it for 6 new 3.5e players. Some have a lot of experience with 5e, others have played one game of 5e. One is typically a 5e player but used to play second (and is my best player by far!). As such, they have all stuck very close to core, and I feel a little unhappy that I kinda wasted my time reading and including so many more books than I am used to.

So I thought, why not give you guys a go.

If you want a small amount of setting, Jarlheim is a viking/anglosaxon themed world. There arnt huge mage colleges or massive cities, but physical might is respected a great deal.

Allowed player books are as follows: DMG, MM, PHB1, PHB2, Complete (all but Psionics), Races of Destiny/Stone/The Dragon/The Wild, Its Hot/Cold/Wet Outside, Magic of Incarnum, Tome of Magic, Heroes of Horror, Planar Handbook, Dragon Magic, MIC, UA (classes/feats only) and Spell Compendium.

No flaws, start at level 1, 32pt buy. There are homerules that make monk playable (about the same level as a good fighter or a barbarian, can even keep up with some low tier spell casters), and increase the Warmage, Duskblade and Hexblade spell lists. No LA races.

What would your character be? If you feel up for it, what team would you build (6 man)? What would be your 1st, 5th, 10th and 15th level builds? For any optimization level you feel.

[Hamste]

6 mages each specializing in a different school of magic who got together to create a major mage school.

Probably something like warmage for evocation into rainbow servant, Conjuror wizard multi-classed into druid into arcane hierophant and mystic theurge (someone needed healing as I doubt they can prevent all damage and this get 9th druid spells), Illusionist into shadowcrafter for extremely real illusions, abjuror into IoSV, necromancer either into a gishy style prestige class or maybe walker in the waste to use them self and undead as tanks and finally an enchanter or diviner which I got nothing on (maybe beguiler just for disarming traps).

[CaPtMalHammer]

A group of six with a Norse Viking feel.. hmmmm

1-Cleric/Medicine Man: A healer type always a good idea and a Cleric gives versatility.
2-Barbarian: Viking Berserker: High Sword Low Axe build with improved Trip.
3-Shield Maiden- Any good Viking crew has a Shield Maiden character. This can be built through fighter or any other melee class you wish.
4-Swashbuckler- Norse Themed Boatman, someone with knowledge of sailing and who can pilot a long boat so you don't sink on your way to pillaging.
5-Bard- Someone to tell the tales of your deeds so you may make it to Valhalla! And Arcane Casting access never a bad idea.
6-Scout- Viking Archer and Tracker, Wilderness survival and someone to track down your prey.

[Echch]

I'd probably go Monk -> Cloud Anchorite, just to test the Monk out. For character motivation... I don't think there are many motivations that can be better than Cloud Anchorite's capstone.

[ComaVision]

Probably a bard, except I'd call it a skald. I'm presuming a great skald would garner similar respect to a great warrior. I'd probably make recording the group's saga my primary motivation.

What exactly I did with the build depends on the rest of the group. If it was melee heavy then I'd focus on spells and buffing, working to Sublime Chord. If the group is light on melee, I'd probably go with a Song of the White Raven build. *checks* OH WAIT, I GUESS I CAN'T DO THAT. Maybe I'd do some sort of Paladin of Freedom build then if melee was needed.

[lylsyly]

A group of six with a Norse Viking feel.. hmmmm

1-Cleric/Medicine Man: A healer type always a good idea and a Cleric gives versatility.
2-Barbarian: Viking Berserker: High Sword Low Axe build with improved Trip.
3-Shield Maiden- Any good Viking crew has a Shield Maiden character. This can be built through fighter or any other melee class you wish.
4-Swashbuckler- Norse Themed Boatman, someone with knowledge of sailing and who can pilot a long boat so you don't sink on your way to pillaging.
5-Bard- Someone to tell the tales of your deeds so you may make it to Valhalla! And Arcane Casting access never a bad idea.
6-Scout- Viking Archer and Tracker, Wilderness survival and someone to track down your prey.

Pretty much nailed it with this one EXCEPT I would give each a level or Two of Barbarian Berseker.

[Quertus]

I've already played a skald, I've already played a berserker. Neither hold much interest for me. So I'd probably go classic me, and play Arcane Spellcaster into Tainted Sorcerer, and be "not from around here". At low-mid op, I'd play him for free use of expensive spells, like Animate Dead, Restoration, and True Resurrection. At higher op play, I'd turn him into a reliable blaster. At high op, he'd be SoD, but without the S.

At really low op, if you had had rules for it, he'd have wasted the first few levels on race. So I guess he'd... play more as the infinite heal-bot, or buffer, with perhaps a touch of bfc.

If your description of the world felt sufficiently fluffy, and really resonated with me, I'd likely either research "Jarlheim" IRL (to make a character to match), or studiously not do so (to keep the joy of exploration). I'd likely research Loki, and possibly have my character secretly be dedicated to him.

Or possibly research Frey / Frea, and build... something dedicated to / created by / somehow connected to one or both. A cleric, of course, being the simplest option.

If I didn't expect I'd be enjoying the game, and metagamed slightly, I'd probably build a two weapon rogue. Or two weapon half orc thug. Probably trying to get pounce and/or Hide in Plain Sight. If the pouncing barbarian is in the not-banned books, maybe start there. Possibly aiming for lycanthropy. Something to one-shot those people who respect might.

On a similar vein, I've always wanted to run a character who rode a hydra, so I might consider building a mounted charger. Or possibly even a mounted archer? Not sure what I could pull off with the given limitations.

If I was somehow completely neutral on the setting, I might consider building a druid. But I'd need to do a lot of research on possible druid builds, to get a feel for how I'd want to play the character. Or just build him as an elven archer.

And, sounds like I'm almost up to a full party already.