Relatively new player joining existing lvl5 party. Would like advice.

[freshtotheyard]

I'm a relatively new player who is about to join an existing lvl 5 campaign. The group has a few core players and then there is a bit of rotation as some can't always make it.
The group consists of Bladesinger Wiz, Vengeance Pally, Bard, Barbarian, Monk, Ranger and Scout Rogue .

I would like to fill a more support orientated role as healing is definitely lacking.

The options I've come up with are Favoured Soul with potential into warlock eventually. (this way my damage would be cantrips and the rest buff spells/ heal)

Or a more traditional approach a Tempest Cleric (this is because when i tried out with them the pally and barbarian where absent so i figured some consistent tankiness would be good.
The campaign is set in a resource sparse world so a final option would be Druid for the out of combat utility?

So would the favoured soul route even be viable? If so how best to pull it off? Or just play it safe and go tempest. Honestly i can see how Druid would fit but somehow I'm hesitant.

Would love some feedback and more experience input in regards to a support role and how best to fill it.

Thanks !

TLDR; joining ongoing campaign, will be a support class. Thinking of Favoured soul, Tempest Cleric, or Land Druid(grasslands?). Would like some experienced input. Thank you !

[Blood of Gaea]

If you want to be a healer with Warlock cantrips, you might consider just going Celestial Warlock. Meanwhile, you've still got Eldritch Blast and plenty of invocations to play around with.

[Particle_Man]

With that many melee characters you might want to see if your Dm would allow a cleric with the order domain (this is in wotc’s unearthed arcana online, so you would in effect be beta testing it so your dm might not allow it). If allowed it gives you the ability to buff/heal someone and let them use their reaction to make a melee attack at the same time.

[Expected]

Since you would like to play a support role, a Cleric would be a good choice. Certain Cleric subclasses can wear heavy armor and a shield. This is amazing when combined with Spiritual Weapon and Spirit Guardians because you can facetank them and constantly apply SG's effect. In addition, you have the Cleric spell list and will have Mass Cure Wounds, Revivify, Heal, etc. Remember, though, that it is never a good idea to attempt to outheal incoming damage; it is better to kill the enemy more quickly thus eliminating the need for combat healing.

[freshtotheyard]

If you want to be a healer with Warlock cantrips, you might consider just going Celestial Warlock. Meanwhile, you've still got Eldritch Blast and plenty of invocations to play around with.

Would that not limit me for buff spells? If i understand warlocks correctly you can only cast at max level and have limited spell slots?


and Particle_Man, sadly no UA allowed.

[iTreeby]

Bard could be a good choice as the buff and heal and have expertise for the skills you need.

[Blood of Gaea]

Would that not limit me for buff spells? If i understand warlocks correctly you can only cast at max level and have limited spell slots?


and Particle_Man, sadly no UA allowed.
That's correct, you will largely be a battlefield medic who keeps everyone running and patches them up a bit after the battle. You can also easily multiclass out into Sorcerer after level 3 or so, if you want to focus more on healing with spell slots.

[freshtotheyard]

That's correct, you will largely be a battlefield medic who keeps everyone running and patches them up a bit after the battle. You can also easily multiclass out into Sorcerer after level 3 or so, if you want to focus more on healing with spell slots.

Is level 3 for warlock the point to MC ? or would earlier also work? Sorry haven't been able to wrap my head around multiclassing yet, and the idea of two different spell systems confuses me a bit still.

So Warlock 3 and Sorc X would be a viable option? and if so which Warlock path would be recommended? since i think the celestial heal works of warlock level me stopping at 3 would make it weak?

sorry for the slew of questions
thanks in advance

[Mortis_Elrod]

Have you considered Shepherd or Dream Druid?

Shepherd has the spirit totems which are handy dandy along with spells that are pretty good, like Faerie Fire or some AoE damage.

Dream has some fun ranged healing with bonus temp hp. All without casting a spell.

[Blood of Gaea]

1. Is level 3 for warlock the point to MC ? or would earlier also work?

Sorry haven't been able to wrap my head around multiclassing yet, and the idea of two different spell systems confuses me a bit still.

2. So Warlock 3 and Sorc X would be a viable option?

3. and if so which Warlock path would be recommended?

4. since i think the celestial heal works of warlock level me stopping at 3 would make it weak?

sorry for the slew of questions
thanks in advance
1. You could multiclass 2 or 3 levels of Warlock, but I would suggest 2 or 3 myself.
Level 2 get's you Agonizing Blast, Warlock cantrips, light, sacred flame, 3 uses of healing light, some spells, and short rest slots (burn them for sorcery point if needed). A 3rd level upgrades your short rest slots, gives an extra spell known, and gives you a pact boon.

2. Yes, Warlock and Sorcerer are two great classes to multiclass together. Divine Soul Sorcerer would be a very solid choice.

3. I would personally get Pact of Tome and Book of Ancient Secrets if you want to ease off some pressure from your spell slots (and get your party better access to non-wizard rituals), or Pact of the Chain for a very good scout. If you get Chain, I'd recommend having it use the help action to ensure your Scout Rogue is getting advantage on their attacks. Picking Pact of the Chain also frees up your spare Invocation to be used elsewhere.

4. It will always heal d6 health, but it does so as a bonus action and doesn't count as spell (so you can cast another spell as an action!). So even with only 4 uses a long rest, it's still a very useful ability.

Don't worry about asking a bunch of question, if I didn't feel like answering I just wouldn't. :p

[th3g0dc0mp13x]

Is level 3 for warlock the point to MC ? or would earlier also work? Sorry haven't been able to wrap my head around multiclassing yet, and the idea of two different spell systems confuses me a bit still.

So Warlock 3 and Sorc X would be a viable option? and if so which Warlock path would be recommended? since i think the celestial heal works of warlock level me stopping at 3 would make it weak?

sorry for the slew of questions
thanks in advance

For warlock sorcerer it's a good breakpoint, you'll have 2 short rest spell slots, 2 invocations decent damage. Once you start up the sorcerer path if the game goes to 20 you still get 9th level spells and wish.

I'd go celestial just to help with spells known which is sorcerers biggest issue. You'd have cure wounds, lesser restoration, 2 other spells from the warlock list, and some minor BA healing.

I'd grab repelling blast as one of your invocations, if you grab quicken you can force someone 20-80' away depending on level and whether you hit them.

[CTurbo]

Tempest Cleric 5 all the way

I'd either go Variant Human with Res(Con) as your level 1 feat and +2 Wis at level 4 so you'd be 16 Str, 14 Con, 18 Wis at level 5.

or

Hill Dwarf with +2 Wis at level 4 for 14 Str, 16 Con, 18 Wis at level 5.


Either way you wear plate and shield for 20 AC.



I believe a Tempest Cleric would be a perfect compliment to your party

[kamap]

Divine soul with a 3 lvl dip in hexblade warlock for pact of the tome --> book of secrets, will net you some great utility and healing.
Start with sorcerer for the con saving proficiency then 3 levels in warlock for all the warlocky goodies then all out sorcerer.

- You'll have 2 rituals of the bat (I'd take find familiar as one) and if the DM is willing you'll get more during play.
- With an owl as a familiar you can have the owl do a flyby help action every turn, so 1 person per turn gets advantage, make sure to get some materials to resummon the owl when eventually the monsters will get smart and hold their attack to get the owl. Plus a familiar is so good to have for any number of things.
- You'll have 9 cantrips (4 from sorcerer, 2 from warlock and 3 (from any list and they don't have to be from the same list).
- Your damage will be decent to good, because of eldritch blast or a charisma based weapon attack (hexblade patron).
- a Decent armor rating of 18 at lvl 2 if you have 14 dex, with wearing scale mail and a shield, which you can do because of the hexblade patron.
- Sorcery slots are interchangeable you do not need to cast your warlock spells trough a warlock slot nor sorcerer spells trough a sorcerer slot.
- You can fuel your sorcery points with your warlock slots and get more spells slots that way, just before a short rest if you have some warlock slots left, change them into sorcery points and those points into spell slots and gain your short rest warlock spell slots back after the short rest.
- You can blast away with eldritch blast to save your spells slots for when they are really needed.
- You can have fun with minor illusion, prestidigitation and any other cantrip that strikes your fancy, you can't have them all but you'll get close.
- Social situations can be dealt with deception, insight, persuasion and if needed intimidation if you take those skills.

Those are some of the more salient points but there is so much more good things about this combination.

[Louro]

Seriously guys?

- Hi, I'm a newbie I like supports.
- Sure! MC the **** out of it!

Go cleric. It's the only real support. Maybe druids too, as no one else can "pick locate object because we will need it tomorrow".
Then pick the faith/god/theme/flavour that suits your character.

Bless your mates FTW.

[Aett_Thorn]

The party that you’re describing already has most roles covered, including a party Face with the Bard there. Unless the Bard player is one of the spotty ones, being a Charisma-based caster might step in their toes a bit (including out of combat). Having a Paladin as a secondary Face is already covered, too. It also seems like your party has plenty of Melee characters, so you don’t necessarily need to be focused on Melee.

I really think that a Cleric or Druid could be a good fit here. A Wood Elf Trickery Cleric could be a fun support build for this group, as could a Shepherd Druid as mentioned above. A Nature Cleric also lets you be a kind of middle ground there, and has a great reaction ability to support the party.

[sophontteks]

The party has 3 characters that can heal. The bard, the paladin, and the ranger. Just play what you want.

As a new player, I just want to give a disclaimer that healing is weaker in this game then some other games. Even the strongest healers don't spend their actions every turn healing.

The divine soul warlock is a good blaster, just like all warlocks, and even the archtype itself offers spells outside of healing spells and does additional damage when you cast a spell that does fire or radient damage.

The life cleric is a tank with heavy armor and good self healing. He's actually in the front lines swinging away and his weapon does bonus divine damage.

With that disclaimer out of the way, I would not recommend shepherd druid. The summons will slow the game down too much unfortunately.

Grave cleric would be awsome in this group. A big group means more chances of them getting crit, and grave straight denies crits. Very strong. Prevrnting a crit for basically free is better then spending an action healing. If someone goes down the grave cleric can bring them back up, again for basically free.

[freshtotheyard]

Thank you all for your input.
The Sorc Warlock support sounds really interesting to me but I may put it off for a bit until I get a better grasp of the multiclassing system, or see if the DM will fill me in on it and give me some leeway with choices for now.
Cleric may just be a safer bet for now.

Thank you all for your input especially clarifying the Sorcerer Warlock combo. It's really something i want to try as a support someday.

[CTurbo]

Yeah I agree with NOT trying to build some fancy multiclass build here.


Go full Cleric all the way. Just depends on what KIND of character you want to be able to play. I also agree to NOT build a character specifically around healing, but the good news is Clerics are so good at so many other things.

I still stand by Tempest for the best blend of melee, tank, utility, and control.

Nature is a decent tank that has good control. DPR is lacking a bit compared to tempest though.

Forge is probably the toughest and can buff other players with magic armor or weapons but are a little one dimensional IMO. They are lacking in DPR too.

Light is an interesting option. You're still pretty tough with medium armor and shields, but not as tough as the 3 above, but you're extremely blasty. You're almost a holy sorcerer. This is probably my second choice after Tempest. Probably second to tempest in DPR too.

I would not consider War or Life, and I'm really not that familiar with the others. A knowledge Cleric will make any party better, but they're not really my style. Arcana seems cool with boosted Booming and Green Flame Blades, but I've never actually seen one in play. Same with Grave.

[MagneticKitty]

Forge cleric is good and durable. You can bless weapon or armor to +1 for the day. Good for extra a.c. or helping you overcome mundane resistances.

Fighter 1 / forge x is good for shield proficiency and fighting style (recommend defense). Just don't exceed fighter 3 because forge 17 is just too good. (Resistance to all mundane)

Healing is decent based on just being a cleric. I like preparing spells as you can adapt and change spells you don't like. I recommend keeping a sheet with all cleric spells that you can keep in a sleeve. The. Check ones you're using with dry erase marker. Or get a spellbook app.

Other option is tranquility monk. They get a pool of 10x level hp they can heal.

Life cleric with magic initiate druid for good berry is good. Like little potions your friends can carry around. Anyone can bring people up using them.

Healing spirit on druid is also nice.

[nickl_2000]

Thank you all for your input.
The Sorc Warlock support sounds really interesting to me but I may put it off for a bit until I get a better grasp of the multiclassing system, or see if the DM will fill me in on it and give me some leeway with choices for now.
Cleric may just be a safer bet for now.

Thank you all for your input especially clarifying the Sorcerer Warlock combo. It's really something i want to try as a support someday.

All the cleric choices are great. Let me throw one more option out there. Divine Soul Sorcerer (not combined, just straight out sorcerer). They can heal as well as a cleric and they can twin haste with metamagic. Being able to haste two of the melee characters at the same time is flat out amazing. Then because you are divine soul you can also choose cleric healing or support. It's an amazing support character.