What class should I play?

[Azazel_Unbound]

I've been sitting here for a week,going back and forth between two similar character ideas for a campaign Im looking to join soon. It is a fairly water heavy game, and I've been informed they'd be crossing bodies of water often. My core concept focusses on him behing able control the ship, and navigate for them. However, class wise I want him to have a familliar. This has made me go nack and forth between a wizard and Warlock, and what kind of archetypes I want to follow. Any suggestions or votes?

[Angelalex242]

If you're going to navigate a ship....the Keen Mind feat is normally one of the most useless feats in the universe, but if you put it on a wizard who has a ship to navigate, it becomes rather useful due to direction sense.

Also, Sailor Background. Obviously.

[DeTess]

I've been sitting here for a week,going back and forth between two similar character ideas for a campaign Im looking to join soon. It is a fairly water heavy game, and I've been informed they'd be crossing bodies of water often. My core concept focusses on him behing able control the ship, and navigate for them. However, class wise I want him to have a familliar. This has made me go nack and forth between a wizard and Warlock, and what kind of archetypes I want to follow. Any suggestions or votes?

I'd like to point out that you can pick up a familiar with the magic initiate feat.

That having been said, I'd pick wizard over warlock, because wizard will get a lot of spells that will be very useful for shipboard life.

[sophontteks]

Storm sorcer triton. Or, if you are really bold, storm sorcerer/tempest cleric triton.
Take the triton racial feat for kicks too.

[NaughtyTiger]

druid of the coast (land). control water. be a shark.
druid of the moon. be a giant octopus. or a water dinosaur.

doesn't synergize well with navigating a ship though.


swashbuckler rogue
UA beastmaster ranger with the UA mariner fighting style

[Trampaige]

Tossing this out as an idea:


Vhuman wizard
Outlander background (for the map and geography perk, you can fluff the food as fishing, but won't find clean water in the ocean.)
Feat: Skilled (navigator's tools, vehicles: water, and cartographer's tools)

All that outlander describes can be fluffed to be sea based, and the mechanics help you navigate. Sailor is about booking passage with NPCs, if your crew is going to have their own ship it doesn't matter much.


It's a big investment to specifically do something that the DM might not put a huge focus on though.

[Man_Over_Game]

Storm Sorcerer was literally born for seafaring. If you think anyone can do it better, you're wrong. There might be better casters, and maybe you don't like how the Storm Sorcerer is set up in terms of power design (I can't blame you too much), but there's no such thing as a better sea companion than a Storm Sorcerer.

If you want a familiar as one, Ritual Caster will get you a lot of utility that you normally can't afford to get as a sorcerer due to your lack of known spells, and it gets you Find Familiar right off the bat. That's 18 wizard rituals with one feat, and your Metamagic can make those durations last longer, as an added bonus.



Alternatively, if Storm Sorcerer is just something you don't like, the next best option is Druid of the Land (Coast). You'll be able to prepare spells, which is great since you're unlikely to be caught off-guard with unwanted spells, being in the middle of the seas. A lot of the spells you gain as a Druid are focused around Wind, and the spells you get from the Coast type are permanently prepared for free, including things like Water Walk, Water Breathing, Control Water, and Freedom of Movement.

[Azazel_Unbound]

Well, currently listed ideas give me something to think about definitely, especially with the sorcerer choice (so many choices). I would consider a druid, but we have a druid as it is.

[Legendairy]

Storm Sorcerer was literally born for seafaring. If you think anyone can do it better, you're wrong. There might be better casters, and maybe you don't like how the Storm Sorcerer is set up in terms of power design (I can't blame you too much), but there's no such thing as a better sea companion than a Storm Sorcerer.

If you want a familiar as one, Ritual Caster will get you a lot of utility that you normally can't afford to get as a sorcerer due to your lack of known spells, and it gets you Find Familiar right off the bat. That's 18 wizard rituals with one feat, and your Metamagic can make those durations last longer, as an added bonus.



Alternatively, if Storm Sorcerer is just something you don't like, the next best option is Druid of the Land (Coast). You'll be able to prepare spells, which is great since you're unlikely to be caught off-guard with unwanted spells, being in the middle of the seas. A lot of the spells you gain as a Druid are focused around Wind, and the spells you get from the Coast type are permanently prepared for free, including things like Water Walk, Water Breathing, Control Water, and Freedom of Movement.

Pretty much all this. I don’t know what you are thinking for races but water and air genesi and tritons work well in sea campaigns and sea elves.

Bottom line tho.....play what YOU want, what would be the most fun to you? Do you want the dashing swashbuckling type with a familiar?(arcane trickster or swashbuckled with magic initiate). Want to be the seasick fighter in heavy armor?(magic initiate will be a go to for all non caster types for your familiar). You said you want him/her to be boat savvy, was he/she a pirate, were they enlisted? Did they join the navy and have dreams of grandeur? Were they part of an aquatic race looking to help those not of the seas to navigate and cause less harm in the causeways of the water? Are they a genesis wanting to get back in touch with their roots? Honestly you don’t have to answer any of these but they may help you decide. The sailor background does most the crunch you want and magic initiate/ritual caster will handle the familiar for any class. (Within reason).

[Asmotherion]

Why not both?

First, get a high Cha score. You need a minimum 14 Int and Dex, but that's about it.

Get Eldritch Blast (Agonising), and possibly go Hexblade for some melee prowess. Then, as a Wizard, focus on Abjuration spells, as well as spells that don't relly on attack rolls (this part is easy, you'll be Eldritch Blasting), or too many saves; If they do allow a save, make sure the unsaveable part is worth it (half damage for example), because that's what you're getting most of the time. The rest of your character can be a highly functional Wizard/Warlock, who just does not focus on Save/Suck spells as a Wizard, but has amazing Buff/Debuff spells and Utility spells (and those can save the day).

Hexblade 2/Abjurer X is probably the best I can think of. The War Mage is also not bad for some quick at-will AC buff (so you won't need to spam Shield), but it's inferior to the Abjurer Build, and how good survivability it offers both for you, and the whole party (especially with Armor of Agathys).