Taking all the classes? (D&D 5e)

[Samba Mentality]

A friend of mine, new to D&D, says that he wants his first legitimate character to take all the classes. I told him that he would have to be at 12th level before he could achieve that, but he wants to do it anyway.

Is there any reasonable backstory that could allow him to be a warlock-paladin-cleric-barbarian-wizard-etc...?

[NecroDancer]

Once upon a time there was a band of adventurers like any other. Among their ranks was someone from every walk of life and they used their diverse set of skills to great effect. However their doom came when this group explored the ruins of an ancient city, they realized to soon that this city was located on top of a dormant portal to the far realm. In their carelessness they activated this portal, once they realized their mistake they swiftly sealed it shut but the aberrant of the far realm fused them into a singular person. Now they/it walks the lands looking for a way to return to its original form(s).

[KOLE]

https://youtu.be/4ZCIh_3b5K8

One of my favorite DnD youtubers actizlly played this character, but it was easier for him because they started at level 14.

If I were to try and pull this off from level 1, I’d start as a Bard who doesn’t feel like he fits in anywhere, and is always looking for where “He belongs”. I’d start by taking levels in classes of the other party members, because that makes the most sense, than start more plausible to less plausible from there. I’d hope the DM would allow me to have some fun with downtine. For example:

End of session A: You guys killed the miniboss! You all go up a level and return to town to rest.
Start of session B: You had a refreshing week revelling in your victory. How did you all spend it?
Cleric: I meditated and studied at the local temple. I felt my connection to my deity strengthen, I can cast more powerful spells now.
Fighter: I grew bored of drinking after the second day and headed to the arena to hone my strength! I feel stronger than ever:
DM: ...What about you, “Abserd”?
Abserd the Bard/Cleric/Fighter/Wizard: I stumbled into an arcane college where somebody thought I was somebody else. I spent a week pretending to be Professor Fitzbottom because I was too embarassed to correct them. When Fitzbottom returned from his vacation, he was distraught to find me, called me his evil twin, and chased me out of the college with firebolts. But I actually learned a lot there!

Is this a terrible build? Absolutely. Is it going to be a pain to track resources? Yep. Will it be fun? Up to you, but if you’re going to do it, make it interesting.

[Rhedyn]

A friend of mine, new to D&D, says that he wants his first legitimate character to take all the classes. I told him that he would have to be at 12th level before he could achieve that, but he wants to do it anyway.

Is there any reasonable backstory that could allow him to be a warlock-paladin-cleric-barbarian-wizard-etc...?
Well he has to be human just to get the qualifying stats with point buy.
I recommend: 13 str 14 dex 14 con 13 int 14 wisdom 13 cha

I would start Fighter, then Rogue, then Bard, then Barbarian, then Monk, then FILL

If we are starting from level 1, then I guess his backstory should be more in-line with the 3.5 Factotum flavor text. He knows a little bit of everything and he tricks divine and sinister forces to give him power through improvised prayers and contracts.

I consider the first 5 classes critical because he needs a niche, these classes will put him as the party skill monkey and Martial Arts at level 5 will let him attack twice a round with monk weapons and the sneak attack rider will help a little bit for damage. The con save prof from fighter will help for maintaining concentration on some 1st level spell. For fighting styles, I recommend the Defense style.

The other route to go is cantrip master, which I still feel like a Factotum background would work.

[Floogal]

Remember that when you eventually take your druid level, the character will no longer want to wear metal armour.

Just as well, I suppose, since the monk level will be complete dead weight if using any armour or shield at all.

Take a level of draconic sorcerer before either so you get 15 AC unarmoured.

[MaxWilson]

Remember that when you eventually take your druid level, the character will no longer want to wear metal armour.

Just as well, I suppose, since the monk level will be complete dead weight if using any armour or shield at all.

Take a level of draconic sorcerer before either so you get 15 AC unarmoured.

Remember that you don't have to stick to level 1 in each class--you just need to get all the classes eventually.

If you play a Divine Soul 1/Fiendlock 2 [Repelling Eldritch Blast]/Shepherd Druid 6/Barbarian 1/Wizard 1/Forge Cleric 1/Rogue 1/Fighter 1/Ranger 1/Bard 1/Paladin 1/Monk 1 roughly in that order you will have two levels left over for whatever and you won't even be all that underpowered despite having low-ish to-hit on your Repelling Eldritch Blasts.

[Nifft]

I would start Fighter, then Rogue, then Bard (...)

At that point you might be a 1e Bard.

[Arkhios]

Well, 12 levels to cover with all available classes still leaves room for 8 levels in one or more of the classes. I'd recommend Fighter at least 6 levels (with Eldritch Knight), Paladin 2, and Ranger 2.

Standard Human, with Str 14, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 13, Wis 13, Cha 13 from the start. Start with Barbarian (best starting hit points + Con saving throw proficiency).

Over the course of the character's career, from fighter 6, they would at least gain as much as 2 Ability Score Improvements, which helps to get one ability score to as high as 18, or to boost the odd scores to even and then some.

I think one ASI could be spared to Improve Int and Cha to 14 each, and the other to take Resilient (wisdom).

In the end, they'd have ability scores as follows:
Str 14, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 14, Wis 14, Cha 14
Class Levels would be:
Barbarian 1, Bard 1, Cleric 1, Druid 1, Fighter 6, Monk 1, Paladin 2, Ranger 2, Rogue 1, Sorcerer 1, Warlock 1, Wizard 1.

Overall, that accumulates to a total of ... 9 Caster Levels (holy crap, that's as high as 5th level spell slots!)

And, they would have that sweet, sweet Extra Attack from Fighter.

Additionally, they would gain 3 different fighting styles from Fighter, Paladin, and Ranger. Maybe Two-Weapon Fighting, Defense, and Archery (in a respective order).

The weapon(s) of choice should probably be Dagger and/or Shortsword, because all of the classes can use them and still benefit from their class features.

Dagger is a 1d4 piercing melee weapon that is also...
light (qualifies for two-weapon fighting)
finesse (qualifies for sneak attack)
thrown (qualifies for Archery style)
monk weapon (in the off chance Martial Arts means anything to you, at least dagger doesn't render it useless).

Shortsword is a 1d6 piercing melee weapon that is also...
light (qualifies for two-weapon fighting)
finesse (qualifies for sneak attack)
monk weapon (in the off chance Martial Arts means anything to you, at least shortsword doesn't render it useless).

Rage requires that you make your melee weapon attacks using Strength, but it's ok. Sneak Attack would still work just fine.

Divine Smite requires a melee weapon attack (but not necessarily a melee attack with a weapon, which is an interesting prospect for the monk's unarmed strikes at the very least).

[terodil]

Is there any reasonable backstory that could allow him to be a warlock-paladin-cleric-barbarian-wizard-etc...?
Hm. A very dark one comes to mind -- I seem to dimly remember that something like this might have been used in the Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer expansion for one of the NPCs ("One of Many")... it's been a very long time, so I'm not sure.

Your friend's character could have sacrificed previous companions to some nefarious entity (maybe his/her patron, if /she starts out as a warlock) and got their knowledge / instinctual understanding in exchange. That would obviously be evil with not just a capital E, but with a capital E in red ink. If you want you can set him/her on a redemption arc, though I guess that'd be very cliche and probably hard to achieve.

Another idea that comes to mind is some sort of special empath. Provided s/he gets directly attacked by a powerful representative of a class (or somebody with a McGuffin trait, say 'marked by the fates', fill in for flavour), s/he might be able to glean the very basics of what makes them tick. This would obviously require a bit of staging on both the GM's and the party's part (I'd also be slightly weary of spotlight hogging) but might work as a story background. The Mord-Sith in Goodkind's Sword of Truth series had a variant of this: Whenever an enemy spellcaster would use magic on them, they would absorb it instead and gain an instinctual understanding of it so that they could then turn it against them. You could tone that down a bit to be in line with what makes sense at the table.

[Rhedyn]

Remember that when you eventually take your druid level, the character will no longer want to wear metal armour.

Just as well, I suppose, since the monk level will be complete dead weight if using any armour or shield at all.

Take a level of draconic sorcerer before either so you get 15 AC unarmoured.
It says druids don't wear metal armor but it gives no consequences in the public SRDs.

Monk martial arts appears to work in armor as well, unless the SRD is just incomplete.

[Arkhios]

It says druids don't wear metal armor but it gives no consequences in the public SRDs.
That's a big can of worms best left unopened. If anything, it's best to let the DM to decide the consequences.


Monk martial arts appears to work in armor as well, unless the SRD is just incomplete.
A monk who wears armor doesn't get any of the benefits (such as the increased damage die or the ability to use Dexterity instead of Strength) for their unarmed strikes (and other monk weapons), so for example unarmed strikes would deal damage equal to 1 + Strength for you, just as for anyone else.

Don't know what SRD you're referring to, because for example, 5e.d20srd.org reads loud and clear as follows:


You gain the following benefits while you are unarmed or wielding only monk weapons and you aren't wearing armor or wielding a shield

[Rhedyn]

Don't know what SRD you're referring to, because for example, 5e.d20srd.org reads loud and clear as follows:Yup I missed that.

Hmmm then
Human 13 str 14 dex 14 con 13 int 14 wis 13 cha

Fighter 1 (TWF style), Rogue 1, Bard 1, Barbarian 1, Warlock 1 (I think Great Old One would be best)

So you have con save prof so you can concentrate decently on hex, you also have sneak attack. So with two short swords you output 5d6+4 damage per round ideally, 5d6+8 while raging.

You can also have expertise and advantage and proficiency in athletics while the target has at a disadvantage.

You are doing decent for being the party skill monkey. After this, I would think you would grab the full casters to load of up on more spell slots, then monk, then paladin, then ranger.

"It is foolhardy to explore a dungeon alone. Those who attempt to do so quickly find that they lack the skills needed to get the job done. Sometimes, this can happen in larger parties as well. Enter the factotum, a new standard class, capable of mimicking the abilities of others and filling in when the need is greatest.

After a lifetime of work, few can claim even a fraction of the versatility that the factotum displays every day. Skilled in nearly every art, factotums draw upon their lore to master almost any trade or ability for a brief period of time before other pursuits draw their attention. Whereas bards use their general knowledge to aid others, factotums focus their abilities solely upon themselves. Constantly on the hunt for new abilities and tricks, factotums eventually find the right tool to overcome practically any problem.

As a factotum, you are a jack of all trades. For short periods of time, you can stand in for almost any other member of the party. Your intellect, training, and experiences allow you to bolster your efforts in almost any situation. But your magical abilities are at best limited. You can master potent spells, but your lack of formal training makes it difficult for you to use them more than once each day. Furthermore, your understanding of magic is broad rather than deep."

[the_brazenburn]

Keep in mind that you can't cast spells while raging, so that will make a fair number of barbarian features useless.

[Lunali]

Well he has to be human just to get the qualifying stats with point buy.
I recommend: 13 str 14 dex 14 con 13 int 14 wisdom 13 cha

While it is probably advisable to raise it, con isn't part of the multiclass prereqs so you can qualify as any race.

[Speely]

Keep in mind that you can't cast spells while raging, so that will make a fair number of barbarian features useless.

That's why you save it for after you have spam-smited or cast your slots out and need another option. ;)

[RazorChain]

That's why you save it for after you have spam-smited or cast your slots out and need another option. ;)

"Using up all my spells makes me very, very ANGRY!!!"

[Arkhios]

Keep in mind that you can't cast spells while raging, so that will make a fair number of barbarian features useless.

Well, to be fair, for 1st to 2nd level barbarian has only 2 rage uses for the whole adventuring day (or, if we're being pedantic, until they take a long rest) and each last only up to 1 minute. There's plenty of time when they're unable to rage, either because they're casting spells and concentrating on them, or because they simply don't have any uses left. :smallsmile:

[Dark Schneider]

1st level rogue, it gets more than any other. Then maybe fighter, for weapons and armors proficiencies. Cleric, to be able to raise fallen allies (not dead, with any 1st lvl heal). Then the others in any order would be fine.

If he wants all the classes it is supposed because wants a full versatile character. I think this combo order rogue-fighter-cleric gives that soon. Do not try to specialize in getting this or that skill of any class, it would be barely possible and at the cost of many other things, as low level class skills usually are not so good.

[Rhedyn]

Keep in mind that you can't cast spells while raging, so that will make a fair number of barbarian features useless.Ah but you can concentrate on spells while raging which is all that matters for things like Hex or really any spell that is useful to you.


While it is probably advisable to raise it, con isn't part of the multiclass prereqs so you can qualify as any race.
Fair enough, but I always consider anything less than 14 con to be suicidal.

[Arkhios]

Ah but you can concentrate on spells while raging which is all that matters for things like Hex or really any spell that is useful to you.

No, you can't.

[Rhedyn]

No, you can't.Ah you are right.

That makes rage a defensive tactic or a sup optimal offensive one.

[bc56]

While it is probably advisable to raise it, con isn't part of the multiclass prereqs so you can qualify as any race.

Actually, even if it were, any race could still do it.
If you take an 11 in the stat you have a +2 in, and a 12 in the one with a +1, you can put 13 in all the other stats and be at point buy limit.

[MaxWilson]

Keep in mind that you can't cast spells while raging, so that will make a fair number of barbarian features useless.

Well, maybe. It's not like you can't just be a switch hitter. Against some things, cast a concentration spell. Against others, cast Armor of Agathys V, then Rage (and maybe wildshape on top of that) and enter melee. Your damage output from melee attacks will be anemic due to lack of cantrips but you may draw some fire at least.

[Clistenes]

You know, I have read or listened a lot of people to claim that, if they did an epic game, they would grant class features as epic boons... And in Forgotten Realms we have the stats of a guy who has both four attacks and 20 level wizard spells...

So a really ancient guy who has been adventuring for centuries could very well have all the class features of a bunch of classes...