Creating a battlemage style character

[Joran0100]

So I've been toying around with creating a battlemage so far my line of thinking is an asi mar (maybe fallen for some story flair) warlock pact of the blade hex blade with a quarterstaff as his pact weapon and I was maybe thinking kensei monk multi but I didn't know if that would work because I'd want the warcaster feat to be able to use booming blade as a bonus action alongside pole arm master so I could use it when they attack me I'm just not 100% sure though, if anyone has any different ideas I'd love to hear them either a new build or ways to improve my own

[Unoriginal]

Not sure what you mean by "battlemage".

Do you want a PC who mainly fight in melee with a weapon and who also can do magic, or a PC who's mainly a caster but you can still fight in melee if needed?

[JellyPooga]

Not sure what you mean by "battlemage".

Do you want a PC who mainly fight in melee with a weapon and who also can do magic, or a PC who's mainly a caster but you can still fight in melee if needed?

There's a number of other definitions;

- A mage in heavy armour
- A mage that literally fights in battles (large-scale or otherwise)
- A mage that casts "battlemagic" (i.e. spells that help in a scrap, as opposed to utility spells)
- A mage that assists a General, or other commander, either on the front line or otherwise.

From the context of the OP, though, I think we're looking at a "battlemage" being "a dude that casts spells so he can rock it in melee".

[Man_Over_Game]

From the context of the OP, though, I think we're looking at a "battlemage" being "a dude that casts spells so he can rock it in melee".

If that's the case, it's pretty hard to beat a Bladesinger with the Tough feat. That bumps their puny 1d6 HP to the equivalent to a 1d10 (same as Fighters). You'll have high AC, you'll be able to use your bonus action to attack (like the proposed Kensei), and you'll be a full caster with access to things like Absorb Elements, Shield, and Thunderwave.

Alternatively, 2 levels into Druid will unlock Shillelagh, Magic Stone and Lightning Lure, as well as spell regeneration on a short rest (by going Land). Spend the rest of your levels into Monk to turn a high Wisdom score into a defensive stat, going something like Way of the Long Death or Way of the Four Elements. Hit like a truck, keeping enemies close to you using things like Lightning Lure and regain health when they die while adjacent to you. Once you get Stunning Strike, your DC will be about 15.

I'm not a huge fan of Hexblade. It lacks a lot of the necessities of a frontliner, and kinda feels all over the place.

[GlenSmash!]

For your Battlemage, how much battle and how much mage do you want. Eldritch Knight does great at the former. If you want to get an even mix you can always multiclass into a full spell caster too.

[Trustypeaches]

Sorcerers make fantastic gishes with a small level dip in Fighter, Paladin, Cleric, or Hexblade Warlock to pick up medium / heavy Armor proficiency, Martial Weapons, and shields.

Cleric requires decent wisdom, but preserves your spellcasting progression and gets you ritual casting, Domain features, and a nice pool of 5-6 extra spells to offset Sorcerer’s limited spells known.

Fighter is a small dip for a fighting style and the above proficiencies. You can go to two for Action Surge.

There are entire guides explaining why Sorlocks and Sorcadins are fantastic.

For origins, Draconic Green Flame Blade is extremely strong and can compete with Extra Attack.

[Man_Over_Game]

Sorcerers make fantastic gishes with a small level dip in Fighter, Paladin, Cleric, or Hexblade Warlock to pick up medium / heavy Armor proficiency, Martial Weapons, and shields.

Cleric requires decent wisdom, but preserves your spellcasting progression and gets you ritual casting, Domain features, and a nice pool of 5-6 extra spells to offset Sorcerer’s limited spells known.

Fighter is a small dip for a fighting style and the above proficiencies. You can go to two for Action Surge.

There are entire guides explaining why Sorlocks and Sorcadins are fantastic.

For origins, Draconic Green Flame Blade is extremely strong and can compete with Extra Attack.

Waiting to see if Stone Sorcery becomes a real thing. It looks really cool, and plays off a lot of the strengths of a melee Sorcerer.

Also, my personal favorite aspect is that doesn't work at all with Paladin, so we wouldn't see so many lazy Sorcadin builds.

[RSP]

...I'd want the warcaster feat to be able to use booming blade as a bonus action alongside pole arm master so I could use it when they attack me ...

I’m not quite sure what you’re referring to here, but there is no aspect Booming Blade, Warcaster or Polearm Master that allows a Bonus Action casting of Booming Blade.

As others have suggested, you probably need to provide some more detail on what you’re looking to play, and what mechanics you’re trying to use here.

[Citadel97501]

I’m not quite sure what you’re referring to here, but there is no aspect Booming Blade, Warcaster or Polearm Master that allows a Bonus Action casting of Booming Blade.

As others have suggested, you probably need to provide some more detail on what you’re looking to play, and what mechanics you’re trying to use here.

I think he is talking about as they attempt to close distance with him, IE moving from 10' to 5' to stab him with a sword. As the enemy take the hit before they move, which means they are allowed to stop their action or take the triggering affect of Booming Blade.

[Man_Over_Game]

I’m not quite sure what you’re referring to here, but there is no aspect Booming Blade, Warcaster or Polearm Master that allows a Bonus Action casting of Booming Blade.

As others have suggested, you probably need to provide some more detail on what you’re looking to play, and what mechanics you’re trying to use here.

I think he meant Reaction.

With War Caster, Polearm Master and a Quarterstaff, you can cast Booming Blade or Green Flame Blade when enemies move adjacent to you. With Spell Sniper, you can do the same thing but with a polearm and 10 foot reach.

However, since an enemy likely isn't going to be moving after moving adjacent to you, I feel that Green Flame Blade will get more mileage out of it in scenario 1 (adjacent), where Booming Blade is better in scenario 2 (reach).

[GlenSmash!]

Waiting to see if Stone Sorcery becomes a real thing. It looks really cool, and plays off a lot of the strengths of a melee Sorcerer.

Also, my personal favorite aspect is that doesn't work at all with Paladin, so we wouldn't see so many lazy Sorcadin builds.

I think Stone Sorcerer was rolled into Giant Soul Sorcerer, specifically Stone Giant. Which gives me hope that we'll still see it.

[RSP]

I think he is talking about as they attempt to close distance with him, IE moving from 10' to 5' to stab him with a sword. As the enemy take the hit before they move, which means they are allowed to stop their action or take the triggering affect of Booming Blade.

Possibly.

Just FYI, the timing on the opportunity Attack occurs after the enemy moves within range, not before, so with a quarterstaff, they’d get hit with BB after being within 5’ of you and not have to worry about deciding between stopping their movement or taking the BB effect.