Spoiled for choice: Help me whittle down my Curse of Strahd character options.

[MikeRoxTheBoat]

This ended up running kind of long, so I put a tldr at the bottom of the post. The body of the post contains a lot of the campaign specifics and my own ideas/questions:

So, I'm starting a Curse of Strahd game this week and I'm having a hard time figuring out a character. Or rather, having a hard time figuring out only one character. I'm not sure as to the party composition at the moment besides the fact that there are 5 of us, so I'm also trying to figure out builds that can work with any comp, or have something that can be easily swapped out based on comp (i.e. I wouldn't pick up Ritual Caster: Wizard if we have a Wizard).

Specific Rules for this campaign: 27 point buy. Any race from books allowed, with the exception of monstrous races. Everyone starts at Level 2 with an extra feat, which means Variant Humans actually get two of them (part of the reason why it feels I have so many options). Hit Points are rolled every level and if they're less than the average, they're set at the average. All Feats except Lucky are allowed. DM is willing to accommodate UA on a case by case basis if I bring it up with him, but I'd rather try to stick to the official books unless there's a compelling reason not to. The module usually takes people to about level 10, but the DM has an extended option that can take us to 20.

I enjoy playing support type characters, which is usually the builds I try to make. I'd rather not play a Cleric, Monk, or Rogue as I already play or have played as those classes and want to branch out. Not opposed to dips into any of those classes, though. I'm also trying to stay away from the Fighter, Barbarian, Paladin, and Ranger as they don't seem to fit the playstyle I'm looking for in this game. Again, not opposed to dipping into them, though. So, essentially I'm trying to choose between Bard, Sorcerer, Druid, Warlock, Wizard.

I've been staying away from spoilers for this module, but I've heard that it's pretty heavy on social aspects and undead, so I'm leaning my character choices towards that. The DM is also emphasizing a lot the dark, mature themes of the module and have added things like a sanity meter. He's warned us to have at least one back-up character just in case.

What I've got so far: At the moment, I have 3 characters that I think would be interesting to play as, with a couple other concepts that I could fully flesh out if they end up being useful.

Triton Bard: A literal fish out of water in this story. His background involves finding a cursed instrument that gave him incredible music talent and social skills, but wipes him from everyone's memory every few years or so, along with some other downsides, until he can remove it. He's originally from the water plane, but has made his way through different planes to remove the curse (Far Traveler background).

At first, I was considering Lore Bard/Hexblade for him (I remember reading that Hexblade patrons could also be ancient artifacts, which seemed to fit with finding a cursed instrument). The more I thought about it, though, the more I realized that I could still have the cursed instrument regardless if I chose Hexblade or not. Lore Bard/Hexblade would give me medium armor, shield, martial weapons, charisma based weapon attacks, attack cantrips (likely booming blade and eldritch blast flavored to be sound based), the Shield and Hex spells, and a short rest spell slot at the cost of one level and whatever patron shenanigans would crop up. This seemed like a lot for one level, but I might be shoehorned into getting War Caster, since the DM is a stickler about material/somatic components and juggling your equipment in order to cast. I feel like I'd likely end up more at ranged anyway doing support type stuff or spellcasting, too. I do like the idea of shields and medium armor, though, so Knowledge cleric also seemed like an interesting dip. Sorcerer dip could also net me permanent mage armor and eventually metamagic (Subtle Spell seems like a fun choice for a social oriented campaign).

Human Variant/Half-Elf Divine Soul Sorcerer: Seemed the most in line thematically with the module. His background is essentially a disowned noble turned snake-oil salesman trying to con people with fake potions. He eventually discovered that, somehow, his potions were actually working for these people, which led him to discover that spells were being naturally and subconsciously cast from him. He's trying to get back into the good graces of his noble family to live the easy life.

I was also considering the Warlock dip with this character (unsure as to patron), as extra short rest sorcery points and more spells/cantrips known seemed like a good deal. I'm unsure if Warlock is worthwhile simply for the sorcerer points, though I would likely choose agonizing blast so I have that blasting option if necessary. My main uses for sorcerer points would likely be Subtle Spell and Twin, with Quickened and Heightened waiting in the wings for my other options, though I might swap them for Twin if that seems like the better deal. My other options were a Cleric of a some sort, or possibly Bard or even Wizard, though those would be to simply help with the spells known issue of Sorcerer. I could also just go straight Sorcerer, but the low spells known seems to limit my support capabilities.

Some sort of "animal" race Druid (I originally came up with the background for a Lizardfolk, but could fit any animal race): Probably has the least stake in this module, but would be fun and useful, though the animal appearance would mean spending a lot of time disguised or wildshaped. Backstory is that they started life as an actual animal in the Feywild, but were transformed into an animal like humanoid by an Archfey that collected such oddities. Eventually, the Archfey master disappeared as a result of being sealed by other mortals or another Archfey competitor. The druid and the rest of the menagerie split off to all corners of the world and other planes to find a way to unseal their Archfey lord.

At first, I was considering a Warlock dip for this character as well (notice a theme in my builds?) I figured 2 levels into Fey to represent their Archfey lord, or 2 levels into Great Old One if he's not quite what he seemed. This would get me 2 short rest spells slots, patron spells, telepathy if I want GOO or charm if I went Fey, and the ability to cast Disguise Self at will, which would help with the unusual appearance. This seemed less and less useful the more I thought of it, though, so I might just keep the Archfey background without the Warlock levels. I could dip into Ambition or Trickery domain for Disguise Self, or dip into Sorcerer for Draconic Resilience and access to Disguise Self. I could also just go straight druid and wildshape when I don't want to be noticed. I'm unsure as to what Druid Circle would be best for Curse of Strahd. Could also monk dip, depending.


Those are the 3 ones I initially thought would be interesting for this module. Other ideas were an old Illusionist Wizard who took the burden of a pact patron in place of his granddaughter and found himself in this module. I was considering a 2 level Celestial Dip for access to Cure Wound, Guiding Bolt, and unlimited Disguise Self/Silent Image. Another idea was a Radagast the Brown style druid, with Ritual Caster: Wizard to round him out. My last idea that I thought would be interesting and likely challenging would be a very old character, with all physical stats dumped and all mental stats raised. For Survivability, Moon Druid could help him not die immediately, while a Cleric Dip into a heavy armor domain and taking the 10-foot movement penalty would help his survival through AC (taking Mobile as a feat could even this out, though the lowered movement speed is easily explained via age).


Could use some help whittling down my options. I could also use some specific help on what feats to grab that would be useful either in Curse of Strahd, or for the class as a whole. All races get one feat and V.Human gets two, so everyone but the Triton and the Animal Race has the option of going variant human for extra feats. Could also use some advice for if some of these dips are actually worthwhile for this module, or if other dips could serve, as well as when specifically to take the dips, since finding the opportune moment to do it is always the main part I have trouble with for multiclassing.

tldr; Help me build either a Triton Lore Bard/X (either straight bard or multiclassed), a Variant Human or Half-Elf Divine Soul Sorcerer/X (same thing, either straight or multiclassed), an "animal race" Druid/X (straight or multi), or any support-style primary casting class besides Cleric (cleric dips are okay). 27-point buy, everyone gets an extra feat (so V.humans get two), trying for support oriented and good at the social aspects of Curse of Strahd. The module is supposed to take us to level 10, but the DM has an option to extend it to go all the way to 20. So taking those two variables into account would be helpful, since I know some multiclasses shine more at lower levels than higher and delaying spells and abilities could be a pain.

[Trustypeaches]

Keep in mind that the land of Barovia is almost exclusively populated by humans that have been isolated from other civilized races for quite a long time, so basically anything that isn't human or can't pass for human is going to stick out throughout the entire game. Whether or not your DM has that factor into how NPCs treat you I wouldn't know, but it's something you might want to consider.

That said, it also means that the people there likely won't have any greater prejudice against monstrous races than they would against a halfling or a Dragonborn.

[MikeRoxTheBoat]

Keep in mind that the land of Barovia is almost exclusively populated by humans that have been isolated from other civilized races for quite a long time, so basically anything that isn't human or can't pass for human is going to stick out throughout the entire game. Whether or not your DM has that factor into how NPCs treat you I wouldn't know, but it's something you might want to consider.

That said, it also means that the people there likely won't have any greater prejudice against monstrous races than they would against a halfling or a Dragonborn.

Yep! Our DM explicitly warned us of that, also saying that if the race is too monstrous looking, they'd even get hunted down. It's the main reason that my odd race picks either have access to the Disguise Self spell (in the case of the Triton Bard) or to wildshape if needed (in the druid's case). It might end up being more annoying that it's worth, but I feel like being an odd race could add to the tension of always having to make sure that you're not discovered. Worst case scenario, that character will just be hunted down and killed and I'll replace them with a more standard race.

[KnotaGuru]

I'd vote for halfelf Divine soul sorcerer 1, hexblade 1-3 level dip, then sorcerer the rest of the way. Divine soul can provide the support you need, don't forget you have access to bless. Hexblade gives med armor & shield, Eldritch blast, and hex curse for bonus damage. If you want, go hexblade 2 for invocations, and hexblade 3 for level 2nd level spell slots and a pact. I'd recommend tome for the bonus cantrips and ritual spells (especially if your party doesn't have a wizard) or chain for an invisible scout.

[jaappleton]

I recommend straight up Lore Bard, no dip. Why? You don’t want to slow spell progression.

Cutting Words can save lives. I played a Bard for awhile myself and adored it. Skills out the wazoo, solid spells, you can cover so many bases.

After that, I suggest Divine Soul, specifically with Twinned Metamagic. Focus on buffing and debuffing spells. Twinned Haste or Twinned Protection from Evil & Good can be amazing.

You said your DM May green light Unearthed Arcana... What about class fixes? Because if you can somehow add more Spells Known to the Sorc (it’s seriously such a pitifully low number), do it.

[djreynolds]

Who else is in the party?

This only goes to level 10, what level would you begin as.

Counter charm cam be effective

What you need as a bard is good cantrip right off the bat.

Honestly lore bard/divine sorcerer combo could work. You won't lose any spell progression at least.

I might begin as sorcerer, you'll get constitution saves. Then grab bard.

Agonizing blast from warlock is worth the 2 level dip.

How about a warlock, pact of the tome, agonizing blast and then go lore bard the rest of the way. Eldritch blast will carry you.

I would make most certainly to have proficiency in both wisdom and con saves, so grab resilient wisdom or con early.

[MikeRoxTheBoat]

I recommend straight up Lore Bard, no dip. Why? You don’t want to slow spell progression.

Cutting Words can save lives. I played a Bard for awhile myself and adored it. Skills out the wazoo, solid spells, you can cover so many bases.

After that, I suggest Divine Soul, specifically with Twinned Metamagic. Focus on buffing and debuffing spells. Twinned Haste or Twinned Protection from Evil & Good can be amazing.

You said your DM May green light Unearthed Arcana... What about class fixes? Because if you can somehow add more Spells Known to the Sorc (it’s seriously such a pitifully low number), do it.

I was considering just a straight lore bard, but you get a laundry list of things attached for going just one level in Hexblade, which is why I was considering it. We do get an extra feat, so I could theoretically get medium armor/shields as the feat, but I'm not sure how useful that is. I've heard that AC kind of falls off in the higher levels since everything gets such big pluses to hit that you're likely getting hit anyway. It's one of the reasons I was considering a one level dip in Draconic sorcerer as well, to get AC13 + Dex and access to the shield spell just in case without messing with spell slot progression. I feel like straight Bard could theoretically be good enough, but dipping seems to come with a lot of goodies. What feat should I get with just straight lore bard?

A V.human or Half Elf Divine Soul was one of the others that seemed to fit well. I was planning on getting Twinned and Subtle, to help with the both the support and social aspects of the game. A dip into warlock seemed like a really good idea in order to get short rest metamagic, an expanded spells list, and other goodies, but I'm not sure how necessary it is (I've heard Sorcerer is plenty powerful by itself and Sorlock is something of a side-grade rather than an upgrade). I can talk to him about the spells known. Until then, one of my fixes was actually dipping some sort of Cleric, to at least give some relief to my lower level spells known while adding some goodies like medium armor/shields and a domain feature. I'm also not sure what feats would be best for a single classed sorcerer. I could just grab Actor or Elven Accuracy or something for a Half Elf to start with 18 CHA. Or a couple of CHA half feats for V.Human since they get two feats. This would probably be easier if I knew group composition, 'cause then I might spring for Ritual Caster: Wizard or Cleric if there wasn't going to be one or the other in the party.


Who else is in the party?

This only goes to level 10, what level would you begin as.

Counter charm cam be effective

What you need as a bard is good cantrip right off the bat.

Honestly lore bard/divine sorcerer combo could work. You won't lose any spell progression at least.

I might begin as sorcerer, you'll get constitution saves. Then grab bard.

Agonizing blast from warlock is worth the 2 level dip.

How about a warlock, pact of the tome, agonizing blast and then go lore bard the rest of the way. Eldritch blast will carry you.

I would make most certainly to have proficiency in both wisdom and con saves, so grab resilient wisdom or con early.

Party composition is unknown at the moment. We're doing our session 0 later this week. I put out feelers to see what people were thinking of, but haven't gotten responses yet, which is why the question is more general than I'd hope. I do know I want to play a non-Cleric caster of some sort (dipping it is okay), just unsure exactly which. That combined with the DM's assertion that death is quite likely and to have a back up character ready is why I had so many options for this.

We're starting at level 2. The DM has some extended campaign options to go up to 20, but we're definitely at least hitting 10.

Lore Bard/Sorcerer was something I was looking at, but I was considering Draconic Sorcerer for the AC13 + Dex and access to the shield spell and an attack cantrip. Divine Soul could still kind of get me that, but I'd have to use one of the spells known for Mage Armor and the other for Shield, so I'd be essentially gaining Guidance and Toll the Dead/Sacred Flame instead of the permanent armor, higher HP, and a utility or attack spell from Sorc (like Magic Missile or the like). Guidance and Favored by the Gods alone might be worth it. I can also grab Bless or Cure wounds...himmm. Also unsure of what extra feat to take at creation. If there's either no wizard or no Cleric, I might take Ritual Caster: Wizard or Cleric, but outside of that, I'm unsure.

Lore Bard/Hexblade seemed like I got a lot of goodies for little investment. I'm pretty sold on at least the first level, for medium armor, shields, cha weapons, Shield spell, Hex, and some attack cantrips, including some melee attack cantrips just in case. It's the 2nd and 3rd level of Hexblade that I'm a little more torn on. 2nd level would give me agonizing blast as well as another incantation and another short rest spells slot. This would turn me into more of a cantrip blaster in combat, where my actual spell slots would be used for support/utility in and out of combat. I could also just take the Mobile Feat, stay at level one Hexblade, and dart in an out with Booming Blade or Green Fire Blade for at will damage that won't mess with Lore Bard progression. I might go Bard 1/Hexblade 1, then continue in Bard until if feels like those invocations and a second at rest spell slot are useful.

[djreynolds]

There we go.

I really like eldritch blast with agonizing blast, its 2 levels. You will need this or firebolt sorcerer

Hex blade is cool and medium armor is just fine

So just warlock is IMO, very good.

IMO figure out your chassis, be it sorcerer, or bard or warlock, and add small dips.

I like lore bard, but IMO, 6 level is far away and you're stuck til then with a short bow or long bow. A away around this is to consider spell sniper or magic initiate and to gain an attack cantrip this way. Bard's are stuck being MAD, needing strength or dexterity for attack until 6th level comes around and you can grab a spell from another class. A dip, MI, or spell sniper will fix this

Pact of tome, is great as you can learn any ritual spell you come across from any class.

Lore bard and warlock pact of tome could give a librarian/archeologist feel

So figure out your chassis, IMO all three classes are very good

And good luck to you.

[Mercurias]

I would probably play the Divine Soul Sorcerer straight through as a Variant Human, provided your party doesn't try to make you the main healer. I would choose Twin Spell and Subtle spell with emphasis on buffing/support and social aspects. If your DM says social interaction is a big part of the module, having a second Face may come in handy.

For Feats, I would suggest nabbing Magic Initiate using the Bard spell list for Vicious Mockery, Friends, and Faerie Fire. Alternatively, you could go Warlock for EB, Friends, and Hex. Other good feats to choose would be Lucky (3 rerolls per day!), Resilient, Warcaster, and Alert.

If you really want to Multiclass, I would keep it to 2 levels of Warlock. If your DM won't let you run UA content, I'd pick a Fiend Patron for the helpful temporary health. If they allow UA, I would personally play the Raven Queen as a patron for a little Grimdark flavor and the cool Raven Familiar that gives you Advantage on Perception checks along with the usual things a familiar can do.

[Neknoh]

If you enjoy the clerics but don't want to play a typical cleric, I REALLY recommend a firbolg Light Domain blaster caster, using Bane instead of Bless etc

You will keep up with the best blasters and also have access to bane and inflict wounds, all whilst having medium armour.

Your damage will be either Fire or Radiant for the most part, with bursts of necrotic.

It is an aspect of cleric that you may have never touched on before and it has quickly become my favourite class for a blaster caster after having started playing one in Curse of Strahd.

[MikeRoxTheBoat]

So figure out your chassis, IMO all three classes are very good


I think you're right. All three classes are pretty accepted builds regardless, so I feel like it's hard to mess up. I think the extra feat is throwing me off, 'cause it allows me the chance to fix some of a classes weaknesses without necessarily multiclassing and delaying class progression. I might have to revisit this once I figure out what the party is going to be. If it's high in casting power, I might end up going druid simply for the wild shape utility and off tanking.

I think I might flip a coin and go Bard 1/Hexblade 1 or Half-Elf Divine Soul Sorcerer (I think I remembered reading that the benefits of Half-Elf eventually outclass any feat that could've been grabbed as a V.Human...and I get a feat anyway!). I think the option to eventually pick up a Warlock patron through the course of the story would have interesting connotations to the narrative that I might like for the Sorcerer, while the benefits make more sense to get Hexblade out of the way for Bard immediately.


I would probably play the Divine Soul Sorcerer straight through as a Variant Human, provided your party doesn't try to make you the main healer. I would choose Twin Spell and Subtle spell with emphasis on buffing/support and social aspects. If your DM says social interaction is a big part of the module, having a second Face may come in handy.

For Feats, I would suggest nabbing Magic Initiate using the Bard spell list for Vicious Mockery, Friends, and Faerie Fire. Alternatively, you could go Warlock for EB, Friends, and Hex. Other good feats to choose would be Lucky (3 rerolls per day!), Resilient, Warcaster, and Alert.

If you really want to Multiclass, I would keep it to 2 levels of Warlock. If your DM won't let you run UA content, I'd pick a Fiend Patron for the helpful temporary health. If they allow UA, I would personally play the Raven Queen as a patron for a little Grimdark flavor and the cool Raven Familiar that gives you Advantage on Perception checks along with the usual things a familiar can do.

I'll look into some of the UA stuff. I tend to ignore it since a lot of DMs just outright ban everything, with the exception of maybe Revised Ranger. Some of the different patron choices would be interesting. I kind of like the idea of starting Divine Soul with the option of picking up a patron through the narrative, along with whatever benefits and complications that brings.


If you enjoy the clerics but don't want to play a typical cleric, I REALLY recommend a firbolg Light Domain blaster caster, using Bane instead of Bless etc

You will keep up with the best blasters and also have access to bane and inflict wounds, all whilst having medium armour.

Your damage will be either Fire or Radiant for the most part, with bursts of necrotic.

It is an aspect of cleric that you may have never touched on before and it has quickly become my favourite class for a blaster caster after having started playing one in Curse of Strahd.


Firbolg was actually one of my race choices for if I decided to go Druid. Their Disguise Self trait would make it a little easier to blend in with the town without resorting to dipping classes to get the spell. Then I could just wildshape if I needed to be incognito between short rests.

I can see the appeal in a blaster Cleric, but the concept is a little similar to a character I'm already playing (Half Orc Forge Cleric), with the exception that he stays primarily in Melee, but still gets a lot of fire type damage, along with high damage spells like Animate Objects. I enjoy the Cleric, but I mainly enjoy supporting roles (for instance, I tend to play Healers in MMOs, though the healing archetype tends to change). That's why I was drawn to Bard, Divine Soul Sorcerer, Druid, and to a lesser degree, Warlock (interesting invocation potential) and Wizard (mostly 'cause of their utility). Divine Soul Sorcerer seemed like the easiest way to dip my toes into other support classes while still having some Cleric mainstays that I'm familiar with. Druid also plays quite similarly, while being different enough to make it feel like I'm not just rehashing the same character.

Also, if I'm being honest, I was also trying to find character classes that could work in Curse of Strahd, while not being the most immediately obvious ones (Life/Light/Death Clerics, Paladins, Zealots, Necromancers, etc.). Divine Soul Sorcerer is probably the most obvious pick, though I'm running him more like a sleazeball manipulator that somehow ended up with massive healing potential rather than an undead hating holy beacon of light. To be fair, though, I guess I could technically run any class differently than the typical archetype anyway.

[djreynolds]

Druid is very good, the exploration potential is limitless. No one notices little mice.

What's gonna be helpful is what do want to do in combat?

A hexblade can do all of it, nothing wrong with force damage, be it smites or eldritch blast and ritual caster on top would be a boon. And you get wisdom save proficiency (very big)

War caster and resilient con will also be important.

Access to the protection from good/evil spell will come in handy

I really like the warlock invocations also, some are really good.

Also, bladesinger, is another option.

[CTurbo]

Devotion Paladin 10 all the way! Aura of Protection, immunity to charm, immunity to fear,... your DM will hate you. It will be fun! lol

vhuman gets 2 feats? Tempting.... Inspiring Leader and Magic Initiate(Bard or Warlock)? Maybe something fun like Heavy Armor Master and Res(Con)? You could bolster your stats with two free feats that give +1s. 16 Str, 16 Con, and 16 Cha would be easy without even dumping everything else. You could even start from level 2 with an 18 in Str or Cha by selecting a feat that gives +1 in either. I really like HAM for Paladins especially if it's free.

Aasimar would be an interesting choice for you here as a Devotion Pally. You'd stand out as different, but probably not in a bad way.

Half-Elf is the other obvious choice.

Humans don't get darkvision!

[Malifice]

I like to tie my PCs into the themes of the adventure, not run against them (there is nothing wrong with that though).

My personal PC for this would be my Witch Hunter (Helsig VanDrachenfell). Human, Haunted One background, [Inquisitive Rogue, Monster hunter Ranger; favored enemies undead and fiends and maybe a slight dip into Cleric or Paladin later on for turn undead and similar].

For feats I'd take crossbow expert and sharpshooter.

Id wear a pilgrim hat with a belt buckle. Maybe even fluff it so I got dragged into the Demiplane of Dread from Earth.

[CTurbo]

A Gloom Stalker Ranger would be really good here. Extra darkvision, undead favored enemies, flavorful spells, etc...

Free feats could be Ritual Caster and/or Magic Initiate (Druid or Cleric), Alert, Mobile, Sharpshooter, Skulker,..

Stick full Ranger or switch over to Druid at level 6(or 8 if you want Wis saves) or even take a small Cleric dip. I know you said you didn't want Cleric but a single level of War Cleric adds a whole lot to a Ranger.

Man I would even take 3 levels of Gloom Stalker even if you wanted to go Druid.

[Neknoh]

Forge and Light only play similarly on paper, both have fire damage and both are DPS clerics.

However, the Forge Cleric will wade into combat, buff friends and allies and generally behave like a fire-based paladin.

Whereas the Light cleric acts a lot more like an Evocation Wizard with a good hit-die, decent AC and plenty of AoE damage.

But yeah, it may not be what you're looking for right now.


Out of the lot of them, the Bard Hexblade is honestly one of the more interesting ones and I would absolutely say to go for that, two charisma classes that really add to one another and I wouldn't bother too much in figuring out further dips from these two, it's a fairly pure build and will absolutely be thematic.

[djreynolds]

I like to tie my PCs into the themes of the adventure, not run against them (there is nothing wrong with that though).

My personal PC for this would be my Witch Hunter (Helsig VanDrachenfell). Human, Haunted One background, [Inquisitive Rogue, Monster hunter Ranger; favored enemies undead and fiends and maybe a slight dip into Cleric or Paladin later on for turn undead and similar].

For feats I'd take crossbow expert and sharpshooter.

Id wear a pilgrim hat with a belt buckle. Maybe even fluff it so I got dragged into the Demiplane of Dread from Earth.


A Gloom Stalker Ranger would be really good here. Extra darkvision, undead favored enemies, flavorful spells, etc...

Free feats could be Ritual Caster and/or Magic Initiate (Druid or Cleric), Alert, Mobile, Sharpshooter, Skulker,..

Stick full Ranger or switch over to Druid at level 6(or 8 if you want Wis saves) or even take a small Cleric dip. I know you said you didn't want Cleric but a single level of War Cleric adds a whole lot to a Ranger.

Man I would even take 3 levels of Gloom Stalker even if you wanted to go Druid.

I agree, have a reason to be in CoS.

It is a memorable adventure. Pick something you feel would be there.

"You" are there to stop Strahd, "you" have been chosen.

You could be a simple fighter, or shining paladin, but your being in Borovia was meant to be.

I'm jealous, because it is an awesome adventure that I would love to play again.

At the end, I had a Hill Dwarf Life Cleric, and I really, deeply, wanted Strahd dead.