Theorycrafting exercise: highest damage in 1 round with no AoE and full magic items?

[OgataiKhan]

I recently stumbled upon a rather unusual build that got me thinking: could this build be able to deliver some of the highest possible average damage on the first round of combat, under the right circumstances?

Here are the rules we shall follow for this exercise:

- All magic and mundane items are allowed, except poison (with poison Battle Master 12/Assassin 5/Gloom Stalker 3 wins)
- Spells that don't target the enemies can be precast. Spells that target the enemies must be cast during the round.
- No infinite or almost infinite combos allowed (Simulacrum+Wish, Conjure Celestial+Planar Binding...)
- All official manuals are allowed
- No UA or homebrew
- Any number of targets of any kind are available, but no vulnerabilities and no AoE allowed (otherwise the clear winner would be Meteor Swarm on enough targets and we would have no fun).
- The entire round counts, not just your turn
- The enemies are surprised and haven't acted yet (to give Assassin builds a fighting chance)
- No magic manuals that increase your stats past 20
- No critical hits unless they are automatic (Assassinate, Hold Person...)
- All attacks hit, all saving throws are failed
- All dice deal average damage



With that out of the way, here is my idea:

Race: Zendikar Merfolk of the Emeria (Wind) creed, for Shillelagh
Class: Tempest Cleric 18/Fighter 2
ASI: Magic Initiate Wizard, +2 Wis, +2 Wis, War Caster
Magic Items: Illusionist's Bracers from Guildmaster's Guide to Ravnica (allows us to cast Booming Blade as a bonus action), Staff of Striking

And here is how we shall do it.
As our precast concentration spell we'll pick Conjure Celestial and use it to conjure a Couatl. We'll use its Change Shape to turn it into a Pudding King from Out of the Abyss. We'll then use the Pudding King's own Change Shape ability to turn it into an Elder Oblex from Mordekainen's Tome of Foes. Now we have a powerful ally to fight with us.
Then, before combat, we cast Shillelagh.

The round:

The Elder Oblex makes two pseudopod attacks and uses Eat Memories.
We cast Booming Blade, add the Divine Strike damage, maximise the total thunder damage with Destructive Wrath, add in three charges from the Staff of Striking. We cast BB+3 Staff charges again as a bonus action against a different enemy, and then we do it again with Action Surge.
Enemy 1 moves and takes 32 damage from Booming Blade (maximised through Destructive Wrath). Enemy 2 moves and takes 32 damage. Enemy 3 moves and takes 4d8 damage. Enemy 4 moves and takes a Booming Blade opportunity attack.


The damage:

Elder Oblex: 6d6+3+6d6+3+8d10 = 92
BB attack: 1d8+5 (bludgeoning)+40 (BB+Divine Strike thunder damage=5d8, maximised)+32 (extra BB damage, max)+3d6+3 (Staff of Striking)+2 (Dueling) = 1d8+5+40+32+3d6+3+2 = 124
Bonus action BB attack: 4d8+5 (BB)+32 (extra BB, max)+3d6+3 (Staff of Striking)+2 (Dueling) = 4d8+5+32+3d6+3+2 = 70.50
Action Surge BB attack: 4d8+5 (BB)+4d8 (extra BB)+3d6+3 (Staff of Striking)+2 (Dueling) = 4d8+5+4d8+3d6+3+2 = 56.50
Opportunity BB attack: 4d8+5 (BB)+4d8 (extra BB)+1d6+3 (Staff of Striking)+2 (Dueling) = 4d8+5+4d8+1d6+3+2 = 49.50

92+124+70.5+56.5+49.5 = 392.50

That is, if my math is correct.

Can you think of any build that can deal more average damage than this on round 1?

[Nhorianscum]

If memory serves the baseline damage for Hallow> Maximized Searing ray (9th) > contingency maximized Searing ray (5th) is 384. With hexcurse and a fire+1 focus this does 512. Then we have action surge/summoning/silms/a Crapton of additive damage mods. Just assume MM and Sray kill anything they hit in tier 4.

Not touching minionmancy shenanigans infinite or otherwise.

[Jack Bitters]

Sure, here's a build.

Grave cleric 2/Assassin rogue 18. Race: Protector aasimar.
Magic item: Scimitar of speed (grants an attack as a bonus action; also functions as a +2 scimitar).
Feat: Martial adept.

Begin combat having already used the aasimar transformation ability that gives you +20 damage on one hit per round, lasts for a minute.

Surprise
Action: Path to the Grave. Grants vulnerability to all of the next attack's damage.
Bonus action: Attack with scimitar.
Scimitar damage is 1d6+7
Sneak attack is +9d6
Martial adept is +1d6 (any damaging maneuver)
Aasimar racial is +20
Critical hit from assassin: 11d6+27 -> 22d6+27
Damage doubled by assassin's death strike: 22d6+27 -> 44d6+54
Damage doubled by vulnerability: 44d6+54 -> 88d6+108 = 416 average damage.

[Mork]

Sure, here's a build.

Grave cleric 2/Assassin rogue 18. Race: Protector aasimar.
Magic item: Scimitar of speed (grants an attack as a bonus action; also functions as a +2 scimitar).
Feat: Martial adept.

Begin combat having already used the aasimar transformation ability that gives you +20 damage on one hit per round, lasts for a minute.

Surprise
Action: Path to the Grave. Grants vulnerability to all of the next attack's damage.
Bonus action: Attack with scimitar.
Scimitar damage is 1d6+7
Sneak attack is +9d6
Martial adept is +1d6 (any damaging maneuver)
Aasimar racial is +20
Critical hit from assassin: 11d6+27 -> 22d6+27
Damage doubled by assassin's death strike: 22d6+27 -> 44d6+54
Damage doubled by vulnerability: 44d6+54 -> 88d6+108 = 416 average damage.

Add magic iniate feat and choose divine favor for an extra d4, which is doubled 3 times. for 8d4 extra damage is 20 damage for a total of 436

[JackPhoenix]

Open hand monk 17/fighter 2.

Punch enemies few times, including Flurry of Blows. Not really important, it's just extra. Use Quivering Palm on the beefiest target available (i.e. The Tarrasque).
Action Surge.
Trigger Quivering Palm. As saves autofail, you don't have to worry about its +10 Con save (which is surprisingly low, actually, as he lacks proficiency. But then the save value would be "yes"). The tarrasque is reduced to 0 from (almost, minus whatever damage your unarmed strike caused) full HP, meaning you've caused 676 points of damage.
Any extra damage you've caused to anyone else is just a cherry on top. As there's no mention of terrain, you may use your Extra Attack to shove and Flurry of Blows to push 3 more targets through Open Hand Technique to a convenient deep hole for extra 60d6 falling damage.

Edit: you know, for extra fun, let's make it max HP tarrasque: that's 990 for the tarrasque, plus 60d6 (average of 210) for 1200 damage. Whatever damage comes from the two Flurry of Blows unarmed strikes seems pretty piddly in comparison.

[Contrast]

- Spells that don't target the enemies can be precast. Spells that target the enemies must be cast during the round.

An infinite numb


- No infinite or almost infinite combos allowed (Simulacrum+Wish, Conjure Celestial+Planar Binding...)

Ok fine, an arbitrarily large number of pre-cast Glyphs of Warding set to explosive runes. :smallwink:

[Jack Bitters]

Here's the framework for another build:

Fighter Samurai 20
Magic item: potion of speed (pre-drunk, gives the effect of the haste spell), flametongue greatsword, belt of storm giant strength (29).
Caltrops.
Feat: Magic Initiate (warlock) for Hex, Great Weapon Master, Martial Adept (trip)

Special Circumstance: You engage combat with 1 hitpoint remaining, or you find a way to reduce yourself to 0 hitpoints in the middle of your turn. One way to do this is with caltrops positioned near your enemy.

Bonus action: cast hex on your enemy.
Each attack will do 5d6+19 damage.
Action: 4 attacks. First attack uses the martial adept maneuver to trip the enemy prone, granting advantage.
Gain another attack from Rapid Strike
Haste: 1 attack
Action surge: 4 attacks
Step on a caltrop, reduce hitpoints to 0: Reaction: Strength Before Death––interrupt current turn with another turn.
Action: 4 attacks.
Rapid Strike: 1 attack
Haste: 1 attack
Action surge: 4 attacks
Bonus action attack from assumed crit from great weapon master.
Total number of attacks = 21
Damage = 21 x (5d6+19) = 766

[Damon_Tor]

Some variety of wizard and his simulacrum both shapecganged into Planars buffed with a bunch of Glyphs of Warding. If this were a legit dpr discussion that would probably be a diviner to avoid misses, win initiative and such, but the rules being what they are I guess we're left with bladesinger. I guess wizard 17, assassin 3. Or maybe paladin 2 war cleric 1.

[Ironheart]

Jack Bitters automatically wins because that’s the best thing I’ve ever seen.

PDK Rod of Lordly Might DPR
This is as circumstantial as it gets, but here goes- This is technically a three person combo, but all of the damage happens in one turn, and is technically caused by the PDK

Requirements:

Half Orc Purple Dragon Knight at Level 20
Rod of Lordly Might, and Longsword +3 (assuming Dual Wielder Feat)
Any Paladin at Level 20
Holy Avenger(Greatsword)
Elf Inquisitive Rogue at Level 20
Moonblade (greatsword) that has finesse, has a +3 to damage, deals an additional 1d6 on hit, and functions as a Vorpal Sword.
Assuming 20’s in each relevant Attacking Stat

Prep:
Have Rod in Flame Tongue form (preferably Longsword)
Have Elf rogue succeed on his Insightful Fighting Feature
Have Paladin concentrate on Banishing Smite

The turn:
Action: Attack four times. On the first attack, have target fail on the Rod of Lordly Might’s DC 17 Paralyze effect. All attacks within 5 feet are now critical hits. Brutal Critical from Half Orc. From a technical reading, the rod loses it’s +3 bonus to hit and damage when it becomes a flame tongue. Orcish Fury(XGTE) adds one more weapon damage dice for one attack

1st Attack: 1d8 slashing + 2d6 fire + 5
2nd-4th Attacks: [1d8 x 3 + 2d6 x 2] x 3 + 1d8 + 15
BA Dual Wielder attack: 1d8 x 3 slashing + 5

Inspiring Action Surge: Elf and Paladin take their attacks.
Elf Rogue: [3d6 +13d6 + 6d10 on a failed CON 17 save x 2] + 8
Paladin: [2d6 + 6d8(Improved Divine Smite)+ 5d10(Banishing Smite)] x 2 + 8
Next Attack Action (Action Surge)
4 Attacks: [1d8 x 3 + 2d6 x 2] x 4 + 20

Our total dice from these attacks are:
68D6 + 32D8 + 22D10 + 62
Assuming 3.5 damage on each D6, 4.5 on each D8, and 5.5 on each D10, that totals out to 238 + 144 + 121 + 62 = 565 damage.

[OgataiKhan]

Thank you everybody for your answers, there are some great ideas I didn't think of among them!

I'd say the Samurai build easily takes it.


If memory serves the baseline damage for Hallow> Maximized Searing ray (9th) > contingency maximized Searing ray (5th) is 384. With hexcurse and a fire+1 focus this does 512. Then we have action surge/summoning/silms/a Crapton of additive damage mods. Just assume MM and Sray kill anything they hit in tier 4.

Not touching minionmancy shenanigans infinite or otherwise.

Can you elaborate on this? I understand that you are using Hallow to impose fire vulnerability on the enemy and then casting Scorching Ray twice (the second time with Contingency) for a total of (20*6+12*6)*2 damage, which indeed equals 384, but how are you maximising Scorching Ray?
What do you mean by "fire+1 focus"?
What are "silms"?

[JackPhoenix]

Can you elaborate on this? I understand that you are using Hallow to impose fire vulnerability on the enemy and then casting Scorching Ray twice (the second time with Contingency) for a total of (20*6+12*6)*2 damage, which indeed equals 384, but how are you maximising Scorching Ray?
What do you mean by "fire+1 focus"?
What are "silms"?

You can't use Contingency with Scorching Ray, unless you wish to commit suicide, so that part's wrong.
"maximised Searing ray" propably means evoker wizard's Overchannel.
"fire+1 focus" propably mean one of the foci from WGtE that add +1 damage of specific damage type when you cast a spell (Fernian ash imbued wood focus for fire)
"silms" sounds like misspelled Simulacrum to me.
Also, I'm not sure how he's getting Hallow on evocation wizard, especially if he uses 9th level slot for Scorching Ray instead of Wish.

Basically, it doesn't work.

[Jack Bitters]

Any extra damage you've caused to anyone else is just a cherry on top. As there's no mention of terrain, you may use your Extra Attack to shove and Flurry of Blows to push 3 more targets through Open Hand Technique to a convenient deep hole for extra 60d6 falling damage.


Okay I think we're overlooking a very deep potential well of damage here... Literally.

Race: Tabaxi
Class: Warlock 2/Fighter 2/Transmutation Wizard 13/Sorcerer 3 (for stone +10 movement speed)
Feats: Mobile, Spell Sniper
Metamagic: Distant and Quicken
Invocation: Repelling Blast, Eldritch Spear
Magic items: Potion of Climbing, Boots of Speed

Precast Mirage Arcane to form terrain into an extremely steep mountain with at least twelve sequential 200 ft high sections with small ledges in between each one designed to stop falls. Your enemy must start at the top.
Precast Haste to double your movement speed. Precast Longstrider. Drink your climbing potion (gives you a climbing speed equal to your walking speed).
With a base of 60 feet from race, spells, and feat/items, your speed is now x2 for haste, x2 for tabaxi, x2 for the boots of speed, or 480 ft/move. You have one move plus your hasted move to take, for a distance traveled of 960 feet. A Contingency: Distant Dimension Door takes you another 1000 feet, and Spell Sniper, Distant Spell, and Eldritch Spear give you 1200 ft. range on your eldritch blast.

With your action, action surge, and bonus action, you can cast a total of 12 EB rays, each one intended to knock your target off the next ledge it hits. You use your incredible movement speed and teleportation to follow the target down the mountain, blowing it off each ledge as it falls.

This results in 12 x (20d6+1d10) or 906 damage.

Edit: this one is supposed to be humorous

[Nhorianscum]

Thank you everybody for your answers, there are some great ideas I didn't think of among them!

I'd say the Samurai build easily takes it.



Can you elaborate on this? I understand that you are using Hallow to impose fire vulnerability on the enemy and then casting Scorching Ray twice (the second time with Contingency) for a total of (20*6+12*6)*2 damage, which indeed equals 384, but how are you maximising Scorching Ray?
What do you mean by "fire+1 focus"?
What are "silms"?

In no real order.

I'm assuming evoker 17/fighter 2/hexblade 1. I don't really like the build but it works by your ruleset.

I'm using overchannel.

My magic item's here is arcane focus from the Ebberon setting that gives +1 to the element of my choice. Which is kinda broken for a near-free bauble.

Simulacrum(s).

I just picked Sray because I know the numbers from napkin optimizing Pyromancer but it works for (almost) any tier4 fullcaster.

[JackPhoenix]

My magic item's here is arcane focus from the Ebberon setting that gives +1 to the element of my choice. Which is kinda broken for a near-free bauble.

I'm curious, how is +1 damage that requires attunement broken?

[Nhorianscum]

I'm curious, how is +1 damage that requires attunement broken?

We can apply that +1 more than once.

In this case with AS we would be applying it 44 times. We can start the game with this item, it's equivilant to a legendary weapon, slightly good.

[Damon_Tor]

Step on a caltrop, reduce hitpoints to 0: Reaction: Strength Before Death––interrupt current turn with another turn.

The problem here is that you might accidentally pass your save against the caltrops. It's better to just jump 10 feet in the air and allow yourself to fall from the apex, taking 1d10 damage.

But since we're allowed whatever magic items we want here, get yourself a ring of spell storing and polymorph yourself into a 1HP bird before combat begins. On your first turn, fly to 10 feet above where you would like to begin combat and fall. This will reduce you to zero HP triggering your free turn, even though you're left at (mostly) full HP afterward. Then you get your free turn, when it ends your regular turn resumes (you never ended it) and you can take all those actions as well.

[Jack Bitters]

The problem here is that you might accidentally pass your save against the caltrops. It's better to just jump 10 feet in the air and allow yourself to fall from the apex, taking 1d10 damage.

But since we're allowed whatever magic items we want here, get yourself a ring of spell storing and polymorph yourself into a 1HP bird before combat begins. On your first turn, fly to 10 feet above where you would like to begin combat and fall. This will reduce you to zero HP triggering your free turn, even though you're left at (mostly) full HP afterward. Then you get your free turn, when it ends your regular turn resumes (you never ended it) and you can take all those actions as well.

Oh, that's a good solution. I was operating on the "all saves are failed" premise, haha, though it is fairly unlikely. You could definitely just jump, since your vertical leap is 12 feet with that belt on. That'd be a funny sight to see... A plated warrior with a katana high-jumping in the air and belly flopping... Followed by a kip-up and 10 more slashes with the blade.

[JackPhoenix]

We can apply that +1 more than once.

In this case with AS we would be applying it 44 times. We can start the game with this item, it's equivilant to a legendary weapon, slightly good.

How would you be applying it 44 times? You have 10 rays with 9th level slot. That's +10 damage. Then, if you use Action Surge, you get another 9 rays with 8th level slot. That's +19 damage total. Not bad, certainly, but not anywhere near 44.

You'll get more (+21, to be exact) if you use Magic Missile the same way instead, though MM does less base damage and has worse scaling on its own.


Oh, that's a good solution. I was operating on the "all saves are failed" premise, haha, though it is fairly unlikely. You could definitely just jump, since your vertical leap is 12 feet with that belt on. That'd be a funny sight to see... A plated warrior with a katana high-jumping in the air and belly flopping... Followed by a kip-up and 10 more slashes with the blade.

Uncool (and unfortunately mandatory) faceplanting aside, jumping attacks are anime (and general fantasy) staple.

[Nhorianscum]

How would you be applying it 44 times? You have 10 rays with 9th level slot. That's +10 damage. Then, if you use Action Surge, you get another 9 rays with 8th level slot. That's +19 damage total. Not bad, certainly, but not anywhere near 44.

Oh woops. I lowballed all the damage.

Toss on another 6 for our ability to bullsheez out another 5th level SR with contingency or somesuch.... I apparently lowballed and we actually have 25 rays since we're inflicting vulnerability double that and thaaats 50.

SR is slightly better for damage stacking since we can slap more adds onto it so I generally use it over MM.

So turn 1 damage is a nice clean 650 before we start stacking hexcurse/hex/bestow. If we somehow preapply all of that it's 1000*(1+(number of silmulacra)). Final damage with one silm and overly long setup is 2000. Seems legit.

We can raise it higher with autocrit/more stack/etc/etc but we're well over the soft cap for damage and have been since 650. Then we multiplied it by an arbitrary number so w/e.

Edit: I forgot bonus action things

[Jack Bitters]

Well Eberron items aside, here's a hallowed fiery burst build with the same general idea:

Class: Light Cleric 17/Hexblade 1/Fighter 2
Magic items: Ring of Invisibility, Book of Exalted Deeds, Ioun Stone of Mastery (increases hexblade bonus damage to +7)
Feat: Elemental Adept

This definitely takes some preparation.
Designate an area to be consecrated with the Hallow spell. Vulnerability to fire damage. Glyphs of warding to be placed along a narrow path that the enemy must walk: Hold Person and Bestow Curse. Notably, clerics don't have access to Hold Monster, so that's a limitation on who you can kill with this.

You wait invisibly for your opponent to spring the trap.

As your foe walks forwards, he activates both the hold person glyph and the bestow curse glyph, triggering your Readied Action to Cast a Spell: Scorching Ray (8th level). Then your turn begins:
Bonus action (Hexblade's curse)
Action: Scorching Ray (9th level)
Action Surge: Scorching Ray (10th level with Book of Exalted Deeds)
That's a total of 30 rays, all crits, with the last 21 affected by Hexblade's Curse.
Damage is slightly complicated, as Hallow only doubles the fire damage, and not the necrotic damage from Bestow Curse.
Bestow Curse damage = 30 rays x 2d8 = 270
Hexblade damage = 2 x 21 rays x 7 = 294 (doubled fire damage)
Scorching ray damage = 2 x 30 x 4d6 = 240d6 but the d6 damage goes from an average of 3.5 to 3.666 with the feat.
Total = 1443

[JackPhoenix]

Oh woops. I lowballed all the damage.

Toss on another 6 for our ability to bullsheez out another 5th level SR with contingency or somesuch.... I apparently lowballed and we actually have 25 rays since we're inflicting vulnerability double that and thaaats 50.

Vulnerability doesn't increase the number of rays you get, and you do not inflict vulnerability. You only have 1 level 9 spell, you can use it either to duplicate Hallow through Wish, or cast level 9 Scorching Ray, not both.

Contingency can only target yourself. While commiting suicide does technically increase your first round damage, it's not good tactic beyond that.


Snip

Enemy doesn't walk forward, per OP, he's surprised and unable to act in the first round. You also don't have readied action, as it's the first turn of combat. If you wait until later, you've failed, as you haven't caused any damage in the first round.

[Nhorianscum]

Vulnerability doesn't increase the number of rays you get, and you do not inflict vulnerability. You only have 1 level 9 spell, you can use it either to duplicate Hallow through Wish, or cast level 9 Scorching Ray, not both.

Contingency can only target yourself. While commiting suicide does technically increase your first round damage, it's not good tactic beyond that.

Yadda yadda we're allowed to precast things and have magic items. Picking up a way to cast hallow or jam out another blast falls under my "or somesuch" throw away.

1*2 is 2

Minimal effort is minimal and frankly I'm still lowballing like crazy.

[JackPhoenix]

Yadda yadda we're allowed to precast things and have magic items. Picking up a way to cast hallow or jam out another blast falls under my "or somesuch" throw away.

"or somesuch" doesn't allow you to do whatever you want. You're still limited to existing options, as allowed by OP.


1*2 is 2

And 19*2 is 38, not 44 or 50

[Nhorianscum]

"or somesuch" doesn't allow you to do whatever you want.

I cast magic missile at the darkness!

[JackPhoenix]

I cast magic missile at the darkness!

What did he (https://i.pinimg.com/originals/10/1b/c9/101bc9f9c4a7b0c48414da567d49587f.jpg) do to you? It's the horns and red skin, isn't it?

[Jack Bitters]

Enemy doesn't walk forward, per OP, he's surprised and unable to act in the first round. You also don't have readied action, as it's the first turn of combat. If you wait until later, you've failed, as you haven't caused any damage in the first round.

Fair. Invisibility probably wouldn't work either, because you'd break it as you cast the spell to ready it, or by losing concentration via readying a spell.

Here's a mishmash of lightning-bardness.

Valor Bard 15, Tempest Cleric 2, Assassin 3
Spell taken: Lightning Arrow, Hallow, Simulacrum
Feat: Sharpshooter, ASI Dex to 20

Create a Simulacrum of yourself and precast hallow. Simulacrum and self precast lightning arrow (concentration, lasts for a minute), also grant bardic inspiration to each other. Enemy is in the area of Hallow and is surprised. Sneak attack damage also applies.
Attack round: 2x level 9 maximized lightning arrows, 2x level 8 lightning arrows.
Damage is 2x2x(10d8+1d12+2d6)+2x15 maximized + 2x2x(9d8+15) = 446+222 = 668