Dex Bladelock Melee

[ResidentEvening]

I am creating a PC for Curse of Stradh - I will be joining the group late, around level 5 - 6. I had an idea to create my own version of Olgierd von Everec (from Witcher 3), as I think it will fit the setting and feel of this campaign really well.

As such, I want it to be a Variant Human, Rapier and Board Fighter 1 / Warlock X (DM says COS is likely to end around level 10-15). I imagine the build to be a swordsman/tank, relying on mage armour and max DEX for AC, with temp hp. improved pact weapon and dark magic to add to the DPS/mobility. I don't want to use darkness/devil sight combo as it doesn't really help the rest of the team.

We must use standard array. PHB and Xanthar's only. (so no booming blade! )

Here's my thinking:

8 / 15+1 / 14 / 10 / 12 / 13 + 1

Fighter 1 - Dueling or Defensive?

5 Fiend Warlock Pact of the blade - Improved pact weapon / Mage Armor / Thirsting blade /+2 DEX

I love Fiends powers and flavor, but I am open to other patrons.

After that, maybe 1 level dip in fighter or warlock till endgame?

I cannot for the life of me decide on which feat to choose - shortlist has sentinel, mage slayer, or defensive duelist (defensive duelist might be most RP appropriate)

I am also struggling somewhat with the spell choices for a semi-low charisma build.

I know that this is already a non-optimal choice for a PC, so please help me optimize it so it doesn't fall too far behind the rest of the party. Please no spoilers for COS either.

[AgenderArcee]

Sounds like a fun build! I think Dueling feels best for fighting style, considering you'll be boosting AC with Dex and mage armor anyway. I also think Protection is underrated for a tank, especially if you'll be in close quarters where the casters can't run 60 feet away.

If you're not sure about feat, have you considered going Standard Human? Could help you get Cha up to +3 without sacrificing too much.

For spells, I think Cause Fear and Command (for Fiendlock) could be really useful in controlling enemies and keeping them away from your allies, as long as you position yourself strategically for Cause Fear. Mirror Image could also be useful. Are you thinking of taking Shadow Blade?

What's your party composition like? I think that'll help us figure out what role you should be able to fill.

[Sherlockpwns]

First, people are likely to hate on mage armor as a choice, but if your party comp can make use of it you can save a tonnnnnn of lvl 1 spell slots. E.g. if there are multiple casters, especially a druid, or even just a dex rogue could potentially make use of it.

If not, it is kinda hard to argue taking mage armor when you could just toss on some studded leather and call it a day. But if you are potentially saving 2-3 level 1 slots, possibly more if you are stuck in greater than 8 hours of danger, it's a totally viable pick.

The more important question is "what makes you a tank?" Armor of agathys and a shield? What can you do to FORCE people to focus you? And more importantly, what else can you do to ensure they get disadvantage or severe penalities to hit (you or others).

I'd approach this whole question from those angles first.

[ResidentEvening]

Mage armor is more for flavor for the character - an 'invincible' fighter who is so sure of his invincibility that he does not even don an armor - plus +1 AC over studded leather is nice.

Forcing enemies to fight is always a problem - but if I chose sentinel that might be easier.

As for spells, I will definitely use mirror image, hex and hellish rebuke and maybe misty step (because teleportation is just too cool), to fully take advantage of the action economy. Cause fear is a great suggestion!
I might consider the Armor of Agathys but it will be fighting my my fiend temp hp... not sure how to properly use this with my patrons powers.

The party has a rogue, bard, GWM palladin and a blastlock.

[bid]

First, people are likely to hate on mage armor as a choice, but if your party comp can make use of it you can save a tonnnnnn of lvl 1 spell slots.
Armor of shadows, the invocation, only works on self.


I don't see any gain in fighter 1. You aren't using heavy armor and Wis/Cha saves seems better against undead. And your party is so Cha-centric that going rogue 1 for expertise in persuasion isn't helpful enough.

[AgenderArcee]

Sentinel is probably a good idea then! Note that if you're using your reaction for that a lot you won't have it for Hellish Rebuke.

[ResidentEvening]

Armor of shadows, the invocation, only works on self.


I don't see any gain in fighter 1. You aren't using heavy armor and Wis/Cha saves seems better against undead. And your party is so Cha-centric that going rogue 1 for expertise in persuasion isn't helpful enough.

Fighter seemed important for shield prof, for const saving throws, for maintaining hex & extra +2 dmg per hit in what already feels like a bit of a damage deprived build... and a bit of extra healing (there is limited healing as you can see in the party). Plus it fits the characters backstory quite well.

I guess what I'm really after here is options to optimise the original PC idea - so feats, spells and anything else I might have missed that will synergise with the Dex Melee Fighter 1 / Warlock X.

[Dork_Forge]

Mage armor is more for flavor for the character - an 'invincible' fighter who is so sure of his invincibility that he does not even don an armor - plus +1 AC over studded leather is nice.

Forcing enemies to fight is always a problem - but if I chose sentinel that might be easier.

As for spells, I will definitely use mirror image, hex and hellish rebuke and maybe misty step (because teleportation is just too cool), to fully take advantage of the action economy. Cause fear is a great suggestion!
I might consider the Armor of Agathys but it will be fighting my my fiend temp hp... not sure how to properly use this with my patrons powers.

The party has a rogue, bard, GWM palladin and a blastlock.

Armor of Agathys works pretty well with the Fiend's temp hp, after all you need to reduce a creature to 0 to gain that themp hp. AoA allows you to enter a fight with that temp hp buffer and the economy free melee damage helps get those hostiles down to 0 to trigger your patron ability.

You might want to consider Defensive Duelist for both theme and a non slot tied defense.

Going as far as 4 Fighter x Warlock down the line would be a good combo too, pretty much regardless what subclass you go with.

[JakOfAllTirades]

When I play a non-Hexblade BladeLock, (don't care for Hexblades myself) I focus on DEX and take Moderately Armored as my first feat.

For the OP, I'd recommend this as your 1st level bonus feat. You'll get an extra point of DEX, Medium Armor, and Shields. If that leaves you with an odd DEX score, even it up at 4th level with either a half feat that gives you a +1 DEX, like Resilient.

This removes the need to multiclass in Fighter.

[Crgaston]

Armor of shadows, the invocation, only works on self.


I don't see any gain in fighter 1. You aren't using heavy armor and Wis/Cha saves seems better against undead. And your party is so Cha-centric that going rogue 1 for expertise in persuasion isn't helpful enough.

It's how he, as a Fiend Bladelock, is getting shield proficiency. Central to the build. Also Dueling is a significant boost for S+B style.


Mage armor is more for flavor for the character - an 'invincible' fighter who is so sure of his invincibility that he does not even don an armor - plus +1 AC over studded leather is nice.

Forcing enemies to fight is always a problem - but if I chose sentinel that might be easier.

As for spells, I will definitely use mirror image, hex and hellish rebuke and maybe misty step (because teleportation is just too cool), to fully take advantage of the action economy. Cause fear is a great suggestion!
I might consider the Armor of Agathys but it will be fighting my my fiend temp hp... not sure how to properly use this with my patrons powers.

The party has a rogue, bard, GWM palladin and a blastlock.

Great party composition! If you take Sentinel and hang with the Paladin, you will definitely draw attacks.

Armor of Agathys is 1 hour duration and non-concentration, so you can cast it before combat and also keep up Hex. It lets you do damage when they hit you, and in any decent fight you will get hit enough to burn through AoA THP before you start using your Fiend THP. I wouldn't bother with it before Warlock 7, or maybe 5, depending on the type of foe you're fighting.

Mirror Image is also great for you, but not in conjunction with AoA unless it's a very serious fight. It'll pair great with Sentinel. Some DM's even let Sentinel trigger off of an attack against one of your images. It's iffy, but it might fly.

Further improving your tankiness at Warlock 7 is the Relentless Hex invocation. It lets you teleport next to your Hex target as a Bonus Action.

And your bread and butter at Warlock 7 will be Shadow of Moil. Honestly, as a tank wannabe, that's probably all you should cast. Make sure your pally has a light source or darkvision if you're in dim light. Which you often will be.

Hang with the pally, Sentinel + Shadow of Moil... Yep.

You'll be frustrated with your 2 spell slots, but at least the other Warlock and the Bard will both be eager to Short Rest.

I've been playing a F1/Fey Bladelock for a while and we just hit CL 12 so looking forward to my 3rd slot per SR. I'e played more as a striker than a tank. Misty Step, Thunder Step, and Far Step are The Business for that. Especially after my DM was foolish generous enough to let me find Slippers of Spider Climbing.

Edit: Goodness, it took me an hout to write this in between making 2 pizzas and dealing with needy dogs lol. Yes. Everyone else is giving good insight!

[bid]

Fighter seemed important for shield prof, for const saving throws, for maintaining hex & extra +2 dmg per hit in what already feels like a bit of a damage deprived build... and a bit of extra healing (there is limited healing as you can see in the party). Plus it fits the characters backstory quite well.
Wis/Cha seems superior to Str/Con for Stradh. I feel blade 5, then fighter 1 is best.
But yeah, shield prof left my mind and BA second wind can help.

[ResidentEvening]

(...)
Armor of Agathys is 1 hour duration and non-concentration, so you can cast it before combat and also keep up Hex. It lets you do damage when they hit you, and in any decent fight you will get hit enough to burn through AoA THP before you start using your Fiend THP. I wouldn't bother with it before Warlock 7, or maybe 5, depending on the type of foe you're fighting.

Mirror Image is also great for you, but not in conjunction with AoA unless it's a very serious fight. It'll pair great with Sentinel. Some DM's even let Sentinel trigger off of an attack against one of your images. It's iffy, but it might fly.

Further improving your tankiness at Warlock 7 is the Relentless Hex invocation. It lets you teleport next to your Hex target as a Bonus Action.

And your bread and butter at Warlock 7 will be Shadow of Moil. Honestly, as a tank wannabe, that's probably all you should cast. Make sure your pally has a light source or darkvision if you're in dim light. Which you often will be.

Hang with the pally, Sentinel + Shadow of Moil... Yep.


Great spell suggestions! I think you convinced me with the Sentinel as well.. - do you think devils sight will be a must then at level 7+ to allow me to use SoM?

I might also follow the advice to go Warlock/Fighter also, albeit I am worried about maintaining concentration..

Thank you for all the suggestions so far everyone, it's been very insightful!

One more thing - do you think a fighter 2 at some point would help with action surge, or am I better going straight warlock?

[da newt]

Might be worth it to dip rogue for the 1d6 SA damage bump and expertise.

It doesn't fit your theme, but PAM, dueling and shield & spear is probably the most optimized S&B out there.

Med Arm Master feat sounds like a good option too (half plate w/ shield would be AC 20 before magic armor).

[Crgaston]

SoM is just regular darkness, so Devil's Sight isn't strictly necessary because you'll want a light source anyway, but on a human I'd prioritize it for sure. I hate not having darkvision on characters. The real question is does your paladin have darkvision? Is so, then you should take it. If not, then he'll seed a source of bright light if you want to be able to SoM and Sentinel.

F2 would help offensively, but I'd wait until after Warlock 9 or 11 to take it. Then Battlemaster for Riposte, Parry and Shove.

[ResidentEvening]

Might be worth it to dip rogue for the 1d6 SA damage bump and expertise.

It doesn't fit your theme, but PAM, dueling and shield & spear is probably the most optimized S&B out there.

Med Arm Master feat sounds like a good option too (half plate w/ shield would be AC 20 before magic armor).

Beyond the character concept, medium armor master assumes you get a chance to buy armor in Barovia - and from what I understand from session zero we shouldn't count on it at all... (same with magical weapons)



SoM is just regular darkness, so Devil's Sight isn't strictly necessary because you'll want a light source anyway, but on a human I'd prioritize it for sure. I hate not having darkvision on characters. The real question is does your paladin have darkvision? Is so, then you should take it. If not, then he'll seed a source of bright light if you want to be able to SoM and Sentinel.

F2 would help offensively, but I'd wait until after Warlock 9 or 11 to take it. Then Battlemaster for Riposte, Parry and Shove.


He certainly does so it should all synchronize quite well - thank you for the advice on the fighter. I wish lifedrinker was available a bit earlier, but I guess with my charisma it really won't help much anyway.