Neat Ideas with Warforged

[elyktsorb]

I've been thinking about a new character I want to play and I got it in my head that they should be a Warforged. So I'm just fishing for interesting ideas to do with the race.

[TheCleverGuy]

Warforged Archfey Warlock, with the Entertainer background.

You began life as a simple automaton designed to play [instrument of your choice] as a way to drum up business for a traveling peddler. Until the peddler accidentally stumbled into the Feywild. A chance meeting with the an Archfey led to a demonstration, and delighted the Archfey so much that they wanted to keep the automaton. The peddler was unwilling to part with their creation, so the Archfey used its magic to bring the automaton to life and let it choose for itself.

You chose freedom from both the peddler and the Archfey, though the Archfey was proud of its creation and continues to watch over you from afar, providing powers to keep you safe.

[elyktsorb]

Warforged Archfey Warlock, with the Entertainer background.

You began life as a simple automaton designed to play [instrument of your choice] as a way to drum up business for a traveling peddler. Until the peddler accidentally stumbled into the Feywild. A chance meeting with the an Archfey led to a demonstration, and delighted the Archfey so much that they wanted to keep the automaton. The peddler was unwilling to part with their creation, so the Archfey used its magic to bring the automaton to life and let it choose for itself.

You chose freedom from both the peddler and the Archfey, though the Archfey was proud of its creation and continues to watch over you from afar, providing powers to keep you safe.

This actually sounds super interesting, though I have to wonder if it would lead into a Bard multiclass? Though I suppose the character could just completely shun it's musical upbringing.

[Zhorn]

In a previous campaign; one of my players was bouncing ideas off me for their backup character. Their rogue had a few close calls, so they wanted to have something lined up in case their final uncanny dodge ended up a little more canny, and a little less dodge.
Here's a couple they had.

Newly awakened: The warforged is effectively a child. Everything is new to them. Their lack the basic moral framework that comes with age and experience, and would be RP'd as overly naive and trusting of the party, never questioning their intent (at first). Their morality and judgement is being shaped by the party; what they do and what they ask of the warforged, along with how they justify their actions. The warforged is a fast learner, and takes many lessons to heart without much repetition, but that include the bad ones. See the film 'Chappie' (2015) for a starting point for the idea.

Time Lost Soldier: The warforged has been buried under a collapsed ruin for hundreds of years. The world they were built for, the war they were constructed to fight in is over. Their entire purpose was fighting said war. Think Mandalorian meets Captain America.

Twisted Experiment: The spark the births life in a warforged is normally a shared fragment of their creators spark (another warforged). Normally. What if this warforged was not made by one of their own... what if their spark wasn't created in the usual way... A mad mage, torturing and twisting souls in experimentation, finding ways to imbue a permanent animation to otherwise inanimate objects... how many souls did it take till it was successful, how many fragments are there trapped beneath the surface of the warforged's consciousness? Is this a second chance, or a cursed existence?

Literally Baymax

[Arkhios]

What is the least Warforged-like class and background you can think of. Figure out that and make one :P

Swim against the current, don't go with the flow, and all that :D

[TheCleverGuy]

This actually sounds super interesting, though I have to wonder if it would lead into a Bard multiclass? Though I suppose the character could just completely shun it's musical upbringing.

That'd be up to the player, I guess!

[elyktsorb]

What is the least Warforged-like class and background you can think of. Figure out that and make one :P

Swim against the current, don't go with the flow, and all that :D

Well the least Warforged like class seems like druid tbh, but I've played a lot of Druid already, and that honestly seems a bit too on the nose for a character imo.

[HappyDaze]

Time Lost Soldier: The warforged has been buried under a collapsed ruin for hundreds of years. The world they were built for, the war they were constructed to fight in is over. Their entire purpose was fighting said war. Think Mandalorian meets Captain America.


We have someone like this in our current game. His warforged was a Brelish sailor (more of a rower) that went overboard during a naval battle and sunk like a rock. He spent the next couple of decades wandering in the depths (relatively shallow depths...) listening to the whispering of the Devourer (or just his own insanity) and finding his calling as a cleric before emerging from the sea to find the Last War was over.

Do note that warforged of the type that can be PC have only existed in the Eberron setting for around 30 years, so the "lost time" isn't going to be centuries unless you allow for time travel.

[Zhorn]

Do note that warforged of the type that can be PC have only existed in the Eberron setting for around 30 years, so the "lost time" isn't going to be centuries unless you allow for time travel.
That's assuming this is for a Eberron campaign.
The concept for that character was given to me for my Forgotten Realms game. Refluffing origins is a minor detail, barely a restriction.
For my game, the character was lined up to be a construct from the Netheril Empire, giving us hundreds of years to work with.

And if elyktsorb is setting up for an Eberron game, such an inconsistency could make for an interesting mystery to solve: A warforged that predates the other warforged. Where did it come from? Who built it? Is it even native to this world/plane? The player won't know, giving the DM room to work in some personal adventure hooks.

[Pex]

I play a warforged artificer. I define myself as a magic item.

[elyktsorb]

This isn't for an Eberron specific campaign I shall add.

[Justin Sane]

Warforged Moon Druid: "Dinobots, roll out!"

Warforged Lore Bard: Unit Designation - W.I.K.I.

Warforged Dragon Sorcerer: HOW?

[JNAProductions]

Warforged Moon Druid: "Dinobots, roll out!"

Warforged Lore Bard: Unit Designation - W.I.K.I.

Warforged Dragon Sorcerer: HOW?

Magic! :P

[elyktsorb]

Magic! :P

Actually this could imply that there are dragon bones, or scales, built into the construct in some way that would lend to being a Dragon Sorcerer

[JNAProductions]

Actually this could imply that there are dragon bones, or scales, built into the construct in some way that would lend to being a Dragon Sorcerer

Sounds like witchcraft to me.

For extra fun, include a still-beating dragon heart!

[Azuresun]

Well the least Warforged like class seems like druid tbh, but I've played a lot of Druid already, and that honestly seems a bit too on the nose for a character imo.

Maybe something like Bastion from Overwatch (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=to8yh83jlXg)? After a battle in a forest, the character was disabled but not killed, and left behind in the chaos. Years or decades passed as they lay there, plants growing on them and animals using their body as shelter. Their slumbering mind gained an intimate connection with the natural world--and indeed, the stone, metal and wood that makes up their body is arguably closer to nature than humanoid flesh.

Eventually, a friendly druid got them back on their feet, and they decided they wanted to learn more about this newfound bond with nature.

[elyktsorb]

Maybe something like Bastion from Overwatch (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=to8yh83jlXg)? After a battle in a forest, the character was disabled but not killed, and left behind in the chaos. Years or decades passed as they lay there, plants growing on them and animals using their body as shelter. Their slumbering mind gained an intimate connection with the natural world--and indeed, the stone, metal and wood that makes up their body is arguably closer to nature than humanoid flesh.

Eventually, a friendly druid got them back on their feet, and they decided they wanted to learn more about this newfound bond with nature.

If I were to do a Warforged Druid, it would likely be something like this. But I am just a little tired of Druids at the moment. That and I also feel like I'd want to not let a Warforged use Wildshape, sort of takes away from the narrative of not being like a living creature if they can just turn into living creatures. I mean I could always fluff it into mechanical versions, but at that point I'd likely not even bother.

[CTurbo]

I always wanted to play a Warforged Moon Druid and wildshape into mechanical animals

I think an Envoy Warforged Forge Cleric with your Smith tools integrated into your body would be really good and thematic.

[Phhase]

Right now, I'm playing a warforged Alchemist/Barbarian. He's a robo-supremacist with a grudge against humans. His rage is almost like a separate person, and he get levels based on how he solves problems. He's pretty cool!

Other ideas...

-Literally Heavy Metal Bard

-If you're allowed homebrew, my Machinist Artificer lets you be Skynet

-Necromancer, for making cyberpunk techno-zombies

-Wild Soul Barbarian to just be an overloading nuclear reactor and infinite spell battery. Add some nice lightning flavor to your rage effects.

-Nomad Mystic to REALLY be Google (The flavor is literally that you connect to the Internet of brains)

-Clockwork Soul Sorcerer, because obviously.

I also had an idea about an Artificer/Forge Cleric Warforged Juggernaut that piled on STR in order to be able to wield a LITERAL CANNON. Then used Artificer to make all kinds of crazy shell types.

[Misterwhisper]

I played a warforged forge cleric whose life goal was simple, the warforged are a race with no god, so he will make one.

He gathered his people and led them on years of crafting and mining to create a body for their god.

People called him a fanatic until he accomplished his goal and then they called him The Great Progenitor, because the last piece of creating his god was to give it a mind, so he gave it his.

He sacrificed himself to become the god of his people.