Swarm of Ravens MMp.339 Polymorph/etc Build?

[nalgarryn]

So the Transmutation school in 5e gives the wizard the ability to cast the Polymorph spell once per rest but you can only be a CR 1 or less beast (without using a spell slot, 3/day).

I went looking and the most fun looking thing I found was a Swarm of Ravens (CR 1/4) on MM p.339. Turning into a swarm of ravens is actually pretty cool so I thought they must surely be a better way to get this ability than 10 levels of wizard and being able to do it once per rest (3/day).

Are there any suggestions on builds which allow shifting into swarms, or are radically different (non-shifter) but would be able to pick this without much loss?

Thanks in advance.

[JackPhoenix]

Unfortunately, you can't change into a swarm. It's not a beast, it's a swarm of beasts.

Otherwise, Polymorph would be available from level 7, and druids can wildshape into flying animals at level 8.

[Segev]

It’s home brew, but the post this comes from is a warlock pact:


Heart of the Swarm
Prerequisite: Mask of Insignificance, or a Pact of the Skin beast-form that is a Tiny creature.
When you assume the form of a Tiny Beast, you may instead cause your form to dissolve into a swarm of them. You use the same rules as for your Pact of the Skin form, save that the statistics you adopt are those of the swarm of appropriate Tiny Beasts, and that, if your swarm form is reduced to 0 hp, it scatters and any excess damage carries over to your Tiny Beast form, which is left solo. Each time you assume swarm form, it has the hp it had when you last left it. If your swarm form was reduced to 0 hp, you cannot assume it (or any other swarm form) until you complete a Long Rest.

You’d probably have to make a home brew spell, otherwise.