What should I play?

[CMCC]

Party comp (all lvl 7)

Half orc ancestral barb
Blaster Sorlock
Moon Druid

Campaign: OOTA

I’m currently a bladesinger. We’re nearly 30 sessions into this campaign and we have not leveled yet. Sessions are generally 2 hours.

For story reasons and my own sanity I’ll be switching characters soon.

I want something fun to play and something we haven’t had in our party before (but this isn’t necessarily a deal breaker). We’ve had a lot of people pass through this campaign.

2 Paladins (vengeance and conquerer)
Eloquence Bard
Swashbuckler Rogue
Another barbarian

NO MONKS please :)

I have an idea for a character who has been stuck in the underdark for like 30+ years and has taken to talking to some unseen person, which should make for some fun RP.

Lots of options for that I think. Paralysis by analysis.

[quindraco]

We’re nearly 30 sessions into this campaign and we have not leveled yet. Sessions are generally 2 hours.

What the hell? This is officially the strangest thing I've seen on the internet all week. Each of those sentences is WTF material on its own. Both at the same time is mind-blowing.

[CMCC]

What the hell? This is officially the strangest thing I've seen on the internet all week. Each of those sentences is WTF material on its own. Both at the same time is mind-blowing.

2 hr sessions?

Lack of leveling is…. not good. We started the campaign at level 6 (instead of 1; continuing after Lost Mine) and the DM didn’t adjust enemies at all, so we get like 50-250 xp a session at best.

[Kvess]

I think you gave us all the information about your campaign, except the details that can help you pick a character. What roles do you enjoy playing? Why did you want to switch characters? Why don’t you want to play a monk?

With a Moon Druid, an ancestral Barbarian, and a Sorcerer/Warlock, you could pretty much play anything. Between the Barbarian and the Moon Druid, I’d be tempted to suggest a Cleric to give them more support and staying power. If you want to be on the front line, a Conquest Paladin could be interesting in the campaign. You could also take advantage of the damage mitigation from the ancestral Barbarian and enter the fray with a squishier class, like a rogue or ranger.

[CMCC]

I think you gave us all the information about your campaign, except the details that can help you pick a character. What roles do you enjoy playing? Why did you want to switch characters? Why don’t you want to play a monk?

With a Moon Druid, an ancestral Barbarian, and a Sorcerer/Warlock, you could pretty much play anything. Between the Barbarian and the Moon Druid, I’d be tempted to suggest a Cleric to give them more support and staying power. If you want to be on the front line, a Conquest Paladin could be interesting in the campaign. You could also take advantage of the damage mitigation from the ancestral Barbarian and enter the fray with a squishier class, like a rogue or ranger.

What roles do you enjoy playing?

Doesn’t matter for this thought experiment. Curious about others thoughts. I would say I don’t want to outshine the other players at what they do - because they’re mostly new players who don’t think much about D&D.

Why did you want to switch characters?

30 sessions at the same level has me wanting to try out other characters. We had 4 full spellcasters at one point which was interesting. Lost a spellcaster and replaced with the barb - so I figure I should maybe fill a different role than a high damage dealing/ full spell casting bladesinger. Ie I’m too good. I’ve resorted to making my 18 int character into a knucklehead to add some fun and make him mess up some of the time. I really don’t like being good at everything. I could go on and on here.

Why don’t you want to play a monk?

Monks suck.


Ranger is my top choice right now. But I keep going back and forth on subclasses and then fighter subclasses when that extra feat comes into play.

I always have a terrible time picking characters.

[OldTrees1]

We’re nearly 30 sessions into this campaign and we have not leveled yet. Sessions are generally 2 hours.

...

I have an idea for a character who has been stuck in the underdark for like 30+ years and has taken to talking to some unseen person, which should make for some fun RP.


I would say I don’t want to outshine the other players at what they do - because they’re mostly new players who don’t think much about D&D.

...

Why did you want to switch characters?

30 sessions at the same level has me wanting to try out other characters.

...

Ranger is my top choice right now. But I keep going back and forth on subclasses and then fighter subclasses when that extra feat comes into play.

Sounds like you want a Ranger that was stuck in the underdark. They can join the party for 30 sessions and then you can switch to another idea.

Someone that is stuck in the underdark for a long time probably developed some natural lore just to understand how to survive.
Since you don't want to overshadow, I would avoid Gloomstalker. The invisibility might be a tad much.
Since you want to be talking to unseen person, I would avoid Beastmaster. The pet beast might distract from your RP.

I suggest the Hunter subclass. Your choice of Hunter's Prey could be used to elaborate on how your character has survived.
Colossus Slayer: You chased by tough/hardy beasts. The extra damage helped you against Earth Elementals.
Giant Killer: You were chased by sneaky enemies. The reactive attack helps you escape Hook Horrors.
Horde Breaker: You were chased by hordes. The extra attack helped you not be overwhelmed by Kobolds.

[Cheesegear]

I have an idea for a character who has been stuck in the underdark for like 30+ years and has taken to talking to some unseen person...

Recommended [Species/Race]:
- Dwarf/Mountain
- Elf/Drow
- Gnome/Rock

Do you want to play up that you've been surviving on your own?
- Artificer (Alechimst)
- Barbarian (any non-Totem, non-Storm Herald)
- Fighter (Battle Master)
- Ranger (Gloomstalker. If your party is full of dumb V.Humans, Halflings and Dragonborn that need Light to see things; Monster Slayer).
- Rogue (Scout)
- Paladin (Conquest)

Do you want to play up that you've been talking to someone the entire time?
- Druid (Dreams)
- Paladin (Ancients)
- Sorcerer (Aberrant Mind or Shadow)
- Warlock (any). Pact of the Chain.

[Unoriginal]

You could try out Psi Warrior. Plenty of psionic stuff in the Underdark.

[Cheesegear]

You could try out Psi Warrior. Plenty of psionic stuff in the Underdark.

If the idea is that the character starts at Level 7, the backstory can be that he survived eating Psi-brains.

...Intellect Devourer Devourer.

[Emongnome777]

My first thought was warlock, chain pact and take one that turns invisible. GOO would be thematic for a “a few marbles short” role-play.

What about a swarmkeeper ranger with the Druidic warrior fighting style? Add telekinetic feat and maybe that’s your invisible friend, along with the (unseen?) swarm. I think it sounds fun, but won’t win any damage competitions since you aren’t leaning into the archery / SS / CBE stuff. Just lots of forced movement with the occasional use of Spiked Growth for those “watch this!” moments. I’ve wanted to try this very thing but I was concerned about the round-to-round contribution when you aren’t using Spiked Growth.

[Contrast]

I want something fun to play and something we haven’t had in our party before

So lets limit ourselves to:
Artificer
Cleric
Fighter
Monk
Ranger

There's also Blood Hunter if that's an option or the wacky world of homebrew.

Given your party makeup and underdark setting I think I've be inclined to go for some sort of Van Helsing style monster hunter with hand crossbows (some sort of ranged fighter) or a cleric of some sort - either trying to bring light to the dark, or revelling in it.

You have made positive noises about ranger. The first character concept works as a ranger. Gloomstalker is obviously busted in the Underdark. Monster Slayer is obviously on theme. Swarmkeeper could be fun in the Underdark - lots of amusing things you could have a swarm of. Ranger 7 or Ranger5/Rogue2 are both nice options.

Cleric - Twilight has obvious benefits in terms of darkvision and the THP synergising well with barbarian and keeping your druids forms alive as Moon Druid is in a bit of a lull at level 7. Light could be entertaining given the setting. I personally have a soft spot for Knowledge and your team will be lacking in Int skills when your Bladesinger leaves I assume.

[KorvinStarmast]

Party comp (all lvl 7)
Swashbuckler Rogue (I'd suggest a half elf or drow, but it's up to you).

I have an idea for a character who has been stuck in the underdark for like 30+ years and has taken to talking to some unseen person, which should make for some fun RP.
I suggest that you also think through the PCs background.
What is it?

We had a Swashbuckler rogue in our giants campaign a few years ago. She was a great team mate.

[Man_Over_Game]

Hmm...

Gloomstalker with Blindsense? Not only do they synergize well together, but it'd tie in well with his "imaginary friend".

[CMCC]

You guys are amazing. Great ideas all around.


Hmm...

Gloomstalker with Blindsense? Not only do they synergize well together, but it'd tie in well with his "imaginary friend".

Blind fighting? Explain a bit more what you’re thinking here, please.

[Mitchellnotes]

What is it you didn't like about the bladesinger? That would be helpful to think through options that may appeal to you. If you are feeling a ranger, that may be a solid route to go!

If you liked the magic aspect, but not how bladesinger all comes together, artificier could be a good option as well. It also has some mechanical options that can mirror a ranger, but in different ways (melee, ranged with cantrips, having a pet, etc). At 7 you alsopick up flash of genius which is great party support. I think thinking of artificers as "magitek" is a bit of a mistake. You could easily think of infusions as runes or imbuing items in a specific way and less as high technology.

If you do go artificier, pipes of haunting are available and can be a good source of cheap battlefield control.

[CMCC]

What is it you didn't like about the bladesinger? That would be helpful to think through options that may appeal to you. If you are feeling a ranger, that may be a solid route to go!

If you liked the magic aspect, but not how bladesinger all comes together, artificier could be a good option as well. It also has some mechanical options that can mirror a ranger, but in different ways (melee, ranged with cantrips, having a pet, etc). At 7 you alsopick up flash of genius which is great party support. I think thinking of artificers as "magitek" is a bit of a mistake. You could easily think of infusions as runes or imbuing items in a specific way and less as high technology.

If you do go artificier, pipes of haunting are available and can be a good source of cheap battlefield control.

Bladesinger is great. I just haven't advanced, so I'm looking to try something else - to spice it up. I'll come back to this bladesinger later.

Artificer is definitely a great option here.

[Man_Over_Game]

You guys are amazing. Great ideas all around.



Blind fighting? Explain a bit more what you’re thinking here, please.

Gloomstalkers can't see enemies in magical Darkness, and can't see invisible creatures. Both are very common in the Underdark or other spooky places, and the creatures in those areas won't expect a foe that's both invisible to them AND can detect them in their preferred environment.

It could also tie into the fact that his friend occasionally visits him, which is how the Ranger knows that his friend is real. The Ranger might not know what he looks like, but he knows when his friend is near enough to communicate. Maybe the Ranger wasn't trained to be like this, maybe he's some kind of mutant that's adapted to the strange things in the underdark enough to survive. Or maybe he's a trained soldier that was isolated from his unit and was never able to return to civilization (making it so that it's hard to tell if the Ranger is insane or not). There're a lot of interesting ways you can play it and few bad answers. Really, the only reason it'd be a bad choice at all is if you didn't expect much darkness (mundane or magical) in the campaign.

[CMCC]

Gloomstalkers can't see enemies in magical Darkness, and can't see invisible creatures. Both are very common in the Underdark or other spooky places, and the creatures in those areas won't expect a foe that's both invisible to them AND can detect them in their preferred environment.

It could also tie into the fact that his friend occasionally visits him, which is how the Ranger knows that his friend is real. The Ranger might not know what he looks like, but he knows when his friend is near enough to communicate. Maybe the Ranger wasn't trained to be like this, maybe he's some kind of mutant that's adapted to the strange things in the underdark enough to survive. Or maybe he's a trained soldier that was isolated from his unit and was never able to return to civilization (making it so that it's hard to tell if the Ranger is insane or not). There're a lot of interesting ways you can play it and few bad answers. Really, the only reason it'd be a bad choice at all is if you didn't expect much darkness (mundane or magical) in the campaign.

Very interesting. Straight gloomstalker?

There’s something to be said about an insane echo knight that thinks his echo is another person.

So many options!

[Man_Over_Game]

Very interesting. Straight gloomstalker?

There’s something to be said about an insane echo knight that thinks his echo is another person.

So many options!

Why not both? A Gloomstalker/Echo Knight with Extra Attack can get like 7 attacks in the first turn of combat, two of which get +1d8 damage if they hit.

[CMCC]

Why not both? A Gloomstalker/Echo Knight with Extra Attack can get like 7 attacks in the first turn of combat, two of which get +1d8 damage if they hit.

I'm rolling it up now. The 4/3 split hurts. But I'll live. Action surge and GS extra attack on rd 1 definitely helps the lack of level 5 xtra attack.

I'll compare to a straight ranger, and a 6/1 battlemaster twilight cleric (which i strangely really like for some reason).


EDIT: Whoa just realized that blind fighting + fog cloud allows you to used range combat in melee. Nice little ranger combo there that works well with a fighter/ranger that already has archery.

[Contrast]

If you've spent 30 sessions without levelling up, I'd think really carefully about a build where you don't have extra attack until you pick up a level.

[CMCC]

If you've spent 30 sessions without levelling up, I'd think really carefully about a build where you don't have extra attack until you pick up a level.

Wiiiiiiiiiiise words

[Person_Man]

My suggestion is Cleric. If you're not leveling up, then the easiest way to change your game options is to just choose new spells when you feel like it when you take a Long Rest. Domain obviously depends on your preferred style and what splat books are available. For level 7, my suggestions would be Peace or Orders. Your race choice will depend on your Domain choice and whether your DM actually pays attention to illumination rules/darkvision.

[CMCC]

Session 28 tonight and we had our first player level up. Woohoo!:cool: