how to level my character to 10th

[Skrum]

Current stats -
dhampir battle master fighter 3 genie efreet warlock 5
str 18
dex 10
con 14
int 8
wis 8
cha 16
feat: piercer
invocations: thirsting blade, imp pact weapon, eldritch smite

So. At some point I'll be leveling him to 10. I've narrowed down my options to

Option 1
Fighter 5 warlock 5
ASI: Lucky, Healer, or ASI (str +2)
Extra attack
Invocation (by freeing thirsting blade): Tomb of Levistus
Drop Imp Pact weapon, take Repelling Blast
Yes these invocation options are going to take a non-RAW respec, but I'm confident I'll be able to

Option 2
Fighter 4 warlock 6
ASI: Lucky, Healer, or ASI (str +2)
Resist fire, bonus action 30 ft fly speed PB/day
Drop Imp Pact Weapon, take Tomb of Levistus
Spells: Armor of Agathys

Option 3
Fighter 3 warlock 7
Invocation: Tomb of Levistus
Drop Imp Pact Weapon, take Repelling Blast
4th level spell slots
Spells: Fire Shield, Armor of Agathys

But I'm not totally sure what do here. I'm fairly sold on fighter 4 or fighter 5 over warlock 7 (the higher level spells are nice, but without getting more spell slots, it's putting a bit too many eggs in the tiny, still only have 2 spell slots basket)

I'm also open to other ideas, if someone sees an option that's even better

[Corran]

Option 3
Fighter 3 warlock 7
I'd go for this one. Generally speaking, I cannot think of anything that more battlemaster levels would offer any such built I can conceive, that would be better than aiming for more spells, invocations and spell slots.
I could understand taking fighter 4 for quicker access to feats, cause feats can be build defining and sometimes you just need one too much. But again, I would just select the route of patience here, cause I know that if I were to take fighter 4, then after a few levels I would regret this decision every other level.


Invocation: Tomb of Levistus
Good invocation.


Drop Imp Pact Weapon, take Repelling Blast
While I cannot say that it is objectively a mistake to diversify your at will damage, there are so many invocations that I like, that personally, I would never boost both weapon attacks and EB. I understand that having both is not a complete waste, as EB will eventually do more damage while also exerting some single target control, while the (x)bow can remain useful for nova purposes (the knock effect can be partially compensated by tripping attack since you are a battlemaster already). But as I said just before, there are so many good invocations, that I would just pick one at will option and I would stick with it.



4th level spell slots
Spells: Fire Shield, Armor of Agathys
Good if you play in melee, especially if you can leverage temp hp and/or weapon damage resistances. It will be difficult to rely on both of those while also having ES and fireball(/synaptic static; generally, a non concentration AoE). You need to be a little more selective here (I'd keep the non concentration AoE and one more of what was listed so far, along with some more situational options that can be of use without constantly depleting my resources; hence situational; something like dispel magic or counterspell). At warlock 11 you get a 3rd slot, aim for a 6th level arcanum and maybe a few lower (ie 5th and below) level spells with a high duration (concentration), so that you can have considerably more spare spell slots than you do now, with which you will be able to smite, fire shield, AoA, all that non concentration good stuff.


But I'm not totally sure what do here. I'm fairly sold on fighter 4 or fighter 5 over warlock 7 (the higher level spells are nice, but without getting more spell slots, it's putting a bit too many eggs in the tiny, still only have 2 spell slots basket)
Warlock 11 is certainly a big level. Aim for it (and then for warlock 13: forcecage, and then for warlock 15:special invocations, and then for warlock 17: true polymorph). It's not like the battlemaster levels will give you anything essential, at least I cannot think of anything. And it's not like triclassing is a good idea if we are talking about it from a "what if" point of view. Meanwhile toss out options you cannot afford slot wise for more situational ones and try to make the most of long durations spells if you know it's good to conserve sme spell slots for a fight that's up ahead).

[Hawk7915]

Depends a bit on your build goals and focuses. It looks like you are currently a "crit fisher" melee type, yeah? Piercer + Battlemaster + Eldritch Smite, to drop a wall of dice on enemies. If that's the case, more Warlock levels pay off faster by grabbing Shadows of Moil for perma-advantage every encounter (making it tougher to smite, but easier to hit and crit). A concentration-free fly speed is also a big deal from Genie 6, especially for a melee-focused warrior. Fighter won't meaningfully improve your fishing until Fighter 11 for that 3rd attack per round. Seems like you're less a blaster (Str > Cha) and not a tank (Dhampir Battlemaster with Piercer is an awesome tank, but your Con isn't high enough to reliably lean on your Empowered Bite).

The real call is if you are dipping Warlock or heavier fighter. Basically, are you committing to gunning for Fighter 11+ for that extra attack? If not, I agree with above and would primary Warlock. If you were mostly spamming Empowered Bites, I might look more favorably on fighter but for your build I think it takes too long to get more power out of Fighter levels. For Warlock in particular of all the casters, I find you're either dipping or going to 17. Genie Warlocks have an extra reason to go for 17, as the only Warlocks to get Wish on their spell list. I really do think Warlock 7/Fighter 3 is the aim, for Flight + 4th level spells (with Wall of Fire and Shadows of Moil being a lot hotter than other options). Eventually, you'll get more pact slots at Warlock 11 which will make it easier to Shadows every encounter (unless Fireball/Wall of Fire/Armor of Agathys/etc is more effective) while still having a slot to smite with.

[Corran]

It looks like you are currently a "crit fisher" melee type, yeah? Piercer + Battlemaster + Eldritch Smite, to drop a wall of dice on enemies.
Ah, this makes more sense. I saw piercer and immediately thought ranged. I saw IPW and immediately thought longbow. I also initially mistook STR to be an 8. Yikes.

[Skrum]

thanks for the advice!

I wouldn't call him a crit fisher per se, he has no way to increase the chance he crits. I'd say he's more built to offer a lot, offensively speaking. He does have fireball, so he can deal with large packs of enemies (yes the DC is lowish, but since he uses it on packs of lessor enemies, it doesn't much matter. Fireball is fireball). Against single targets, he has eldritch smite and maneuvers. Just a very potent build, offensively speaking. And yes his crits go hard.

OK so while I don't know for sure that the game won't go higher than 10, 10 is definitely the "cap" as of now. If he were to ever progress beyond 10, it wouldn't be any time soon. Does that change anyone's opinion?

From my perspective, I like the getting a feat, and if I can get Tomb of Levistus (he really needs to the defensive option), well I'm not seeing a terribly compelling reason to go warlock. But, if he does go beyond 10, getting up to warlock 11 ASAP is really important.

[RogueJK]

While Tomb of Levistus does give you a defensive option, keep in mind that it costs you your entire next turn. You're totally Incapacitated until the end of your next turn, and your Movement is 0. So that's a pretty steep price to pay for negating some incoming damage. So if you're getting pounded by an enemy, you get encased in ice to absorb some damage, but are rooted in that spot until the turn after next, allowing that enemy to continue to beat on you for the remainder of that turn plus their next turn while you can't do anything about it. The ice's 50-70 Temp only lasts until the end of your next turn, which leaves an entire enemy turn after that where you're fully unprotected again and were unable to get away or do anything about the situation during your intervening turn.

Whereas if you have a healer on your team, you could take the full damage, drop to 0 HP, get Healing Worded to pop back up, and then still act normally on your next turn, including either getting away or continuing to dish out damage to put that enemy down.

As a result, I honestly think Tomb of Levistus is a trap option, outside of some niche non-combat uses (like hurling yourself off a cliff and then absorbing the fall damage with your ice tomb)


Therefore, consider other defensive options. For example, the Inspiring Leader feat would allow you and your allies to gain 13 Temp HP after every short or long rest. That's more Temp HP throughout the adventuring day than Tomb of Levistus, although not all at once or on one character alone, but it carries over longer than 1 turn. And it doesn't eat your entire turn(s).

So while I agree that 3/7 is the best overall option, in this particular case since you're wanting to improve your defenses, I'd actually shoot for 4/6 to grab Inspiring Leader.