Selion
2023-07-02, 05:30 AM
Hi, just began curse of strahd (PLS no spoilers of any kind) with a shadow sorcerer, looking for thematic and strong spells.
I expect to encounter a lot of undead/werewolves, so my spell selection is affected accordingly, also, i'm planning my build until level 10, which could be the level cap in this campaign
I started with 18 cha (17 +1 from shadow touched via variant human)
so, lets dive in my actual plan
cantrips: mage hand, message, ray of frost, minor illusion, chill touch (level 4)
level 1: mage armor, shield, chaos bolt
level 2: suggestion, invisibility (from feat), darkness (from subclass), web
level 3: slow, lightning bolt, counterspell
level 4: dimension door
level 5: summon draconic spirit, synaptic static
(spells replaced)
Spells i'm undecided (2 left to select)
charm person, disguise self, detect thoughts, phantasmal force, charm monsters, gaseous form, greater invisibility, hold persons, hold monsters
spells which are strong but i think they don't fit thematically/mechanically with this character, or that simply i don't like:
polymorph, banishment, silvery barbs, animate objects, Hypnotic Pattern (this one could be selected in place of slow, but i think slow is funnier and less encounter-disruptive)
Metamagic
subtle spell, empowered spell (or transmuted spell)
Feats
shadow touched, ASI CHA, metamagic adept (quickened spell, extended spell) this one is good to reach 20 cha by level 4, metamagic adept is primarily for the 2 bonus sorc point
OR
shadow touched, telepathic, fey touched (bane)
Battle routine
Build comes inline by level 6, nova routine is opening with hound of ill omen + slow into lightning bolt(s) in subsequent rounds.
Some issues with this build
My first concern is that it doesn't feel shadowy enough, i sure can refluff some spells to fit the theme, but it seems still a little bland to me.
I have a single dmg spell, which is ok in 5e, i selected lightning bolt over fireball because i need to fire it in melee clusters to (ab)use my sweet hounds of ill omen. Still i fear resistances, i could take transmuted spell just in case, or just roll with it whenever i find something lightning resistant and enjoy empowered lightnings in most cases.
I've got no synergies for darkness, seeing into magical darkness on paper is a very strong perk, but simply there aren't enough spell attacks in 5e. If i take telepathic as a feat, i could use it defensively and tell my comrades what it's happening, but it still feels a situational use.
Hold persons/monsters have strong synergies with hound of ill omen, but they don't work on undead, so mbe it's better skip them in this campaign.
That's all, i'm a little upset with WOTC because they gave sorcerers such a narrow spell selection, come on, why a shadow sorcerer cannot summon shadow-spawns? where are my black tentacles?
BTW, any hint/suggestions?
I expect to encounter a lot of undead/werewolves, so my spell selection is affected accordingly, also, i'm planning my build until level 10, which could be the level cap in this campaign
I started with 18 cha (17 +1 from shadow touched via variant human)
so, lets dive in my actual plan
cantrips: mage hand, message, ray of frost, minor illusion, chill touch (level 4)
level 1: mage armor, shield, chaos bolt
level 2: suggestion, invisibility (from feat), darkness (from subclass), web
level 3: slow, lightning bolt, counterspell
level 4: dimension door
level 5: summon draconic spirit, synaptic static
(spells replaced)
Spells i'm undecided (2 left to select)
charm person, disguise self, detect thoughts, phantasmal force, charm monsters, gaseous form, greater invisibility, hold persons, hold monsters
spells which are strong but i think they don't fit thematically/mechanically with this character, or that simply i don't like:
polymorph, banishment, silvery barbs, animate objects, Hypnotic Pattern (this one could be selected in place of slow, but i think slow is funnier and less encounter-disruptive)
Metamagic
subtle spell, empowered spell (or transmuted spell)
Feats
shadow touched, ASI CHA, metamagic adept (quickened spell, extended spell) this one is good to reach 20 cha by level 4, metamagic adept is primarily for the 2 bonus sorc point
OR
shadow touched, telepathic, fey touched (bane)
Battle routine
Build comes inline by level 6, nova routine is opening with hound of ill omen + slow into lightning bolt(s) in subsequent rounds.
Some issues with this build
My first concern is that it doesn't feel shadowy enough, i sure can refluff some spells to fit the theme, but it seems still a little bland to me.
I have a single dmg spell, which is ok in 5e, i selected lightning bolt over fireball because i need to fire it in melee clusters to (ab)use my sweet hounds of ill omen. Still i fear resistances, i could take transmuted spell just in case, or just roll with it whenever i find something lightning resistant and enjoy empowered lightnings in most cases.
I've got no synergies for darkness, seeing into magical darkness on paper is a very strong perk, but simply there aren't enough spell attacks in 5e. If i take telepathic as a feat, i could use it defensively and tell my comrades what it's happening, but it still feels a situational use.
Hold persons/monsters have strong synergies with hound of ill omen, but they don't work on undead, so mbe it's better skip them in this campaign.
That's all, i'm a little upset with WOTC because they gave sorcerers such a narrow spell selection, come on, why a shadow sorcerer cannot summon shadow-spawns? where are my black tentacles?
BTW, any hint/suggestions?