Gothic horror class

[Jawsisashark]

Hey

I'm looking to see in your all opinions what class would fit a goth/horror character

The setting is also like a gothic/from dark setting

[JackPhoenix]

None. D&D is, at its core, about beating up monsters. Despite the existence of Ravenloft, it's not good at gothic horror, and the GM would have to work against the system's expectations more than working with them.
Unless by "gothic horror" you mean "we'll be beating up werewolves and vampires instead of orcs and dragons", play a different game instead.

[Sorinth]

Any class can work though some sub-classes are naturally better fits. The big question to ask is how magical the setting will be, specifically in regards to how player spellcasting will be regarded by the normal populace. If most NPCs are going to associate magic with being evil/evil adjacent then that's going to inform my choices. But also keep in mind casting powerful spells as a PC does somewhat break the horror elements/theme.

All that said I'd be tempted to go with a Spore Druid with a scientist background, they got infected with the spores while conducting research on them and at least initially is adventuring to find a way to cure themselves. I'd self limit my spell selection to spells where it can be themed to be coming from the spores. I'm on the fence about using Wildshape directly, I can see the case for any self-targeted magic to be another type of spore magic. Same kind of goes with Find Familiar, it would probably be my pet cat/bird that also got infected by the spores, so if I can wildshape then no issue with them also changing forms, but if I were to limit myself then I'd also limit the familiar to the one form as well.

[herrhauptmann]

What won't work with gothic horror:


Clerics, Wizards, and Sorcerers. Full casters are too powerful and have too many ways to just negate or bypass the circumstances that create the horror feel.
Barbarians. Ignoring all fear and charging forward into melee doesn't work in a gothic horror.
Any high level character. Even nonmagical classes like a champion fighter are so durable at mid-high levels that there's very little which is actually scary to them, unless you hit them with a monster well beyond their level.
Battlemaps. Once the maps come out, it's a tactical game and the story/setting effects take a backseat to tactical positioning.
Spending a hit die on a short rest for healing. Fully healing overnight. Look at Bram Stokers Dracula. The suitors and Van Helsing had no magical abilities beyond holding up a cross to ward off a monster. And I think Helsing could use eucharist wafers to ward doors against vampiric intrusion. As a result, combat was extremely risky to them, knowing that death is just moments away (1 round of combat) at all times ramps up the tension.




Gothic horror from wikipedia;

Gothic fiction is characterized by an environment of fear, the threat of supernatural events, and the intrusion of the past upon the present.[2][3] The setting typically includes physical reminders of the past, especially through ruined buildings which stand as proof of a previously thriving world which is decaying in the present.[4] Especially in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, characteristic settings include castles, religious buildings like monasteries and convents, and crypts. The atmosphere is typically claustrophobic, and common plot elements include vengeful persecution, imprisonment, and murder.

A rampaging dragon might be scary, but it's not horror. It takes a very skilled DM to create that feel, and players that are willing to go along with it.

eta:
You'll usually want to shoe-horn in some Horror or Madness rules. Using divination spells/abilities like a paladin or a ranger should trigger "They're all around us man, we're dead!" Every time they're used. Enough of those in a horror setting the character would be reduced to a permanent gibbering mess and sent to an asylum. Such an effect doesn't work in heroic fantasy.

[Unoriginal]

Hey

I'm looking to see in your all opinions what class would fit a goth/horror character

The setting is also like a gothic/from dark setting

Warlock is the most obvious one, but like the others have said horror is more of a thematic.

It is difficult to do horror in D&D, but if you manage then any class will do.

Gothic horror being about the past, characters like Ancestral Barbarians or Sorcerers can also fit without too much troubles.

It is true that if you want a true gothic horror experience, a different game would be better. Like the RPG called Raven, based on the works of Poe.

[Mastikator]

An important thing to keep in mind in gothic horror D&D is that D&D player characters are still heroic protagonists. What that means is that a player character in a gothic horror campaign should be vampire hunters, warlocks who regularly trick demons and overtly righteous paladins who are beacons of light in a sea of darkness.

An example of what gothic horror DND would look like is The Witcher series, Geralt is on the good side and he only looks a bit scary until you see the Striga he has to fight.

Alchemist thematically fits for artificer as someone who makes potions against monsters.
Zealot and Ancestral guardian could both work for barbarian, but IMO I think barbarian is wrong for gothic horror. This is the guy who dies first. So maybe Zealot since death is an inconvenience from 5th level (if you have a cleric).
A cleric is a staple, but they're often relegated to the side. Any good cleric would work: grave, life, light, peace, knowledge.
For fighter I think battlemaster is just fine.
Ancients, Devotion, Redemption and Vengeance all work for the paladin. It might not be too bad to have a knight in shining armor to act as a beacon of light in a sea of darkness in a gothic horror story. But these guys usually die half way through in the stories.
Gloom stalker and Monster Slayer fits thematically for ranger. This is basically your quintessential vampire hunter.
Any rogue can work if you play them as investigators/detectives primarily, think medieval noir here. Think Johnny Depp from Sleepy Hollow.
Warlock can work, but you basically have to be some variant of Constantine, using the forces of evil against evil. You study the undead, fiends and monsters to kill them, not to use them. And the same goes for wizard.

[Bobthewizard]

DnD works just fine for gothic horror, but I suspect it works better at lower levels.

Any classes work but Mastikator gave some good themes. I'm playing in a game right now that's very horror-themed. We have a Monster Slayer Ranger, Alchemist Artificer, a Barbarian, a Light Cleric, and a Bladesinger.

The DM makes fights deadly to overwhelming. There hasn't been one yet that we can just run in and attack. Either swarms of skeletons, zombies or wolves that we need to stay away from, or right now we just got surprised by a Helmed Horror and a fire-breathing Gargoyle, while something else is trying to break down the door to join them. We're level 3.

DM doesn't let us just rest whenever we want, or we'll get attacked. We need to find a secure location and those are hard to find. The house rules are needing to make a CON save during a long rest or you gain nothing from it, and getting a level of exhaustion every time you come back from 0HP. I think we could have done without those two rules, but they definitely give the game some extra urgency and caution.

[herrhauptmann]

DM doesn't let us just rest whenever we want, or we'll get attacked. We need to find a secure location and those are hard to find.

I joined a Curse of Strahd campaign partway through with a wizard. Bringing in Leomunds Tiny Hut was a game changer for the party. We typically still kept watches because it wasn't foolproof, but a full night's rest was much more likely, and fighting a night ambush in just your pajamas wasn't an issue anymore.

[Psyren]

Horror is difficult to do in D&D because D&D is based on empowerment (particularly 5e's default tone of Heroic Fantasy), while horror is based on disempowerment. But it's not impossible.

There are variant rules you can weave into 5e to increase its horror feel by disempowering players. "Gritty Realism" rest rules and Slow Natural Healing will force them to ration their resources, capping their level while pitting them against powerful threats (some of which they will have to run or hide from - just make sure doing that is generally possible), and adding in Lingering Injuries makes engaging in even winning combats a much more dangerous proposition. You can also layer on systems like Sanity or Corruption.

Presumably in conjunction with these adjustments, you would also communicate to the players that you're moving away from D&D's base assumption of Heroic Fantasy to something less empowering, and get their buy-in.

[Sorinth]

A Dhampir Zealot Barbarian works well, you are essentially Frankenstein's Monster. It can work with or without another player as the Dr. Frankenstein who created you and has the Revivify spell.

With a bit of work from either you or the DM a Wild Magic sorcerer could be very interesting. The Wild Magic surge table can/should be modified to better fit a horror theme, which doesn't specifically mean more bad things and less good things since using supernatural for power but there's an unforseen cost is on brand for a horror game. But I would change the more comedic ones like turning blue or have a beard of feathers, but no issue with keeping the ones like your hair falls out, especially if it's done in a way where you don't know if it's actually a nothing effect or the first signs that you actually have a disease/curse which certainly should be added as options. Wild magic sorcerer can also work well as the kind of "Blood Mage" type magic system by modifying the table suitably. Wild Magic sorcerer also works well if fluffed as a GOO Warlock, you are playing/using powers that come from some eldritch being but you don't fully understand or control that power.

[Leon]

See if you can find a copy of the 3.5e Book Heroes of Horror. Has a whole lot of info for running a horror game that should broadly translate to the current edition

[Derges]

Hey

I'm looking to see in your all opinions what class would fit a goth/horror character

The setting is also like a gothic/from dark setting

A lore bard who only recites Edgar Allan Poe the father of all goths. Take spooky/edgy/dark spells, cutting words and vicious mockery are your bread and butter.

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQlFGiLzjfq-VJFhffIifOPqzFwykYEJ6bSIw&usqp=CAU

[JonBeowulf]

My 2 cp, none. Running a challenging game within the framework of 5e can be difficult enough. No need to try to run a challenging game that goes against the framework.

Use something built for that genre. Call of Cthulhu is almost as old as D&D (1ed released in 1981) and they released 7ed a few years ago. CoC makes it very easy for the GM to max player stress. Physical combat is terrifyingly risky, casting spells can mess you up, and darn near everything you see is a shock to your sense of reality.

For space horror, here's a plug for Alien RPG (https://freeleaguepublishing.com/games/alien/). The stress mechanic is a nice add and two modes of play allow you to run a plot-driven storyline or an open campaign with much more freedom. If you've seen the movies, you know how the game sessions will go.

[Psyren]

Some of the subclasses for each class that lend themselves mechanically to darker theming (incomplete list):


Barbarian: Berserker, Beast, Zealot
Bard: Lore, Whispers, Spirits
Cleric: Grave/Death, Trickery, Twilight
Druid: Spores, Land (less hospitable biomes)
Monk: Mercy, Shadow, Long Death
Paladin: Oathbreaker, Conquest, Vengeance
Ranger: Gloomstalker, Swarmkeeper, Fey Wanderer (fear focus)
Rogue: Assassin, Soulknife, Phantom
Sorcerer: Aberrant Mind, Shadow, Divine Soul (evil)
Warlock: Any
Wizard: Necromancy, Conjuration (fiend focus), Scribes (necrotic/poison/psychic focus)


Again, this isn't intended to imply subclasses not listed can't be dark, but it might get the juices flowing as a starting point.

[Warlock'sFriend]

If you're asking about spooky classes, then I would say that each class can be spooky if you use the right subclass.

Artificer - Alchemist or Battlesmith with the Steel Defender reflavored as a flesh golem.

Barbarian - Ancestral Guardian (alternatively go Storm Barbarian as a Reborn for peak Frankenstein Monster flavor)

Bard - College of Spirits (alternatively go College of Whispers and model them off of the Phantom of the Opera)

Cleric - Domains of Death or Grave

Druid - Circle of Spores

Fighter - No real spooky subclass for these friends, so it will come down to how you flavor whatever you pick.

Monk - Way of the Long Death

Paladin - Oathbreaker or the Oaths of Vengence or Conquest will be the spookiest. But you can go Devotion for Belmont vibes or Ancients for Green Knight flavor.

Ranger - Monster Hunter is probably best for Van Helsing vibes, but Gloomstalker is also peak spooky.

Rogue - Phantom

Sorcerer - Shadow

Warlock - Fiend, Undead, or Hexblade are probably best, but any can fit since warlocks are naturally spooky.

Wizard - Necromancer

[Arkhios]

If you're asking about spooky classes, then I would say that each class can be spooky if you use the right subclass.

Artificer - Alchemist or Battlesmith with the Steel Defender reflavored as a flesh golem.

Barbarian - Ancestral Guardian (alternatively go Storm Barbarian as a Reborn for peak Frankenstein Monster flavor)

Bard - College of Spirits (alternatively go College of Whispers and model them off of the Phantom of the Opera)

Cleric - Domains of Death or Grave

Druid - Circle of Spores

Fighter - No real spooky subclass for these friends, so it will come down to how you flavor whatever you pick.

Monk - Way of the Long Death

Paladin - Oathbreaker or the Oaths of Vengence or Conquest will be the spookiest. But you can go Devotion for Belmont vibes or Ancients for Green Knight flavor.

Ranger - Monster Hunter is probably best for Van Helsing vibes, but Gloomstalker is also peak spooky.

Rogue - Phantom

Sorcerer - Shadow

Warlock - Fiend, Undead, or Hexblade are probably best, but any can fit since warlocks are naturally spooky.

Wizard - Necromancer

All good suggestions, to be sure, but one thing stood out; I wouldn't say it's necessary to reflavor steel defender as a flesh golem. Just describe it as a helmed horror; a soot-black horned steel humanoid shaped apparatus with flaming red eyes and joints.