Greetings, to all that read this thread. I will attempt to make my point brief.
I am attempting to get into Dungeons and Dragons, for I have an aunt who adores the game.
The character I planned on creating is Urkrar, a Half-Orc fighter, and the chief of his tribe.
I have been heavily researching how to create fighter characters, and I am confident in the character I am creating, but I found two issues that have held me back. Please note that I have not played the game or used a Character Sheet at this point.
The proficiences for a fighter are: Acrobatics, Animal Handling, Athletics, History, Insight, Intimidation, Perception, and Survival. I am unsure of which two to choose from, for I like all of them save for Acrobatics. I am aware that Half-Orcs gain proficiency in Intimidation, but is this a sign that I should make Intimidation one of my proficiences, or could choosing another to focus on be better in the long run?
Another issue I have is that I keep changing my mind over what ability scores I should focus on.
My two questions would be:
What would be the best order of ability scores from highest to lowest for a Half-Orc fighter? (In other words, should I give the highest ability scores to Strength and Constitution or to other abilities?)
What two proficiencies should I focus on?
Thank you, to all who attach what could be helpful messages to this thread.
ok, first thing, you do not need to choose Intimidation as Half Orcs gain that automatically. (in addition to your Fighter proficiencies)
second, I would certainly recommend Strength and Constitution as focal attributes for your fighter.
Finally, choosing your proficiencies is a personal thing and there is no wrong way to go. When I imagine a half orc fighter I lean towards Athletics or Perception first and possibly Survival as a second choice (based on your tribal background).
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Perpetually annoyed that Eldritch Knights can't use Eldritch Blast, Eldritch Smite, and Eldritch Sight.
I considered Insight and Perception, both of which require Wisdom. I intend on making Wisdom my third-highest Attitude Score.
I found your suggestions to be helpful.
By the way, I am making a custom miniature of my character using Hero Forge. Can I send a depiction of Urkrar unpainted?
Also, can I gain an extra proficiency by leveling up? If I can, I will add Athletics.
I have my idea on where I should distribute my Ability Scores. They could be, from highest to lowest: Strength, Wisdom, Constitution, Charisma, Intelligence (my favorite trait but the least-useful one in D&D), and Dexterity.
What alignment could my character have? I wanted Lawful Neutral (Lawful because he is a chief and Neutral because he has a harsh attitude towards humans, but he wants to work with them), but this may seem unusual for a Half-Orc.
Oh no, I have another question. Should my character learn the language of Giants or Goblins?
Is 7'6 too tall for a Half-Orc? If it is, what height would be great for Urkrar?
characters don't gain additional proficiencies for levelling up, unless the class/subclass they gain a level in states that a proficiency is gained (I don't recall any of these for fighters).
Something else to remember is that you gain proficiencies from THREE sources:
Your race - in this case half-orc gain Intimidation.
Your class - in this case Fighter. As you summarised above, you get to choose two proficiencies from a list of 8.
Your background - most backgrounds grant another two skill proficiencies.
From what you described, I think that the Outlander background sounds like a good fit for the character. This would grant proficiency in Athletics and Survival as well as a musical instrument of your choice and another language of your choice.
The rules also state that you can customize these as you see fit, but for your first character, I strongly suggest picking one of the existing backgrounds. You could change the musical instrument for proficiency in some tools for example. :)
So, you could end up with the following, which I think covers most of the choices you were looking at:
Thank you very much, Stormknight. I found your comment to be incredibly enlightening. However, I decided to research the Outlander backstory, and although it contains the Proficiencies I want, it does not fit my character. Can I be informed of the Uthgardt Tribe Member backstory?
My character is a young chieftain who is called to adventure because he has a hostile relationship with humans and he wants to gain the trust of humans. His relationship with humans is hostile because he attempted to sign a peace treaty between his tribe and the humans, but a group of rebel humans destroyed his camp and, when they were caught, they were not executed.
I apologize. I forgot about the message you sent. I still do not know which two of the four skills: Athletics, Insight, Perception, and Strength, I should choose. I like all of them equally, but I cannot be an Outsider because that does not fit well for my character.
My character is a chief that respects his people; he is an independent, but he lives with his tribe. He can be savage and easy to irritate, but he is wise and he has a strong heart. He is not disrespectful or selfish. His flaw is that he cannot trust humans well, but he wants to. He is split between human morals and orc impulses; intelligence and reasoning or barbarism and excessive stimulation. He is not similar to Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Rather, he wants both sides, the good and the evil, to be mixed, but he does not know how; he cannot separate them but he cannot join them. To make things even more difficult, he has two love interests, a human rogue and an orc warrior.
As suggested, discuss your ideas with your DM - the Outlander background merely means that the character isn't experienced with towns and cities, having spent life in tribal life.
You're allowed within the rules to vary the background as you need though to fit how you want to play the character - it seems you have a strong idea of that, so you're off to a very good start.
You have provided nothing but the most significant and informative of advice. I thank you once again. I will enjoy my time in Dungeons and Dragons. You have taught me plenty and prepared me for epic adventures. I shall begin my first quest on my birthday, which is the last day of this month, when I receive my miniature. By the way, I am turning fifteen.
Wish me the best of luck as I traverse through unknown lands and venture inside lost caves plagued with monsters and treasures that will bring eternal wealth.
"Where words fail, swords prevail. Where blood is spilled, my cup is filled" -Cartaphilus
"I have found the answer to the meaning of life. You ask me what the answer is? You already know what the answer to life is. You fear it more than the strike of a viper, the ravages of disease, the ire of a lover. The answer is always death. But death is a gentle mistress with a sweet embrace, and you owe her a debt of restitution. Life is not a gift, it is a loan."
Greetings, to all that read this thread. I will attempt to make my point brief.
I am attempting to get into Dungeons and Dragons, for I have an aunt who adores the game.
The character I planned on creating is Urkrar, a Half-Orc fighter, and the chief of his tribe.
I have been heavily researching how to create fighter characters, and I am confident in the character I am creating, but I found two issues that have held me back. Please note that I have not played the game or used a Character Sheet at this point.
The proficiences for a fighter are: Acrobatics, Animal Handling, Athletics, History, Insight, Intimidation, Perception, and Survival. I am unsure of which two to choose from, for I like all of them save for Acrobatics. I am aware that Half-Orcs gain proficiency in Intimidation, but is this a sign that I should make Intimidation one of my proficiences, or could choosing another to focus on be better in the long run?
Another issue I have is that I keep changing my mind over what ability scores I should focus on.
My two questions would be:
Thank you, to all who attach what could be helpful messages to this thread.
Welcome, you are in for a lifetime of enjoyment.
ok, first thing, you do not need to choose Intimidation as Half Orcs gain that automatically. (in addition to your Fighter proficiencies)
second, I would certainly recommend Strength and Constitution as focal attributes for your fighter.
Finally, choosing your proficiencies is a personal thing and there is no wrong way to go. When I imagine a half orc fighter I lean towards Athletics or Perception first and possibly Survival as a second choice (based on your tribal background).
Perpetually annoyed that Eldritch Knights can't use Eldritch Blast, Eldritch Smite, and Eldritch Sight.
Thank you very much, good sir.
I considered Insight and Perception, both of which require Wisdom. I intend on making Wisdom my third-highest Attitude Score.
I found your suggestions to be helpful.
By the way, I am making a custom miniature of my character using Hero Forge. Can I send a depiction of Urkrar unpainted?
Also, can I gain an extra proficiency by leveling up? If I can, I will add Athletics.
I have my idea on where I should distribute my Ability Scores. They could be, from highest to lowest: Strength, Wisdom, Constitution, Charisma, Intelligence (my favorite trait but the least-useful one in D&D), and Dexterity.
What alignment could my character have? I wanted Lawful Neutral (Lawful because he is a chief and Neutral because he has a harsh attitude towards humans, but he wants to work with them), but this may seem unusual for a Half-Orc.
Oh no, I have another question. Should my character learn the language of Giants or Goblins?
Is 7'6 too tall for a Half-Orc? If it is, what height would be great for Urkrar?
Many of your choices are personal based on how you view your character.
BTW, Player's Handbook suggests that Half Orcs range from 4'10" to 6'6" in height from 140 lbs to nearly 400.
When considering languages, think about your background and why he might have needed to learn an additional language.
Perpetually annoyed that Eldritch Knights can't use Eldritch Blast, Eldritch Smite, and Eldritch Sight.
Thank you again.
I will repeat one of my former questions, which was if I could gain an extra proficiency through leveling up?
You have prepared me for Dungeons and Dragons.
Here is the link for my character figurine: https://www.heroforge.com/load_config=2387206
Hi there,
characters don't gain additional proficiencies for levelling up, unless the class/subclass they gain a level in states that a proficiency is gained (I don't recall any of these for fighters).
Something else to remember is that you gain proficiencies from THREE sources:
From what you described, I think that the Outlander background sounds like a good fit for the character. This would grant proficiency in Athletics and Survival as well as a musical instrument of your choice and another language of your choice.
The rules also state that you can customize these as you see fit, but for your first character, I strongly suggest picking one of the existing backgrounds. You could change the musical instrument for proficiency in some tools for example. :)
So, you could end up with the following, which I think covers most of the choices you were looking at:
Pun-loving nerd | She/Her/Hers | Profile art by Becca Golins
If you need help with homebrew, please post on the homebrew forums, where multiple staff and moderators can read your post and help you!
"We got this, no problem! I'll take the twenty on the left - you guys handle the one on the right!"🔊
Thank you very much, Stormknight. I found your comment to be incredibly enlightening. However, I decided to research the Outlander backstory, and although it contains the Proficiencies I want, it does not fit my character. Can I be informed of the Uthgardt Tribe Member backstory?
You should consider why your fighter wants to adventure...
Is he a young chieftain who needs to prove himself worthy to lead a tribe?
Is he an older chieftain who finds himself needing more strength/experience/resources to govern his his tribe?
Is he the second or third son of a chieftain looking to found/conquer a tribe for himself.
Is he the son of a rival of the chieftain looking to unseat the chieftain?
As you consider these things, you can think about using the custom background feature to craft a background for yourself using pieces of the others.
The Uthgardt Tribe Member backstory requires the Sword Coast Adventure's Guide for access.
Perpetually annoyed that Eldritch Knights can't use Eldritch Blast, Eldritch Smite, and Eldritch Sight.
My character is a young chieftain who is called to adventure because he has a hostile relationship with humans and he wants to gain the trust of humans. His relationship with humans is hostile because he attempted to sign a peace treaty between his tribe and the humans, but a group of rebel humans destroyed his camp and, when they were caught, they were not executed.
I hope this explains it.
Can I only pick two proficiencies, or is there a way to gain more without using a preexisting backstory?
Reference my post above, or use the character builder on this site, which will walk you through creating a character.
Pun-loving nerd | She/Her/Hers | Profile art by Becca Golins
If you need help with homebrew, please post on the homebrew forums, where multiple staff and moderators can read your post and help you!
"We got this, no problem! I'll take the twenty on the left - you guys handle the one on the right!"🔊
I apologize. I forgot about the message you sent. I still do not know which two of the four skills: Athletics, Insight, Perception, and Strength, I should choose. I like all of them equally, but I cannot be an Outsider because that does not fit well for my character.
My character is a chief that respects his people; he is an independent, but he lives with his tribe. He can be savage and easy to irritate, but he is wise and he has a strong heart. He is not disrespectful or selfish. His flaw is that he cannot trust humans well, but he wants to. He is split between human morals and orc impulses; intelligence and reasoning or barbarism and excessive stimulation. He is not similar to Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Rather, he wants both sides, the good and the evil, to be mixed, but he does not know how; he cannot separate them but he cannot join them. To make things even more difficult, he has two love interests, a human rogue and an orc warrior.
As suggested, discuss your ideas with your DM - the Outlander background merely means that the character isn't experienced with towns and cities, having spent life in tribal life.
You're allowed within the rules to vary the background as you need though to fit how you want to play the character - it seems you have a strong idea of that, so you're off to a very good start.
Pun-loving nerd | She/Her/Hers | Profile art by Becca Golins
If you need help with homebrew, please post on the homebrew forums, where multiple staff and moderators can read your post and help you!
"We got this, no problem! I'll take the twenty on the left - you guys handle the one on the right!"🔊
You have provided nothing but the most significant and informative of advice. I thank you once again. I will enjoy my time in Dungeons and Dragons. You have taught me plenty and prepared me for epic adventures. I shall begin my first quest on my birthday, which is the last day of this month, when I receive my miniature. By the way, I am turning fifteen.
Wish me the best of luck as I traverse through unknown lands and venture inside lost caves plagued with monsters and treasures that will bring eternal wealth.
I kept saying Outsider rather than Outlander.
This topic is officially closed.
But we want to see your miniature...
"Where words fail, swords prevail. Where blood is spilled, my cup is filled" -Cartaphilus
"I have found the answer to the meaning of life. You ask me what the answer is? You already know what the answer to life is. You fear it more than the strike of a viper, the ravages of disease, the ire of a lover. The answer is always death. But death is a gentle mistress with a sweet embrace, and you owe her a debt of restitution. Life is not a gift, it is a loan."
Do you want to see it? Here.
https://www.heroforge.com/load_config=2387206
To all that come here, move to my latest thread.