This is not my first character nor my first DEX based character. FIRST "true" Rogue character. Before I tell continue with my rolls here is a little bit of the campaign we will be doing in the near future.
We will be playing this campaign for the 2nd time and this a preliminary character build because I am not sure if I should go with an EK and hope I roll better for my backup character.
My rolls were
15 14 13 10 10 8
Strength 8 (-1)
Dexerity 15 (+2)
Constitution 14 (+2)
Intelligence 13 (+1)
Wisdom 10 (0)
Charisma 10 (0)
I was thinking of an Oliver Twist sort of arcane trickster around 13 yrs old escaping his hometown after stealing from a aristocrat hence the Urchin background. And, is on the road traveling when he and the other PC's get lost in the Mist and enter Barovia.
We will either be starting at lvl 1 or lvl 3 depending on what our DM decides
the race I'm thinking of is a Variant Human
free Skill (Arcana)
+1 to Dex (15 +1= 16)
Either +1 to Intelligence/ Wisdom
As for Arcane trickster part Mage hand is must
2nd cantrip Prestidigitation
3rd?
Spells
Protection from good and evil
Disguise Self
Charm person? Find Familiar?
What Feat should I take? Observant Lucky Alert magic initiate
I'd say that's a decent ability score spread, and take Find familiar, and maybe choose one that has dark vision to maybe counter act your disadvantage in dark/dim conditions (talk about this with your DM first though to make sure they're cool with you doing it like that)
Maybe Friends as your third cantrip so that if you fail a check (i.e. stealth/slight of hand) you can maybe have a better chance of talking your way out of trouble?
As for feats - I'm going with Alert as soon as I hit level 4 with my Rogue Assassin, but Observant also has it's own benefits. Depends on how you want to play your character - are you thinking more utility based (in which case, go for observant because of your increased passive perception and insight scores). Alert is pretty good as a minor buff by avoiding being surprised (unless your asleep/unconscious anyway xD)
I don't know how married you are to being a human, but I do recommend being a high elf or a forest gnome if you're going with an arcane trickster. Darkvision is a huge benefit for playing the role of scout/sneak in any game imho, and also provides access to an extra cantrip. Those benefits are easily worth the extra feat, and elves come with free Perception if you're interested in that extra skill; elves also have access to Elven Accuracy feat, which is great for rogue types angling for that advantage. Forest gnomes can talk with small animals, which includes familiars, which means you get more out of the spell Find Familiar and using the animal as a scout.
If you want to keep human, I recommend Alert, Mobile, or Magic Initiate (cantrips rock). You'll want to put your attributes in INT and DEX; these two stats want to stay as high as possible.
In my personal experience, playing as an arcane trickster, you want booming blade, dancing lights, minor illusion, message, mage hand and prestigitation for cantrips. Booming blade gives you a little boost to offense as well as a soft form of control, very hand ability if you work in melee ever. Minor illusion is great for distractions and, well, being a trickster type; same with Prestigitation, though I recommend Minor illusion before the latter spell. Dancing Lights is actually a very good spell for a rogue - you can use it as a pseudo-illusion (shape of a person), to shoot light ahead of you and see what's in an room to avoid traps or ambushes, to highlight distant enemies hiding in shadows, or long range signals; its also dim light, making it better than the Light spell if you're trying to hide (which, as a rogue, you should be). So many possible uses.
For other spells, I recommend other forms of illusions primarily. Save the enchantments for things like Hold Person. You don't get access to Find Familiar or Protection from Good/Evil until level 8, so don't worry about that yet; your early spells must be drawn from the Illusion or Enchantment school, and only at levels 8, 14 and 20 do you get to pick other spells. The first four spells I recommend for an arcane trickster are - Disguise Self, Charm Person, Silent Image and Tasha's Hideous Laughter. Color Spray and Sleep simply don't scale well, and you want mileage out of these spells. Illusory Script has uses in more social intrigue campaigns, but very game dependent. For second level spells, Invisibility is a top choice, but after that it depends on your character.
For Expertise, I recommend Perception, Bluff and Stealth. Perception is necessary for spotting traps or anything hidden, a critical skill for a rogue. Bluff... sometimes, while disguised, you have to lie, and stacks well with the Charmed condition. Stealth is another key rogue skill while being a scout; unlike previous edition.
Hey everyone,
This is not my first character nor my first DEX based character. FIRST "true" Rogue character. Before I tell continue with my rolls here is a little bit of the campaign we will be doing in the near future.
We will be playing this campaign for the 2nd time and this a preliminary character build because I am not sure if I should go with an EK and hope I roll better for my backup character.
My rolls were
15 14 13 10 10 8
Strength 8 (-1)
Dexerity 15 (+2)
Constitution 14 (+2)
Intelligence 13 (+1)
Wisdom 10 (0)
Charisma 10 (0)
I was thinking of an Oliver Twist sort of arcane trickster around 13 yrs old escaping his hometown after stealing from a aristocrat hence the Urchin background. And, is on the road traveling when he and the other PC's get lost in the Mist and enter Barovia.
We will either be starting at lvl 1 or lvl 3 depending on what our DM decides
the race I'm thinking of is a Variant Human
free Skill (Arcana)
+1 to Dex (15 +1= 16)
Either +1 to Intelligence/ Wisdom
As for Arcane trickster part Mage hand is must
2nd cantrip Prestidigitation
3rd?
Spells
Protection from good and evil
Disguise Self
Charm person? Find Familiar?
What Feat should I take? Observant Lucky Alert magic initiate
Is there a better Ability score placement?
I'd say that's a decent ability score spread, and take Find familiar, and maybe choose one that has dark vision to maybe counter act your disadvantage in dark/dim conditions (talk about this with your DM first though to make sure they're cool with you doing it like that)
Maybe Friends as your third cantrip so that if you fail a check (i.e. stealth/slight of hand) you can maybe have a better chance of talking your way out of trouble?
As for feats - I'm going with Alert as soon as I hit level 4 with my Rogue Assassin, but Observant also has it's own benefits. Depends on how you want to play your character - are you thinking more utility based (in which case, go for observant because of your increased passive perception and insight scores). Alert is pretty good as a minor buff by avoiding being surprised (unless your asleep/unconscious anyway xD)
I don't know how married you are to being a human, but I do recommend being a high elf or a forest gnome if you're going with an arcane trickster. Darkvision is a huge benefit for playing the role of scout/sneak in any game imho, and also provides access to an extra cantrip. Those benefits are easily worth the extra feat, and elves come with free Perception if you're interested in that extra skill; elves also have access to Elven Accuracy feat, which is great for rogue types angling for that advantage. Forest gnomes can talk with small animals, which includes familiars, which means you get more out of the spell Find Familiar and using the animal as a scout.
If you want to keep human, I recommend Alert, Mobile, or Magic Initiate (cantrips rock). You'll want to put your attributes in INT and DEX; these two stats want to stay as high as possible.
In my personal experience, playing as an arcane trickster, you want booming blade, dancing lights, minor illusion, message, mage hand and prestigitation for cantrips. Booming blade gives you a little boost to offense as well as a soft form of control, very hand ability if you work in melee ever. Minor illusion is great for distractions and, well, being a trickster type; same with Prestigitation, though I recommend Minor illusion before the latter spell. Dancing Lights is actually a very good spell for a rogue - you can use it as a pseudo-illusion (shape of a person), to shoot light ahead of you and see what's in an room to avoid traps or ambushes, to highlight distant enemies hiding in shadows, or long range signals; its also dim light, making it better than the Light spell if you're trying to hide (which, as a rogue, you should be). So many possible uses.
For other spells, I recommend other forms of illusions primarily. Save the enchantments for things like Hold Person. You don't get access to Find Familiar or Protection from Good/Evil until level 8, so don't worry about that yet; your early spells must be drawn from the Illusion or Enchantment school, and only at levels 8, 14 and 20 do you get to pick other spells. The first four spells I recommend for an arcane trickster are - Disguise Self, Charm Person, Silent Image and Tasha's Hideous Laughter. Color Spray and Sleep simply don't scale well, and you want mileage out of these spells. Illusory Script has uses in more social intrigue campaigns, but very game dependent. For second level spells, Invisibility is a top choice, but after that it depends on your character.
For Expertise, I recommend Perception, Bluff and Stealth. Perception is necessary for spotting traps or anything hidden, a critical skill for a rogue. Bluff... sometimes, while disguised, you have to lie, and stacks well with the Charmed condition. Stealth is another key rogue skill while being a scout; unlike previous edition.
Arcane Tricksters only need to choose 2 of your 3 spells at third level as enchantment or illusion spells. so you can get find familiar at 3rd lvl.
As for your spells i found attack spells are usually sub-par to a bow, so save the spells for utility.
Thanks everyone for the help!