My current Hill Dwarf multclassed out of Paladin (Paladin at level 1), into Sorcerer. With stacking Plate Mail, +1 Shield, Defense Fighting Style, my AC is 22 with 57 HP at level 5.
AC goes up to 24 when I cast Shield of Faith (Haste when I get level 3 spells) and in a pinch, I can cast Shield to bring my effective AC up to 29 if absolutely needed. HP could have been higher, but I used my level first ASI for Mounted Combatant (advantage against Medium or smaller creatures) so I'm flinging Spells and swinging swords from the back of a Giant Lizard.
With the new Divine and Shadow Souls, Aasimar sorcerers are going to have a fair amount of mileage- charisma base, gish potential with fallen, strong flavor and etc. If i'm remembering correctly, it should be a really good way of playing an ascending angel type character- take subtle spell and stare at someone raining down holy fire from above with your angel wings (from divine soul) or be fallen and jaunt between shadows, a nefarious fallen angel.
The Adventure's League's PHB +1 rule makes me sad that builds like this won't be legal for me to play.
I agree with Suddenly_Light that Aasimar would make great sorcerers; I once made a Scourge Aasimar with Divine Soul. I hadn't thought about how Fallen Aasimar would work with Shadow Soul, but that seems like a perfect match!
Also, even though kobolds don't have a bonus to Charisma, I think that a kobold as a Draconic Origin sorcerer would be really cool!
"Well met, adventurer. You seem like a curious sort who enjoys the finer things. Permit me to thrust upon you my latest masterwork, years in the making." Volothamp Geddarm
Protector Aasimar probably make the best go-to for sorcerers now. Its really hard to beat that extra +level damage and free flight once a turn for big boss fights. Tiefling with Flames of Phlegethos, probably make the best fire dragon sorcerers, and I'm a fan of halfling chaos mages - your allies will thank you for negating their botches or boosting rolls. But other than that? I definitely think the aasimar take the best-in-class award.
Chr bonus, radiant and necrotic resistance to start out, good mobility options depending on which sub you take, then lightning and thunder resistance at level 6.
Four damage resistances by level six, no magic items needed. That's a little bonkers.
+1 to Halfling. Love the other answers here, though! See what else we can come up with.
Anyone do a Gnome Sorcerer yet? How about a Gnome Sorcerer starting out at Level 1, then Wizard for 2 Levels (for School of Divination), and Sorcerer for the rest?
With Point Buy (e.g., AL-Legal), you can't beat -- Divine-Soul Sorcerer, Lightfoot Halfling, Background in Anthropologist (Acrobatics, Insight, Religion, Stealth; Giant, Goblin), Starting Ability Scores: 8/16/15/8/10/16, with Fire Bolt (but prefers using a Light Crossbow until Level 5 or unless needing to damage a specific target with fire), Guidance, Minor Illusion, Prestidigitation, Bless, Color Spray, and Healing Word
I have been interested in Mountain Dwarf casters because of the armor proficiencies it gives. But I also find a dwarf sorcerer a hilarious idea.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"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."
I have been interested in Mountain Dwarf casters because of the armor proficiencies it gives. But I also find a dwarf sorcerer a hilarious idea.
The Stone Sorcerer from UA is honestly a perfect fit for them. I'm not keen on the flavor of it as a Gish, but its very thematic for a dwarven character.
Anyone do a Gnome Sorcerer yet? How about a Gnome Sorcerer starting out at Level 1, then Wizard for 2 Levels (for School of Divination), and Sorcerer for the rest?
I haven’t been able to play this character yet, but just for kicks built a rock gnome wild magic sorcerer. The build is far from optimal, but the backstory was fun. I imagined he was a couple hundred years old, and worked as a librarian for a wizard’s guild. While aiding in a wizard’s research, a rogue spell gave the old gnome his powers. While first a curiosity amongst the wizards, they eventually shunned him for not gaining his magical abilities through traditional means (and probably a bit of jealousy). Now he travels the world for the first time, trying to gain control and understanding of the magical power surging through him. His normally studious (perhaps OCD) demeanor completely frustrated by the bizarre, chaotic spell effects.
Hmmm... stone (ua), darkness, storm, divine soul gets a lot of light powers, fire dragons... just need a water/ice option, and we have all the elements, I guess?
Hmmm... stone (ua), darkness, storm, divine soul gets a lot of light powers, fire dragons... just need a water/ice option, and we have all the elements, I guess?
The UA the Stone sorcerer is from also has Sea and Phoenix sorcerers, Plane Shift Kaladesh has a very nice Pyromancer, and you can have a Draconic Bloodline sorcerer with a white or silver draconic bloodline.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both" -- allegedly Benjamin Franklin
My initial reaction was to go for the dragonborn sorcerer for the draconic bloodline, then I realise the STR+2. A melee-orientated sorcerer may not last long unless someone can point out what I missed. Seems like the half-elf sorcerer is my best option, as the tiefling has a lower CHA bonus...
Cheers!
A dragonborn Melee-based sorcerer can be fairly effective.
You can go made trying to make it STR based, but I found that dumping strength (the +2 boosts your mediocre strength saves when facing telekinesis using casters and grapples) and going Dex/Con/Cha works out fairly well.
A Dex or Str based melee dragonborn sorcerer would max Dex/Str asap and go with shield and unarmoured/Plate, giving AC of 20. With War Caster, Shield (spell) and Haste, AC tops out at 27 before Magic items. On the offensive side, you have SCAG cantrips like GFB and BB (of which BB can be twinned). So, you can hit up to two targets with your first attack, then quicken GFB and hit two more targets. Then with your Hasted action, you can hit a fifth target, disengage, dash, or down a potion. If you really want something to die, 2 levels into Fighter gives you Action Surge, which is essentially another two attacks or 2 levels into Paladin to gain access to Divine Smite and expend spell slots for damage.
Also don't forget that you have Polymorph, which gives you a whole 'nother HP pool to work with.
My current build is a Finesse based Fighter/Sorcerer that uses twinned Polymorph to change into a Giant Ape, along with a party member and when that falls off, can still Haste 2 people and dish out good damage.
Also, it is funny to watch a creature get hit with 3 Booming Blades and then Hasted action to disengage, forcing it to move and take another 9d8 (currently level 11).
Other options include multiclass into Bard for healing spells or rogues (Swashbuckler) for the improved initiative and the ability to attack and move without having to disengage.
I'm not entirely sure how this forces an enemy to move. If you physically make them move, booming blade doesn't trigger. If they have a long range attack than they won't take that damage and my experience is that a lot of enemies have long range attacks.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
You only lose if you die. Any time else, there's opportunity for a come back.
Super late to post to this, but I'm currently playing a chaotic-neutral Orc-Elf Sorcerer named Lemry. Her mom is an elf scientist, and basically used a love charm to charm an orc and have a child so she could study it and hopefully produce a wild magic sorcerer. So Lemry was actually raised by a dwarf who is like a father to her, since her mom only cared about her as an experiment and her father has no idea she exists. The DM even allowed me to use the 3 hybrid qualities of the homebrew orc-elf class to have one from each of the three races. She is my favorite character to play so far, as she has NO control over her wild magic, has a deep dislike for elves because of her mom, and constantly says "the dwarf way is the best way". Haha. It's a ton of fun!
I have been interested in Mountain Dwarf casters because of the armor proficiencies it gives. But I also find a dwarf sorcerer a hilarious idea.
This is what I did! I created a Shadow Sorcerer (Xanathar's Guide) and picked the Mountain Dwarf so my character could be proficient with Medium Armor and with Axes. I tied it all into his background though... "Ulfgar" was a Soldier in the Dwarven Army, ambushed he was presumed killed in battle. That is when his sorcerer powers kicked in (Strength of the Grave) keeping him from death by sustaining at 1 HP.
Now-a-days, Ulfgar still charges into battle with his battle-axe aided by a handful of reactive combat spells and sorcerer powers.
Anyways, it was a fun build. I recorded the character creation and put it on YouTube if anyone is interested in checking it out!
Also super late, but I also really love my dragonborn sorcerer. Like so much else, it depends on what is important to you as a player. I like thematic fit, I like playing dragonborns with all the pompousness and poetry and mysticism of high fantasy Klingons, and I prefer that my magic users (of any class) not be too squishy. I play in a large group (5 regulars, but we've had as many as 10), so if a mechanic turns out to be less than optimal it's ok - the team picks up the slack. Are there technically better races? Maybe, but some of the most enjoyable characters are walking contradictions.
Yes, a forest gnome sorcerer. For small-sized characters, I believe it's the only combo that has both inherent racial and class-related magical ability.
I've only played it once, but I grew terribly fond of my Dragonborn Sorcerer in the one-off campaign I did last week. So much so, I created another one to use in a more permanent campaign starting next week. :)
Human extra feat is always a good one. Pick up resilient right off the bat or magic initiative and get all the rituals. Just get your prime stat at 18 or 20 best case too at some point. Dragon born free breath attack is refreshed at short rest. Nothin to scoff at if you know how to use the cone or straight attacks.
I dabbled with the idea of a Yuan-ti pureblood divine soul sorcerer who believes his magic was granted by the serpent gods in order to restore the empire... and quietly nurses rather heretical thoughts that having the gods' favor is proof that he should rule it.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
My current Hill Dwarf multclassed out of Paladin (Paladin at level 1), into Sorcerer. With stacking Plate Mail, +1 Shield, Defense Fighting Style, my AC is 22 with 57 HP at level 5.
AC goes up to 24 when I cast Shield of Faith (Haste when I get level 3 spells) and in a pinch, I can cast Shield to bring my effective AC up to 29 if absolutely needed. HP could have been higher, but I used my level first ASI for Mounted Combatant (advantage against Medium or smaller creatures) so I'm flinging Spells and swinging swords from the back of a Giant Lizard.
I'm actually a little sad that the PHB +1 rule means that builds like this won't see Adventure League Play
I agree with Suddenly_Light that Aasimar would make great sorcerers; I once made a Scourge Aasimar with Divine Soul. I hadn't thought about how Fallen Aasimar would work with Shadow Soul, but that seems like a perfect match!
Also, even though kobolds don't have a bonus to Charisma, I think that a kobold as a Draconic Origin sorcerer would be really cool!
"Well met, adventurer. You seem like a curious sort who enjoys the finer things. Permit me to thrust upon you my latest masterwork, years in the making." Volothamp Geddarm
Post - Xanathar, here are my thoughts.
Protector Aasimar probably make the best go-to for sorcerers now. Its really hard to beat that extra +level damage and free flight once a turn for big boss fights. Tiefling with Flames of Phlegethos, probably make the best fire dragon sorcerers, and I'm a fan of halfling chaos mages - your allies will thank you for negating their botches or boosting rolls. But other than that? I definitely think the aasimar take the best-in-class award.
Guys, guys. Aasimar storm sorcerer?
Chr bonus, radiant and necrotic resistance to start out, good mobility options depending on which sub you take, then lightning and thunder resistance at level 6.
Four damage resistances by level six, no magic items needed. That's a little bonkers.
+1 to Halfling. Love the other answers here, though! See what else we can come up with.
Anyone do a Gnome Sorcerer yet? How about a Gnome Sorcerer starting out at Level 1, then Wizard for 2 Levels (for School of Divination), and Sorcerer for the rest?
With Point Buy (e.g., AL-Legal), you can't beat -- Divine-Soul Sorcerer, Lightfoot Halfling, Background in Anthropologist (Acrobatics, Insight, Religion, Stealth; Giant, Goblin), Starting Ability Scores: 8/16/15/8/10/16, with Fire Bolt (but prefers using a Light Crossbow until Level 5 or unless needing to damage a specific target with fire), Guidance, Minor Illusion, Prestidigitation, Bless, Color Spray, and Healing Word
I have been interested in Mountain Dwarf casters because of the armor proficiencies it gives. But I also find a dwarf sorcerer a hilarious idea.
"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."
Hmmm... stone (ua), darkness, storm, divine soul gets a lot of light powers, fire dragons... just need a water/ice option, and we have all the elements, I guess?
"Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both" -- allegedly Benjamin Franklin
Tooltips (Help/aid)
You only lose if you die. Any time else, there's opportunity for a come back.
Super late to post to this, but I'm currently playing a chaotic-neutral Orc-Elf Sorcerer named Lemry. Her mom is an elf scientist, and basically used a love charm to charm an orc and have a child so she could study it and hopefully produce a wild magic sorcerer. So Lemry was actually raised by a dwarf who is like a father to her, since her mom only cared about her as an experiment and her father has no idea she exists. The DM even allowed me to use the 3 hybrid qualities of the homebrew orc-elf class to have one from each of the three races. She is my favorite character to play so far, as she has NO control over her wild magic, has a deep dislike for elves because of her mom, and constantly says "the dwarf way is the best way". Haha. It's a ton of fun!
Anyways, it was a fun build. I recorded the character creation and put it on YouTube if anyone is interested in checking it out!
I have a YouTube channel with 5th Edition D&D Puzzles, Character Creations, DM Tips and Quests ideas. Check it out!
Wally DM on YouTube
Half-elf
V. Human
Teifling
Also super late, but I also really love my dragonborn sorcerer. Like so much else, it depends on what is important to you as a player. I like thematic fit, I like playing dragonborns with all the pompousness and poetry and mysticism of high fantasy Klingons, and I prefer that my magic users (of any class) not be too squishy. I play in a large group (5 regulars, but we've had as many as 10), so if a mechanic turns out to be less than optimal it's ok - the team picks up the slack. Are there technically better races? Maybe, but some of the most enjoyable characters are walking contradictions.
I've only played it once, but I grew terribly fond of my Dragonborn Sorcerer in the one-off campaign I did last week. So much so, I created another one to use in a more permanent campaign starting next week. :)
Human extra feat is always a good one. Pick up resilient right off the bat or magic initiative and get all the rituals. Just get your prime stat at 18 or 20 best case too at some point.
Dragon born free breath attack is refreshed at short rest. Nothin to scoff at if you know how to use the cone or straight attacks.
I dabbled with the idea of a Yuan-ti pureblood divine soul sorcerer who believes his magic was granted by the serpent gods in order to restore the empire... and quietly nurses rather heretical thoughts that having the gods' favor is proof that he should rule it.