So, our players and I usually roll for the stats. I've wanted to create a sorcerer, but rolled 10 for my Charisma. I've also rolled 15 for Dexterity and my friend told me that there is/was a viable build for a sorcerer that mained Dexterity. Can a sorcerer with 10 CHA and 15 DEX be playable or useful for the group? I've wanted to create a Wild Magic sorc, so can this be viable?
The bigger question is why you can't simply assign the fifteen to your Charisma instead of Dexterity. If you can't do that for some reason, there is no real sorcerer build that will work with 10 cha. You would basically end up spamming spells that don't require attack rolls/saves like magic missile, and using utility spells. But a caster with just utility spells is rarely ever that useful, even if they are mostly a control caster/zoner. And you can't be either since control spells and zoner spells not only usually involve saving throws, but are part of the wizard and druid and sometimes warlock and bard spell lists, as compared to the miniscule sorcerer spell list. In essence, no there is not a non multiclassed dex based sorcerer build that doesn't suck. And separately, just put your 15 in Charisma.
Technically, you could make it work by very carefully selecting spells that do not require attack rolls or saving throws, but you would need a weapon to deal any damage. You could potentially take Booming Blade and grab a finesse weapon. Along with Mage Armor and Shield, you could be crappy version of a Bladesinger.
Bottom line: unless you just like playing overly challenging characters, it is not going to be a fun play experience.
So, our players and I usually roll for the stats. I've wanted to create a sorcerer, but rolled 10 for my Charisma. I've also rolled 15 for Dexterity and my friend told me that there is/was a viable build for a sorcerer that mained Dexterity. Can a sorcerer with 10 CHA and 15 DEX be playable or useful for the group? I've wanted to create a Wild Magic sorc, so can this be viable?
technically you didn’t roll 15 for Dex.
to roll for stats you roll the four dice and record the total of the highest three. Do it six times.
Then you take your six numbers and you assign them to your character’s abilities.
so you can chose to put the 15 in Cha.
That’s the rules in the Players Handbook and the Basic Rules in the sections on determining your ability scores
So, our players and I usually roll for the stats. I've wanted to create a sorcerer, but rolled 10 for my Charisma. I've also rolled 15 for Dexterity and my friend told me that there is/was a viable build for a sorcerer that mained Dexterity. Can a sorcerer with 10 CHA and 15 DEX be playable or useful for the group? I've wanted to create a Wild Magic sorc, so can this be viable?
My first question is why are you forced to put your 10 and 15 there? Is that a home rule because man that is absolutely brutal to the point of not being fun.
Second, you don't even meet the requirements to be a sorcerer if you were trying to multiclass. Your DC and spell attack rolls will be a joke. There are no dex based sorcerer builds. Because builds that aren't based on charisma are using the sorcerer as a dip rather than as the class itself. If you want to play a sorcerer then you gotta talk to your DM to let you move those around.
The high dex can let you attack with weapons so you can certainly still contribute in a fight. You'll be limited by weapon choice but a dagger and light crossbow will serve you fine. For the subclass I can recommend Divine Soul. This lets you combine Sorcerer and Cleric spell lists. Spells like Mage Armour, Sanctuary and Shield can help your survivability while spells like Cure Wounds, Bless, Magic Missile and Sleep all provide solid combat support options. Which ones are best will depend on your particular game.
When you start getting 2nd level spells there's good choices with Aid, Cloud of Daggers, Enhance Ability, Darkness, Invisibility, Mirror Image, Misty Step.... And more and more.
By 3rd level there's even more from things like Clairvoyance, Fly, Animate Dead, Revivify and so much more.
So anyone here saying a 10 cha Sorc isn't viable at all are bonkers.
Even if you dont want to go Divine Soul, the Sorc list still has useful spells, even in combat, that don't require attack rolls or saving throws.
It's by no means ideal but it most definitely can be viable.
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Thank you everyone! I believe I should just ask DM if I can replace the Dex with Cha.
As stated above, you shouldn’t need to ask permission: assigning the results of your rolls to whichever stats you prefer are the standard character building rules.
Thank you everyone! I believe I should just ask DM if I can replace the Dex with Cha.
As stated above, you shouldn’t need to ask permission: assigning the results of your rolls to whichever stats you prefer are the standard character building rules.
Depends on the table. Some DMs are old school and like to use the old rules, where you'd roll for Str, then for Dex and so forth. In RAW you can pick and choose which goes where, but the DM sets the rules. I strongly disagree with such a mindset - while I believe rules are what make the game fun... there's a balance and being stuck for a year or two with a sucky character isn't the most conducive to fun. But it's their opinion that matters, not mine.
So, our players and I usually roll for the stats. I've wanted to create a sorcerer, but rolled 10 for my Charisma. I've also rolled 15 for Dexterity and my friend told me that there is/was a viable build for a sorcerer that mained Dexterity. Can a sorcerer with 10 CHA and 15 DEX be playable or useful for the group? I've wanted to create a Wild Magic sorc, so can this be viable?
It really depends on the DM and your party. That's what matters. There is no universal answer for this.
If your DM is very adaptive in their approach so that encounters are adjusted to be reasonable for actual party capability (or just goes really easy on you) and the party is similarly...handicapped...then yeah, it's viable and you can have fun. It'll be the worst at the beginning when your attribute bonus is dominant in your attacks, but as you level up, your proficiency bonus becomes more dominant so you'll suck less, and you can use ASIs to get your Charisma up. If you go to level 19 (16 if you haven't assigned racial ASIs yet) then you'll be able to max out Cha anyway through this method.
If the DM either plays hard or doesn't adapt to party strength, then you're in for a rough ride. It can be done, and it can be fun, but you're going to suck and it depends if that's something you can enjoy. If the party is not similarly handicapped...then you'll find that you'll be constantly eclipsed and again, it'll suck because they're hitting hard while you're barely hurting the enemies and your AoEs and Save-or-Suck spells are forever failing. It can be fun, but it takes a special mindset to do so. Also, even if you do go through with it, ensure your party is happy with it. It's a quick way to frustration for the party if you to have to be baby-sat in that way. It's one thing helping someone who doesn't understand and is learning, it's another when their character just can't pull their weight.
Personally, I wouldn't have gone Sorceror in that situation. Instead, I'd have gone for a Dex build. If your Wisdom is reasonable, perhaps a Monk or a Ranger, or otherwise a Dex-build Fighter. A Sorceror relies on Charisma, so they're heavily handicapped by not having bonuses to Cha.
So, yeah, ask if you can change your scores around. If you want a Sorceror, then you want your scores, going high to low, in this order:
Charisma.
Constitution/Dexterity.
Constitution/Dexterity.
Wisdom.
Intelligence/Strength.
Intelligence/Strength.
Where I've listed two, the order of those two either don't matter or it depends on what you want to lean into.
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The way I would attempt to make this viable is to get the Crossbow Expert feat and use a hand crossbow so you get two attacks per round. Then for your spells just choose buffing spells. Anything that requires an attack roll or the target to make a saving throw isn't going to be as effective as having a positive modifier to your charisma.
Rolling for stats in order is pretty old school. The only way I'd consider that is with a brand new player who has absolutely no idea what they want to play. Or someone with so much experience they're looking for a challenge.
If your DM doesn't allow you to put the 15 into your charisma then I'd switch to a dex based class such as a rogue or ranger. If the DM doesn't allow you to switch the stats or class then you're probably going to be better off looking for another DM.
I don't think it was DM fiat they play a Sorcerer, OP claimed they wanted to play a sorcerer, then reported the dice, which does sound like they did the down the line rolling old school method.
It wasn't a DM fiat, a friend said a Sorceror build was viable while maining in Dex. Whether the OP was hoping for a Sorceror or if they decided they wanted to try Wild Magic since the friend suggested Sorceror is unclear, I think.
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The way I would attempt to make this viable is to get the Crossbow Expert feat and use a hand crossbow so you get two attacks per round. Then for your spells just choose buffing spells. Anything that requires an attack roll or the target to make a saving throw isn't going to be as effective as having a positive modifier to your charisma.
Sorcerers don't have proficiency with hand crossbows. You'd need another feat for that and the character would stop being viable after level four at the latest.
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So, our players and I usually roll for the stats. I've wanted to create a sorcerer, but rolled 10 for my Charisma. I've also rolled 15 for Dexterity and my friend told me that there is/was a viable build for a sorcerer that mained Dexterity. Can a sorcerer with 10 CHA and 15 DEX be playable or useful for the group? I've wanted to create a Wild Magic sorc, so can this be viable?
Realistically, no. Your spells that involve attack rolls or saving throws will be very ineffective.
The bigger question is why you can't simply assign the fifteen to your Charisma instead of Dexterity. If you can't do that for some reason, there is no real sorcerer build that will work with 10 cha. You would basically end up spamming spells that don't require attack rolls/saves like magic missile, and using utility spells. But a caster with just utility spells is rarely ever that useful, even if they are mostly a control caster/zoner. And you can't be either since control spells and zoner spells not only usually involve saving throws, but are part of the wizard and druid and sometimes warlock and bard spell lists, as compared to the miniscule sorcerer spell list. In essence, no there is not a non multiclassed dex based sorcerer build that doesn't suck. And separately, just put your 15 in Charisma.
N/A
Technically, you could make it work by very carefully selecting spells that do not require attack rolls or saving throws, but you would need a weapon to deal any damage. You could potentially take Booming Blade and grab a finesse weapon. Along with Mage Armor and Shield, you could be crappy version of a Bladesinger.
Bottom line: unless you just like playing overly challenging characters, it is not going to be a fun play experience.
technically you didn’t roll 15 for Dex.
to roll for stats you roll the four dice and record the total of the highest three. Do it six times.
Then you take your six numbers and you assign them to your character’s abilities.
so you can chose to put the 15 in Cha.
That’s the rules in the Players Handbook and the Basic Rules in the sections on determining your ability scores
My first question is why are you forced to put your 10 and 15 there? Is that a home rule because man that is absolutely brutal to the point of not being fun.
Second, you don't even meet the requirements to be a sorcerer if you were trying to multiclass. Your DC and spell attack rolls will be a joke. There are no dex based sorcerer builds. Because builds that aren't based on charisma are using the sorcerer as a dip rather than as the class itself. If you want to play a sorcerer then you gotta talk to your DM to let you move those around.
The high dex can let you attack with weapons so you can certainly still contribute in a fight. You'll be limited by weapon choice but a dagger and light crossbow will serve you fine. For the subclass I can recommend Divine Soul. This lets you combine Sorcerer and Cleric spell lists. Spells like Mage Armour, Sanctuary and Shield can help your survivability while spells like Cure Wounds, Bless, Magic Missile and Sleep all provide solid combat support options. Which ones are best will depend on your particular game.
When you start getting 2nd level spells there's good choices with Aid, Cloud of Daggers, Enhance Ability, Darkness, Invisibility, Mirror Image, Misty Step.... And more and more.
By 3rd level there's even more from things like Clairvoyance, Fly, Animate Dead, Revivify and so much more.
So anyone here saying a 10 cha Sorc isn't viable at all are bonkers.
Even if you dont want to go Divine Soul, the Sorc list still has useful spells, even in combat, that don't require attack rolls or saving throws.
It's by no means ideal but it most definitely can be viable.
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It's been like 6 hours. Chill out. Jeebus.
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Thank you everyone! I believe I should just ask DM if I can replace the Dex with Cha.
Thank you for you reply! I've found this build for Divine Soul recently, but I think I'll go classic sorc.
As stated above, you shouldn’t need to ask permission: assigning the results of your rolls to whichever stats you prefer are the standard character building rules.
Depends on the table. Some DMs are old school and like to use the old rules, where you'd roll for Str, then for Dex and so forth. In RAW you can pick and choose which goes where, but the DM sets the rules. I strongly disagree with such a mindset - while I believe rules are what make the game fun... there's a balance and being stuck for a year or two with a sucky character isn't the most conducive to fun. But it's their opinion that matters, not mine.
It really depends on the DM and your party. That's what matters. There is no universal answer for this.
If your DM is very adaptive in their approach so that encounters are adjusted to be reasonable for actual party capability (or just goes really easy on you) and the party is similarly...handicapped...then yeah, it's viable and you can have fun. It'll be the worst at the beginning when your attribute bonus is dominant in your attacks, but as you level up, your proficiency bonus becomes more dominant so you'll suck less, and you can use ASIs to get your Charisma up. If you go to level 19 (16 if you haven't assigned racial ASIs yet) then you'll be able to max out Cha anyway through this method.
If the DM either plays hard or doesn't adapt to party strength, then you're in for a rough ride. It can be done, and it can be fun, but you're going to suck and it depends if that's something you can enjoy. If the party is not similarly handicapped...then you'll find that you'll be constantly eclipsed and again, it'll suck because they're hitting hard while you're barely hurting the enemies and your AoEs and Save-or-Suck spells are forever failing. It can be fun, but it takes a special mindset to do so. Also, even if you do go through with it, ensure your party is happy with it. It's a quick way to frustration for the party if you to have to be baby-sat in that way. It's one thing helping someone who doesn't understand and is learning, it's another when their character just can't pull their weight.
Personally, I wouldn't have gone Sorceror in that situation. Instead, I'd have gone for a Dex build. If your Wisdom is reasonable, perhaps a Monk or a Ranger, or otherwise a Dex-build Fighter. A Sorceror relies on Charisma, so they're heavily handicapped by not having bonuses to Cha.
So, yeah, ask if you can change your scores around. If you want a Sorceror, then you want your scores, going high to low, in this order:
Where I've listed two, the order of those two either don't matter or it depends on what you want to lean into.
If you're not willing or able to to discuss in good faith, then don't be surprised if I don't respond, there are better things in life for me to do than humour you. This signature is that response.
The way I would attempt to make this viable is to get the Crossbow Expert feat and use a hand crossbow so you get two attacks per round. Then for your spells just choose buffing spells. Anything that requires an attack roll or the target to make a saving throw isn't going to be as effective as having a positive modifier to your charisma.
Rolling for stats in order is pretty old school. The only way I'd consider that is with a brand new player who has absolutely no idea what they want to play. Or someone with so much experience they're looking for a challenge.
If your DM doesn't allow you to put the 15 into your charisma then I'd switch to a dex based class such as a rogue or ranger. If the DM doesn't allow you to switch the stats or class then you're probably going to be better off looking for another DM.
I don't think it was DM fiat they play a Sorcerer, OP claimed they wanted to play a sorcerer, then reported the dice, which does sound like they did the down the line rolling old school method.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
It wasn't a DM fiat, a friend said a Sorceror build was viable while maining in Dex. Whether the OP was hoping for a Sorceror or if they decided they wanted to try Wild Magic since the friend suggested Sorceror is unclear, I think.
If you're not willing or able to to discuss in good faith, then don't be surprised if I don't respond, there are better things in life for me to do than humour you. This signature is that response.
I don't know that much about this, but I'm gonna guess that a sorcerer is better when having A GOOD SPELLCASTING STAT.
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Sorcerers don't have proficiency with hand crossbows. You'd need another feat for that and the character would stop being viable after level four at the latest.
Find your own truth, choose your enemies carefully, and never deal with a dragon.
"Canon" is what's factual to D&D lore. "Cannon" is what you're going to be shot with if you keep getting the word wrong.