I'm a first time DM and have just run my first session for my wife and 11 year old son. He has rolled a fighter as he wants to play an Eldritch knight. I'm planning to run a solo adventure for him as he hits lvl.3 where he discovers a cool sword to bond with.
Basically wondering if there is any lore behind Eldritch Knights so I can add details and flavour. I've search around but, beyond what they can do in game, there doesn't seem to be much in the way of "history" on the class.
Any help would be appreciated as I want to make it cool for my lad.
In D&D terms, it means 'mysterious, mystical, or weird'. There's not much in the way of specific history, because it's not a faction or an order of knights - as much as it sounds like it. It is simply the description of a fighter that has combined the martial with magic.
But that does allow plenty of freedom to decide how your son's fighter came to learn magic!
Like you said that does open up the narrative possibilities which is fun. Planning on adding a few precursors maybe prophetic dreams or mysterious figure tropes that lead him to a solo dungeon. Not necessarily ground breaking but hopefully it will pull him in.
And totally - Eldritch in the D&D universe is generally associated with the magic of warlocks. While still arcane, there's a subtle edge to how the user draws their power - or from what. It certainly doesn't have to be defined that way - you could simply have a really intelligent or charismatic fighter that is able to cast magic as wizards or sorcerers do...
But from your ideas, it would work perfectly with forming a bond with the sword. Perhaps the sword contains the fragment of the soul of a powerful entity, that grants the wielder the ability to cast spells so long as their motives are aligned.
Or perhaps a more 'Sword in the Stone' angle, where whomever is able to retrieve the blade from a perilous location, shall become a powerful patron's chosen champion - and given the ability to cast magic.
Maybe you could say there was an Order of Eldritch Knights that were born with magical powers and served the king, and within that order the player has a mentor, friends, maybe a rival or two that might show up from time to time?
I know the "born with magic" kinda contradicts the class lore of their magic being learned like a wizard's, but the way I put it sounds a little more YA protagonist, which seems like a positive with a literal YA at the table.
I think the official backstory is intentionally sparse so that you can tailor them to fit your campaign. Maybe they're a wizard's bodyguards or the elite troops of an elven kingdom. Or maybe it's a fighting style lost to the ages, only recently uncovered.
i really appreciate the suggestions, they are all really helping to percolate the idea in my head.
this was the quick note of the rough idea i'm playing around with, a little derivative but hoping it captures his interest. He's playing a half orc fighter name Joshua Trask lvl1.
>Either while on watch or asleep, a glowing apparition appears. vaguely humanoid, Large, phasing in and out of focus (Orc ?) and tells Joshua
"You are the last of us. Gather them. Lead them. Be the light that guides the defenseless through the coming darkness" <
very rough but planning a couple of foreshadowing moments and a solo dungeon that concludes with him hitting lvl 3 and gaining his sword. playing on the Eldritch Knight being part of a lineage that fights against Eldritch threats. now i'm writing that it seems very similar to the Shannara chronicles which i recently watched lol.
I like it! It's strong while still being open ended and simple. Should be fun.
Thank you. Trying to find that balance between offering cues to spark his imagination and but structure enough to play off whatever he does with it.
This is the idea for the sword (based on something called flame tongue in the home brew section):
Eldritch Bane
A blade handed down through the generations of Eldritch Knights forged to battle otherworldly threats and protect the helpless
You can use a bonus action to speak this magic sword's command word, causing flames to erupt from the blade. These flames shed bright light in a 40-foot radius and dim light for an additional 40 feet. While the sword is ablaze, it deals an extra 2d6 fire damage to any target it hits. The flames last until you use a bonus action to speak the command word again or until you drop or sheathe the sword.
Proficiency with a longsword allows you to add your proficiency bonus to the attack roll for any attack you make
I was trying for thematic but having a lack of experience not sure iris that OP for 3rd level?
This is a campaign for a single player, right? If that's the case then I wouldn't ever worry about anything being OP on the player's side. Combat is balanced around having a party of 3-4 other players around you, so running combat for a single player is already balanced against them and bumping up their combat abilities with cool magic items is a good way to get around that.
This is a campaign for a single player, right? If that's the case then I wouldn't ever worry about anything being OP on the player's side. Combat is balanced around having a party of 3-4 other players around you, so running combat for a single player is already balanced against them and bumping up their combat abilities with cool magic items is a good way to get around that.
Campaign is probably giving to much credit atm lol.
Basically I'm trying to run games for my son with a friend and his son joining over video call. Unfortunately due to not being able to lock down a firm time and trying to go "teach" everyone in dribs and drabs we've not managed to get it off the ground.
Watching a DMS lair video about acquisitions incorporated and player franchises, it gave me the idea of a loose player guild setup so players can drop in or out. Atm it is just my wife and son but I plan to adjust each session to who's available and potentially run parallel adventures so everyone stays around the same level. And hopefully when schedules align we can have bigger scope sessions.
Probably biting of more than I can chew tbf but it does give the opportunity for everyone to play without having to give up characters they like.
With the solo adventure for my son I thought that giving him a quest also allows some one on one father son time and give him an epic beat to gain his milestone eldritch knight sub class.
I'm a first time DM and have just run my first session for my wife and 11 year old son. He has rolled a fighter as he wants to play an Eldritch knight. I'm planning to run a solo adventure for him as he hits lvl.3 where he discovers a cool sword to bond with.
Basically wondering if there is any lore behind Eldritch Knights so I can add details and flavour. I've search around but, beyond what they can do in game, there doesn't seem to be much in the way of "history" on the class.
Any help would be appreciated as I want to make it cool for my lad.
Many thanks in advance
In D&D terms, it means 'mysterious, mystical, or weird'. There's not much in the way of specific history, because it's not a faction or an order of knights - as much as it sounds like it. It is simply the description of a fighter that has combined the martial with magic.
But that does allow plenty of freedom to decide how your son's fighter came to learn magic!
Ah ok. Thank you for clarifying.
Like you said that does open up the narrative possibilities which is fun. Planning on adding a few precursors maybe prophetic dreams or mysterious figure tropes that lead him to a solo dungeon. Not necessarily ground breaking but hopefully it will pull him in.
Appreciate the help mate
No problem,
And totally - Eldritch in the D&D universe is generally associated with the magic of warlocks. While still arcane, there's a subtle edge to how the user draws their power - or from what. It certainly doesn't have to be defined that way - you could simply have a really intelligent or charismatic fighter that is able to cast magic as wizards or sorcerers do...
But from your ideas, it would work perfectly with forming a bond with the sword. Perhaps the sword contains the fragment of the soul of a powerful entity, that grants the wielder the ability to cast spells so long as their motives are aligned.
Or perhaps a more 'Sword in the Stone' angle, where whomever is able to retrieve the blade from a perilous location, shall become a powerful patron's chosen champion - and given the ability to cast magic.
Lots of options!
Maybe you could say there was an Order of Eldritch Knights that were born with magical powers and served the king, and within that order the player has a mentor, friends, maybe a rival or two that might show up from time to time?
I know the "born with magic" kinda contradicts the class lore of their magic being learned like a wizard's, but the way I put it sounds a little more YA protagonist, which seems like a positive with a literal YA at the table.
I think the official backstory is intentionally sparse so that you can tailor them to fit your campaign. Maybe they're a wizard's bodyguards or the elite troops of an elven kingdom. Or maybe it's a fighting style lost to the ages, only recently uncovered.
My homebrew subclasses (full list here)
(Artificer) Swordmage | Glasswright | (Barbarian) Path of the Savage Embrace
(Bard) College of Dance | (Fighter) Warlord | Cannoneer
(Monk) Way of the Elements | (Ranger) Blade Dancer
(Rogue) DaggerMaster | Inquisitor | (Sorcerer) Riftwalker | Spellfist
(Warlock) The Swarm
i really appreciate the suggestions, they are all really helping to percolate the idea in my head.
this was the quick note of the rough idea i'm playing around with, a little derivative but hoping it captures his interest. He's playing a half orc fighter name Joshua Trask lvl1.
>Either while on watch or asleep, a glowing apparition appears. vaguely humanoid, Large, phasing in and out of focus (Orc ?) and tells Joshua
"You are the last of us. Gather them. Lead them. Be the light that guides the defenseless through the coming darkness" <
very rough but planning a couple of foreshadowing moments and a solo dungeon that concludes with him hitting lvl 3 and gaining his sword. playing on the Eldritch Knight being part of a lineage that fights against Eldritch threats. now i'm writing that it seems very similar to the Shannara chronicles which i recently watched lol.
Any input and ideas appreciated.
I like it! It's strong while still being open ended and simple. Should be fun.
This is a campaign for a single player, right? If that's the case then I wouldn't ever worry about anything being OP on the player's side. Combat is balanced around having a party of 3-4 other players around you, so running combat for a single player is already balanced against them and bumping up their combat abilities with cool magic items is a good way to get around that.
Campaign is probably giving to much credit atm lol.
Basically I'm trying to run games for my son with a friend and his son joining over video call. Unfortunately due to not being able to lock down a firm time and trying to go "teach" everyone in dribs and drabs we've not managed to get it off the ground.
Watching a DMS lair video about acquisitions incorporated and player franchises, it gave me the idea of a loose player guild setup so players can drop in or out. Atm it is just my wife and son but I plan to adjust each session to who's available and potentially run parallel adventures so everyone stays around the same level. And hopefully when schedules align we can have bigger scope sessions.
Probably biting of more than I can chew tbf but it does give the opportunity for everyone to play without having to give up characters they like.
With the solo adventure for my son I thought that giving him a quest also allows some one on one father son time and give him an epic beat to gain his milestone eldritch knight sub class.
Sorry for the waffling