Possibly, I don't have that book yet so I can't see what it does.
I'm thinking one of Tanzu's favorite illusions would be to make it look like he was a scarecrow if the party was able to prepare an ambush in an area where that might be something that made sense. That way he's just hiding in plain sight.
Of course, the enemy could decide to use the scarecrow as target practice, so perhaps a pile of rocks instead.
Anyway, to the OP, as you can see, a gnome Paladin is possible and could be a lot of fun.
Also a bit off topic... But that Gnome could also go with some levels of Fey Pact of the Blade Warlock or a Fey based Hexblade... Uh.. This sounds also fun...
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Maybe not overload a new-ish DM with too esoteric a build with a zillion rules? :)
Don't worry, they can't have my build... I'll know... ;) That was more a proof of concept. To the OP, don't stress feats or multiclassing for your first rodeo. They aren't overly complicated, but the information overload can be real. Keeping characters more simple mechanically is fine, especially if you have new players.
Just do point buy and it all comes out in the wash.
While it would be possible to have a point buy where that's true (in fact, I favor such a system), it's not true under RAW (it doesn't make a terribly big difference, but it's there).
I mean, it works in the DDB character builder point buy system.
There's absolutely no reason why a gnome can't be a paladin, and be a decent paladin. Is it 100% optimal? No. It's not awful though either, depending on the choices one makes.
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Any time an unfathomably powerful entity sweeps in and offers godlike rewards in return for just a few teensy favors, it’s a scam. Unless it’s me. I’d never lie to you, reader dearest.
Dragon #329 had a cute short piece on gnome paladins called "Daydream Believers". I'd recommend checking it out. 3.5e was the system, but with some tweaks it could be fun in 5e. For instance, allow a giant badger to be a mount with find steed.
Just finished playing around a bit with my limited DnDBeyond resources (have everything I need in print).
Rock Gnome Paladin Level 1
using standard point buy: STR 15, DEX 10, CON 14, INT 10, WIS 10, CHA 15
Chain Mail, Shield, War Pick
Level 2 going for Duelling fighting style, I think.
Level 3 Oath (maybe "of the Ancients")
Level 4 I would use the ASI to increase STR and CHA to 16.
For a starter character that would be a good intro I think
To be clear for newer players, with point buy and without racial bonuses, this would be 15, 10, 13, 8, 10, 15. This is essentially standard array but taking 2 from the 12 to make the 14 a 15. This doesn't affect the modifier of the strength/charisma score that would have been a 14, does lower the dexterity/wisdom modifier that would be the 12, and does make it so that you could get a 16 in strength and charisma by splitting your level 4 ASI. The gnomes get a +2 to intelligence which bumps up the 8 to a 10 and rock gnomes get a +1 to constitution to push the 13 to 14.
All in all, it's not a bad strategy if you want to focus your Strength, Constitution, and Charisma (the primary stats for Paladins) without while leaving the others at the commoner level. This prevents a negative modifier from being applied to any skills that you aren't proficient with as well as preventing any negative modifiers to saves.
On the other hand, you could go 8 in Dexterity and Wisdom to get a 15 (16 after racial) in Constitution and a larger HP pool. I wouldn't recommend that extreme of a min-max on a new player's character, but could be interesting on an experienced player's character.
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
I'd be wary of including UA stuff when building characters. UA is play-test material, is likely to be changed before official publication, and could be wildly over/under-powered.
I'd be wary of including UA stuff when building characters. UA is play-test material, is likely to be changed before official publication, and could be wildly over/under-powered.
You would want to have DM permission before trying to include any for an actual game certainly.
I’m having a blast with Bubbsy Barrelbottom. Not optimized, but hell of a lot of fun to play. OP tip, players who are excited about a character are a lot funner to play with then players that aren’t. I’d rather change a world to accommodate a player’s character then change a player’s character to accommodate the world.
Sounds like Sir Didymus from Labyrinth. Could be a lot of fun :)
If you are worried about character optimisation (you don't need to be) then I recommend using the variant rules from Tashas Cauldron of Everything. They allow you to give the racial bonus to any attributes. This means you can change the +2 to intelligence to a +2 to something else more useful for a paladin.
A dex based paladin with a rapier and shield is also a great option if your player would prefer a more agile than beefy character.
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Possibly, I don't have that book yet so I can't see what it does.
I'm thinking one of Tanzu's favorite illusions would be to make it look like he was a scarecrow if the party was able to prepare an ambush in an area where that might be something that made sense. That way he's just hiding in plain sight.
Of course, the enemy could decide to use the scarecrow as target practice, so perhaps a pile of rocks instead.
Anyway, to the OP, as you can see, a gnome Paladin is possible and could be a lot of fun.
Gift of Alacrity
You touch a willing creature. For the duration, the target can add 1d8 to its initiative rolls.
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
Nasty for a first strike Paladin or a tank.
Also a bit off topic... But that Gnome could also go with some levels of Fey Pact of the Blade Warlock or a Fey based Hexblade... Uh.. This sounds also fun...
Maybe not overload a new-ish DM with too esoteric a build with a zillion rules? :)
My DM Philosophy, as summed up by other people: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rN5w4-azTq3Kbn0Yvk9nfqQhwQ1R5by1/view
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
Don't worry, they can't have my build... I'll know... ;) That was more a proof of concept. To the OP, don't stress feats or multiclassing for your first rodeo. They aren't overly complicated, but the information overload can be real. Keeping characters more simple mechanically is fine, especially if you have new players.
I mean, it works in the DDB character builder point buy system.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
There's absolutely no reason why a gnome can't be a paladin, and be a decent paladin. Is it 100% optimal? No. It's not awful though either, depending on the choices one makes.
Any time an unfathomably powerful entity sweeps in and offers godlike rewards in return for just a few teensy favors, it’s a scam. Unless it’s me. I’d never lie to you, reader dearest.
Tasha
Dragon #329 had a cute short piece on gnome paladins called "Daydream Believers". I'd recommend checking it out. 3.5e was the system, but with some tweaks it could be fun in 5e. For instance, allow a giant badger to be a mount with find steed.
Coming back to the OP:
Just finished playing around a bit with my limited DnDBeyond resources (have everything I need in print).
Rock Gnome Paladin Level 1
using standard point buy: STR 15, DEX 10, CON 14, INT 10, WIS 10, CHA 15
Chain Mail, Shield, War Pick
Level 2 going for Duelling fighting style, I think.
Level 3 Oath (maybe "of the Ancients")
Level 4 I would use the ASI to increase STR and CHA to 16.
For a starter character that would be a good intro I think
To be clear for newer players, with point buy and without racial bonuses, this would be 15, 10, 13, 8, 10, 15. This is essentially standard array but taking 2 from the 12 to make the 14 a 15. This doesn't affect the modifier of the strength/charisma score that would have been a 14, does lower the dexterity/wisdom modifier that would be the 12, and does make it so that you could get a 16 in strength and charisma by splitting your level 4 ASI. The gnomes get a +2 to intelligence which bumps up the 8 to a 10 and rock gnomes get a +1 to constitution to push the 13 to 14.
All in all, it's not a bad strategy if you want to focus your Strength, Constitution, and Charisma (the primary stats for Paladins) without while leaving the others at the commoner level. This prevents a negative modifier from being applied to any skills that you aren't proficient with as well as preventing any negative modifiers to saves.
On the other hand, you could go 8 in Dexterity and Wisdom to get a 15 (16 after racial) in Constitution and a larger HP pool. I wouldn't recommend that extreme of a min-max on a new player's character, but could be interesting on an experienced player's character.
This here folks. This wins a thread.
Lol I loved that comment. I'm tempted to make that an NPC just to throw in the line "Should you need us..."
Damn - now I have to go back and rewatch Labyrinth :D
My DM Philosophy, as summed up by other people: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rN5w4-azTq3Kbn0Yvk9nfqQhwQ1R5by1/view
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
I'd be wary of including UA stuff when building characters. UA is play-test material, is likely to be changed before official publication, and could be wildly over/under-powered.
You would want to have DM permission before trying to include any for an actual game certainly.
I’m having a blast with Bubbsy Barrelbottom. Not optimized, but hell of a lot of fun to play. OP tip, players who are excited about a character are a lot funner to play with then players that aren’t. I’d rather change a world to accommodate a player’s character then change a player’s character to accommodate the world.
Sounds like Sir Didymus from Labyrinth. Could be a lot of fun :)
If you are worried about character optimisation (you don't need to be) then I recommend using the variant rules from Tashas Cauldron of Everything. They allow you to give the racial bonus to any attributes. This means you can change the +2 to intelligence to a +2 to something else more useful for a paladin.
A dex based paladin with a rapier and shield is also a great option if your player would prefer a more agile than beefy character.