Warforged Eldritch Knight in Plate + Shield + Shield Spell, Defensive Fighting Style, & Shield of Faith & Haste cast on them = 1+18+2+5+1+2+2= 31AC
Needs a party member to cast shield of faith on you, but AC 31 with no magic items. You can get another +5 AC if you can get behind 3/4 cover. So ......AC 36
Without magic items or spells.
Nothing in the title or post excludes spells.
correct JH.
AC 38 if you are a barbarian with 20 each DEX and CON (Unamored defense is 20, bypassing the plate armor)
Be mindful that barbarians using unarmored defense aren't eligible for defensive fighting style since you have to be wearing armor.
AC 40 if pure 20 lvl barbarian with 24 con
10+dex+con+shield. 10+5+7+2=24 + 1 warforged=25 +5 Shield (once per rest with magic initiate)=30 + 2 Shield of Faith +2 Haste = 34 +5 (3/4 cover)= 39. Requires really high stats, two concentration spells, one once per rest spell that is unlikely to be used if this is the only attack, and 3/4 cover. Defensive Fighting Style isn't eligible even if you used a feat to get a fighting style since you are using unarmored defense and wielding a shield doesn't count for wearing armor.
You also can't cast shield while raging. So you would need to be not raging to get it and you would need two other casters to get you there.
The warforge forge cleric can do it by themselves (besides haste).
I find it rather odd how people factor other characters' spells and abilities into their calculations. 9/10 times an allied cleric would rather cast bless on 3 PCs instead of shield of faith on you. It's certainly possible to do it yourself, but you'd need to effectively set a trap to do this. I also don't like the idea of rolling dice to boost AC due to its unreliability.
My paladin is sitting at 21 (plate+shield+defensive fighting style), and I can cast shield of faith for another +2. Later on I'll make a 3 level dip in fighter (eldritch knight) so I will reach a 28 burst AC with shield. I could also cast haste on myself (I love oath of vengeance) instead of shield of faith, or our sorcerer could cast it on me to reach AC 30. If you want to tank haste is super good because you can also use the extra action to dodge.
Granted this build takes you a while to get to the max while the Warforge Cleric/Fighter/Sorcerer build I had posted would come online a lot faster as it doesn't rely on ASI to get there:
Warforge (+1 AC) + Plate (18) + Shield (+2) + Blessing of the Forge (+1) + Soul of the Forge (+1) + Shield Spell (+5), Defensive Fighting Style (+1), & Shield of Faith (+2) = 31 AC
You can get 39 using a Battle Smith Artificer with a 1st level Fighter dip, too. This can be done at level 15. Magic items included come strictly from class features.
You can then push this further with 2 Fighter levels for Battle Master, taking the Evasive Footwork maneuver for +1d8 AC. If I were to add it to the calculation, however, I'd only bump it up by +1 (AC 40) as that's the minimum added guaranteed. This assumes that an enemy took a shot at the very first opportunity with a readied attack as you begin to move out from your cover.
At level 3 a Warforged forge cleric wizard fighter(defense fighting style) could have an AC of 16(chain mail starting equipment)+2(shield)+2(shield of Faith)+1(warforged ability)+1(forge cleric ability)+5(shield spell) AC, for a total of 27 AC. At level 3. With starting gear.
Add 5 more levels in forge cleric for a permanent +1 to AC, put two levels in artificer to get infusions(forge cleric already makes the chain mail +1) so another +1, and add another 8 levels in artificer after that to get the infusions to +2 each and be wearing plate. 20(infused plate)+4(infused shield)+1(forge cleric)+2(shield of faith)+1(warforged)+5(shield spell) for 33 AC at level 18.
At level 3 a Warforged forge cleric wizard fighter(defense fighting style) could have an AC of 16(chain mail starting equipment)+2(shield)+2(shield of Faith)+1(warforged ability)+1(forge cleric ability)+5(shield spell) AC, for a total of 27 AC. At level 3. With starting gear.
Add 5 more levels in forge cleric for a permanent +1 to AC, put two levels in artificer to get infusions(forge cleric already makes the chain mail +1) so another +1, and add another 8 levels in artificer after that to get the infusions to +2 each and be wearing plate. 20(infused plate)+4(infused shield)+1(forge cleric)+2(shield of faith)+1(warforged)+5(shield spell) for 33 AC at level 18.
You can only get a +3 AC from your infused shield since you need to use Repulsion Shield on it as you have already used Enhanced Defense on your armor.
And while I'm here how about a simple Warforged Paladin 2 War Magic Wizard 10 multiclass.
18 from plate, +2 from shield (20), +1 from Warforged (21), +1 from Defense fighting style (22), +4 from Shield of Faith or Haste amplified by Durable Magic (26), +5 from Shield spell (31)
There is very little point in going over 31 AC as most enemies don't have higher than +11 to hit meaning they will need a nat 20 to hit 31AC anyway. To flesh out my character I would probably go Ancients Paladin 8 War Magic Wizard 12 to get 5 juicy ASIs, Extra Attack and the Paladin auras which combined with Durable Magic and Arcane Deflection makes this character harder to kill than a cockroach lol.
At level 3 a Warforged forge cleric wizard fighter(defense fighting style) could have an AC of 16(chain mail starting equipment)+2(shield)+2(shield of Faith)+1(warforged ability)+1(forge cleric ability)+5(shield spell) AC, for a total of 27 AC. At level 3. With starting gear.
Add 5 more levels in forge cleric for a permanent +1 to AC, put two levels in artificer to get infusions(forge cleric already makes the chain mail +1) so another +1, and add another 8 levels in artificer after that to get the infusions to +2 each and be wearing plate. 20(infused plate)+4(infused shield)+1(forge cleric)+2(shield of faith)+1(warforged)+5(shield spell) for 33 AC at level 18.
You can only get a +3 AC from your infused shield since you need to use Repulsion Shield on it as you have already used Enhanced Defense on your armor.
And while I'm here how about a simple Warforged Paladin 2 War Magic Wizard 10 multiclass.
18 from plate, +2 from shield (20), +1 from Warforged (21), +1 from Defense fighting style (22), +4 from Shield of Faith or Haste amplified by Durable Magic (26), +5 from Shield spell (31)
There is very little point in going over 31 AC as most enemies don't have higher than +11 to hit meaning they will need a nat 20 to hit 31AC anyway. To flesh out my character I would probably go Ancients Paladin 8 War Magic Wizard 12 to get 5 juicy ASIs, Extra Attack and the Paladin auras which combined with Durable Magic and Arcane Deflection makes this character harder to kill than a cockroach lol.
They specifically said that they were getting the +1 to armor from Forge Cleric, not from Artificer.
Aside from that, your character would make a nightmare of a support character that could still deliver some decent pain. High AC, combined with higher than normal saves (at least +1 from the prerequisite 13 charisma for multiclassing Paladin) plus resistance to damage from spells, and the last two being a 10 foot aura to affect allies. Ensnaring Strike on default, nature's wrath as a channel divinty and a decent selection of spells from wizard and Paladin... the only thing really holding that build back is stats since you'd not have a great candidate for a dump stat with all of the default dump stats requiring a 13 for the multiclass. Dumping dex and wisdom is compensated a bit with the aura of protection and you'd almost have to start human variant or custom lineage to be able to fit resilient con or Warcaster into the build. You'd probably divine smite a lot less than most paladins, reserving your spell slots for Shield. Shield of Faith probably wouldn't be the option for you as a support (or even as a striker which would favor Haste as the self buff of choice with Bless offering better utility in most non facetanking situations for first level spells) since you'd have access to better concentration spells for the party at large and you'd stand a decent chance of keeping your concentration. But just having the options...
Oh. Wait. You need a little healing on top of that? Lay on Hands... SMH.
Of course, this character probably represents a minor fraction of Paladin characters because Moooarrrr Nooooovvvvvaaaaa Smites.
Oh no I would not go Variant Human or Custom Lineage. I would go straight Human for the + 1 to all stats =D
Also regarding YeetyBois build he specifically said he got 20 AC from infused plate and +4 from infused shield which is not possible as that would mean he used Enhanced Defense Infusion twice. Blessing of the Forge does not stack with Infusions as they both require a non magical item and once an Infusion or Blessing goes on an item it becomes magical and therefore an invalid target for the other.
Oh no I would not go Variant Human or Custom Lineage. I would go straight Human for the + 1 to all stats =D
Also regarding YeetyBois build he specifically said he got 20 AC from infused plate and +4 from infused shield which is not possible as that would mean he used Enhanced Defense Infusion twice. Blessing of the Forge does not stack with Infusions as they both require a non magical item and once an Infusion or Blessing goes on an item it becomes magical and therefore an invalid target for the other.
Yep, they did say infused twice and added the forge cleric in to boot... I was remembering earlier when they mentioned the starting version and getting the additional +1 from forge cleric at 6th and thinking that was what they were referring to with the 20 plate. You're right that they would be a max of 32, but they would have two paths for it. They could go repulser shield and enhanced defense to get 20 AC plate and +3 AC for repulser shield, or they could go enhanced defense on the shield and use the level 1 +1 armor to have 19AC Plate and +4 Enhanced Defense Shield. Either way gives 23 plus 1 for level 6 forge cleric + 1 warforged for a static +25 and either can cast Shield of faith and shield to get a +2 and a +5 respectively. The path would be determined by whether they wanted to use forge cleric 1 for their weapon and use repulser shield or whether they wanted to use enhanced weapon instead for their weapon (or use it on another character or another infusion altogether).
Base human would certainly ease the stat crunch and having the mind sharpener infusion could fit in to ease the concentration concern. Certainly gives a valid path and would allow for a 12 to be put in either charisma or intelligence to get the required 13 if you weren't stressed about getting them any higher. Dexterity could be left at a 9 or 11 to get an even number and a +0 or +1 dex save. A 15 strength, 9 dexterity, 12 constitution, 12 intelligence, 13 wisdom, 12 charisma starting paladin and getting resilient con at 4 could be workable. The remaining ASIs could go to Charisma to increase Paladin casting and aura of protection, strength for melee attacking for intelligence for wizard casting ability. There would likely be a +1/+1 split between intelligence and charisma just to get them both to 14s for the benefit it would bring to those aspects of the class. Bumping both the entire time would enhance your casting at the expense of your melee. Lots of interesting options off of the base with a human race, especially if you were more interested in a support/magic user where you could swap one of the 12s with the 15 from strength. You'd be locked into chainmail or a 20 speed but your casting would be higher from the start. On the other hand, you could start with a 14 strength, giving you a 15 after racial bonus, and start with both intelligence and charisma at 14. This would make level 1 easier. And a dip into hexblade enables melee off the charisma stat, but at what cost to the rest of the build.... fascinating base.
After a little more thought if I were to build this character seriously, my starting stats would be as follows:
STR 14 DEX 10 CON 14 INT 15 or 16 WIS 9 CHA 15 or 16
With the 5 ASIs available in total I would take Warcaster, use one ASI to round up WIS and INT/CHA, take Heavy Armor Master and then use the last 2 ASIs to max INT or CHA or maybe take both to 18.
Resilient CON would be nice but I feel Warcaster would be the better choice as your CON saves do get boosted by at least a +3 from the Paladin aura. Can also swap out Heavy Armor Master for another +2 to INT/CHA if the 20 speed isn't that annoying or go more tank with the Tough feat.
I'm sure this has been mentioned before, I didn't read the whole thread. Artificer Armorer at lvl 14 can get a base AC of 25 without any feats, no ASI or anything needed. Just need plate and a shield, both mundane. Plate (18) with Enhanced Defense (20), shield (22) with repulsion shield (23), a Cloak of Prot (24), and a Ring of Prot (25). You also still have 4 more infusions to play around with (one has to be part of your armor). I'm assuming the title meant you don't have access to buy or craft magic items, but the Artificer makes their own magic items.
I got mine up to 25 through using dwarven plate armor and a shield +3
Both of those are magic items. The OP said no magic items.
And neither item is accessible through Artificer according to Tasha's. That has been the exception that has been used thus far is class abilities of the character.
What about Warforged and if you can get Dex20, Int20, Wis 20; Monk-1 Bladesinger-5 Bloodhunter Path of the Mutant-14, Base AC=10+1+5(Dex)+5(Int bladesing)+5 (Wis unarmored defense)=26. The the extra stuff, Formula that adds +4 Dex for +2 AC, formula that adds +4 Int for +2 AC, +5 (Shield Spell), AC=26+9=35 or you can add another +5 for the cover mod above and +2 for haste for a total of 42.
What about Warforged and if you can get Dex20, Int20, Wis 20; Monk-1 Bladesinger-5 Bloodhunter Path of the Mutant-14, Base AC=10+1+5(Dex)+5(Int bladesing)+5 (Wis unarmored defense)=26. The the extra stuff, Formula that adds +4 Dex for +2 AC, formula that adds +4 Int for +2 AC, +5 (Shield Spell), AC=26+9=35 or you can add another +5 for the cover mod above and +2 for haste for a total of 42.
That is if my math is right.
Dex 20 Int 20 Wis 20 violates the constraints of no magic items - max possible is 20/20/18 base, using point buy. I suspect it is also sus using Bloodhunter, as you can reach AC infinity with homebrew, which is what Bloodhunter is.
26 is still the standard baseline (e.g. from Warforged Artificer with +2 Plate, +1 Shield, Ring of Protection, Cloak of Protection) you're looking to beat before you add on a Concentration spell and a non-Concentration spell.
What about Warforged and if you can get Dex20, Int20, Wis 20; Monk-1 Bladesinger-5 Bloodhunter Path of the Mutant-14, Base AC=10+1+5(Dex)+5(Int bladesing)+5 (Wis unarmored defense)=26. The the extra stuff, Formula that adds +4 Dex for +2 AC, formula that adds +4 Int for +2 AC, +5 (Shield Spell), AC=26+9=35 or you can add another +5 for the cover mod above and +2 for haste for a total of 42.
That is if my math is right.
Dex 20 Int 20 Wis 20 violates the constraints of no magic items - max possible is 20/20/18 base, using point buy. I suspect it is also sus using Bloodhunter, as you can reach AC infinity with homebrew, which is what Bloodhunter is.
26 is still the standard baseline (e.g. from Warforged Artificer with +2 Plate, +1 Shield, Ring of Protection, Cloak of Protection) you're looking to beat before you add on a Concentration spell and a non-Concentration spell.
Thanks for pointing that out and sorry for the confusion. I am addicted to the bloodhunter right now and I tend to forget it is not official.
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You also can't cast shield while raging. So you would need to be not raging to get it and you would need two other casters to get you there.
The warforge forge cleric can do it by themselves (besides haste).
I find it rather odd how people factor other characters' spells and abilities into their calculations. 9/10 times an allied cleric would rather cast bless on 3 PCs instead of shield of faith on you. It's certainly possible to do it yourself, but you'd need to effectively set a trap to do this. I also don't like the idea of rolling dice to boost AC due to its unreliability.
Warforged Cleric 1/Bladesinging Wizard 19
Mage armor base AC 13
Warforged AC bonus +1 (AC 14)
20 Dex +5 (AC 19)
Bladesong w/ 20 Int +5 (AC 24)
Shield of faith +2 (AC 26)
Haste via glyph of warding +2 (AC 28)
Shield +5 (AC 33)
Dual Wielder feat +1 (AC 34)
3/4 cover +5 (AC 39)
My paladin is sitting at 21 (plate+shield+defensive fighting style), and I can cast shield of faith for another +2. Later on I'll make a 3 level dip in fighter (eldritch knight) so I will reach a 28 burst AC with shield. I could also cast haste on myself (I love oath of vengeance) instead of shield of faith, or our sorcerer could cast it on me to reach AC 30. If you want to tank haste is super good because you can also use the extra action to dodge.
With the new Bladesong Subclass, I feel like the max is going to increase vastly...
Rexir2 posted the max of 39 with bladesong above.
Granted this build takes you a while to get to the max while the Warforge Cleric/Fighter/Sorcerer build I had posted would come online a lot faster as it doesn't rely on ASI to get there:
Warforge (+1 AC) + Plate (18) + Shield (+2) + Blessing of the Forge (+1) + Soul of the Forge (+1) + Shield Spell (+5), Defensive Fighting Style (+1), & Shield of Faith (+2) = 31 AC
3/4 cover would get you to 36
You can get 39 using a Battle Smith Artificer with a 1st level Fighter dip, too. This can be done at level 15. Magic items included come strictly from class features.
Plate base AC 18
Shield +2 (AC 20)
Warforged +1 (AC 21)
Defense Style +1 (AC 22)
Enhanced Defense infusion +2 (AC 24)
Repulsion Shield infusion +1 (AC 25)
RMI infusion (cloak of protection) +1 (AC 26)
RMI infusion (ring of protection) +1 (AC 27)
Shield spell +5 (AC 32)
Haste spell +2 (AC 34)
3/4 cover +5 (AC 39)
You can then push this further with 2 Fighter levels for Battle Master, taking the Evasive Footwork maneuver for +1d8 AC. If I were to add it to the calculation, however, I'd only bump it up by +1 (AC 40) as that's the minimum added guaranteed. This assumes that an enemy took a shot at the very first opportunity with a readied attack as you begin to move out from your cover.
At level 3 a Warforged forge cleric wizard fighter(defense fighting style) could have an AC of 16(chain mail starting equipment)+2(shield)+2(shield of Faith)+1(warforged ability)+1(forge cleric ability)+5(shield spell) AC, for a total of 27 AC. At level 3. With starting gear.
Add 5 more levels in forge cleric for a permanent +1 to AC, put two levels in artificer to get infusions(forge cleric already makes the chain mail +1) so another +1, and add another 8 levels in artificer after that to get the infusions to +2 each and be wearing plate. 20(infused plate)+4(infused shield)+1(forge cleric)+2(shield of faith)+1(warforged)+5(shield spell) for 33 AC at level 18.
You can only get a +3 AC from your infused shield since you need to use Repulsion Shield on it as you have already used Enhanced Defense on your armor.
And while I'm here how about a simple Warforged Paladin 2 War Magic Wizard 10 multiclass.
18 from plate, +2 from shield (20), +1 from Warforged (21), +1 from Defense fighting style (22), +4 from Shield of Faith or Haste amplified by Durable Magic (26), +5 from Shield spell (31)
There is very little point in going over 31 AC as most enemies don't have higher than +11 to hit meaning they will need a nat 20 to hit 31AC anyway. To flesh out my character I would probably go Ancients Paladin 8 War Magic Wizard 12 to get 5 juicy ASIs, Extra Attack and the Paladin auras which combined with Durable Magic and Arcane Deflection makes this character harder to kill than a cockroach lol.
They specifically said that they were getting the +1 to armor from Forge Cleric, not from Artificer.
Aside from that, your character would make a nightmare of a support character that could still deliver some decent pain. High AC, combined with higher than normal saves (at least +1 from the prerequisite 13 charisma for multiclassing Paladin) plus resistance to damage from spells, and the last two being a 10 foot aura to affect allies. Ensnaring Strike on default, nature's wrath as a channel divinty and a decent selection of spells from wizard and Paladin... the only thing really holding that build back is stats since you'd not have a great candidate for a dump stat with all of the default dump stats requiring a 13 for the multiclass. Dumping dex and wisdom is compensated a bit with the aura of protection and you'd almost have to start human variant or custom lineage to be able to fit resilient con or Warcaster into the build. You'd probably divine smite a lot less than most paladins, reserving your spell slots for Shield. Shield of Faith probably wouldn't be the option for you as a support (or even as a striker which would favor Haste as the self buff of choice with Bless offering better utility in most non facetanking situations for first level spells) since you'd have access to better concentration spells for the party at large and you'd stand a decent chance of keeping your concentration. But just having the options...
Oh. Wait. You need a little healing on top of that? Lay on Hands... SMH.
Of course, this character probably represents a minor fraction of Paladin characters because Moooarrrr Nooooovvvvvaaaaa Smites.
Oh no I would not go Variant Human or Custom Lineage. I would go straight Human for the + 1 to all stats =D
Also regarding YeetyBois build he specifically said he got 20 AC from infused plate and +4 from infused shield which is not possible as that would mean he used Enhanced Defense Infusion twice. Blessing of the Forge does not stack with Infusions as they both require a non magical item and once an Infusion or Blessing goes on an item it becomes magical and therefore an invalid target for the other.
Yep, they did say infused twice and added the forge cleric in to boot... I was remembering earlier when they mentioned the starting version and getting the additional +1 from forge cleric at 6th and thinking that was what they were referring to with the 20 plate. You're right that they would be a max of 32, but they would have two paths for it. They could go repulser shield and enhanced defense to get 20 AC plate and +3 AC for repulser shield, or they could go enhanced defense on the shield and use the level 1 +1 armor to have 19AC Plate and +4 Enhanced Defense Shield. Either way gives 23 plus 1 for level 6 forge cleric + 1 warforged for a static +25 and either can cast Shield of faith and shield to get a +2 and a +5 respectively. The path would be determined by whether they wanted to use forge cleric 1 for their weapon and use repulser shield or whether they wanted to use enhanced weapon instead for their weapon (or use it on another character or another infusion altogether).
Base human would certainly ease the stat crunch and having the mind sharpener infusion could fit in to ease the concentration concern. Certainly gives a valid path and would allow for a 12 to be put in either charisma or intelligence to get the required 13 if you weren't stressed about getting them any higher. Dexterity could be left at a 9 or 11 to get an even number and a +0 or +1 dex save. A 15 strength, 9 dexterity, 12 constitution, 12 intelligence, 13 wisdom, 12 charisma starting paladin and getting resilient con at 4 could be workable. The remaining ASIs could go to Charisma to increase Paladin casting and aura of protection, strength for melee attacking for intelligence for wizard casting ability. There would likely be a +1/+1 split between intelligence and charisma just to get them both to 14s for the benefit it would bring to those aspects of the class. Bumping both the entire time would enhance your casting at the expense of your melee. Lots of interesting options off of the base with a human race, especially if you were more interested in a support/magic user where you could swap one of the 12s with the 15 from strength. You'd be locked into chainmail or a 20 speed but your casting would be higher from the start. On the other hand, you could start with a 14 strength, giving you a 15 after racial bonus, and start with both intelligence and charisma at 14. This would make level 1 easier. And a dip into hexblade enables melee off the charisma stat, but at what cost to the rest of the build.... fascinating base.
After a little more thought if I were to build this character seriously, my starting stats would be as follows:
STR 14 DEX 10 CON 14 INT 15 or 16 WIS 9 CHA 15 or 16
With the 5 ASIs available in total I would take Warcaster, use one ASI to round up WIS and INT/CHA, take Heavy Armor Master and then use the last 2 ASIs to max INT or CHA or maybe take both to 18.
Resilient CON would be nice but I feel Warcaster would be the better choice as your CON saves do get boosted by at least a +3 from the Paladin aura. Can also swap out Heavy Armor Master for another +2 to INT/CHA if the 20 speed isn't that annoying or go more tank with the Tough feat.
I'm sure this has been mentioned before, I didn't read the whole thread. Artificer Armorer at lvl 14 can get a base AC of 25 without any feats, no ASI or anything needed. Just need plate and a shield, both mundane. Plate (18) with Enhanced Defense (20), shield (22) with repulsion shield (23), a Cloak of Prot (24), and a Ring of Prot (25). You also still have 4 more infusions to play around with (one has to be part of your armor). I'm assuming the title meant you don't have access to buy or craft magic items, but the Artificer makes their own magic items.
I got mine up to 25 through using dwarven plate armor and a shield +3
Both of those are magic items. The OP said no magic items.
And neither item is accessible through Artificer according to Tasha's. That has been the exception that has been used thus far is class abilities of the character.
What about Warforged and if you can get Dex20, Int20, Wis 20; Monk-1 Bladesinger-5 Bloodhunter Path of the Mutant-14, Base AC=10+1+5(Dex)+5(Int bladesing)+5 (Wis unarmored defense)=26. The the extra stuff, Formula that adds +4 Dex for +2 AC, formula that adds +4 Int for +2 AC, +5 (Shield Spell), AC=26+9=35 or you can add another +5 for the cover mod above and +2 for haste for a total of 42.
That is if my math is right.
Change subclass to alchemist. Create the Boldness experimental elixir for an extra +1AC for 10mins
Dex 20 Int 20 Wis 20 violates the constraints of no magic items - max possible is 20/20/18 base, using point buy. I suspect it is also sus using Bloodhunter, as you can reach AC infinity with homebrew, which is what Bloodhunter is.
26 is still the standard baseline (e.g. from Warforged Artificer with +2 Plate, +1 Shield, Ring of Protection, Cloak of Protection) you're looking to beat before you add on a Concentration spell and a non-Concentration spell.
Thanks for pointing that out and sorry for the confusion. I am addicted to the bloodhunter right now and I tend to forget it is not official.