I had a Dex Paladin that used a rapier and he was awesome.
One of the players in the Planescape game I'm running had a character like that, high-Dexterity Paladin who fought with a rapier in one hand and a whip in the other. It was very interesting and...different. Seeing someone use Wrathful Smite with a whip is very entertaining.
I had a Dex Paladin that used a rapier and he was awesome.
I did this, too. It was super fun. Though I did rapier and shield, which I see the OP doesn’t want.
That is the one thing with using nothing in the other hand, you give up a lot of assumed utility — either an AC boost, second attack, or damage boost from a two-handed weapon. I’ve often wished for a feat or fighting style to make it so I don’t feel like I’m nerfing myself by giving up that second hand.
Besides the above options, I’d throw in a dex fighter, of most any subclass, can be a good choice. Though battlemaster, with a disarming attack as one of their maneuvers, seems like a classic duelist.
For something really off the wall, a barbarian. A rapier might be a finesse weapon, but you can always choose to use your str instead. Then something like a noble background, and flavor your rage to be something like an extreme level of focusing on a battle where you just get totally in the zone and ignore everything else.
Gotta throw in the obligatory Battlemaster Fighter. Any Fighter could pull it off with Dueling Fighting Style, but there are plenty of Maneuvers that lean into the duelist vibe really well.
Could always go Swashbuckler (Rogue)/Battlemaster (Fighter) multi-class.
I'd go 1 level Rogue, then Fighter (superiority fighting style or dueling if you wish), then back to Rogue until 4th level Rogue attained, then switch to Fighter until 5th level fighter attained. After that, see where the campaign goes and decide then whether to go up the rest of the way as a Rogue or Fighter.
This gives Sneak Attack, Maneuvers, and Weapon Mastery. I'm currently playing one in a Pirate themed Campaign, though i'm going a slightly different direction than rapier on mine (mine is a Triton, Swashbuckling Rogue/Battlemaster Fighter, whose primary weapon is actually a hvy crossbow using crossbow expert, though she switches to dual daggers on rare occassions). But that could easily have been built to duel with a rapier instead.
Good day Friends,
We are about to start new campaign , i was thinking to make some kind of duelist that uses only 1 rapier and nothing in off hand.
But could not imagine which class and what to build.
Can you please help a newbie?
Swashbuckler Rogue seems like the obvious classic choice.
I had a Dex Paladin that used a rapier and he was awesome.
One of the players in the Planescape game I'm running had a character like that, high-Dexterity Paladin who fought with a rapier in one hand and a whip in the other. It was very interesting and...different. Seeing someone use Wrathful Smite with a whip is very entertaining.
I did this, too. It was super fun. Though I did rapier and shield, which I see the OP doesn’t want.
That is the one thing with using nothing in the other hand, you give up a lot of assumed utility — either an AC boost, second attack, or damage boost from a two-handed weapon. I’ve often wished for a feat or fighting style to make it so I don’t feel like I’m nerfing myself by giving up that second hand.
Besides the above options, I’d throw in a dex fighter, of most any subclass, can be a good choice. Though battlemaster, with a disarming attack as one of their maneuvers, seems like a classic duelist.
For something really off the wall, a barbarian. A rapier might be a finesse weapon, but you can always choose to use your str instead. Then something like a noble background, and flavor your rage to be something like an extreme level of focusing on a battle where you just get totally in the zone and ignore everything else.
Gotta throw in the obligatory Battlemaster Fighter. Any Fighter could pull it off with Dueling Fighting Style, but there are plenty of Maneuvers that lean into the duelist vibe really well.
There's also Blade Pact Warlock and Bladesigner wizard, neither of whom have shield proficiency anyway.
Could always go Swashbuckler (Rogue)/Battlemaster (Fighter) multi-class.
I'd go 1 level Rogue, then Fighter (superiority fighting style or dueling if you wish), then back to Rogue until 4th level Rogue attained, then switch to Fighter until 5th level fighter attained. After that, see where the campaign goes and decide then whether to go up the rest of the way as a Rogue or Fighter.
This gives Sneak Attack, Maneuvers, and Weapon Mastery. I'm currently playing one in a Pirate themed Campaign, though i'm going a slightly different direction than rapier on mine (mine is a Triton, Swashbuckling Rogue/Battlemaster Fighter, whose primary weapon is actually a hvy crossbow using crossbow expert, though she switches to dual daggers on rare occassions). But that could easily have been built to duel with a rapier instead.
Playing D&D since 1982
Have played every version of the game since Basic (Red Box Set), except that abomination sometimes called 4e.