I just hit level 5 as a Battle Master Fighter and I am thinking of taking 4 levels of War Domain Cleric after level 6. It's a level 10 campaign as I understand it.
If I am understanding things correctly, War Domain Cleric would enable me to use a bonus action for a third attack to go along with the extra attack I just gained at Level 5?
What are your thoughts on this build and do you think it will be strong for the inevitable final battle at the end?
You can also get the duel wielder feat and wield light, nick weapons to accomplish more unlimited times per long rest without spending 4 levels getting cleric.
If I am understanding things correctly, War Domain Cleric would enable me to use a bonus action for a third attack to go along with the extra attack I just gained at Level 5?
That is not a good reason to take War Cleric because you can use that BA attack only a number of times equal to your WIS modifier per Long Rest. Which in Curse of Strad is nothing since your adventuring day will likely include multiple encounters.
If you want a BA attack, either go two-weapon fighting with Dual Wielder, or use a Polearm and take Polearm Master, with your 6th level in Fighter.
Good reasons to dip Cleric in a Curse of Strad campaign are to get Turn Undead, and/or so you can use some of the cool cleric-focused magic items. But if you already have a cleric in the party there's not much benefit to either of those.
If I am understanding things correctly, War Domain Cleric would enable me to use a bonus action for a third attack to go along with the extra attack I just gained at Level 5?
That is not a good reason to take War Cleric because you can use that BA attack only a number of times equal to your WIS modifier per Long Rest. Which in Curse of Strad is nothing since your adventuring day will likely include multiple encounters.
If you want a BA attack, either go two-weapon fighting with Dual Wielder, or use a Polearm and take Polearm Master, with your 6th level in Fighter.
Good reasons to dip Cleric in a Curse of Strad campaign are to get Turn Undead, and/or so you can use some of the cool cleric-focused magic items. But if you already have a cleric in the party there's not much benefit to either of those.
That's definitely not the only reason. Being able to Turn the Undead is definitely part of it. I'll also get Guided Strike and some good War Domain Spells that are always prepared. I am taking Fey Touched with Hunter's Mark and Misty Step at 6 and this gives me spell casting ability and spell slots, along with some beneficial spells and I will gain access to some pretty good looking level 2 spells like Spiritual Weapon and Magic Weapon.
My Wisdom modifier will be +3 after Level 6. I am a sword and board Battle Master who chose Dueling for the +2 damage and +2 to my AC. I'd get to take a Feat at Level 4 for Cleric, instead of taking a Feat at 8 for Fighter. I am thinking of taking Strike of Stone Giants at 10 (from Level 4 Cleric) and plan on stacking Hunter's Mark Damage with Strike of the Stone Giants. I'll also have the ability to get additional 1d8 damage from Trip Attack and Feinting Attack, and I think I can add those Force Damages to my Riposte damage too. I haven't written out the damage calculations yet, but I expect I'll be able to do quite a bit of damage with all of that and three attacks, and I will be able to regain the use of much of those following a short rest, and I think I can also use a Bonus Action to attack with Spiritual Weapon in addition. Also, we do not have a Cleric in our party and I think we would benefit from it.
Imo, the spread from War domain is pretty “meh”, particularly if you use the ‘24 version where the subclass features aren’t front loaded. You aren’t likely to see a notable performance spike from it before 9th level for your character then. The Bonus Action attacks are nice, but honestly you could probably pull better DPR just by continuing to level Fighter and taking Fey Touched at level 8. You’ll also get some more maneuvers that way. Finally, it’s worth considering what the save reroll from indomitable could do for you in some of the final encounters. In aggregate this 6/4 split isn’t too bad, but there’s not a ton of synergy and what is there seems to be pretty limited in how much it can be utilized.
In general, you should never aim for a multiclass build that doesn't come online until the end of the campaign. That just means you're setting yourself up for frustration and lack of ability to do the thing you really want to do for most of the game.
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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.
I'll also get Guided Strike and some good War Domain Spells that are always prepared.
Guided Strike is not good, it turns 1 attack into a hit, per SR, that's it. Hardly ever would that 1 attack hitting/missing determine the outcome of a combat, and in many cases the same thing could be achieved by giving someone advantage.
level 2 spells like Spiritual Weapon and Magic Weapon.
You won't get those until 3 levels deep into Cleric, what are you excited about your 1st level and 2nd level of cleric? You will spend just as much time with your character there as at 3rd and 4th level cleric.
I am taking Fey Touched with Hunter's Mark and Misty Step at 6
Which rule set are you using? In 2024, Divine Favour is better than Hunter's Mark because it gives you radiant damage (good vs undead) and doesn't require concentration.
When planning a MC build, you should always be asking "What problem with the original class is this fixing?" or "What strength with the original class is this doubling down on?" So the main question is what do you not like about Battlemaster that will be fixed by MCing?
I'll also get Guided Strike and some good War Domain Spells that are always prepared.
Guided Strike is not good, it turns 1 attack into a hit, per SR, that's it. Hardly ever would that 1 attack hitting/missing determine the outcome of a combat, and in many cases the same thing could be achieved by giving someone advantage.
level 2 spells like Spiritual Weapon and Magic Weapon.
You won't get those until 3 levels deep into Cleric, what are you excited about your 1st level and 2nd level of cleric? You will spend just as much time with your character there as at 3rd and 4th level cleric.
I am taking Fey Touched with Hunter's Mark and Misty Step at 6
Which rule set are you using? In 2024, Divine Favour is better than Hunter's Mark because it gives you radiant damage (good vs undead) and doesn't require concentration.
When planning a MC build, you should always be asking "What problem with the original class is this fixing?" or "What strength with the original class is this doubling down on?" So the main question is what do you not like about Battlemaster that will be fixed by MCing?
We're playing 2024 rules, so Divine Favor is not an option for my Battle Master Fighter and I don't have the Charisma to multiclass into Paladin. If I could somehow grab Divine Favor, I most certainly would.
I believe Guided Strike will work well with my Feinting Attack Battle Master maneuver. It's an additional way for me improve my ability to hit stuff.
There is nothing I dislike about my Battlemaster per se. I have True Strike for radiant damage, but it got weaker since I just hit level 5. I believe that since we're playing Curse of Strahd and we have no Cleric in the party, that multiclassing into one will benefit the party. I am the only character in the group with a decent Wisdom score. I don't have any ranged attacks, so I'd choose Guiding Bolt as one of my spells to give me some ranged radiant damage and I think spells like Command, Healing Word, and Shield of Faith will be helpful. I also think the Channel Divinity with Divine Spark and Turn the Undead at level 2 will be helpful. I believe 1-4 of Cleric will be more helpful than 7-10 for my Battle Master. I delay getting another feat for two levels which kind of sucks, but at 7, I miss out on gaining two additional maneuvers and only 1 Superiority Dice and I am not super excited about that (I have Trip Attack, Feinting Attack, and Riposte). I took Sentinel at Level 4. I'm not sure how useful Know Your Enemy and Tactical Master are. I'd miss out on Indomitable, but I can just use my Silvery Barbs from one of the Magic Initiates that I took at Level 1. (Originally I was going to play an Eldritch Knight but went with BM at Level 3 instead)
As healing or damage, the Channel Divinity is extremely marginal for the level you’re gaining it. Turn Undead might be useful, but I’m not sure it will reliably affect targets you couldn’t more effectively deal with by just attacking at this point. Guided Strike is going to take another level to come online, and frankly the synergy between it and Feinting Attack seems mild- you’re spending a second resource on a single attack to avoid missing out on 1d8 of extra damage. Not sure the juice is worth the squeeze there. Does your party have a Bard or Druid? If so, the healing end of things should be pretty well accounted for already. Otherwise I can understand the desire to gain spellcasting, but keep in mind that the initial spell slots are going to be very limited, and even once you have 2nd level spells and more slots you’re not getting much unless there’s only one or two encounters per day.
In the end it’s your call, but my personal experience has been that this kind of going wide doesn’t play out nearly as well as it would seem to on paper.
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I just hit level 5 as a Battle Master Fighter and I am thinking of taking 4 levels of War Domain Cleric after level 6. It's a level 10 campaign as I understand it.
If I am understanding things correctly, War Domain Cleric would enable me to use a bonus action for a third attack to go along with the extra attack I just gained at Level 5?
What are your thoughts on this build and do you think it will be strong for the inevitable final battle at the end?
TIA
You can also get the duel wielder feat and wield light, nick weapons to accomplish more unlimited times per long rest without spending 4 levels getting cleric.
That is not a good reason to take War Cleric because you can use that BA attack only a number of times equal to your WIS modifier per Long Rest. Which in Curse of Strad is nothing since your adventuring day will likely include multiple encounters.
If you want a BA attack, either go two-weapon fighting with Dual Wielder, or use a Polearm and take Polearm Master, with your 6th level in Fighter.
Good reasons to dip Cleric in a Curse of Strad campaign are to get Turn Undead, and/or so you can use some of the cool cleric-focused magic items. But if you already have a cleric in the party there's not much benefit to either of those.
That's definitely not the only reason. Being able to Turn the Undead is definitely part of it. I'll also get Guided Strike and some good War Domain Spells that are always prepared. I am taking Fey Touched with Hunter's Mark and Misty Step at 6 and this gives me spell casting ability and spell slots, along with some beneficial spells and I will gain access to some pretty good looking level 2 spells like Spiritual Weapon and Magic Weapon.
My Wisdom modifier will be +3 after Level 6. I am a sword and board Battle Master who chose Dueling for the +2 damage and +2 to my AC. I'd get to take a Feat at Level 4 for Cleric, instead of taking a Feat at 8 for Fighter. I am thinking of taking Strike of Stone Giants at 10 (from Level 4 Cleric) and plan on stacking Hunter's Mark Damage with Strike of the Stone Giants. I'll also have the ability to get additional 1d8 damage from Trip Attack and Feinting Attack, and I think I can add those Force Damages to my Riposte damage too. I haven't written out the damage calculations yet, but I expect I'll be able to do quite a bit of damage with all of that and three attacks, and I will be able to regain the use of much of those following a short rest, and I think I can also use a Bonus Action to attack with Spiritual Weapon in addition. Also, we do not have a Cleric in our party and I think we would benefit from it.
Imo, the spread from War domain is pretty “meh”, particularly if you use the ‘24 version where the subclass features aren’t front loaded. You aren’t likely to see a notable performance spike from it before 9th level for your character then. The Bonus Action attacks are nice, but honestly you could probably pull better DPR just by continuing to level Fighter and taking Fey Touched at level 8. You’ll also get some more maneuvers that way. Finally, it’s worth considering what the save reroll from indomitable could do for you in some of the final encounters. In aggregate this 6/4 split isn’t too bad, but there’s not a ton of synergy and what is there seems to be pretty limited in how much it can be utilized.
In general, you should never aim for a multiclass build that doesn't come online until the end of the campaign. That just means you're setting yourself up for frustration and lack of ability to do the thing you really want to do for most of the game.
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.
Guided Strike is not good, it turns 1 attack into a hit, per SR, that's it. Hardly ever would that 1 attack hitting/missing determine the outcome of a combat, and in many cases the same thing could be achieved by giving someone advantage.
You won't get those until 3 levels deep into Cleric, what are you excited about your 1st level and 2nd level of cleric? You will spend just as much time with your character there as at 3rd and 4th level cleric.
Which rule set are you using? In 2024, Divine Favour is better than Hunter's Mark because it gives you radiant damage (good vs undead) and doesn't require concentration.
When planning a MC build, you should always be asking "What problem with the original class is this fixing?" or "What strength with the original class is this doubling down on?" So the main question is what do you not like about Battlemaster that will be fixed by MCing?
We're playing 2024 rules, so Divine Favor is not an option for my Battle Master Fighter and I don't have the Charisma to multiclass into Paladin. If I could somehow grab Divine Favor, I most certainly would.
I believe Guided Strike will work well with my Feinting Attack Battle Master maneuver. It's an additional way for me improve my ability to hit stuff.
There is nothing I dislike about my Battlemaster per se. I have True Strike for radiant damage, but it got weaker since I just hit level 5. I believe that since we're playing Curse of Strahd and we have no Cleric in the party, that multiclassing into one will benefit the party. I am the only character in the group with a decent Wisdom score. I don't have any ranged attacks, so I'd choose Guiding Bolt as one of my spells to give me some ranged radiant damage and I think spells like Command, Healing Word, and Shield of Faith will be helpful. I also think the Channel Divinity with Divine Spark and Turn the Undead at level 2 will be helpful. I believe 1-4 of Cleric will be more helpful than 7-10 for my Battle Master. I delay getting another feat for two levels which kind of sucks, but at 7, I miss out on gaining two additional maneuvers and only 1 Superiority Dice and I am not super excited about that (I have Trip Attack, Feinting Attack, and Riposte). I took Sentinel at Level 4. I'm not sure how useful Know Your Enemy and Tactical Master are. I'd miss out on Indomitable, but I can just use my Silvery Barbs from one of the Magic Initiates that I took at Level 1. (Originally I was going to play an Eldritch Knight but went with BM at Level 3 instead)
As healing or damage, the Channel Divinity is extremely marginal for the level you’re gaining it. Turn Undead might be useful, but I’m not sure it will reliably affect targets you couldn’t more effectively deal with by just attacking at this point. Guided Strike is going to take another level to come online, and frankly the synergy between it and Feinting Attack seems mild- you’re spending a second resource on a single attack to avoid missing out on 1d8 of extra damage. Not sure the juice is worth the squeeze there. Does your party have a Bard or Druid? If so, the healing end of things should be pretty well accounted for already. Otherwise I can understand the desire to gain spellcasting, but keep in mind that the initial spell slots are going to be very limited, and even once you have 2nd level spells and more slots you’re not getting much unless there’s only one or two encounters per day.
In the end it’s your call, but my personal experience has been that this kind of going wide doesn’t play out nearly as well as it would seem to on paper.