Question for Echo Knight players. For those of you that started at level 1, how did you roleplay/backstory the character when you didn't have the echo powers yet before level 3? It's complicated enough to basically explain the multiverse in DnD worlds, but it's easier when you can create a backstory about how you got the echo. But starting at level 1, you don't have the powers yet, then it just magically happens at level 3.
I'm starting a new campaign and I'm planning to take Echo Knight. We're starting at level 2, but I'm actually going Fighter 1/Warlock 1 (hexblade) then Fighter X, so I have 2 more levels to play before Echo abilities. It's complicated, but going Hexblade will let me focus Cha to let me help me be party face, and let me dump str. I'm also keeping 13 wis so I can grab either Cleric 1 (Peace) or Ranger 3 (Gloomstalker) at later levels if the party needs it.
I guess you could with the DM's discretion let you RP it a bit as having it but you just.. can't do anything with a game effect until lvl 3.
Dunno, just one of my general pet peeves with major class abilties not coming online till lvl 3. Battlesmith is the absolute worst for this.. suddenly you have a pet and now can attack using your intellect if the weapon is magical.. Not only is that a rough lvl 1 and 2 but just a very janky and limited introduction "oh I've been working on my pet this whole time.. now this thing suddenly works!"
Thanks all, I appreciate the ideas. I presented the backstory of my character using the Haunted One background. The traumatizing event is replayed in his head over and over, and he's constantly trying to find a way to change the past (Dr Strange style). Eventually these timelines he's creating in his head will manifest as his echo.
I was just playing mine as a simple fighter but I went down to zero HP in fight right before we leveled to third and I role played my echo as a ghost of my dead self
Dunno, just one of my general pet peeves with major class abilties not coming online till lvl 3. Battlesmith is the absolute worst for this.. suddenly you have a pet and now can attack using your intellect if the weapon is magical.. Not only is that a rough lvl 1 and 2 but just a very janky and limited introduction "oh I've been working on my pet this whole time.. now this thing suddenly works!"
This is why my groups start at 3rd-level; it's not such a high level that you're overwhelmed with features, but you get all of the cool stuff that makes your character what they are, and allows for starting multiclasses. We also tend to allow a free feat, as they're good for customising a build further to get that little bit extra spellcasting, throw on grappler or tavern brawler for a bruiser and so-on.
I just find it hard to RP 1st-level in general because it makes it impossible to play as any kind of seasoned veteran or such when drinking coffee that's too hot could kill you. I tend to only play from 1st-level in campaigns where the theme is specifically around fledgling adventurers starting out for the first time, commoners who are called to adventure and that kind of thing. Currently got a low level Strixhaven campaign where it makes a lot of sense, as all the characters are still mastering basic magic.
In general though you can play off a lack of abilities as simply not having mastered them yet; i.e- you could have the echo but it's not yet capable of fighting, it just appears as a ghostly image of yourself. A Battle Master might RP trying to use manoeuvres, but they haven't quite got the hang of them. A Battle Smith might have prototype weapons they haven't perfected, and a prototype Steel Defender but it's just a harmless pet or keeps malfunctioning in battle and so-on.
But yeah, if the campaign hasn't started yet, I'd fish for a 3rd-level start, as it's just so much easier to build a character that feels how you want it from the start, rather than having to make excuses for why it's nothing like what you want to play as. It does mean more work for your DM, as they may need to upscale some fights to make them harder (though just throwing in a few more enemies will usually do it, the DDB encounter builder is good for quickly tweaking difficulty as you don't need to unlock everything if you just want to check a possible enemy group and save it with some notes). The DM might also need to slow progression down a little if they're following an adventure module, so that they can catch up to where your characters start, but it's not a bad thing when you're still getting used to the characters.
Former D&D Beyond Customer of six years: With the axing of piecemeal purchasing, lack of meaningful development, and toxic moderation the site isn't worth paying for anymore. I remain a free user only until my groups are done migrating from DDB, and if necessary D&D, after which I'm done. There are better systems owned by better companies out there.
I have unsubscribed from all topics and will not reply to messages. My homebrew is now 100% unsupported.
Using the Heroic Chronicle, I rolled "wizard has taken interest in you, you gain the magic adept feat." Took mage hand as one of the cantrips. Simply used mage hand as a "partial manifestation" until 3 when I could manifest a full image.
So my dm did a great job with this. I told him I wanted to go Echo Knight, and he wove into the story a cult that screws around with time. It was our first quest as a group and I got stabbed by the ritual dagger the head priest was using. Over the course of level 2, I would have to roll a constitution saving throw every combat. When I failed, he would describe how I was bombarded by images of different time lines. If I failed I would be stunned a round or two, then have disadvantage for a round or two then battle as normal. If I succeeded I would have disadvantage for less rounds and then either have advantage for 2-3 rounds or know something that was important in the battle, such as the location of an orb we had to destroy. Every battle that DC was lowered so the first couple of times I was overwhelmed but I started getting better and better results, role-playing as I was getting better at expecting the visions. At level three, I had an RP session with a cleric who taught me how to better control the time energies that are inside me and gained access to my full echo knight abilities. All in all it was great, and the other party members had no idea I was an echo knight until that reveal.
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Question for Echo Knight players. For those of you that started at level 1, how did you roleplay/backstory the character when you didn't have the echo powers yet before level 3? It's complicated enough to basically explain the multiverse in DnD worlds, but it's easier when you can create a backstory about how you got the echo. But starting at level 1, you don't have the powers yet, then it just magically happens at level 3.
I'm starting a new campaign and I'm planning to take Echo Knight. We're starting at level 2, but I'm actually going Fighter 1/Warlock 1 (hexblade) then Fighter X, so I have 2 more levels to play before Echo abilities. It's complicated, but going Hexblade will let me focus Cha to let me help me be party face, and let me dump str. I'm also keeping 13 wis so I can grab either Cleric 1 (Peace) or Ranger 3 (Gloomstalker) at later levels if the party needs it.
If you are going warlock, why not bring that into the reasoning over what is going to happen to you?
I had 5 levels of Gloomstalker and was playing into the shadow aspect, then boom I had a shadow!
I've also got 3 levels of phantom rogue, just to keep the shadows happy, lol
I guess you could with the DM's discretion let you RP it a bit as having it but you just.. can't do anything with a game effect until lvl 3.
Dunno, just one of my general pet peeves with major class abilties not coming online till lvl 3. Battlesmith is the absolute worst for this.. suddenly you have a pet and now can attack using your intellect if the weapon is magical.. Not only is that a rough lvl 1 and 2 but just a very janky and limited introduction "oh I've been working on my pet this whole time.. now this thing suddenly works!"
Thanks all, I appreciate the ideas. I presented the backstory of my character using the Haunted One background. The traumatizing event is replayed in his head over and over, and he's constantly trying to find a way to change the past (Dr Strange style). Eventually these timelines he's creating in his head will manifest as his echo.
I was just playing mine as a simple fighter but I went down to zero HP in fight right before we leveled to third and I role played my echo as a ghost of my dead self
This is why my groups start at 3rd-level; it's not such a high level that you're overwhelmed with features, but you get all of the cool stuff that makes your character what they are, and allows for starting multiclasses. We also tend to allow a free feat, as they're good for customising a build further to get that little bit extra spellcasting, throw on grappler or tavern brawler for a bruiser and so-on.
I just find it hard to RP 1st-level in general because it makes it impossible to play as any kind of seasoned veteran or such when drinking coffee that's too hot could kill you. I tend to only play from 1st-level in campaigns where the theme is specifically around fledgling adventurers starting out for the first time, commoners who are called to adventure and that kind of thing. Currently got a low level Strixhaven campaign where it makes a lot of sense, as all the characters are still mastering basic magic.
In general though you can play off a lack of abilities as simply not having mastered them yet; i.e- you could have the echo but it's not yet capable of fighting, it just appears as a ghostly image of yourself. A Battle Master might RP trying to use manoeuvres, but they haven't quite got the hang of them. A Battle Smith might have prototype weapons they haven't perfected, and a prototype Steel Defender but it's just a harmless pet or keeps malfunctioning in battle and so-on.
But yeah, if the campaign hasn't started yet, I'd fish for a 3rd-level start, as it's just so much easier to build a character that feels how you want it from the start, rather than having to make excuses for why it's nothing like what you want to play as. It does mean more work for your DM, as they may need to upscale some fights to make them harder (though just throwing in a few more enemies will usually do it, the DDB encounter builder is good for quickly tweaking difficulty as you don't need to unlock everything if you just want to check a possible enemy group and save it with some notes). The DM might also need to slow progression down a little if they're following an adventure module, so that they can catch up to where your characters start, but it's not a bad thing when you're still getting used to the characters.
Former D&D Beyond Customer of six years: With the axing of piecemeal purchasing, lack of meaningful development, and toxic moderation the site isn't worth paying for anymore. I remain a free user only until my groups are done migrating from DDB, and if necessary D&D, after which I'm done. There are better systems owned by better companies out there.
I have unsubscribed from all topics and will not reply to messages. My homebrew is now 100% unsupported.
Using the Heroic Chronicle, I rolled "wizard has taken interest in you, you gain the magic adept feat." Took mage hand as one of the cantrips. Simply used mage hand as a "partial manifestation" until 3 when I could manifest a full image.
So my dm did a great job with this. I told him I wanted to go Echo Knight, and he wove into the story a cult that screws around with time. It was our first quest as a group and I got stabbed by the ritual dagger the head priest was using. Over the course of level 2, I would have to roll a constitution saving throw every combat. When I failed, he would describe how I was bombarded by images of different time lines. If I failed I would be stunned a round or two, then have disadvantage for a round or two then battle as normal. If I succeeded I would have disadvantage for less rounds and then either have advantage for 2-3 rounds or know something that was important in the battle, such as the location of an orb we had to destroy. Every battle that DC was lowered so the first couple of times I was overwhelmed but I started getting better and better results, role-playing as I was getting better at expecting the visions. At level three, I had an RP session with a cleric who taught me how to better control the time energies that are inside me and gained access to my full echo knight abilities. All in all it was great, and the other party members had no idea I was an echo knight until that reveal.