Been drumming up character ideas lately and I've got a game coming up. As we're still in the 'gathering players' stage I can't bounce ideas off other party members yet on the account of me being the only one atm. XD
Here's what backstory I've got so far: This Lizardfolk, hereafter named 'Bob', was part of a tribe in <insert appropriate region>. After his tribe was afflicted with a deadly disease known as [greyscale, slimescale, something appropriately yucky] his elders prayed to the spirits for aid. Being in initiate of sorts to his tribes Shaman, he was part of these rituals. For days and weeks they prayed, only silence answered back. In time the tribe grew desperate, they needed aid but where to look? Humans would dismiss them as savages, unworthy of helping, the druids of <insert appropriate region> held no answers, and the other Tribes dared not approach them. The only thing they could do was to kill the sick and burn their corpses, they were no longer of benefit to the tribe, wasted resources, and could not be cured.
Bob received a vision one night, they showed him ruins, and though he did not fully understand the meaning of the visions, he understood answers lay within. He told the Elders of what had transpired and though they doubted he would find the answers they had not, what did they have to loose? Thus, he set out, determined to save his tribe or die trying. Deep within the ruins he found himself alone, with naught but the darkness to occupy his thoughts. As he studied the murals and symbols on the walls Bob's head started to throb.
He dropped the torch as he dropped to his knees, his head swirling in the darkness. Symbols and pictures flashed rapidly in his mind, their meaning jumbled and uncertain. Suddenly, he felt it, a presence that had not been there before. A rumbling filled his ears, more images flashed, was he going mad? Bob began to panic, unsure of how to fight this threat his instinct screamed at him to run but his body could not obey. Just as suddenly as it had begun, everything fell silent and still, the only sound in the ruin was of dripping water and labored breaths.
After a few moments of silence his body snapped into painful rigidity, as if his entire being strained and fought to keep him in place. The symbols returned, noise filled his ears, between the deafening sound and blinding images Bob was certain this was to be his end. Then he felt it, there was something, just behind his fear. Slowly it began to creep toward the forefront of his mind. The deafening sound lessened with each passing moment until it became a low rumble, the images flashing in his mind slowly became comprehensible.
Though it could not be called a conversation, and exchange of information came to pass. This... thing, called itself the "Raven Queen", it had much knowledge but still sought more. In exchange for the taste of power it would bestow upon Bob along with the knowledge needed to save his tribe, it would call upon him. Should he accept he would serve the Raven Queen, collecting knowledge and memories when called to do so.
Bob accepted, he would save his people and he would serve his new Queen. A wave of nausea hit him like an ogre, his head felt as though it would burst, his blood ran as cold as the ruins around him. Darkness overtook him. He awoke hours later with sore mucles, his head hurt but nowhere near as bad as before. He grabbed the soaked torch, wishing he had packed a second. It took him a few moments to realize that he could see perfectly fine in the darkness. He had no time to nurse his aching body as he knew what to do.
After returning to his village his people reacted in shock, his vision wasn't the only thing that had changed, the color of his own scales had turned to dark grey [possible side affect of the aforementioned disease?], he relayed to his elders what had happened and passed on the knowledge they needed to combine the appropriate herbs and magic to cure the disease. He was deemed a hero to the tribe, but this 'fame' was not to last. A few weeks later he received another vision in his sleep, images of another humanoid[s] flashed by, symbols of 'help' and 'brood' and the like came into understanding.
He knew what he had to do, he would find this/these humanoid[s] and aid them. All the while he would give offerings of memories and odd knowledge to his new Queen. He did not know why she wished for this but he obeyed, without her his tribe would be dead. Sight in the darkness was not the only thing his Queen had granted him, his magic was stronger than ever and would aid him in the endeavor nicely, but he hungered for more. Perhaps if he proved himself worthy in the eyes of the Raven Queen he would be granted more power. He would find out.
So the idea, thus far, behind this character is that he is essentially a servant of the Raven Queen. Not only due to the fact that she's my favorite deity, but this Lizard dude I've been muddling around with will have very strong connotations of raptors and ravens. I'm playing off the idea that dinosaurs were feathered. I wanted to build a support dps'er that can control the battlefield while taking down targets of opportunity.
The build itself doesn't need to be optimized 100% for dpr or anything, but I would like to make sure it can hold its own. Thus far I've only gotten so far as deciding Bob will be a Shadow Sorcerer, combined with either Rogue [still mulling that one over] or Hexblade [more likely]. I don't know much about the Rogue but I've adored the Warlock since 3.5 and it's been one of my favorite classes right up there with 3.5's UA Battle Sorcerer.
Even Sorcerer could be called into question, I'm game for almost anything. But I'm not particularly fond of religious classes [Pally, Cleric, Druid] as I find identifying with those types to be awkward.
So my requirements would be: * Support-type build, ideally preventing damage in lieu of healing it [so probably control, disable, etc] * Gotta be a Lizardfolk, TCoE has been ok'd so ability scores are whatever I need them to be [was gonna do Saurian, but can't get my custom race to show on the selection page] * PHB, XGtE, TCoE, Ebberon, Sword Coast, all good [in addition to the Lizardfolk and Saurian * Effective in the Yawning Portal's level range [starting at Lv1 but I don't know how high it goes]
Thinking of Sorcerer X/Hexblade 3-5 [depending on how badly I want that Lv3 slot], and aside from maybe stabbing things with a Shadow Blade while controlling the battlefield, I've got nothin and would appreciate some help on that front. Cheers.
EDIT: Forgot, Pact would be Chain so I can scout for party as needed too, combined with my natural shadowy-sneakiness shenanigans, Tome would be ok for flavorful "gathering secrets" lore I guess, preference is Chain though.
I would go with a patron other than the Hexblade with your conception. The Hexblade is a front line combatant. Maybe make the Raven Queen your Archfey Patron instead? The Archfey is much more control and support than the Hexblade is and the Raven Queen can be called a Fey too.
The Undying Warlock can also work, she is an immortal being that is connected to death and has been known to raise Revenants to serve her on the mortal plane according to some iterations so it can work too.
If you wanted to go Rogue and fit the thematics of the Raven Queen, the Phantom Rogue can be a good option too. Gaining knowledge and small trinkets of power from the dying and deceased is very much on theme for this immortal Shadowfell being who loves to collect the memories and knowledge of those who pass on.
I love Shadow sorcerers, but “I wanted to build a support dps'er that can control the battlefield while taking down targets of opportunity” really doesn’t suggest sorcerer to me. I’m not saying they’re incapable of providing support or battlefield control altogether, but it’s not exactly playing to their strengths. Warlock might help a bit in that regard, but 1) Hexblade would be a poor choice for that, as mentioned by others and 2) that doesn’t change anything about sorcerer being a less than ideal fit in the first place.
Of course support + control + target of opportunity dps is a tall order to start, so I don’t know how much weight you’d want to assign to each of these aspects. Depending on that a pure ranger or druid could work, or an artificer/wizard blend, or even a bard (which you could reflavor to be nothing like a performer). I don’t think you want to play any of those, but the shadow sorcerer/hexblade combo feels more like trying take a class that doesn’t quite do what you want and trying to fix that with another one that doesn’t quite do that either than any of them.
Maybe it’d be easier if you went mainly warlock? Hexblade if you value the hunting targets of opportunity part most, with a side of bard for support or sorcerer for a little bit of control; Archfey, Genie (Dao) or even Fiend if you value that part less, maybe with a couple of paladin levels if you want to be a little beefier. Paladin doesn’t have to be religious in 5E, you can absolutely drop any reference to a deity if you want - though given your Raven Queen connection, I don’t see why you would.
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Want to start playing but don't have anyone to play with? You can try these options: [link].
I'd just stick with straight sorcerer. Casters suffer from a lot of multiclassing, especially when you're looking at non casters or warlocks as the other class. The reasoning is that what you do best is spells and multiclassing hampers your spell progression. If you took levels in a different caster, it's less bad because you still gain slots but you're still missing out on those higher level spells. Warlocks don't count as casters for multiclassing so that isn't great either. If you're looking at more support/control, I would 100% just go straight Sorcerer. No need to multiclass! That said, 2 levels in warlock can be good down the line if you want to Eldritch Blast spam but you'll certainly be able to dish out the hurt even without that. At level 11, you can take those 2 levels in warlock to be a good eldritch blaster, or you could go straight warlock and Disintegrate someone while they roll the save at disadvantage with the Hound of Ill Omen. Hound of Ill Omen is amazing for making sure your spells land. The target has disadvantage on saving throws it makes against your spells while it's near your hound. A Hold Person spell with saving throws at disadvantage?! That sounds pretty good. Or Banishment?! Or Slow?! Just a few of the many good control spells that are great with a Shadow Sorcerer.
Another fantastic option for support/control is bard. I'm not sure it fits your Raven Queen concept but when it comes to control it's hard to beat the bard. Eloquence bards can use their Bardic Inspiration to hamper enemy saving throws. That's another great way to ensure those important control spells land! Straight bard would be the way to go. No need to multiclass here either. It's less offensive but a little more support/control focused. Also can heal.
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Been drumming up character ideas lately and I've got a game coming up. As we're still in the 'gathering players' stage I can't bounce ideas off other party members yet on the account of me being the only one atm. XD
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Here's what backstory I've got so far: This Lizardfolk, hereafter named 'Bob', was part of a tribe in <insert appropriate region>. After his tribe was afflicted with a deadly disease known as [greyscale, slimescale, something appropriately yucky] his elders prayed to the spirits for aid. Being in initiate of sorts to his tribes Shaman, he was part of these rituals. For days and weeks they prayed, only silence answered back. In time the tribe grew desperate, they needed aid but where to look? Humans would dismiss them as savages, unworthy of helping, the druids of <insert appropriate region> held no answers, and the other Tribes dared not approach them. The only thing they could do was to kill the sick and burn their corpses, they were no longer of benefit to the tribe, wasted resources, and could not be cured.
Bob received a vision one night, they showed him ruins, and though he did not fully understand the meaning of the visions, he understood answers lay within. He told the Elders of what had transpired and though they doubted he would find the answers they had not, what did they have to loose? Thus, he set out, determined to save his tribe or die trying. Deep within the ruins he found himself alone, with naught but the darkness to occupy his thoughts. As he studied the murals and symbols on the walls Bob's head started to throb.
He dropped the torch as he dropped to his knees, his head swirling in the darkness. Symbols and pictures flashed rapidly in his mind, their meaning jumbled and uncertain. Suddenly, he felt it, a presence that had not been there before. A rumbling filled his ears, more images flashed, was he going mad? Bob began to panic, unsure of how to fight this threat his instinct screamed at him to run but his body could not obey. Just as suddenly as it had begun, everything fell silent and still, the only sound in the ruin was of dripping water and labored breaths.
After a few moments of silence his body snapped into painful rigidity, as if his entire being strained and fought to keep him in place. The symbols returned, noise filled his ears, between the deafening sound and blinding images Bob was certain this was to be his end. Then he felt it, there was something, just behind his fear. Slowly it began to creep toward the forefront of his mind. The deafening sound lessened with each passing moment until it became a low rumble, the images flashing in his mind slowly became comprehensible.
Though it could not be called a conversation, and exchange of information came to pass. This... thing, called itself the "Raven Queen", it had much knowledge but still sought more. In exchange for the taste of power it would bestow upon Bob along with the knowledge needed to save his tribe, it would call upon him. Should he accept he would serve the Raven Queen, collecting knowledge and memories when called to do so.
Bob accepted, he would save his people and he would serve his new Queen. A wave of nausea hit him like an ogre, his head felt as though it would burst, his blood ran as cold as the ruins around him. Darkness overtook him. He awoke hours later with sore mucles, his head hurt but nowhere near as bad as before. He grabbed the soaked torch, wishing he had packed a second. It took him a few moments to realize that he could see perfectly fine in the darkness. He had no time to nurse his aching body as he knew what to do.
After returning to his village his people reacted in shock, his vision wasn't the only thing that had changed, the color of his own scales had turned to dark grey [possible side affect of the aforementioned disease?], he relayed to his elders what had happened and passed on the knowledge they needed to combine the appropriate herbs and magic to cure the disease. He was deemed a hero to the tribe, but this 'fame' was not to last. A few weeks later he received another vision in his sleep, images of another humanoid[s] flashed by, symbols of 'help' and 'brood' and the like came into understanding.
He knew what he had to do, he would find this/these humanoid[s] and aid them. All the while he would give offerings of memories and odd knowledge to his new Queen. He did not know why she wished for this but he obeyed, without her his tribe would be dead. Sight in the darkness was not the only thing his Queen had granted him, his magic was stronger than ever and would aid him in the endeavor nicely, but he hungered for more. Perhaps if he proved himself worthy in the eyes of the Raven Queen he would be granted more power. He would find out.
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So the idea, thus far, behind this character is that he is essentially a servant of the Raven Queen. Not only due to the fact that she's my favorite deity, but this Lizard dude I've been muddling around with will have very strong connotations of raptors and ravens. I'm playing off the idea that dinosaurs were feathered. I wanted to build a support dps'er that can control the battlefield while taking down targets of opportunity.
The build itself doesn't need to be optimized 100% for dpr or anything, but I would like to make sure it can hold its own. Thus far I've only gotten so far as deciding Bob will be a Shadow Sorcerer, combined with either Rogue [still mulling that one over] or Hexblade [more likely]. I don't know much about the Rogue but I've adored the Warlock since 3.5 and it's been one of my favorite classes right up there with 3.5's UA Battle Sorcerer.
Even Sorcerer could be called into question, I'm game for almost anything. But I'm not particularly fond of religious classes [Pally, Cleric, Druid] as I find identifying with those types to be awkward.
So my requirements would be:
* Support-type build, ideally preventing damage in lieu of healing it [so probably control, disable, etc]
* Gotta be a Lizardfolk, TCoE has been ok'd so ability scores are whatever I need them to be [was gonna do Saurian, but can't get my custom race to show on the selection page]
* PHB, XGtE, TCoE, Ebberon, Sword Coast, all good [in addition to the Lizardfolk and Saurian
* Effective in the Yawning Portal's level range [starting at Lv1 but I don't know how high it goes]
Thinking of Sorcerer X/Hexblade 3-5 [depending on how badly I want that Lv3 slot], and aside from maybe stabbing things with a Shadow Blade while controlling the battlefield, I've got nothin and would appreciate some help on that front. Cheers.
EDIT: Forgot, Pact would be Chain so I can scout for party as needed too, combined with my natural shadowy-sneakiness shenanigans, Tome would be ok for flavorful "gathering secrets" lore I guess, preference is Chain though.
I would go with a patron other than the Hexblade with your conception. The Hexblade is a front line combatant. Maybe make the Raven Queen your Archfey Patron instead? The Archfey is much more control and support than the Hexblade is and the Raven Queen can be called a Fey too.
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The Undying Warlock can also work, she is an immortal being that is connected to death and has been known to raise Revenants to serve her on the mortal plane according to some iterations so it can work too.
If you wanted to go Rogue and fit the thematics of the Raven Queen, the Phantom Rogue can be a good option too. Gaining knowledge and small trinkets of power from the dying and deceased is very much on theme for this immortal Shadowfell being who loves to collect the memories and knowledge of those who pass on.
"Meddle not in the affairs of dragons, for thou art crunchy and taste good with ketchup."
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I love Shadow sorcerers, but “I wanted to build a support dps'er that can control the battlefield while taking down targets of opportunity” really doesn’t suggest sorcerer to me. I’m not saying they’re incapable of providing support or battlefield control altogether, but it’s not exactly playing to their strengths. Warlock might help a bit in that regard, but 1) Hexblade would be a poor choice for that, as mentioned by others and 2) that doesn’t change anything about sorcerer being a less than ideal fit in the first place.
Of course support + control + target of opportunity dps is a tall order to start, so I don’t know how much weight you’d want to assign to each of these aspects. Depending on that a pure ranger or druid could work, or an artificer/wizard blend, or even a bard (which you could reflavor to be nothing like a performer). I don’t think you want to play any of those, but the shadow sorcerer/hexblade combo feels more like trying take a class that doesn’t quite do what you want and trying to fix that with another one that doesn’t quite do that either than any of them.
Maybe it’d be easier if you went mainly warlock? Hexblade if you value the hunting targets of opportunity part most, with a side of bard for support or sorcerer for a little bit of control; Archfey, Genie (Dao) or even Fiend if you value that part less, maybe with a couple of paladin levels if you want to be a little beefier. Paladin doesn’t have to be religious in 5E, you can absolutely drop any reference to a deity if you want - though given your Raven Queen connection, I don’t see why you would.
Want to start playing but don't have anyone to play with? You can try these options: [link].
Support/Control is what I'm really after, I think I got bit too excited and let the build get away from me. XD
I'd just stick with straight sorcerer. Casters suffer from a lot of multiclassing, especially when you're looking at non casters or warlocks as the other class. The reasoning is that what you do best is spells and multiclassing hampers your spell progression. If you took levels in a different caster, it's less bad because you still gain slots but you're still missing out on those higher level spells. Warlocks don't count as casters for multiclassing so that isn't great either. If you're looking at more support/control, I would 100% just go straight Sorcerer. No need to multiclass! That said, 2 levels in warlock can be good down the line if you want to Eldritch Blast spam but you'll certainly be able to dish out the hurt even without that. At level 11, you can take those 2 levels in warlock to be a good eldritch blaster, or you could go straight warlock and Disintegrate someone while they roll the save at disadvantage with the Hound of Ill Omen. Hound of Ill Omen is amazing for making sure your spells land. The target has disadvantage on saving throws it makes against your spells while it's near your hound. A Hold Person spell with saving throws at disadvantage?! That sounds pretty good. Or Banishment?! Or Slow?! Just a few of the many good control spells that are great with a Shadow Sorcerer.
Another fantastic option for support/control is bard. I'm not sure it fits your Raven Queen concept but when it comes to control it's hard to beat the bard. Eloquence bards can use their Bardic Inspiration to hamper enemy saving throws. That's another great way to ensure those important control spells land! Straight bard would be the way to go. No need to multiclass here either. It's less offensive but a little more support/control focused. Also can heal.