So, I had this idea for a character that is sort of a delusional "prophet" of sorts that falls sort of in between a cleric and a wizard/warlock, but due to character backstory, he doesn't have high Str, Wis or Int, but high Cha, Con and Dex. After being hit on the head (possibly leaving him a little brain-damaged), he experiences a vision in which a new/unknown deity declares it has chosen him as the herald and prophet of its name, and that he is to gather followers, and the fact that he is able to call upon divine aid supports his vision, though whether it is actually a new deity or a trickster playing an elaborate prank is unclear, in either case the results are the same. I envision him as being a sort of "holy wizard" healer, not really proficient with physical weapons, but able to use a "holy relic" to channel "divine wrath" against his enemies if he decides it is necessary, or "divine mercy" to heal the sick or injured. I also had the idea that there would be a slight chance of every spell he cast having unintended side effects, possibly cumulative, like accidentally changing hair or eye color of people when he heals them, or accidentally turning someone into a large dog, etc. Kind of "wild magic" sort of effects. But that idea is shelved until I've discussed it with the potential DM and party.
Should I just homebrew a custom class for him or is there a way to pull this off in the official rules? It's only the second character I've made in the D&D setting, and was actually the first one I ever came up with, but thought it would be too ambitious for a first time character, so whether or not his patron deity turns out to be legit or not is still up in the air until I find a DM willing to let me give him a shot.
Usually when one class won't fit a character, multiclassing can accomplish it. In this case I would probably recommend a a Wild Magic Sorcerer/Celestial Warlock multi class. You'll get the random chaotic magic, the healing, and the extra divine damage to smite foes. All while being a spellcaster without any significant martial ability. The chance to have chaotic magic won't be cumulative, that's not a mechanic present in any class I believe, but it could be tweaked in.
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Canto alla vita alla sua bellezza ad ogni sua ferita ogni sua carezza!
I sing to life and to its tragic beauty To pain and to strife, but all that dances through me The rise and the fall, I've lived through it all!
Sounds like a divine soul sorcerer. You could talk to the DM about the wild magic side. Maybe create a wild magic style table with possible side effects of healing. The DM rolls on it when you cast a healing spell or whatever. Doesn't really need an entire homebrew class.
Usually when one class won't fit a character, multiclassing can accomplish it. In this case I would probably recommend a a Wild Magic Sorcerer/Celestial Warlock multi class. You'll get the random chaotic magic, the healing, and the extra divine damage to smite foes. All while being a spellcaster without any significant martial ability. The chance to have chaotic magic won't be cumulative, that's not a mechanic present in any class I believe, but it could be tweaked in.
I second this. The big challenge is that Wild Magic Surges, RAW, can only trigger when casting Sorcerer spells and wouldn't work when casting Warlock spells, but I think it wouldn't be hard to get a DM to let you Surge with all spellcasting you make. You get the subclass benefits of a Sorcerer with just a single level dip, so you can still play as a Celestial Warlock for the most part (one of the better Warlock subclasses). The other cool thing about this combo is you get a TON of cantrips. Sorcerers get 4 at level 1, a Warlock gets 2, and a Celestial Warlock in particular gets 2 more Cantrips... right level 2, you have more Cantrips than a Max level Sorcerer gets on their own, and if you take the Pact of the Tome (which you could easily reflavor as a kind of "bible" for your character's new weirdo religion) you'll get 3 more cantrips, getting you a total of 11.
Divine soul sorcerer or celestial warlock both give magical healing on a Charisma-based caster.
Alternatively, if the DM would let you take and re-flavor the Witherbloom Student Background from Strixhaven, you could be any type of sorcerer or warlock, and have access to that healing magic, with whichever other features you want.
I would definitely suggest going with one of those instead of homebrewing a class, because classes are really hard to balance, especially when there's been no prior playtesting. Homebrew classes tend to end up either significantly more or less powerful than all of the other characters.
So, I had this idea for a character that is sort of a delusional "prophet" of sorts that falls sort of in between a cleric and a wizard/warlock, but due to character backstory, he doesn't have high Str, Wis or Int, but high Cha, Con and Dex. After being hit on the head (possibly leaving him a little brain-damaged), he experiences a vision in which a new/unknown deity declares it has chosen him as the herald and prophet of its name, and that he is to gather followers, and the fact that he is able to call upon divine aid supports his vision, though whether it is actually a new deity or a trickster playing an elaborate prank is unclear, in either case the results are the same. I envision him as being a sort of "holy wizard" healer, not really proficient with physical weapons, but able to use a "holy relic" to channel "divine wrath" against his enemies if he decides it is necessary, or "divine mercy" to heal the sick or injured. I also had the idea that there would be a slight chance of every spell he cast having unintended side effects, possibly cumulative, like accidentally changing hair or eye color of people when he heals them, or accidentally turning someone into a large dog, etc. Kind of "wild magic" sort of effects. But that idea is shelved until I've discussed it with the potential DM and party.
Should I just homebrew a custom class for him or is there a way to pull this off in the official rules? It's only the second character I've made in the D&D setting, and was actually the first one I ever came up with, but thought it would be too ambitious for a first time character, so whether or not his patron deity turns out to be legit or not is still up in the air until I find a DM willing to let me give him a shot.
Usually when one class won't fit a character, multiclassing can accomplish it. In this case I would probably recommend a a Wild Magic Sorcerer/Celestial Warlock multi class. You'll get the random chaotic magic, the healing, and the extra divine damage to smite foes. All while being a spellcaster without any significant martial ability. The chance to have chaotic magic won't be cumulative, that's not a mechanic present in any class I believe, but it could be tweaked in.
Canto alla vita
alla sua bellezza
ad ogni sua ferita
ogni sua carezza!
I sing to life and to its tragic beauty
To pain and to strife, but all that dances through me
The rise and the fall, I've lived through it all!
Sounds like a divine soul sorcerer. You could talk to the DM about the wild magic side. Maybe create a wild magic style table with possible side effects of healing. The DM rolls on it when you cast a healing spell or whatever. Doesn't really need an entire homebrew class.
I second this. The big challenge is that Wild Magic Surges, RAW, can only trigger when casting Sorcerer spells and wouldn't work when casting Warlock spells, but I think it wouldn't be hard to get a DM to let you Surge with all spellcasting you make. You get the subclass benefits of a Sorcerer with just a single level dip, so you can still play as a Celestial Warlock for the most part (one of the better Warlock subclasses). The other cool thing about this combo is you get a TON of cantrips. Sorcerers get 4 at level 1, a Warlock gets 2, and a Celestial Warlock in particular gets 2 more Cantrips... right level 2, you have more Cantrips than a Max level Sorcerer gets on their own, and if you take the Pact of the Tome (which you could easily reflavor as a kind of "bible" for your character's new weirdo religion) you'll get 3 more cantrips, getting you a total of 11.
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Divine soul sorcerer or celestial warlock both give magical healing on a Charisma-based caster.
Alternatively, if the DM would let you take and re-flavor the Witherbloom Student Background from Strixhaven, you could be any type of sorcerer or warlock, and have access to that healing magic, with whichever other features you want.
I would definitely suggest going with one of those instead of homebrewing a class, because classes are really hard to balance, especially when there's been no prior playtesting. Homebrew classes tend to end up either significantly more or less powerful than all of the other characters.