DnD Characters and Character Optimization Guides

Character optimization for DnD characters, at its simplest, is the act of looking at two choices when building a character and choosing the option which will make your character more mechanically effective. The practice is a bit more nuanced, if only because the abundance of options makes weighing those choices challenging. The collection of articles below includes detailed guidance on building your ideal character from top to bottom.

You don’t need an encyclopedic knowledge of DnD to benefit from the articles below. We try to write everything in a manner that’s approachable, but still thorough and informative. If you’re ever lost by discussions of individual options, it’s perfectly fine to pick an example build from our class and subclass handbooks and play it exactly as described. Every example build includes a description of how the build works and how to use each part of the build to great effect.

Intro to Character Optimization

Are you new to character optimization? Does reading a wall of text with a bunch of colors and stars and funny names seem daunting? Start here. Once you’ve got the basics, everything below will make more sense.

State of the Character Optimization Meta

A discussion of the current state of the character optimization meta, including changes introduced in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything.

This article will be periodically updated as new source books are released and rules changes are introduced.

Classes

General guides to building and playing the class and subclass of your choice, including guides on multiclassing, example builds, and a handful of optimized multiclass builds.

Races, Lineages, and Species

Sometimes you want to play a specific race. Knowing which options are available for that race can make playing that race more viable so that you can build your ideal character around your race of choice.

Feats

Some feats require some investigation to get their full value. In these articles we examine individual feats or collections of related feats in depth in order to get the most value out of each of them.

Spells

Detailed guides on how specific spells work and how to get the most out of them. We dig into the mechanics, implications, and uses of each spell so that you can use them to the greatest effect.

Other Support Articles for DnD Characters

Articles digging into specific mechanics and character options which don’t fit neatly into other existing categories.

Support Articles for 3rd-Party Publishers

RPGBOT has covered some 3rd-party content from our favorite creators. This content is published under the Open Gaming License, under Creative Commons, or through DMsGuild, and is not considered official content. As such, it is not available in Adventurer’s League organized play, and your group may not allow it in your game. If your group wants to explore 3rd-party content, we hope that these articles will help you make them work for you.

For class and subclass handbooks for 3rd-party content, see our Classes page.