DnD Character Selection Introduction

I am a madman, and I want to solve 5e for you. What do I mean by this? Well, we have literally dozens of subclass guides and associated optimization articles on the website at this point, which means that when people come here for an idea of what to do with their new character, they’re likely to leave with just as many competing ideas about what to play as when they went in with, if not more. The aim of this article is to attempt to narrow down your options such that you can walk away with a truly optimal choice, as well as the understanding that you may not want to take it.

To that end, this article is going to lean heavily on the concepts covered in our page on Party Composition. Seriously, go read that and come back.

Now that you’re familiar with those concepts, I’m going to present the other half of this equation: not all tables use point buy for stats. Some DMs force (or allow) people to roll or do some other random method for character creation. This means we also need to discuss another concept: SAD vs. MAD. We’ve talked about it in several articles, but the core of it is whether you can do well with just one stat (single ability dependent) or need two or even three to function optimally (multi-ability dependent). (Most) straight casters and uncomplicated martials like (most) Fighters and (most) Rogues are examples of the first, while (most) gish builds (a martial character also capable of casting spells) and Monks are part of the second category. Constitution gets largely ignored in this logic because everyone needs it, and 14 Constitution is the norm across most builds.

Since most people will use Point Buy, you’re going to be looking mostly at the “one good stat” and “two good stats” sections. Maybe the “three good stats” section if you take a race which can get three ability score increases (Half-Elf, anything post-Tasha’s). Given that adjusted stats after point buy allow you to have at least two stats at a 16 or higher, that will be our definition for “good.” Any modifier of +3 or better feels like it’s being an effective part of whatever you’re trying to use it for. It’s always good to know what you can do though, especially if you suddenly come upon a magic item that can, for instance, set your Intelligence to 19, opening up a new role for someone mid-game.

What do we do with this knowledge? Find the section that applies to you, look through it and any earlier sections, see what roles your party doesn’t have covered and make a character that fills as many needs as possible while still being enjoyable for you to play. For bonus points, check the subclass breakdown for the class+subclass you’re considering and see if the option you’re thinking of is rated blue. You will probably end up as a Cleric or Druid if you’re picking last, because that’s just the way of things.

Now that you have the base concepts in your mind, I’m going to ask you to Embrace My Diabolical Vision: one article that attempts to answer the question “what should I play?”

I rolled one good stat

As we discussed above, there are some great choices for SAD classes out there, so I’m going to offer you some options based on what roles our existing SAD builds can do well.

Blaster:

Controller:

Defender:

A quick note- it’s almost impossible have a truly SAD defender because everything will want some primary stat to function and unusually-high Con for more hit points. There are vanishingly few options for doing anything based on Constitution in 5e because it’s already the most powerful stat for not dying, and only one of the ones that do exist offer any useful infinite way of using it offensively. Now then: 

Face:

  • Any Bard except Valor and Swords (they need two good stats; see below)
  • Knowledge Cleric
  • Any Sorcerer
  • Any Warlock unless you’re trying to Pact of the Blade without being a Hexblade

Healer:

Librarian:

Scout:

Striker:

Support:

Utility Caster:

So, what up here is the most versatile? Knowledge Cleric appears in many places, capable of doing basically anything except dealing or enduring damage (even then, cleric spells can often fill those functions to some degree). Armorer Artificer can fill a wide range of needs all at the same time. Charisma casters make natural Faces just relying on pumping the stat through the roof, and so you end up being able to cover the full range from blaster to utility by picking the right one. Wizards and Bards are… kinda everywhere. Unsurprisingly, these are all casters because that’s how D&D works.

I rolled two good stats

Two good stats opens up the rest of the gish options and Monks.

Blaster:

All optimized blaster options are SAD, but Four Elements and Sun Soul Monks do exist.

Controller:

Defender:

Face:

Healer:

Librarian:

Scout:

Striker:

Support:

Utility Caster:

As we can see, caster supremacy continues with Bladesinger Wizard and Valor Bard being the most flexible. If you need a Defender and/or Face, Conquest Paladin covers many bases, as does Sorcadin. Tam Bush appears here as a Striker if you feel the need to do 400 damage in one turn expending minimal resources. Mercy Monk is the only thing that has the Controller, Healer, and Striker roles all combined with two good stats.

Two good stats opens up multiclassing for everything that’s not a Hex-whatever, allowing for some greater optimization like the [x]adins, the Totembreaker, and Tam Bush I listed above. Don’t feel the need to multiclass just because you can though. There are still plenty of strong single-class things here like the Gloomstalker Ranger and the Vengeance Paladin.

I rolled three good stats

Nothing actually needs three high rolls, so let’s look at what gets better when you have them to play with.

Blaster:

All optimized blaster options are SAD, but more defenses is always nice, and everything besides Light Clerics and Artillerists are limited to light armor at best.

Controller:

Everything here runs fine on two stats but often wants to be in melee, meaning Con is important for HP and maintaining concentration.

Defender:

Barbarians and Paladins all get better at fulfilling their roles with three stats. They both (usually) use strength to attack and want Con to not die. Paladins also want Charisma for features while Barbarians want Dex for their unique version of unarmored defense which rewards both Dex and Con.

Face:

Being a good Face only requires one stat. Being a great Face requires Wisdom as well, because you want your Insight bonus to be high so you know how your conversations are going instead of just lying/persuading/intimidating into the void. Since everything is usually going to focus on its primary stat and then Con, any Wisdom or Charisma caster can do those two things and then the other mental stat that’s important. Clerics in particular (especially those flavors that wear heavy armor) truly only need two stats to function, and so can spare a third to be a better Face.

Healer:

As I just mentioned, Clerics really only need two stats unless they’re trying to cover more roles. Even then, they often have a spell that can fix whatever natural shortcomings they have. Bards and Druids are restricted to lighter armor, and so need some Dexterity to optimize their defenses while still filling out primary stat and Con.

Librarian:

All knowledge skills are Intelligence-based (unless you’re dealing with Rocco’s shenanigans [which I’m actually a huge fan of]), and the only things that primarily care about Intelligence really only care about other stats for defenses. Con is a must, then Dex if you’re a Wizard or Wisdom if you’re an Artificer. Theoretically, with three good stats, you could also see Arcane Tricksters and Eldritch Knights fill this slot because they want Intelligence to back features but need to rely on physical stats first for offense and defense.

Scout:

Good Scouts need Dex to be stealthy and disarm traps. Great Scouts also need Wisdom to effectively perceive their surroundings. For most things, Wisdom gets dropped in favor of more hit points, but with three good rolls you can have all of the above.

Striker:

Monks love three good stats because that exponentially increases their survivability with Dex, Wisdom, and Con all adding to their defenses. Those are also conveniently the most-often-targeted saves, which means an optimized Monk is very hard to down.

Support:

Paladins love a third good roll to upgrade their defenses. In particular, with three good stats you can afford to bump Dex, Con, and Charisma so you can do whatever this is.

Utility Caster:

As above, a third good stat shores up defenses for people who can’t wear heavy armor, or helps them expand into other roles, particularly when backed up by their utility spells like Enhance Ability or features like Jack of All Trades.

I rolled four good stats

With four good stats, you’re now looking to cover other roles than what your class is traditionally expected to do, but are perhaps tangentially related.

Blaster:

All optimized blaster options are SAD.

Controller:

The more stats you put on a Bard, the better they can fake being anything else.

Defender:

Anything past three good stats is just there to support skills. Barbarians with the Optional Class Feature get a few more skill proficiencies as they level, so putting it in Wisdom to take advantage of that and protect against the most common mental save is a great choice.

Face:

If you’re a Paladin, you can put your fourth good stat in Wisdom for Insight. Everything will have already been fine with fewer good rolls.

Healer:

Almost all Healers are either Wisdom or Charisma-based, meaning you can easily become great at the Face role by putting a good roll in the one you’re not using primarily.

Librarian:

Even the weird gish Librarians are out of things to further optimize at this point beyond going way outside their traditional scope.

Scout:

Great Scouts only need three good stats. Incredible Scouts also want good Intelligence in case the GM decides that a particular thing should be Investigation instead of Perception, or to also perform the Librarian role once they’ve found the thing so they can determine what it is and what to do with it.

Striker:

You’ve long ago shored up your offense and your defense. See what skills are missing from your group and bump the stat traditionally associated with whatever seems best to take.

Support:

You’re already covered by one of the sections above.

Utility Caster:

You’re already covered by one of the sections above.

I rolled five good stats

With five good stats, you’re really approaching what can’t I do, which means that generalists, people capable of becoming generalists on demand, and things with a lot of proficiencies from race and backgrounds will be more powerful.

Blaster:

All optimized blaster options are SAD.

Controller:

Say, what’s a powerful controller that’s also the iconic generalist? The JOAT GOAT, Bard. If you leave Strength low, only one skill suffers (Athletics), and you become the Mary Sue every Bard secretly wishes to be.

Defender:

If you’re in full plate, everything except Dex is high and you’re good at everything your Scout isn’t. If you’re not in Plate, everything except Strength is high and you’re incredible at everything except Athletics. You might even be incredible at Athletics if you’re Dio.

Face:

No Face needs both Strength and Dexterity unless you’re trying to like… be a Barbarian that talks to solve their problems. I guess you could dump Intelligence if you’re trying to do that.

Healer:

Most healers can afford three or four dump stats. Imagine what you can do with only one.

Librarian:

Everything except some martials can safely dump Strength and be awesome at all but one skill.

Scout:

Everything except some martials can safely dump Strength and be awesome at all but one skill. There could be a case where you’re trying to do a Strength-based melee Ranger. If that’s the case, you should be able to safely dump Charisma.

Striker:

Everything is a Striker if your stats are good enough.

Support:

You’re already covered by one of the sections above.

Utility Caster:

You’re already covered by one of the sections above.

I rolled six good stats

Why are you even here? Go enjoy godhood.