Id personally choose one or the other and not mix them, but its not bad. Freely add Bardic Inspiration to an ability check you make if you roll lower than youd like. Some of them will be for fun and others will be for optimal character builds. Having a few spell slots that recharge on a short rest is quite nice for spellcasters. This build focuses mostly on being a successful Hexblade while investing half of your levels in strong multiclass supplements. Thank you to reader Scott for this multiclass concept! Warlocks need some of the best low-level spells, but Pact Magic doesnt work very well with them. While it isn't as severe as other classes, due to clerics having several skills that benefit from Charisma, taking many levels in cleric as a bard is just going to dilute both classes without trade-offs. As a Warlock looking to multiclass, you can improve your spellcasting or branch out into martial fighting. Would undead warlock/death cleric be good? The College of Swords Bard gains Blade Flourishes to weaponize the Bardic Inspiration dice. You can opt for more feats by taking four levels of Fighter, but youd miss out on the Wish spell (you probably should learn Wish at level 20 with this character). Stuck with light armor and simple weapon proficiencies. Other concepts will include the Bard as a secondary class with little level investment. Perform weapon attacks with your Charisma instead of your Strength or Dexterity (with some limitations that can be lifted with Pact of the Blade). Succeeding at death saving throws or stabilizing creatures with Spare the Dying allows you to regain hitpoints. The bard has a greater focus on buffing spells, as well as being able to grant Inspiration that a character can use to improve their rolls. Not all level-twenty abilities are worth getting; for example, Rangers have a poor level-twenty class feature, so they gain more from multiclassing. Deal bonus damage with an attack once per turn. Your main weapon should be a polearm so you can utilize its reach property. The characters archaeological delvings have led them to discover an ancient weapon that has formed a pact with them and transformed them with divine energy. Mortals tremble as being beyond your understanding vie for your attention! Cleric has very good class features at higher levels, but unfortunately youll never reach them when multiclassing. Taking even a handful of levels in sorcerer can be a boost for the bard in both offense and versatility. You can allow allies to make an attack a reaction when you affect them with enchantment spells. Summary of subclass features: Give temporary hitpoints to allies as a bonus action that also allows them to move as a reaction without provoking opportunity attacks.. Multiclassing is daunting for new players, but rewarding for experienced players. Massive damage output, with each class complementing the others weaknesses, Better armor and defensive abilities from Paladins class features help you survive in melee combat, Spellcasting uses Charisma for both classes, Smite synergizes well with Warlock spellcasting to maximize damage earlier than pure Paladins, Warlock becomes reliant on Paladins defensive features to keep them alive as they enter riskier situations, Paladin spells are situationally useful for a Warlock-Paladin combo. If you want to be a full-on Hexblade with some interesting tricks up your sleeve, three levels of Shadow Magic Sorcerer can be fun. An artificer improves the equipment of allies, and can also use its Flash of Genius feature to help allies with ability checks and saving throws. At lvl 11, you can take mass suggestion, at 13, force cage. Additionally, Warlocks will generally start the game with at least 13 points in Charisma, which automatically qualifies them to multiclass into Sorcerer. Okay, so I was wrong, the first goblin muttered bitterly. Any foes depending on non-reach melee weapons will be unable to hit you unless they switch to ranged attacks. But in return, they'll get several cantrips - including reliable choices like Fire Bolt or Ray of Frost - and access to several effective low-level spells, all of which use Charisma. Overall, the biggest benefit of multiclassing into Warlock is simply having more spell slots. Shoot the mage, she wont have good armor! Cried the goblin, his buddy popping out of cover and firing a crossbow at the Warlock. Continue with Recommended Cookies. The Warlock and Sorcerer Multiclass is another combination with great synergy - with both classes using Charisma for spellcasting. You can truly become a dread knight with this build! If you enjoy acting as the partys face, this combo is a good way to double down. High degree of customization through distinct Cleric subclasses. With that concept in mind, I also thought about a warlock ranger as well, any thoughts? This effectively means that a barbarian and bard multiclass would have to decide which class it wanted to behave like in combat - while doing neither as effectively as a single-classed character. The first new class released for 5e, the artificer has a fair amount of overlap with the bard. Warlock/sorcerer is also a very strong option for a sorcerer multiclass. Cantrips scale their damage as you level up, which is better than taking a slight dip into martial classes (whose weapon attack damage dont scale with your level). Genie Warlocks at the sixth level gain the ability to fly without concentration for ten minutes several times per long rest. For example, if you are a Cleric multiclassing as a Rogue, youll need a Wisdom score of 13 or higher, and a Dexterity score of 13 or higher. This character has delved into elemental runes and made a pact with a Dao. Other concepts will include the Sorcerer as a secondary class with minimal level investment. Most players dont foreshadow or roleplay their core class features anyway, so why should it be so difficult to justify what you gain from multiclassing? As usual, the Hexblade Warlock is mighty tempting. Will provide some bonus that cant be found through other means. Youll need to ensure that your character reaches all the prerequisite features before they can take the second class you want. Sorcerers most useful abilities are available at low levels, meaning you need to invest fewer levels into multiclassing. Bards lack the first-level value that other spellcasters provide in multiclassing, but theyre formidable in their own ways with more levels of investment. Taking up to 3 levels of Sorcerer . Thats a cool support character concept! Of all martial classes, the best one to take with the bard is the paladin. Guidance & help (as a bonus action)? Looking to make a Changeling female Glamour Bard/ Enchantment Wizard but wanting to throw in some damage based skills possibly rogue or ranger like. Makes creatures magically understand your language as you speak. Billy_Rage 2 yr. ago The obvious is fey lock and really any bard. Id probably go for Pact of the Blade while gaining Eldritch Blast Invocations for ranged options. An example is upcasting Armor of Agathys from the Warlock spell list. What Bard multiclass concepts and best practices have I missed? Taking one or two levels of a full spellcasting class that has access to Shield and other critical first-level spells is premium. The Totem Barbarian (bear option at level three) usually has psychic damage as its weak spot, but not with the GOO Warlock since it has psychic resistance. Grab someones shadow when they die so you can impersonate them and learn information from the departed. If you go 50/50 Fiendpact Warlock and Lore Bard you can learn spells of any class and have them recharge on a short rest. Add 1d10 to an ability check or saving throw. It might be the lord of multiclassing because of how much value you get for one level in Hexblade Warlock. . Overall, multiclassing into Cleric improves areas Warlock is weak at rather than building on existing strengths. Flutes is a seasoned DM and improvisational performer. Having worked his way up from burger flipper to a manager in a successful restaurant, he decided to take the plunge and pursue his passion of writing and creating full time, which he continues to this day in many forms of media across the internet. Summary of subclass features: You can use a weapon youre proficient with as a spellcasting focus. At Level 2, you also get a decent-sized pool for Lay on Hands, which youll mostly use for emergencies anyways. Warlocks in D&D 5e are so strong because of their versatility, and this versatility also makes them exceptionally good at multiclassing. Metamagic is the class feature that lets you mold spells this way and pops up at Level 3. The versatility and variability of bards makes them one of the more open classes to play, and this extends to their multiclassing. The other reason this combo works so well is that many Warlock defensive spells dont require concentration. It specializes in using cold damage to deal massive damage with Eldritch Blast and Spirit Shroud spells. Hypnotic pattern is always a fantastic choice for most situations. Theres no way I can cover every combination for this subclass, but Ill share some favorites. You are a divinely infused creature with celestial blood flowing in your veins. Not to mention Green Flame Blade might come in handy minding our affinity for fire damage. Summary of subclass features: Gain a few spell options that Warlocks cant normally learn, but you dont automatically learn them. Making 2-3 attacks per round sounds nice, especially if Charisma can be used for the weapon attacks. The best option for your Warlock will be decided largely by the role you intend to play within your party, and the Patron you have chosen. When deciding what to multiclass with, youll want to look at a few different factors. Genie Warlocks gain Bottled Respite in their Genies Vessel for ease of short resting. The idea here is to become a master manipulator. A master of menacing archery with an arcane twist. Druid Multiclassing D&D 5e: Best Practices, Character Concepts, and Inspirational Mulch , multiclassing requires minimum ability scores, content on multiclassing in our other articles, class-level multiclassing combinations article. Skip ahead to the portion of the article that interests you most by clicking the link below: Bard Multiclassing Principles Creation Eloquence Glamour Lore Spirits Swords Valor Whispers. While many martial classes work well for this, one that's likely to underwhelm is the monk. I cant say I recommend this build, but its kinda funny. You can twin Eldritch Blast and then do it again with the Fighters Action Surge. Without requiring concentration or spell slots to do so, youll gain invisibility and a flying speed so you can be a stealth jet. Multiclassing for Fighters Most of the fighting classes do a pretty good job of getting steadily better at violence as they gain levels, but multiclassing can let you exceed their usual limits. As the partys face, this combo works so well is that many Warlock defensive spells dont require.. Eldritch Blast and Spirit Shroud spells some damage based skills possibly rogue or like. 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