D&D 5E Milticlassing Dip-schticks

OP probably aren't seeing the right classes for multiclass. Some classes have incredible lvl 20 features, like moon druids, others are simply the worse option, like bards.

There's always a trade involved, like a fighter, go until level 11 is great to take another attack, but until he reach level 18 (to get another action surge) and 20 (the 4th attack) you don't get nothing really good. If your campaing will end at lvl 15, mechanically, why stay as fighter?

You liked assassin just because of the nova in surprise round, why stay as rogue after level 3 if you can do much more with multiclass?

Balfore said:

We always go all the way.
Recently, we've gone beyond 20.
We've also been playing together for almost 20 years... so, any of these campaigns that come out are really no challange at all.

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Yea, if you regularly play to 20+, than the loss of high level abilities is a much bigger deal, and dipping is much less viable. But regular play at 15+ is a pretty extreme outlier.

Not all dips are created equal.

Some stretch the rules of the game a bit - Sor'locks - while others are little more than character fluff.

I've "level dipped" by going fighter 1 then wizard to get CON save and armour proficiency, where all of the fighter features are useful, or taken rogue at any point to get expertise and don't care about thieves cant, sneaky damage, etc.

Balfore said:

How would you multiclass a necromancer?

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If your DM lets you, you could take a 3 level dip into Oathbreaker Paladin to get Channel Divinity: Control Undead.

Mathilda said:

Multi-classing is a powerful tool in building your character.

For example... I primarily play WoTC organized play Adventure League. I have a character that is 2 levels of Fighter and 13 levels of Wizard.

The two levels of Fighter gives me the following:

Starting with fighter I get Constitution as one of my saving throws proficiencies... this is huge for Concentration checks that I will be making in combat

I get access to heavy armor and shield at 1st level which makes my AC pretty good and better than Mage Armor

I get a Fighter Style which I choose defensive which increases my AC

I get Action Surge which allows me to cast 2 spells in a round and bypasses the normal ruling of casting only one spell and a cantrip in a round

I get Second Wind which gives me free healing and being on Wizard hit die... makes this healing even more effective

I get all this for the loss of a couple of mid level spells once I hit 20th level and a delay when I get my next tier level of spells.

Once I hit 7th level with this character I never looked back and decently formidable when I play this character.

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This actually shows some personal preferences. Some people would never level-dip playing casters just because they want the next higher spell level slot as fast as they can. In the above example, the character will perpetually be (at least up to level 19) one spell level behind the pure caster.

Also, group dynamics may influence the decision. For instance, if the caster trusts their team-mates ability to tank and cover them, maybe the better AC, second wind and even CON saves can be perceived as a non-issue. (Of course, the same cannot be said about action surge. It seems in this edition they did manage to give the fighter one extremely coveted ability after all)

zaratan said:

OP probably aren't seeing the right classes for multiclass. Some classes have incredible lvl 20 features, like moon druids, others are simply the worse option, like bards.

There's always a trade involved, like a fighter, go until level 11 is great to take another attack, but until he reach level 18 (to get another action surge) and 20 (the 4th attack) you don't get nothing really good. If your campaing will end at lvl 15, mechanically, why stay as fighter?

You liked assassin just because of the nova in surprise round, why stay as rogue after level 3 if you can do much more with multiclass?

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Champion 15 is really funny.

And about the assassin, yes, nova-ing can be the the goal for some, in which case I completely agree with you. Some other people, though, actually want an assassin who can do the whole job, including the infiltration part, which sometimes can be the harder part of the job. Then they will want the disguise stuff and reliable talent. Thinking more of it, the nova part only works if the set-up is right, so in different tables, optimizing for nova may mean something else.

Barolo said:

Champion 15 is really funny.

And about the assassin, yes, nova-ing can be the the goal for some, in which case I completely agree with you. Some other people, though, actually want an assassin who can do the whole job, including the infiltration part, which sometimes can be the harder part of the job. Then they will want the disguise stuff and reliable talent. Thinking more of it, the nova part only works if the set-up is right, so in different tables, optimizing for nova may mean something else.

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yes, champion 15 is great, if you start your campaing at level 15 (well, probably you still have better options, since you don't have smites or sneak attacks to make your crit worth it).

Agree about assassin, thats why I said "assassin just because of the nova", in that case, you're looking for just one mechanical aspect.

In the end, the upgrades have only three "why":
-You like it;
-You see more benefit for your character/party that way (benefit is personal);
-middle term.

Balfore said:

Our group finds very little benifit for taking any dips (other than...MAYBE...the Rager-Druid for the extra resistance to damage)...

You don't get the benifit of gaining the last few benifits from your base class.

Just curious as to the various thoughts of why people level dip.

Not see why this would be a good thing.

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Like most people have said previously, its to fit a character concept. My character is the wandering Knight who does good deeds to atone for his past mistakes. He is a Cleric (Light) 1/ Fighter (Battlemaster) 5, and I would not consider dropping the Cleric level at all. He has made liberal use of Spare the Dying to save a majority of the NPC's to the point its slightly annoyed the party. Also, having the option to use Sacred Flame and have a magical ranged attack is incredibly useful to me.

Now, as I approach Character Level 7 I am faced with a few choices. Do I stick with Fighter or do I further Multi-Class? My primary role in the group is as the Tank / Harasser. I have Shield Mastery, so I knock enemies down and get all up in their faces while my party (all spellcasters) drop the artillery...sometimes on me too. For future levels I can continue with the Fighter for more ASI's and Extra Attacks. I can dip into Barbarian for Rage (I'm typically not using any spells in combat) to get Resistance to all that damage I'm taking. Or I can dip into Ranger to get things like another Fighting Style, Hunter's Mark, and maybe even a Beastmaster pet to help Tank. So there are some choices that can definitely help make my character better at what he does that exist outside of the Class skills.

That being said, I can see where full Spellcasters would be apprehensive about level dips and delaying access to higher level spells. But even so, dipping out for a few levels in another class might give you something that completely changes the way you play. A small dip into Sorcerer for Metamagics might outweigh having a 9th level spell, given that this adds new options to all other spells. Its a tough call, and definitely one that's difficult to quantify.

Balfore said:

How would you multiclass a necromancer?

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Depends on what you want to do with it and what level you're expecting to play at.

One build I'd like to try sometime is warlock/necromancer; it only works at level 11+, though. Necromancer 6 gives you the necromancer buffs to animate dead, and warlock 5 gives you the ability to cast it with fast-refreshing warlock spell slots. You can maintain quite a large army that way. It does, however, mean you're really committing to the "undead horde" style of necromancy. Without your army, you'll be very weak.

For a more conventional approach, you can also go cleric 1/necromancer X. You get heavy armor, cure spells, full casting, and Turn Undead for emergency use if you lose control of your horde; the price is slightly delayed access to higher-level spells and necromancer features.

What about a 1 level dip into Psion and take Celerity, and the rest in Rogue?

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