Best Class for a solo player campaign

[Trickstergod]

Do I ever love the Cleric.

And it's not even for the cheesiness. A little faith is almost a requirement for my characters, so a Cleric is the natural progression from that. I don't know why people don't seem to like them...eh. Do something less than nice into their ears.

Anyway. I'd say, that in a generic sort of way, at least, the best classes to go with are those with a versatility in skills. Any class is going to be "the best" if the DM tailors the adventure to it, but in just a general sort of fashion, the class that can do the most, will likely come off the most successfully. That being the case, I'd say yes, a Cleric should do mighty fine, being able to cast, fight, and a bit more besides, depending on the build, ability scores, and Domains. Beyond that, Monks have that survivability thing going for them, and a proper Bard build could go far.

Depending on how far the game would go, I'm also going to offer up that the hybrid Prestige Classes of the Arcane Trickster, Eldritch Knight and Mystic Theurge should do well.

All in all, I'm going to say versatility is the key.

 

[Norfleet]

Where in a party situation, the best characters are ones specialized to fill a niche, in a solo situation, you have to be more adaptable, since you're on your own: Generally, you want at least 2 or 3 fields of ability, or the ability to emulate such.

Good:
Bard
Cleric
Druid
Monk
Ranger
Rogue

OK:
Arcane Trickster
Barbarian
Paladin
Sorcerer
Wizard

Bad:
Fighter

 

[Halivar]

OK:
Arcane Trickster

Bad:
Fighter

I played in a solo campaign for about a year. I was a straight fighter with an arcane trickster "cohort" (I didn't really have leadership or anything, but the DM decided I couldn't "hack" it (har dee har har) alone). We really didn't need a cleric at all.

Of course, six months into the game we added about three or four more players and it turned into this huge epic campaign (took us to 20, w00t!). For the lower levels, though, a fighter and a sorceror/thief are pretty freakin' cool.

 

[Buttercup]

No love for my Clerical homies in this thread, I'm tellin' ya!

I was thinking along the lines of the movie's concept, not identically recreating it. The concept of a Church Inquisitor naturally lends itself to putting yourself in countless roleplaying situations that cannot be resolved by force of arms, as well as situations where detection magics and defensive spells are supremely important.

Imagine having to root out a mystery within an active monastery's walls, using all of the clerical magics available to you and muscle power if necessary...

Then carry the concept to recovering stolen relics for your church, counciling a noble who has recently left the faith (and finding out he is possessed), having to gather the facts and adjudicate a legal dispute, etc.

In addition to problems that are run across just in travelling to your next assignment... village being threatened by an ogre, thorp just ran out of drinking water, and the well they are digging uncovered an undead monster, etc.

The possibilities are wide open for such a scenario.

I'm with you, Henry, except that I would multiclass an Aristocrat/Cleric. It was not uncommon for younger sons of the nobility to become priests, so the concept isn't farfetched. Also, the aristocrat class would give the PC access to more skills (and skill points!).

You know, your campaign idea above sounds really cool. I'd love to play that solo cleric.

 

[Halivar]

I would multiclass an Aristocrat/Cleric.

Hrmm... I always thought the NPC classes were like, CR 1/2 or something. In general, the only NPC classes that look viable would be the adept.

Now, if a generous DM were to, say, give a solo aristocrat free use of the leadership feat as a level 5 (until you pass level 5, of course), that would be something.... cool.

 

[Endur]

Monk

Monk is the best for a sterotypical, store-bought, single-player dungeon.
All three saves are good: fort, reflex, and will. And saving throws are the key to success when a failure means game over. Toss in Improved Evasion, SR, and many other immunities at high level. The monk's combat prowess is just icing on the cake.

If the GM writes the module for your character, then any of the character classes can be effective on their own.

 

[Buttercup]

Hrmm... I always thought the NPC classes were like, CR 1/2 or something. In general, the only NPC classes that look viable would be the adept.

Now, if a generous DM were to, say, give a solo aristocrat free use of the leadership feat as a level 5 (until you pass level 5, of course), that would be something.... cool.

The Aristocrat is proficient with all types of armor and shields, and with all simple and martial weapons. Their list of class skills is huge. They have a d8 for hit dice, same as a cleric. I think they're more than viable as a PC class, especially as a base upon which to multiclass. Heck, if you want a diplomat character, you wouldn't even necessarily have to multiclass. An aristocrat would be an excellent PC class for a city based game that featured lots of politics and intrigue. They can charm the socks off just about anyone, then turn around and dice them up. Now that's cool.

 

[Morte]

Sooner or later you'll have to bust some heads without getting yours busted. Even specialist stealth/diplo characters will fail those rolls eventually and land in a fight which they have to win. Versatility is good, but killing is the ultimate decider.

For solo combat, with no cohorts or followers, I'd go with a druid or cleric. They can melee their way through long strings of minor battles without running out of spells (unlike mages), and they can bring out the big spells to go up two gears for major battles (unlike monks and swordslingers). Bards need someone to sing to, rogues need someone to flank with.

Many of the priests' best spells are buffs, but that's OK. Use the buffs more.