Here Are The Most Popular D&D Feats (War Caster Leads The Pack!)

FrogReaver · Feb 22, 2019

Jay Verkuilen said:
I'm not entirely convinced they did the various subsetting properly, or else it means something slightly different than we think.

I don't know for sure but I know that things like this are rather challenging to manage given the nature of the data. In particular, the fact that everybody's account has customizable resources means that a Basic (i.e., free) account has very different access that someone with the PHB and Xanathar's purchased. I'm not saying this is the issue, but I do know that analyzing user data or administrative data more broadly runs into the serious problem of generating comparable cases.

I thought that they had given us a previous chart showing that variant human was a little less than half as popular as normal human. Did I dream that up?

Staffan · Feb 22, 2019

Mistwell said:
In the right hands, a bard with the Actor feat can be devastating. The bard in our party has that feat, as his only feat, and he's worked wonders with it.

Oh, certainly. In the right hands, and the right campaign, it can be fairly powerful and certainly great fun.

But the options for starting with a +2 to a casting stat in the PHB are fairly scant. They are:

1. Gnome for +2 Intelligence.
2. Half-elf or Tiefling for +2 Charisma.
3. Variant human stacking a racial +1 with a feat +1.

So, what would your options for that feat +1 be? There is, of course, Resilient - but most casters are already proficient in their casting stat's save, so I think we can ignore that. That leaves:

Intelligence - Keen Mind, Linguist, or Observant.
Wisdom - Observant
Charisma - Actor

The same thought process goes for someone who starts out with an odd score in their stat and later wants to raise it to an even value (perhaps because they're at 19 and want to hit 20).

This is one of those things that I find to be a minor flaw with 5e - I wish there were a few more feats with mental stat bonuses to give casters some options.

It's also, however, how he ended up impregnating a succubus. So there's that.

That's always fun.

Azzy · Feb 22, 2019

OverlordOcelot said:
No, using it would be perfectly possible, they just grab it, now they're holding it, and they swing it at you.

Yeah, with a weapon dangling from 6-8 inch loop or chain around your wrist I'm not seeing what you're seeing.

You're stuck because you're now grappled as they have ahold of you. They wouldn't need any 'trying' to grab a dangling weapon any more than you have to, they just grab it and swing it at you using the same actions you would - only now it's putting you at a disadvantage because it's also attached to your body by this unbreakable tether.

Yeah, I don't know what you're envisaging, but a tethered weapon is attached to a person's body and still moves with the arm that it's tethered to.

Unbreakable tethers that don't hinder your movement or use of the weapon but that prevent enemies from grabbing the weapon or using the tether to grapple you are way outside of standard rules.

I don't see how leather strips or or light chains are either "unbreakable" (they'd certainly not be easily breakable, but you're indulging in a bit of a staw man) or beyond the scope of the rules or the setting of most D&D games. But you do you.

Getting surprised that people take a feat that allows you to cast a spell with a weapon in hand instead of relying on the DM to inventing special rules for super tethers that don't work like any real-world object and give you a way to completely bypass the drawbacks of a RAW option is just silly.

No, what's silly are rules that create a situation that can easily be ignore with a modicum of craftiness (seriously, been doing this since 1e or 2e) and then creating unnecessary feats to asdress the unnecessay situation.

The 'oh, put it on a tether' solution fails both RAW and realism analysis.

Um, I suggest you take a heavy hammer, mallet or some other fairly heavy tool, tie a leather loop into the a hole in its base (if it has one) or otherwise afix the loop into a strap. Then put the loop around your wrist. Then hold the tool. Then let it go from your grasp. Wow! You can do this in the real world—some tools or devices already come with straps. It's like as if this is easily a thing.

Because you attached a tether with a handle on the end of it to your body. They can just grab the handle on the loose weapon with their free action, the same way you do. Since the tether is attached to you, they are now grappling you.

It would still be opposed because it is still attached to your body.

Azzy · Feb 22, 2019

Mistwell said:
In my game I'd require you make a check to cast a spell with a mace dangling from the hand you're using for somatics.

That's fair enough.

Guest 6801328 · Feb 22, 2019

Not that anybody on Enworld would do this, but I'm betting it drives some people BAT$#!~ CRAZY that most 5e players aren't optimizers and don't care about optimization.

Either that or they dismiss the data as being inaccurate and non-representative.

ClaytonCross · Feb 22, 2019

Kurotowa said:
You'd be surprised, every group has its own dynamic.

In my current group we've got a guy who's not big on mechanics. He went to one of those historic recreation towns on his last vacation and got to shoot a crossbow. The experience impressed him so much he decided his next character would be a crossbow user, and the group put our heads together to help him pick the right class for it. Other times we've had someone decide they wanted to play the front line anchor and then shop around for which class offered the style they wanted.

So yes, some people look through the book and pick an option they think looks fun. That's how I usually do it, actually. But there are other people who get their inspiration from outside sources as to the concept or style they want to go with and then shop around for what suits it best. And I've done that too, sometimes. With my latest character I had the concept of "A tiefling healer with holy powers" first and then went looking for how to realize it. I came up with three options, even! Light Cleric, Celestial Warlock, and Divine Soul Sorcerer all delivered on the initial concept while developing it in different directions.

There are a lot of people playing D&D and nearly every one of them has a slightly unique spin on how they do it. Don't underestimate that.

I enjoy finding a role, then finding away to perform that role in away that mechanically works but no one has seen. Point in case, my current character is a warlock pact of the tome scout, it works and its a lot of fun. My starting point was "what role do I want to be for the group? Scout... not a rogue"

Mistwell · Feb 22, 2019

ClaytonCross said:
I enjoy finding a role, then finding away to perform that role in away that mechanically works but no one has seen. Point in case, my current character is a warlock pact of the tome scout, it works and its a lot of fun. My starting point was "what role do I want to be for the group? Scout... not a rogue"

Pact of the Tome seems an odd choice for that role. I'd think Pact of the Chain would make more sense. A flying, invisible imp familiar with 120 foot darkvision and 100 foot telepathy seems like a better scout.

Swarmkeeper · Feb 23, 2019

Elfcrusher said:
Not that anybody on Enworld would do this, but I'm betting it drives some people BAT$#!~ CRAZY that most 5e players aren't optimizers and don't care about optimization.

Either that or they dismiss the data as being inaccurate and non-representative.

No doubt. I'm at the point where I'd like to see the complete usage stats for all feats so our table can give the lesser picked options some love. In the rare game where I get to actually play instead of DM, my PC is a Githzerai Arcane Trickster 3/Ranger 1 currently with 14 DEX heading towards Gloom Stalker. With first ASI at character level 7, I'm leaning towards taking Skilled and getting proficiency in Acrobatics, Poisoner's Kit, and Weaver's Tools. Next up after that, probably Linguist. So, anyway, the character does just fine and I'm not robotically pursuing DPR because that's what I'm "supposed to do" according to some white room theories.
"It's a trap (option)!" some might Akbar. But fun comes in many different kinds of packages - as evidenced by the data that are being presented.

FrogReaver · Feb 23, 2019

DM Dave1 said:
No doubt. I'm at the point where I'd like to see the complete usage stats for all feats so our table can give the lesser picked options some love. In the rare game where I get to actually play instead of DM, my PC is a Githzerai Arcane Trickster 3/Ranger 1 currently with 14 DEX heading towards Gloom Stalker. With first ASI at character level 7, I'm leaning towards taking Skilled and getting proficiency in Acrobatics, Poisoner's Kit, and Weaver's Tools. Next up after that, probably Linguist. So, anyway, the character does just fine and I'm not robotically pursuing DPR because that's what I'm "supposed to do" according to some white room theories.
"It's a trap (option)!" some might Akbar. But fun comes in many different kinds of packages - as evidenced by the data that are being presented.

From the optimizers perspective they have to optimize that much harder to help compensate for your terribly underpowered character. They view the fact that you can even go through the game with that kind of character as evidence of the necessity of their optimization. So while you view being able to play that character is proof you don't need to optimize, they view you being able to play that character as proof you do need to optimize.

Also, when someone dies your terribly underpowered character will be the one to be blamed and probably rightfully so. Of course there's also the tidbit that if you had optimized the DM likely would have threw stronger enemies at your group and you'd just be on a different kind of treadmill. Of course there's also the consideration that if you are not in a heavily combat focused game then taking a lot of random non-combat options may actually be optimized compared to taking a bunch of combat options

Swarmkeeper · Feb 23, 2019

FrogReaver said:
From the optimizers perspective they have to optimize that much harder to help compensate for your terribly underpowered character. They view the fact that you can even go through the game with that kind of character as evidence of the necessity of their optimization. So while you view being able to play that character is proof you don't need to optimize, they view you being able to play that character as proof you do need to optimize.

Also, when someone dies your terribly underpowered character will be the one to be blamed and probably rightfully so. Of course there's also the tidbit that if you had optimized the DM likely would have threw stronger enemies at your group and you'd just be on a different kind of treadmill. Of course there's also the consideration that if you are not in a heavily combat focused game then taking a lot of random non-combat options may actually be optimized compared to taking a bunch of combat options

The point seems to be just outside your grasp, fluttering on the breeze like the feather in Forest Gump. You see, all the characters at our table actually are fully optimized. Optimized for fun. How about yours?

Here Are The Most Popular D&D Feats (War Caster Leads The Pack!)

FrogReaver

As long as i get to be the frog

Staffan

Legend

Azzy

ᚳᚣᚾᛖᚹᚢᛚᚠ

Azzy

ᚳᚣᚾᛖᚹᚢᛚᚠ

Guest 6801328

Guest

ClaytonCross

Kinder reader Inflection wanted

Mistwell

Crusty Old Meatwad (he/him)

Swarmkeeper

Hero

FrogReaver

As long as i get to be the frog

Swarmkeeper

Hero

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