D&D 5E (2014) The classes that nobody wants to play

[guachi]

I've seen two of everything so far except for monk where I've seen only one.

Though I'm surprised I don't see more wizards. I think it's because so many classes cast spells and the benefits of the wizard schools aren't quite as obvious as the benefits for other classes.

 

[ccs]

As for the monk's apparent unpopularity, to be blunt I have not seen one who contributed much to the party, even if they were roleplayed well. Some were a flat-out waste of space. I'm sure there are other reasons but frankly it has gotten to the point that I cringe slightly when I first see one at the table and wonder if it will be dead weight.

If you haven't seen a well roleplayed character contribute much to the party? Then you weren't seeing a well roleplayed character.
That they happened to be a Monk is irrelevant.

 

[the Jester]

I'm pretty sure I have seen at least 3 of everything at this point.

 

[Ogre Mage]

If you haven't seen a well roleplayed character contribute much to the party? Then you weren't seeing a well roleplayed character.
That they happened to be a Monk is irrelevant.

Some of the monk PC's I've seen did have a clearly-portrayed personality. But when it came to overcoming the challenges the party encountered, the contribution of the monk PCs has been lacking. They just did not seem effective or useful. This has happened often enough to be a pattern.

 

[Mercule]

Barbarian probably tops the list. People actually crinkle their noses at the idea. Not sure why, but that's the way it is.

 

[TwoSix]

So in looking at the results so far from both the "Most Played Classes" and "The Classes that Nobody Wants" threads, some patterns have begun to emerge.

Right now the rogue is clearly the most popular class, as it leads the voting in the "Most Played Classes" and has the fewest votes in "The Classes that Nobody Wants."

The monk is probably the most unpopular class, as it has the fewest votes in the "Most Played Classes" and is a close second place in "The Classes that Nobody Wants." The ranger actually leads the "Nobody Wants" poll but it is polling much better than the monk in the "Most Played Classes" poll.

We could speculate as to why the rogue is popular. To begin with, I think cunning action is a shiny prize for character optimizers. It is also a relatively simple class which doesn't have to muck around with spell lists, so it is friendly for inexperienced players. The stealth/sneak attack aspect adds a bit of strategy which might appeal to some over the more generic fighter. Finally, the rogue perhaps more than any other class suggests an "edgy" and/or "anti-hero" type, which seems to appeal to a lot of people.

As for the monk's apparent unpopularity, to be blunt I have not seen one who contributed much to the party, even if they were roleplayed well. Some were a flat-out waste of space. I'm sure there are other reasons but frankly it has gotten to the point that I cringe slightly when I first see one at the table and wonder if it will be dead weight.

Rogues are indeed one of the most popular classes in my local gaming area. Monks appears at about an average rate (to my chagrin).

Going by the data in the polls, I think bard looks like it's in a pretty good place. It shows up equally in both polls (15% on each), and has one of the lowest response rates (so it's not all that noticeable in its presence OR absence). Clerics and warlocks are in a pretty similar place, just with a slightly higher response rate.

 

[Vymair]

Everything has been played with Barbarian as the lowest character count. We think they are awesome, it's the role-play angle that keeps them played less.

 

[pdzoch]

There are fewer classes that gets played in my group, but no one wants to play a cleric. They all know the importance of having a healer in the group, but they hate having to become a walking first aid kit for every bone headed plan that racks up damage to the characters and sucks the spells slots from the cleric. They'll play anything but a cleric - paladins, bards, rangers, druids -- anything with a heal capability, but not a cleric.

 

[Istbor]

I can't really tell what would be the most popular class in my parts, I have seen perhaps 2 or three of many of the classes, but the one I see the least is certainly Monk.

Which, suits me just fine since I also dislike that class in general.

 

[Aldarc]

There are fewer classes that gets played in my group, but no one wants to play a cleric. They all know the importance of having a healer in the group, but they hate having to become a walking first aid kit for every bone headed plan that racks up damage to the characters and sucks the spells slots from the cleric. They'll play anything but a cleric - paladins, bards, rangers, druids -- anything with a heal capability, but not a cleric.

This was a much easier problem to deal with when we had the warlord. -runs away-