D&D 5E (2014) Barbarian / Sorc with 28 AC !

[TwoSix]

Thanks for all the clarifications - That really helps !

It's a smart but subtle change. It's really easy to miss if you're used to other editions.

 

[Mallus]

If you really want crazy def, have him take a doge action.

Is that where you use a standard action to rule Venice for one round?

(or does it turn you into a adorable Shiba Inu??)

 

[TwoSix]

Is that where you use a standard action to rule Venice for one round?

(or does it turn you into a adorable Shiba Inu??)

A doge doge?

Much backstab.

Many ruling.

Amaze.

 

[Mallus]

Much backstab.

Many ruling.

Amaze.

Wow.

(kudos!)

 

[GameDoc]

This is an easy mistake to make, as it's an example where balancing the mechanics with "specific over general" trumps verisimilitude.

All things being equal, EVERYONE's base AC is 10+Dex. So when we see that a dragon sorcerer gets a base AC of 13+Dex with accompanying descriptive text referring to developing scales on their skin, I think we assume it's a +3 to AC due to the added protection for the scaly hide. When we see a barbarian gets a base AC of 10+Con+Dex, we assume the barbarian's natural hardiness is contributing to his ability to resist or evade damage as a function of his Constitution score.

So it's easy to assume you could combine the barbarians hardiness with the sorcerer's scaly hide to get an AC of 13+Con+Dex. Not sure why your skin would impede your toughness or vise versa.

I'm not advocating to change it. But it is as a counterintuitive element of the rules.

 

[drjones]

If you read the sorc/barb things carefully you see that they don't add to your AC, they 'give you' a new ac replacing the previous value. So even without the multiclassing clarification I don't think it would fly.

 

[DogBackward]

Sorcerer: 13+DEX AC, Barbarian: 10+DEX+CON AC; choose one

This is correct.

Shield (item), Shield (spell), Shield of Faith, Bracers of Defense; choose one (they all boost +AC and you are only allowed the highest bonus)

This is not. The reason the Barbarian and Sorcerer abilities don't stack is because they specifically set your base AC to a certain value. These are all bonuses, meaning they add to your AC, which means they stack. There is no rule that says you have to take only the highest of all bonuses: the only rule about stacking so far (other than the wording of the "Your AC now equals..." abilities) is that bonuses from the same source don't stack... meaning you can't get a +4 bonus to AC by having two shield of faith spells cast on you. But as long as they're from separate sources, they all stack just fine.

 

[Stalker0]

A point of clarity, the dragon sorcs ability is NOT unarmored defense. Its called Draconic Resilience.

Now others may be right about its stacking because of the wording of the mechanic (maybe), but not because of the multiclass stacking rules

 

[MerricB]

I've just written an article about how Armour Class works in 5E:
http://merricb.com/2014/09/13/armour-class-in-dungeons-dragons-5e/

5E have gone to a concept from earlier editions (pre 3E) that defines a Base AC, then has modifiers.

Some spells and items define your base AC, others modify your AC. If you have two or more effects changing your base AC, you only use one.

And then there's barkskin...

Cheers!

 

[aramis erak]

A point of clarity, the dragon sorcs ability is NOT unarmored defense. Its called Draconic Resilience.

Now others may be right about its stacking because of the wording of the mechanic (maybe), but not because of the multiclass stacking rules

Mearls has said that nothing stacks unless it says it does. That's one of the founding principles of 5E design. And people have been whinging on about it for a year now.

Different spells DO stack, because it says so explicitly (PBR 81)
A shield stacks because it says so explicitly (adds 2 to your armor; PBR 44)
Natural armor (from features of class, race, background) don't stack because they aren't adding to anything.
Worn Armor doesn't stack, because, just like natural armor, they are adding to anything.

but also, a specific rule on page PBR 9:

Some spells and class features give you a different
way to calculate your AC. If you have multiple features
that give you different ways to calculate your AC, you
choose which one to use.​

The question of whether this applies to bonuses to AC is open, but based upon the general principles, the spell and one bonus from feature and one base from worn or feature sounds correct and in line with Bounded Accuracy.

However... on PBR4...

Ability checks, attack rolls, and saving throws are the
three main kinds of d20 rolls, forming the core of the
rules of the game. All three follow these simple steps.
1. Roll the die and add a modifier. Roll a d20
and add the relevant modifier. This is typically the
modifier derived from one of the six ability scores, and
it sometimes includes a proficiency bonus to reflect a
character’s particular skill. (See chapter 1 for details on
each ability and how to determine an ability’s modifier.)
2. Apply circumstantial bonuses and penalties. A
class feature, a spell, a particular circumstance, or some
other effect might give a bonus or penalty to the check.
3. Compare the total to a target number. [...]​

Note item 2 - I colored the most important part...
A ___.
That means, at least to me,
A feature = 1 feature
A spell = 1 spell (but noting the exception in spellcasting rules)
A circumstance = 1 circumstance (but none have been given that modify rolls that I've seen)
some other effect = somthing else.
The implication of the "or" is that you're only supposed to get ONE of them.

By the literal text, in the most literal sense, you don't get to add multiples unless they're spells... So either you're adding the Con bonus OR you're adding the Spells' bonuses, but I suspect that may be a bit too literal.