D&D 5E (2014) D&D 5e Trope: The Five Guy Band

[Ancalagon]

I know that in 2nd ed, characters were more fragile and the optimal number of characters seemed to be five: 2 warriors*, 1 wizard, one cleric* and one rogue. Now however it seems that 1 warrior is sufficient, which for me is nice because I prefer GMing 4 players over 5.

(*for "optimal" use, the first warrior would be a fighter, and the second would be a paladin if we had a druid instead of a cleric, or a ranger if we had a cleric. )

 

[Iry]

It's been interesting seeing the Fighter transition from "The Guy Who Tanks" into the "Guy Who Does Damage".

Which is funny, because he was never about specifically tanking in the beginning, and he can make an okay (but not amazing) Tank now.

 

[Wulffolk]

I would suggest that a small group could cover all their options with just 3 characters:

A Paladin as the warrior with a touch of the divine.
An Arcane Trickster covers thief and arcane roles.
And a Valor Bard as a back up warrior that can cover everything else.

 

[Charles Rampant]

It's been interesting seeing the Fighter transition from "The Guy Who Tanks" into the "Guy Who Does Damage".

Which is funny, because he was never about specifically tanking in the beginning, and he can make an okay (but not amazing) Tank now.

Best tanks that I see in my (no multiclassing) games tend to be the Eldritch Knight and Paladin - but both require adroit spell usage - while the Barbarian is the easier route. Monks with high AC and a fondness for dodging are also a nightmare, since they ignore dex effects as well.

I've not seen Bards as more popular than Clerics, but I have seen Warlocks as more popular than Wizards. The Wizard class suffers from a lack of flavour in comparison to the Sorcerer (X-men) and Warlock (has built in story), and perhaps that means it is less attractive, despite arguably being a stronger class. The Cleric, like the Rogue, is a solid entry that consistently attracts people, not least for its compelling Spiritual Weapon, Spirit Guardians, Melee Weapon Attack routine over two rounds, combined with off-tanking.

 

[Yaarel]

The survey results for the classes that achieve the highest satisfaction from players, scores the following most highly:

Smart Guy: Wizard
Heart Guy: Bard
Jock Guy: Paladin
Rebel Guy: Rogue
Protector Guy: Barbarian

 

[TwoSix]

The survey results for the classes that achieve the highest satisfaction from players, scores the following most highly:

Smart Guy: Wizard
Heart Guy: Bard
Jock Guy: Paladin
Rebel Guy: Rogue
Protector Guy: Barbarian

Wow....that really is the almost perfect 5e party.

Other than a party of all archers, of course.

 

[Aldarc]

Smart Guy: Wizard
Heart Guy: Bard
Jock Guy: Paladin
Rebel Guy: Rogue
Protector Guy: Barbarian

Maybe switch the paladin and the barbarian?

The traditional names/roles of the Five-Man Band are (1) Leader, (2) Lancer, (3) Heart, (4) Smart Guy, and (5) Big Guy.

 

[steeldragons]

The "Frontman" One: Fighter or Cleric, Barbarian for a "Metal band," Ranger for "Grunge," Paladin for "Religious Rock/Contemporary," Warlock for "New Wave" or "Emo/Goth."

The Rebel/Gritty/"Wrong side of the Tracks" One: Rogue, Ranger, Barbarian or Warlock, or Fighter.

The "All-American"/Wholesome/"take home to meet your parents" One: Cleric or Paladin, Monk, maaaaybe a [very polished/well--groomed] Fighter.

The "Cute" Geeky/Nerdy/Brainy One: Wizard or Druid, maybe Ranger or Bard.

The "Pretty" One: Bard or Sorcerer.

 

[TwoSix]

Maybe switch the paladin and the barbarian?

The traditional names/roles of the Five-Man Band are (1) Leader, (2) Lancer, (3) Heart, (4) Smart Guy, and (5) Big Guy.

Leader - Paladin
Lancer - Rogue
Heart - Bard
Smart Guy - Wizard
Big Guy - Barbarian

 

[Xeviat]

Leader - Paladin
Lancer - Rogue
Heart - Bard
Smart Guy - Wizard
Big Guy - Barbarian

It's too bad the "five man band" doesn't track with the ability scores more closely.


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