I'm working on a new character, and this is what I know about him:
He is a halfling vagrant, driven from town to town, subsisting on begging and odd jobs. One night he takes shelter for the night in a graveyard, and is forced to hide in a mausoleum when undead rise from their graves. They undead besiege the mausoleum but he is protected by something inside - either a deity, a patron, or a force or artifact from the Shadowfell/tbd nether-realm.
Looking at my options, it seems that there are several classes and sub-classes that would fit my general concept. Because I think any of these would work, I'm looking for feedback on which is the most fun to play. Also: in the three plus years I've been playing 5E, I've never seen a campaign pass level 9, so I don't really care much about tiers 3 or 4.
Shadow Sorcerer - I'm leaning towards this because I don't see them played very much at all, and the class offers a lot of leeway on where exactly the power is coming from - could be accidental Shadowfell contamination from a portal or artifact, divine intervention, or even some form of possession. Mechanically, I like the 120' darkvision (halflings usually get none) and the Strength of the Grave feature. Hound of Ill Omen seems just okay. I see chill touch as my go-to attack cantrip. My main concern is that I often see players who play sorcerers wishing they had played wizards instead. Lightfoot halflings get the +2 dex, +1 cha which seems good for this; combined with luck and hiding and having darkvision through the class and I think it's very good.
Hexblade - I would run him as a hexblade tomelock. The flavor of hexblade obviously fits my concept well as do some of the mechanics (hexblade's curse, accursed spector). I don't see this character in melee much, though, so tomelock gets him book of shadows, more cantrips, and ritual casting. He also gets medium armor, shields, and martial weapons which is nice but doesn't really fit my concept. My concern is that I often see warlock players frustrated by lack of spell slots. I think the extra cantrips and ritual spells would mitigate this, but maybe not fully. I do think I might get a bit bored eldritch blasting every round of combat.
Grave Cleric - Obviously the flavor here is an obvious fit. Spare the dying as a free, ranged, bonus action cantrip is pretty sweet at low levels. Circle of Mortality and Eyes of the Grave are very situational but the flavor is right. Path to the Grave is probably on the weaker end of Channel Divinity powers as you really have to work to set it up and even then it could end up being a dud. Sentinel at Death's Door and Potent Spellcasting are great. My main concern is that in practice this character might play like a pretty generic cleric, as opportunities to use the abilities that define the character concept might come up a little less regularly than with the other two.
Thoughts & opinions welcome - especially if you've played one of these or seen them a a table.
He is a halfling vagrant, driven from town to town, subsisting on begging and odd jobs. One night he takes shelter for the night in a graveyard, and is forced to hide in a mausoleum when undead rise from their graves. They undead besiege the mausoleum but he is protected by something inside - either a deity, a patron, or a force or artifact from the Shadowfell/tbd nether-realm.
Looking at my options, it seems that there are several classes and sub-classes that would fit my general concept. Because I think any of these would work, I'm looking for feedback on which is the most fun to play. Also: in the three plus years I've been playing 5E, I've never seen a campaign pass level 9, so I don't really care much about tiers 3 or 4.
Shadow Sorcerer - I'm leaning towards this because I don't see them played very much at all, and the class offers a lot of leeway on where exactly the power is coming from - could be accidental Shadowfell contamination from a portal or artifact, divine intervention, or even some form of possession. Mechanically, I like the 120' darkvision (halflings usually get none) and the Strength of the Grave feature. Hound of Ill Omen seems just okay. I see chill touch as my go-to attack cantrip. My main concern is that I often see players who play sorcerers wishing they had played wizards instead. Lightfoot halflings get the +2 dex, +1 cha which seems good for this; combined with luck and hiding and having darkvision through the class and I think it's very good.
Hexblade - I would run him as a hexblade tomelock. The flavor of hexblade obviously fits my concept well as do some of the mechanics (hexblade's curse, accursed spector). I don't see this character in melee much, though, so tomelock gets him book of shadows, more cantrips, and ritual casting. He also gets medium armor, shields, and martial weapons which is nice but doesn't really fit my concept. My concern is that I often see warlock players frustrated by lack of spell slots. I think the extra cantrips and ritual spells would mitigate this, but maybe not fully. I do think I might get a bit bored eldritch blasting every round of combat.
Grave Cleric - Obviously the flavor here is an obvious fit. Spare the dying as a free, ranged, bonus action cantrip is pretty sweet at low levels. Circle of Mortality and Eyes of the Grave are very situational but the flavor is right. Path to the Grave is probably on the weaker end of Channel Divinity powers as you really have to work to set it up and even then it could end up being a dud. Sentinel at Death's Door and Potent Spellcasting are great. My main concern is that in practice this character might play like a pretty generic cleric, as opportunities to use the abilities that define the character concept might come up a little less regularly than with the other two.
Thoughts & opinions welcome - especially if you've played one of these or seen them a a table.
