What Are Your Top Five Dungeons & Dragons Classes?
September 23, 2015 by brennon
Time for another bit of dungeon delving discussion! I've recently started running a Dungeons & Dragons campaign for 5th Edition and as we made characters for everyone I began thinking about what my favourite character classes were to play. There are loads of them out there but I tend to lean towards the classics...
Paladin
I've always liked the idea of Paladins. The thought of playing a Holy Warrior where you're connected to your God martially was always a fun prospect to me. Warrior Priests, Crusading Knights and more all come to mind when I think of Paladins.
What also appeals with this class is role-playing them when someone questions their faith or gives them pause for thought. I don't play them as Lawful Stupid but it can be very interesting when they begin to be tempted away from a path they may have been on all of their lives.
Bard
Another of my favourite classes to play in Dungeons & Dragons is that of the Bard. A lot of people tend to role-play characters in D&D that help them express a side of themselves they wouldn't normally get to explore in real life.
A Bard allows me to be a bit more charming and open socially than I'd normally so that's why they are one of my favourites.
Add to that the fact they tend to know a little bit about everything and are always around to help the party in some capacity means you have a nice helpful class. If you're playing with the idea of co-operative storytelling then Bards are perfect for this.
You can come up with any number of interesting stories to help the narrative along.
Wizard
A Wizard is an interesting class that I tend to consider very rarely but when I do I enjoy them immensely. Wizards give you a more bookish interest in the role-playing games you play and can be fonts of knowledge yet also unpredictable fiery balls of death.
I like the idea of trying to keep your power in check as a Wizard. They have a lot of dangerous spells at their disposal that could help the party or harm them.
This also ties into the fact that playing a Wizard can be entirely different from group to group because of the vast array of spells they get to choose from and master.
Barbarian
A fighter tends to fall into a very specific role within the group but the Barbarians seem to have a bit more freedom. They are of course fantastic fighters but they also give you the option to have an alternative view on the world that others might not do, especially if you hail from more exotic or harsh climates.
I like the idea of them being tied into the ways of their ancestors and their Gods too. Also, it does help that they can smash apart foes quite easily with their hammers and axes in a frenzied rage.
Ranger
I like playing Rangers with their beast companions. Ever since I saw the opening cinematic for World of Warcraft with the Dwarf and his Bear that has been my vision of the Ranger. Their tracking skills, being at home out in the wild, and having a keen eye when it comes to ranged and close combat make them really fun to play.
It's also fun to see them enter a situation they aren't happy with, usually an urban one, and have to adapt to life to fit a party and deal with no longer having such a solitary lifestyle.
These are my five favourite Dungeons & Dragons classes but I'm sure that you have many of your own. Comment below with your favourites as I can't wait to see what strange picks some of you back from back in the annuls of Dungeons & Dragons history.
Comment below!
"A lot of people tend to role-play characters in D&D that help them express a side of themselves they wouldn't normally get to explore in real life..."
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"I like the idea of trying to keep your power in check as a Wizard..."
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The Mammoth Herder is my all time favourite class.
How could I forget Mammoth Herder?
where’s Boo?
Universalist wizard, universalist wizard, universalist wizard, universalist wizard, and universalist mage. In that order.
I have the same dedication to the Tiefling Bard 😉
Tougher question – what are your top five WHFRP classes? Rat Catcher? Bone Picker? Barber Surgeon? Camp Follower? 😉
Has to be Dung Collector from the Forges of Nuln sourcebook for 2nd edition 😉
Oh dear, the eighties and nineties… When you had to roll for a career and for stats, so that one player would end up a dumb incompetent halfling shit-covered farmer’s help with “cooking” as a main skill, and another would be a high-stat elf archer with no minuses, specialized in actually useful stuff… Which is frustrating, but fine, since everyone would get mutated, sick, and would die at the slightest gust of wind, the best character having just about 1 chance in 3 to actually hit something in combat…
Ugh.
1. Fighter
2. Cleric
3. Thief
4. Magic-User
5. Paladin
Honourable mentions go to Barbarian, Assassin and Ranger.
Had to go old school, I have fond memories of playing 1st ed back in the day, my fighter was just such a tank, wielding sword and shield to great effect on the parties enemies. 😀
1. Barbarian
2. Sorcerer
3. Fighter
4. Ranger
5. Rogue
I always wanted to like Monk, but they never lasted long enough to get good!
when I played, just over 30 years ago, my favourite was Half-Orc Cleric/Assassin.
Yes!
Always halfling thief for me (so unoriginal ;))
1. Magic-User
2. Fighter
3. Druid
4. Assassin
5. Barbarian
Of core stuff-
Fighter
Rogue
Druid
Sorcerer
Cleric
I think I’ve always love the Fighters- largely because you can really do quite a few different things with the different builds.
My favorite build was a Fighter tuned towards throwing weaponry. With Quick Draw, he could pull out as many new javelins as he had attacks in a round- plus he could take advantage of both Two Weapon Fighting as well as Rapid Fire feats. That party had three different buff characters in it, so this guy really made a pin cushion out of foes.
Paladin and Cleric. I always cringe when I see someone play a Holy Pain/Lawful Stupid one. They just don’t understand how to make them decent characters.
I usually play Lawful characters overall. They’re the most fun for me. Right now trying an Inquisitor of Abadar in Pathfinder.
My list:
1. Ranger
2. Rogue
3. Barbarian
4. Cleric
5. Druid
I tended to gravitate towards classes with more skills, but still some use in combat. For some reason I usually shied away from primarily spell-casting classes, but I have a feeling that might have changed as I’ve grown up. Too bad the class I still mostly end up in is the “Dungeon Master” class 😛 Though I must say, that class does have some of the most powerful class features in the entire game 😉
Necromancer, Necromancer, Necromancer, Necromancer and a Pixie Necromancer 😛
That’s horribly specialised isn’t it, only necromancing pixies.
;p
Mine are
1. Bard
2. Rogue/thief
3. Cleric (but not a healing tool)
4. Wizard
5. Fighter
Still have a fondness for the Olde School dwarf and elf classes.
I can do top six
1. Wizard
2. Thief
3. Ranger
4. Barbarian
5. Cavalier
6. Acrobat
Sorry couldn’t resist. 🙂
Archer mage
from 5th Ed
High Elf Wizard
High Elf Rogue
Half Orc Barbarian
Dwarven Paladin
Halfling Monk
1. Thief/Rogue – It was class I started in AD&D and the one I create for nearly every fantasy video game rpg first. Honestly, this class makes the most sense to me as dungeon delving treasure hunter. 2. Warlord (from 4thed D&D) – Everything I want from the Cleric class with none of the baggage. These days my ideal class as I actually like being the party healer/buff dealer but I also want to play my character how I want to play my character and not worry about some deity taking my powers away. 3. Transmuter – The way I… Read more »
1) Cleric: Plate, Healing, Turning, and no book needed for spells.
2) Paladin: Some of the above, with better combat
3) Monk: Dodgy and deals damage and trip effects off turn…like having two activations
4) Ranger, two-weapon fighting plus spells
5) Rogue…just fun to play
As our characters never got above 5th level (due to time) – Druid/Ranger (bears) or Warlock. Always liked the idea of playing a nutty professor mumbling to the great old ones to cast his spells.
I always like odd matches.
Such as the Half-Orc cleric that warships Rillifane Rallathil. Yes it’s an elven god…
1. Warlord
2. Warden
3. Fighter
4. Sorcerer
5. Bard
1. Barbarian
2. Cleric
3. Sorcerer
4. Ranger
5. Rogue
Cavalier, your physical stats increased every level if I remember correctly?
One party had 2 barbarians, ever time they found magical treasure they destroyed it all, much to the disgust of the 3rd player a mage 🙂
1. Dwarf
2. Dwarf
3. Dwarf
4. Dwarf
5. Dwarf
Dwarf is a class by himself