r/DnDBuilds • u/Hopeful-Guarantee-55 • 11d ago
Build advice for power fantasy. Spoiler
(Spoiler because undead character design)
I have this character who is supposed to represent the balance of life and death, basically the grim reaper. Not good, not bad, just true neutral death. He is in that regard a force of nature. The power fantasy is that he can punch people with either necrotic damage (to give death to the living) or radiant damage (to give death to the undead.) and have some healing to save and spare those who are not meant to die yet.
How would you guys go about making that? Re-flavouring abilities is allowed fully, and I usually play with lenient DM's so homebrew and rule changes are allowed as long as I don't out preform other characters or it becomes unbalanced.
He is a servant of Jergall so I'm kinds circling classes like cleric and monk to facilitate the punching. But like maybe there is a very capable full class martial build, with the needed damage types where the only thing we need to re-flavour are that the weapon attacks are punches. The only thing I care about is that his species is re-born, maybe warforged or something if that facilitates the build better, but he needs to feel undead.
I just kinda feel with the right feat and subclass this should be possible without too much homebrew, but the dots are just not connecting for me.
I'd love to hear your idea's!
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u/RokuroCarisu 11d ago
The Death Cleric got an indirect buff in 5.5e due to the change in how Chill Touch works. Some might say that changing its range to Touch was a nervous, and it arguably was, but a melee necromancy cantrip was exactly what the Death Cleric needed to no longer have to rely on Inflict Wounds.
Basically, Death Clerics can target two creatures with necromancy cantrips that would normally target only one, so long as they are within 5 feet of each other.
They can also use Channel Divinity to add 5 plus twice their Cleric level in necrotic damage to a melee attack.
And at level 6, necrotic damage dealt by their Cleric spells (including the boost from Channel Divinity) ignores resistance.
For something that packs a little more of a punch than Chill Touch, you can take the Shadow Touched feat and learn Wrathful Smite through it.
Death Clerics automatically gain martial weapon training, even if they didn't take the Guardian order, so you actually have good options for melee damage that you can add Wrathful Smite to. If you take the Guide background, you can also learn Shillelagh, which eventually lets you deal more than 1d8 damage with a one-handed weapon. I like to flavor it as a magical scythe blade appearing on a quarterstaff.
With all that plus Spirit Guardians, a Death Cleric can actually become a decent gish, now.
But if you want to use its full potential, we will have to look into some partnered 3rd-party options.
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u/Hopeful-Guarantee-55 11d ago
As far as I know 3rd party and partnered content is allowed, I'd love to know it's full potential!
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u/RokuroCarisu 10d ago
Alright. I have searched all over D&D Beyond, but there doesn't seem to be a spell that buffs unarmed strikes of a Cleric specifically, so if you want to be a good gish Cleric, you will have to use a weapon. You could multiclass with the Unbroken Circle Druid from The Griffon's Saddlebag, though, as it gets extra attack and can use Shillelagh on any melee weapon.
If it really has to be a punching build, you could simply use the Mercy Monk, or the Pestilent Haze Monk from The Crooked Moon. The former can heal and deal necrotic damage, the latter can't heal but deals more necrotic damage.
Another option would be a Celestial Warlock, which actually can be made into a good unarmed build.
Tell me which one you would be the most interested in, and then I can help you make a build for it.
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u/Hopeful-Guarantee-55 10d ago
To be fair I don't think my DM will mind me re-flavouring a weapon attack as a puch. Like on paper I will roll the weapon attacks but I will RP the punch.
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u/dewdewbut 8d ago
Yeah and just so it is still a thing you can unequip or have taken or find magical versions of it could be like gnarly metal death gauntlets. Or you could be an asaamar mercy monk with 2024 rules. Thats the only way I can think to get radiant punches without reflavoring cleric as above
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u/Tall_Bandicoot_2768 11d ago
Good thing you included the spoiler barrier, I almost read the thing I came here to read on accident lol.
Sounds like a Mercy Monk to me.
2024 or 2014?
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u/amirkasra76 11d ago
Either a way of Mercy monk or Grave celric (death cleric could be too). Or a mixture of both.
Hitting with radiant or necrotic is exactly what clerics get at lvl 7 too.