Making an fascinating Dungeons & Dragons character is all a part of the enjoyable of taking part in, however devising an excellent idea can typically be tough. Characters ought to really feel like a pure a part of the world, however making a fantasy trope is not essentially the most fascinating path. It’s straightforward to fall into the entice of utilizing clichés when rolling a brand new character, leading to individuals who appear to be templates as an alternative of distinctive personalities.
Everybody has seen or learn in regards to the lone wolf Ranger character or the lovable and Robin Hood-like Rogue. Some ideas are so commonplace that they are virtually parodies at this level. Whereas many clichés will not be essentially unhealthy, they’ve been finished so many occasions that they’re hardly distinctive. The variety of races, courses, and different approaches in D&D provides you tons of choices to create a novel character.
15
Play D&D As A Pirate With A Twist
Sail The Excessive Seas With Some Distinctive Aptitude
A large-eyed former pirate who didn’t know any higher could possibly be a enjoyable character thought in Dungeons & Dragons. Raised as a pirate from being very younger, this character has solely ever recognized a lifetime of journey and raiding. Maybe they had been taken throughout one of many raids and adopted by the pirates, or perhaps they’re the kid of a high-ranking pirate and even the Pirate King or Queen.
It could possibly be amusing to play with the concept of what Dungeons & Dragons pirate characters are often like and switch that on its head by having the character be fairly harmless, particularly if the remainder of the celebration is not. Bringing a naive pirate character to life will be finished by exhibiting a fascination for the little issues, being pleasant to NPCs, and never absolutely understanding that stealing is incorrect whereas nonetheless taking every part not nailed down.
Over time spent with the remainder of the celebration, they may ultimately turn out to be a greater and extra selfless individual. This character thought would work nicely for nearly any race, as pirates will not be restricted to 1 explicit species. As for courses, rogues, fighters, barbarians, and bards could be the obvious selections, particularly the Swashbuckler Rogue subclass. Nonetheless, gamers might additionally use different courses to place an additional spin on the pirate cliché.
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D&D Generally Wants A Getaway Driver
Make Positive Somebody’s At all times Prepared To Present A Fast Escape
When it comes time for motion, DnD characters are typically targeted both on attacking enemies or supporting different celebration members by means of therapeutic, buffs, and extra. Relying on the operation, although, there are typically different roles to fill. If celebration members are susceptible to sticking their noses the place they do not belong and touchdown in sizzling water, designing a personality round a getaway driver idea can open up a enjoyable and strange strategy to gameplay and roleplay.
The Getaway driver is a typical trope, however outdoors of purely heist-focused campaigns, it would not present up typically in DnD. These attempting the 5e journey Waterdeep: Dragon Heist might discover this idea straightforward to suit into that story.
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There are loads of completely different potentialities for a getaway driver, however having automobile proficiencies or magical motion choices is usually crucial half. Counting on an animal is also helpful, whether or not that comes by means of a Paladin making use of discover steed or a Druid utilizing extra basic animal summoning (or transformation) choices.
Multiclassing is a robust instrument for combining advantageous motion potentialities, so it is easy to get artistic with getaway driver builds. New 5e subclasses just like the Drakewarden Ranger might even use their dragon companion as their getaway automobile, immediately creating an fascinating visible of celebration members escaping on the again of Dungeons & Dragons’ most iconic monster.
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Servant Turned Sorcerer D&D Character Thought
Acquire Magical Energy, However With Nice Danger
A darker character thought could possibly be that of a servant who discovers that they’ve magical skills. Just like the pirate, the DnD character’s backstory will be tailored to have been both born into servitude or discovered themselves as servants later in life. The emergence of their magic instantly made this character a goal, as lots of people in energy out of the blue needed entry to them.
This character might have been used as a instrument to do the bidding of others earlier than managing to lastly escape. It might be good to take a shy or indifferent character and have them open up extra as their religion within the celebration grows.
A Sorcerer could be an apparent alternative for this character idea, however a Druid or a Bard might work equally nicely. Wizards could possibly be used for an additional twist that that character gained their magic by “borrowing” their grasp’s books.
A personality constructed with this concept would have a paranoid character, and they might be sluggish to belief folks. Nonetheless, as soon as one other participant or NPC has earned that belief, this character would do something for them. This idea would work with most races, however for apparent causes, must select a highly effective DnD spellcaster class or subclass.
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An Aethist Oathbreaker May Be A Difficult D&D Paladin
Utterly Lose Religion In Any Gods
Oathbreaker Paladins will not be unusual in D&D, however many are inclined to fall below the identical tropes. Forsaking an outdated god by breaking the Tenets of one other Oath instantly creates a personality with a chip on their shoulder, however with sufficient motivation to make use of their newfound darkish magic. An fascinating twist on this idea could be an Oathbreaker who has misplaced religion within the existence of any gods in any respect.
Maybe this lack of religion got here from a supreme act of injustice that the Paladin’s unique god could not have allowed, resulting in a disaster of faith that also plagues the character to today. D&D‘s gods are prevalent in loads of locations, however this Oathbreaker might interpret every act of divine energy as a ploy from darker creatures on account of their innate cynicism.
This angle might result in a despondent character slowly studying to belief in gods once more or not less than the folks round them. The roleplay alternatives listed below are ample, as any such character rejects elementary elements of a D&D world within the reverse means of just about some other sort of Paladin.
11
A Failed Warlock Can Be A Distinctive D&D Caster
Dropping A Patron Has Its Penalties
Making a cope with the satan or one other highly effective entity is a typical trope for magical characters, and in terms of DnD particularly, this tends to play out with Warlock characters. Somebody bitter that they failed at difficult wizard research or that they had been by no means blessed with the innate magical means of a sorcerer would possibly flip to the trail of a Warlock in frustration, in search of energy from a Patron.
That is one idea that is enjoyable to reverse, and DnD presents loads of enjoyable choices to take action. A personality attempting to take the short path to magical energy could be prepared and prepared to make a pact with a patron, however maybe they begin as a uniquely pathetic determine or don’t have anything that potential Patrons are involved in.
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After being rejected, they may find yourself devoting themselves to a different strategy to magic, maybe gritting their enamel and embarking upon Wizard research or discovering a deep reference to nature and taking the trail of the Druid. They may nonetheless be bitter about having by no means turn out to be a warlock, giving them the motivation to show Patrons incorrect.
10
D&D Monks Do not Have To Be Tropes
Reject Stoic Conduct For One thing Extra Gentle-Hearted
Monk will be one of many harder courses to get artistic with in DnD, as the fundamental taste of the character tends to attract closely on the idea of Shaolin monks. Whereas a fighter may need any form of strategy, ideology, and elegance, a Monk is usually meant to be studious and single-minded in methods that may make innovation really feel difficult.
There’s nonetheless loads of room to make nice, unique characters inside that framework, it is only a class that appears unusually hard-coded. Devotion to an artwork or set of beliefs would not must fall into one sort of custom, nevertheless, and it is potential to nonetheless get pretty subversive with a monk.
Maybe they pursue perfection of their self-discipline in the identical means {that a} teenage skateboarder would possibly, mixing real dedication with a seemingly lackadaisical angle and curiosity within the counterculture. The Drunken Brawler subclass opens up the plain potential to throw alcohol into the combination, however a extra creative technique to make use of the idea could be a jesterly character who loves martial arts for the sheer pleasure of complicated enemies.
9
Bringing Again A Veteran Of Former Adventures In D&D
Stage Down Somebody From A Earlier Marketing campaign
An fascinating thought for a personality could possibly be a former adventurer who has lengthy retired from lengthy quests, maybe from a celebration disbanded way back. Through the years, this character’s age and retirement have rusted their expertise, leveling them down to some extent the place they’ll journey with low-level events. Nonetheless, they’ve moments of expertise and knowledge that give them distinctive perception into particular conditions.
It is a play on the grizzled veteran character trope, with a much bigger concentrate on the meta facet of D&D adventures. This character would know precisely when a villain goes to monologue as a result of they’ve “seen it earlier than,” or know precisely which chest is a Mimic or not from a traumatic expertise again within the day. A Battle Grasp Fighter, an outdated Wizard, or a hermit-like Druid might all be good methods to implement this position.
8
Do not Let D&D Barbarians Solely Have Loud Rage
Quiet Fury Can Be Particularly Terrifying
Just like Monks, Barbarians in D&D typically fall into tropes of a wild individual whose rage is loud, boisterous, red-vision-fueled anger that all the time appears to be like the identical. A singular Barbarian character could be one whose anger is quiet, virtually like a peaceful fury that results in environment friendly motion relatively than ripping and tearing. This might result in a extra noble-esque character out of the blue lashing out in quiet violence to get their level throughout.
This character could possibly be a bouncer to an unique membership, a former soldier, or have a number of origins that outline their character. Rage from a Barbarian can are available many distinct kinds past quiet fury too, as somebody could possibly be enraged by music or set off from some form of otherworldly possession. The restrict to how a Barbarian’s Rage works is solely restricted by your personal creativity.
7
Enjoying A Misleading Character Who Is not Intelligent In D&D
Not Everybody Is A Prison Mastermind
A number of the most fascinating DnD character concepts can come from constructing characters that do not appear very optimum to play, though it is essential to keep away from always sabotaging the celebration when doing so. One fascinating angle is making an evil character extra involved in subterfuge than the murderhobo life-style, however failing to provide them a lot in the best way of intelligence.
Schemers in DnD are usually good at what they do, so having a personality who’s all the time involved in guiding the celebration down darkish paths however incompetent in terms of doing so is a pleasant change of tempo. You can also make your character unhealthy at preserving secrets and techniques, all the time reveal their plans in grandiose monologues that embarrass themselves, or be a moustache-twirling villain whose plans fail ridiculously.
When taking part in a personality that has the potential to undermine the celebration’s efficacy, it is essential to attract a line at critically endangering the lives of different celebration members with out specific consent.
Most events are typically prone to successfully counter the worst injury {that a} character would possibly do, as their inefficacy would make them straightforward to outweigh in argument or outwit in motion. Anybody who really needs to find out the technique for the celebration could be higher off not handicapping themselves in that means. These purely targeted on roleplay, nevertheless, might get so much out of the concept, and the chaos that it may possibly trigger would possibly pay larger dividends.
6
The D&D Character Was Lifeless The Complete Time
Ghost Who Would not Know Their Destiny
An incredible trope in horror media is the concept of a ghost not figuring out it’s lifeless, however this idea isn’t utilized to a D&D character. A number of racial choices, just like the Revenant, permit gamers to play characters with undead origins, however having somebody be unaware of their destiny might result in fascinating revelations.
Ghost characters or undead racial origins might result in any class or subclass, however you might get essentially the most taste from the Cleric’s Loss of life or Grave Domains utilizing this idea.
For instance, you possibly can have a Dhampir Warlock who was as soon as a servant of a robust vampire, however who would not know they’re a vampire spawn themselves. They might declare their aversion to the solar as a “uncommon pores and skin situation” or having an already unnatural hatred for garlic. Comparable concepts might result in comedic or actually tragic moments as these characters be taught of their situation ultimately.
5
Enjoying As A Secret Goblin Is A Quirky D&D Character Thought
They’re going to By no means Suspect A Factor
Characters who’ve a secret they must maintain from the remainder of the celebration are difficult however rewarding to play. A goblin posing as one other race, maybe a gnome, halfling, or perhaps a very brief dwarf, is one fascinating technique to convey this concept to life. Nonetheless, nobody can know they’re a goblin, as goblins are historically seen as evil in DnD, and this character might face hostility if found.
Roleplaying this character with conventional goblin traits like fairly skittish or fast to anger could possibly be enjoyable, however the reverse would even be fascinating. This enjoyable DnD character’s backstory could possibly be a goblin who left his tribe, with gamers in a position to select from a couple of completely different causes for leaving.
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Maybe they left as a result of they felt a calling to a noble trigger; the character might have found that they had magic and had been shunned by the opposite goblins; or maybe they had been captured by adventurers and made a part of the celebration earlier than leaving to make their very own means on the earth. As they be taught to belief the celebration, the character might select to disclose their true id or wait till the opposite celebration members discover out.
4
Enjoying NPCs Would not Simply Have To Be For DMs
Anonymous Faces Can Be Half Of Grand Adventures
Some character concepts work higher for one-shots than full campaigns, permitting gamers to be slightly sillier than would make sense for an prolonged interval. A enjoyable character thought for a one-shot could be to make an NPC-type character as an alternative of an adventurer with an entire character. This character would use generic dialogue to interact with the opposite gamers and the world, providing up useful recreation ideas much like loading display screen textual content and even glitching out.
This character idea would clearly rely upon the tone of the one shot being run and must be cleared with the DM beforehand, however having an NPC be a part of the celebration could be hilarious.
Constructing a seemingly one-note NPC character after which revealing a richer arc for the character might additionally lead issues in an fascinating route. They may have some arc of self-awakening, like Buzz from Toy Story, or the celebration would possibly work out {that a} curse deployed by the principle villain made them this manner.
A DM may need good concepts for easy methods to incorporate an NPC-type character into a selected marketing campaign in a meta means that might finally be significant. Events might begin off not caring in regards to the NPC that discovered their means into a celebration, solely to then have a tearful bond that defines a narrative after some impactful moments.
3
Twisting Darkish Concepts Into One thing Else For D&D Characters
Flip Taboo Morals On Their Head
Taking a darker thought and turning it into one thing enjoyable will be a good way to create a novel character. For instance, a necromancer, murderer, or bandit will be became a cheerful and pleasant celebration member for an fascinating spin on acquainted tropes. This character might have an extremely well-adjusted background for a DnD character, with a wholesome and alive household and no mortal enemies.
Tragic backstories are virtually comically commonplace amongst DnD events, so this could possibly be a refreshing various to the standard sob story. Throwing a well-adjusted character into a celebration regardless of an clearly darkish career might result in some fascinating conversations, not solely in regards to the nature of that character’s job however how they’ve such an amazing work-life steadiness.
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The enjoyable comes from the roleplay the place an individual with a historically darkish or evil career or subclass simply so occurs to be actually completely happy and constructive on a regular basis. The character might nonetheless be evil-aligned whereas remaining the hero; it could simply be their character at odds with what they do. An extra twist could possibly be so as to add a curse or spell that has made them tremendous cheerful — and even some facet of reminiscence loss that has made them retain their expertise.
2
Utilizing Unsure Origins For D&D Characters
The True Backstory Is Laborious To Discover
Just like the secretive goblin, one other fascinating avenue is roleplaying a personality who actually believes they’re a unique race than what they are surely. This character could possibly be a dwarf who thinks they’re an elf or a human who believes they’re a goliath. Maybe they’re a genasi who appears to be like human and solely uncovers their true heritage later, or a kobold who merely thinks they’re a tiny dragonborn.
Maybe this character was raised by folks of one other race, or they’re below the affect of a spell. Regardless of the cause, they actually consider that, regardless of all proof on the contrary, they’re a unique playable DnD race.
This could possibly be performed for laughs initially earlier than switching into an virtually existential disaster for the character as they grapple with who they are surely. Coming to phrases with id is a good roleplaying focus for any DnD character, so there’s loads of mileage to get out of this idea. It is also an fascinating technique to discover cultural and racial components of the DnD world and break them down to point out simply how complicated particular person id will be.
Repentance For The BBEG Of One other Story
One of the distinctive concepts you possibly can use is the idea of a former BBEG defeated by a celebration of legendary heroes, now became a participant character to repent for his or her transgressions. This could possibly be a former Dragon in search of to beat the world polymorphed right into a Dragonborn, or a robust Lich now sure by divine legal guidelines that make them an peculiar Sorcerer or Wizard.
This might result in so many fascinating roleplay alternatives, with the character being snarky and resentful about their defeat or genuinely in search of to atone for his or her previous actions. Having a former villain in a D&D celebration is nothing new, however having a as soon as world-threatening power now turned docile in a bunch actually is. This villain might wish to regain their misplaced energy, solely to comprehend that their bonds with a brand new celebration are what’s extra essential.
There is also forces making certain the villain character doesn’t rise once more, both changing into antagonists to the celebration or fixed NPCs your group interacts with all through their adventures. With the cliché of discovered household and friendship so prevalent in Dungeons and Dragons, it could be fascinating to see how a personality idea like this one matches into that story-telling theme.
Dungeons and Dragons
- Authentic Launch Date
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1974
- Writer
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TSR Inc., Wizards of the Coast
- Designer
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E. Gary Gygax, Dave Arneson
- Participant Depend
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2-7 Gamers