Well- two stupid questions:

  1. When should I multiclass? For instance: I have a very low level level cleric that I’d like to try a level or two of Druid with. Is there a specific level where I should take a level of Druid, or does it not matter? Do I do it way later, or earlier?

  2. If I take a level of Druid, can I go back to leveling cleric? Or does cleric stop at that level?

Thanks in advance!

  • AngusOReily@lemmy.worldEnglish
    26·
    10 months ago

    While everyone else is giving a totally correct answer of “do what you want and what seems fun”, for sake of completion I’ll give an alternative. If you’re looking for an optimal choice with respect to character power, there’s one specific point of the game where multiclassing is not recommended: exactly at level 5. At level 5, each class gets a substantial power boost. Martial classes get extra attack and casters get access to third level spells. Generally, these jumps in power are greater than whatever you’re getting from adding an additional class. Likewise, multiclassing at level 4 delays a feat/ability score increase, but this is a bit more manageable.

    That said, this is pretty min-max-y. Yeah, being at Cleric 3 / Druid 2 would be weaker than level 5 in either class alone, it won’t be non-functional. You’ll still be able to play fine even if your build is slightly suboptimal. Even on tactician, as long as everyone in your party isn’t crazy multiclasses, you’ll be fine as the party can cover for any shortcomings on your behalf.

    Lastly, you can always respect. At level 3 and want to dabble but still want to be built optimally at 5 or 4? Go for it, and then visit Withers when you level up for a quick respec. Bottom line, play how you want, experiment! You might temporarily miss out on a power jump, but it’s not crippling and you can always readjust if you feel underpowered

    • Coelacanth@feddit.nuEnglish
      6·
      10 months ago

      I want to add in, though, that these breakpoints also work for multiclassing, as points to shoot for in a class before dipping out. The other thing to add is Subclasses. The subclasses in 5E are pretty powerful, and most classes get their subclass at level three, so that’s another breakpoint.

      So what you have to bear in mind are these things:

      • Feats/Ability Score Increases come every 4 levels, and you don’t want to miss out entirely. You can get away with one, but shooting for two is recommended, which means ending up with 4+ levels in two different classes, or 8+ levels in one class, or 6+ levels in Fighter (they get a Feat at level 6).
      • The big breakpoints mentioned, as in level 3 and level 5 primarily. This is especially important for Martial Classes with their extra attack. If you want to be hitting things with a weapon, you need to get Extra Attack from somewhere.
      • Consolidating Attribute dependence. Mixing and matching martial classes is fairly simple because they all rely on either STR or DEX. If you’re mixing caster classes, make sure you know what you’re doing with their casting stats. Druid and Cleric, for example, both use WIS, but if you mix in WIZ-levels you’ll probably have to stick to spells that just work, like Shield, since your casting stat for them (INT) won’t be high enough to land them reliably.
    • pyrflie@lemm.eeEnglish
      1·
      10 months ago

      5th lvl isn’t really a fair comparison given the importance of 3rd lvl spells. All it really does is highlight the importance of WHEN you take the multi. For instance, take it at lvl 6 and only Tempest Cleric is going to notice, everyone else is just thankful for Thorn Whip + Spirit Guardians.