I’m deciding between Eloquence, Lore, & Swords.

No more indecisiveness, it’s the College of Lore for me!

For my benefit, if no-one elses, it looks like we have so far...

Lathalan - Elf Wizard (Transmuter?)

Masque - Half-Elf Cleric (Knowledge) of Grigor OR Rogue (Arcane Trickster)

Optimus - something Sorcerer (Draconic) OR Half-Orc something

P1 - Halfling/Dwarf Druid OR Gnome/Half-Orc Cleric (Light-Life-Nature)

P2 - (probably) Gnome something (Rogue-Bard-Ranger-Warlock-Paladin)

P3 - Human Bard (Lore)

Does that look about right to everyone thus far?

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@ Optimus : Have you considered merging your ideas and playing a Half-Orc Sorcerer? I don't know if you'd decided on a Race for your Noble Sorcerer, but the Draconic Bloodline added to the Half-Orc Chassis could make a good Gish style character and you could easily either refluff the Draconic traits as "original Orc" ones (making it an Orc Bloodline, so to speak), or tie in your quest of self discovery as an Orc with your Dragon heritage simultaneously.

No reason why you can't still be a Noble Orc, either. There's a couple of options for backstory there;
- Adopted orphan. Add you own brand of how/why you're an orphan.
- Mix-race parents, one of whom is Nobility. Your choice of whether you're legitimate or not.
- Orc Nobility. No-one said you have to be part of a so-called civilised nobility. Having a Draconic heritage could go a long way towards explaining why your family is head of the tribe, too...

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@ Masque : I think I prefer your concept as a Cleric than as a Rogue. If the core conceit of the character is searching for a solution to your untimely and explosive death, then polling the divine for answers seems like a better angle than a dedicated programme of self-improvement (the latter of which is largely what being a Rogue is about).

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@ P1 : Nature Clerics area very solid alternative to Druid if you don't want Wild Shape, though there's definitely a lot to be said for Land Druid as a more "pure caster" also. I like both Classes a lot and I still might put them up for consideration myself. Is there a reason you'd prefer Gnome/Half-Orc over Halfling/Dwarf if you went Cleric? Just curious.

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Whichever way we look at this, we're definitely looking at a very caster-heavy party. Something to consider when picking your spells, guys!
This message was last edited by the player at 09:11, Wed 23 Sept 2020.

To everyone: I'm still waiting on an answer from the DM on something and unfortunately won't be able to be more definite about race/class until I hear back.

How comfortable do we all feel sharing spell picks? With the exception of Thunderwave, most of my spells fall in the Enchantment, Divination, & Illusion schools so far.

Depends on the spells in question, really. Multiples of summons and buffs can often be a little redundant, for example, but damage is damage and many control effects stack or are capable of synergising well (particularly illusions and other concentration effects).

Is it bad that whatever Class I settle on, I'm considering naming my character some variation of "Peetoo"?

Hi everyone, given the number of casters, I'll make a beefy warrior type to act as the bad-guy punching bag :p

Good points. Even without the Rogue class I do definitely see Masque as a slightly shady character what with serving the god(dess) of secrets and all! Maybe the Charlatan or Criminal (or Spy) background.

Anyone with experience in playing Clerics any suggestions for magic?

Yes. Remember the spells in your Domain are permanently prepared and don't count against the number of spells you can prepare. Knowledge has a few good ones, so just go for the things that interest you.

Otherwise, Aid is a much better "Healer" spell then I initially thought. It's non-concentration, lasts 8 hrs and doesn't provide Temp HP. The best healers are preventative, not active. Also, that means you get to take a lot more of the fun cleric spells. Remember that you prepare spells, so if you don't like them, just switch them on our next long rest. Your whole list is available to you.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:54, Wed 23 Sept 2020.

Guidance is always a useful cantrip.

A good attack cantrip is a must- which, if we're not using Xanathar's, I guess means Sacred Flame.

If you're the sole cleric, I'd go with a decent number of healing spells. If I (or someone else) were to bring in another cleric, or a paladin or druid to join the bard as a secondary healer, you could probably have a little more freedom in that regard.

But that's just me :)

Xanathars is allowed on a case by case basis. I ran some of my spells by the DM, and they were approved, so just keep the DM in the loop and let him give his say before grabbing them, but they are flexible on this.

I will disagree with you on needing to pick up a lot of healing spells simply because healing in the middle of battle, except at 0HP, will never keep up with damage. Healing outside of combat is mitigated by using hit die and a short rest. Hence why grabbing something like Healing Word, Lesser Restoration and Aid would be more than enough for an adventure and the cleric is not the only one with access to those spells. Bard can pick any of those as well if they so choose. However, taking down the enemy will allow us to rest and recover better than using valuable spell slots first. Don't sweat over healing to much. It a common cleric trap, unless you are a Life Domain cleric, but then all your Domain Spells are healing spells so it's a moot point.

P2, first you could always play "Pete-o, the friednly kleptomaniac". Second, feel free to make connections as you like. The "pull" toward Sarambar has been there for a couple of years, but always a low-level tug. Some of you may have journeyed in this direction together, or simply run across each other by fate or fortune.

In reply to Lathalan (msg # 24):

I guess that's kind of what I meant by a "decent number" or healing spells instead of "a lot". Good point about the hit dice, though. I tend to forget that's a valid option.

Worth bearing in mind the bonus healing from Song of Rest too, given we have a Bard on the team.

“And what do I get in return for playing ‘The Singing Nurse’? I’ve bills to pay, too, you know!”

In reply to Basilisa (msg # 28):

"A tune for a tune would settle the boon.
Ask no more from the folk of the fayre,
lest always your back ye'll have to beware."

I think I've settled on a Gnome Warlock (Chain Pact), playing heavily into Fey themes.

“A gold coin seems so little to pay
For he who would draw breath another day
Tho’ you urge me to beware
Even the Fey would agree
Wages for work is only Fair.”
This message was last edited by the player at 00:43, Thu 24 Sept 2020.

Alright, I would like to play a blue Dragonborn Tempest cleric with a sailor background.Name of Rethsiren. And that's my final answer.

(unless there are valid objections- speak now or forver hold your peace:) )
This message was last edited by the player at 09:50, Thu 24 Sept 2020.

In reply to Placeholder 2 (msg # 15):

Right. Forgot to confirm this. Yes, I am a transmutation wizard.

Edit: with the Outlander background.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:33, Thu 24 Sept 2020.

"For those who make money from tale or song,
Copper and silver that's thrown into a hat,
Is great, fine and dandy, ne'er too wrong,
But payment in kind is far greater than that.
For a tune or a saga, whe'er shiny or old,
has value untarnished, far greater than gold."

“Aye, great song has value,
These are facts
But let me assure you,
Cheers & ‘Thank you’ ne’er paid tax.
From further guesspertise you should refrain,
Heed my heeds,
And stay in your own lane.”

"My people have been here longer than thine,
with the songs of the river, forest and coast.
This lane, you'll find is verily mine,
and I'll thank you to see it, or else you'll be toast!"

On a more serious note; Backgrounds. I was originally going to take the Outlander background myself, but with Lathalan playing an Outlander, I feel that might be somewhat redundant. So I'm looking to the group for suggestions. On the table for me are; Entertainer, Folk Hero, Guild Artisan/Merchant, Hermit and maybe Charlatan or Sage. Does anyone want to lay specific and unique claim to any of those before I really start entertaining the idea of them? I'll be customising skills & tools/languages anyway, it's mostly the theme and Feature I'm concerned with.

@ Basilisa. As a Bard, you'll probably have the most cross-over with me (an Archfey Patron Warlock), with regard to Spells in particular, but also Skills/Role to an extent. So we don't end up treading on each others' toes, shall we confer? We can take the conversation to PM, if you prefer not to share details with everyone, or we can discuss here; I'm easy either way. Here's my first draft for my spell picks;

Cantrips     : (2) Mage Hand, Prestidigitation + Minor Illusion (Gnome)
Spells Known : (4) (1st) Hex, Sleep (2nd) Misty Step, Calm Emotions + (1st) Find Familiar (Chain Pact)
Invocations  : (2) Eldritch Sight (Detect Magic at-will), Voice of the Chain Master (enhanced Familiar interaction)

Before anyone chimes in with "Whut? No Eldritch Blast?", I'll be glad to point out that until 5th level, Eldritch Blast is not significantly better than a Crossbow, if at all (even with Invocation investment). Not to mention character style and theme. I'll freely concede to having a noticable lack of offensive magical capability, but I'm really not aiming at too heavy a focus on combat for this character.

I'd be glad to accept advice and/or criticism from any and all!

“Rivers and mountains stood longer than you and yours
And though my people live shorter lives
The human race will stand when your people sail to the distant shores.

Sorry about it.”

I chose the Entertainer Background.

Our Cantrips definitely overlap. I chose Mage Hand & Prestidigitation. I’ve got Calm Emotions, too.