Paladin/Necromancer: fun or just useless?

[Rxproject]

All in the title. I would like playing a necromancer but I'm not exactly a caster player (I'm too reckless ^^'), so...can I play an oathbreak paladin subclassed necromancer or it's just really bad/stupid?

[[Wahr] Eogard]

Play what you want to play. That's all there is to it. Sounds pretty fun to me.

[Jekko]

oathbreaker/warlock would be more viable and thematically appropriate

[Yojo0o]

Oathbreaker Paladins already get necromancy magic. Just stick with that, rather than getting bogged down in a second casting stat and restarting your spellcaster progression.

[Farsha]

Paladin is half caster using Charisma
Wizard with Necromancy school is caster using Inteligence.
It's not a good combination, but it can work theoretically with this to boost your INT.
https://baldursgate3.wiki.fextralife.com/Warped+Headband+of+Intellect

Still it won't be a really good multiclass.

[Rxproject]

I see.
Thank you ^^

[Panic Fire]

Well. Paladins cast there spells via Cha. and also need Str/Dex and Con to be effective. Wizards use Int and con. If you are forgoing using wizards spells that require saving throws or attacks then you can get a lot of use out of wizard buff spells and summon spells as well as use the extra spell slots for smiting as a paladin.


Its not completely with out merit however you would likely be shooting for the 6th level wizard ability which gives you animate dead, target an additional corpse, as well as increase the hp and dmg rolls of undead you create with a spell.

This would mean you are doing a 6 wizard 6 paladin split. And oathbreaker doesn't get there next feature until level 7. Though they do pick up there Aura of protection at 6th.

You are also giving up 1 ASI/feat as well. Landing at 2/3 (2/4 fighter)

Will you be able to playthrough the game? Yes
Will you be gimped? No not really.
Will you be min/maxed? Very much no.

If you go less wizard levels I don't see the point to take Necromancy focus. If you go more Wizard levels you will be a very weak(hp wise) front liner. You will have some tough choices to make for your character.

[Foolswalkin]

Originally posted by Yojo0o:

Oathbreaker Paladins already get necromancy magic. Just stick with that, rather than getting bogged down in a second casting stat and restarting your spellcaster progression.

This. Just look out for how they implement Aura of Hate - Oathbreaker was originally a villain class and it originally boosted all undead and fiends, whether they were your allies or not, presumably because it was assumed to not be a PC class. Given how much of the game might involve demons and devils, you definitely don’t want to boost all opposing demons.

But if Oathbreaker works, it’ll be more of a Death Knight model than a Necromancer - you lead your band of skellies from the front.

[Rxproject]

Originally posted by Panic Fire:

Well. Paladins cast there spells via Cha. and also need Str/Dex and Con to be effective. Wizards use Int and con. If you are forgoing using wizards spells that require saving throws or attacks then you can get a lot of use out of wizard buff spells and summon spells as well as use the extra spell slots for smiting as a paladin.


Its not completely with out merit however you would likely be shooting for the 6th level wizard ability which gives you animate dead, target an additional corpse, as well as increase the hp and dmg rolls of undead you create with a spell.

This would mean you are doing a 6 wizard 6 paladin split. And oathbreaker doesn't get there next feature until level 7. Though they do pick up there Aura of protection at 6th.

You are also giving up 1 ASI/feat as well. Landing at 2/3 (2/4 fighter)

Will you be able to playthrough the game? Yes
Will you be gimped? No not really.
Will you be min/maxed? Very much no.

If you go less wizard levels I don't see the point to take Necromancy focus. If you go more Wizard levels you will be a very weak(hp wise) front liner. You will have some tough choices to make for your character.

So my nightmare will be...stats.
That was my idea: be able to summon more undeads and having a bit of tankyness.
With a dragonborn of course ^^

[Jack the Roamer]

It would be fun if you could resurrect your companions into shambling corpses and go through the campaign, pretending and insisting to other characters in the story that they're just having a bad day! So now you have to be their personal zombie "translator", no one is the wiser!

[Eulogy]

The oathbreaker pally aka Shadow knight is not pointless and is amazing to play

[GrandMajora]

Originally posted by Wahr Eogard:

Play what you want to play. That's all there is to it. Sounds pretty fun to me.

People need to stop encouraging this kind of mentality.

Level cap is 12, not 20, meaning it's very easy to screw up your build and cripple your character because you decided to try some gimmick.

That being said, the Warped Crown of Intellect boosts your INT to 17 as long as you're wearing it. So a Charisma / Intelligence casting hybrid is possible.

[Helios2216]

Not sure what feats or proficiency you are trying to get from each class.

[Jack the Roamer]

Originally posted by GrandMajora:

Originally posted by Wahr Eogard:

Play what you want to play. That's all there is to it. Sounds pretty fun to me.

People need to stop encouraging this kind of mentality.

Level cap is 12, not 20, meaning it's very easy to screw up your build and cripple your character because you decided to try some gimmick.

That being said, the Warped Crown of Intellect boosts your INT to 17 as long as you're wearing it. So a Charisma / Intelligence casting hybrid is possible.

I think that's exactly why they made some of these available, you can do some interesting things without hamstringing yourself too much. Larian even said they have an achievement for dipping 1 level every level.

[Panic Fire]

Originally posted by GrandMajora:

Originally posted by Wahr Eogard:

Play what you want to play. That's all there is to it. Sounds pretty fun to me.

People need to stop encouraging this kind of mentality.

Level cap is 12, not 20, meaning it's very easy to screw up your build and cripple your character because you decided to try some gimmick.

That being said, the Warped Crown of Intellect boosts your INT to 17 as long as you're wearing it. So a Charisma / Intelligence casting hybrid is possible.

Not really. 5e isn't really built upon a system that gimps your character to not playable besides dumping your core stats. So yes play what you want. You are only a tiny gold investment away from respecing anyway.

[The Seraph of Tomorrow]

Originally posted by Rxproject:

All in the title. I would like playing a necromancer but I'm not exactly a caster player (I'm too reckless ^^'), so...can I play an oathbreak paladin subclassed necromancer or it's just really bad/stupid?

Necromancy is the weakest school of magic in 5e, as it has been grossly nerfed when compared to 3.5e. It is a genuine disgrace and insult what was done to necromancers.

The best option is to follow this guide, as it's my "Death Knight" build.

1 level War Cleric for the heavy armor, martial weapons, and domain ability of attacking as a bonus action. Grabbing shield of faith and protection from good and evil are also good options from the cleric spells. Then go the rest in wizard, which allows you access to all of the necromancy spells.

It's a build that allows a wizard to be a mid / front line attacker and tank instead of a back line support / attacker.