5e Character Options

SCAG: Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide • XGE: Xanathar's Guide to Everything

Races

• Dwarf: Stout folk of ancient, fallen kingdoms. Constitution boost, innate weapon training, resistance to poisons. When playing a dwarf, choose a subrace:
  • Hill Dwarf: The "golden" dwarves of the great southern dwarven kingdoms. Wisdom boost, hit point boost.
  • Mountain Dwarf: The "shield" dwarves of the fallen northern dwarven kingdoms. Strength boost, innate armor training.
  • Grey Dwarf (SCAG): The "duergar" dwarves of the deep subterranean places. Strength boost, duergar resilience, duergar magic, sunlight sensitivity.
• Elf: Ancient people of sylvan kingdoms long since gone from the memories of Men. Dexterity boost, keen senses, fey ancestry. When playing an elf, choose a subrace:
  • High Elf: The "sun" elves and the "moon" elves. Intelligence boost, innate weapon training, small magics.
  • Wood Elf: The "wild" elves. Wisdom boost, innate weapon training, good at hiding, fast.
  • Dark Elf: The "drow" elves. Charisma boost, sunlight sensitivity, drow innate magics, innate weapon training.
• Halfling: The small shire-folk. Dexterity boost, small size, lucky and brave. When playing a halfling, choose a subrace:
  • Lightfoot: Thinner, nimble halflings. Charisma boost, naturally stealthy.
  • Stout: Chubbier, hobbit-ish halflings. Constitution boost, resistance to poison.
• Human: The myriad and expansive, short-lived races of Men.
  • Standard Rules: Gain +1 to all stats.
  • Variant Rules: Gain +1 to two different stats, free proficiency in one Skill, one free Feat.
• Dragonborn: Tall and powerful dragon-folk, with scales in all the colors of the chromatic and metallic dragons (though these do not define alignment). Strength and Charisma boost, breath weapon, damage resistance (to breath type)
• Gnome: Small sylvan folk known for their curiosity and cleverness. Intelligence boost, gnomish cunning (helps to avoid dangers), When playing a gnome, choose a subrace:
  • Forest Gnome: Forest-dwelling fey-kin. Dexterity boost, natural illusionist, speak with small beasts.
  • Rock Gnome: Hill-dwelling inventors and tinkers. Constitution boost, artificer's lore, tinker.
  • Deep Gnome (SCAG): The svirfneblin who dwell deep in the earth's darkness. Dexterity boost, stone camouflage.
• Half-Elf: Kin of both elf and humans. Charisma boost, boost for 2 other stats, fey ancestry, extra Skill proficiency.
• Half-Orc: Kin of both orc and humans. Strength and Constitution boost, menacing, relentless endurance, savage attacks.
• Tieflings: Kin of both infernals and humans. Intelligence and Charisma boost, resistance to fire damage, infernal legacy (minor magics).

Classes

• Barbarian: Savage warrior that enters a berserker fury. Strength-focused, light and medium armor (though often go without armor, thanks to class ability), most weapons. At 3rd level, choose a Primal Path:
  • Path of the Ancestral Guardian (XGE): In which the barbarian becomes a conduit for the power of his tribe's ancestors.
  • Path of the Battlerager (SCAG): In which the dwarven barbarian draws upon ancient techniques of his people for making of themselves weapons and hurl themselves heedlessly into battle.
  • Path of the Berserker: In which the barbarian becomes a whirling dervish dealing death to all in their path.
  • Path of the Storm Herald (XGE): In which the barbarian's rage becomes an inner embodiment of the outer howling tempest.
  • Path of the Totem Warrior: In which the barbarian channels an ancient animal totem as part of his rage.
  • Path of the Zealot (XGE): In which the barbarian's rage is a sacramental connection between barbarian and the divine.
• Bard: Performer who taps into ancient song-magics. Charisma-focused, spellcaster, light armor and simple weapons, plus a few swords. At 3rd level, choose a Bardic College:
  • College of Glamour (XGE): Wherein the bard focuses on the lilting musics of the fey, including illusions and the charming of hearts.
  • College of Lore: Wherein the bard focuses on the collection of lore and gathering of knowledge, including magical secrets.
  • College of Swords (XGE): Wherein the bard focuses his training on the flashiest fighting styles, making war into an art.
  • College of Valor: Wherein the bard focuses on adventure and bravado, honing their fighting spirit and those of others.
  • College of Whispers (XGE): Wherein the bard focuses on the gathering of secrets and discovery of shames, preferring blackmail as their performance above all others.
• Cleric: Sainted of a deity and able to channel their power. Wisdom-focused, spellcaster, light and medium armor, simple weapons. At 1st level, choose a Divine Domain:
  • Arcana (SCAG): A communer with arcane Mysteries, who finds the ineffable in the elegance of magic.
  • Forge (XGE): A maker of wonders, who finds the essence of their deity in the heart of the forge.
  • Grave (XGE): A sanctifier of death, who brings peace to the mourning and the undead alike.
  • Knowledge: A seeker of learning and erudition, for whom knowledge is holy.
  • Life: A healer and nurturer, for whom mercy is sacred.
  • Nature: A wild-walker and anchorite, who finds the divine away from the chaos of civilization.
  • Tempest: A lightning-handed destroyer, who seeks to embody the purity of the hallowed storm.
  • Trickster: A merry mischief-maker, who finds blessed humor and humility.
  • War: A bloody war-monger, sanctified on the battle-field.
• Druid: Shapechanging initiates of natural mysteries. Wisdom-focused, spellcaster, light and medium armor (non metal), specialized weapons. At 2nd level, choose a Druid Circle:
  • Circle of Dreams (XGE): Dreamers and healers who bolster the relationship between fey and nature.
  • Circle of the Land: Mystics and magicians who tap into the land for their ancient magics.
  • Circle of the Moon: Fierce guardian shapeshifters who master many forms with which to defend nature.
  • Circle of the Shepherd: Devoted guardians of animalkind who channel their own bestial natures in such service.
• Fighter: Master of martial combat. Strength- or Dexterity-focused, all armor, all weapons. At 3rd level, choose a Martial Archetype:
  • Arcane Archer (XGE): A mystic archer who imbues arrows with subtle but deadly power.
  • Battle Master: A knowledgable tactician and warrior that treats combat as a discipline.
  • Cavalier (XGE): A master cavalry-warrior who practically becomes one with their mount.
  • Champion: A warrior honed to finest physical perfection, unwavering in their skill.
  • Eldritch Knight: A warrior with some degree of magical power, mixing the two for maximum effect in battle.
  • Purple Dragon Knight (SCAG): A chevalier who inspires greatness in others, leading others to just purposes.
  • Samurai (XGE): A resolute sword-wielder of incredible skill, who hones technique as surely as blade edge.
• Monk: Practitioner of martial arts, channeler of ki power to perform amazing feats. Dexterity- and Wisdom-focused, simple weapons (plus shortswords). At 3rd level, choose a Monastic Tradition:
  • Way of the Drunken Master: Masters of deceptive, buffoonish techniques that distract foes from their true strikes until too late.
  • Way of the Kensei: Masters of a single weapon, studied exhaustively and fully.
  • Way of the Open Hand: Masters of techniques that push and pull their foes, throwing them off-balance and striking with precision.
  • Way of Shadow: Masters of hidden blows and uncanny stealth, striking from the shadows and then disappearing again.
  • Way of the Four Elements: Masters of elemental techniques, tapping into primal powers with discipline and training.
  • Way of the Long Death (SCAG): Masters of deathly lore, reaping through the ranks of their foes with chilling efficiency.
  • Way of the Sun Soul (XGE): Masters of the solar mysteries, summoning their own power as brilliant sun-bright light.
• Paladin: Holy warrior bound by a sacred oath. Strength- and Charisma-focused, minor spellcasting, all armor and weapons. At 3rd level, choose a Sacred Oath:
  • Oath of Conquest (XGE): Sworn to crush their foes and achieve conquest over these, these knight-tyrants are implacable against their foes, seeking victory as the first and foremost of virtues.
  • Oath of Devotion: Sworn to uphold the cause of righteousness and justice, these are knights in shining armor fighting for what is right.
  • Oath of Redemption (XGE): Sworn to redeem themselves from a stumble on their proper path, these idealists seek the most equitable of solutions available to them.
  • Oath of the Ancients: Sworn to uphold joy and light and natural beauty, these are green knights calling upon ancient sylvan powers and defending the wild lands.
  • Oath of the Crown (SCAG): Sworn to defend and serve a sovereign or nation, these are royal knights who embody the brightest ideals of their nation.
  • Oath of Vengeance: Sworn to exact revenge against those who have transgressed in some way, these are unwavering punishers and avengers.
• Ranger: Wilderness warrior that uses arms and magic. Dexterity- and Wisdom-focused, minor spellcasting, light and medium armor, all weapons. At 3rd level, choose a Ranger Archetype:
  • Beast Master: A companion to a mighty beast who grows in power and skill right along with the ranger.
  • Gloom Stalker (XGE): A walker in dark places and hunter of the horrors that dwell in the lightless depths.
  • Horizon Walker (XGE): A guardian of this world against the dangers that may come to it across the infinite planes.
  • Hunter: A stalker and tracker who identifies threats to civilization and pursues them to their lair, before they can show up at the city gates.
  • Monster Slayer: A specialist in specific beasts, hunting them with endurance and cunning.
• Rogue: Scoundrel who uses stealth and trickery. Dexterity-focused, light armor and simple weapons, plus a few specialized weapons. At 3rd level, choose a Roguish Archetype:
  • Thief: Burglar. Bandit. Pickpocket. Cutpurse.
  • Assassin: Murderer. Bounty hunter. Spy. Holy slayer.
  • Arcane Trickster: Charlatan. Prankster. Mischief-maker. Spell-thief.
  • Inquisitive (XGE): Secret-finder. Detective. Perceptive. Deducer.
  • Mastermind (XGE): Schemer. Intriguer. Tactician. Planner.
  • Scout (XGE): Ambusher. Bounty hunter. Bandit. Wild-shadow.
  • Swashbuckler (XGE): Rake. Duelist. Charmer. Libertine.
• Sorcerer: Spellcaster that draws on the magic inherent in their lineage. Charisma-focused, spellcaster, no armor, specialized weapons. At 1st level, choose a Sorcerous Origin:
  • Divine Soul (XGE): Those whose souls bear the spark of divinity, uplifting and beatifying during this incarnation.
  • Draconic Bloodline: Those with the blood of dragons commingled with their own, slowly transforming bodies and souls into vessels for draconic power.
  • Shadow Magic (XGE): Those invested with the dark power of the Shadowfell, an eclipse of potency across the soul.
  • Storm Sorcery (XGE): Those born during great tempests, or touched by the raging power of the greatest storms.
  • Wild Magic: Those tapped into the unpredictable and ever-chaotic shifting tides of wildest, untamed magic.
• Warlock: Seeker of power that has sealed a pact with an otherworldly entity for power. Charisma-focused, spellcaster, light armor, simple weapons. At 1st level, choose an Otherworldly Patron:
  • The Archfey: Wielders of fey illusion and enchantment, whose souls are tied inexhorably to the whimsy of the Feywild.
  • The Celestial (XGE): Weilders of holy arts and benedictions, whose souls are exalted in communion with angelic powers.
  • The Fiend: Wielders of infernal power and terror, whose souls are all but promised to their infernal masters.
  • The Great Old One: Wielders of strange and uncanny powers tied to madness, whose souls strain and fracture under the hoary, eldritch gaze of the Great Outer Things.
  • The Hexblade (XGE): Wielders of strange shadow-blades invested with umbral potency.
  • The Undying (SCAG): Wielders of deathly magics and lich-born mysteries, whose souls erode in withering communion with that which death cannot touch.
• Wizard: Learned scholar that has sought magical power through ancient lore. Intelligence-focused, no armor, specialized weapons. At 2nd level, choose an Arcane Tradition:
  • Bladesinging (SCAG): Magic of elven song married to blade.
  • School of Abjuration: Magic of protection and defense.
  • School of Conjuration: Magic of summoning and binding.
  • School of Divination: Magic of prophecy and sensing.
  • School of Enchantment: Magic of swaying and luring.
  • School of Evocation: Magic of injuring and destroying.
  • School of Illusion: Magic of falsehoods and imagery.
  • School of Necromancy: Magic of death and the undead.
  • School of Transmutation: Magic of shifting and transformation.
  • War Magic (XGE): Magic of battle and tactics.

Backgrounds

• Acolyte: You have spent your life in a temple, or other service to a deity or faith, living a life of devotion.
• Charlatan: You have spent your days as a con artist and trickster, surviving by deception and cunning.
• City Watch (SCAG): You have spent your seasons in service to a city or settlement, bringing peace to your home.
  • Investigator (Variant): You have spent your efforts at unlocking puzzles and mysteries, solving crimes that confound.
• Clan Crafter (SCAG): You have spent your time among the dwarven masters of craft, learning their ancient techniques.
• Cloistered Scholar (SCAG): You have spent your years hidden away among the storehouses of lore, exploring their riches.
• Courtier (SCAG): You have spent your life in the courts and bureaucracies, navigating and mastering those mazes of intrigue.
• Criminal: You have spent your time breaking and avoiding the law, existing just ahead of justice's reach.
  • Spy (Variant): You have spent your past engaged in espionage, for an organization or perhaps simply for hire.
• Entertainer: You have spent your existence dedicated to performance, seeking to please audiences for your dinner.
  • Gladiator (Variant): You have spent your blood and name in the arena of battle, making a name for yourself.
• Faction Agent (SCAG): You have spent your efforts on behalf of one of the Factions, furthering their goals as your own.
• Far Traveler (SCAG): You have spent your miles traveling far from your homeland, seeking what lies beyond the horizon.
• Folk Hero: You have spent your years being remembered for a great feat you performed, continuing your feats of note ever since.
• Guild Artisan: You have spent your time mastering and practicing a craft, making a living with hands and mind.
  • Guild Merchant (Variant): You have spent your days in pursuit of coin and success, wringing prosperity from civilization with both hands.
• Hermit: You have spent your past in contemplation of a noteworthy discovery, seeking enlightenment in its study.
• Inheritor (SCAG): You have spent your years defending a sacred heirloom, nurturing its power into growth in your care.
• Knight of the Order (SCAG): You have spent your blood and name in service to a knightly order, upholding their ideals as your own.
• Mercenary Veteran (SCAG): You have spent your seasons earning coin for battle, waging war to earn your dinner.
• Noble: You have spent your existence as one of the rare privileged, wielding power and coin as your birth-right.
  • Knight (Variant): You have spent your seasons as a champion and retainer, bringing strength of arms in service to your liege.
• Outlander: You have spent your existence in another place, but are now arrived to these strange lands.
• Sage: You have spent your life in learning and study, unfolding the secrets of the world one hoary tome at a time.
• Sailor: You have spent your years on the high seas, calling a ship home and crew family.
  • Pirate (Variant): You have spent your blood in the wine-dark sea, terrorizing the weak and taking what was once theirs.
• Soldier: You have spent your time in martial service to a person, a place, or a cause, spilling blood when called upon to do so.
• Urban Bounty Hunter (SCAG): You have spent your efforts searching to find and capture those who flee, bringing them to justice or vengeance.
• Urchin: You have spent your years ducking through the hidden and secret places of the city, surviving where others only starved.
• Uthgardt Tribe Member (SCAG): You have spent your time as a member of one of the sacred tribes of Uthgar, living with the land and your peoples' traditions.
• Waterdhavian Noble (SCAG): You have spent your life as a member of the privileged merchant-nobility of Waterdeep, celebrating and intriguing with the best of them.