The Eldritch Blademaster - D&D: Optimized #67

[@lord6617]

16:30 one of my favorite D&D play stories is listening to Matt Colville describe how in one of his campaigns, there was a legendary sword that the villain needed to steal for their grand plan. And one of his players was an eldritch knight and bonded to the sword. The villain would go all out to take and steal the blade, and over and over again the knight would summon it back to his hand. I always thought that was the coolest, and a great job of the player and DM working together/at odds to create a great story with some oft overlooked class mechanics.

[@DnDDeepDive]

Fantastic!

[@torunsmok5890]

The same idea would possibly work even better with hexblade warlock too

[@lucasramey6427]

@@torunsmok5890 not really since pact of the blade requires the item to be magic and they need constant contact with the weapon while eldritch knight just needs to begin the ritual at some point then touch the weapon at the end of the ritual the weapon doesn't need to be magic, doesn't need constant contact, and they can keep two

[@torunsmok5890]

@@lucasramey6427 the implication of it being a legendary blade the villain needs for their plans is that it's a magic weapon anyway, and sure the EK can have 2, but you really don't need that unless you're doing a dual wielder like this video, plus the ritual differences aren't a big deal as the pc in question would obviously have the sword majority of the time

[@DnDDeepDive]

Errata: At level 17, we probably can't benefit both from the Fighter's 3 attacks *and* the Bladesinger's "use a cantrip when you take the attack action" thanks to the way Extra Attack features don't stack ala the Multiclassing rules. It only affects the character at 17+, and isn't a huge blow to DPR even then, but it's not nothing. Also, for those mentioning War Caster and needing a free hand for Material/Somatic Components: I think it's only a problem if your DM won't let you drop your weapon as part of your reaction to cast shield. I forget that's not necessarily a given at every table so forgive me for not mentioning it! Otherwise, the weapon can double as both the somatic and material component for GFB, and if we're going to throw out Hold Person or something, we should be able to sheath one of our weapons first without issue. Also, also, not really an errata, but yes there's a typo at 19:21 - I *say* Dex and Int but *wrote* Dex and Wis. It should be Int, obviously. Curse you, late night editing brain!

[@kaemonbonet4931]

That wording of the multi classing rules is about not getting to make 3 attacks by taking 5 levels of two martials. I don't think they are different features. I think it's actually meant to work this way, otherwise they would have changed eldritch knight when they changed blade singer. So the line in question is, "you can cast one of your cantrips in place of one of those attacks." What we have to ask is does it make sense that a character has the ability to attack multiple times and the ability nto weave together multiple attacks and spells in the same turn to be unable to do so if they get better at attacking? Mechanically, there is a rider on this characters extra attack that let's them cast a cantrip and a rider that let's them attack 3 times. Maybe we are worried about this breaking the game? At level 17... I think we need to stop playing defense for tiamat and her terrasques, they're big kids who can handle themselves.

[@Envy4you]

I don't think I'll ever reach level 17 XD

[@DnDDeepDive]

@@kaemonbonet4931 I like your take :).

[@quendi5557]

When you action surge after taking 6 levels in Bladesinger, wouldn't you be able to cast the green flame blade again, and if you had haste up, wouldn't you also be able to turn that into a green flame blade attack?

[@kaemonbonet4931]

@@quendi5557 when you action surge as a level 6 blade singer level 2 fighter. You take the attack action again meaning you can on that turn attack twice and cast booming blade twice. Your attack action goes like this ( attack once + cast a cantrip) so when you action surge it looks like (attack once cast a cantrip) + (attack once + cast a cantrip) If you have haste up you can attack one additional time. The special action granted by haste doesn't allow for spell casting or extra attack.

[@hun1on138]

What could be amazing is a fully psychic build; Soulknife rogue, psi warrior, telekenetic feat, and Kalashtar!!!!

[@DnDDeepDive]

On the list!

[@TheNinjawithboots]

I'm currently playing one of those now Not so wise but OH BOY! Multiclassing doubles your Psionic Energy Dice. It's great! You want DPS I got your DPS! Colby, if you want my stat sheet, I'll send it to you.

[@fredslipknot9]

……… I want it

[@FriarRoss]

@@TheNinjawithboots I want it also!

[@andiwillbloominwinter2020]

@@TheNinjawithboots And so do I!

[@kevingrandke6075]

I LOVE your videos! I have made so many based on these episodes for myself and my play group. one so that they don't have to worry about the semantics but more or less a guideline and they RUN with it so very well!

[@timovandervalk679]

What a surprise! I am actually playing an Eldtrich Knight in my campaign right now and I am just one level away from multiclassing into Wizard (probably War Magic). I am stoked to see what you cooked up tjis time!

[@jsjoyner85]

I actually created an Eldritch Knight with a 2 level dip into War Mage... 18/2, so I lost out on a final ASI/feat, but gaining the boost to my initiative and arcane deflection was very helpful. It was a level 20 slugfest and between magic items and arcane deflection I was regularly bumping my AC to 26, which was useful so that I could save spell slots rather than have to cast shield as a reaction (and when I DID need to get to a higher AC, in this case a monstrous 29, shield was sitting in my back pocket as long as I hadn't used my reaction yet). There is absolutely great synergy between the two, it was easily the tankiest damage dealer I've created at high levels, and taking war caster let me engage in some great battlefield control by using booming blade--it was exceedingly dangerous to leave my attack range thanks to the 8d8 + 9 damage that resulted if I hit. A friend had suggested Bladesinger rather than War Mage but the build I was going with would have been hampered by the Bladesinger requirements RE: armor and type of weapon used since I was doing such a small dip; I'm very curious to see how this particular build works as well!

[@joshholmes1372]

@@jsjoyner85 you also lost out on multi attack 4

[@merlinrecon7528]

@@jsjoyner85 wait where did the +9 for booming blade came from? I don’t remember booming blade has that kind of damage

[@jsjoyner85]

@@merlinrecon7528 initial melee weapon attack's damage (1d8+9, in this character's case), plus 3d8 on that strike, plus 4d8 when they keep moving. At high levels it is a great cantrip for a melee caster.

[@merlinrecon7528]

@@jsjoyner85 oh it’s from the weapon ok got you

[@mtwood2009]

One of my all time favorite characters was an Old School Book of Elves Bladesinger. So favorite that my daughter inherited the character's name upon her birth. I've tried "rebuilding" using multiple options, many of your optimized versions. This one comes closest to mimicking that old school character. Very well done and much appreciated.

[@YourBFAstro]

2 years later but that's so beautiful, I could totally see naming a child after my long term DND characters

[@BLynn]

Level 1:(see above) [fighter 1, race & fighting-style] Level 2:(see above) [fighter 2] Level 3:(@11:30) [fighter 3 & sub-class] Level 4:(@19:08) [fighter 4 & ASI] Level 5:(@19:47) [fighter 5] Level 6:(@19:58) [fighter 6 & ASI] Level 7:(see above) [wizard 1] Level 8:(@23:41) [wizard 2 & sub-class] Level 9:(@27:05) [wizard 3] Level 10:(see above) [wizard 4 & ASI] Level 11:(@31:33) [wizard 5] Level 12:(@33:43) [wizard 6] Level 13:(@37:56) [fighter 7] Level 14:(see above) [fighter 8 & ASI] Level 15:(@44:56) [fighter 9] Level 16:(@46:33) [fighter 10] Level 17:(@48:19) [fighter 11]

[@TheEncouragementKid]

ty

[@ellisraynor228]

Just watching a lot of these videos and man are they amazing. I listen to them while I am at work and they help the shift fly by.

[@jagondal8378]

For some reason, I think melee spellcasters are my favorite archetype/playstyle, and this build definitely scratches that itch. Maybe I can convince one of my players to do a high-level 1-shot or something so I can play it XD

[@jeffadams9807]

Gotta Love The Bladesinger...

[@XLEWIS152]

This build came at the perfect time. I’ve been tinkering with an eldritch knight bladesinger for almost a month now, trying to find a balance between being powerful and letting me play the way I enjoy the most

[@brooklynnmetz8767]

First video of his that I've ever found and instantly found my new comfort youtuber. Am I crazy, or is there something abnormally soothing about his voice talking about DnD? Def going to binge a few different episodes

[@roberthall3036]

Interestingly, this build gets a bit stronger with one DnD rule changes to TWF, as you now get the off hand attack as part of the same action and could THEN make an attack with your bonus action at level 13 thanks to EK 7!

[@couver73]

Here's a cool suggestion for magic armor. The Candlekeep Mysteries book has a set of magical scale mail called Serpent Scale Armor. It's basically scale mail but lets you add your full Dex mod to AC with it. It's effectively +2 studded leather and probably the coolest magic armor I've seen. Now I wish there was a magic set of heavy armor that acted like medium armor for the purpose of AC. I know Bladesong is impossible in medium armor but hey, if I were a DM, I'd treat it as light armor for that purpose since it's so cool.

[@yodaleiaheehoo9960]

I played a build quite similar to this in a high level multi round arena battle one shot and it was fantastic! While I didn't do the most damage I was last one standing & was able to secure victory for my fellow combatants. The synergy between these two subclasses is just so full of great rp flavor I love it!

[@TheChocoXCheese]

This build brings me back to the Eldritch Knight/Bladesinger gunslinger character I played in a past campaign. It was so much fun casting Haste on myself and alternating between firing bullets and firebolts. Gun wizard best wizard.

[@Barkstopper]

Work has kept me away from your videos but now i have the time, oh i am gonna binge watch all of these. AND YES THE DUAL WIELDER JUST HAS THAT UMPH TO IT!! Thank you so much for this build, it reminds me a little if my first ever PC, Braum the dual wielding eldritch knight. He was strength AND dexterity built though lol. Not the best but he is my favorite character, brand new to the game and just making a Mortal Kombat Scorpion meets Jedi style of fighting.

[@DnDDeepDive]

Awesome! Glad you enjoyed :)

[@grizzlednerd4521]

re: Bladesinger Extra Attack cantrip (34:16): Eldritch Knight with War Magic and Bladesinger with Extra Attack are some of (imo) the few instances where Blade Ward can make sense. When ganged up on with the EK casting a cantrip as your action allows you to attack with your bonus; so Blade Ward and an attack. With Bladesinger, your extra attack also let's you replace on of your extra attacks with a cantrip. In both scenarios (which stack) the attack is whith your main (probably Shadow Blade) weapon. So attack action and attack with shadow blade, swap the second extra attack with Blade Ward, and then make an attack with your primary weapon as a bonus action. Two main hand attacks and resistance to physical damage which no resources used.

[@frostbyte8679]

I came to the d4 Network for the eldritch sorcerer build but have somehow ended watching all the other 66 optimized builds! I will definitely have to add this one to the list of builds I want play / throw at my players. Thanks for the entertainment and keep up the great work!

[@DnDDeepDive]

Thanks! Glad you're here :)

[@indigoblacksteel1176]

While I realize ability score increases make a whole lot of sense, especially with your point buy, I"d love to see all of the feats you might take if you happened to have rolled well enough that you don't have to throw all your points towards ASIs. Especially on this build where you had so many feats you could have picked.

[@ReaverKain]

OMG! Alert would be an absolute must and pick up Eldritch Adept for Armor of Shadows substituting your leather armor for another +1 to AC with unlimited Mage Armor. Pick up a Bracers of defense and you'll be sitting at a resting 22 AC, 27 w/ Bladesong and bumped up to 32 after casting Shield. Behold your armorless tank.

[@bye1551]

I play with an upgraded standard array (17, 16, 14, 12, 10, 8) so people can take more feats so I agree it would be really nice.

[@ttgilgamesh]

Oh man. My new routine is to come to the channel and check for new vids every day. Love you, man.

[@DnDDeepDive]

[@Kyle-ly6bt]

Only thing I'd be concerned about a DM allowing at the table would be the combination of bladesinger extra attack and war magic. I can see a lot of people saying "You used your action to do the attack action, not cast a cantrip. You only cast a cantrip because you made the Attack *Action*. So you don't get to use War Magic".

[@kremdes]

this is basically what most of the internet decided is correct. As part of the "attack action" the bladesinger used a cantrip, that doesnt mean the character used his action to "cast a spell".

[@genrepunk]

Crawford says it works. It was in the Sage Advice livestream for D&D Celebration

[@svofoy_tre]

Is it possible to Dual Wield Shadow blade? I am relatively new to D&D (I guess you could more so say inexperienced) and I understand that Shadow blade requires concentration, but is there a way to "forego" that and use shadow blade in both hands?

[@Kyle-ly6bt]

@@svofoy_tre To my knowledge there isn't any way to forgo concentration or give it to someone else while still casting the spell on yourself. Especially since you yourself have to cast the spell to be able to use the 'weapon'. Therefor it'd be only possible to dual wield them if you could concentrate on 2 spells at once. And there is nothing in official D&D that allows you to do so.

[@svofoy_tre]

@@Kyle-ly6bt dang, thanks for clearing that up for me tho.

[@Olden2610]

BTW - great ad! Really showed how great description can flourish scene with details and empathy to a character :)

[@snazzyfeathers]

My cup of tea is Eldritch Knight/War Mage for those saving throw/ac bonuses but y'know what bladesinger works out well too

[@studynot757]

Bladesinger's special Extra attack is what seals it vs. War Magic for me. I like War Mage's that focus on the new Summon X spells due to the War Magic level 10 feature, then combining with other non-conc spells depending on situation.

[@zeik101]

I love 10/10 war wizard ek because of those reactions. It’s epitomizes the gish so much more imo.

[@oiman5733]

My EK is a STR build so War Mage really helps out on initiative and the reaction feature at war mage lvl 2 is really nice in case someone decides to blast a big AoE

[@heathersawyer3879]

Hello!! What a great way to come up with descriptions for my game! I play a witch named Wicker and my DM often asks me to describe the rituals she performs rather than just saying, “I cast this spell”. This will be perfect to help me so I signed up right away! Also, I am a huge fan of Randall Hampton!!!! I have worked with him several times for character art.

[@DnDDeepDive]

woo hoo!

[@mgav1547]

High elf Bladesinger is one of my all time favorite characters.

[@brynwtsn]

I love this type of character! However, and I don't mean to be critical, I think a pure bladesinger could easily keep up and have full Wizard progression to boot. By 6th level you could have a 3rd level Shadow Blade up and a rapier in the other hand and you could, for your action hit with Shadow Blade and cast Booming Blade with your rapier. Then attack again with your Shadow Blade bonus action. Because 5e doesn't distinguish between "main hand" and "off hand", if you are holding 2 weapons you can use either one with any of the attacks. With the Fighter levels you primarily only gain Action Surge, the two-weapon fighting style, and the bonus ASI at level 6. You aren't wearing medium or heavy armor so those proficiencies don't matter. As you mentioned in your edited comment Extra Attack doesn't stack so if you use the fighter Extra attack you can't use the Bladesinger level 6 Extra Attack ability (which is amazing). I think at most levels if you put a pure Bladesinger up against this build it would be, at least equal for this playstyle. I feel like the only way I would ever multiclass a Bladesinger is if I just wanted to be a Rogue. I would still take 6 levels of Bladesinger so that I could use this two-weapon fighting playstyle.

[@DnDDeepDive]

I don't disagree. It's why I am typically so loathe to multiclass my Bladesingers. kzbin.info/www/bejne/bpibZ2yCn9pojdU Really wanted to build an Eldritch Knight for this one though :).

[@brynwtsn]

@@DnDDeepDive Yeah, it's certainly one of the few subclasses that should never be multiclassed, possibly after level 17 but by then it's moot. Though, taking 6 levels to help another class doesn't count! 😏

[@BurningM]

So Jeremy Crawford has said that for DnD 5e Warlocks being int based instead of cha based was tested and found to be very balanced that gets me thinking a Hexblade Bladesinger that wouldn't be MAD.

[@abedrahman4519]

You would still need Dex for AC, so for the ridiculous AC one needs to Frontline as a wizard it would end up pretty MAD

[@joehales6153]

@@abedrahman4519 I'm not so sure, with mage armour (take the at will invocation if your worried about spell slots), a 12/13 dex, a bladesong (with +4 int) and the shield spell you have a standing 23 AC. Even though it takes you your reaction that's great. And this is without dualwielder, defense fighting style etc...

[@chickenoodle2602]

@@abedrahman4519 I have played a bladesinger & forge adept which let me duel wield using int instead of dex for both weapons and simply played a tortle to cover the ac

[@silverhawk3189]

@@joehales6153 tis the return of the Hexbladesinger

[@DracosDiabolis]

Tortle, hexblade/bladesinger AC 17 out the gate and wont have to worry about dex bonus.

[@MadnessOpus]

Ahh, a man of culture. Jedi Academy, Knights of the Old Republic, same schtick: purple lightsaber in the right hand, blue in the left hand.

[@krisjohn4668]

When I play kotor, I always use two lightsabers, because I can enhance both of them with crystals and make them superior to any one or two handed lightsaber.

[@Shanderson_5]

I created the Descryb account! Super excited to submit a request for a description of my PC. Thanks for partnering with them!

[@andrewpaul8732]

I always think sentinel is one of the best fests for a bladesinger you're so hard to hit. I know my DM would rather take the swing at the nearby rogue or paladin before the 25+AC bladesinger. One attack from an attack of opportunity is equal to multiple turns with your Duel weilding feat. Even more once you get +X weapons. And that's not even all sentinel gives you.

[@nicholascmartinez]

Signed up for Dscrb and I am really liking it! Thanks for the heads up, Colby!

[@The_Gnome_Chomskee]

Bladesinger/Battle Smith is also interesting. You don’t get to use the medium armor but you get to use your Int for martial attacks and damage.

[@drkgaming7792]

You're still MAD you need high dex for high ac since light and mage armor is all you can use

[@The_Gnome_Chomskee]

@@drkgaming7792 no you can get away with 16 dex to start. Light armor, unless magical, isn’t as good as mage armor for sure. But you don’t really need more AC than 21 13+3+5 with just three levels of artificer and you get to be a full wizard as well. Definitely an option to increase damage output and battlefield control with a steel defender as well

[@drkgaming7792]

@@The_Gnome_Chomskee your bonus action will probably already be spoken for and I disagree with only needing 21 ac, there are low level monsters with plus 6 to hit

[@Johnny0Masters]

@@The_Gnome_Chomskee I think It's a Pitfall, only worth If you plan to never get your dex to 16+ (not even then perhaps) or If you REALLY want some arti feature, otherwise you're just holding back your class/spell growth and ASI progression that could give you a dex increase anyway to the ideal 20 int & dex. All that for a +1/+2 to attacks for a few levels is not worth It imo. In this case its better to just go Full bladesinger.

[@The_Gnome_Chomskee]

@@Johnny0Masters you can easily have both 20 INT and Dex in 4 asi.

[@josecordero1322]

First signed up for the describe as that is awesome! Full time DM for 6 years and I have now just found my BBG for levels 8-11 THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! Thinking might go Tiefling as great look and add two of your Kobald baby dragon party to chase down my team... might scale back to only one to make sure no TPK but thank you for all you do!!! ❤

[@Fae2705]

It's absolutely criminal that blade singer isn't a Bard subclass! 🤣🤣

[@andrewbeneche6319]

About 2 years ago, I played an Eldritch Knight Fighter/War Magic Wizard who was also dex based! A cool house rule that the DM agreed on was that my character wouldn't be fully penalized on spell progression as a multiclasser because it is the only multiclass that has you learn the same spell list. My rationale was that I was learning each spell and casting each spell the same way as before. So I was allowed to learn spells of the highest level I could cast if I spent ample downtime and gold to learn them. So as a 10/10 multiclass split, I learned 6th and 7th level wizard spells when RAW I should only have level 5. It was very balanced! I wanted to play as a Magus from Pathfinder/3.5 in 5e, and this was pretty much the same thing! For players and DM's alike I attest that this is a logical discussion to have with each other! I would also argue that an Arcane Trickster/Bladesinger would be a fair multiclass option.

[@martinwigham]

Love this build, I've been waiting to see a good dual-wielder for a long time. It's a shame it becomes redundant later on and only there for flavour and half a shield. It's also a little frustrating that Bladesong and Shadow Blade both take a bonus action to activate so you have to wait until your 3rd round to get the full attack round.

[@brendanwebb6911]

Hey! Thanks for all the videos and builds you make. I have built several characters "around" or utilising some of your connections and tips both as a player and as a DM! I think this is the best way to show character builds and demonstrate their combat utility as well as give them some flavour etc. I am currently building my own world of Elunaria for my DM campaigns and dScryb couldn't have come at a better time, I have signed up and plan to use it - great pairing and thanks for the opportunity! Ps: Tax my smooth talking crossbow fighter sends you an all-knowing nod and Burnies my baby Kobold starts his fiery journey on Saturday, thanks for the inspiration! :P

[@DnDDeepDive]

Ha ha! Awesome!

[@TheTsugnawmi2010]

How good would a three-way MC of Bladesinger, Battlesmith Artificer and Mutant Bloodhunter be? Focus my INT into my AC, damage and spells with BH mutagens to boost my INT past 20

[@DnDDeepDive]

at high level I can appreciate the synergy. Delaying lots of Bladesinger features to get there would be rough going early on I think. Unless you went all the way to 5 in Battlesmith for 2 attacks?

[@ikarus6819]

Thats creative

[@havoc8600]

The issue I see, is that bladesingers need the dex for their ac. Studded Leather with +5 dex and bladesong is honestly kinda disgusting

[@adamgonzalez8854]

Not only did I like the video, and sign up for Dscryb, I may have also joined the channel as well. Love your content and share with my players every week. Please never stop.

[@DnDDeepDive]

Woo hoo! Thanks and welcome :)

[@asilva4956]

I'm playing this exact build already LOL My character is currently a Dex based EK 5/Bladesinger 4 I flavoured my character as a Ninja, and his spells as Ninjutsu Techniques :)

[@Phiktional]

I really like how this build keeps ramping up in power as you go. It doesn't plateau like some other builds. This is very satisfying.

[@sargeboys]

One problem i see with this build is the lack of war caster. While duel wielding you cant cast alot of the spells you were talking about. Apart from that I do like the synergy from these two classes

[@DanielNelson]

Yeah I wondered if this would be brought up.

[@tparks7040]

I was thinking the same thing. Somatic spell components require a free hand so without the war caster feat you can't dual wield and cast those spells. I would swap the Dual Wielder feat for War Caster and adjust my build acordingly. Especially since later levels won't really rely on dual wielding.

[@studynot757]

Same thought I had. Somewhere in those feats should be War Caster so you can actually cast Shield with two weapons in hand :D

[@KrisSchouw]

You could always hold out for a Ruby of the War Mage to make your weapon a spellcasting focus. The errata that came out would then allow you to use the weapon as the material component, and the hand wielding said weapon for the somatic component. Not sure if relying on the acquisition of a specific magic item to make a build, though, would be advised.

[@studynot757]

@@KrisSchouw That only works for VSM or SM spells. Spells w/o a Material component (VS or S only, like Shield or Absorb Elements) need War Caster if you want to cast them with your hands full.

[@McFleurystorm]

Just found this channel and the intro was so good that I liked and subscribed before you even asked the viewer to like and subscribe. Bravo this is great stuff!

[@LPhitman57]

I love how you just put two Gishes together to really Gish the Gish. Would also appreciate the dscryb subscription. :)

[@AvianFang]

I have always loved the imagery of two weapon fighting. This build looks like a lot of fun.

[@joehales6153]

Great video! I've always loved fighters with a splinter of magic within them. Would you consider trying a Psi-knight fighter? It's one of my favourite subclasses.

[@techfoolcasey4348]

Try it this way. Go to 3.0-3.5. take a psion. Halve it's spell points. Or 2/3 off, if you are trying for a class that has fighter level attacks of 3 and over. 1 d8. Martial and simple weapons . Light and medium armour. can use intelligence to learn more spells from scrolls or psi chrystals. Does NOT GAIN EXTRA SPELL POINTS WITHOUT A FEAT. Does not learn faster than book, unless spell/ power research is performed. CANNOT HAVE MORE THAN HALF ITS POWERS from research, the other half as per book. Use psychic warrior or psion powers. IF PSION POWERS ONLY 1-3 DISCIPLINES ARE EASILY LEARNED, THE OTHERS ARE AT MINUSES TO LEARN. generally, this produces an agile build, with some projective punch, but the player will constantly have to balance mundane and psychic expenses. If you try to revamp the psychic warrior, strip off nearly all projective psychic abilities, and go for short range effects, and personal buffs.

[@naomichojnacki6120]

Your production quality has gotten really good! Nice incorporation of feedback . As always, very creative concepts!

[@theshadowbadger]

So my biggest gripe about this build is the bonus action clog and that fact that this build’s DPR at level 12 is about the same as a straight bladesinger 6. Furthermore, your level 13 ‘spike’ is only applicable on turn 3+ and you can have similar results by having an offhand short sword (which you use to do booming blade) which scratches your TWF flavor itch.

[@Thrashlock]

I totally get him wanting to play a dual wielding dex gish, but EK is probably the worst Fighter for two-weapon fighting. If you use Booming Blade + War Magic, whether you get the BS Extra Attack or not, you get a bonus action attack, even with a greatsword or sword and shield. 7 EK/6 BS with a Greatsword is crazy. And if you really want more bonus action options, get Hex through Fey Touched. But yeah, a dual wielding gish shouldn't get to 7 EK, because War Magic invalidates your Fighting Style (and kinda the DW feat if you actually take it).

[@TheRobversion1]

@@Thrashlock agreed. a 2wf is best off in a subclass that doesn't do alot with its bonus action like champion or psi warrior. he actually ended up as a single wielder.

[@leodouskyron5671]

I did not expect that you would have the d’scribe guys as a sponsor- and I love it. Don’t know about them but you did a favorite build of mine so I MAY as well look them over. Have a great Holliday.

[@DnDDeepDive]

Cheers! You too!

[@mrjoeyorton]

This video gave me the idea, that you could do a very interesting viking style type of berserker character reflavoring it as magical essense through runes or something along those lines instead of rage, using this build. You're gonna be in light armor, the dual wielding is great thematically. Throws me to the show vikings for inspiration. You'd either need to go with swords, OR be MAD, or convince a dm to let you have some sort of axe as a finesse weapon (which in vikings they use the axes dexterously).

[@DnDDeepDive]

love it

[@ryanscanlon2151]

I feel so validated having our discussion come up in the video lol. I've got a cool concept for you that I've always dreamed of making a video for but to be honest I don't think I'll ever get around to it. The ultimate mounted combatant, Oath Breaker Paladin with a Hex blade dip and using find steed to actually fight with you. You can have your find steed be a fiend which would let it benefit from your hateful aura and you can double buff it and yourself with spells like armor of Agathis and Spirit shroud and to protect. You can also ride the mount up to a target, make your attacks including a smite spell of your choice then dismount, freeing up your mounts attack option and that let's your mount ALSO smite the target. Using a standard warhorse as the basis you could potentially even get 2 attacks out of your mount.

[@ryanscanlon2151]

Forgot to mention the 1 level dip into law domain cleric which will allow your mount to make an attack as a reaction when you cast your smites spells or other spells that will target your mount.

[@TheRobversion1]

aoa is fine as a steed spell but the smite spells have been ruled out by JC. for a spell to qualify for find steed, you have to be the final target of the effect of the spell. no spirit guardians, smite spells or any other spells that can possibly affect enemies.

[@cvbecelaere]

I love so many of these builds.... BUT - I never see a campaign that gets to go past 5-7. I would love to see what you do with a few characters WITH NO INTENTION of ever getting past those levels.

[@DnDDeepDive]

Admittedly, I really do try to build all of my characters to be strong at levels 6, 9, 13, and 17. I can't really think of many (though I'm sure there are a few) that I'd do much differently if I knew the campaign were ending at 7...

[@redacted6251]

I have a friend that started out as a dex based EK, till lvl 8 when tasha's got released. His build turned out a little differently as a result, I donated my sorc characters staff of defense for him to hold in his offhand for extra shield casts and he's an absolute beast, great build, glad to see how it stacks up with the other top tiers.

[@varasatoshi3961]

A note I want to put out there, starting with 17 dex and 15 intelligence is strictly worse over 16 dex 16 int, and you can get the exact same stats at level 4 with an 18/16. Just make sure you’re taking care of your low level self. Edit: almost done with the video, I’m super hyped to play with this kind of character. :)

[@codbo1223landuca]

in the point buy method, you can only go up to a maximum of 15 without lineage bonuses, so he could start with a 14 in Dex and get it to a 16 with the lineage bonus, but he couldn't start with a 16 Int unless he went with another lineage option, like Variant Human

[@Ultrafireblast]

That wasn't an option, custom lineage gives a +2 to one stat only, he went with the highest int and dex possible with the race at that level

[@DnDDeepDive]

You know, this is a good point - could have gone Variant Human instead. We'd give up darkvision, and we don't actually benefit a *ton* from the higher int levels 1-4 (depending on what spells you're using as an EK), but worth considering.

[@varasatoshi3961]

@@DnDDeepDive darkvision is essential as being in dim light typically imposes disadvantage on attack rolls, meaning shadow blade would only be a flat roll. However a bunch different magic items can make up for our lack of darkvision. Slap on a pair of goggles of night and GG.

[@kaemonbonet4931]

I'd probably rather have warcaster anyway. Xp

[@andrewhowlin]

Thanks for the chance to win the dscryb giveaway. Not sure with the timezones if I made the deadline or not but amazing info anyway🤣

[@justinaakre9515]

Isn't Warcaster a required feat on this build for the somatic component of many spells like Shield? Haven't finished the video yet, but seems like it needs to be the level 4 feat.

[@DnDDeepDive]

Curse you, Warcaster tax. Sometimes I forget that not everyone would be allowed to drop their off-hand weapon as part of the casting of Shield like at our table. Should have mentioned it, for sure.

[@justinaakre9515]

@@DnDDeepDive That would make potentially great use of the Weapon Bond feature of the Eldritch Knight. You can just summon the weapon back to your hand if an enemy tries to be clever and steal your weapon.

[@lord6617]

@@DnDDeepDive Xanathar's common magic item can turn one of your swords into a focus. Alternatively, you can sheath 1 of your swords at the end of every other turn, that gives you 50% uptime with no feats. Also makes me want to theme you as a samurai who sheaths his blade for draw cuts all the time :P

[@lord6617]

@@remyb6854 on your turn sure, not necessarily as a reaction

[@ASUbuckaroo15]

@justBinia This is really cool flavor. Your first attack on the quick draw has the added effect from your gfb and you are so fast you are able to get in your 2nd and third attack before the flames disperse. Kinda gets tricky with the two weapon master feat and opportunity attacks between your turns but I definitely like the image of a spellblade quick draw fighter. Now i am picturing them fighting with sword in one hand and sheath in the other.

[@windrunner617]

The more you describe you favorites and preferences, the more I believe that you and I have the same tastes!! Good man

[@RPanda3S]

Why don't you use the character art for the thumbnail? It's good, it's unique, it will bring in more views.

[@JamesMoore-sc3io]

An idea I had while watching this video is an battlesmith artificer bladesinger. The character comes online at level 5/6 and reaches peak at 10, but if you were going to play it from level 1, this is how I'd go about it: Level 1/character creation: custom lineage, fey touched int (I like bless, but your choice), everything into intelligence. point buy array should be 8 str, 14 dex , 15 con, 15 int, 10 wis, 8 cha. take scale armor, and a light hammer and dagger, or whatever you feel like really, as you will be relying on spells or your crossbow until level 3, unless you find a shield. For the most part, this build will be wanting bludgeoning damage, so light hammer and mace are best picks in my opinion. cantrips should be your choice of 1 offensive (firebolt for or shocking grasp for melee) and guidance. We will be swapping these as we level up. 1st level spells are absorb elements and faerie fire. Level 2: choose returning weapon or enhanced weapon or replicating shot or enhanced focus (depends on what weapon you want to use or if you just want to use magic, this choice can be swapped out at level 3), enhanced armor, mind sharpener, and whatever else you want. if you will be in front line combat, use mind sharpener to keep bless up, otherwise focus on improving party dps or tankiness as needed. Level 3: first major milestone, and we begin to transition to a melee brawler. replace offensive cantrip with booming blade. Ideally you have a light hammer, and so your weapon infusion should be swapped to returning weapon. At this point, you can use int for your weapon attacks, so a returning light hammer will be your bread and butter for some time yet. take another spell that you want, because you now have access to the shield spell automatically. For the rest of the build, your bonus action will be used to maneuver your steel defender Level 4 has a choice: You can either "lock into" using a light hammer as your main weapon by taking your fourth level in artificer and boosting int to 20, or wait until you have the bladesinger proficiency for 1 martial weapon and go for a warhammer. Booming blade is going to be your main source of attack damage and it levels with the player level and not any subclass, so the choice is yours. Or you can build your character so that you don't need to put off level 4 artificer. If you do put it off, take your first wizard level, and use the new spells to fill your repertoire with whatever is missing, but take find familiar and mage armor. Level 5: This will either be your first or second level of wizard. If first see above. If second, take bladesinger, and take your weapon proficiency choice of warhammer or flail. continue adding desired spells. Once you have bladesinger, ditch your shield and armor and start relying on mage armor. Level 6: Take your 4th level of artificer now if you haven't already, and swap your weapon infusion for enhanced weapon so that you can use your warhammer or flail that you have hopefully acquired by now, or keep using your returning light hammer. For the next few levels you will be leveling wizard, and try to look for spells that deal damage upon entering or moving through the space, like cloud of daggers (2nd level). Level 8: Here is where we take the crusher feat and take the con bonus. This feat will allow us to move a creature 5 feet whenever we hit it with a bludgeoning attack, weapon or otherwise. Here is where we can make use of cloud of daggers or any of our party's spells that proc when a creature moves through or enters a space. The con bonus makes us tankier and helps maintain concentration, and overall it is a good addition for this build. Continue to build your wizard how you see fit. Level 10: Now you get your 6th level of bladesinger, and get your multiattack. you can now use booming blade and a normal weapon attack at the same time, and can move medium and large creatures a maximum of 10 ft. From here on out, the build is undefined, as you really can't go wrong with taking more levels in wizard or artificer, as both offer really good benefits. Wizard will get you more spell slots and at level 10 (PC level 14 if rushing), you can use song of defense, which might compete with counterspell or absorb elements and shield, so the point is somewhat moot. If you commit and go 16 wizard, then you get to add your intelligence to your weapon attack damage rolls. Or, what I personally thing is more rewarding, is continue to go artificer. You get more health (1d6 vs 1d4), and at 9th level (PC level 15) You get arcane jolt to contribute to dps and healing, and the normal goodness of infusions. Your steel defender health scales with your artificer level, so you always have a gain when you take another level. Taking level 5 in artificer gives you access to branding smite if you don't want to use concentration for anything else Level 7 gives you a bonus to your initiative. Level 10 gives you 4 items up at once and 11 gives you spell storing items. I personally feel that the bonuses from taking 9-11 levels in artificer are worth it, but getting more wizard spellcasting is just a good idea in general. This build is definitely something that you can play from level 1, and in the proper campaign you can see a pretty decent evolution in your character's fighting style. In truth, any half feat that boosts con can be worthwhile, or you keep it at 14 in character creation so that your wisdom can be 12. But I think the flavor and style of using bludgeoning weapons, as well as the additional control the crusher feat gives, is nice enough to make me want to commit to it. The returning light hammer is a fun idea, although it does halve your damage die, it grants grater flexibility in how you play the build and how you progress through it. Flavor wise, maybe you are a human who grew up amongst dwarves and found yourself blessed by Moradin and immersed in the culture as a clan crafter, eventually striking out to forge your own relics and bring honor to the clan that raised you. Perhaps you were once a crafter of cold iron weapons, and once caught by one of the great fey, were stripped of your knowledge and turned to stone, only recently becoming flesh and blood with a determination to find the creature who cursed who and take your knowledge back, by force if need be. Whatever the story of your PC, I'm reasonably certain this build will be a blast to play.

[@kremdes]

Neither does war magic from eldritch knight and extra attack from bladesinger stack (as you take the "attack action" listed under viable "actions in combat" phb p.192. The cantrip is just part of the extra attack feature from bladesinger. Its not a "cast a spell" action from the "actions in combat" that would trigger war magic), nor do RAW extra attack features stack (read phb p 164). Basically, don't multiclass Eldritch Knight and Bladesinger.

[@keeganmbg6999]

Yes. My thoughts exactly. That being said I would totally allow it at my table but RAW I recognize they’re incompatible.

[@Fenix31799]

I subscribed to your channel a week ago and have binge watched almost every optimized video you’ve made. Love the content!

[@DnDDeepDive]

Thanks and welcome!

[@evans178]

Reminder that if you do actions surge you do 1 additional cantrip and a weapons attack with Bladesinger 6 not just 2 weapon attacks =p

[@DnDDeepDive]

Truth!

[@ethanhorn6093]

I am like 74 videos in I think at this point in my long binge of your content (it's between 60-80) and this so far is my favorite build. Not that any of them are bad or unlikeable, I just think this would be the one I would most like to play at a table as either a player or a DM building a powerful villainous character.

[@The_Noise_Marine]

Episode 69 has to be a Bard build for obvious reasons

[@Xenirath]

First, just got into dscryb and it's great. Second, love your build, as always. I'm kind of a min-maxer (although I tend to go flavour over mechanics most of the time), and having made so many characters, I have to say, even with the occasional mistake here and there in your builds, it never ceases to amaze how you can so fluidly explain an entire build, in a way that is understood properely and without being obnoxious at all, while also keeping your calculations so neat. You sir, are amazing. Thanks for your hard work, keep making these beautiful builds. All the love

[@DnDDeepDive]

Thanks so much! I'll admit it's more time consuming than I ever thought it would be but I love doing it, despite my frequent mistakes :P

[@Scarscreen]

I always loved the thought of dual wielding. My first ever character was a dual wielding Half Orc Fighter. Now I am really into bladesingers and would love to try something like this build in the future to combine both these things.

[@gabrielseller6434]

Man I literally cheered when I saw Shadowblade, absolutely loving this build

[@svofoy_tre]

Can you dual wield shadow blade?

[@jeremiahcunkle5938]

I absolutely signed up for the dScryb promotion immediately. This is my jam, and I love giving flavor as a DM. Crossing my fingers to win, but will enjoy having this at my disposal regardless. Keep on doing good stuff, Colby.

[@warwerewolf777]

From your voice this is almost like dnd ASMR and I love it. Plus the builds are pretty cool too

[@Aman12161989]

Made the account and honestly like you said, completely blown away by everything I can already get access to. Thank you my good sir!

[@markpurchase4606]

I made an account on dScryb, another great video Colby, thanks

[@hunterizawesome]

Signed up for Dscryb. Love your channel dude! First time I have been excited for Tuesdays!

[@jgriz6527]

I'm a simple man. You make a Gish video, I will watch it. Also I'm now about to start using dScryb for session prep.

[@bravenewface]

I signed up for dScryb using your link. I'm looking forward to adding that tool to my games. Thanks! Great video, as always!

[@hunterthorne4671]

Very interesting! I basically made this exact same character! I did not know about the interaction with the extra attack though, I will consider that for my build. My dm was very nice though and gave me a magic item that lets me summon shadow blade concentration free with my blade singing bonus action!

[@deannekellogg8514]

Thanks I just might try this. I was playing around how to play a battle mage. I wasnt happy with the bladesinger or the Eldrich knight for various reasons. This is my first video to watch of youre. It was the Eldritch Knight and bladesinger that caught my attention. Keep up the good work. A bit long, but i was into it.

[@DnDDeepDive]

Welcome! Glad you enjoyed :).

[@seerozymandias7616]

I haven't come across your videos before. Love the detailed yet super chill style!

[@DnDDeepDive]

Yay! Welcome and glad you enjoyed :)

[@trentgustafson9351]

Signed up for dScryb. Also, I would be pretty content to have a new bladesinger build every week. That said, if your Elven Accuracy Crit fisher build you hinted at ever shows up, I'd be all over that as well. Keep up the awesome content, by far my favorite D&D channel!

[@TheRobversion1]

I was excited for the start of this vid as i haven't really optimized 2 weapon fighting in 5e and it's my fave fighting style just like you. Eldritch knight is also an underutilized fighter subclass so it was an interesting starting point. I'm just a little disappointed you went bladesinger and shadow blade (as it'll feel similar to your previous bladesingers). I was hoping for something more unusual like assassin or soul knife or an underutilized paladin subclass. in any case though, i still enjoyed the vid and i'm getting close to getting caught up now. i'm loving the outtakes, the editing and the humor you inject to the show. :) My fave part is learning that self-elemental harm trick + absorb elements so you can pump your subsequent dmg. good stuff! personally the way i'd use eldritch strike is to pick up quick toss as your fighting style replacement and use that as your weapon attack trigger. then you can action cast a spell then action surge and still do 1 attack and 1 booming blade. if the spell you cast wont generate advantage for you, you can quick toss a net instead to ensure your remaining attacks hit/help allies hit.

[@xxTerraPrimexx]

Comment for the Algorythm. Actually really happy you have done this episode as one, I love the idea of the eldritch knight but eally think there are better options and two had the idea of bladesinger/eldritch but didn't know how to pull it off! Well done once again sir!

[@peterlochmaier5887]

Great work with the sponsor! I feel like this is huge for the channel!

[@christopheregger1091]

Gods, I love the art so much every time. This one is pretty fantastic, and the Bugbear on the recent Gloom Stalker video is high credit to my love of Tuskers.

[@StrategicIncompetence]

Been loving your builds. Helps me think outside the box and try new themes. Currently starting a campaign with a dedicated healer build follow your twilight healer build and really enjoying the support role.

[@natania4098]

The first time I saw your channel was when your name was still Dnd Optimized! This is a really cool build especially since I love the Eldritch Knight class.

[@PeacefulOz]

I had a player in my campaign who built his Eldritch Knight to have the flavor of a force user so I gave him a sunblade and then he used shadowblade for his dual sabers. He loved to combine his Eldritch Strike ability and Thunderwave (force push) to take advantage of the environment. A lot of enemies went flying off of buildings and cliffs.

[@TennisGirl77]

I was so stoked when you gave your sneak peek a few days ago. I've been playing an Earth Genasi Eldritch Knight with TWF, so I definitely took notes!

[@skoomadealer5173]

I'm making a comment for the cool sponsor. Btw, you're one of the best dnd content creators imo, your builds are always fun concepts for me to unoptimize in game 😂. I find the weird races pretty interesting so I take your concept and modify it to my liking so yeah, that has given me plenty of options. Also bonus points for the asmr voice that helps me sleep at night.

[@DnDDeepDive]

ha ha - thanks!

[@KvanY1]

YOUR KILLIN ME! I dont have enough time to keep bringing new characters into new campaigns but i love this idea! I dont know whether to be mad at you for all the ideas or ask for more! I guess ill just suffer with my spreadsheet of characters waiting to exist. As always, thank you for all the content!!

[@DnDDeepDive]

Ha ha... you're welcome, and sorry :)

[@ericw4550]

Glad you got to check out the EK war magic bladesinger extra attack I commented a while back! Makes shadowblade even better!

[@laurence_lookmyr]

Ran a similar build in a brief game that started at 15 and ended at 20. Did fighter 11/ wizard 9 with just the dueling fighting style Half elf, elven accuracy, dragons wrath rapier, and dueling fighting style I had the ability to get up to a 33 ac and the record damage in a round (with two or three crits in it i cant recall) was around 506 iirc. Very fun and strong build that can really let you “bat man” a lot of enemies as a mostly martial character. For example action surge with a shocking grasp and booming blade. If the caster attempts to teleport away you have a sure counterspell forcing them to stay in melee with you or run taking booming blade damage. If they realize whats happening and just want to run a second war caster booming blade can make them quickly rethink their choices. Then there’s just other potential fun things you can do making all cantrips casting time = 1 attack like getting creative with a minor illusion or potentially mending something with their weapon or limb still inside of it locking them in place etc. Overall one of my favorite builds since regardless of how you run it youll be a fairly high damage, fairly tanky, martial who can come up with any number of creative uses for your cantrips and some decent spells for whenever they’re needed. Love how much planning and creativity this build can pull off without being bad in more traditional and simple styles of “just hit a thing” or “i know this spell is op, ill cast that now” play style

[@hiddenkoalarage]

One of my first characters ever was an Eldritch Knight, and seeing this was actually inspiring for a new character idea, thanks :)

[@merrychristamas94]

I've been wanting to create a Bladesinger for some time now, and lo, upon hopping on KZbin I see this. The ultimate Ezdeath general :D

[@DnDDeepDive]

I don't know what Ezdeath is, but I'm interested!

[@merrychristamas94]

@@DnDDeepDive She is a character from an anime called Akame Ga Kill - essentially a badass frost-based eldritch knight :D

[@DnDDeepDive]

@@merrychristamas94 Alright, putting that one on my "to watch" list :).

[@johnathonelliott530]

Now I am super anxious to see this bladesinger tank build you speak of making!

[@DJWidget]

Okay. This is my next build. End of story. This is one of the coolest characters you've created, Colby - well done!

[@DnDDeepDive]

Danke!

[@bryankia]

I finally created a dscryb account. Never thought about using it as a player. Thanks for that. This is a clever build as usual

[@alangalantin8614]

There is no Subclass as Bladesinger. Its superfun! Keep doing those bladesingers and gish builds.

[@matthewsmoot1981]

I love this! Over the past couple days I've been pondering out something just like this with Soulknife rogue instead of fighter

[@CaptBerryman]

Excited to see you revisit this build in One D&D with the updated rules for Light Weapons and Dual Wielder.

[@kikrotin]

I am actually playing a bladesinger drow in Curse of Strahd (because my skin doesn't really like the sun otherwise) and like you I am in LOVE with this subclass. Very good video, I will think about your build for my next character :).