How to play as Gandalf in D&D

[@aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa86441]

gandalf was just higher level than the party due to him already appearing in other campaigns, and here he was mostly there to escort and help the newer players. the player for gandalf had an emergency though and owuld have to be gone for a bit so the dm made this encounter to give the wizard a good sendoff while also netting the party some xp for exploration and goblin/troll slaying.

[@Dream-Reaver]

Lore bard/wizard is also a great option for Gandalf. Lore bards are also proficient with longswords and they can pick up find steed with magical secrets to summon Shadowfax.

[@morganpetros9635]

I'd actually go Swords bard to get the two-weapon fighting style and the extra attack feature. That way you never need to actually multiclass. 🤣

[@kronos1794]

Gandalf is a light cleric fighter multiclass. Id argue Gandalf has a lowish int and a high wisdom. He notices alot but doesnt always know enough in the moment to realized why what he notices is important.

[@troperhghar9898]

The moment gandelf fought off the bolrog is when he cast Tensers Transformation

[@VaughanCockell]

Or - and stay with me here - he's a Bard. Gandalf's mission, as an embodied Angel was to kindle hope in the hearts of the Free People of Middle Earth, enabling *them* to resist and defeat Sauron. So he is a Lore Bard primarily, with a few Wizardly effects, partly enabled through wearing Narya, the Ring of Fire.

[@thiagoknofel8982]

Gandalf is a valor Bard. His Power relay in his words of inspiration, wise advices and use of weapons most of The time. Its more impactfull actions are diplomatics. Spells are secundarie

[@Seraphzero0]

Well done here! I built my Gandalf as a Lore Bard which worked well but yours works better. I’d also plan the whole “reborn” thing with the DM, actually die and come back as a reborn race.

[@reloadpsi]

This multiclass didn't remotely surprise me. Gandalf does far too many things a D&D wizard cannot.

[@joshuabean7805]

True, he at least is multiclassed with Paladin or Fighter since he is so good with a sword and often dual wields with his staff.

[@djmewtwo6981]

Yeah, he’s much more of a fighter than a magic user ironically

[@VikingMale]

He is a Deva, and later gets remade into a Planetar. He doesn’t have class levels.

[@djmewtwo6981]

@@VikingMale what are these terms? Do you mean Gandalf’s race?

[@joshuabean7805]

@@djmewtwo6981 yeah I think those are what he is in the books.

[@calumfitzwater8431]

Tell the party to run. Fight the boss himself. Get all the XP. Come back next session levelled up - new staff new cloak. Bastard.

[@ChristnThms]

Kinda figured EK was gonna be a part of it, and if so Wizard makes sense. I wonder though, if straight Paladin isn't an even better build. I mean, the books call him a wizard and d&d has a wizard class. But they aren't necessarily the same thing. Going custom lineage and taking Magic Initiate: Sorcerer will give him that little bit of magic he needs to start. Mage Armor and an array of defensive reaction spells will cover most of what we need. The Paladin spell list gives us plenty of radiant damage, which is an easy substitute for both fire and lightning from the books. The auras even seem to fit.

[@ravenstales6457]

and now you gave me an idea for a BG3 build lmao

[@iLitTheSun]

It’s also possible that Gandalf the White reclassed into a divine soul Watchers sorcadin. “You shall not pass” was CD abjure the extraplanar, then he finishes the balrog with a thunderous smite. Shadowfax is literally Find Steed, and knows the meaning of Haste. He’s constantly giving Guidance and supporting others with cleric buff spells, he’s favored by the Valar, loves to Thaumaturgy his voice, uses Command and calm emotions, lesser restoration freeing theoden, casts zone of truth on Pippin about the palantir, has an aura of always being ahead of everyone, uses Daylight/Moonbeam against winged fell beasts, and he finds greater steeds like the eagles. And I’d tack on the Inspiring Leader feat from all his quotable lines. 😊

[@ethans9379]

6:55 minor correction: war caster only applies if the hand is filled with a weapon or a shield. This works in this case, as Gandalf just needs it for when he's using his sword

[@kallebuchholz2156]

⁠Given that Middle Earth was sung into existence and that Gandalf is pep-talking the fellowship through the campaign and talking shit to a balrog, Bard is the class to go if you are building Gandalf.

[@schammie2180]

Would love to see a build for all of the characters of the fellowship of the ring, great job with the Gandalf build

[@NINJAfries07]

None of the spells that you listed for the first chunk of Eldritch Knight levels are in the Evocation or Abjuration schools of magic, which means only one of them could be selected by that subclass until level 8, when they could get one more.

[@MichaelDBruce]

The magic of Middle earth is based on music. Gandalf is a bard who mostly uses cantrips and abused magic secrets to get access to other classes cantrips

[@seanedgar164]

Tbh he's struck me recently as a paladin. Servant of a diety-equivalent, calls down power from the skies to boost his sword, minimal casting, lay on hands healing, resisting evil better than most...

[@AmericanAurochs]

Have you ever read the Conan short stories by Robert E. Howard? I would love to hear your take on that version of the character.

[@thecocktailadventurer9229]

Good Job! I would add Find Steed as an essential spell, and probably heat metal!

[@Razalonjrt1]

A most intersting version of making Gandalf, I like that you made him a fighter as well as spellcaster, I like that he can use both sword and staff, I think that deispite he not having much health or armour is pretty spot on. How would you build both Lord Raiden (Mortal Kombat) and Magento (X-Men)? I like your work and details in making each character and how they can function in D & D world thou I wonder how many DM's would even let you make them.

[@Razalonjrt1]

Also A third Character I thought on who is D & D of Sorts He-man.

[@nesokari8981]

Hey, man, would you make a build for asuramaru from the seraph of the end please?

[@Potatoeknight3509]

I am yet again asking for you to make frank horrigan

[@Wicked_Ways09]

One of my favorite memes is that Gandalf is just a fighter with a legendary staff, so I’m curious to see what’s cooking here

[@sassyNsarcastic]

Hey, since you made the ultimate tank, can you also make an "Ultimate dps Spell-caster", "Ultimate Support" and "Ultimate sniper" ? I'm really curious to see what you'd come up with😁

[@dndbuilds]

@@sassyNsarcastic I got close to the ultimate sniper with my archer build, but I could definitely do the rest

[@sassyNsarcastic]

​@@dndbuilds Yes pls I've always wondered what a series of something like this would look like. Especially given your Tank build video (which me and my DM enjoyed very much)

[@dndbuilds]

@@sassyNsarcastic I did also do a healer build one, but it wasn't really focused on other generalized supports, so I could definitely do the best spellcaster build

[@sassyNsarcastic]

@@dndbuilds pls do🙏 I'd love to see what you think of Especially which style you'll favour more, versatility/usefulness in and out of battle or just straight up Nuke type dps with no regards to anything else

[@dragoninthewest1]

6:27 not a problem if you're using the 2024 Eldritch Knight, weapon bond turns your weapons into your spellcasting focus. However, the war caster feat would still be useful for concentration spells

[@TriSkyward]

This is awesome. I like The Lord of the Rings a lot. This is a great build for Gandolf. Thanks 👍👍🪈

[@jjkthebest]

I'd just go with plain bard. Inspiring people is quintessentially gandalf imo. Either lore for the extra magical secrets or valour or swords for better melee fighting.

[@krensharmoon]

Eomer might be the Cavalier you're looking for!

[@billmcdonald5063]

Highlanders! Nice job with Gandalf.. yeah he can cast dispel evil/exorcism

[@gw1357]

I was prepared to pitch a fit about all the levels of fighter, but it was right on. I would have taken feats -- maybe Keen Mind, Metamagic Adept, or Observant -- instead of the ability increases to strength and constitution, but other than that I think its spot on.

[@chrismenary3340]

How about a build for Hajime Nagumo from Arifureta: from commonplace to world’s strongest next?

[@venkelos6996]

I am a fan of this build, but there are definitely times where I like to use Gandalf as an example of "my class and my job/theme need not be the same", and making him a Bard. Obviously, Gandalf is a wizard, but then there are the many times where he almost seems to be TRYING to solve his problems with any possible solution other than his arcane magic. At the risk of bringing religion into it, I feel like there are times where he's less of a mage, and more of a wise man; he has powers, but a lot of his agency is in what he says, and trying to coordinate the acts of others, like with Inspiration. Wizard is my main, in D&D, though I claim no definite skills in actually building them well, but this love of D&D Wizards is often what pushes me to this idea of Gandalf; he's not there to blow stuff up. He's there to share knowledge, inspire, and maybe even entertain. He's a traveler, seeking intel, and sharing it with allies. Its often a lot more what he says, or knows, than what flashy magic he can use. Bard can also, depending upon choices, give him the sword proficiency, and let him dip into other spell lists, in addition to those Bards already get. It's not Wizard, but it can grab some stuff even they might struggle to nab, since White Mage arcane healer isn't really a thing. Regardless, I am very impressed with your build. It is too bad, in my opinion, that it requires the full 20 spread, when so many games never get there, or intend to, so I do wonder how this might break down differently if limited to 10th, or 12th? Obviously, Gandalf is a 20th level-style character; I'm not claiming otherwise, but there could be so much of a campaign, or several, if you are building up through a few, to get to 20th, where you won't have access to a lot of those abilities, so it could be neat to see getting the best Gandalf crammed into a smaller cap.

[@AtelierGod]

Perhaps one of the Dragonmarked humans could’ve worked for the build? They are basically magic humans who get extra spells added to their spell lists.

[@Hughes81]

Gandalf is a GMPC/plot device

[@thatlonewolfguy2878]

Play an Aasimar Wizard, take 2 levels of Fighter, or 3 if you like Battle Master potentially since it suits his flavour of being a lead, or Banneret, it kinda works flavour wise as well but Gandalf is often seen as the quintessential wizard so yeah, that's how I'd do it, he's a literal angel so take the angel race then take minimum 17 levels in Wizard

[@NachoAlegreArnau]

I always thought that gandalf was a cleric. He literally uses turn undead on the nazgul in the return of the King. Also, he is a wisdom based gish

[@GenXKnight]

Excellent video. I always thought of him as a Fighter Wizard too. Of course this also reminded me why I don’t like 5e… too many character options!

[@LordRyan64]

Can you please do zen from kung fu panda 4? I think it is a build that could fix a lot of misconceptions with thiefs/rogues. Also let’s be honest, I just love Aquafina😂😂😂

[@garyasselstine9186]

Any chance of doing a Dobby the House Elf build? I always felt he could have been an underestimated powerhouse, perhaps a sorcerer or even a sorcerer/warlock with his master (harry) as an (unknowing) patron...

[@fogdance]

Gandalf is the consummate oath of the ancients paladin. I would also accept pallock with celestial warlock.

[@morganpetros9635]

Gandalf actually used Pyrotechnics as early as The Hobbit, when he used it (and likely Fire Bolt) against the wolves on the other side of the Misty Mountains. 😆

[@absolutleynotanalien8096]

I know you built a star wars sith and jedi, but i would like to see how you would make Nihilus. Sidius and Sion would also be fun but maximum lifesteal is higher on the list.

[@greyelf1537]

I'd just do Aasimar/Stars Druid with the Sage background. Let's see what the build ends up being. edit: the video build ended up being waaay different, lol. I'm not a huge fan of multiclassing, but it does make sense for Gandalf. That said, a Dhampir hexblade 1/conquest paladin 7/shadow sorc the rest of the way, would make for a killer Nazgul.

[@TehWolfmanOP]

You can't take most of the spells you took with the Eldritch Knight levels because they're required to be either Abjuration or Evocation spells (with the exception of specific levels). Thankfully you can fix this just by taking those spells with your Wizard levels.

[@marty7194]

Could you do Seto Kaiba as you did Yugi a bit back :)

[@Draxmega4077]

I'd love to see what kind of build you'd make for baki from the anime baki hanma and baki the grappler

[@Zendrist-8128]

Gandalf, as a Maiar, has most of his power limited from him while he is physically present in Middle Earth.

[@majinsole8554]

Roll, you fools. ~_~

[@chickitbra]

Please do gyro Zeppeli from JoJo's steel ball run! I've been dying to play as him but I always have a hard time bringing the class together!

[@gunzstrong3491]

Alright question can you possibly do a Soldier Boy build from “The Boys”

[@Brandonrod]

I feel like u should of just done a full bladesinger for him bc then u get most of the martial abilities of a fighter but all the spell casting of high level spell casters

[@sethmays8309]

Gandalf is not a multiclassed character but rather a gestalt character with levels in both Devotion Paladin and Celestial Warlock. Gandalf the White has his levels maxed in those classes.

[@jeffjones4654]

How would you do the Tin Woodsman from the Wizard of Oz? 😉

[@hgnkhuynhgia7115]

Can you build Eugeo from sword art online....i suggest you can begin with subclass Eldritch Knight since spell lv2 Rime's Binding Ice it look same as enhance armament

[@vodkalord6941]

Please make The Undertaker next

[@GallumA]

hmm. I feel like gandalf would better suit a Charisma based base class, with Wisdom too as a back up and multiclass Warlock (perhaps a custom pact target) and Cleric (Light Domain) with pact of the blade. The reason for this is Charisma in D&D when it comes to Casters appears to represent the Charisma of ancient greece which meant 'gifted by the gods', 'grace'. And Gandalf is of course bound to 'the one' as a Maia. With Insight as his custom lineage proficiency, then flow on in much the same way that you did. Also, I would say that he isn't that intelligent, he's wise but he's not great at logical problems like with that door to the mines.

[@harbl99]

Gandalf is a 5th level magic-user (source: Bill Seligman, Dragon Magazine no.5, 1977).

[@kibatgrenbuku]

Here's a couple of other characters how we can learn how to play: Spongebob El Tigre Tak Luz Bionicle Toa

[@billmcdonald5063]

He is the keeper of the sacred fire of Unuu?

[@khaylinsnead3420]

Hey, how about Arya Stark, or another GOT character?

[@Kardur_Wrath_of_the_Abyss]

I would have been a divine soul sorcerer or taken levels in paladin

[@RocRolWriter]

You've ranked all Barbarian subclasses, and you've ranked all Bard subclasses; this looks like you're going at the classes in alphabetical order (skipping Artificer, but that's okay because that class didn't show up in the 5e rulebooks until Tasha's Cauldron anyway), which means I'll have to wait AGES for you to get to the Warlocks. 😩 Eh, that's okay, because I'm fairly curious about the Cleric rankings too. In the meantime, I still kinda want to see Akito from Ghostwire Tokyo (who I'm still convinced should be a Warlock of some kind). Also, can we keep expanding the Persona 5 character builds?

[@jonathanhaynes9914]

Interesting.

[@francescobisighin2495]

I'm sorry,but when you see "saving your feat for lvl 2" how can you do it? Is a mechanic i'm not aware of.

[@dndbuilds]

@@francescobisighin2495 I wasn't attempting to save it for level 2 I was just trying to save it for announcing it at level two, but I would take it immediately

[@francescobisighin2495]

​@@dndbuilds ooohh,ok. I thought that was a mechanic for having/saving more feats XD

[@MrTBrownie33]

Anime character idea: Laxus from Fairy Tail

[@azpont7275]

Gandalf is a celestial who supposed to use magic only on other celestials. He is a DM PC at best...

[@Zorbas85]

Gandalf Is absolutely a Bard...

[@colemantrantham9264]

Just look at eleminster from forgotten realms and you got gandalf

[@Ubermensch9240]

I haven't hit Play or read the comments, but you don't seem like the type to troll your audience. Tulock made Gandalf a Bard/Paladin. I predict a Bladesinging Wizard, or a Multiclass with Wizard. I've been wrong before so I'm not 100% confident in my prediction, but here we are and here I go. MY GOD I WAS RIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@theonlymatthew.l]

Y a 14 str?

[@dndbuilds]

@@theonlymatthew.l otherwise he wouldn't be very effective at fighting with a sword and a quarter staff

[@eddieleavitt6362]

9:02

[@DaileyDoseOfJoseph]

It looks like you've got it covered, but I would like to offer my skills as a video editor. I'm in school for vfx and I would like a good way to stay practiced in video editing if you'd have me. I could message you on Patreon if you think you'd benefit from a video editor.

[@dndbuilds]

@@DaileyDoseOfJoseph feel free to hit me up on patreon and we can chat further, there's also a link to my discord in the description, either works

[@DaileyDoseOfJoseph]

@@dndbuilds Oh cool, I I've joined Discord and sent you a friend request and a message. No rush to get to it, of course.

[@kingmarshallofthelightside8892]

Insane I love it. He would make a fun mission giving npc

[@havock89]

This is such a messy build.. The BECMI D&D with the skill system found in the Gazzetters (Also found in the D&D Cyclopedia) would have been far more realistic and closer to the authentic Gandalf.

[@totamelinda9381]

The warcasters somatic component with weapon in hand isn't necesary because you can use a quarterstaff as an arcane focus letting you ignore somatic and verbal components.

[@davidsapp7554]

See I disagree I think Gandalf is a straight bladesinger maybe one or 2 levels in Fighter but definitely more in Wizard because it's better than eldrich knight in every way

[@arkyark8]

I'm 20 seconds in and let me guess. Aasimar Lore Bard/Paladin. Why? Because that's what the KZbin channel Tulok the Barbrarian created in his Building Character series. Now to press play and find out if this KZbinr came up with something original or plagiarized.

[@MrJimeih]

Nah. Gandalf is one of the wisest beings in Middle-earth. You just can't build Gandalf while dumping Wisdom. A bard/cleric is a much better thematic fit. Bardic Inspiration to inspire hope in those around him, expertise in Perception and Insight. Valour Bard gives him access to martial weapons and armour. You can pick up Magic Initiate (Druid) as an Origin Feat for access to Shillelagh and Guidance. Shillelagh let's you use your use your spell modifier on the first attack with your staff, and for the second you can cast True Strike with Glamdring... You can still pick up most of the most thematic spells on the Bard spell list.

[@nexus_keeper]

I’ll admit, I haven’t watched the video yet, but playing Gandalf wouldn’t work in a game designed for everyone to be of equal power. He’s intentionally significantly more powerful than the rest of his party in both the hobbit and the lord of the rings.

[@mrchocoslave7859]

Wizard is very fucking op at high levels

[@nexus_keeper]

@@mrchocoslave7859true, and it makes sense, but most people only play to around lvl 10 as the game kinda devolves after that point.

[@djmewtwo6981]

Considering everyone else is martial or something equivalent, that’s not a very hard thing to do considering he’s a wizard

[@nexus_keeper]

@@djmewtwo6981 but it makes the game unbalanced

[@jamesblanton6277]

How about coming up with your own unique character rather than playing as someone that every player already knows

[@cosmic_fox8058]

72th like

[@jeremymaxwell7251]

Big nope on the sword and staff impeding spellcasting,the staff could be the spellcasting FOCUS,would have to have the staff out for that.i appreciate the thought you put into this build,it does appears you lost perspective on the character as written over the lame game stats.honestly your not far off the spirit of gandalf as intended.it is never going to really translate into a viable character as the rules are a bit fantastical.and,the world of middle earth was extremely low magic.gandalf fits into middle earth in this respect.trying to force a fit into d&d may break the character and your game world.again really good attempt needs some editing and fine tuning in my humble opinion.ty for the video.