I’ve discovered the best possible combination of race, class and equipment to ensure that your character will deal more damage every round than any other character. These builds are 100% legal and by the book. I’ve followed all the rules and used only core books published by Wizards. I didn’t make the rules, but I’m sure as hell going to exploit them for my benefit. Keep reading to find out how.
You might think that all 1st level PCs have pretty much the same attack score and that it’s difficult for you to have a clear advantage over your companions. Wrong! There are a few choices that, if made carefully, can give you a huge leg up right out of the gate.
After examining over a dozen possible builds I’ve come up with the best choices for creating a character who can and will deal more damage than anyone else. These builds should appeal to anyone who wants their character to do lot of damage as often as possible. The trade off usually means a slightly lower AC, but if you’re still reading then I suspect that your idea of a good defense is a strong offense.
In order to make sure we’re comparing apples to apples, I’ve established three important guidelines.
- Character must be 1st level
- Melee attacks only
- At-will powers only
So with these points in mind let’s review the top three contenders. All of the characters presented are equipped with regular items available to any 1st level character. The damage numbers do not factor in critical hits, just lucky rolls resulting in the highest possible outcomes.
Build #1
| Barbarian Dwarf |
Level 1 PC |
| AC 15 (Hide Armor); Fortitude 16, Reflex 12, Will 12 |
| Execution Axe +6 vs AC; 1d12 + 1d6 + 6 damage (brutal 2) |
| Feat Dwarven Weapon Training Str 18 (+4) Dex 8 (-1) Wis 16 (+3) Con 13 (+1) Int 10 (0) Cha 10 (0) |
Number Crunching
- Max damage: 24
- Min damage: 10
- Average damage: 17
Advantages
Build #1 offers the highest possible maximum damage of any 1st level PC with 24. By taking the Dwarven Weapon Training feat, this PC gains the proficiency bonus when using axes or hammers as well as the additional damage provided by the feat. The brutal 2 property of the weapon ensures that even with the worst possible rolls he’ll deal at least 10 points of damage. Alternatively, you could arm this character with a Mordenkrad. It has the same max and average damage, and its min damage is 11, 1 point higher than the Execution Axe. However, the Mordenkrad is not a high crit weapon.
Disadvantages
Build #1 only provides a +6 attack score which isn’t as good as the other options presented below. The Barbarian’s armor restrictions also leave him with a very low starting AC of only 15.
Build #2
| Fighter Dwarf |
Level 1 PC |
| AC 17 (Scale Armor); Fortitude 16, Reflex 10, Will 11 |
| Mordenkrad +9 vs AC; 2d6 + 9 damage (brutal 1) |
| Feat Dwarven Weapon Training Str 18 (+4) Dex 8 (-1) Wis 13 (+1) Con 16 (+3) Int 10 (0) Cha 10 (0) |
Number Crunching
- Max damage: 21
- Min damage: 13
- Average damage: 17
Advantages
Build #2 offers a maximum damage of 21, only slightly lower than the 24 point max presented in Build #1. The real benefit of Build #2 is that the average damage is 13, a full 3 points more than Build #1. Like with Build #1, selecting the Dwarven Weapon Training feat allows this PC to gain the full benefits of using an axe or hammer.
Disadvantages
In order to get such a high attack score and damage the PC needs to use the at-will power Brash Strike which results in the PC granting the target combat advantage until the start of his next turn. Not a big deal if you kill your opponent, more of a big deal if you’re surrounded by many opponents.
Note: A Dwarven Paladin with the same feat and the same weapon, attacking a marked opponent with Holy Strike deals exactly the same damage. However, his attack score is only +6. The Paladin build does offer a better AC, a much higher Will defense and a wider choice when selecting skills.
Build #3
| Fighter Human |
Level 1 PC |
| AC 17 (Scale Armor); Fortitude 18, Reflex 11, Will 11 |
| Mordenkrad +10 vs AC; 2d6 + 8 damage (brutal 1) |
| Feat Mordenkrad Proficiency Feat Weapon Focus (Hammer) Str 20 (+4) Dex 8 (-1) Wis 11 (0) Con 14 (+3) Int 10 (0) Cha 10 (0) |
Number Crunching
- Max damage: 20
- Min damage: 12
- Average damage: 16
Advantages
Build #3 still has a respectable minimum, maximum and average damage, but it is the lowest of all three builds presented. This is offset with an attack score of +10, 1 higher than Build #2 and 4 higher than Build #1. So doing slightly less damage when you hit may not be so bad if you’re hitting more often. Build #3 also has a higher Fort defense, and as a Human he gains training in one addition skill.
Disadvantages
As with Build #2, in order to get the highest possible attack score and damage he has to use the at-will power Brash Strike. So as in the previous build if you’re ok with granting your opponent combat advantage then swing away.
The Best of the Rest
Before narrowing down the builds to the top three presented here, I spent time looking at various other combinations of races, classes, and one-handed and two-handed weapons. The other combinations that didn’t make the top three included Dwarven Paladin, Goliath Fighter, Human Paladin and Shifter Paladin.
If you’re able to come up with a character build, following my guidelines, that can dish out more damage than the builds I presented, please share them. Until then, wow the other PCs at your gaming table by dealing an incredible amount of damage every round.
Update
I forgot to mention in the original article that the PCs I’m looking at need to be able to deal the same amount of damage with every single attack. The strikers (Rogue, Ranger) will probably do more damage if their extra dice is included in their numbers. The problem is that these extra dice are dependent upon very specific conditions that may not be present every single time. Thanks to the readers who posted striker builds which do indeed have higher damage numbers but unfortunately rely on sneak dice or hunter’s quarry.
View Comments (24)
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1 2 3 4 Next »I know it isn't 4th ed. but during my time with 3.5 ed. I had created a Dwarven Frenzied Berserker. At 4 Barbarian, 2 Fighter and 10 Frenzied Berserker, he would deal as much as 1d12 + 92, non Leap Attack, non crit.
love the article. very min max but its fun to read min max, shows possibilities
mike’s last blog post..Game Day Preview: Chance, level 5 Tiefling, Warlord
Man, I thought this was a joke when I first read it. I didn't think you were into min/maxing. The fun part of min/maxing is the funny backgrounds you can create to explain it. I know you can make up reasonable ones too, but having extremes just makes humorous backgrounds so easy.
Dwarf Ranger
AC 15 (Hide) Fort:15 Ref: 13 Will: 11
Twin Strike (std. At-Will)
Craghammers
+6 vs AC; 2d10+4 dmg (brutal 2) if they both hit.
Feat: Dwarven Weapon Training
Str: 18 (+4) Dex: 14 (+2) Wis 13 (+1)
Con: 12 (+1) Int: 10(+0) Cha: 8 (-1)
Numbers - Assuming Hunters quarry
Max: 30
Min: 6 (if only 1 weapon hit)
Avg: 18
The only thing I can present with this is a higher max number than your highest max possible character. The +6 to hit is fairly low as is your barbarian, AC low, and it hinges on getting 2 hits.
How about a human rogue?
Human Rogue
AC 17 (Leather) Fort:11 Ref: 18 Will: 13
Sly Flourish (std. At-Will)
Rapier: +8 vs AC; 1d8 + 7 dmg .
Feat: Rapier, Improved SA
Str: 10 (+0) Dex: 20 (+5) Wis 8 (-1)
Con: 11 (+0) Int: 10(+0) Cha: 14 (+2)
Numbers - Assuming Sneak Attack
Max: 31
Min: 10
Avg: 20
Better max damage, better average damage, slightly lower to hit, similar AC and slightly better defenses.
You could use piercing strike, which would do 2 less damage, but instead target reflex, making it much more precise.
@Brody
Thanks for visiting Dungeon's Master. 1d12+92, that's awesome. I don't think we're likely to see that kind of output in 4e.
@mike
I have a bunch of min/max guys in my group so I need to know what kind of options I'm likely to face. Glad you enjoyed it.
@Riasn
I never gave much though to the kind of background these characters might have. It might be interesting to get the PCs to come up with something creative before the DM allows them to play this kind of power character.
@Stankeye
The problem with most striker builds is that their extra damage is conditional. You can't rely on them to deal that extra every single time. That's why the Rogue and Ranger didn’t make my short list. When you start taking the striker's extra dice into consideration then the numbers get even higher, as you've demonstrated.
@Chris
Again, the striker will generally have much higher numbers IF they are in the proper situation to get the extra dice. The intent of this article was to show consistency that wasn't dependent upon extra conditional modifiers. But that aside your build is definitely built for killing. Nice one.
My vote would be for a Drow Brutal Scoundrel Rogue with the Backstabber feat, DEX 20, STR 14 and Acrobatics Training. That's a build capable of getting Combat Advantage every single round, and therefore Sneak Attack damage on every single hit.
Open the fight with an Acrobatic move. If that doesn't grant your CA, use Darkfire to blind your opponents until the end of your next round. That's two Sneak Attack hits right there (one this round, one the next). Use Acrobatics each following round and provided the GM is feeling in a good mood and you make a DC15 check, that's 1d6+2d8+7 damage with a humble Short Sword, or use a Kukri (Brutal 1) or Repeating Crossbow (d8!!!) from the Adventurer's Vault for added evil.
Now imagine the heroes entering an enclave of Drow Rogues, and you've a TPK in the making........
@greywulf
What a great build. You've inspired me. I know what I want to be the next time I play. And as a DM, well, I'm going to tell my PCs that you gave me this idea. Get ready for some strongly worded comments and emails from my players. You'll recognize them immediately because the comments will all start with "so our entire party was killed by Drows..."
@Ameron Thanks! I've already thrown a handful of Drow Rogues built like this at my players. They ran :D
I don't see how Hunter's Quarry can be considered conditional damage for a melee Ranger. I can see the problem with rogues and getting CA every time but I can't think of too many conditions that would see a melee Ranger not using his Hunter's Quarry on the target he was going to attack.
@Greywulf - I'm going to need to have a look at your Rogue there. It does seem a bit devious.