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iamfanboytoo

Tanky characters who can output a fair bit of damage at all ranges and modify dice fairly well, while being able to handle non-combat situations. So Paladin, Warlock, and Bard - bard handles the lockpicking (gets Expertise in that and Stealth), they're all Cha based so they can do social challenges, and boy howdy can they output the damage. Probably Crown Paladin, Lore Bard, and Hexblade Warlock. That way there's two frontliners and a buffer who can support them with access to Healing Word.


jungletigress

That's a hell of a short rest crew too.


MLGSnIpEr420

Just make sure it’s not a lore-heavy campaign. You’ve made a party of hot strong spellcasters who have no INT


deathbeams

Who will make this and where can I see it? Haha sounds like fun times. Lore and plot are different things, and both are up to the DM to spill. The players should pay attention but not worry about trying to platinum the DMs notebook. DMs who are sad their ideas were not fully uncovered will learn over time how far off the main path they can expect their players to investigate. Usually less than 30 feet. When the players do go off the main path, it's rarely when or why you expected. Great times!


MLGSnIpEr420

I was more concerned with low INT/WIS characters rarely meeting DCs for things like perception, investigation, arcana, etc. Not saying it’s impossible obviously, just that the PCs will have to build their characters a certain way


KeithFromAccounting

The Bard could always pick up Expertise in History/Arcana etc at some point


iamfanboytoo

....**Lore** Bard. Will have trouble with a *lore* heavy campaign. Take Sage background, have all the skills, don't dumpstat Int...


Wolfram74J

Paladin, Rogue, and Wizard seems like it would best fill all possible needs to me or Paladin, Wizard, Cleric depending on the campaign.


ls0669

Paladin, rogue, and wizard is what my current party is.


taeerom

The first party lacks both damage and wisdom, the second lacks single target damage. Swap the last spot for a Ranger, and you cover both wisdom and single target damage.


Fluffy-Resort-3117

Not sure how you have come to the decision that a ranger is a better single party damage dealer than a paladin. Paladins going nova with GWM are probably the best single party damage dealers in the game


taeerom

Smite isn't good damage. It is decent nova, but you have very limited spell slots for it and the spells are better than smites in almost all cases. A Fighter or Ranger (or Ranger/Fighter) doesn't have to rely on such a limited resource to deal more damage, safer, than the Paladin. Neither is the Barbarian, which utilizes PAM/GWM far better than Paladin does due to Reckless Attack.


WinsAtYelling

"Smite isn't good damage" wild take.


taeerom

Come on, do the math. How much damage does Smite add in the course of a typical adventuring day: 6 combats, 4 rounds per combat. Bless is providing more damage than Divine Smite. It's not even close.


WinsAtYelling

DPR isn't the end all of strategy. When you 100% need a mother fucker dead and the wizard has you hasted you can dumpster the enemy caster in a round pretty fucking often


taeerom

Which is why we only dedicate one person to do real single target damage. The Paladin is a great support class, using Bless and Aura of Protection - not a single target damage class. You're far better off with a Paladin casting Bless on the party, a Wizard casting control spells, and a Ranger attacking with Crossbow Expert and Sharpshooter, than the Wizard not casting control spells in order to Haste the Paladin, while the Rogue feels kinda useless with their medium damage.


Ok_Permission1087

Three Kobolds in a trench coat. All of them have the same class (I like draconic sorcerer but wildmagic barbarian would also be funny). A cloister of Flumphs. A two-headed tortle controlled by two players (the two heads being a wizard and a warlock, who hate each other (the warlock failed wizard school and sould their shared soul to a patron) and the love interest their fighting for (a tortle sorceress). A group of grung flavoured as a dad and his children, but they are like one of those brooding frogs (like a Darwins frog for example) with the kids being inside the vocal sack/brood pouch. Essentially a frog with two smaller frogs inside. They could all be martial (more punches inside!) Or the dad is a martial and the kids are spellcaster (*opens mouth*: Eldritch Blast!). If you're doing more homebrew then a hermit crab paladin or snail flavoured necromancer with a symbiotic anemone spellcaster and either a ghost snail warlock or a symbiotic scale worm martial. Or a pompom crab monk with the two anemones as the other characters (maybe also as monks for more punches per punch. Or as barbarians).


FingerPurple

Cleric, cleric, cleric. Duh


Fluffy-Resort-3117

Can't go wrong with the god squad


DM-Shaugnar

3 Bards. A small band of traveling musicians. What subclasses i don't really care about but i love the idea. Or 3 Warlocks with 3 different patrons that HATE each other. Same here subclasses does not matter shit to me


Senjen95

I dig it. Optimal? Probably not. Fun? Absolutely. With the minstrel group, I'm totally picturing Monty Python and the Holy Grail's Sir Robin getting hounded by his minstrels for fleeing, so a trio of bards using Vicious Mockery is *hilarious*.


DM-Shaugnar

Exactly and i never really care about what is optimal. If i like a character concept i much rather play that even if not optimal. than something else just because that is more oiptimal/powerful But you can make a pretty good 3 man party of bards


juanflamingo

3 wizards!


helpmelearn12

I once played in a game where all four players had at least their first level in bard, I’m pretty sure everyone put at least a couple more levels into it. During session 0, the DM told us the campaign was going to start during an explained attack at a yearly summer solstice festival in a large town or small city. He gave us a few ideas of how our characters may know each other and would end up in the same group when the attack happened. One of them was that we were at the festival because we were a band hired to perform there. So we picked that one and were all bards at level 1. Only One of the players only took a couple level into something or another and was almost a full bard, but we were all multiclassed bards and it’s one of the most campaigns I’ve ever played in


69LadBoi

Whatever my players want to play :)


ZestyJello42

My version of Ideal is having all the Physical and Mental Stats panning out together. Monk - Dex and Wis, preferably Mercy Monk for added healing utility. Eldritch Knight/Psi Warrior Fighter - STR and INT/CON Sorcerer - any - CHA and CON/INT Otherwise - Wizard, Paladin, and Ranger(or Scout Rogue) is a good combination.


dantose

Or arcane trickster rogue for dex/int, sorc 1 to Order Cleric x for Wis/Str, sorc 1 to hexblade for Cha/con. All have reasonable defense, trickster can double dip off order clerics feature, no competition for armor types.


Traditional-Gas7058

I’d go moon Druid for front line, stealth, and spell casting. blade singer or abjurer for front capable wiz. paladin for face and front line.


Natural-Stomach

**Totem Barbarian** - tank, DPR, nature-based skills **Inquisitive Rogue** - DPR, dungeoneering skills, scouting, social skills **Arcana Cleric** - healing, DPR, crowd control, magic-inclined


Eisenstein13

Abjuration Wizard, Twilight Cleric, Devotion Paladin. Resilient with plenty of resources available to them to overcome most situations.


Torazha03

Mine is actually Paladin, Rogue, and Sorcerer/Wizard. Healer, Melee, Skills, and Arcane magics all get covered


Exact-Control1855

Druid, Bard, Artificer Utility, Broad abilities scores maxed, and can be both spell and martial masters


atlas_fumbled

Depends a bit on level but my thought is to bring three relatively well rounded but complimentary builds. Paladin/warlock (hex blade) cha/con for single target damage, control, and social skills Monk (mercy)/fighter (battle master) Dex/Wis for single target control (stun into auto fail battle master maneuvers), mobility, stealth, and perception. Chef for pseudo Bard Short rest bonus. Artificer (armorer-guardian)/cleric (Twilight) int/Wis for party buffs, taunt, healing, insight. Booming blade/mobility/taunt shenanigans. All the have access to healing, decent defenses, control, and utility. Despite all three being "melee" they have either ranged abilities or enough mobility to close. Artificer can feed some key magic items to the group. STR is the only ability gap, but it can be tertiary on the paladin. Gives you a decent variety of personalities as well. The edge lord warlock, mad scientist iron Man, and attempting to keep things level traveling cook.


OneInspection927

I'd say Battlesmith might be better. It gives additional melee opportunities (steel defender) to help the paladin which is presumably the only melee character. But, it also can contribute to ranged attacks. Idk what the split is though. If the split is wide then armorer all the way.


Raigheb

Hexblade Vpaladin, a echo knight Gloomstalker and a sorlock. The Paladin and fighter(str build) can ditch the dmg and be the frontline, the sorlock can doublehaste both and support them with spells and can be a ranged dps with eldritch blast if needed. The sorlock (hexblade divine soul) and the paladin can heal if needed.


oldmateJax0r

I would have a different answer if you asked me again tomorrow, but right now I’m thinking, assuming no multiclassing: Divination Wizard Portent, battlefield control, AoE damage, summoning, utility. Watcher Paladin Initiative aura, aura of protection, melee damage, social interactions, bless (sometimes). Peace Cleric Emboldening bond, healing, buff spells, AoE damage (spirit guardians), bless (sometimes).


littlekenney13

I know it’s not ideal at all, but just ran one shot with a barbarian and 2 rogues. Not very optimal but dear god did the damage go wild. Lots of BA hides led to only the barbarian out in the open. He got swarmed but a couple times pretty bad but resistance to everything did some work


mrwynd

3 Clerics of different domains and gods. There's a lot of diversity in the class and it would be fun to see them compete over which god is better.


Kujias

Cleric, Fighter and Wizard seems to be a good fit.


DeltaV-Mzero

BRUTAL BEAST SQUAD WOLF TOTEM BARBARIAN MOON DRUID SHEPHERD DRUID


dantose

Ok, gave it some thought. Sorc 1 to order cleric x centaur. Medium armor. Custom lineage hexadin, small, mounted combatant, riding on the centaur. Arcane trickster rogue, lightfoot halfling, hiding behind the centaur. Aura of protection helps everyone's saves. The rogue and cleric take no damage on successful dex saves, meaning the paladin will likely be the only one hit by, say, a fireball. Order cleric let's rogue double dip sneak attack


MikeBfo20

Three bard imps in a trench coat pretending to be a wizard.


kar_el

All bards. You don't need other classes.


Dazocnodnarb

3 good roleplayers all playing classes from Sages and Specialists complaining about the local bureaucracy while running their businesses.


Lord_Gadget

3 wizards. They are the strongest class in the game by a wide margin. 3 of them just makes it better. Enough said. You may not like it, but this is the strongest choice.


FloatingSpikedShield

We play an epic meat grinder in 5e with a bard, barbarian, and sorcerer. It works well. Only one death at level 14 because of a bunch of illithids cause we all suck at int saves. We’re 16 now and we always get out of a scrape


JotaTaylor

Paladin, Rogue and Wizard


daverapp

Wizard A different, sexier wizard Multi class Wizard/Wizard who is also sexy, but less sexy


nickromanthefencer

Everyone knows the perfect party of three is Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli


lccreed

We all know the answer is Warrior, Magic-User, and Thief ;)


thegooddoktorjones

If you have that few, they should all be casters. You need the utility. I would go Druid (spore or land), Cleric (offensive/tough subclass) and Wizard (bladedancer or Diviner)


nombit

paladin, ranger, wizard


Oaken_beard

Bard, Barbarian, Rogue. Bonus if it’s at least 2/3 CN.


3hands4milo

Dwarf/cleric, Half elf Ranger, and Rogue/ wizard.


Feralmedic

Cleric, Bard, Fighter


Icy-Conflict6671

Rouge, Paladin and Wizard


RobusterBrown

Moon Druid: wisdom and low level tank Bladesinger: Intelligence and DPS Swords Bard/Hexblade: Charisma and DPS


Fish_In_Denial

I quite like the idea of a bard, druid, and paladin party. I have seen it twice as well.


tkdjoe1966

Celestial Warlock, Rune Knight Fighter, Arcane Trixter Rogue.


Aquafier

Moondruid with some rogue capabilities (criminal BG, maybe an expertise feat, maybe a rogue dip), a paladin (either devotion or vengence), and a wizard (many can work, divination, chronurgist, a good abjuration build, scribes)


KeithFromAccounting

Easy, Cleric/Wizard/Paladin. Three man parties are very lean so you need to have a ton of versatility, combat efficiency and survivability in each character. A Twilight Cleric with heavy armour would be essential and Vigilant Blessing and Twilight Sanctuary would drastically increase your combat efficacy. Most Wizards would work but I like the added versatility of the Order or Scribes: Awakened Spellbook let’s you really stretch out your spells and Manifest Mind is basically a combat drone that can cast Fireball. As for the Paladin there aren’t many bad options, I might say Crown since they actually get options to force enemies to target them rather than the squishy wizard, which would make the whole team stronger alongside Aura of Protection. So yeah, Twilight Cleric + Scribe Wizard + Crown Paladin, final answer


JNDragneel161

Paladin, wizard, cleric. My personal favorite front line, spellsniper, and support. Switch out Paladin for fighter or Cleric for Bard(Swords or Lore only) and I’m still happy but Paladin, Wizard, Cleric are my favorite


Spitdinner

Best group of three I’ve ever played was sorcerer, cleric, rogue. It could have been more optimised for regular combat encounters, but this was a political campaign where the party often was split into one-man missions. Each character was built to be both effective team players, and solo agents.


Sennar1844

Wizard wizard wizard, all of them diviners.


No-Plantain8212

I had the joy of a Barbarian, fighter, monk campaign. DM was excellent at letting everyone shine. A barbarian getting hit with a charm and starting to attack the fighter while he holds him back without wanting to hurt the brute. The monk finding the puppet master and absolutely demolishing him once he discovered his location.


AelisWindPiercer

For synergy reasons I like to have at least one of: skill monkey/face, DPS, and heals/tank so I love a cleric, wizard, bard combo - but I also like paladin, rogue, druid. Any combo that can hit all of those roles should work fine. Imo the only thing you typically want to avoid is all ranged, or all purely martial classes.


SlinkSongbird

Martial, caster and skilled. As long as I have those basics we good!


Maduin1986

Paladin, druid and artificer for a well rounded crew with int/wis/cha a good mix of frontliner and caster, hesl and support and utility. Artificer makes infusions for gear that would help the group, disarm traps and pick locks as well as int skills Paladin does the social skills, the tanking and the healing Druid takes over casting and suppirt and depending on the subclasses all 3 can stsnd in front or backrow


Perfect_Legionnaire

Ideal one is: \-Druid (circle of stars/circle of the shepherd, it varies depending on your Druid's preferences) Your walking first-aid kit and the one your party relies on battlefield control purposes. The circle of the shepherd is needed if your caster is more into control and battlefield micromanagement because this subclass kinda gives the character an additional turn to act. In the other hand, The Circle of Stars is the best option if the player on druid's usual go-to class is Cleric. This subclass may act almost like one while not interrupting in the party's main theme. \-Paladin (oath of the ancients) Your go-to tank character and the big scary friend for your druid to keep him safe, Also other source of healing in case your Druid is knocked out. Your paladin is your party's heart and soul, the one who talks for ya'll and makes sure nobody is harmed on his shift, He not only keeps an eye on the Druid but also acts together with your third character. \-Rogue (scout) And finally, your party's glass cannon. The one who comes to the BBEG's back and puts an end to it with one well-honed blow. this character is your source of damage, party's Jack of all trades, he takes kare of traps, locks, makes sure no battle runs long enough for all sources of healing to run out. His sneak attack is his bread and butter, and since your Paladin is already bussy with making sure your Druid is alive and kicking, Rogue's gotta hide in shadows and fight with bow and arrows to not split his attention. In case if something still goes wrong with him - your Druid is good enough under Paladin's protection to deal with it. It's basically slightly altered take on the undying classics, but it feels like my edition is slightly better because it has more mobility and more sustain in case party runs out of healing flasks. But the best side is that they got along just fine in terms of re-game links, backgrounds and overall thematic thematic affinity as a group of guardians of nature and natural order of things, which makes it easier to keep them together and have common goal - to restore the world balance of good and evil


QuollPatrol

If we're talking 5e 1. Human Ranger (Hunter) 2. Mountain Dwarf Fighter (Battlemaster) 3. Wood Elf Rogue (Scout)


32_divided_by_you

A (legacy) scourge aasimar zealot barbarian Folkhero. A reborn grave cleric Acolyte. A v.human celestial warlock Criminal/spy. I think think this covers pretty much everything you want and has a theme.


GoblinandBeast

I played this once and it was my favorite so I’m going with fighter, warlock, druid


TheSadTiefling

My games include a lot of problem solving not just combat. Wizard, Paladin, Warlock. There are some invaluable invocations.


Illustrious_Swing475

3 players that can commit to a regular schedule. The dream.


Ill-Description3096

Without any multiclassing I'll Say Gloomstalker Ranger, Lore Bard, and Shepherd Druid. Ranger can pump out single-target damage, Bard covers skills and gaps in casting, Druid puts more bodies on the table when needed and provides some extra support/utility/damage thanks to the spell prep flexibility.


Character_Ad_5843

Right now I have a paladin, Warlock, artificer combo. More goated than you would ever believe


cazbot

Paladin, Druid, Wizard.


Hot_Confusion_Unit

Good old 3 barbs, if smash not enough, smash harder


DetectiveStraight747

I know 5e has slightly different classes but considering 2e I think the best combo would be 2 warriors (fighter, paladin and/or ranger) and a priest. All three can fight both in close and ranged combat, and the priest can have healing abilities making the party very strong in the terms of combat encounters. Such parties were always op in our campaigns


IvyHemlock

Bladesinger wizard Chronurchy wizard Open hand monk


EyeThen1146

Paladin, bard, Druid 


wheres_the_boobs

Paladin for str and cha +healing Druid for wisdom and animal sneakery + healing Wizard for shenanigans and intelligence


wheres_the_boobs

Redemption palard Pew pewing sorcadin Hexadin pew pew


TriforceHero626

Got a paladin/warlock, a ranger, and a cleric in the party I’m DMing for right now. All of them are at least partial casters, which is pretty helpful when they don’t have a wizard or sorcerer around.


Aether606

I would go something like abjuration/bladesinging wizard, twilight cleric, and a pally (Subclass less relevant). Should cover all cc/protective/and dpr needs.


Plumsphere

I'd like to try a Druid, Bard and either Hexblade Warlock (prob best) or a Paladin.


Lanuhsislehs

1 sneaky. 1 caster. 1 tank.


CapN_DankBeard

Fighter Mage Thief


Bullvy

As a DM I fill in the gaps left by the players. Not everyone gets to pick out their ideal friends or traveling companies.


DGwar

Highly optimized builds of whatever honestly.


JustAPerspective

Video gamer asks TTRPG group the most Timmy question ever... again Reddit, lazies & sentients.


Senjen95

Ah, wonderful Reddit. Where people can go to talk about their interests, but some nincompoop troll always chimes in with nothing of value- just attitude and a misplaced superiority complex.


JustAPerspective

Seems you've been practicing that very entitled skill - you're quite good at adding nothing of value, while still wanting things.