PC Concept: Unconventional Holy Warriors

Overview

The concept of the "holy warrior" in D&D 5e is typically attributed to the paladin or cleric classes. While that certainly works if "holy warrior" is the aesthetic you're going for, I wanted to talk about some other options for the same kind of build. Not everyone who worships a god has to be a cleric, and there are many other ways to fight in the name of a certain deity. I want to explore some of those options today.

So what is a "holy warrior?" I define the phrase as any person who fights in the name of an ideology, system of beliefs, or religion. Moving forward with that, I think I have a few different concepts that can either be combined with clerics and paladins in a multiclassing fashion, or used on their own.

With all that in mind, let's see what we can do.

Race, Class, Stats, and Background

For me, I'd start out with picking a god and a domain. Even if you decide not to pick cleric as your class, it's a good idea to look into the cleric domains to see which is most interesting. You can base your characters ideals and religious philosophy on the tenants and/or aesthetic of that domain.

Next, I'd select your preferred character type. Believe it or not, this concept can work across class archetypes. I'd select from the following list of roles.

- Melee Tank

- Melee DPS

- Spellcasting Tank

- Versatile Spellcaster

Your background is your most fluid choice, and that can also depend on your faith. Acolyte (Player's Handbook) is your most obvious choice; a character that grew up in a church or temple of a faith has motivation to be a holy warrior. Knight of the Order (Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide) also works really well, especially in regards to holy orders. A holy warrior in tune with nature may prefer Hermit or Outlander (both Player's Handbook) and Sailors (Player's Handbook) or Marines (Ghosts of Saltmarsh) can be deeply connected with sea deities.

Your choice for race, if you're looking to play a race that boosts your class's core stats, depends on the character type you picked from the list above. Let's go through some of my ideas for these combos.

- Melee Tank: Path of the Zealot Barbarian (Xanathar's Guide). You can also multiclass into Paladin, if you want certain damage benefits, specifically Divine Smite.

- Strength is definitely going to be your highest stat here, followed by either Constitution or Charisma (if you're choosing to multiclass.) 

- Any race that buffs these stats would work very well for you. Fallen Aasimar (Volo's Guide), Dragonborn (Player's Handbook), and a Zariel Tiefling (Mordenkainen's Tome) are all good options. Personally, I'd pick Triton (Volo's Guide) for this build, especially if I was multiclassing, because you get +1 to Strength, Con, and Charisma.

- In my opinion, this option puts the "warrior" in "holy warrior." Great if you're looking to smite all those who stand in the way of your crusade.

- Melee DPS: Any subclass of Monk. You can multiclass into Cleric for that extra holy flare. In this case, I'd definitely take Monk as your first class, so you automatically gain the benefit of Unarmored Defense.

- Wisdom would be your highest stat for this multiclass, followed by Dexterity to boost your damage as a Monk.

- The reason why I'm leaving the subclass open for both class options is because of the type of deity a holy warrior may choose to follow. Way of the Long Death (Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide) multiclassed with a Death (Player's Handbook) or Grave (Xanathar's Guide) Cleric is a beautiful, necromantic combination. The Light Domain (Player's Handbook) works well aesthetically with Sun Soul Monks (Xanathar's Guide) as well. It's all in the type of god that you follow, but in my opinion, the monk and cleric subclass options have the ability to compliment each other if you let them.

- Aarakocra (Elemental Evil), Wood Elves (Player's Handbook), and Kenku (Volo's Guide) are all great options that boost primarily Dexterity and Wisdom as well. If you want a class that boosts both stats, but primarily Wisdom instead, go with Wildhunt Shifter (Eberron.)

- Spellcasting Tank: Any subclass of Druid. Again, Cleric would not be a bad choice for a multiclass in this situation.

- Wisdom is your highest stat, for spellcasting. You may also want to consider Constitution, to add to your tanking abilities.

- There's no race that buffs both of those stats, at least not that I could easily find. Instead, I'd focus on races that buff Wisdom well, like Kalashtar (Eberron) or Firbolgs (Volo's Guide.)

- Although the Nature Domain (Player's Handbook) is the obvious and effective choice for a Cleric subclass in this build, other options are available. Wildfire Druids (Tasha's Cauldron) can also be Light Clerics. Knowledge Clerics (Player's Handbook) can also be part of the Circle of Stars (Tasha's Cauldron.) Much like the monk, desired aesthetic is key for matching the subclasses.

- Versatile Spellcaster: Divine Soul Sorcerer AND / OR Celestial Warlock (both from Xanathar's Guide.) You can choose to multiclass with this option or not. You could even choose to multiclass with one of these options and Paladin.

- In this case, you have an arcane caster with a flare for divine magic, and also a different reason aside from faith to be a holy warrior. For this character, the first thing that comes to mind is the "Chosen One" trope. They were blessed with these powers or chosen to wield them in the name of a certain deity.

- Charisma is your highest stat for either choice.

- Half-Elves (Player's Handbook) are never a bad decision for Charisma spellcasters. Changelings (Eberron) and Tieflings (Player's Handbook / Mordenkainen's Tome) are also good choices.

Roleplay Potential

In any case, no matter which character type you decide to go with, the goals or motivations of the "holy warrior" are going to be similar. Holy warriors are typically crusaders for a cause, or missionaries looking to spread their faith.

It could be that their temple is under threat, or even has already been destroyed. They've left now to seek new followers to save or rebuild their home again. Another warrior from the religion of an enemy god becomes a dangerous rival to the PC, and therefore the whole party. Both of these options have the ability to establish antagonists, large or small.

However, I think that one of the most interesting arcs you can put a holy warrior archetype through is the "coming to terms with the fact that my faith isn't perfect" arc. If done correctly, the character has a chance to feel more strongly connected to the faith that they've known and loved... but they also acknowledge that not everyone likes their faith. Or, perhaps, their faith isn't exactly what they always thought it was. Maybe a faith that is now widely known as good had a dark past, filled with death and violence. How do they cope with that? What do they do? How does that change how they see the world?

When you have a character with such strong beliefs, it's fun to challenge those beliefs and see what that character might do. It causes conflict, and if the holy warrior starts out as pompous or arrogant, it can also allow them to come down from their pedestal and connect with the party. Their friends become part of their faith, part of what they're crusading for.