Deadliest D&D 🔪Dagger🔪 Fighter 🏰🐉 Dungeons and Dragons Character Builds 

zero11010 totally agree Monk should be been discussed it pairs well with Ranger. Also think Ranger Horde Breaker potentially could be better than Collosus Slayer, especially if you can make Sharpshooter damage hit reliably. Monk could replace Rogue and you may need as little as one level of Fighter.

but the title says “dagger fighter”

you could also take kensei monk. it's a melee weapon so agile parry would work, but you can also make ranged attacks so Kensei's shot also works with the dagger. +it makes all daggers you trow magic weapons.

@@lexmtaylor Sharpshooter DMG bonus doesn't work with melee weapons, only ranged weapons.

@@JuckiCZ I think it does work with Darts. Which are similar to daggers and often get substituted as "throwing knives".

underrated comment

Correct, it would work for darts but not daggers.

I'm glad that this was already caught!

I'm so glad Crawford completely forgot about Master Thrower being one of the most popular 3.5 prestige classes. Then not only doesn't support throwing daggers and other melee weapons he goes out of his way to nerf people trying to cobble together a bad semblance of the old master Thrower.

Yeah, if it's my table, it'll work in my game.

If you look in the weapon section of the PHB where it talks about Melee and Range on 146. the last sentence states. "A melee weapon is used to attack a target within 5 feet o f you, whereas a ranged weapon is used to attack a target at a distance." This would put daggers as a ranged weapon if it is used that way. Also under Range on the next page it talks about ranged weapons has two numbers listing the range in feet which daggers have. This makes from the PHB that daggers are both a melee weapon and a ranged weapon according to the PHB.

excuse my stupidity, how is that? im trying to build a monk for the next campaign and so far all ive decided on is variant human lawful evil.

As you increase your monk's level the damage die of his monk weapons goes up, and throwing daggers count as a monk weapon. Many people don't actually realize that throwing daggers are monk weapons, but the rules as written say they are. Pg 78 of the players handbook says that monk weapons are "shortswords and any simple melee weapons that don't have the two-handed or heavy property." Daggers are simple melee weapons that do not have the two-handed or heavy property, so they are monk weapons.

um, monk increases unarmed strike die, not the weapon die. normally hitting with your hands does 1 damage, monk starts off by doing 1d4+dex, which increases up to 1d10 as you go up in level. The thing monk weapons get (all simple weapons and short swords) is you can add Dex instead of Strength. it dosent add to your weapon damage die.

Yah its a trap, if you got mad dex you can take a garaunteed 6 on each unarmed strike if you follow unarm,ed rules (1+STR(DEX)+ProfBon. That makes n 18DPR per turn with bonus strike @ 1st lvl w/ dex 16. even so its a 15 DPR @ DEX 15 pretty gnar caonsidering your a fledgling

you can use your unarmed strike damage as your monk weapon damage, read page 78 of the players handbook

I have a level one fighter with a Base (no spells) AC of 24 with armour and shield

@@haggisllama2630 how?

Mr1991bbk I second this because-at least to all of my knowledge-that is mechanically impossible without a bunch of ridiculous magic items that shouldn’t be available to first level characters or a lot of potentially unbalanced homebrewing.

Plus you don't feel like a turd for trying to game the game. Some people know how to suck the fun out of everything, these people don't last long in my games....

Mike Kilo And this is an easy build. That makes it easier to grasp (EDIT: For newer players)

Agreed. I don't enjoy playing with folks who powergame. I understand min/max'ing but don't game the game, just pick a race, a class, and go have fun. It's a game after all, don't ruin it by over gaming.

Mike Kilo As myself and a fellow local DM say, "Create a WHO. Then make the WHAT." In other words, come up with a person, then make the mechanics to fit that person. So instead of "I'm playing a multiclass Warlock Paladin with a Greatsword."...I'm playing "Aesir the Fallen. I saw what they did to my betrothed. My fellow knights stood there...and did nothing...because of their oath. I've may a new oath, but not to an order. No, this oath I might regret, but not before getting Elona's soul back." Then the DM knows WHO I am. He knows my motivation. He gets a feel for my character. Now he can deal with me like a living thing, not just numbers on a page.

That is spot on and the way I usually make my characters as well. But I love the who/what line and will use that in the future. Then you let the character develop naturally instead of planning out to level 20 during generation. Brother, I think you and I would enjoy playing in the same group.

Say it louder for the people in the back. Its just what i thought. Bound knife thrower monk sounds awesome.

Did this with Javelins of Lightning :)

The only dowside, would be the Stats bumps. You need Int for the EK, replace Str for Dex (which a DM could not allow), and also Wis for the Monk, and don't forget abou Con. Your only "dump stat" would be Cha. How would you manage bumping up 4 or 5 different stats in one PC?

I thought of Vax'ildan from Vox Machina :)

Level 3 Barbarian has entered the chat

Actually according to Mike Mearls sage advice thrown weapons count as both melee and ranged.

"@atkinsonnathanj Archery fighting style only affects weapons under ranged cat. on p149 phb, not weapons with the thrown property? This RAW? That's correct. A melee weapon with the thrown property is still a melee weapon when you throw it." "@PlaguescarredHi Jeremy, does a melee weapon that is thrown count as ranged? I.e Do Archery Fighting Srtyle work wt thrown dagger? The Archery feature is intended to work with ranged weapons. A dagger is a melee weapon even when you throw it." "@YetiMooseDoes a dagger count as both a melee and a ranged weapon for feats? In other words can I use the sharpshooter feat with a dagger? yes - it might feel unintuitive for the bonus damage, but it doesn't break anything" "@JeremyECrawford @mikemearls previously stated that the sharpshooter feat should work with daggers. What's your official ruling on this? - Joe_Sith (@jsdeangelo) April 9, 2016 Sharpshooter feat-the first two benefits work with a ranged attack with any weapon, including a dagger. #DnD t.co/UySj1baaw9 - Jeremy Crawford (@JeremyECrawford) April 11, 2016" They're a bit all over the place when it comes to what thrown weapons count as and how the rules apply to them. The writers don't know/agree, so it's going to come down to the DM.

Even if the Dm gives daggers the benefit of the doubt its still worse then every ranged weapon but the net and blowgun. That aside would you say you can only throw one dart? because two weapon fighting specifies light melee weapon?

MrMetalpunx Personally, I would allow them to draw darts freely. This would function like drawing and firing an arrow with a bow. If the 1D4 dart started to somehow seem unfair compared to a 1D6 shortbow with superior range or a 1D8 longbow with incredible range and less commonly provided proficiency ... well, then I'd look at it I guess. I don't know if there's a wrong way to handle that though. I think there's an argument to be made for the difficulty of drawing and throwing in rapid succession. In older editions it would have been in line to provide a negative modifier for subsequent attacks to add an element of realism. While you can certainly do this with 5E it seems like they've really intentionally done away with all those little separate modifiers you would get to an attack in favor of advantage or disadvantage (with a few exceptions, of course). I think a lot of that is silly though. In 3.5 and 4E it was really common to have thrown magic weapons return after being thrown. It sure makes sense to me and I miss it. So, it's a feature I attach to thrown weapons. The idea of "yeah, magic items are rare and these are incredibly valuable ... so I'm just going to throw this dagger/dart/javelin/spear/trident/hammer/axe at you now ... please don't anyone pick this up and run away with it, thanks!"

But would you let them throw 2 darts using 2 weapon fighting?

-this feat would do nothing for using daggers. Daggers require no ammunition, so bullet point 1 is pointless You can make a melee attack with a dagger, making bullet point 2 pointless Bullet point 3 is pointless, as it is basically a reflavored twin weapon fighting.- actually no, you're right, this is the way to fix it Impalement Expert * You may draw a thrown weapon with the light or finesse property as part of an attack you make with one. * Being within 5 feet of a hostile creature doesn't impose disadvantage on your ranged attack rolls. * When you use the Attack action and attack with a one-handed weapon, you can use a bonus action to attack with a thrown weapon that you are holding, so long as it has the light or finesse property. (this excludes javelins, spears, nets and tridents)

dylan schuler I agree this feat needs to exist, I'd substitute no disadvantage for long range for ability to fire close range without penalty because it would be more helpful with the poor range of thrown weapons and you can make a melee attack with the dagger in your hand. The weapon Thrower trope needs some help.

Captain D Cap Isn’t this just the “You May draw..” part? If you are just 5 feet just melee stab it, and your able to use a second shot as a bonus action anyways because TWF

Colossus Slayer specifically says you can only do the extra 1d8 once per turn.

A good dagger build isn't hard, although your point about shortswords would still be true, since they would work in the same build. But it's the roleplaying aspect that makes the difference. If you're looking for pure stats, just about any build using daggers can be copied and made slightly more damaging by substituting in shortswords. But if you want your character to be a dagger fighter, make him or her a dagger fighter because it's what you want to play. In the game world the characters don't know the damage dice of the weapons, they just learn to fight with a certain type of weapon.

eh... rogues don't care about weapon choices beyond attack options. crossbows give them range and an extra attack (with a feat), whips give them reach, daggers give them versatility for ranged or melee. The biggest damage is from their sneak attack dice.

Justin Timm revised version sure, but look at the article date and video date. Sorry our Tardis was being serviced the day we shot this one ;p Nerdarchist Dave

haha didn't even notice the video date, fair enough. You guys make great videos btw

Justin Timm thanks. I figured as much, but figured a little good natured ribbing might be in order. Nerdarchist Dave

Not until it becomes official. Nerdarchist Dave

Yes and No Yes for all the reason you said, plus since it is a ranged weapon (thus the archery fighting style and the sharp shooter feat work on it). And cost. No because then you lack melee and grappling options.

They're all dead right? Their psionic defences are gone. And any paladin could smell the hoard of demons powerful enough to kill an entire illithid hive, after having forced their way through the other 3 planes they have to go through.

You could even equip a whip after you threw your dagger, a true master of finesse. Seems like a good fit for either ancients (more vigilante rouge) or conquest (fearsome (finesse) weapons master)

The dagger is a finesse weapon, so you can use strength to throw it. In any event, you can't use Divine Smite when throwing the dagger. When you throw it, it's a ranged attack using a melee weapon, and Divine Smite only works with a melee weapon attack.

Because the part of sharpshooter that people like (the third bullet point) does not work for daggers. The wording for it states ranged weapons only. A dagger is a melee weapon that you're using for a ranged attack. Generally speaking though, a monk with daggers would pretty much be just as effective as any other monk. You can take mobility to mitigate opportunity attacks when running by. This would allow you to use your attack action for your dagger throws (monk weapon) and still allow you move into, and potentially back out of, melee range for the bonus unarmed attacks.

zero11010 ah

Ivan Hayes Don't feel bad though. These two guys missed that, too. (My last long term character was a monk ... he would have been an absolute terror if I had armed him with daggers. He wouldn't have the kind of burst damage these two are looking for ... like sneak attack and whatever else ... but monks do really steady sustained damage and have much better utility than a battle master fighter)

Ivan Hayes I'd also add that to my understanding, the monk can't use any of their super sweet abilities (including the increased damage die & flurry of blows) with ranged attacks. -Nerdarchist Ryan

The damage increase doesn't say anything about melee or range but flurry of blows are unarmed attacks.

Lore Bard would be the obvious choice. Or knowledge cleric. If you wanna double down on the knowing things aspect anyways lol.

You could work out with your DM a pair of magic daggers that come back, lol. Or get magic initiate, then use Find Familiar or Mage Hand to go get them for you. 😄

While Sharpshooter technically doesn't apply to thrown weapons (in regards to +10 damage), my DM allowed it. Otherwise, you're absolutely correct.....it's a pointless build other than flavor.

Darts are simple weapons, so they are monk weapons. -To make this build work, you need the dual wielder feat, and reskin darts as daggers. With the dual wielder feat, Dart = Dagger literally 100% mechanically, unless you use them at melee range, where you cannot get sneak attack with them.)- actually, scratch that, dual wielder does not allow you to wield two darts, as they are not melee weapons. So you'll need DM fiat either way. Human variant, Battlemaster Fighter 5 gets you both Sharpshooter and Dual Wielder, which are the integral feats, as well as a big hitdice, Extra Attack and all weapon proficiencies, so you can still use a longbow if you can't reach your target with your Dart-daggers. UA Ranger 3 gets you the Colossus slayer 1d8, Hunter's mark, longstrider and all the lvl 1 ranger goodies, which I feel outshine Warlock dip, though warlock gets their spells back on a short rest, so you could weigh your options. At most, though, take 2 points of warlock, more is a waste. Monk is only good for bumping your dart-dagger damage dice, all other monk features are a total waste, compared to rogue. It's a trap, don't dip monk. Invest 6 levels into assassin rogue for 3d6 sneak attack dice, expertise, and amazing synergy with the ranger first turn advantage, and you can use another ASI to get the Martial Adept feat for another superiority die, then continue down the fighter tree all the way to Extra Attack (2) What does this do for you? (Fighter 11, Rogue 5/6, Ranger 3/4) (Or Fighter 11/12, Rogue 6/7 and Warlock 2) Ranger for synergy with rogue, Warlock for a longer Hex uptime compared to ranger's HM . 1 attack for 1d4 + 4d6 (Sneak attack + HM) + 1d10 (Superiority) + 1d8 (Colossus slayer) + 5 for an average of 29/30 damage if you are at 20 dex, or more if you factor in the Sharpshooter bonus. 3 attacks for a total of 3d4 + 3d6 + 3d10 + 15 for an average of 49/50 without the sharpshooter bonus. Because of this, Twin Weapon fighting Style usually outclasses Archery, but you can go Champion in stead of Battlemaster and get both if you like. Adding more dice is usually better, though. An average damage of 80 (+ a possible 40) per round is pretty sweet. The only real restricting factors are your superiority dice, and that RAW you are limited in how many daggers you can draw per turn, but most DM's are willing to overlook this, because Arrows can be drawn, nocked and fired for free, while drawing and throwing a dagger is MUCH QUICKER THAN THAT. That said, as soon as you run out of superiority dice (You have 5, or 6 with the feat), you're best off switching to your trusty longbow, or your damage drops off dramatically. 4d8 per round is better than 4d4 + 1d8, especially considering the longbow doesn't require a bonus action to dish out such damage. Another big downside to this build is the reliance on feats. The build doesn't come online until your second ASI, and you get at most 2 more ASI's, meaning your ability scores lag behind the rest of your party unless you rolled well on them.

Captain D Cap No, Monk weapon are simple melee weapon and shortsword. Dart are range weapon.

ShamanCore23 ah, you're right. simple melee weapons only. Kinda dumb if you ask me. Still, taking monk in a dagger throwing build is a bad idea, anyway, so it's moot.

Ah! Dave corrected ;)

Eh? Where does it say that?

bigaaronone if youre making a custom feat anyway you could change the other effects so that might be better

11th level Horizon Walker gains the *"Distant Strike"* ability. Which, to be frank, is useless for a knife thrower. If you attack twice against two different creatures, you get a third attack against a third creature for free. The problem is you have already thrown away your two knives by this point. ..... although.... if you melee attack _and then_ throw the remaining 2 daggers it could work. The teleportation feature of this ability is okay, not as good as the 3rd attack, but is still a plus on an otherwise not-so-useful ability. *"Pact of the Blade"* is great for summoning a weapon to your hand, but it takes a complete turn to do. Meaning you are still stuck drawing a new dagger every 2nd turn. I see no reason why this is any better than just drawing your daggers from your belt, other than the very slight possibility you might run out of belt-supplied daggers. Level 5 warlock and Level 4 fighter means you are missing out on the (sub)class features from Level 6 warlock and level 7 fighter. So may I suggest either 6Warlock/3Fighter or 2Warlock/7Fighter. Personally I'll suggest 6W/3F/11Ranger so that you avoid overlap of the "extra attack"; _and_ because the *"Know Your Enemy"* ability from level 7 fighter isn't as impressive as some level 6 warlock abilities. Speaking of which, which patron are you going with for the warlock? May I suggest "The Celestial" if you wish to focus on fire magic more than knives (plus medic abilities) Or "The Archfey" if you like to teleport. Or "The Great Old One", which synergieses best with the Stab-throw-throw method of using 'Distant Strike' Or "Hexblade".... which is probably the best since you can completely dump Dex for weapon attacks and use Charisma instead. But for your armor class and dex saving throws having a lower Dex isn't great, so it still isn't a perfect choice. Back to the Fighter, it doesn't offer anything worthwhile. Except for combat maneuvers, which can be achieved from the "Martial Adept" feat. Meaning you could instead take "Fighter:Champion" for better crit chance. Or even just ditch the fighter all together (but that would mean not taking 'Two Weapon Fighting' ) Due to Multiclassing rules, you will need a minimum of 13 in Charisma, Dexterity, and Wisdom. You can get that at level 1 with the standard array, so it isn't hard. But these are the _minimum_ and you will have trouble with specializing. Wisdom if you want to specialize in Ranger spells, Charisma for Warlock spells, and Dexterity for the weapon. You can have one, maybe two, but not all three. _________________________________________ After reading over everything and thinking a bit.... It isn't so bad. Dagger throwing isn't exactly a viable strategy to begin with. So the drawbacks of this build are partly due to that. 11 Ranger: Horizon Walker. 6 Warlock: Great Old One + Pact of the Blade 3 Fighter: Champion + Two-Weapon Fighting Feats = Dual Wielding, Martial Adept Warlock Invocations = Tomb of Levistus, One with Shadows, Cloak of Flies

Plus as an entertainer, your daggers/darts don't have to look the part :) they can look like cards like Twisted Fate from League of Legends has or feathers :)

Yeah, that's pretty cool, although in this particular case the person they're making this for is using Adventurers League.

Etherealizer so a dagger has to look like a dagger or it can't use the stats of a danger.?

Yeah, I think AL is pretty strict on these things. But you could definitely do whatever you wanted with your DMs approval.

or DIO

D T It’s been a while and this would be good to revisit

@@lexmtaylor For real