Summary
Dungeons and Dragonsis traditionally a group effort, with an entire party of adventurers ready to explore the world created by the DM. However, it can be hard to find a full group, and there’s no wrong way to play the game. As long as you have a DM, it’s totally possible torun a game for one player.
However, some classes are better suited to solo play than others. In a normal game of D&D, party balance isn’t too difficult to achieve, but a solo player needs to cover all their bases themselves instead of relying on other party members. Here are some of the most suitable classes for solo play.
7Paladin
For The Do-Gooders
There’s no explicit rule in fifth edition that says paladins have to be lawful good, but having an oath to follow leads one towards a lawful alignment in general. Still, this is the perfect class if you might need some assistance with both roleplay and roll-play.
Paladins in D&D already have access to healing abilities, meaning less work for your DM to ensure your resources are balanced. You also have the potential to have one of the highest damage outputs of any class, so you certainly won’t be wanting for firepower. Just try to keep stealth missions to a minimum.
6Cleric
For The Traditionalists
Clerics in D&D are a highly versatile class. Most traditional games of D&D suffer from not having a healer in the party unless the DM is experienced and prepared to account for this deficiency. Playing as a cleric means that you’ll always have healing spells on hand. That’s not the only perk, however. The spell list for clerics is highly versatile, meaning you’ll have a spell for just about every situation you’ll come across.
Playing as a cleric is a great option if you don’t have a good grasp of the rules but aren’t used to roleplaying yet. DMs can ease you into your role by asking some simple questions. What is the character’s patron deity? What do they demand of their followers? If you aren’t comfortable coming up with these answers yourself, feel free to look to your DM for guidance.
5Druid
For The Animal Lovers
There are two types of druid players: those with an incredibly detailed character concept they’ve probably spent months on and those who want to mess around with animals for the entire campaign. There’s significant overlap, but the good news is that a solo campaign allows you to be as self-indulgent as the DM allows you to with this.
It’s no secret thatWild Shape is broken, and using it during a solo game means you don’t have to worry about leaving other party members behind while in animal form. Shapeshifting and talking to animals aren’t the only tricks a druid has up their sleeve, either. As a druid, you’ll gain access to a powerful and diverse portfolio of spells. And yes, you’re able to heal yourself, meaning less work for the DM.
4Rogue
For The Edgelords
If you’re able to account for the lack of healing, then rogues are a great option. They’re the perfect class if you want to spend a lot of time doing stealth missions or more traditional dungeon dives. If you have a player who doesn’t want to bother with the hassle of spellcasting, this is the perfect solo class.
There areenough rogue subclassesto suit just about any play style. The Mastermind archetype is great for players who want to dive right into social intrigue. Swashbucklers are perfect for a more action-packed adventure, while Thieves and Arcane Tricksters are better for your standard dungeon delve. For those who truly crave violence, however, you can’t go wrong with an Assassin.
3Bard
For The Theater Kids
If you’re new to the structured rules and mechanics of D&D but not new to roleplaying, you might want to give bards a try. There are all sorts of ways you’re able to flavor your bard, so if the traditional musician isn’t your thing, try giving some other art form a try. The important thing is that your character interacts with the world and its lore.
DMs can also rest easy with this one. Bards, more than other classes, tend to engage with your world and the story in ways that put your world-building skills to the test. You can also count on bard players to come up with saucy stories of their own, engaging in a bit of dialog with you on the lore and culture of your setting.
For The Experienced Player
We don’t recommend that novice players roll up an artificer, and that’s under normal circumstances. You absolutely do not want to be overwhelmed by all the bookkeeping involved in a solo game, which can be more complicated than even playing a wizard. For more advanced players, however, this can be the challenge they’ve always dreamed of.
A solo campaign also allows artificers to spend as much time crafting items as they like without worrying about bogging down other players' fun. Taking the lead also relieves some of the mental burden of planning a session. Just make sure that creating items isn’t the only thing that happens during the game.
1Warlock
For The Storytellers
In most games of D&D, a warlock’s relationship with their patron isn’t as important as whatever the main story happens to be. That makes sense; it’s important to ensure one player’s storyline doesn’t overshadow the arcs of other party members. Playing as a warlock in a solo campaign, however, allows you to place the pact front and center.
On the mechanics side of things, warlocks areeasily the most customizable classin D&D. The sheer number of pact boons, spells, and other bells and whistles means that no two warlocks are alike. It’s easy to create a warlock that fits your specific play style. Overall, we can’t recommend this class enough for more creative solo players who already have a firm grasp of the basics.
