The Eldritch Knight of Dungeons & Dragons is a Fighter subclass that combines the martial and arcane in a powerful blend of magic and melee. Drawing from their knowledge of protective and destructive magic, they can put themselves easily on the frontline, providing a protective barrier between their lesser-armored allies and dangerous foes. The right Eldritch Knight build provides opportunities for this Fighter to sling both spells and swords, making them a valuable asset to the party.

Combining magic and melee has some major advantages, but players really need to know how to build their character for maximum effect. The right species' bonuses and attributes, character background, ability score allotment, spells and feats can guarantee that the very thin line between the martial and the arcane can be crossed with great reward rather than severe consequence.

Updated on March 29th, 2024 by Louis Kemner: This feature about the ideal Eldritch Knight build has been updated to adhere to CBR's current publication standards and contains new material.Eldritch Knight 5e Build Summary

The Eldritch Knight Has Three Core Abilities to Focus On

Along with Strength and Constitution, Eldritch Knights Also Require Intelligence for Spellcasting

Even though the Eldritch Knight has arcane knowledge, they still need to be powerful fighters. This means pouring as many points as possible into Strength and Constitution. Ideally, these should both have at least 16 points at the start to provide the Eldritch Knight with the ability to make powerful melee attacks while also being able to take hits. After those, prioritize Intelligence, which establishes the Eldritch Knight's spellcasting DC and modifier. With the right racial bonuses, there should be enough points left in the pool to ensure Intelligence is at least 12

Because of this subclass' abilities and build, Dexterity may not seem essential, however DEX contributes to the player's overall Armor Class when donning Light and Medium armor. As a spellcasting fighter, it's imperative to make sure that AC is as high as possible, so they can maintain concentration on any spells that require it to keep the spell-effect going. For those who don't want to don heavy armor, which may slow movement speed, improving the DEX modifier will also improve AC. Additionally, DEX contributes to a player's initiative bonus. Since Fighters often look for opportunities to be first on the field, an improved initiative bonus potentially improves their ability to take action more quickly.

Since no one expects Fighters to be wise or charismatic, either Wisdom or Charisma could become dump stats to focus on more necessary attributes. This also provides some great character history and roleplaying opportunities, so don't be afraid to dump a stat.

The Best Species For a Good Eldritch Knight Build Will Boost Their Abilities

Species With Strength, Constitution and/or Intelligence Boosts Are a Good Match for the Eldritch Knight

The most important thing to consider when choosing a species is how well that species' attributes will play to the strength chosen class's strengths. Because Eldritch Knights rely on Strength, Constitution and Intelligence, finding a species that boosts one or more of these ability scores is a winner. A small handful of D&D species are great picks for the Eldritch Knight subclass, with Mountain Dwarf being the most prominent among them.

Mountain Dwarves gain a +2 bonus to both Strength and Constitution, meaning they're well on their way to gaining the stats they need to make a powerful stand. All Dwarves gain an automatic +2 to Constitution, but only the Mountain Dwarf can also add that +2 to Strength. Still, any species that grants a significant bonus to Strength, Constitution or both is well-worth pursuing, so look through the stat bonuses each species gains before choosing.

Half-Orc is another fine option for any fighter, or indeed any martial class in D&D, including a fighter who multiclasses into Eldritch Knight. The Half-Orc species gets +2 STR and +1 CON, which are vital for any fighter, and the Relentless Endurance trait allows a half-orc to survive a KO blow with 1 HP so they can finish the fight. Half-Orcs also bolster a fighter character's roleplay a bit with their proficiency in the Intimidation skill, and they even have darkvision. Savage Attacks help half-orcs deal more damage with critical hits, but that's situational.

Goliaths always make good fighters and barbarians with their flexible +2/+1 ability score increases, and depending on how the player rolled their stats, they might use either the +2 or +1 for their INT score if they always intendeed to use the Eldritch Knight subclass. On defense, goliaths can use Stone's Endurance to stave off damage, lessening their need to spend spell slots on defensive spells. Thus, a goliath Eldritch Knight can save those spell slots for offensive magic without sacrificing defense.

Warforged is a solid pick for any fighter character, Eldritch Knights included. They get a +2 CON boost and +1 in any other score, which can be used for INT. Ideally, the player will use their highest roll for their stats for their STR, then use the second-highest one for CON, and the third for INT when playing as a warforged. This mechanical species also gets +1 AC naturally, and they resist poison while being immune to disease. Warforged can also choose any one skill proficiency they choose, making them more flexible outside of combat, and the same is true for one desired tool proficiency.

The Most Helpful Backgrounds for Eldritch Knights

The Best Backgrounds Provide Useful Skills and Enhance Roleplay Opportunities

Background choices should be relative to the character being created, but there are some options that enhance an Eldritch Knight build. Such backgrounds should also focus heavily on fighter roleplay. The fighter class tends to be weak when it comes to roleplay opportunities, for the most part, so giving them an interesting background can help in this area.

Sage provides proficiency in Arcana and History and allows the player to choose scholarly training as a Wizard's apprentice -- which could be a great leaping off point for where they forged their arcane foundation. On the flip side, Soldier provides proficiency in Athletics and Intimidation, and it's a good way to explain where the knight learned their martial skills, gained a rank and shaped their viewpoint on war and battle. There is also an option to sit down with the Dungeon Master and customize a background to make it specific and suitable to the Eldritch Knight's history and proficiencies.

The Best Feats for an Eldritch Knight Should Strengthen Their Magical Abilities

Even as a Low-Level Caster, The Eldritch Knight Can Benefit Greatly from Feats that Bolster Their Magic

D&D 5e's Feats can give an Eldritch Knight build some powerful advantages. Notably, many of the best Eldritch Knight feats are actually different than the best mainstream fighter feats, so this calls for some off-beat thinking. To begin with, the War Caster feat grants advantage on Constitution saving throws to maintain concentration for ongoing spells. It also allows the Eldritch Knight to use a spell attack as an attack of opportunity, as well as the ability to cast without using somatic components -- which is perfect for a character who already has their hands full with a shield and weapon.

Magic Initiate allows the player to choose another magical class, like the highly recommended warlock for access to Eldritch Blast and Hex. They gain access to two cantrips and one first level spell that can be cast at its lowest level once per long rest. Elemental Adept allows the player to choose a type of magical damage and makes it so any spells they cast of that element ignore resistances to that type of magic. This feat can be chosen multiple times, each time creating another magical damage resistance breaker that could come in handy against powerful enemies.

The Best D&D 5e Spells for an Eldritch Knight

Eldritch Knight Spell Level Maxes at Four, Meaning They Need to Choose Their Spells Carefully