Play Your Next 5E D&D Game as a Slayer of Evil

One of our Patreon supporters asked us to come up with a fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons character build for their concept so over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted oblige. They are playing in a Domains of Dread campaign and want to play a Slayer of Evil character focused on the undead, lycanthropes, witches and ghosts instead of demons and devils. Although they don’t play Adventurers League they asked specifically for an AL-legal build, “So, everyone can benefit from this build and use it in their one-shot, campaign, homebrew and what not.” This 5E D&D character brings light to the darkest of places so let’s get into it.

Behind the CBG — Slayer of Evil

Every CBG we create considers the journey as much as the final outcome. We aim to present a guide suitable for any level of 5E D&D play whether you’re pursuing an epic campaign from start to finish, starting beyond 1st level or choosing a character for a one shot. Then we take those concepts and develop an NPC or creature version of the character build for DMs to incorporate into their games. All of this gets packaged up and laid out in a PDF you can find over at Dungeon Master’s Guild. We’ve got dozens of pay what you want products at DMG, many of them best sellers so if you want to check those out start with the Slayer of Evil here.

All about the character story

Each CBG starts with a character concept sticking to a particular schtick, from the Mind Breaker’s psyche crushing smites to the Slayer of Evil’s dedication to cultivating their inner light and then manifesting it outwardly to slay evil. Sometimes puns and pop culture references instigate the creation of a CBG too. This one is special though since it comes straight from the Nerdarchy community from one of our most ardent supporters and we love how one of their requests included making it maximally useful for 5E D&D players.

This CBG may find renewed life with the release of Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft too. The original intent was a character tailored for a Curse of Strahd campaign but with the expansion of the Domains of Dread for 5E D&D within the pages of the new book the Slayer of Evil takes on a whole new dimension. From a story perspective we imagined this character spent their younger years at a monastery. There they learned about all the dark things out in the world, training their minds and bodies to stand against these entities and forces. So many new Domains of Dread now await this character for exploration and the slaying of evil creatures.

Illuminator NPC for 5E D&D

Full disclosure — the NPCs and creatures we make in CBGs are some of my favorite bits of 5E D&D content to create. We step back and look at the character build to find the standout features that feel like signature abilities. The juice! From there we consider what sort of person or people would possess or gain these abilities and build a stat block around them. More often than not the section of a CBG For Dungeon Masters presents a generic creature.

The player version in the CBG relies greatly on the Way of the Sun Soul monk’s features to blast evil creatures to smithereens so we went all in with the concept for the NPC version. An illuminator bends light to their will and woe be to any evil doers caught in their radiant glow. An illuminator can provide light for those lost in darkness. The knowledge and power gained through quests can help younger adventurers defeat evil. An illuminator is willing to share what they can — especially to aid others in vanquishing evil — but will almost certainly require a test to be sure.

Bringing the Light. An illuminator has a singular goal — destroy evil with radiant light. Prone to snap judgements, if an illuminator deems a creature harbors darkness, they become a relentless foe. Even heroes with a dark demeanor like bloodthirsty warriors or the worst of the bunch: necromancers who “only create undead to do good,” have much to fear from an illuminator who only sees things in black and white.

“Prayer of Dawn (1/Day). As an action, the illuminator can dispel any magical darkness within 30 ft. Each hostile creature (that doesn’t have total cover) within 30 ft. must make a DC 17 Constitution saving throw or take 22 (4d10) radiant damage, or half as much damage on a successful save.“

If your next 5E D&D game needs a character who pew pew pews evil with the power of radiant light — whether you’re the DM or a player — check out the Slayer of Evil Character Build Guide here.

*Featured image — Narset is a human planeswalker, and former khan, from Tarkir in the worlds of Magic: The Gathering. Narset is a master of martial arts and mental discipline with an insatiable thirst for knowledge. [Art by Magali Villeneuve]

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