D&D 5E Builds: Dimensional Horror Grappler

~ cascadianna

One of the best parts of 5th Edition D&D grappling is dragging enemies. Got a flying speed? Offer a 200 foot ride to enjoy the view before sending them home for a 20d6 damage landing. Got a spellcaster? Grate grappled targets through Spike Growth or wash them in Wall of Fire. You can lug them off cliffs, into traps, or just away from your ranged friends who don’t want big brutes in their face. But D&D 5E also allows you to bring grappled foes to scarier places. Alien places. And if we’re going to drag our thrashing enemies into the outer voids beyond thought and existence, we need to look the part. Bulging muscles, webbed fins, leathery tentacles and all.

Today’s build is an unconventional Wizard grappler (yep. Wizard) using the tentacled Simic Hybrid to ensnare up to four enemies before hauling them off to the Far Realms. We’ll need level 9 Gate to bring our four foes to their new Lovecraftian overlords, but we’ll have plenty of control, damage, and magical options along the way. Whether you’re a martial player exploring magical options, someone who prefers magic but wants to enter the melee mix, or a Great Old One fanatic who just wants to sing of your eldritch masters, the Dimensional Horror awaits.

Sources and disclaimers

The only thing I love more than playing D&D is designing D&D characters. And the only thing I love more than that is when people can actually play my builds. To make sure readers can bring these characters to most tables, I’m sticking to official Wizards-published and occasionally Adventure League-legal material. I’m also staying within Rules As Written (RAW) rails as much as I can. Here are today’s sources:

Remember: these builds aren’t necessarily about creating D&D’s most overtuned optimizations. I design functional, flavorful characters that let players live out specific visions and playstyles while also having a big mechanical impact. Builds might not always be best-in-class for damage, tankiness, etc. but they’re always going to be thematic and effective. I’ll use RPGBot’s color system to rate features.

(Rules note: I’m using Jeremy Crawford’s stance (insert-strong-JC-opinions-here) on grappling vs. carrying/dragging. I know the PHB text on moving grappled creatures cites “carry” and “drag” verbiage like the carrying capacity rules, but JC’s Tweet is the better ruling. Otherwise your poor DM has to determine NPC weight when the books aren’t even tabulating that crap themselves. Besides, no one wants to calculate weights for the pot-bellied bandit swordsman in full plate vs. the axe berserker who is four inches taller in hide armor and just ate lunch.)

Dimensional Horror build

This character is all about establishing four grapples and dragging your captives into bad situations. Through level 11, that can be allied spells like Spike Growth, a nearby cliff, or just grab, shove, and stomp while allies enjoy melee-range advantage against pinned enemies. Things get weirder at lvl 12. Abuse Arcane Gate to divebomb your four victims 200 feet every round, negating your own damage with Feather Fall. Upgrade to a Glyph of Warding-infested Demiplane at lvl 16, and a one way trip to the Far Realms themselves via Gate at lvl 18. There are more refined Wizards and grapplers out there, but few that have such a great balance of damage, control, and oozing Outer-Realm flavor.

Race: Simic Hybrid

Playing a Dimensional Horror without being a tentacled Simic Hybrid is like playing with Mega Bloks instead of Legos. 80s and 90s babies whose families bought the wrong set know what I’m talking about; accept no substitutes! You lose so much visual and mechanical identity without the Hybrid’s staple tentacles, but there are lamer alternatives if you run into table or DM issues.

If your stickler DM enforces PHB weight rules for grappling and dragging, switch to Loxodon for Powerful Build, a consolation (mini) tentacle trunk, and natural armor (dump Dex for Con). Get Rune Knight ASAP for even more carrying capacity. For tables who prohibit GGR, go Tasha’s custom lineage or variant human into Skill Expert at level 1. All these races are still functional Dimensional Horrors, but will grapple only three (Loxodon trunk) and two (everyone else) enemies respectively. But for DMs and players brave enough to invite what lurks beyond space and time, enter the Simic Hybrid.

  • Simic Hybrid
    • Base ability scores (+2 Con, +1 Other): This could’ve been a lot worse, but we’d still prefer Str over Con.
    • Tasha’s ability scores (+2 Str, +1 Con): Much better.
    • Darkvision 60: We’re a nightmare from the Far Realms. Of course we see in the dark.
    • Manta Glide: Redundant with Feather Fall but can help guide you where you need to land or save a spell slot if under 100 feet.
    • Grappling Appendage: Tentacles. So many tentacles. Core build feature and one of the only ways to grapple four enemies (two in free hands, two in each appendage) without weird magical buffs or shapechanging shenanigans. Also, get your tentacle jokes out now because they’re going to keep squirming around throughout this article.
    • Reflavor/reskin: Ignore the Ravnica lore. You’re a human or elven warrior, touched by alien gods and coaxed down the path of extraplanar madness. You will slowly grow into your role as your new appendages grow from within. If Great Old One Warlocks are setting-agnostic, you should be too. Embrace your new gods as you embrace the unbelievers on the battlefield.

Ability scores: Everything but Wis and Cha

For ability scores, we’re in spellblade limbo of wanting both physical and mental stats. Makes me very MAD. Good news: 5E D&D doesn’t require high Int to learn all our spells. This means we can get away with lower Int than feels fair for a Wizard. Bad news: we still actually want Int for Bladesinging. We also want Str for grappling and carry capacity, Dex for armor, and Con for HP and concentration. Grrr. I’m MAD again. Here’s one way to cover this spread assuming you can use Tasha’s to swap +2 Con for +2 Str (+1 “Other” goes into Con or Int).

  • Ability scores (standard array): 17 Str, 12 Dex, 14 Con, 14 Int, 10 Wis, 8 Cha.
  • Ability scores (27 point-buy): 17 Str, 12 Dex, 15 Con, 14 Int, 8 Wis, 8 Cha

Level 1-20 Progression

Here’s our path from Lovecraft fangurl/boi to tentacled terror, plus key Fighter and Wizard features/spells on the way:

  • Fighter 1: Solid D10 HD maxed at lvl 1 plus proficiencies we won’t use. Second Wind is always fine but Unarmed Fighting keeps our damage consistent: 1d4 free damage for all grappled foes plus a beefy D8 unarmed strike die. Con save proficiency is huge and saves a feat later.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 1: Switching to D6 HD is blah. Pick up the necessary but boring Feather Fall for our eventual Gate-jump and Mage Armor for a respectable 14 AC.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 2: Sing the Bladesong! Awake Ye Scary Great Olde Ones! +10 speed on top of +2 to AC and Concentration is a welcome combat buff. Extra creepy points if your character is actually singing about Cthulhu’s greatness during combat. Or you as the player.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 3: All grapplers need Athletics advantage, and we get it from Enlarge.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 4: Mandatory Skill Expert for +1 Str and double-proficiency Athletics. Also, unleash your Grappling Appendages, my beauty…
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 5: We generally won’t break concentration on Enlarge, but Fly is available to start dropping enemies, and Dispel Magic/Counterspell disrupts opposing spellcasters.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 6: It feels like cheating that Wizards earn Extra Attack as part of any Arcane Tradition at all. No complaints; now we can grapple four enemies over 2-3 turns. We can also string in cantrips with attacks for special situations.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 7: More great spells but we’re probably not trading them for grapple/shove or Enlarge. Fun favorite: Faithful Hound threatens 4d8 damage per turn to one victim with no concentration.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 8: Get +2 Str ASI for that necessary Str 20.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 9: Most lvl 5 spells won’t compete for Enlarge concentration, but I love Transmute Rock. Restrain all your grappled friends in a muddy morass, follow with Dex-save spells next turn.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 10: We have a lot of unused spell slots to burn and Song of Defense lets us offset our otherwise dismal HP.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 11: OPEN THE ARCANE GATE. Choose a point near you and another point on solid, walkable ground within 500 feet. Ideally, one next to a 200+ ft. drop. You’ll lose concentration on Enlarge but that doesn’t break grapple so you can still drag all your foes through. You also get Contingency with Enlarge triggering when you close the distance for round 1 action economy.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 12: Go Metamagic Adept for Subtle Spell so you don’t have to drop one enemy before casting Arcane Gate (stupid somatic components), plus Quicken Spell for action economy.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 13: Begin your journey to find the Far Realm with Plane Shift. Or Plane Shift your enemies there as advance scouts. Hazard pay not included.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 14: We won’t say no to +2 damage to all melee attacks from Song of Victory.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 15: We still haven’t found the Far Realm, but we’ve definitely discovered our own Demiplane of Madness. Assembly required. Prep your plane full of Glyphs of Warding packed with nasty, Cthulhian spells or boring 5d8 explosions. Don’t forget to reset Contingency to cast Resilient Sphere on yourself on a command phrase. Then haul your victims through the Demiplane door, trigger Contingency, trigger the Glyphs, and sit back while everyone melts. Backup plan – Antimagic Field and terrorize opposing casters.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 16: Get Warcaster if you’re struggling to maintain concentration at this level or just go with a Con ASI. Or (sigh) Lucky.
  • Fighter 1 / Wizard 17: We can open a Gate to the Far Realm. Welcome home. Grapple enemies, cast Gate, and walk them through. Drop them off with their new Old One neighbors before enjoying the sights and Planeshifting yourself home. Don’t forget to visit.

At this point, you can either go all the way to Wizard 19 for Spell Mastery (probably Enlarge), a second lvl 6 spell slot, and either a final ASI or feat. You can also round out those Fighter levels for the almighty Action Surge into Rune Knight, a grappler staple. Battle Master is also great for stacking trips, disarms, and menace on your attacks. I’m going to finish up with Rune Knight but remember you can also take these extra Fighter levels earlier in your progression if you really need the extra class abilities.

  • Fighter 2 / Wizard 17: Action Surge lets you grapple all four victims on the first turn of combat. Quicken your Gate to execute the entire combo in a single turn.
  • Fighter 3 / Wizard 17: Thanks to Giant’s Might, we can either commit concentration to a non-Enlarge buff, or grow to huge by Enlarging after we’re already large. Take Frost Rune for more Athletics oomph and a flavorful Intimidation boost, and Stone Rune so you can whisper the song of the Old Ones to freeze a target in place.

This build is bizarre. Even before you get your portals online, you’re an arcane, alien monster. An enlarged, tentacled horror, bursting with 20 Str worth of muscles and rippling with mystical augmentations. You have all the control options of a martial grappler with all the arcane potential of a Wizard, and even if you aren’t executing your combos, you can still have a big battlefield impact.

Of course, like all specialized builds, there are costs to this weird mix of abilities. Here are pros and cons for Dimensional Horrors:

  • PRO: Crushing battlefield control with four grappling limbs.
  • PRO: Devastating damage through higher level combos.
  • PRO: Increased mobility due to spells like Misty Step and Fly plus Bladesong’s speed boost.
  • PRO: High versatility with random magic/grapple/shove/mobility combos
  • PRO: Respectable survivability with 16 Bladesinging AC, Song of Defense healing, and Wizard spells (Absorb Elements, Shield, re-casting Blade Ward every turn via Extra Attack etc.).
  • PRO: Functional as either a standard grappler or standard Wizard even without combos.
  • CON: Weak round-to-round melee damage without magic (2d8+10 for unarmed strikes).
  • CON: Bad HP. D6 Wizard HDs are so depressing.
  • CON: Heavily reliant on positioning and environment. It can be hard to place Arcane Gates on balconies in certain adventures.
  • CON: Less optimized than a dedicated grappler or a dedicated Wizard outside of specific combos.
  • CON: Teamwork dependent; we’re holding, they’re punching.
  • CON: This build has a lot of wonky rule absurdity going on. DMs might nix parts of this with the whole “rulings, not rules” philosophy, so be prepared to pivot.

Unlike last week’s Path of the Beast build, this one is definitely more on the “white room” side of D&D gameplay. Do the mechanics work? Yes. Is the concept deliciously alien? Definitely. But is this the most functional character for an average party at your standard game night? Eh, depending on how many Lovecraft and Eldritch Horror fans share your table, maybe or maybe not.

Whether you end up running a Dimensional Horror as written, conjuring one as a terrifying NPC, or just finding inspiration from the build, there’s still something here for anyone who enjoys grapple mechanics. Over the next sections, we’re going to unpack the Horror’s combos and playstyle at each level. Get your RAW hats on and your D&D Beyond tabs open because things are about to get weird.

Levels 1-4: The arcane grappler

Your journey begins as a humble warrior just trying to understand those soft whispers from beyond the stars. You abandon your martial background for arcane study to reshape your body and mind, wondering where these alien whispers will guide you…

Mechanically, you’re a standard warrior with a magical edge. You can grapple with advantage via Enlarge or even Find Familiar help actions, but you can also just play this like any low-level spellbade. Bladesing in combat, punch with your 1d8 unarmed strike, and keep your hands free for spells and reactions like Shield.

Here are some key techniques and recommended spells at these levels:

  • AC and mobility: Mage Armor plus Bladesinging gives a respectable 16 AC and 40 ft. speed. Stay mobile and target backline enemies; your HP is still going to be pretty low for the front.
  • Basic attack options: You can two-weapon fight for a bonus action attack and a fine 1d6+3/1d6 dmg (avg 10) with light weapons. You can also just grapple on one turn (Find Familiar can give advantage) and 1d8+3 punch the next, or cast spells from the rear. Mind Sliver is on-brand and targets a vulnerable save.
  • Concentration: Before Enlarge, concentrate on Expeditious Retreat for mobility or Hideous Laughter for control. Share the maddening whispers with your foes!
  • Enlarged grappling: Once you get Enlarge, start grappling. +5 with advantage will beat most lowbies, and once they’re grappled, slug them with a d8 martial weapon of choice. Use fists instead if your DM applies Enlarge bonus damage. Either way, the enemy takes 1d4 from grappled plus 1d8+1d4+3 damage per turn.
  • Reaction spells: Rely on Shield and Absorb Elements for additional survivability. Make sure you have a free hand for somatic components (this is where unarmed strike helps).
  • Other magic: Fun no-concentration lvl 2 spells include Blindness/Deafness as a debuff, Misty Step for mobility, Mirror Image as a buff, and Tasha’s Mind Whip for more control. Don’t forget Feather Fall for later and Longstrider for low-cost mobility.

This grappler comes online later than others, who generally get advantage and Skill Expert in tier 1 play. You’re still perfectly relevant, although a little fragile. Hang in there until levels 5 and 7. Something is gestating inside of you and it’s about to emerge.

Levels 5-11: The tentacled terror

It’s all starting to make sense. These visions, these desires, these new appendages sprouting from imperfect skin as a symbol of your eldritch devotion. Are they gifts from your alien masters? Or were they always part of you, just waiting for your invitation? Either way, you welcome your new tentacles as proof that you are on the right path.

The Dimensional Horror enjoys a power-up at lvl 5 and a power explosion at lvl 7. At 5, your tentacles increase combat efficiency and Skill Expert gets you a big Athletics boost (+5 to +10) Unfortunately, you’re still limited by the total number of actions you can take. Extra Attack changes that. Once you hit Wizard 6, you can wrap up four enemies over the course of two turns. This is on top of a bunch of valuable spells to overcome countermeasures and other combat options involving punching and shoving.

Here are your main abilities and sequences:

  • Single attack tentacles: Your tentacles get way better with Extra Attack but they’re still great at level 5. Assuming you’re already Enlarged, approach an enemy with 40 ft. speed (50 with Longstrider) and tendril-slap. Unarmed Fighting upgrades the damage to 1d8+4 plus a potential 1d4 from Enlarge with DM approval. If it hits, make your +10 advantage Athletics check and wrap them up.
  • Tentacle limits: Your appendages “can’t precisely manipulate anything” including basically all items. GGR doesn’t explicitly say they can’t cast spells but most DMs will reasonable rule against that. You’ll need free hands for somatic components.
  • Extra attack tentacles: Grapple them. All of them. At level 7, Extra Attack unlocks a variety of melee sequences but also poses some rules issues with tentacles. Let’s explore:
    • Tentacle grapple as an action: Based on how every other “As an action” ability works in 5E D&D, it takes the full action to grapple with one tentacle. This means you can’t insert tentacle grapples into Extra Attacks; you still need “free hands” for that. If you’re just grappling with tentacles and not punching, it would take three turns to grapple four enemies: two in round 1 via Extra Attack grapples, one each in rounds 2 and 3 via a tentacle action. This isn’t a great use of your action economy but it does allow you to do Athletics checks without worrying about enemy AC.
    • Tentacle grapple as a bonus action: You can also grapple off a bonus action if you tentacle-slap someone first. Pure RAW, you might still need a free hand to do this because of how the bonus action is worded, but reasonable DMs should let you make the grab with your tentacle instead. It’s a damn grappling appendage! If they allow this, you can grapple one baddie on attack one, tentacle-strike another on attack two, and then bonus action grapple the second one to get both foes locked down on round 1. Repeat for two new enemies in round 2. If your DM is being mean and won’t let you grapple with the tentacle as a bonus action, you’ll need three rounds again.
    • Shove into tentacle attack: Unlike grapple, shove doesn’t require a free hand at all so you can attempt to knock the enemy down whenever you want. In this single target sequence, start with a shove using Athletics. Once they’re prone, do the +7 tentacle attack with advantage. Follow-up with bonus action tentacle grapple.
  • Moving grappled creatures: Once you have 1-4 prone/grappled enemies, start dragging them around with your halved move speed. The RAW speed reduction is the same whether you’re grappling one creature or four. Most encounters involve a mob of mooks slamming into your frontline warriors, so it should be pretty easy to wrap up a bunch of them. You can even take additional shove actions or unarmed strikes with your appendages full!
  • Inserting cantrips: Bladesingers can replace one of their Extra Attacks with a cantrip, which gives you even more options. Check out Lightning Lure for an additional 10 ft. of reach (follow-up with a grapple), Chill Touch to halt regeneration, Shocking Grasp to neutralize reactions, or the underrated Blade Ward if you’re taking lots of weapon damage from your grappled enemies. Ward is particularly nifty because it doesn’t require concentration and still allows you to take another attack that turn.

Don’t forget you can always ditch Enlarge to just Fly 35-40 feet per round, dropping all your enemies at the end. Careful with this because carrying capacity rules might start applying once you’re airborne; with four grappled targets, you’re probably hauling over 1,000 lbs of minion. But Fly is a totally valid option on a single target. Grapple them on one turn with Enlarge and then cast Fly. Ascend next turn either pummeling them on the way up or just using dash for added elevation. Drop at around 70-80 feet so you can immediately swoop back down, re-grapple (no advantage unless a familiar is helping), and repeat next turn.

Overall, this is where the Dimensional Horror really opens up. I’m sure there are dozens of wacky combat combos and spell synergies I haven’t mentioned here. Build from these foundations and you’ll have a delightful Tier 2 adventuring career. Just in time for things to get even weirder.

Level 12-15: Open the Arcane Gate

The stars are calling but it’s too soon. You’re not strong enough. Your portals don’t stretch through time and space, spanning the eons to show the unbelievers their new home. More practice is needed. More research. But until then, you can still acclimate yourself to the dimensional journey, and share your new conjuration skills with those who are ready for their own descent into oblivion.

This tier is mostly about two spells: Contingency and Arcane Gate. The former is pretty simple. If you’re struggling with combat round 1 action economy, store Enlarge with some kind of suitably creepy verbal trigger. Or just have it trigger on Bladesong. If you feel like you’re getting time to prep for battle, dig deep into your spellbook to find some other failsafes: Intellect Fortress if you’re worried about save-or-sucks, Greater Invisibility if you’re more worried about attack rolls than winning grapples, etc.

Arcane Gate is another story. It’s a weird, often-ignored spell with important restrictions and enticing potential. Here’s how it works:

  • Requires concentration. When you cast this, Enlarge will end. If you cast Enlarge again, Gate ends.
  • Requires a somatic component. You need a free hand to cast this until level 13 when you get Subtle Spell.
  • Portals have a 10-ft. diameter. Some monsters might not fit at DM discretion. You can probably explain how you’ll pile, pull, and shove your pack of grappled friends though, especially once you rotate the portals to a better angle (more on that soon).
  • Portals appear at specific points you can see within 500 ft.. This combo requires exact portal placement. If your DM is screwing you by having rings appear too far away from your intended point, work them through the spell description again. The portal appears “over each point.”
  • Both portals (“the rings”) can be rotated as a bonus action. They start perpendicular to the ground. There is no limit to that rotation and you may rotate them to face any “different direction.”
  • Creatures get transported if they enter the portal. Willing or unwilling, they all go for the trip. Many other Conjuration spells specify the willingness of the entrants (see Teleport). This one doesn’t.
  • MOST IMPORTANT – Portals appear after targeting two points ON THE GROUND. You can’t cause portals to appear mid-air. But you can cause them to appear on “the ground.” D&D doesn’t actually define “the ground” but unless we believe this spell doesn’t work in tall buildings, on a (air)ship deck, or on stone/metal/non-dirt floors, it can probably be opened on any stable surface regardless of height or proximity to an edge.

Everyone knows where this is going so let’s just work through the mechanics:

  • Step 1 – Find a precipice that still qualifies as “the ground:” Cliff-edges, balconies, bridges, roofs, etc. are all great options. Make sure you can see the targeted point and it’s within 500 feet, ideally with a 200+ ft. drop nearby. Make sure you could stand on that point as if it were “the ground” to fulfill Gate’s restrictions.
  • Step 2 – Cast spell: Drop an enemy to cast Gate or use Subtle Spell at lvl 13. Enlarge ends. Create the first portal right next to you and create the second on the precipice.
  • Step 3 – As a bonus action, rotate both portals: Rotate yours so it’s flat like a giant hole in the ground. Rotate the other so it’s angled towards the drop. Remind your DM there’s no spell rule restricting these angles even if the rings are initially perpendicular.
  • Step 4 – Drag your mob of baddies: Haul them 5-10 feet to the hole so you all fall through together. You can shove them too but that takes actions we don’t have until next turn. If your DM makes you shove them, you can also Quicken Spell to create the portal, but then you can’t rotate them this round.
  • Step 5 – EMBRACE THE PLUNGE: Everyone tumbles out of the angled portal on the edge and falls to their deaths together. You’re technically still grappling them at this point.
  • Step 6 – Feather Fall for safety: When you get within 60ish feet from landing, release all enemies (no action required) and cast Feather Fall. Float the rest of the way down. If you Feather Fall too early/high, you take multiple rounds to float down. If your DM raises eyebrows at this trick, use Hybrid Manta Glide instead or suggest an Int check to get the timing.
  • Step 7 – Land in the carnage: Everyone else takes fall damage. Let’s say 20d6 because it sounds impressive for 80d6 damage spread across your victims. They’re also all prone as you land among them.
  • Step 8 – Repeat next turn: The portal stays open for 10 minutes unless concentration breaks, so just grab two enemies next turn and walk them through again.

I know, I know. This is a really niche, rules-heavy, context-dependent way of dropping people. BUT BY AZATHOTH IS IT GLORIOUS. Some DMs will welcome this insanity. Others will invent house rules to nix it or just ask you to “please stop.” Even if pieces of this sequence change from battle to battle, you can still use the Gates to haul your victims somewhere dangerous or at least far away from your friends. Or just concentrate on Globe of Invulnerability and terrorize spellcasters.

Whatever happens at this tier, you’ll have a lot of fun and will find a lot of wonky combos and setups I haven’t even thought of. Just don’t forget to use your downtime for Contacting Other Planes and Plane Shifting on your hunt for the Far Realms. Your DM might decree your lvl 9 Gate spell just opens there without any scouting, but considering the DMG talks about how hard it is to actually find the Far Realms, you probably have to do some legwork tentaclework.

Level 16-17: Enter the Demiplane of Madness

You’re close. You can feel it. Hear it and see it every night as you stare at the stars and sing of home. The Far Realms calls you, calls this world back to its vacuum and soon you will open The Gate. But until the time is right, until you are ready, you have crafted your own demiplane in honor of the awaiting void. And now it is time to invite the unbelievers.

Warning: the following cheese is too stinky for some campaigns. Its requirements can also be too narrow. It involves setup-time, money, medium-sized enemies (or some kind of Str/Athletics check to drag them through a medium-sized door), and old-fashioned Glyph of Warding abuse. If all of that’s gonna fly in your campaign, read on. If not, scroll to the end of this section and just enjoy some Antimagic Field mage-murdering.

The 8th level spell Demiplane is less complicated than Arcane Gate but still restrictive. It doesn’t require concentration (good) but doesn’t actually lead anywhere scary (bad) and the door doesn’t close at all for a full hour (worse). This makes it a pretty boring space to drag grappled enemies. That is, unless we’ve made some preparations. Demiplane allows you to revisit a previously created 30 by 30 by 30 room and that’s the room we’re going to scribe full of every min-maxer’s favorite: Glyph of Warding.

You could be boring and etch the room full of dull 5d8 thunder runes that trigger on a command word… or we could make our own mini Far Realms with Spell Glyphs. I’m talking a field of Evard’s Black Tentacles writhing through Sickening Radiance and a cacophony of stacked Synaptic Statics. Your own house of eldritch horrors is only limited by time, money, and your cyclopean imagination. Just grab a bunch of food and a pile of diamond dust, hop into the demiplane, and come out a few days/weeks later when the Far Realms bomb is set. Add a Contingency for Resilient Sphere with a separate command phrase, then wait for battle:

  • Step 1 – Wrangle mob: You know the drill. Grab ’em and hold ’em close.
  • Step 2 – Cast Demiplane: Use Subtle Spell so you don’t have to drop anyone and choose to open a medium-sized door to your previously created demiplane.
  • Step 3 – Drag/shove mob inside: If your DM lets you just fit them all through the door, just corral them inside. If not, use a combination of Extra Attack shoves, movement, and other ability checks to push them in.
  • Step 4 – Shields up: Speak your first command phrase and activate your Resilient Sphere Contingency: “Yog-Sothoth embrace me that I may share Your love with these four who know it not.” You’re going to need spell immunity to survive.
  • Step 5 – Boom: Speak the second command phrase and sit back as your four victims get a taste of beyond. “Let them see You as I do. Share Your touch.” Some Glyph spells will trigger right away, others at the start of the NPC’s turns. But somewhere between 10000d8 damage bursts and stacked exhaustion levels, you’re the only one walking out alive.
  • Step 6 – Repeat as needed: Hopefully you set up some other Glyphs with separate spells and command phrases. Just be careful because you’ll need to dismiss Resilient Sphere to start grappling again.

As with Arcane Gate, even if your DM sets limits (game-time, houseruled Glyph restrictions, powdered diamond availability, etc.), you can still be effective at this stage. When in doubt, just cast Antimagic Field and bully anything mystical. You’ll lose Enlarge and even Bladesong but you’ll still have your monstrous +15 to Athletics which should crush any magical foes you encounter and trap them in the field while they get murdered. Consult with your DM about whether your tentacles work in the Field; the trait description doesn’t mention magic but it’s not like humans sprout them naturally. Another option is 24 hour duration Mind Blank while concentrating on the horrifying Maddening Darkness. Hold your grappled enemies in the dark and sing to them of your approaching ascension.

Level 18-20: Iä! Iä! The Far Realms await!

At last. Beauty and peace like you have never experienced, a mad lullaby echoing and slurping through your mind as you step through the door. Delicious, delightful, and as you tumble past the impossible geometries and mindscapes of the Far Realms, you are happy. For the first time in your life, you are truly, deeply happy. You can Plane Shift back when it’s time but for now, you take it in. The void, the song, and the screams of the four travelers you brought with you.

Compared to all the rule-acrobatics we did before, this one is pretty easy. Grapple four enemies. cast Gate with Subtle Spell, and walk them through. Hopefully you did enough planar reconnaissance before to find the Far Realms because Gate requires a “precise location” on the target plane. The Gate only opens one way too, so once you’re through, you’re probably the only one coming back.

If your DM just wants to play D&D instead of Portal 2: Eldritch Horror, cast Foresight instead and keep grappling. You’ll have Rune Knight 3 by now which, combined with Enlarge, allows you to grapple any monster in the game. Wrestle the Tarrasque, grapple a Lich and plop his bony butt into an Antimagic Field, or just make a Wish. Maybe you shouldn’t be trying to get to the Far Realms at all. Just pray for the Old Ones to come to you and maybe, just maybe, they’ll listen.

More builds, more grapplers

Yikes. What a trip. A weird, tentacly trip; is this still D&D or did we switch to a Chaosium session somewhere around level 5? Even if you already know your DM is going to veto some of these tactics, or you just want to play the Dimensional Horror differently, there’s something in this build progression for everyone. Odds of me using the Simic Hybrid to make a beefier, less magical grappler in the future? High. Odds of me using the Dimensional Horror to terrorize players in an upcoming adventure? Even higher.

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed this otherworldly take on a conventional arcane grappler. I’ll be back soon with even more martial characters. Probably grapplers if we’re being honest but hey, maybe we’ll go crit-fishing instead. Come say hi on social media and let me know your thoughts, feedback, Dimensional Horror ideas, and other character concepts. Until next time, keep building and keep your eyes to the void between the stars.

Art credits from top to bottom

  • Featured image: “Gruesome Slaughter” by Aleksi Briclot, Magic: The Gathering | “Azathoth” by Loïc Muzy
  • “Emrakul’s Evangel” by Jason Felix, Magic: The Gathering
  • “Fibrous Entangler” by Steve Belledin, Magic: The Gathering
  • “Paranoid Parish-Blade” by Matt Stewart, Magic: The Gathering
  • “Foul Emissary” by Dan Scott, Magic: The Gathering
  • “Grasp of Phantoms” by Izzy, Magic: The Gathering
  • “Whispers of Emrakul” by Jason Rainville, Magic: The Gathering
  • “Inquisition of Kozilek” by Tomasz Jedruszek, Magic: The Gathering
  • “Planar Bridge” by Chase Stone, Magic: The Gathering

Published by cascadianna

Gamer and writer from the Pacific Northwest.

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