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Darth Vader is one of Star Wars' most iconic villains. He is an unstoppable juggernaut whose presence in a scene is frightening for both the audience and the characters who have to face him. With his return in Obi-Wan Kenobi as one of the series' main antagonists, he is again proving how sadistic and horrifying he is. Vader's terrifying presence makes him a great inspiration to build a Dungeons & Dragons character for both Dungeon Masters and players.

Building Darth Vader in D&D requires the flexing of some creative muscles to get him to work in a fantasy setting. Even with the limitations of D&D's setting and rules, it is possible to make a build that captures the feel of a Dark Lord of the Sith and closely emulates Vader's iconic powers.

Darth Vader Build Summary

Race

Warforged

Class

Paladin (Oath of Conquest)

Background

Soldier or Acolyte

Ability Scores (in order of importance)

Strength, Charisma, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, Dexterity

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The Best D&D Race for Darth Vader

Obi-Wan-Darth-Vader-E3-01

Anakin Skywalker is a human, and Human would work well to represent Darth Vader's race in D&D. However, a Warforged represents Vader more accurately in many ways. After all, as Obi-Wan said in Return of the Jedi, "He's more machine now than man." The Warforged race provides a lot of bonuses appropriate for Vader. The Constructed Resilience feature gives him an advantage against being poisoned and immunity to disease. Additionally, he won't need to eat, drink, breathe or sleep -- things with which Vader's suit assisted. The Sentry's Rest can be used to mimic Vader's meditation, while Integrated Protection represents how much Vader's suit is ultimately a part of him.

The Warforged race also increases a character's Constitution score by two, representing how tough Vader is, and gives an increase of one to any other ability score. Lastly, a Warforged lets Vader gain one skill and tool proficiency. The tool proficiency that would fit Vader best would be Tinker's Tools, representing his history of building, repairing and modifying droids and starfighters. For skill proficiencies, take Arcana to represent Vader's mastery over the Force.

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The Best D&D Backgrounds for Darth Vader

Darth Vader

When choosing a background to represent Vader, two possibilities stand out: Soldier and Acolyte. Both backgrounds fit well to represent Anakin Skywalker's time as a Jedi Knight. Both the Jedi and Sith Orders are religious organizations centered on the Force. Anakin took to the life of a soldier very well in the Clone Wars, and he still holds influence over Imperial Troops. Both backgrounds work equally well, and a player could take either depending on what features they would prefer. Luckily, any proficiencies that Vader misses out on from one background can still be gained from his class.

The Best D&D Class for Darth Vader

When building a Jedi-inspired character in D&D, the Paladin class thematically matches their ideals and skill set and ideals best. The Jedi code can easily be represented by the Sacred Oath a Paladin takes at the third level. Vader's betrayal of the Jedi would make him a good candidate to be an Oathbreaker like his Inquisitors. However, the Sith have their own code as well, and unlike the Inquisitors, Vader is a full-fledged Sith Lord dedicated to the absolute destruction of the enemies of the Empire and the Sith. This makes the Oath of Conquest perfect for Darth Vader.

The Oath of Conquest's features revolves around striking fear into their opponents. The two Channel Divinity features allow a Conquest Paladin to force an enemy to make a Wisdom saving throw and become frightened upon failure, or the player can gain a +10 to hit on an attack roll. The Aura of Conquest feature beautifully mimics the terrifying presence Vader has on the battlefield, causing enemies to take psychic damage if they're too close to the player and frightened. Conquest Paladins also gain access to the spell Hold Person. While this spell won't do damage like Force Grip it can still keep an adversary stuck in place, mimicking Vader's iconic Force power.

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The Most Important D&D Ability Scores for Darth Vader

Darth Vader Offers Conquest To Luke In The Empire Strikes Back

As a Paladin, Vader's most important Ability Scores are going to be Strength and Charisma. While Anakin often fought with a fast and acrobatic style, Vader's suit limits his movement but also increases his own strength immensely. This leads him to adopt a more straightforward and brutal fighting style. Dexterity is best left as a dump stat to represent Vader's shortcomings. Charisma, on the other hand, is essential for Vader's spellcasting and also allows Vader to be frightening in social situations. A high Charisma score and proficiency in Intimidation will help give Vader that commanding and terrifying presence his appearance always brings.

While Strength and Charisma are Vader's most important Ability Scores, an honorable mention should be made for both Intelligence and Constitution. Vader is extremely tanky and can take a lot of hits before finally going down. Additionally, Vader still has the same Intelligence as Anakin Skywalker, who built droids and modified starfighters and was a brilliant military strategist. Decent Intelligence and Constitution scores help to ensure that Vader feels like he does on screen.

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The Best D&D Feats for Darth Vader

Darth Vader kills more Jedi in Star Wars: Purge comic

While there are many feats that would fit Darth Vader, an obvious one is Mage Slayer. As Vader frequently hunts the few Jedi left remaining after Order 66, he would have a lot of experience in that field. Mage Slayer makes Vader more resilient to magic in general while also letting him make reaction attacks with his melee weapon when an enemy uses a spell within five feet of him. Lastly, Mage Slayer allows him to more easily break a mage's concentration.

Both the Telekinetic and Telepathic feats give Vader some of the most powerful tools in a Force user's arsenal. Telekinesis allows Vader to move objects with his mind and manipulate the position of his adversaries. Meanwhile, the Telepathic feat lets Vader read the minds of those around him, revealing their true feelings and motivations.