Tiefling Fighter Build Guide

Levels 1-4

At level 1, you must take the Blind Fighting style. This is the cornerstone of the entire Tiefling Fighter gimmick. You also get Second Wind, which gives you a vital self-heal. At level 3, select the Battle Master archetype. Maneuvers like Precision Attack and Trip Attack are mathematically superior for two-handed weapon builds. Since your innate Hellish Rebuke competes for your reaction, avoid taking Riposte or Brace for now.

At level 4, take the Great Weapon Master feat instead of an Ability Score Improvement. You will be swinging a Greatsword, and the -5 penalty to hit is easily offset by Precision Attack right now, and will be completely negated by your innate advantage engine once you hit level 5.

Levels 5-10

Level 5 brings Extra Attack and, crucially, your Tiefling's innate Darkness spell. Combat now looks like this: Cast Darkness on your armor, Action Surge, and make two Great Weapon Master swings with advantage against blinded foes. At level 6, use your ASI to take the Slasher feat (or Heavy Armor Master) to bump your 15 Strength to a 16. Slasher works beautifully here because reducing an enemy's speed by 10 feet makes it harder for them to escape your 15-foot radius of magical darkness.

At level 8, push your Strength to 18 to keep up with the math of the game. Level 9 grants Indomitable, giving you a desperately needed reroll on Wisdom saves—your 10 Wisdom is a glaring liability against spells like Hold Person.

Levels 11-16

Level 11 is the Fighter's biggest power spike: Extra Attack (2). You are now making three swings per Attack action. With Great Weapon Master and your Darkness sphere up, that is a massive chunk of damage. At level 12, take the Resilient (Wisdom) feat. Bumping your Wisdom from 10 to 11 doesn't change the modifier, but adding your +4 proficiency bonus to Wisdom saving throws is mandatory to survive high-tier play where fear and charm effects run rampant.

At level 14, cap your Strength at 20. At level 16, bump your 13 Constitution to 15 by taking the Durable feat or simply split an ASI to fix your odd Constitution score and boost your Dexterity to 15, preparing for medium armor mastery if you ever pivot from heavy plate.

Levels 17-20

Level 17 grants you a second use of Action Surge. You can now reliably delete massive threats in a single turn by swinging six times in a row. Level 20 caps your progression with Extra Attack (3), granting four attacks per action. As a Tiefling, your racial traits have largely stopped scaling, but the Fire Resistance remains permanently relevant against end-game threats like Meteor Swarm or Ancient Red Dragons.

Great Weapon Master

Take this at level 4. The -5 to attack rolls for +10 damage is the defining martial damage engine in 5e. Because you are a Tiefling bringing your own Darkness spell at level 5, you will reliably have advantage on your attacks to completely offset this penalty, making it infinitely better on you than on a standard Human Fighter.

Resilient (Wisdom)

Take this at level 12. With an optimal Wisdom stat of 10, your Tiefling is incredibly vulnerable to mind-control spells. Being Charmed while holding a Greatsword and having Action Surge available is a recipe for a total party kill. Adding your proficiency bonus to these saves is non-negotiable in Tier 3.

Heavy Armor Master

If you don't take Slasher at level 6, take this. It bumps your 15 Strength to 16, and subtracting 3 damage from non-magical weapon attacks stacks incredibly well with your Tiefling Fire Resistance. You become a walking fortress against both environmental hazards and mob attacks.

Tier 1 (Levels 1-4)

Start with Chain Mail and a Greatsword. Your goal is to scrape together 200 gold as fast as possible to buy Splint Armor, bringing your AC to 17. Carry a handful of Javelins; your 14 Dexterity means your Longbow attacks are mediocre, so stick to Strength-based thrown weapons when enemies are out of reach.

Tier 2 (Levels 5-10)

You need Full Plate Armor (1,500 gp) to hit 18 AC. Seek out a +1 Greatsword to bypass non-magical bludgeoning/piercing/slashing resistance. If you can find a Cloak of Displacement, grab it; forcing disadvantage on enemy attacks while you are outside your Darkness bubble ensures your d10 hit dice go much further.

Tier 3 (Levels 11-16)

Aim for a Flame Tongue Greatsword. It is highly thematic for a Tiefling, and adding 2d6 fire damage to three attacks per turn skyrockets your DPR. Additionally, hunt for a Belt of Fire Giant Strength. This frees you from relying on your natural 20 Strength and boosts your attack rolls even higher.

Tier 4 (Levels 17-20)

At this tier, look for a Blood Fury Tattoo. The extra necrotic damage and healing on a critical hit synergize perfectly with the permanent advantage you generate from your Blind Fighting/Darkness combo, doubling your chances to roll a natural 20.

As a Tiefling Fighter, your primary role is the Striker. You are built to dive into the front lines, drop your innate Darkness, and blender enemies with Great Weapon Master. However, your magical darkness blocks line of sight for your allies, which means party composition is critical to avoid frustrating your friends.

You pair flawlessly with a Warlock taking the Devil's Sight invocation. They can see through your magical darkness, allowing them to fire Eldritch Blasts into your sphere without penalty. You also work exceptionally well with an Evocation Wizard. Because of your innate Fire Resistance, the Wizard can drop Fireball directly on your head; Sculpt Spells can protect you entirely, but even if they use a different subclass, your resistance means you only take quarter damage on a successful save.

Warlock 1 (Hexblade) Dip

Taking a single level of Hexblade Warlock is incredibly potent. Hexblade's Curse expands your critical hit range to 19-20, which has massive synergy with the advantage you get from your Darkness combo. It also gives you access to the Shield spell, which you can cast using your spare 1st-level slots to temporarily bump your AC to 23.

Barbarian 2 Dip

If your party composition makes casting Darkness a hindrance, a two-level dip into Barbarian gives you Reckless Attack. This provides an alternative way to secure advantage for your Great Weapon Master swings without blinding your own Rogue or Ranger. You also gain Rage, which stacks nicely with your Tiefling Fire Resistance to make you resistant to almost everything.

• Blinding your party: Casting Darkness in a narrow dungeon corridor shuts down your Rogue's Sneak Attack and prevents your Cleric from casting sight-based spells like Healing Word. Only drop the sphere when you can position yourself away from the party's line of fire.
• Wasting your reaction on Hellish Rebuke: At level 3, Hellish Rebuke is great. By level 10, your 12 Charisma means enemies will almost always save against the DC 13 spell. Save your reaction for Opportunity Attacks, which will deal vastly more damage with a Greatsword and GWM.
• Dumping Constitution: Leaving your Constitution at 13 for too long means your HP will lag behind standard frontliners. You must use a half-feat or an ASI by level 6 or 8 to round this up to a 14.
• Ignoring ranged combat entirely: With 14 Dexterity, you aren't an archer, but completely ignoring ranged options means flying enemies will kite you. Always keep Javelins or Handaxes on hand to utilize your Strength modifier.