Gothic horror and Dungeons & Dragons have been quite a frequent pairing over the years. Through adventures like Curse of Strahd and sourcebooks like Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft, Wizards of the Coast has built up quite the collection of content that Dungeon Masters could use to run gothic-themed campaigns. Of course, when it comes to things like vampiric castles and doing battle with horrific beasts, it’s hard not to think of another titan in the genre, Castlevania.
Building iconic video game characters in D&D can be a ton of fun for fans, especially when they’re able to really dig into the intricate details of their favorite characters. One of the things that makes Castlevania‘s Simon Belmont such an interesting D&D character is that the flow of a tabletop RPG is pretty similar to a Metroidvania. Building the original Belmont is actually pretty straightforward, making him a great blank slate for future adventures.
The Best Race for Simon Belmont
Simon Belmont is obviously a human, though D&D Fifth Edition provides several different ways to build one. While the Custom Lineage rules added in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything provide an interesting way to create some of the half-vampire characters from Castlevania, the Human (Variant) race from the Player’s Handbook fits Simon best.
To start, Simon Belmont’s alignment is Neutral Good, and players should go with either Elvish or Infernal for their extra language. This racial choice gives players a few more options, as players can pick a skill proficiency and a feat for their character. The skill should be either Acrobatics or Perception, and the best feat to start with is Athlete in order to mimic Castlevania‘s emphasis on movement.
The Best Class for Simon Belmont
There are a few classes that could work for Simon Belmont, though players should focus on capturing his versatility with many weapons and his skills against the undead. While Ranger or Fighter make some sense, the best option for Simon is the Oath of Vengence Paladin. Not only does the Paladin class give Simon a ton of different weapons at his disposal, but he also gains access to spells and abilities specifically focused on fighting the undead.
Paladins also get to pick a fighting style, which is perfect for giving Simon some extra tricks with his iconic whip Vampire Killer. Dueling, Defense and Blind Fighting are are excellent choices here, though Dueling will take advantage of the fact that many of Simon Belmont’s weapons are one-handed. As far as skill proficiencies are concerned, any combination of those available to Paladins would work for Simon Belmont, though Religion and Athletics are two noteworthy choices.
Simon’s Ability Scores
Generally, Simon Belmont is going to serve as a decent all-arounder who will be able to cast some spells, tank some damage and debuff enemies. His true use to the party will shine with dealing damage in combat. As a Paladin, he will be able to use a wide range of weapons, though those looking to emulate the games should use a whip, a one-handed axe, a quarterstaff and a dagger. In D&D 5e, whips and daggers are finesse weapons, meaning they can use either a character’s Strength or Dexterity for combat rolls.
Since Simon won’t be using too many ranged weapons, players should prioritize Strength. Dexterity will be helpful for throwing weapons like the handaxe, though Belmont’s aren’t known for their agility, so this may be a place where players choose to forgo authenticity for utility or vice versa. From there, Constitution and Charisma will help survivability and spell casting respectively. Finally, Wisdom and Intelligence aren’t incredibly important for this build, though Intelligence could help Simon identify a monster’s weakness.
The Best Feats for Simon Belmont
There are quite a few feats that can really benefit this build, both in terms of in-game viability and accuracy to the source material. Tavern Brawler would give Simon proficiency with Improvised Weapons, letting him basically use anything he comes across to his advantage. Defensive Duelist plays into the fact that most of Simon’s weapons are finesse, allowing players to add his proficiency score to his Armor Class as a reaction to being hit by a melee attack.
Fighting Initiate can let players pick an additional Fighting Style for Simon from a wider pool of choices. The stand-out option from this pool is Thrown Weapon Fighting, which lets Simon draw a throwing weapon and attack with it on the same turn. Polearm Master and Sentinel are also both worth checking out, though players may want to look at some of the magic-focused feats if they want to expand Simon’s spells beyond what’s offered on the Paladin spell list.
Simon Belmont’s Background, Spells and Other Details
As far as a Background is concerned, Faction Agent is a great one to emphasize Simon’s connection to the Belmont clan, though Folk Hero is also a good alternative. Paladins don’t need to worry about picking specific spells, as they get access to all of their spells and are only limited by their spell slots. That being said, the Cleric and Warlock spell lists may be worth dipping into using feats to expand Simon’s spellcasting ability.
Simon uses quite a bit of mundane equipment during his adventures, so checking out some of the items available to purchase certainly wouldn’t hurt. For players considering multiclassing Simon, Fighter and the Artificer’s Alchemist subclass both help to add elements of Simon’s character that are otherwise missing. Alchemist lets players craft the firebombs Simon Belmont uses, and the Fighter class has many options that’ll help Simon master various kinds of weaponry.
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