I pulled together an Arlinn Kord build on a request from the Monster Monday Discord and it was pretty fun. Characters from Magic the Gathering are usually too much or too little to do a decent build for - if they have only a single card, they don't have enough abilities to build off of, and if they have too many, it's nigh impossible to capture all their effects. However, I think this one came out really well! As always, this build is conceptualized entirely in a vacuum, with choices made in an attempt to fit the character. These choices might not hold up in a campaign with different themes and should be adjusted accordingly.
Let's get into the build for Arlinn Kord from Magic the Gathering!
ARLINN KORD
CHARACTER Arlinn Kord
SOURCE Magic the Gathering
BUILD GOALS
o Arlinn is a planewalker associated predominantly with green mana, a magic associated with nature and instinct, and red mana, a magic associated with impulse and freedom
o She was born in Kessig, a perpetually autumnal province in the gothic inspired Innistrad, but found herself called to the forest by a werewolf pack who she stayed with until disagreeing with its leader
o She left behind the violence and joined the main church, rising to an archmage in its ranks until a fight against devils caused her to shift and her planeswalker spark ignited
o This allowed her to gain control of her form and she returned to Innistrad to unite and guard the werewolves under her, fighting against eldritch horrors and other evil
o Arlinn used to be accompanied by a pack of dire wolves that betrayed her for a rival werewolf lord though one, named Patience, eventually returned to her
o Arlinn is specifically represented in three cards, two of which are able to transform
o Arlinn Kord empowers a creature, giving it vigilance and haste, or summons a wolf and transforms into Arlinn, Embraced by the Moon. In this form, she can empower the whole board with trample, deal damage to a target and then transform back, or gain an emblem that hastens all allies and allows them to damage targets safely
o Arlinn, Pack’s Hope allows creatures to swiftly enter the battlefield with additional power or summons two wolves. Transformed into Arlinn, the Moon’s Fury, she produces mana or becomes an indestructible werewolf
o Her final card is Arlinn, Voice of the Pack, which passively empowers all wolves and werewolves and can also create wolves
LEVEL 1
Ancestry & Heritage: Beastkin (Wolf) Human
o Ability Boosts & Flaws: +Strength, +Wisdom
o Ancestry Feat: Animal Senses – Scent (imprecise) 30 feet
Background: Acolyte
o Ability Boosts: +Wisdom, +Strength
o Skill Increase: Religion (trained), Scribing Lore (trained)
o Background Feat: Student of the Canon
Class & Subclass: Animal Order Druid
o Class Ability Boost: +Wisdom
o Skill Increase: Acrobatics (trained), Athletics (trained), Nature (trained), Survival (trained)
o Class Feat: Animal Companion – Wolf
Details
o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Dexterity, +Wisdom, +Charisma (Str 16, Dex 12, Con 10, Int 10, Wis 18, Cha 12)
The beastfolk heritage represents Arlinn’s lycanthrope nature, with Animal Senses making her more specifically wolf-like. However, a violent dispute with other werewolves, Arlinn left that life behind and became a member of the Church of Avacyn, which the acolyte background calls to. Arlinn’s powers and abilities lean towards empowering and summoning allies, and the best way to represent that is using a caster class. With her connection to green and red mana, which is some of the most primal mana colors especially when paired together, druid felt to be the best class choice. Of the orders, the decision was between animal and wild. Given that Arlinn really only shifts into a wolf and a hybrid while also having a wolf pack that used to travel with her, animal order made the most sense, which grants her a Patience as a faithful friend.
LEVEL 2
o Class Feat: Call of the Wild
o Skill Feat: Tame Animal
o Gear: everburning torch
LEVEL 3
o General Feat: Toughness
o Skill Increase: Nature (expert)
o Gear: handwraps of mighty blows (+1), everburning torch, cloak of feline rest
LEVEL 4
o Class Feat: Mature Animal Companion
o Skill Feat: Train Animal
o Gear: bullhook, handwraps of mighty blows (+1), wondrous figurine (onyx dog), everburning torch
LEVEL 5
o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Constitution, +Wisdom, +Charisma (Str 18, Dex 12, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 19, Cha 14)
o Ancestry Feat: Quick Shape
o Skill Increase: Survival (expert)
o Gear: handwraps of mighty blows (+1 striking), bullhook, coyote cloak, wondrous figurine (onyx dog), everburning torch, cloak of feline rest
All of Arlinn’s cards produce creatures, usually in the form of wolves, which this build will represent with the Call of the Wild feat – as well as just general castings of summon animal. This leads into an order spell down the line that will help her empower the creatures that she summons. She will also empower Patience with the Mature Animal Companion feat, which she will be keeping up with as she levels. Her skill feats are going to lean towards Nature and Survival feats, starting off with her ability to Tame and Train Animals. As Arlinn delves deeper into her werewolf nature, she’s going to be mixing things up in melee a bit more, and Toughness will help her stay there. Quick Shape allows her to change into her werewolf form with the start of battle though Animal Senses for low-light vision is also a good and viable option.
LEVEL 6
o Class Feat: Order Explorer (wild order)
o Skill Feat: Wilderness Spotter (forest) or That’s Not Natural!
o Gear: +1 hide, handwraps of mighty blows (+1 striking), animal staff, bullhook, necklace of knives, wondrous figurine (onyx dog)
LEVEL 7
o General Feat: Incredible Initiative
o Skill Increase: Nature (legendary)
o Gear: primeval mistletoe, +1 hide, ring of the tiger, handwraps of mighty blows (+1 striking), bullhook, coyote cloak
LEVEL 8
o Class Feat: Incredible Companion – Nimble
o Skill Feat: Forage
o Gear: swarmform collar, bestiary of metamorphosis, primeval mistletoe, +1 hide, handwraps of mighty blows (+1 striking), animal staff
LEVEL 9
o Ancestry Feat: Animalistic Resistance
o Skill Increase: Survival (master)
o Gear: +1 resilient hide, boots of bounding, swarmform collar, primeval mistletoe, ring of the tiger, handwraps of mighty blows (+1 striking)
LEVEL 10
o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Dexterity, +Constitution, +Wisdom (Str 19, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 20, Cha 14)
o Class Feat: Side by Side
o Skill Feat: Planar Survival
o Gear: collar of empathy, +1 resilient hide, greater animal staff, lesser wovenwood shield, primeval mistletoe, handwraps of mighty blows (+1 striking)
The animal order may better represent Arlinn Kord to begin with, but there are still some aspects of the wild order that she likes. She’ll use the Order Explorer feat to gain access to the wild order’s Wild Shape so that she can transform into a wolf – and potentially a giant one – on a focus spell. Side by Side enhances the bond between Arlinn and her wolf, allowing them to fight in melee together with greater proficiency. By this point, Arlinn can do something similar with the pack attack allowing her to form such a bond with any of her companions – while also playing into her role as a buff granter. For skill feats, That’s Not Natural is a fantastically flavorful option that serves to represent Arlinn’s role in the fight against the eldrazi in the Shadows Over Innistrad block. However, the bonus it provides is extremely specific and minor and the specific bonus it provides to initiative is outdone by Incredible Initiative. If you want to go for flavor, take That’s Not Natural. Otherwise, Wilderness Spotter is a better skill feat for the level, letting her almost replace her slower scaling Perception with Survival in forests. Naturally, as a planeswalker, Planar Survival is a must have for the character.
LEVEL 11
o General Feat: Fleet
o Skill Increase: Athletics (expert)
o Gear: handwraps of mighty blows (+2 striking), collar of empathy, greater coyote cloak, +1 resilient hide, boots of bounding, swarmform collar
LEVEL 12
o Class Feat: Primal Summons
o Skill Feat: Influence Nature
o Gear: +2 resilient hide, handwraps of mighty blows (+2 striking), druid’s vestments, collar of empathy, wondrous figurine (bismuth leopards), greater animal staff
LEVEL 13
o Ancestry Feat: Gift of the Moon
o Skill Increase: Athletics (master)
o Gear: handwraps of mighty blows (+2 greater striking), +2 resilient hide, greater goggles of night, staff of nature’s vengeance, collar of empathy, greater coyote cloak
LEVEL 14
o Class Feat: Specialized Companion – Ambusher
o Skill Feat: Consult the Spirits (Nature)
o Gear: greater broken tusk pendant (wolf), handwraps of mighty blows (+2 greater striking), major animal staff, +2 resilient hide, druid’s vestments, greater ring of the tiger
LEVEL 15
o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Constitution, +Intelligence, +Wisdom (Str 20, Dex 14, Con 16, Int 12, Wis 21, Cha 14)
o General Feat: Ancestral Paragon – Animal Senses (low-light vision)
o Skill Increase: Diplomacy (trained), Nature (legendary)
o Gear: +2 greater resilient hide, greater broken tusk pendant (wolf), boots of speed, handwraps of mighty blows (+2 greater striking), greater goggles of night, bag of holding (type III)
With that earlier Call of the Wild feat, Arlinn can now take Primal Summons so that she can potentially empower her summons with the elements themselves. The ambusher specialization at least grants Patience an expert proficiency in unarmored defense, which is the main conceit behind choosing it. Gift of the Moon grants Arlinn a spell that she already has access to, but taking it effectively grants her an extra casting of moon frenzy, which is a super thematic spell for the character if nothing else, with its connection towards lycanthropes. It also fits well within her buffing abilities.
LEVEL 16
o Class Feat: Effortless Concentration
o Skill Feat: Spirit Speaker
o Gear: dragonscale amulet, +2 greater resilient hide, greater primeval mistletoe, greater broken tusk pendant (wolf), handwraps of mighty blows (+2 greater striking), major animal staff
LEVEL 17
o Ancestry Feat: Heroic Presence
o Skill Increase: Survival (legendary)
o Gear: handwraps of mighty blows (+3 greater striking), dragonscale amulet, whistle of calling, +2 greater resilient hide, greater broken tusk pendant (wolf), boots of speed
LEVEL 18
o Class Feat: Primal Focus
o Skill Feat: Legendary Guide
o Gear: headband of inspired wisdom, handwraps of mighty blows (+3 greater striking), aeon stone (orange prism), dragonscale amulet, +2 greater resilient hide, greater staff of nature’s vengeance
LEVEL 19
o General Feat: Fast Recovery
o Skill Increase: Diplomacy (expert)
o Gear: +3 greater resilient hide, headband of inspired wisdom, greater cloak of the bat, handwraps of mighty blows (+3 greater striking), dragonscale amulet, whistle of calling
LEVEL 20
o Ability Boosts: +Dexterity, +Constitution, +Wisdom, +Charisma (Str 20, Dex 16, Con 18, Int 12, Wis 22, Cha 16)
o Class Feat: Hierophant’s Power
o Skill Feat: Legendary Survivalist
o Gear: handwraps of mighty blows (+3 major striking), +3 greater resilient hide, major staff of nature’s vengeance, headband of inspired wisdom, aeon stone (orange prism), major endless grimoire
Effortless Concentration helps significantly, as this will allow Arlinn to Sustain a Spell for a summoned creature, Command an Animal to grant Patience her actions, and still eave her with two actions to potentially Cast a Spell. Given her array of focus spells, most notably primal summons and wild shape, Primal Focus will help her recharge after fights. Finally, given Arlinn’s focus on magic, Hierophant’s Power makes the most sense to grant her an additional 10th-level slot, which maybe she wants to use for the very thematic moon frenzy since it can be heightened to 10th level. With the gothic horror theme of Innistrad and the multitude of ghosts that reside there, Spirit Speaker felt an appropriate fit whereas Legendary Guide and Legendary Survivalist are built around her traveling to different planes and a bit of her role as a leader, especially in her home turf. For her first and last actual ancestry feat that hails from her human ancestry, Heroic Presence continues the whole theme of being a support based character with the bonus it gives to Will saves against fear being particularly thematic for Innistrad.
FREE ARCHETYPE SUGGESTIONS: Much of Arlinn’s build is completed with what she already has here, leaving free archetypes mostly to flavor and the like. Beastmaster is good to delve deeper into her bond with her wolf/wolves and to pick up additional specializations. Horizon Walker is good to represent her ability as a survivalist, particularly in her home environment of the woods, specifically the Ulvenwald. Finally, you might consider playing more into Arlinn’s training as a priest, given that she became an archmage of Goldnight for the Church of Avacyn before her spark even ignited, and take the Cleric Dedication. This plays very well into the support aspect of her character with the divine spell list, with the heroism spell in particular coming to mind.
BUILD CONCLUSION
As a planeswalker associated with green and red mana, Arlinn is best represented as a druid, which grants nature-based magic, including more devastating effects often associated with red mana. Beastfolk connects to her werewolf nature, its feats allowing her to delve deeply into it. In particular, Gift of the Moon gives her an extra casting of moon frenzy, a spell tailor-made to give your party the power of lycanthropes. As a werewolf, Arlinn clashed with her more violent companions and eventually left that behind for a life as a priest, lending well towards the acolyte background. For those that take the option, That’s Not Natural fits well given her adversarial relationship with the eldrazi and eldritch horrors that threatened her home plane during the Shadows of Innistrad block. With the animal order, the build replicates her wolf companion, Patience, which she continues to empower with her feat investment and increases her ability to work alongside it with feats such as Side by Side. While Arlinn herself uses Incredible Initiative, or possibly That’s Not Natural, to represent her own swiftness, she uses the likes of fleet step and eventually haste to quicken allies, as seen by her original card. Vigilance doesn’t entirely play into Pathfinder, but enhance senses fits thematically if nothing else. Summon animal works for most of her ability to create wolf tokens while her shape shifting is covered by the beastkin’s Change Shape plus the wild shape and animal form spells. Spells such as enlarge, particularly at higher levels, work well for her effects that empower allies or grant them trample.
Lemme know what you think and if there's any other particular builds you'd like to see.
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Have a fantastic Friday!