Getting The Class You Want

So there are plenty of iconic character types that can be created with the new 5e PHB. Most of them are exactly the types you'd expect to see in a version of D&D - the powerful wizard, the backstabbing thief - and there's many of the more up-to-date types too. You can play a fighter/wizard without having to multiclass, thanks to the Eldritch Knight martial archetype for the fighter. The monk offers a ninja and a "Last Airbender."

But even with all that, there are still iconic character types that you'll have to put together yourself (at least until a splatbook offers them). I tried out a few using the Basic Rules, but now that we have the PHB, there's many more ways to get them created.

Politician (Cersei Lannister, "A Song Of Ice And Fire"): Noble background, Bard class, College of Lore bard college. D&D encourages magic for nearly every class, and while that doesn't seem to fit with the "Game of Thrones" world, try selecting spells that can be explained as exceptional skills at negotiation and deception, like Comprehend Languages, Suggestion and Nondetection.

Swashbuckler ("The Three Musketeers"): Fighter class, Battle Master martial archetype. Choose maneuvers that represent fencing, like Evasive Footwork, Lunging Attack and Riposte. You can cross over to the warlord class from 4e with Commander's Strike and Rally.

Alchemist (Damiel, "Pathfinder"): Cleric class, Tempest domain. An alchemist is good at creating things, too, so the Transmuter school for wizards is another option, but most alchemist characters are probably there because they get to make and throw bombs. Big blow-uppy stuff is exactly what the Tempest cleric domain is for. You're not hurling lighting bolts in the name of your god; you're throwing chemical concoctions in the name of Science!

This is my paladin. (image: conclaveofhar.com)

Space Marine ("Warhammer 40,000"): Paladin class, Soldier background. Yes, even space marines have a place in D&D now, plus it gives you a chance to use one of your sci-fi minis for another game. Since paladins no longer have to be stuck-in-the-mud good guys, the heavy armor and big weapons map almost directly to space marines. Any of the sacred oaths will work: the Oath of Devotion is for a space marine chaplain, the Oath of the Ancients is for the Space Wolves, and the Oath of Vengeance is probably closest to a traditional space marine mindset. Yes, you'll have to justify the storm bolter gun as a very strange-looking heavy crossbow, but if your DM lets you use a space marine miniature, that probably won't be much of a problem.