I recently finished my play-through of Persona 5 Royal – an epic game with a play time in the hundreds of hours. Although I'd have to caution any Christian readers that it goes VERY hard on the 'treating figures from the Bible as fantasy bestiary material' trope, I'd otherwise unreservedly recommend it to anyone able to ration out that much gaming time over the next year or so. One of the main strengths of the game is the cast of characters, most of whom are real pleasure to spend time with in the slice of life sections before using their support to hammer through dungeons too slickly presented for the grind to get dull.
Articles describing how to make a particular character from fiction in D&D 5e seem to be a very common thing at the moment. Although I strongly support the notion that players should try other systems rather than attempting to bash every square peg into that particular round hole (I recently saw an article for making David from Edgerunners in 5e when Cyberpunk Red is right there) I found myself mentally deciding how each of the Phantom Thieves should best be translated. Listing them in this way naturally constitutes a spoiler of sorts as they are gained throughout the game, but I've tried to keep things a little cagey.
It should be noted that the status of the characters as young people is very important to the themes of the game and that the school life sections are a vital counterpoint to the action. The Thieves would therefore work really well in a campaign using the Strixhaven supplement. The Jobs, Extracurriculars and Relationship systems will bring that element to life whilst the Initiate Feat granted by the Strixhaven Backgrounds will ensure that everyone can cast spells just like in the game. I've therefore included a most likely College for each character.
Joker – Rogue, Warlock or Cleric
Given the amount of screen time and extra abilities that come with being the protagonist, it isn't surprising that Joker can be represented in multiple ways. My own favoured way would be to play him as a Rogue. By their very occupation every party member has touch of this class to them, but Joker is the model almost all of them follow after on their heists. He personally emphasises mobility and light weapons but hits very hard when he gets the right opportunity. Unsurprisingly the Phantom Archetype is a good fit – allowing him to suddenly gain new skills by communing with beings no one else can see. At higher levels you can snatch a mystical reward at the moment of an enemy's death and use it later as a power up. Sound familiar? You'll never experience the late game arcane might of the character this way, but you will be able to ape his demeanour and slip in a good few nods. Starting out as a Variant Human with Crossbow Expert will allow you to use a hand crossbow in much the same way as his prominently featured pistol.
If you prefer to focus on the mystical element of the character, Warlock is a good way to represent the Velvet Room and the importance of 'deals' to the protagonist. Igor could be argued to be any one of several different types of Patron and he frequently keeps in touch and assigns tasks. The several different types of 'Sight' Invocation allow you to play a PC who appears to have a veritable Third Eye. The pain of limited spell slots will be familiar to those who have struggled with the SP gauge of the one guy you can't switch out of the party... but you can always count on Mona to advocate for more rests.
The third way is just to run a Trickery Domain Cleric. All Clerics can select from the entire Cleric Spell List every time they prepare spells, allowing them to manifest wildly different magical abilities every day whilst also possessing adequate martial prowess. This has long made them a 'top tier' class. Whilst you will eventually possess the highest level of spell slots, you will always be beholden to an external beneficiary for your powers. Although less tightly themed than the other options, this is probably the best way to experience the overpowered nature of the main character.
Whatever your class, consider the Chef Feat and bug your GM to let you learn how to craft the Bottle of Boundless Coffee from the Strixhaven book.
College: Silverquill. His carefully measured social interactions bring out the best in others.
Mona – Druid
Although he insists that he is a polymorphed human rather than an actual cat, Mona is not averse to using his feline shape to help the Thieves' activities in the real world. In the mystical world of the Metaverse he has access to far grander shapeshifting abilities that are vital to the team. He also knows a huge amount about the mystical underpinnings of this strange landscape and acts as a guide for the others. All of this makes him a good candidate for the Druid class (most likely Circle of the Moon, although his meme-inspiring advocacy for sleep could be referenced with the Circle of Dreams). He even uses a slingshot like the Druid in the upcoming film!
Although there is no need to make all of the other characters human just because of the source material (Skull would make a good half-orc, for example) Mona should definitely be a different race. Either a Tabraxi of a small sized creature would be a good fit. You could also homebrew some sort of house-cat form to be stuck in with the GM, providing you can speak and cast and can get someone else to carry your stuff! (I once built a character like this for my wife on the concept of 'awakened cat with Wizard levels'. He was a Necromancer who used his undead servant as a porter. I went all in with the equipment list too, replacing things like the bedroll and whetstone with a cat bed and scratching post).
College: Mona never exactly has an academic or career path in the game, but in Strixhaven he could sit on top of his very own desk. His desire to probe the secrets of the depths of the Metaverse probably puts him in Quandrix.
Skull – Fighter
Skull is a track athlete who outshines the rest of the group in that department. He is loud, direct and rejects social norms in a way that fits Barbarian, but I think another character should take that class. His physicality also works well for a Fighter, most likely a Champion. Second Wind, Action Surge and Remarkable Athlete will all serve to provide the right impression. The Interception Fighting Style will also showcase his notable loyalty by protecting other characters. It's a bit basic, but so is he.
College: Whichever it is, he's skipping most of the classes.
Panther – Sorcerer
Panther mostly uses magical fire attacks, which are conspicuously strong compared to most other party members. Her choice of element also reflects her personality more directly than some others (Queen's penchant for nuke, for example). This makes her a straightforward choice for Pyromancy Sorcerer. Her frequently noted beauty and ambitions to be a professional model make a Charisma focused class logical for her too.
College: Prismari is likely to be the home of fashion and will be full of artists wanting to make her their muse.
Fox – Fighter, Monk or Bard
Fox stands at the intersection of these two fandoms as he is voiced by Matt Mercer. His combat style is overtly based upon a samurai, which exist as a fairly unremarkable Fighter Archetype. His notably ascetic lifestyle could be demonstrated by making him a Kensei Monk instead – although in his case the cause is a deprived upbringing and terrible budgeting skills. In role-playing terms his obsessive devotion to beauty and the arts produces behaviour that everyone would normally associate with a Bard. I don't really have a strong preference – there are no bad characters in the P5R main cast but I didn't gel as closely with Fox as I did with most of the others.
College: Fox spent most of his food budget on Prismari paraphernalia the day he arrived, even though you don't choose a College until your second year.
Queen – Monk or Fighter
Queen is a self-disciplined and relatively sensible person who wows the rest of the party with her martial arts skills. This makes assigning her the Monk class an easy option complete with a higher than average Wisdom score. As with most versions of D&D or Pathfinder, however, Fighters are a valid alternative when trying to create a punching expert. Queen rapidly becomes the tactician of the group and has abilities that let you assess the prowess of monsters in advance. If you play a Battle Master with the Unarmed Fighting Style and the right choice of Manoeuvrers, she can do all of this by the time she has Know Your Enemy.
College: Lorehold is probably a good fit for her book-smart approach to academic success and ambitions in the field of Law.
Oracle – Wizard or Artificer
Oracle is a slight challenge for this exercise because she is a non-combatant, assisting the party purely by remote. Unlike many other TTRPGs D&D equips all characters with some ability to mix it up with the enemy. Wizards are among the very squishiest options in terms of Hit Points and proficiencies, without being funnelled toward offensive magic in the way that Sorcerers tend to be. With the right spell choices a Divination Wizard could mimic Oracle's role as Navigator quite well. Intelligence should certainly be her primary Ability score in any case. Her extreme tech skills are an obvious match for the Intelligence-based Artificer but this class is typically much more directly combative. However the Unearthed Arcana rules contain the Archivist option which is perfect if the GM allows it.
This character's anxiety and unusual approach could be interesting to play, but it is worth making sure that the other players know your intentions in advance. Such retiring tactics could make some fights tougher.
College: Quandrix and Lorehold both intersect with her fields of interest. Whichever college she calls her own, she fully intends to amass a complete set of Cuddly Strixhaven Mascots.
Noir – Barbarian
The daughter of a very wealthy family, Noir is a picture of social propriety and dresses like a musketeer in the Metaverse. However, she is too shy and too much of a people pleaser to operate as a social powerhouse – she has been raised to be a pawn rather than a player. When the dam inevitably breaks she enters combat with a two-handed battleaxe and a surprising amount of hidden strength. Fighting gives her a degree of pleasure that sometimes unnerves even martially-orientated characters like Skull and Queen. Although she is dutiful to her family's business interests her personal passion is learning about plants and how to make the best food from them. For these reasons I would place her as the game's best candidate for Barbarian – albeit one so non-stereotypical that I'd love to play her.
College: Witherbloom. Whether chopping wood or tending a flowerbed, Noir loves to get her hands dirty.
Crow – Paladin
Crow professes doubt that the vigilante activities of the Phantom Thieves are preferable to the law as a form of justice, but eventually finds it necessary to seek to join them. As a late game addition to the roster it is unsurprising that he is a powerful character from the moment he joins. Paladin is a hard hitting class that is traditionally viewed as a foil for rogues and chaotic characters in general, so it works to portray him as one.
Of course, 5e has dispensed with alignment restrictions and Paladins now seek their own justice from a variety of perspectives. Crow is ruthless figure to his enemies – and also to himself, driven to excel in all things and judging his worth only by success. He eventually confesses to be bitterly jealous of Joker's special abilities and becomes obsessed with proving himself superior in spite of them. This means that the Oath of Conquest suits the character well, particularly the description of the third precept: “You shall rule until a stronger one arises. Then you must grow mightier and meet the challenge, or fall to your own ruin”.
This self-destructive obsession could even lead to Crow becoming a Hexadin – the Paladin/Hexblade Warlock multi-class with an infamously high damage output served with a side of angsty internal conflict.
College: Silverquill. It is hard to imagine such a competitive character NOT learning Silvery Barbs.
Violet – Rogue or Bard
Violet is so late to the party that she is only added to the team in the expanded storyline of Royal. As such there is less to say about her relationship to combat (although she has an engaging personal arc). As an aspiring gymnast she is graceful and highly mobile, favouring a light sword. The Swashbuckler's Fancy Footwork and the College of Sword's Flourishes both demonstrate this well. I'm currently playing a mutli-class of these two in my regular game and enjoying it.
College: Prismari is the natural home of people committed to artistic excellence.
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