Android - Is there a way to type German and French characters from the stock keyboard?

You can "long press" a key, which will give you alternative letters if alternative symbols are associated with it. Try it with the letter "E". To select the desired letter/symbol slide your finger to the side.

I use Anysoft Keyboard for writing with accented, etc. characters. Try it.

See http://www.reddit.com/r/Nexus5/comments/2atmt4/german_keyboard/. this method works for me.

Enable German keyboard by going to settings > language & input > then clicking the settings button next to Google keyboard >input languages > select German. To type ß, you'll need to hold down the s key, then it'll pop up, same for ü under u, Å under A, etc.