I wouldn't say you need a semi
but I would say you certainly need more than a 3/4 ton. With that much weight a 3/4 won't be able to handle the pin weight (32-3300lbs. at gvw), people, gear and provide an adequate safety cushion. Also, in any emergency maneuver the 3/4 is just not up to the task of controlling that much weight.
To me the answer is pretty easy. You can get a 1 ton srw with something in the range of 4k - 4200 lbs. payload or so. That would be a gas engine generally. A diesel would provide significantly less payload so it's back to the "carry the load and have a cushion" kind of thing. "Towing" 16k+ is out of the realm of a gas engine IMO so the choice will be diesel. A 1 ton srw diesel will not have the payload to carry that trailer so.....if it were me, I would be shopping 1 ton drw trucks - and yes, Ram would be my choice as well as I've had nothing but great luck since I switched to them in 2001. Good luck on the search.