Paragons of Virtue

While there are many holy warriors across the lands, few are Paladins. Marked by unwavering dedication to their cause, a true Paladin is a living embodiment of the virtues they swear to uphold. Whether selfless or utilitarian, in service of good or evil, law or chaos, a Paladin is the pinnacle of whatever virtue, cause, or creed they pledge their life to uphold.

Many Paladins are honored as holy knights who defend the innocent, inspire hope, and live with honor. However, not all are paragons of righteousness. Some swear to bring divine judgment upon their foes by any means necessary or vow to keep the balance between the wilderness and civilization.

Bound by Oath

No matter the cause or virtue they champion, all Paladins are bound by Sacred Oath. Whether they were raised from birth to swear their Oath when their training was complete, or they cried out to heaven in a fit of despair, all Paladins must swear a Sacred Oath in order to be infused with their divine power. Though the exact words of these Oaths vary across time and cultures, these holy vows bind all Paladins who swear it into common cause, whatever it may be.

Once this sacred vow is made, a Paladin must uphold the Tenets of their Oath with unwavering dedication, or they risk losing their divinely ordained abilities. Small transgressions can be forgiven if reparations are made, but should a Paladin knowingly and willfully break the Tenets of their divine Oath, they risk shattering their Oath completely and losing access
    to the divine power that is infused in them by their Oath.

Hit Points

• Hit Dice: 1d10 per Paladin level
• Hit Points at 1st Level: 10 + your Constitution modifier.
• Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d10 (or 6) + your Constitution modifier per Paladin level after 1st

Proficiencies

• Armor: All armor, shields
• Weapons: Simple weapons, martial weapons
• Tools: None

• Saving Throws: Wisdom, Charisma
• Skills: Choose two of the following: Athletics, Insight, Intimidation, Medicine, Persuasion, and Religion

Starting Equipment

As a Paladin, you start with the following equipment, along with the equipment granted to you by your background:

• (a) martial weapon and shield or (b) two martial weapons
• (a) a simple melee weapon or (b) five javelins
• (a) a priest’s pack or (b) an explorer’s pack
• Chain mail and a holy symbol

Quick Build

You can make a Paladin quickly by using these suggestions: First, make Strength your highest ability score, followed by Charisma. Second, choose the Acolyte background. Finally, take the Dueling Fighting Style and choose a Sacred Oath.

Fighting Style

At 1st level, you adopt a Fighting Style that best reflects your training. You cannot select a Fighting Style more than once, even if a feature allows you to select another Fighting Style.

Whenever you gain a level in this class, you can switch your Fighting Style for another Fighting Style of your choice.

Blind Warrior

You have blindsight with a range in feet equal to 5 times your proficiency bonus. In that range, you can see invisible targets and anything that isn't behind total cover or hidden from you.

Classical Swordplay

While wielding a finesse weapon and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to your attack rolls and a +1 to your Armor Class so long as you are not using heavy armor or a shield.

Defensive Fighting

So long as you are either wearing armor or wielding a shield, you gain a +1 bonus to your Armor Class.

Dueling

When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with it.

Great Weapon Fighting

When you make a two-handed melee attack with a heavy weapon as part of your Attack action, you treat a total roll
of 5 or lower on the weapon's damage dice as a 6.

Mounted Warrior

While you are riding a controlled mount, both you and your mount gain a +1 bonus to your Armor Class, and you can use a bonus action on each of your turns to command the mount to take one action from its stat block or another action.

Protector

When a creature you can see hits you, or a target within 5 feet with a melee attack, you can use a reaction to add your proficiency bonus to the target's Armor Class against that attack. You must be wielding a shield or a melee weapon.

Shield Warrior

You gain proficiency with shields as a martial melee weapon that deal bludgeoning damage equal to 2d4 + your Strength modifier. If you are wielding a shield and nothing else, you gain a +1 bonus to shield attack rolls and your Armor Class.

Strongbow

You can use your Strength modifier, in place of Dexterity, for attack and damage rolls with longbows and shortbows. When you do so, you gain a +1 to damage rolls with those weapons.

Versatile Fighting

While wielding a single versatile weapon and no shield, you gain a +1 bonus to your attack rolls with that weapon. While doing so, you can also use your bonus action to make a single grapple or shove attack, or to take the Use an Object action.

Sacred Oath

You have sworn a powerful Sacred Oath, which marks you as a Paladin. At 1st level, you choose the Sacred Oath that best represents your Paladin's convictions and creed: Oath of the Ancients, Devotion, Vengeance, Oathless, or Blackguard.

Your Sacred Oath grants features at 1st level, and again when you reach 3rd, 7th, 15th, and 20th level in this class.

Oath of the Ancients

Often called green knights, a Paladin who swears this Sacred Oath is sworn to watch over all forms of life and beauty. They are guardians of the natural world, and can be found amongst the courts of the Feywild, Druidic Circles, or anywhere nature reigns supreme in its ancient and primordial glory.

Known as white knights, Paladins that swear this
Sacred Oath are paragons of virtue, honor, and
and justice. Holding themselves to the highest
standards of goodness and law, they idolize the
celestial angels as the perfect model. Paladins
of Devotion are beacons of light in a dark world.

Tenets of Vengeance

1st-level Oath of Vengeance feature
Though their specific Oath and cause may vary, all Paladins who swear an Oath of Vengeance uphold the Tenets below:

Sworn Foe

1st-level Oath of Vengeance feature
You have taken a Sacred Oath to destroy your Sworn Foe by any means necessary. Choose one creature type, two races of humanoid (such as gnolls and orcs), or one organization (like a thieves' guild or a demonic cult) to be your Sworn Foe.

As an action on your turn, you can expend 1 Divine Fervor to infuse yourself with the power of your Sacred Oath. For 1 hour, you can add your Charisma modifier (minimum of +1) to all ability checks made to track or recall knowledge about
Sworn Foes, and all your attack rolls against Sworn Foes.

If your Sworn Foe is completely eradicated, or when you gain a Paladin level, you can perform a 24-hour ritual where you swear your Oath anew and designate a new Sworn Foe.

Vengeance Spells

2nd-level Oath of Vengeance feature
You learn certain spells at the Paladin levels as noted in the table below. They don't count against your total number of Spells Known and cannot be switched upon gaining a level.

Vow of Enmity

3rd-level Oath of Vengeance feature
You mark evildoers for judgment. As a bonus action, you can expend 2 Divine Fervor and proclaim a Vow of Enmity at one creature you can see within 10 feet. For 1 minute or until it is slain, you have advantage on all attack rolls against it.

If the creature is also a Sworn Foe, it has disadvantage on all attack rolls against creatures other than you for 1 minute.

     Only one creature can be under your Vow of Enmity at a
              time. Using this feature on another creature ends the
                  effect of this vow for the previous creature.

Vengeful Smite

3rd-level Oath of Vengeance feature
When you use Divine Smite, you can expend 2 Divine Fervor to infuse your strike with your wrath. After the damage of the attack, your target must make a Wisdom saving throw. On a failure, it is frightened of you and its speed is reduced to 0 for 1 minute. The effect ends early if the creature takes damage.

Sworn Foes and the creature marked by your Vow of Enmity have disadvantage on this saving throw.

Aura of Vengeance

7th-level Oath of Vengeance feature
Your hatred for your foes emanates as a shield for
your allies. When a creature under your Aura of
Protection is forced to make an ability check or
saving throw by your Sworn Foe or the creature
marked by your Vow of Enmity, they gain a bonus
to that ability check or saving throw equal to 1d6.

Relentless Avenger

15th-level Oath of Vengeance feature
Your supernatural hatred helps you menace your sworn enemies. When your Sworn Foe or the creature marked
by your Vow of Enmity attacks or forces a creature
other than you to make a saving throw, you can use
your reaction to move up to your speed toward the
attacker and make a single melee attack against it.

If you are hit by an opportunity attack as part of
this movement, your attack roll has advantage.

Avatar of Vengeance

20th-level Oath of Vengeance feature
As a bonus action on your turn, you can transform into
an avatar of divine judgment. While you are transformed
you gain the following benefits for up to 1 minute:

• You cast misty step on each of your turns at will, without expending a spell slot. If you reappear within 5 feet of a creature, you can make a melee weapon attack against it.
• You have advantage on attack rolls against Sworn Foes.
• Once per turn, when you make a weapon attack roll with advantage, you can forgo advantage on your attack roll to make one additional weapon attack against that creature.

This transformation lasts for 1 minute and ends early if you become unconscious. Once you transform, you must finish a long rest before you can do so again. When you have no uses left you can expend a 5th-level spell slot to transform again.

Oathless Spells

2nd-level Oathless Paladin feature
You learn certain spells at the Paladin levels as noted in the table below. They don't count against your total number of Spells Known and cannot be switched upon gaining a level.

Draining Smite

3rd-level Oathless Paladin feature
When you use Divine Smite, you can expend 2 Divine Fervor to infuse this strike with your self-serving power. The bonus damage of this Divine Smite becomes necrotic, and you gain temporary hit points equal to half the necrotic damage dealt.

Illusory Escape

3rd-level Oathless Paladin feature
Your fervent devotion to yourself above all else allows you to escape harm. When you take damage from a source you can
                   see, you can use your reaction to expend 2 Divine
                         Fervor, become invisible, and move up to your
                              speed. You remain invisible until the start of
                                 your next turn, or until you attack or force
                                   a creature to make a saving throw.

                           Aura of Deception

                                    7th-level Oathless Paladin feature
                                    You have no qualms securing your safety
                                    at the expense of others. When you use
                                  Illusory Escape, you can force a creature
                           of your choice within your Aura of Protection
                      to make a Charisma saving throw. On a failure,
                  you and the creature instantly switch places, and it
                takes the triggering damage in your place. You then
              gain the normal benefits of Illusory Escape starting
             from the space that you reappear in.

      Forceful Will

     15th-level Oathless Paladin feature
   You use your presence to dominate instead of aiding others.
  When you force a creature within your Aura of Protection to
  make a saving throw to resist the effects of an enchantment
  spell, it has disadvantage on its initial saving throw.

Avatar of Dishonor

20th-level Oathless Paladin feature
As a bonus action, you can focus your self-serving power to become a gray shade of the righteous Paladin you could have been, gaining the following benefits for the next minute:

• You become invisible as if by the greater invisibility spell.
• You can take the Dash or Hide action as a bonus action.
• When a creature misses you with a melee attack, you can force it to repeat its attack against another creature of your choice within the normal range of that attack.

This transformation ends early if you become unconscious or you use a bonus action to end it. Once you transform, you must finish a long rest before you can do so again. If you have no uses, you can expend a 5th-level spell slot to use it again.

Blackguard

Paladins who swear this dark vow devote themselves fully to the advance of evil. Whether they are in league with powerful fiends and undead or work alone, Blackguards are known for their cruelty, hatred of all things beautiful, and willingness to sacrifice anything or anyone to achieve their sinister goals.

Blackguard Paladins are always of an evil alignment, and acting otherwise is the same as violating their Sacred Oath.