In 5th Edition Dungeons & Dragons, subclasses let players add some flair and personality to the standard classes. They are great for homebrewers, since they let players create character options with a strong theme without making a full class progression. However, there are certain things to consider when homebrewing subclasses for different classes. Here are some tips for making a Paladin Sacred Oath, either for personal use or publication.

The Oath Itself

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Paladins are unique in that they have flavor baked into the mechanics of their classes. A rogue who has the Thief archetype can go an entire campaign without stealing anything, a Horizon Walker ranger can never once have to protect the material plane from extra-planar threats, but a paladin has to follow his sacred oath.

Like many subjects in 5e, the consequences of breaking an oath are left up to the DM, but they can range from seeking out atonement to a forced class change to taking the Oathbreaker option in the Dungeon Master’s Guide.

With these consequences in mind, creators should design their oath tenets carefully. An oath should be commonplace enough that they can be followed in day-to-day life – a paladin shouldn’t lose their powers for failing to hunt an ancient dragon every day – but should also have a loftier goal that urges them to take action above and beyond the usual – paladins don’t get superpowers just by running soup kitchens. The tenets should also set the theme of the subclass and inform the subclass’s abilities.

Spells On A Theme

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Paladins get an expanded spell list as part of their subclass. This can be a strong source of flavor throughout the class’s progression, but creators should remember that paladins only have half spell progression. It is also important that paladins can use spell slots to output significant burst damage with Divine Smite. Due to this, the expanded spell list should be filled with spells that a paladin would use in certain circumstances instead of Divine Smite – either utility spells, spells that apply status conditions, or spells with an area of effect.

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It is also important to remember that the spells gained at 3rd, 5th, 9th, 13th, and 17th levels are spells of 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th  level, respectively.

Aura Writing

Paladin artwork

Not all paladin subclasses have auras, but most do. The base paladin class also has auras, so it is a solid mechanic for a Sacred Oath as well. Auras are 10-foot zones around paladins that apply a positive effect to allies or a negative effect to enemies. Paladin subclasses gain an aura at 7th level, and the aura’s range increases to 30 feet at 18th level.

These auras are always “on” and affect a wide area, so the effect shouldn’t be too strong when mass-applied. A more powerful effect can have a condition that determines when it actually triggers. For instance, an aura could have an effect when an ally in the aura is healed, or when an enemy in the aura is stunned.

Changing The Channel Divinity

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Channel Divinity is an important resource for paladins. Since Paladins have limited spellcasting and only get Channel Divinity uses from their subclass, guidelines for Paladin channel divinity are less strict than for Clerics. Channel Divinity may emulate magical effects that Paladins don’t have access to if they fit the theme and mechanics of the subclass.

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Paladins get two uses for Channel Divinity from their subclass. In general, one of these uses has some sort of turning effect. It does not have to have the same wording as the Cleric’s Turn Undead, but it may have some effect that turns certain creature types or otherwise makes enemies move away, such as the frightened condition. Homebrewed Sacred Oaths don’t need to have a turning Channel Divinity, but it is consistent with many other paladin subclasses.

Let’s Go Defense

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Paladins are a defensive class. Many abilities are focused on protecting teammates, drawing aggro from enemies, or other defensive capabilities. Switching out defensive capabilities for offensive ones may drastically change the way paladins play in unintended ways. Too many offensive abilities may also unbalance the character when combined with the ability to pump out burst damage with Divine Smite.

Creators should keep these guidelines in mind, and make sure they don’t make the subclass too strong or too weak at any given level. As for coming up with the flavor for the archetype, they’ll have to use their imagination for that.

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