Verdict
A strong, forgiving class. Heavy armor, a d10 hit die and Aura of Protection make you hard to kill and make everyone near you harder to kill too. Paladin's Smite now costs a bonus action, so you smite once per turn rather than stacking several.
Class basics
| Hit die | d10 |
|---|---|
| Primary abilities | Strength and Charisma |
| Saving throws | Wisdom and Charisma |
| Armor | Light, medium and heavy armor; shields |
| Weapons | Simple and martial |
| Spellcasting | Half caster, Charisma-based, prepared spells |
Features by level
| Level | Features |
|---|---|
| 1 | Lay on Hands, Spellcasting, Weapon Mastery |
| 2 | Fighting Style, Paladin's Smite |
| 3 | Channel Divinity, Paladin subclass |
| 4 | Ability Score Improvement |
| 5 | Extra Attack, Faithful Steed |
| 6 | Aura of Protection |
| 7 | Subclass feature |
| 8 | Ability Score Improvement |
| 9 | Abjure Foes |
| 10 | Aura of Courage |
| 11 | Radiant Strikes |
| 12 | Ability Score Improvement |
| 13 | — |
| 14 | Restoring Touch |
| 15 | Subclass feature |
| 16 | Ability Score Improvement |
| 17 | — |
| 18 | Aura Expansion |
| 19 | Epic Boon |
| 20 | Subclass feature |
The features that matter
Lay on Hands (level 1)
A pool of healing equal to five times your Paladin level. In the 2024 rules it's a bonus action, so you can heal and still attack in the same turn. You can also spend 5 points to remove the Poisoned condition.
Weapon Mastery (level 1)
You unlock the mastery property of two weapon types. Pairing a weapon with Topple or Vex with your attacks is an easy early win.
Paladin's Smite (level 2)
You always have Divine Smite prepared, and you can cast it once per long rest without a spell slot. It's cast as a bonus action after you hit, which caps you at one smite a turn.
Aura of Protection (level 6)
Every save made by you or a friend standing within 10 feet gets a bonus equal to your Charisma modifier. This is the reason Charisma is worth pushing high, and it grows to 30 feet with Aura Expansion at level 18.
Abjure Foes (level 9)
A Channel Divinity option that can frighten several enemies at once. Useful crowd control for a class that otherwise focuses on single targets.
Radiant Strikes (level 11)
Your melee weapon and unarmed strikes deal an extra 1d8 radiant damage on every hit, with no resource to spend.
Subclasses
You swear your Oath at level 3.
| Oath | Plays like | Pick it if |
|---|---|---|
| Devotion | The classic holy knight: accuracy and protection against charm | You want a reliable all-rounder |
| Glory | An athletic champion who speeds up allies and hands out temporary hit points with smites | You like moving fast and leading from the front |
| the Ancients | A nature-tied guardian whose aura resists necrotic, psychic and radiant damage | Your campaign has a lot of enemies that deal those damage types |
| Vengeance | A relentless hunter who locks onto one enemy | You want the most single-target damage |
Building one
- Ability scores: Strength first, Charisma second, Constitution third.
- Fighting Style: Defense for a sword-and-board tank, Great Weapon Fighting for a two-handed damage build.
- Spells: keep Bless and Shield of Faith ready early; they're cheap and help the whole party.
- Feats: take the Ability Score Improvement to max Strength or Charisma before chasing feats.
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