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When most 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Dungeons & Dragons players think of a paladin, they probably imagine an Oath of Devotion paladin. These paladins stand up for truth, justice, duty, honor, and compassion and spend their entire lives devoted to these tenets. They're the goody-goodies of the D&D world, with most being obnoxiously righteous in the face of even minor evils.
But that doesn't mean Oath of Devotion paladins are bad to play! They can be extremely effective at keeping the party alive while simultaneously smiting evil. If you'd like to do some good, here is how to build an Oath of Devotion paladin.
Oath Of Devotion Paladin Features
Upon taking your Oath of Devotion at level three, you gain two Channel Divinity options: Sacred Weapon and Turn the Unholy.
Sacred Weapon imbues your weapon with holy energy, making it glow bright🐻ly for 20 feet and turning it into a magical weapon for the purposes of damage calculation. It also adds your Charisma modifier to attack rolls, making it highly accu♕rate.
Turn the Unholy forces fiends and undead within 30 feet to make a Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, they have to flee from you as a Dash action and it can't take reactions.
Also at level three, Oath of Devotion paladins gain their first set of Oath Spells, which are described in the table below.
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Paladin Level |
Spells |
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Third Level |
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Fifth Level |
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Ninth Level |
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13th Level |
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17th Level |
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Aura of Devotion at level seven pre🥃vents you and friendly creatures within 10 feet from being charmed,💃 and this grows to 30 feet at level 18. Purity of Spirit at level 15 provides you with the same effects as the Protection From Evil And Good spell permanently.
Finally, at level 20, Holy Nimbus causes bright light to emanate from you for one minute in a 30-foot radius. Enemies that walk into this radius are blinded ❀by the light and take 10ꦜ radiant damage. You also have advantage on all saving throws against spells cast by fiends and undead.
Best Species For An Oath Of Devotion Paladin
Anyone can be a paladin, so feel free to play as any species and expect to be reasonably effective. That said, there are a few species that pair well with the capabilities of an Oath of Devotion paladin. Here are a few suggestions.
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Astral Elf |
Having Sacred Flame as a cantrip provides a much-needed ranged attack, while Starlight Step gets you into combat faster. Charm resistance is great for a class that struggles with mind-control effects, and Keen Senses provides another much-needed skill proficiency. |
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Centaur |
Ten extra feet of movement is always good, hooves give you an unarmed strike option and added bonus action damage, and Equine Build lets you pull the party's cart. Who needs a horse with a centaur paladin around? |
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Dragonborn |
There's less reason to be a dragonborn paladin ever since the custom origin rules made ability score increases more flexible. That said, Breath Weapon is still a valuable and viable crowd control ability for a class that sometimes struggles with crowds, and an elemental resistance is always nice to have. |
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Duergar |
Enlarge/Reduce is a useful spell for a melee-focused class, and Invisibility can help with a paladin's complete lack of subtlety. Resistance to poison and advantage against being poisoned, charmed, or stunned are all good for paladins, as is 120 feet of Darkvision. |
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Earth Genasi |
Like the duergar, earth genasi's Pass Without Trace can help with those unavoidable stealth checks. Earth Walk can ensure your mobility in difficult terrain, and Darkvision is always nice to have. |
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Goblin |
It might be weird, but a goblin paladin is perfectly viable. Fury of the Small is a great damage boost, while being able to disengage or hide as a bonus action can be useful at times. Charm resistance is unnecessary after level seven, but good to have in the meantime. Darkvision is always a plus. |
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Goliath |
Paladins don't do a lot with their reactions (outside of opportunity attacks), so Stone's Endurance can really help keep you in the fight. Athletics is a good skill to have, and cold resistance is also nice. |
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Half-Orc |
High Charisma means Intimidation proficiency is very helpful. Relentless Endurance lets you fight beyond your hit points, and Savage Attacks make critical hits that much more potent. Darkvision is as great as always. |
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Hobgoblin |
If you're playing with more than one front-line character, hobgoblins are the best. Fey Gift lets you consistently use your bonus action to provide buffs to your pal. Fortune of the Many makes your rolls more consistent. Darkvision and Fey Ancestry are always groovy. |
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Human |
Variant human gives you access to a powerful feat at level one. Polearm Master, Mobile, and Great Weapon Master are all great♋ choices. |
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Kobold |
Draconic Cry gives you a great crowd-control option very early on. Draconic Sorcery provides you with a ranged attack cantrip like Fire Bolt or a useful combat trick like Booming Blade. Or you could go Craftiness for a skill proficiency. Defiance is less usef﷽ul after you learn Protection From Evil And Good. |
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Minotaur |
Horns give you a useful unarmed strike, a bonus action push, and an attack after using a Dash action. Survival is a🌳 fine proficiency to shore up what is typically🦩 a skill-shy class. |
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Satyr |
Performance and Persuasion are both useful Charisma-based skills, and Magic Resistance helps protect you from a paladin's typical weakness. Mobility comes from Mirthful Leaps and an extra five feet of movement, and your horns give you a useful unarmed strike if you're ever disarmed. |
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Shifter |
Paladins are already very tough. Shifters add some temporary hit points and either some AC or additional movement, but both are good. Pick Intimidation for your skill proficiency. |
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Warforged |
Paladins are traditionally the heavy armor class of D&D. Add +1 to that AC as a warforged, then add resistance to poison and immunity to sleep effects. Then add a skill and tool proficiency of your choice. |
Best Ability Scores For An Oath Of Devotion Paladin
Paladins need Strength, Constitution, and Charisma to be effective. Strength empowers your melee combat and lets you wear heavy armor. Constitution provides hit points and lets you keep concentration on certain spells. Charisma empowers those spells and many of y🧸our subclass abilities.
You could swap Strength for Dexterity to gain access to ranged attacks via bows, but Divine Smite requires melee attacks to work, and Strength-based weapons just deal more damage. Consider an optional class feature or a species with access to a cantrip if you're concerned about your lack of ranged damage. Or you could just keep some javelins handy.
Dexterity, Intelligence, and Wisdom can all be safely ignored.
If you're using the points buy system for D&D, a good starting ability score spread might look something like this:
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Strength |
Dexterity |
Constitution |
Intelligence |
Wisdom |
Charisma |
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17(+3) |
8(-1) |
15(+2) |
8(-1) |
8(-1) |
16(+3) |
Best Starting Equipment For An Oath Of Vengeance Paladin
With access to all simple and martial weapons, there are many ways to build your paladin.
You can either start with a shield and a single martial weapon, or any two martial weapons. A battleaxe, longsword, and warhammer are all good options with a shield, or you can pair any of th𒁏ese with a larger two-handed weapon like a lance, maul, or greatsword.
You could pick up two shortswords to try your hand at two-weapon fighting, but this is generally less effective than using a two-handed weapon because fighting with two weꦿapons takes up your bonus action.
Five javelins provide you with an early ranged attack, but you can replace that wit🌞h a simple melee weapon if you plan to use a cantr🍎ip.
An explorer's pack provides a few more useful items than a priest's pack, so pick that. A set of chain mail and a holy symbol are the last you need t♔o prepare for your adv🔜enture.
Best Spells For An Oath Of Vengeance Paladin
Your oath provides you with a few useful spells, but you'll be able to choose a few more as you level up. Here are a few useful paladin spells you should consider.
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Spell Level |
Spell Name |
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First Level |
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Second Level |
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Third Level |
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Fourth Level |
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Fifth Level |
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