Paladin Subclass: Oath of the Dawn

[gakorogirl]

Currently working on my first homebrew, a paladin Oath inspired by one of my previous characters (who was at that point a Redemption Pally/Life Cleric.) It's very much a work in progress right now, so I'd love to hear people's opinions about it. I'll probably redo the oath tenets to make them a little less similar to Oath of Devotion, and I'm looking for suggestions for the second Channel Divinity because I don't particularly like what I have right now.



A silver-scaled Dragonborn raises her shield, a soft healing glow spreading from the inlaid holy symbol. The broadsword strapped across her back glimmers with radiant energy. Oath of the Dawn paladins, also called Dawn Knights or Heralds, are swift and sure both in healing and in combat. They lead by example, and tend to be hopeful and compassionate- some might say idealistic.

Tenets of the Dawn

- Faith:
There is no night which comes without a morning. Have hope, always, and lead by example to bring faith and hope to others.
- Fortitude:
Approach even hopeless causes with determination. Let no obstacle hinder you for long.
- Compassion:
Protect those who cannot protect themselves, at any cost to yourself. Offer healing to all those who need it.
-Justice:
Repay all deeds with honor, good or bad. Temper your justice with mercy, and if you must kill then know your path is right.

Channel Divinity
When taking this oath at 3rd level, you gain two Channel Divinity options.

Light of Healing: As an action, you speak a short prayer and cause your holy symbol to glow softly, shedding radiance in a circle five feet in radius. For the next minute, whenever an ally moves into the light for the first time on a turn or starts its turn there, you may cause the light to restore 1d6 hit points to the creature. You may use a bonus action to take advantage of this effect yourself.

Blind the Wicked:As an action, you speak ancient words of power and present your holy symbol, which flashes with blinding light. All fiends or undead which can see you must make a Constitution saving throw or be stunned. A stunned creature may repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns.

Oath of the Dawn Spells
| Paladin Level | Spells |
| 3rd | bless, protection from good and evil |
| 5th | warding bond, zone of truth|
| 9th | daylight, spirit guardians |
| 13th | guardian of faith, aura of life |
| 17th | circle of power, dawn|

Aura of Heroism
Starting at 7th level, you are able to heal your allies at cost to yourself. when an ally within 10 feet of you takes damage you can redirect the damage onto yourself. this damage cannot be reduced in any way. You also gain the ability to transfer a number of hit points up to twice your paladin level to a wounded creature within your aura, up to that creature's hit point maximum. (For example, at 10th level you are able to bestow 20 of your own hit points on a wounded creature.)

Herald of the Dawn
At 15th level, your devotion to your cause is so great that you cannot be restrained by magical means. you are immune to being stunned or paralyzed. in addition, you learn the word of radiance cantrip.

Beacon of Glory
At 20th level, you are able to transform yourself into a beacon of hope and light. for one minute, you gain the following benefits:
- You shed bright light in a 10-foot radius and dim light in a 30-foot radius. this light dispells magical darkness.
- You and friendly creatures within 30 feet of you have resistance to damage from spells.
- You and all allies within a 30-foot radius regain the maximum number of hit points possible from any healing.

[Lacuna Caster]

Looks nifty to me. 5E isn't really my area of expertise, but the second channel option seems fine?

[Argothair]

Looks great to me! Fun, thematic, balanced. Maybe drop the "justice' plank from the Oath requirements? It could be fun to have some dishonorable Dawn Paladins -- the sort of half-broken, Chaotic Good characters who keep on doing their best to serve the innocent even after acquiring, e.g., a steady limp, a bankrupting pile of debt, and an untreated alcohol addiction. They might lie to your face to spare your feelings, and they might not pay for their night at the inn, but they'll give you the shirt off their back if you're cold and their last apple if you're hungry.

Not that every Dawn Paladin would be that way, but I think it should be an option. A bit like Harry Dresden, maybe.

[MoleMage]

Light of Healing is pretty strong compared to for example Life Domain (which only works below half health). If you made it only work below half health it would probably be okay.

For the Blind the Wicked, why stunned instead of blinded? It has blind right in the name! That said I don't think there's anything wrong with the feature as-is.

Aura of Heroism should specify what action it takes to transfer hit points. Maybe make a Lay on Hands interaction also (you may use lay on hands within your aura, and you may use hit points up to X in place of lay on hands pool when healing others). Also is the transfer limit per transfer or per short/long rest?

The bright/dim light radii are strange on Beacon of Glory. Normally the dim is twice the bright.



All in all a solid paladin archetype, and feels more like "healing paladin" than existing printed oaths, which I like.

[Composer99]

Currently working on my first homebrew, a paladin Oath inspired by one of my previous characters (who was at that point a Redemption Pally/Life Cleric.) It's very much a work in progress right now, so I'd love to hear people's opinions about it. I'll probably redo the oath tenets to make them a little less similar to Oath of Devotion, and I'm looking for suggestions for the second Channel Divinity because I don't particularly like what I have right now.

Oath of the Dawn

Overall, I really like the theme and flavour of this Oath. I've a few questions/remarks in addition to any posed already by others.


Channel Divinity
When taking this oath at 3rd level, you gain two Channel Divinity options.

Light of Healing: As an action, you speak a short prayer and cause your holy symbol to glow softly, shedding radiance in a circle five feet in radius. For the next minute, whenever an ally moves into the light for the first time on a turn or starts its turn there, you may cause the light to restore 1d6 hit points to the creature. You may use a bonus action to take advantage of this effect yourself.

Blind the Wicked:As an action, you speak ancient words of power and present your holy symbol, which flashes with blinding light. All fiends or undead which can see you must make a Constitution saving throw or be stunned. A stunned creature may repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns.

I do have some concerns about both of these features.

Light of Healing starts off being very powerful for an effect you get at 3rd level. If your allies are smart about it, they can each heal up to 10d6 hit points (average 35 hp) once every short rest. While this ability doesn't scale particularly well as you gain levels, it would still be a great out-of-combat heal.

The Life domain cleric channel effect is a good point of comparison. The cleric's healing is 5 hp per level, so the effect grows in power as the cleric gains levels, but is never amazingly good relative to other options the cleric (or anyone else) has for healing at any given level. (The cleric also gets more uses of channel divinity in between rests, which also allows the effect to scale in power without being overpowered in and of itself.)

I don't know if you'd want to just make this channel effect a copy of the Life domain cleric channel, but it could do with some reworking, in any case.

Apart from the expectation that Blind the Wicked will blind, rather than stun, enemies, it's actually pretty overpowered. Stunned creatures are incapacitated, attacks against them have advantage (hello sneak attack triggers) and they automatically fail Strength and Dexterity saving throws (easy to push around, easy targets for fireballs, etc. etc.). This channel effect is basically a once-per-rest encounter-ending effect.

This is the case because the stun effect (a) has no range limit - it's just any eligible target that can see you, no matter how far away - and (b) it has no defined duration - it lasts until each affected creature succeeds on its saving throw. Off the top of my head, I'm not sure how many fiends and undead are proficient with Constitution saving throws, which would be a factor in determining the power level of this feature as that would allow you to estimate how long, on average, each potential victim of this feature would remain stunned.

The other thing about this effect is that it's very conditional. In a campaign heavy with undead or fiends, it's amazing. In other campaigns, it could be just about useless. I'd hope a DM allowing this Oath would be clear about which circumstance applies, but you may wish to consider making this feature have more general applicability.

What about revising it as follows:

Each enemy creature within 30 feet that can see you must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or become blinded until the end of your next turn.

This makes the effect more generally useful, because it affects other creatures. It's still powerful, because blinded creatures have disadvantage on their own attacks and give up advantage on attacks against them, but with range and duration limits it isn't overpowered. It scales with level, so to speak, because your opponents who might be affected are more powerful, and because you and your allies can do more damage at higher levels with the benefit of advantage. And the effect matches the name more closely.


Oath of the Dawn Spells
| Paladin Level | Spells |
| 3rd | bless, protection from good and evil |
| 5th | warding bond, zone of truth|
| 9th | daylight, spirit guardians |
| 13th | guardian of faith, aura of life |
| 17th | circle of power, dawn|

Very thematic and appropriate spells for this Oath.


Aura of Heroism
Starting at 7th level, you are able to heal your allies at cost to yourself. when an ally within 10 feet of you takes damage you can redirect the damage onto yourself. this damage cannot be reduced in any way. You also gain the ability to transfer a number of hit points up to twice your paladin level to a wounded creature within your aura, up to that creature's hit point maximum. (For example, at 10th level you are able to bestow 20 of your own hit points on a wounded creature.)

The first ability granted by this feature should probably use your reaction. Also, like other paladin auras, this one's area should increase to 30 feet at 18th level.

Also, an aura of heroism makes me think of inspiring greatness in allies within the aura, not unlike the spell heroism. Maybe this aura should be renamed? Aura of Succour, Aura of Protection, or something like that?


Herald of the Dawn
At 15th level, your devotion to your cause is so great that you cannot be restrained by magical means. you are immune to being stunned or paralyzed. in addition, you learn the word of radiance cantrip.

I like this feature. For some reason, I keep wishing paladins and rangers had occasional access to cantrips, so this is great.


Beacon of Glory
At 20th level, you are able to transform yourself into a beacon of hope and light. for one minute, you gain the following benefits:
- You shed bright light in a 10-foot radius and dim light in a 30-foot radius. this light dispells magical darkness.
- You and friendly creatures within 30 feet of you have resistance to damage from spells.
- You and all allies within a 30-foot radius regain the maximum number of hit points possible from any healing.

Another nice feature.

I think you could increase the bight light that you shed to 30 feet, with the dim light an additional 30 feet. It's a 20th-level feature, so it's okay to go a little nuts. It's also thematic - everyone within the bright light then gets the benefits described in the following bullet points, which just makes sense.

[gakorogirl]

Maybe drop the "justice' plank from the Oath requirements? It could be fun to have some dishonorable Dawn Paladins -- the sort of half-broken, Chaotic Good characters who keep on doing their best to serve the innocent even after acquiring, e.g., a steady limp, a bankrupting pile of debt, and an untreated alcohol addiction. They might lie to your face to spare your feelings, and they might not pay for their night at the inn, but they'll give you the shirt off their back if you're cold and their last apple if you're hungry

I rewrote the Justice tenet to give a little more leeway- how does this sound? Practice justice tempered with mercy. Let no good deed no unrewarded or wicked deed go unpunished.


Light of Healing starts off being very powerful for an effect you get at 3rd level. If your allies are smart about it, they can each heal up to 10d6 hit points (average 35 hp) once every short rest. While this ability doesn't scale particularly well as you gain levels, it would still be a great out-of-combat heal.

To be honest, I meant it to be similar to the Ranger/Druid spell Healing Spirit, which is a ridiculously good healing spell compared to even most cleric healing stuff. (The campaign that I'm playtesting this in does have a ranger, but he's not very interested in using spell slots on support.) I'm thinking of retooling this ability to be something like Beacon of Hope, where it maxes out your healing for the next minute, or something more along the lines of a Mass Healing Word.

I've also renamed Aura of Heroism to Aura of Succor, and switched Blind the Wicked so it actually, uh, blinds the wicked. I'll be posting the full v1.2 shortly!

[gakorogirl]

The new Oath of the Dawn, with several features reworked and Healing Light replaced by Break of Day. (A few spells have also been changed- most notably I replaced Guardian of Faith with Otiluke's Resilient Sphere to give a more defensive option.)

Tenets of the Dawn

- Faith:
There is no night which comes without a morning. Have hope, always, and lead by example to bring faith and hope to others.
- Fortitude:
Approach even hopeless causes with determination. Let no obstacle hinder you for long. Nothing can stand for long in the way of the dawn that is breaking.
- Compassion:
Protect those who cannot protect themselves, at any cost to yourself. Offer healing to all those who need it.
-Justice:
Practice justice tempered with mercy. Let no good deed no unrewarded or wicked deed go unpunished.

Channel Divinity
When taking this oath at 3rd level, you gain two Channel Divinity options.

Break of Day: As an action, you speak a short prayer and cause your holy symbol to emit a warm glow. You may heal all allies within 10 feet of you for 1d6. At 5th level this healing increases to 2d6, at 11th level to 3d6, and at 17th level to 4d6. If applicable, these allies also lose a level of exhaustion.

Blind the Wicked:As an action, you speak ancient words of power and present your holy symbol, which flashes with searing light. All fiends or undead which can see you must make a Constitution saving throw or be blinded. A blinded creature may repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns.

Oath of the Dawn Spells
| Paladin Level | Spells |
| 3rd | bless, protection from good and evil |
| 5th | warding bond, zone of truth|
| 9th | daylight, spirit guardians |
| 13th | aura of life, otiluke’s resilient sphere |
| 17th | circle of power, dawn|

Aura of Succor
Starting at 7th level, you are able to heal your allies at cost to yourself. When an ally within 10 feet of you takes damage you can redirect the damage onto yourself. This damage cannot be reduced in any way. As an action, you may also transfer a number of hit points up to twice your paladin level to any wounded creature within your aura, up to that creature's hit point maximum. At 18th level, the range of this aura increases to 30 feet.

Herald of the Dawn
At 15th level, your devotion to your cause is so great that you cannot be held back. You are immune to being stunned or paralyzed. In addition, you learn the Word of Radiance cantrip.

Beacon of Glory
At 20th level, you are able to transform yourself into a beacon of hope and light. for one minute, you gain the following benefits:
- You shed bright light in a 30-foot radius and dim light in a 60-foot radius. The bright light dispells magical darkness.
- You and friendly creatures within 30 feet of you have resistance to damage from spells.
- As a bonus action, you may restore 2d6 hit points to any creature within 30 feet.

[Argothair]

-Justice:
Practice justice tempered with mercy. Let no good deed no unrewarded or wicked deed go unpunished.


It's your Oath, and you can certainly define it however you like, and nobody will ever give you crap about requiring a Paladin to pursue Justice.

However, if I were writing this Oath, I would not want any kind of Justice to be a requirement, let alone a sort of retributive justice that requires rewards and punishments.

I see the Dawn Paladin as a nurturing, protective, reassuring force -- not an agent of the law who wants to see that people get what they deserve, but an agent of pure good, who wants everyone to be happy and whole.

What if instead of requiring "justice tempered by mercy," you simply required mercy?

Mercy: no creature, no matter how evil, deserves to suffer. Look for opportunities to forgive your enemies, and if you must kill for the greater good, make it a quick death and a clean one.

[theshadowcult]

I like your paladin. A healing focused (not just health points) Paladin sounds like a goode idea.

I think it's great. I do have a couple criticisms though.

Aura of Succor should require a reaction to redirect the damage, other wise i like it.

I don't think herald of the dawn really fits with the rest of the theme though. Maybe change it to something about taking on your allies woes, and transfering ally debuffs onto the paladin, but also allow the paladin to make a save for each one as if just being targeted?

Also, you should give word of radiance at 3rd level not 15th. It wouldnt make it powerful, and at 15th level its piratically useless IF you have not been using it all the way up to 15th level. No one playing will want to change from two attacks a round plus divine smite plus improved divine smite, to using a cantrip. But give them a reason or option to use it right from level 3, and it would be a much more thematic choice to use.

Maybe allow the cantrip to apply improved divine smite damage at level 15? EDIT: And/or maybe allow half damage on successful saves?



Lastly and more important. You can update your first post still, instead of letting people read the old version of your archetype and finding the updated versions sporadically through the thread. :)