Subclass mix and match

[Angelalex242]

How much of a power upgrade is it if you can choose whatever subclass feature you want?

That is, a Paladin picking the Devotion Channel Divinity, Ancients Level 7, Vengeance Level 15, Ancients 20, if he so desires.

[Greywander]

It depends a lot on the class, really. Some classes have a lot of consistency across their subclasses, so they'll all get a really nice feature at a specific level, and then a weaker feature at a different level. Some classes are less consistent, so cherrypicking your favorite subclass features can be a massive upgrade.

This is something I've asked about before. No matter how you look at it, it's always an upgrade since you're trading features you don't want for features you do want; you always end up with something you wanted more than taking just a single subclass.

One possible way I thought of to balance it was to force you to pick a different subclass at every level. That way, if a particular subclass has two different features that you want, you could only get them by taking that as a single subclass. If you mix and match, you could only get one of those features, and you'd have to choose a different subclass at the level you would have gained the other feature. I don't know if this would successfully balance things, though.

I've also considered the possibility of spending a feat to get some of the features of a second subclass. The idea was just to grant all subclass features up to 3rd level, since every class chooses a subclass at 1st, 2nd, or 3rd level. You're usually only getting one level's worth of features anyway, though a few classes give subclass features at 1st and 2nd level, such as cleric. I further considered the idea of taking the feat multiple times to advance a second subclass, but because different classes get subclass features at different times it was just too tricky to get right.

[Jerrykhor]

Would be incredibly strong on Barbarian. Pick Bear Totem at 3, Mindless Rage at 6, Zealous Presence at 10 and Rage beyond Death at 14.

[heavyfuel]

I think if you allowed mix and match for a few classes it would be fine. I wouldn't want every Wizard with Portent, Undead Thralls, Master Scriviner, and Illusory Reality

But doing it for Monks, Rogues, Fighters, Barbarians, and Rangers is probably fine. Artificers and Paladins are a maybe.

Probably best to allow as Greywander suggested. You can pick another subclass, but you have to pick its first subclass ability every time you pick a new subclass


Would be incredibly strong on Barbarian. Pick Bear Totem at 3, Mindless Rage at 6, Zealous Presence at 10 and Rage beyond Death at 14.

Might actually make Barbarian worth it beyond level 6.