Oath of the Pale Knight (5e Subclass)
The Oath of The Pale Knight
Paladins that take the Oath of the Pale Knight, keep the natural cycle intact, and hunt those that seek immortality in the embrace of undeath. They target Necromancers and would-be Liches, visiting them in nightmare, and warning them of what may come to pass if they continue to dabble in forbidden magic. Those that desecrate graveyards and burial mounds are no safer from a Pale Knight, whether they be a grave robber or fervent occultist. The dead are to know peace and their memory is to be respected. They hold sacred the gift of life but enforce the inexorable coming of death, this is the balance within nature. Their armor is often a pale blue or bright silver, wrapped in a tattered black or white shroud, and adorned with engravings of their tenets to root out and destroy necromancy.
Tenets Of The Pale Knight
Respect: You are taught to know and respect the gift of life, and need not kill without purpose. Nothing comes from wanton bloodshed and you will have no part in it.
Balance. Knowledge of desecration in nature compels you to act. The undead only create more of their ranks when left unchecked. If they pose a threat to the living, you must act to destroy them.
Finality. Resurrection of the fallen is forbidden, it is disrespectful to the cycle, and denies peace to those at rest. Everyone will die eventually, including those you are closest to, and you must accept that.
Hallowed. You shun power offered by necromancy as a whole, and may not willingly use spells or receive a beneficial effect from that school of magic.
Class Changes
| Paladin Level | Spells |
|---|---|
| 3rd | Bane, Hunter's Mark |
| 5th | Zone of Truth, Suggestion
|
| 9th | Dispel Magic, Spirit Guardians |
| 13th | Banishment, Dimension Door |
| 17th | Hallow, Scrying |
Channel Divinity
When you take this oath at 3rd level, you gain the following two Channel Divinity options.
- Abjure Enemy
- Abjure Enemy. As an action, you present your holy symbol and speak a prayer of denunciation, using your Channel Divinity. Choose one creature within 60 feet of you that you can see. That creature must make a Wisdom saving throw, unless it is immune to being frightened. Fiends and undead have disadvantage on this saving throw.
On a failed save, the creature is frightened for 1 minute or until it takes any damage. While frightened, the creature’s speed is 0, and it can’t benefit from any bonus to its speed.
On a successful save, the creature’s speed is halved for 1 minute or until the creature takes any damage.
- Exorcist Weapon
- As an action, you can imbue a weapon that you are holding with faint radiant energy using your Channel Divinity. For 1 minute, the weapon deals an additional 1d6 radiant damage, emits dim blue light in a 20-foot radius, and is considered magical for the purposes of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical damage. Enemies hit by the weapon cannot turn invisible. You can end this effect on your turn as part of any other action. If you are no longer carrying this weapon or if you fall unconscious, the effect ends immediately.
The extra damage increases to 2d6 at 9th level and 3d6 at 17th level.
Additional Proficiency
You become proficient in the Constitution Saving Throw.
Foreboding Nightmare
The Pale Knight warns of their coming, through reoccurring nightmares, to those they target. They do so in hopes that these transgressors might still be diverted from their cursed path.
Starting at 3rd level, Once per day you may cast 'Dream' as if it were in your spell list without expending a spell slot. The creature targeted must either be one you have knowledge of or suspect has performed necromancy; or has desecrated a known burial site that the messenger has visited, if the creature targeted is not guilty of the suspected crime, the spell automatically fails and the messenger becomes aware of the creatures innocence. Once used, you may not use this ability again until you have finished a long rest.
Aura of The Pale Lord
Starting at 7th level, you will have an aura of pale blue light and mist will begin to fall in curtains from your armor. Undead and fiends within a 10 foot radius of you must make a wisdom saving throw, using your spell DC, or becomes turned for 1 round, after which it remains frightened of you until it passes another wisdom saving throw or becomes damaged. Turned creatures must spend their move, moving as far away as possible and cannot voluntarily move closer to you. They may only make the Dash action or Dodge if they can't move away.
At 18th level, the range of this aura increases to 30 feet.
Master Exorcist
Starting at 15th level are immune to charm or possession effects. As an action you can remove the charm effect from another character by making the charmer roll a Charisma saving throw against your spell-save DC. If failed, the charm effect is removed, if successful, the charmed character remains charmed.
You may also exorcise a possessed creature by making the enemy roll a Wisdom saving throw against your spell-save DC. If the save is failed, the possessor takes 2d10 radiant damage and leaves the possessed body, if succeeded, both you and the possessed character take 2d10 radiant damage and the possession does not end.
Keeper of the Balance
Starting at 20th level, your eyes emit a faint blue glow, forever marking you as a pale knight. Extraplanar and undead now find it difficult to stay in your very presence. As an action, For 1 hour you gain the following benefits:
- A thick mist surrounds you and grants you a flying speed of 60 feet.
- Fey, Fiend, and Undead that are effected by frightened status within 30 feet of you must make a Constitution saving throw or take 4d10 radiant damage.
- Fey, Fiend, and Undead have disadvantage on attack rolls against creatures within 30 feet of you.
After activating this aura, the paladin cannot do so again until they finish a long rest.
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