Redemption Paladin Build Guide – The Ultimate Shield – 2024 Update

For all D&D guides on Nat1gaming, they only use the main sourcebooks (Player’s Handbook, Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything, Xanathar’s Guide to Everything) as well as Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos (mostly for Silvery Barbs) as those tend to be the most commonly used books at tables. Always be sure that if you’re following a guide that you’re adhering to your tables rules about what sourcebooks you are allowed to follow.

Any spell, class, feature, or other game item that is linkable on this website is covered by the 5th edition Open Games License and will be in the Player’s Handbook, but not everything in the Player’s Handbook will be linked to. All other materials that aren’t linked to are from other sourcebooks or aren’t allowed to be linked to per the 5th Edition Open Games License, so please refer to the appropriate sourcebooks for that information.

For the purposes of this guide, it will be assumed that you would not be multiclassing. While multiclassing can be excellent for many of these, this is for those who want to play the build all the way through in the same class. Guides that use multiclassing will be separate from these.

For spellcasters, you may notice substantial overlap between the spell lists of builds with the same base class. This is due to each guide utilizing a generically good spell list and not considering extenuating factors that will influence how you particularly sculpt your spell list. When creating your own spell list, you should take into account the campaign setting, what spells any other party members are capable of casting, potential overlap (ritual spells tend to overlap so it’s rare you need multiple people capable of casting them), or potential shortcomings in the parties total spell list. While this guide can definitely help point you in the right direction for crafting a spell list, you should use your judgement and preferences to figure out what spells make the most sense for your character.

To that end, please refer to the Spell List and Spell Tier list for any substitutions you’d want to make to the build.

The Complete Paladin Spell List

Paladin Spell Tier List – The Best Paladin Spells

While the beginning abilities and spells can leave a bit to be desired for Oath of Redemption, the late game spells and abilities you get can be quite powerful, especially the level 20 ability! In the course of a really long campaign or one that is really only playing in much higher levels, this can be an excellent choice as you get access to the best abilities without having to wait for them.

From a roleplaying perspective, playing an Oath of Redemption Paladin gives you a lot of awesome narrative and roleplaying choices as to why you’re specifically redemption. Have you been severely wronged, you did the wronging, and you still believe you can rise above it? It’s story telling gold!

Channel Divinity (Level 3) – C Tier – The Emissary of Peace option is not good, but Rebuke the Violent can be solid, especially if an enemy gets a critical hit. Additionally, if you want to homebrew this class to more so follow how the updated Paladins work, I would keep Rebuke the Violent as the Channel Divinity feature.

1st Level Spells (Level 3) – D+ Tier – Sleep can be decent, but you get it late and your spell save DC won’t be as high as a full casters for awhile.

2nd Level Spells (Level 5) – D+ Tier – Two pretty specific spells, but Hold Person can be useful in the right encounters.

Aura of Warding (Level 7) – C- Tier – You taking damage the damage over an ally can be useful in the right situation, but this is obviously not too an exciting of a prospect.

3rd Level Spells (Level 9) – A+ Tier– Holy moly. I’m having a tough time deciding whether this deserves an A+ or S- as these are two of the best third level spells in the game, both of which Paladin does not normally get. If you chose this class, it was likely because you get these.

4th Level Spells (Level 13) – C- Tier – Stoneskin isn’t too bad as it can be useful in a pinch and Resilient Sphere is a good spell, but it’s very similar to Banishment so there’s a lot of overlap there.

Protective Spirit (Level 15) – B Tier – While you only get this if you’re below half health, this will regenerate a solid amount of health per turn.

5th Level Spells (Level 17) – A Tier – Hold Monster can be alright, but Wall of Force is broken and easily one of the strongest spells in the entire game.

Emissary of Redemption (Level 20) – C Tier – Admittedly this is a tough ability to evaluate as the effects are extremely strong, but not being able to target a creature with a spell or damage it in any capacity really limits the usefulness of this. In an encounter with a lot of enemies, this could be useful as these enemies may be throwing themselves onto you and getting burned in return. Alternatively, you can focus on casting spells and using abilities that doesn’t directly target enemies which can be a somewhat feasible option. Ultimately, I do think that the usefulness of this is limited, but the fact that it’s just always active (until you break the condition against an enemy) rather than having to activate makes it more appealing.

The Ultimate 2024 One D&D Subclass Tier List

DnD 2024 Class and Subclass Tier List Breakdown

Level	Class Features/Feat	Notes
1	Lay on Hands, Spellcasting, Weapon Mastery	+ Bless + Thunderous Smite
2	Fighting Style (Protection), Paladin’s Smite	Protection Fighting Style + Divine Smite + Wrathful Smite
3	Oath of the Redemption, Channel Divinity	+ Sanctuary (Redemption) + Shield of Faith + Sleep (Redemption)
4	Feat: Shield Master (Strength)	+ Compelled Duel
5	Extra Attack, Faithful Steed	+ Aid + Calm Emotions (Redemption) + Find Steed + Hold Person (Redemption)
6	Aura of Protection	None
7	Aura of the Guardian	+ Lesser Restoration
8	Feat: War Caster (CHA)	None
9	Abjure Foes	+ Counterspell (Redemption) + Dispel Magic + Hypnotic Pattern (Redemption) + Revivify
10	Aura of Courage	None
11	Radiant Strikes	+ Aura of Vitality
12	Feat: Charisma to 18	None
13	None	+ Banishment + Resilient Sphere (Redemption) + Stoneskin (Redemption)
14	Restoring Touch	None
15	Protective Spirit	+ Death Ward
16	Feat: Charisma to 20	None
17	None	+ Hold Monster (Redemption) + Holy Weapon + Wall of Force (Wall of Force)
18	Aura Expansion	None
19	Epic Boon: Boon of Combat Prowess	+ Circle of Power
20	Emissary of Redemption	None

Not seeing the build you would want from this guide? This article can help!

The Ultimate One D&D Paladin Guide – Mastering Paladins

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Race: Goliath (Hill Giant)

Attributes:

	POINT BUY
STRENGTH	15 (+2 background) = 17
DEXTERITY	8
CONSTITUTION	15 (+1 background) = 16
INTELLIGENCE	8
WISDOM	8
CHARISMA	15

Class: Paladin

Class Features: Lay on Hands, Spellcasting, Weapon Mastery

Skill Proficiencies: Intimidation and Persuasion

Background: Farmer (Tough)

Starting Equipment: Trident, Shield, 10 Javelins, Explorer’s Pack, Chain Mail, Holy Symbol, and 40 gold + 50 gp from background

Starting Spells:

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite

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Race: Goliath (Hill Giant)

For any martial character, it’s hard to justify not going for Goliath as the Hill Giant topple is so incredibly good to get advantage on attacks. There are other solid options for species as well like Human for an additional origin feat or Aasimar as they are just generally strong, but Goliath is generally going to be my choice.

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Attributes

	POINT BUY
STRENGTH	15 (+2 background) = 17
DEXTERITY	8
CONSTITUTION	15 (+1 background) = 16
INTELLIGENCE	8
WISDOM	8
CHARISMA	15

Paladins are MAD classes so it can be a bit difficult to properly balance the attributes, but you want to prioritize Strength, Constitution, and Charisma for all Paladins.

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Proficiencies: Intimidation and Persuasion

Pretty standard skill proficiencies for Paladins. Nothing novel here.

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Background: Farmer (Tough)

The best background for Paladins as it gives Strength and Constituion on top of the best Origin feat that you can get with this attribute split.

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Starting Equipment – Trident, Shield, 10 Javelins, Explorer’s Pack, Chain Mail, Holy Symbol, and 40 gold + 50 gp from background

The standard equipment if you use the starting gold rather than what the book gives you.

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Class – Paladin

Your starting class is Paladin and you get two abilities to start off with – Lay on Hands, Spellcasting, and Weapon Mastery.

Your first ability is Lay on Hands. You get a pool of health equal to 5 times your paladin level, and as an action, you can heal someone as much as you’d like using that pool. This is a solid ability and will always provide a decent amount of healing whether you need to bring an ally up, top an ally off, or even spend 5 points to cure a disease or neutralize a poison. A solid ability all around.

Your second ability is Spellcasting which will be expanded upon later, but Paladins are your typical half-caster.

Finally, you get Weapon Mastery for two weapons, and you should choose whatever weapons you have currently have. Which, in this case, will be the Trident and Javelins.

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Starting Spells

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite

You can only prepare two spells to start with, and I will always recommend starting with the best two – Bless and Thunderous Smite.

Bless is an excellent buff that gives you and a few homies a little buff to attack rolls and saving throws.

Thunderous Smite is a derivative of Divine Smite which gives up a smidge of damage for the chance to push an enemy back and knock them prone. We love knocking enemies prone already, so having another shot at it is always nice.

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Level 2

Class Features: Fighting Style (Protection), Paladin’s Smite

Spell Change Log: + Divine Smite (Paladin’s Smite) + Wrathful Smite

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite

Level 2 brings more spells, your Fighting Style, and Paladin’s Smite!

While there are a few fighting styles that are super reasonable for Paladins, for this build, I like grabbing Protection. Giving attacks against an ally disadvantage is super nice if you have an ally that’s palling around in the front lines. That said, if it’s only one other melee ally in your group, you may want to opt for Defense instead as you may not get enough mileage out of Protection to make it worth it.

As the Paladin’s most famous feature, you get Divine Smite! Divine Smite lets you convert spell slots into damage with the base being 2d8 radiant which is quite strong. What makes Divine Smite so potent is that you can tack it on after you know whether you hit or not so you can never accidentally waste them, and better yet, you can throw them into a critical hit to get double the damage! As a general note, a lot of Paladins tend to use all their spell slots on just simply Divine Smiting, and while you absolutely can do that and have good results, I think it’s generally better to save Smites in an attempt to finish a problematic enemy off or when you get a critical hit rather than just doing it with every hit. Even as a half-caster, your spells are potent so don’t forget about them!

Finally, you get your spell choice this level with Wrathful Smite. Unfortunately, this spell did get nerfed from the previous version, but giving up damage to potentially frighten the enemy is a pretty good deal.

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Level 3

Class: Oath of Redemption

Class Features: Channel Divinity

Spell Change Log: + Sanctuary (Redemption) + Shield of Faith + Sleep (Redemption)

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite

Level 3 brings your subclass, and of course, you’re picking Oath of Redemption!

With the older Paladin subclasses, Redemption comes with two Channel Divinity options to work with in Emissary of Peace and Rebuke the Violent.

Emissary of Peace simply gives you a bonus to Persuasion for 10 minutes, so clearly an out of combat option. If you desperately need to persuade someone, then this ability can be useful, but using your Channel Divinity on it does feel bad. This is likely better than it seems, but not something I’m that excited about.

Unfortunately, the second Channel Divinity isn’t exciting either with Rebuke the Violent. If an ally gets hit near you, you can use your reaction to try and deal the same amount of damage back at the attacker. If this ability reflected damage it would be much more interesting, but as is, it really isn’t that good barring the enemy hits an ally with a critical hit. Obviously an ally getting hit for a million isn’t ideal, but it does make this ability much more potent.

If you/your DM wants to use just one Channel Divinity to operate similarly to the updated Paladins, I would probably use Rebuke the Violent as that fits thematically a bit better.

Furthermore, you get to pick up Oath Spells as well, and this level you get Sanctuary and Sleep.

Sanctuary is a niche spell where you can do a decent job protecting someone, but they can’t be aggressive in any capacity without breaking the spell. This is really hard to use as it doesn’t help much in a fight to functionally take out an ally unless they are incapacitated in some other way which is nearly impossible to predict, but again, since this is always prepared, this is a bit better than it normally would be.

Sleep is a decent CC spell that can incapicitate one, or if you’re lucky, a few targets. Solid for an early game CC spell, especially since Paladins don’t normally get CC like this.

For your spell choice this level, you can pick up Shield of Faith. Getting +2 AC when your AC is high makes it that much harder to hit you, which is especially good with the Protection fighting style.

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Level 4

Feat: Shield Master (Strength)

Class Features: None

Spell Change Log: + Compelled Duel

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite

Level 4 brings your first feat, and while raising your Charisma is tempting, I would opt for more Strength. To that end, I really like picking up Shield Master first. This feat is phenomenal as you can potentially knock an enemy down with your attack which is great, especially the more martial allies you have. This whole build loves knocking enemies down as, if you can restrain them with your Channel Divinity before hand, they won’t be able to get up!

For your spell choice, you can pick up Compelled Duel! If you need to get an enemy off of an ally or want to ensure they only have eyes for you, Compelled Duel is the way to do it.

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Level 5

Class Features: Extra Attack, Faithful Steed

Spell Change Log: + Aid + Calm Emotions (Redemption) + Find Steed + Hold Person (Redemption)

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)

Level 5 brings what all martial characters have been waiting for – the Extra Attack. Double the damage potential is obviously insane!

This level brings a new feature for Paladin as well in Faithful Steed. This gives you Find Steed for free, and while this may tempt you to fight on horseback, you absolutely don’t need to and having a free horse is more helpful than many may anticipate.

You get two more Oath spells as well with Calm Emotions and Hold Person.

Calm Emotions is an interesting spell that can be used out of combat in order to make angry people indifferent to the source of their anger without any additional prompting from what/who made them angry in the first place, but it can also clear the charmed/frightened condition on multiple people which is really interesting. While mass charmed/frightened probably won’t be more common until higher level (and you’ll have your Aura of Courage at level 10 to deal with frightened), having a means of stopping it for just a second level slot is quite nice.

Your second Oath spell is the contentious Hold Person. “Save or suck” spells in general are already risky as if the target saves, then your spell did nothing. Furthermore, humanoid enemies may be hard to come by in your campaign as, in a lot of cases, humans are either townfolk or legendary heroes so you may not have a lot of in between. However, if we can get past those issues, Hold Person is potentially an extremely powerful spell as you deprive an enemy of their actions while also allowing auto criticals for any martial character on them.

For your actual spell choice, you get to pick up one of (if not the best) second level spells with Aid! 15 temporary hit points spread throughout your team is pretty strong, and getting 15 more to work with for each upcast makes this good in earlier and later levels!

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Level 6

Class Features: Aura of Protection

Spell Change Log: None

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)

Level 6 brings what is the most important ability a Paladin can get – Aura of Protection.

Giving your allies a flat bonus to saving throws is extremely powerful, especially if you have a team that tends to group up. Aura of Protection is the reason that an optimized party will always have a Paladin where every other class is more or less replaceable.

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Level 7

Class Features: Aura of Warding

Spell Change Log: + Lesser Restoration

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Lesser Restoration

Level 7 brings a new Aura to work with in Aura of the Guardian.

Aura of the Guardian is really weird where you can choose an ally within range and use your reaction to take damage in their stead. This is definitely a rough ability as simply transferring the damage is far from ideal, but in an emergency where your ally would go down without that intervention, then this can be useful. This is definitely not something you should be using often.

For your spell choice, you can pick up Lesser Restoration. While you won’t use this often, being able to heal a few status conditions can be really helpful.

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Level 8

Feat: War Caster (CHA)

Class Features: None

Spell Change Log: None

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Lesser Restoration

For your second feat, you absolutely have to pick up War Caster. Buffing your Charisma to 18, getting advantage on concentration checks, and being able to spellcast when you don’t have two free hands is excellent.

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Level 9

Class Features: Abjure Foes

Spell Change Log: + Counterspell (Redemption) + Dispel Magic + Hypnotic Pattern (Redemption) + Revivify

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Lesser Restoration
3rd Level Spell	Counterspell (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Dispel Magic
3rd Level Spell	Hypnotic Pattern (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Revivify

Level 9 brings access to level 3 spells and your next base class feature, Abjure Foes.

Abjure Foes lets you trade in a Channel Divinity for a mass fear that also limits the amount of things an enemy can do in a turn. This is very strong and helps if you don’t have a particularly good Channel Divinity option otherwise.

You get two more truly excellent Oath spells in Counterspell and Hypnotic Pattern.

Counterspell is the best third level spell in the game, and while it works better for full casters who have more spell slots to work with, it is still an excellent spell you’ll be more than happy to have available.

Hypnotic Pattern is one of the best third level spells in the game and in contention as the best third level combat spell right up there with Fireball, and for this subclass, you’d much rather have this than Fireball! Being able to potentially take multiple enemies out of the fight temporarily at the same time is extremely powerful and can make fights that much easier.

For your chosen spells, you can pick up Dispel Magic and Revivify.

While it’s not Counterspell, you get to pick up Dispel Magic at this level! While you’d rather use Counterspell when you have the opportunity to, Dispel Magic helps to end a magic effect that Counterspell couldn’t nab.

Revivify is just a staple spell that anyone who can take likely should. You never know who might kick the bucket, so having a way to bring them right back up and without penalty.

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Level 10

Class Features: Aura of Courage

Spell Change Log: None

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Lesser Restoration
3rd Level Spell	Counterspell (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Dispel Magic
3rd Level Spell	Hypnotic Pattern (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Revivify

Level 10 brings a new Paladin ability with Aura of Courage. Now allies within 10 feet of you can’t get frightened anymore which can be extremely relevant, especially since there are a lot of fearsome foes that will use fear against use (like the titular Dragons with their Frightful Presence!)

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Level 11

Class Features: Radiant Strikes

Spell Change Log: + Aura of Vitality

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Lesser Restoration
3rd Level Spell	Aura of Vitality
3rd Level Spell	Counterspell (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Dispel Magic
3rd Level Spell	Hypnotic Pattern (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Revivify

Level 11 brings the strong ability of Radiant Strikes. This makes it so that all your melee attacks deal an additional 1d8 radiant damage. Simple, yet great ability.

For your spell choice, you can pick up Aura of Vitality. Aura of Vitality is a weird healing spell that lasts for a minute and you can dole out 2d6 healing per bonus action which isn’t ideal in combat, but can be an excellent healing option outside of combat offering a staggering average of 70 health split however you want. You likely don’t want to use this often over Lay on Hands or short resting, but it’s there for you if you need it.

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Level 12

Feat: Charisma to 18

Class Feature: None

Spell Change Log: None

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Lesser Restoration
3rd Level Spell	Aura of Vitality
3rd Level Spell	Counterspell (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Dispel Magic
3rd Level Spell	Hypnotic Pattern (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Revivify

Level 12 brings your next feat, and you should be pumping Charisma to make your spells and your Aura of Protection as strong as possible.

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Level 13

Class Features: None

Spell Change Log: + Banishment + Resilient Sphere (Redemption) + Stoneskin (Redemption)

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Lesser Restoration
3rd Level Spell	Aura of Vitality
3rd Level Spell	Counterspell (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Dispel Magic
3rd Level Spell	Hypnotic Pattern (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Revivify
4th Level Spell	Banishment
4th Level Spell	Resilient Sphere (Redemption)
4th Level Spell	Stoneskin (Redemption)

Level 13 means access to fourth level spells!

This level gives you more Oath spells with Resilient Sphere and Stoneskin.

Resilient Sphere is a really potent CC spell that can lock an enemy out of combat really effectively, similar to Banishment (which you pick up this level as well). The best and worst part about this spell is that the sphere can be moved around, so if your squad is creative, you can move them to a dangerous location before letting the sphere go.

Stoneskin is a pretty nice defensive option that at the cost of an 100gp consumable component (which should be no big deal at all at this point) you can give yourself or an ally resistance to all non-magical damage. Considering very few creatures exclusively deal magical damage, this is going to be a pretty potent buff against most enemies, and with an hour long duration, you may even get multiple fights out of this!

For your spell choice, you get to pick up Banishment! Banishment is an extremely strong CC spell that has the ability to take an enemy out of the fight for a full minute, but if they’re an extraplanar enemy, the combat just ends if they fail the saving throw and you can concentrate for a minute. They are just simply sent back to their home plane with very little recourse to come back (unless they specifically have Plane Shift or some strange ability).

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Level 14

Class Features: Restoring Touch

Spell Change Log: None

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Lesser Restoration
3rd Level Spell	Aura of Vitality
3rd Level Spell	Counterspell (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Dispel Magic
3rd Level Spell	Hypnotic Pattern (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Revivify
4th Level Spell	Banishment
4th Level Spell	Resilient Sphere (Redemption)
4th Level Spell	Stoneskin (Redemption)

Level 14 brings your final non-subclass Paladin ability with Cleansing Touch. When you spend 5 points on your Lay on Hands, you functionally get a better Lesser Restoration. Solid ability, this just feels a bit late to get!

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Level 15

Class Features: Protective Spirit

Spell Change Log: + Death Ward

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Lesser Restoration
3rd Level Spell	Aura of Vitality
3rd Level Spell	Counterspell (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Dispel Magic
3rd Level Spell	Hypnotic Pattern (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Revivify
4th Level Spell	Banishment
4th Level Spell	Death Ward
4th Level Spell	Resilient Sphere (Redemption)
4th Level Spell	Stoneskin (Redemption)

You get your penultimate subclass ability at level 15 which is Protective Spirit! Simply, once your injured enough, you’ll start doing some healing on your own until you’re back to half health. The awkward part of this ability is that it specifically stipulates that this works only in combat where it would be perfectly fine if it worked out of combat as well, but what can you do?

Death Ward is a bit niche, but it is nice insurance against you or an ally going down in combat, or better yet, stopping instant death effects.

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Level 16

Feat: Charisma to 20

Class Feature: None

Spell Change Log: None

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Lesser Restoration
3rd Level Spell	Aura of Vitality
3rd Level Spell	Counterspell (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Dispel Magic
3rd Level Spell	Hypnotic Pattern (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Revivify
4th Level Spell	Banishment
4th Level Spell	Death Ward
4th Level Spell	Resilient Sphere (Redemption)
4th Level Spell	Stoneskin (Redemption)

For your final feat, you should definitely be maxing out your Charisma for the best spells and the most potent Aura of Protection possible.

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Level 17

Class Features: None

Spell Change Log: + Hold Monster (Redemption) + Holy Weapon + Wall of Force (Wall of Force)

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Lesser Restoration
3rd Level Spell	Aura of Vitality
3rd Level Spell	Counterspell (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Dispel Magic
3rd Level Spell	Hypnotic Pattern (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Revivify
4th Level Spell	Banishment
4th Level Spell	Death Ward
4th Level Spell	Resilient Sphere (Redemption)
4th Level Spell	Stoneskin (Redemption)
5th Level Spell	Hold Monster (Redemption)
5th Level Spell	Holy Weapon
5th Level Spell	Wall of Force (Wall of Force)

You also get your final Oath spells with Hold Monster and Wall of Force.

Nearly everything I said about Hold Person applies to Hold Monster, but obviously, you have substantially more targets for substantially more risk (losing a fifth level spell slot for nothing is brutal). Furthermore, you have to be really careful about Legendary Resistances as those can just force a pass even if they would’ve failed which complicates this spell further. However, if you can get this to work, this can end a combat extremely quickly.

Your final Oath spell is what I consider to be the best fifth level spell in the game – Wall of Force. Wall of Force simply puts up a wall that can’t be broken through. No saving throws, no way through it except for teleportation (or going under it if that’s a possibility for enemies), just an impenetrable wall. Always getting your intended effect from a spell is really rare, and when it’s a wall that can split up a combat, that’s really powerful.

For your chosen spell, you get to pick up the very powerful Holy Weapon. Simply having a damage buff that deals a lot of damage is nice for longer fights, even at this level of play. Then when you want to stop concentrating on it, you can make your weapon explode for additional damage rather than letting it peter out.

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Level 18

Class Features: Aura Expansion

Spell Change Log: None

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Lesser Restoration
3rd Level Spell	Aura of Vitality
3rd Level Spell	Counterspell (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Dispel Magic
3rd Level Spell	Hypnotic Pattern (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Revivify
4th Level Spell	Banishment
4th Level Spell	Death Ward
4th Level Spell	Resilient Sphere (Redemption)
4th Level Spell	Stoneskin (Redemption)
5th Level Spell	Hold Monster (Redemption)
5th Level Spell	Holy Weapon
5th Level Spell	Wall of Force (Wall of Force)

Level 18 is when all your auras extend from 10 feet to 30 feet, so this is a pretty nice upgrade to have.

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Level 19

Epic Boon: Boon of Combat Prowess (STR)

Class Features: None

Spell Change Log: + Circle of Power

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Lesser Restoration
3rd Level Spell	Aura of Vitality
3rd Level Spell	Counterspell (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Dispel Magic
3rd Level Spell	Hypnotic Pattern (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Revivify
4th Level Spell	Banishment
4th Level Spell	Death Ward
4th Level Spell	Resilient Sphere (Redemption)
4th Level Spell	Stoneskin (Redemption)
5th Level Spell	Circle of Power
5th Level Spell	Hold Monster (Redemption)
5th Level Spell	Holy Weapon
5th Level Spell	Wall of Force (Wall of Force)

You get another spell this level so you can pick up the second best fifth level option – Circle of Power. Alongside your Aura of Protection, your allies will have a really hard time failing any saving throws which can be extremely important in some encounters. If you’re lucky, you’ll know to set this up before hand to not lose your action.

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Level 20

Class Feature: Emissary of Redemption

Spell Change Log: None

SPELL LEVEL	SPELL NAME
1st Level Spell	Bless
1st Level Spell	Compelled Duel
1st Level Spell	Divine Smite
1st Level Spell	Sanctuary (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Shield of Faith
1st Level Spell	Sleep (Redemption)
1st Level Spell	Thunderous Smite
1st Level Spell	Wrathful Smite
2nd Level Spell	Aid
2nd Level Spell	Calm Emotions (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Find Steed
2nd Level Spell	Hold Person (Redemption)
2nd Level Spell	Lesser Restoration
3rd Level Spell	Aura of Vitality
3rd Level Spell	Counterspell (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Dispel Magic
3rd Level Spell	Hypnotic Pattern (Redemption)
3rd Level Spell	Revivify
4th Level Spell	Banishment
4th Level Spell	Death Ward
4th Level Spell	Resilient Sphere (Redemption)
4th Level Spell	Stoneskin (Redemption)
5th Level Spell	Circle of Power
5th Level Spell	Hold Monster (Redemption)
5th Level Spell	Holy Weapon
5th Level Spell	Wall of Force (Wall of Force)

Level 20 brings your capstone ability for your subclass!

Your capstone ability is Emissary of Peace, and unlike many other capstone abilities where you have to activate it, you are just the Emissary of Peace! Furthermore, this gives you blanket resistance to damage and enemies that hit you take half the damage in radiant damage! If this is where the ability ended, this would likely be the most broken subclass ability in the game. However, the effect no longer works on creatures that you make aggressive actions towards so there’s the rub. Even still, if you focus on being defensive or casting spells that don’t target them explicitly, you can get a lot of mileage out of this effect.