Oath of Death

The Oath of Death is an ancient and often forbidden path for most who choose the Paladin class, but still there are some who cannot be disuaded from taking it. Often viewed as monsters by the living, Death Paladins are considered the heroes and protectors of the creatures of the afterlife. Necromantic powers and a frigid gaze is more than enough to strike fear into the warm hearts of the living, and often Death Paladins are labeled as Evil regardless of their actual intentions.

Whether you seek to protect the undead or conquer the living, the Oath of Death will be a dangerous, and lonely road for you to walk.

Tenets of Death

The tenets of the Oath of Death are what guides those who give their life for the powers of death.

Act with Patience. The creatures of undeath are much less hasty than the living. Where life is a bonfire, death is a glacier: slow and unstoppable. Each action you take must be carefully considered before rushing into action.

Bring the End. All living things must die sooner or later, and it is your duty to see that process carried out. When faced with the choice of taking or sparing a life, it is rare for for a Paladin of Death to spare one.

Punish the Undying. There are those who seek to artificially expand their own lifespans, and to an Oath of Death Paladin there is no greater sin. Creatures that seek abnormally long lifespans are an insult to death itself, and must be destroyed.

Oath of Death Features

Paladin Level Spells 3rd Oath Spells, Channel Divinity 7th Aura of Terror (10ft) 15th Winter's Wrath 18th Aura of Terror (30ft) 20th Death Knight

Oath Spells

You gain oath spells at the paladin levels listed in the Oath of Death Spells table.

Oath of Death Spells

Paladin Level Spells 3rd Cause Fear, Armor of Agathys 5th See Invisibility, Ray of Enfeeblement 9th Animate Dead, Speak with Dead 13th Ice Storm, Dominate Beast 17th Antilife Shell, Cone of Cold







Gift of Undeath

At third level your life force begins to fade and is replaced with an undead facsimile. You retain all your normal racial bonuses, but for the purposes of resolving spells and other effects you are considered undead.

Channel Divinity

An Oath of Death Paladin of 3rd level or higher gains the following two Channel Divinity options:

Vanquish. As a part of your attack action, you may make a special melee strike against one target in range. This attack deals additional Necrotic damage equal to your CHA Modifier.

If the target is below 1/2 their Max HP (rounded down) the damage bonus is doubled, and you gain advantage on the attack. This ability automatically gains the full bonus against Celestial creatures.

Frozen Mount. You may cast Phantom Steed as a ritual, summoning a special creature: The Frostmare. The Frostmare obeys all requirements of the Phantom Steed Spell, save that it has resistance to Cold damage.

Aura of Terror

At 7th level as a bonus action you may emit a palpable aura of fear around you. All creatures of your choosing within 10ft of you must succeed on a CHA Saving Throw against your SSDC or become Frightened of you for the next minute. Creatures Frightened by this effect may repeat the save on the end of each turn, ending on a success.

Any creature that succeeds on this Save becomes immune to your Aura of Terror feature for the next 24 hours. Once you use this feature you must complete a Long or Short rest before using it again.

At 18th level this radius increases to 30ft.

Winter's Wrath

You gain resistance to Cold and Necrotic damage. While you are below 1/2 your maximum HP (rounded down), anytime you would be forced to make a Saving Throw you may use your reaction to emit a blast of freezing energy, dealing 3d8+CHA Cold damage to any creatures of your choosing within a 15ft cone.

Death Knight

As an action you may assume the form of one of the dreaded Death Knights for the next minute. For the duration of this effect you gain the following benefits:

Your weapon attacks deal +10 points of Cold damage.

Each time you kill a large or smaller creature, you may use your reaction to resurrect it as a Skeleton or Zombie (your choice).

You may control a number of Skeletons or Zombies up to your CHA Mod (Min. of 1,).You may issue a command to these undead as a bonus action on each of your turns. All undead created this way are redusced to ash at the end of this effect

Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a long rest.