Oath of Knowledge: A Paladin Oath for 5e

Oath of Knowledge

The Oath of Knowledge is a sacrosanct writ passed on from generation to generation of scholar. Occasionally, organisations of those scholars band together to form powerful warriors who would avoid such powerful magical knowledge falling into the wrong hands. Their armour and weapons are covered with radiant symbols connecting themselves to arcane leylines or gods of knowledge, and whilst their prowess on the battlefield is strong, their tactical insight is often the reason for their resilient strength.

Tenets of Knowledge

The tenets of the Oath of Knowledge are ancient, created and tested by the most erudite minds of the realm. Those who follow them dedicate themselves to the pursuit of, learning of, and protection of all knowledge.

Search for Knowledge. Society as one knows it is only preserved through the gathering of knowledge - the more one is able to learn, the more one is able to use that knowledge to protect the weak.

Be of Open Mind. To be ignorant is to deny oneself of other perspectives. Too many scholars exclude others due to believing themselves superior. Do not allow this to happen for you - the study of arcane secrets is second to empathy.

Guard Against Ignorance. Do not give those who would seek to destroy knowledge any ground. Even the most terrible secrets have their place - albeit a limited one - and the only reason a person might deign to burn a book is because they fear what is in it. A loss of knowledge is a loss to the greater society as a whole.

Enlighten the World. Do not covet your knowledge in secret or mistake your mission for knowledge as a mission for power. Whilst your scholarship may equip you with great strength, it also strengthens us all. Use your knowledge for good, and use it to equip others with the ability to pay that favour forward.

Oath Spells

You gain oath spells at the paladin levels listed.

Oath of Knowledge Spells

Paladin Level Spells 3rd Identify, Detect Magic 5th Augury, See Invisibility 9th Dispel Magic, Blink 13th Otiluke's Resilient Sphere, Locate Creature 17th Awaken, Legend Lore

Channel Divinity

When you take this oath at 3rd level, you gain the following two Channel Divinity Options.

See Truth. You can use your Channel Divinity to find secrets surrounding an creature. As an action, you may designate a creature within 60ft of you. The creature must make a Wisdom saving throw.

On a failure, you learn a secret about the creature (DM's choice), such as: "Lord Pengrath keeps a secret group of warriors disguised as ordinary peasants close by" or "Maldrath has an innate fear of the darkness." It is not guaranteed that the secret will be particularly useful to the player's circumstances.

Alternatively, you may choose to know the answer to a yes or no question about a creature who fails the saving throw.

If the creature succeeds on the saving throw, they understand that you have attempted to learn something secret about them, and may become hostile to you.

Turn Chaos. You can use your channel divinity to utter ancient knowledge which is painful for the products of arcane chaos. As an action, you present your holy symbol, and each monstrosity or aberration within 30ft of you must make a Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, the creature is turned for 1 minute or until it takes damage.

A turned creature must spend its turns trying to move as far away from you as it can, and it can't willingly move to a space within 30 feet of you. It also can't take reactions. For its action, it can only use the Dash action or try to escape from an effect that prevents it from moving. If there's nowhere to move, the creature can use the Dodge action.

If the creature is holding any item that might grant knowledge (DM's discretion) such as a book or a scroll, they drop it immediately upon being turned. If the item is within a bag or container on the creature's person, they fish it out and throw it onto the ground in fear as a bonus action before using their movement.

Aura of Clarity

Beginning at 7th level, you exude an aura of erudite knowledge which inspires those around you to keep a sound mind. You and any friendly creatures within 10ft of you may add half your Charisma modifier, rounded up, to Wisdom and Intelligence saving throws.

In addition, you and any friendly creatures within 10ft of you have advantage on Intelligence (Investigation) checks made to see through illusory effects, such as those caused by the Minor Illusion spell.

Unwavering Mind

Starting at 15th level, you may choose to succeed on any Wisdom or Intelligence saving throw that you fail. You may use this feature a number of times equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of 1). You regain all spent uses of this feature on a long rest.