Dungeons & Dragons Playtests Four New Mystic-Themed Subclasses

Dungeons & Dragons has dropped their first Unearthed Arcana playtest of 2026, with four brand-new subclasses being tested. Today, Wizards of the Coast posted a Mystic Subclasses Unearthed Arcana playtest to D&D Beyond, featuring four magic-themed subclasses. The new subclasses include the Warrior of the Mystic Arts Monk subclass, the Oath of the Spellguard Paladin subclass, the Magic Stealer Rogue subclass and the Vestige Patron Warlock subclass.

The Warrior of the Mystic Arts is a spellcasting subclass that grants Monks the ability to cast Sorcerer spells up to 4th level spells. The Oath of the Spellguard is designed with protecting magic-casters in mind, while the Magic Stealer Rogue targets spellcasting and can empower their Sneak Attacks with magic stolen from nearby spellcasters. The Vestige Patron Warlock forms a bond with a dying god, with the god taking on a vestige form as a companion. The Vestige companion grows in power with the spellcaster. Notably, the Vestige Patron draws inspiration from the Binder from past editions of D&D.

There's no indication when or what this new Unearthed Arcana could be related to. There are several Unearthed Arcanas not currently attached to an announced D&D product, although two almost are certainly tied to a Dark Sun sourcebook.

You can check out the subclasses here. Feedback opens for the playtest on January 22nd.

 

[bedir than]

I'm doubling down on my prediction that this is MtG related.
The Rogue is VERY Blue coded while the Paladin is White.

 

[TwoSix]

I very much doubt it’s literally for a Dragon Age setting, it’s just a well-known point of comparison for a knight who both protects and fights against mages. The general concept is far from exclusive to that IP.

Warders from the Wheel of Time immediately come to mind.

I mean, mixing up the "martial bodyguard of a physically weak mage" trope and the "trained witch hunter" trope makes tons of sense for any D&D-type setting with factions of mages. Making it a paladin subclass is just D&Ding the concept into recognizable mechanics (a martial class with high magic defenses).

 

[Sulicius]

It occured to me that they could get a metamagic ability (powered by focus).

Eh, metamagic would make the class too finicky. Monks are already pretty complex. I don't think they need another complex feature.

That's a pretty common EK setup. I've seen it on clerics too. And Armorer Artificers.

I am well aware. I do not like those either.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I'm doubling down on my prediction that this is MtG related.
The Rogue is VERY Blue coded while the Paladin is White.

Can you think of a specific MtG setting they would be a good fit for?

My personal view is that we are only likely to get one setting in 2026, and it will be Dark Sun.

 

[Merlecory]

The feature doesn’t let you cast at all, it lets you restore a spell slot to someone who has them.

I was referring to occult shroud, not magic drain.

LEVEL 13: OCCULT SHROUD
Whenever you finish a Long Rest, you can cast the Nondetection spell, using Intelligence as your
spellcasting ability. When you do so, you can target only yourself, and the duration increases to 24 hours.

 

[bedir than]

Can you think of a specific MtG setting they would be a good fit for?

I'm expecting it to be related to the MtG's multiversal experience. Lorywnn and Strix both have non-planeswalkers walking.

 

[Charlaquin]

The most powerful and playstyle-determining ones.

I disagree, they’re fine, but the rest of the kit is more interesting.

It would be pretty essential to to present this subclass in the context of such an organisation.

Why? A specific organization would tie it to one setting. 5e subclasses are generally designed to be setting neutral. Literally any organization that has mages and needs a defense force would work for this.

Pretty obscure. If that's the best you can come up with it makes my point.

The church dedicated to the goddess of magic in the most well-known D&D setting is obscure? Ok, buddy. It also is far from the only example, it was just the first that came to mind. Candlekeep. The Neverwinter Academy. Security at the Radiant Citadel. Literally any military force that has battle mages and men at arms, which in any medium to high magic setting should be almost all of them.

 

[Charlaquin]

Can you think of a specific MtG setting they would be a good fit for?

Strixhaven is the most obvious one, though personally I doubt that’s what this is for.

My personal view is that we are only likely to get one setting in 2026, and it will be Dark Sun.

Could easily be Templars.

 

[Charlaquin]

I'm expecting it to be related to the MtG's multiversal experience. Lorywnn and Strix both have non-planeswalkers walking.

There’s a Strixhaven set coming up. If these subclasses are for an MtG tie-in (which I’m personally skeptical of, but it’s possible) that seems like a much more intuitive fit to me than “Jace makes Crisis on Infinite Earths happen in Magic.”

 

[Misanthrope Prime]

An organization that protects good mages and fights evil ones, obviously. That could be any number of groups within any number of D&D settings. Church of Mythra, maybe.

IIRC the Church of Mystra in FR specifically has an order of anti-magic paladins who are renowned for using both divine and arcane magic.

Knights of the Mystic Fire

The Knights of the Mystic Fire was an order of paladins dedicated to Mystra, goddess of magic.[1][2][3] A member of the order was known as a Mystic Fire Knight.[4] [note 1] The Knights of the Mystic Fire were sponsored by the church of Mystra.[1] They were closely allied with, or even a parent...

forgottenrealms.fandom.com

If anything the paladin and rogue subclasses are 1:1 copies of the Knight of Mystic Fire and Spellfilcher from FR, just with different names.