D&D (2024) All 48 Player’s Handbook 2024 Subclasses

The new Player's Handbook contains 12 character classes, each with 4 subclasses, making 48 in total.

• Barbarian: Path of the... Berserker, Wild Heart, World Tree, Zealot.
• Bard: College of... Dance, Gamour, Lore, Valor.
• Cleric: Life, Light, Trickery, War domains.
• Druid: Circle of the... Land, Moon, Sea, Stars.
• Fighter: Battle Master, Champion, Eldritch Knight, Psi Warrior.
• Monk: Warrior of... Mercy, Shadow, The Elements, The Open Hand.
• Paladin: Oath of... Devotion, Glory, The Ancients, Vengeance.
• Ranger: Beast Master, Fey Wanderer, Gloom Stalker, Hunter.
• Rogue: Arcane Trickster, Assassin, Soulknife, Thief.
• Sorcerer: Aberrant Sorcery, Clockwork Sorcery, Draconic Sorcery, Wild Magic.
• Warlock: Archfey Patron, Celestial Patron, Fiend Patron, Great Old One Patron.
• Wizard: Abjurer, Diviner, Evoker, Illusionist.

 

[ECMO3]

'Parantly I posted in the wrong commenty place...

Sooo....hmm... it looks like Fighter and Rogue have two of four non-magic subclasses. Barbarian and Monk (arguably) would have 1 of 4 (Berserker & Open Hand). Ranger, still, is reading as magic-use is part of the archetype...

So...of 48 possible subclasses, the designers thought 1/8th of the game, 6 out of 48, should be classes/characters that don't rely on magic to get things done.

Personally I love it and it would not bother me if they made all options magic. I think that reflects most players in the modern game. With current 5E I almost never see a completely non-magic character.

Even when players take something like Battlemaster or Swashbuckler (the two non magic subclasses I see a lot of in the current 5E), they are still getting magic through a feat or race and stocking up on magical gear.

They included Fey Wanderer in Ranger which is really a high magic oriented subclass (in addition to the Ranger class magic).

I suspect a lot of the backgrounds will also give you a magic in 2024, so in play it will be less than 1 in 8 I think.

 

[EzekielRaiden]

'Parantly I posted in the wrong commenty place...

Sooo....hmm... it looks like Fighter and Rogue have two of four non-magic subclasses. Barbarian and Monk (arguably) would have 1 of 4 (Berserker & Open Hand). Ranger, still, is reading as magic-use is part of the archetype...

So...of 48 possible subclasses, the designers thought 1/8th of the game, 6 out of 48, should be classes/characters that don't rely on magic to get things done.

hmph.

I mean, hey, look, I am a "high fantasy lots of magical stuff going on in the game world" kinda guy. Spellcasters are my go to characters in almost every possible instance for the last 40+ years of playing.

But 1/8th of the character options? 6 out of 48? Seems drastically out of balance.

Just remember, it's the most horrible affront imaginable to make non-spellcasters actually good and strong while not using any magic. But making the vast majority of the game be spellcasters or spellcaster-lite? Totally cool, best decision ever, shut up and take our money.

 

[ECMO3]

Then there's the "style" types... which are your Spells Schools. These Wizards all focus on a singular style of magic where all the spells do a similar thing as part of the school, just at differing power levels and targets.

I think the diversity of spells available and the large number in your book mean Wizards of spell schools can easily overcome the stereotype of focusing on a single style of magic.

The enchantment Wizard I am currently playing does focus on a lot of enchantments, but that is in part because she is 13th level and has split enchantment. My last enchanter though capped at 6th level and had very few enchantment spells. She used mostly Illusion and Necromancy spells.

 

[Marandahir]

Why are people acting like non-spellcasters aren't getting goodies in this book?

All of the Martials save Monk get Weapon Masteries, and Monk gets Martial Arts and Discipline Points to make up for the lack thereof.

This is a big leap forward in providing Martials with tactical options they can use that they don't have to trade away their normal damage dealing to get. And they find synergy with Fighting Styles, Maneuvers, and other class features like Extra Attack, Sneak Attack, Aim, Rage, etc.

Rangers' core shtick upgrade from the playtest and from Tasha's is essentially Breath of the Wild-style exploration abilities, which are very much non-magical and very martial but on theme. Rangers and Paladins do use slightly more spells now, and cast from first level (I hope they get cantrips too, hence no need for Blessed Warrior and Druidic Warrior fighting styles), but most of the time they're channeling those spell slots either into weapon-based spells (which lean heavily on supernatural martial arts rather than pure magic casting, despite being within the magic system), or else into a core class feature they'd prefer to use over casting in many cases (Smites, Primeval Awareness, etc).

 

[Vaalingrade]

I just wish the Fighter got 4 subclasses like everyone else instead of three plus Champion.

 

[Marandahir]

I just wish the Fighter got 4 subclasses like everyone else instead of three plus Champion.

I mean, Berserker is nearly as click goes boom as Champion is, and Life Domain and Evoker are as close to that as you'd ever get with spellcasters. At least Thief is crafty and tactically-minded for a Basic Rules subclass.

 

[EzekielRaiden]

I mean, Berserker is nearly as click goes boom as Champion is, and Life Domain and Evoker are as close to that as you'd ever get with spellcasters. At least Thief is crafty and tactically-minded for a Basic Rules subclass.

They are not as close as you could ever get with a spellcaster. But that's beside the point.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

This is a big leap forward in providing Martials with tactical options they can use that they don't have to trade away their normal damage dealing to get.

Which was never the core problem with Martials, note. The core problem, as has been discussed for literally a decade, now, that because that aren't used in combat don't involve any checks, and can generally never fail, they're far better solutions to most problems than anything Martials can bring to bear. With sufficient attrition you can make it less of an issue, but that really does mean pushing the 6-8 encounters/day that no-one seems to want to actually do (probably because it's an excessive number!).

I'm not saying that's not nice and won't make Martials feel somewhat better in combat - it absolutely will - but it's not really solving a problem, it's just making an area where martials felt pretty okay feel a little better.

 

[EzekielRaiden]

I'm not saying that's not nice and won't make Martials feel somewhat better in combat - it absolutely will - but it's not really solving a problem, it's just making an area where martials felt pretty okay feel a little better.

Exactly. This is giving an asthmatic office worker coffee. They'll be more focused and alert...and still suffering asthma.

 

[Azzy]

I was never going to be happy with this list and complaining about it here is not going to help.

Give me the will power to keep deleting my rants and to recognize that different folks like different things and no matter how much I hate X or Y these make folks happy.

What the ever-living hell? That kind of fairly positive attitude isn't allowed on these boards.

Seriously, though, I feel similarly—but that would be true regardless of which 48 they put in. I want it all (add Brian May's guitar here).