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.

 

[Parmandur]

I don't think this makes much sense. There is no objective entity the D&D multiverse.

When I play D&D, it's objectively true that I'm playing D&D. But it's not objectively, or canonically, true that the stuff I'm imagining with my friends is a component of some other imaginary thing the D&D multiverse. It's just stuff that we're imagining.

Right, exactly. The First World echoes multiverse as presented in the new DMG is a tool for DMs to use or not for just that purpose. Same as any other fiction that WotC puts on offer, it's a cafeteria or pantry of fictional tools.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Right, exactly. The First World echoes multiverse as presented in the new DMG is a tool for DMs to use or not for just that purpose. Same as any other fiction that WotC puts on offer, it's a cafeteria or pantry of fictional tools.

Sure, but it also true that the D&D Multiverse is a concept that exists as a framework for all dnd worlds. It's just canon, though. Canon literally never matters.

 

[Parmandur]

Sure, but it also true that the D&D Multiverse is a concept that exists as a framework for all dnd worlds. It's just canon, though. Canon literally never matters.

Right, it is just a tool offered to DMs who want to use it, or not.

 

[Charlaquin]

I don't think this makes much sense. There is no objective entity the D&D multiverse.

When I play D&D, it's objectively true that I'm playing D&D. But it's not objectively, or canonically, true that the stuff I'm imagining with my friends is a component of some other imaginary thing the D&D multiverse. It's just stuff that we're imagining.

There is an entity within D&D that WotC refers to as “the multiverse,” and within their canon, all games of D&D are considered to take place within it. Now, you don’t have to treat that as true within the canon of your own games, and there’s really no authority deciding which of those is the “true” canon. The very idea of canonicity is pretty fuzzy within an RPG. But WotC does write as if all D&D games take place within a shared multiverse, which they simply refer to as “the multiverse.”

 

[Necropolitan]

I don't think this makes much sense. There is no objective entity the D&D multiverse.

When I play D&D, it's objectively true that I'm playing D&D. But it's not objectively, or canonically, true that the stuff I'm imagining with my friends is a component of some other imaginary thing the D&D multiverse. It's just stuff that we're imagining.

It's absurdly convoluted reasoning to try to deny the existence of canon.