Dungeons & Dragons releases Villainous Options playtest

Wizards of the Coast has released a new playtest featuring four new "villainous" subclasses, along with two more feat paths designed to transform characters into either a lich or a death knight. Today, Wizards released a new "Villainous Options" Unearthed Arcana. The new document contains four subclasses - a Pestilence Domain Cleric, a Circle of the Titan Druid, a Hell Knight Fighter, and a Demonic Sorcerer, alongside feat paths intended to slowly transform a player character into either a lich or a death knight. While previous D&D books have brought back the concept of mini-feat trees, these villainous paths are intended to be used at every opportunity a feat can be taken.

The Pestilence Domain cleric's core ability allows it to confer exhaustion levels on opponents via use of Channel Divinity. Enemies who die while having one or more Exhaustion level can explode and inflict necrotic damage on others. The capstone ability allows the Cleric to transform into a swarm of pestilence-infused pests.

The Circle of the Titan Druid has a Wild Shape ability that transforms them into various kinds of kaiju-esque monsters, which eventually become gargantuan in size.

The Hell Knight Fighter deals extra Infernal damage that varies in type depending on the ability and eventually transforms foes into minor devils upon their death.

The Demonic Sorcerer likewise grants various kinds of sorcerer abilities Abyssal effects, culminating in the ability to summon a demon to the battlefield once per day for free.

The path feats are interesting - both culminate with a feat that can only be taken at Level 12 or higher and requires a player to have at least two other feats from the feat path. Death Knights gain a pool of Death Points that fuel various abilities, while the Lich gains a Soul Jar and eventually gains the mechanical benefits of being a lich.

The playtest is open now, with a playtest survey launching next week.

 

[Davy Greenwind]

Must be the season of the Liiiiiiich

 

[Misanthrope Prime]

I thought the lich was super powerful until I remembered that far fewer creatures in 5.5e are humanoids now; kill a goblin or a lizardfolk and there's no soul to eat.

I think by default you should be able to eat the souls of giants and maybe monstrosities, and maybe take feats that let you succ fey or elementals or something.

 

[mearls]

I'm leery of the complexity the feat paths are bringing to the table. 5.5 can already run slow, wish these were more agile.

OTOH, I freaking LOVE the druid. This is a super awesome way to get people to embrace a wild shape approach that plays faster. I love giving players an incentive to go with a simpler approach. With more control over what you can turn into, it allows the designer to unleash some really awesome stuff.

 

[Kurotowa]

Remember that getting your power from demons is a villainous path, but getting your power from devils is so normal it's practically the default

It's a well established niche. When I read the Hell Knight Fighter I immediately through "Oh so you can be Ghost Rider." (Yes, I know Ghost Rider has been through multiple retcons, but I'm thinking of the original setup.) Demons though, or at least D&D demons, are pitched as agents of destruction and befoulment. That's harder to spin in a cool antihero way than agents of tyranny and conquest.

But yeah, Hell Knight Fighter with the Death Knight Path feats so you can get Find Steed? Totally a D&D Ghost Rider. Maybe not the strongest, since HK wants Con secondary and the Death Knight feats key off Cha. But very stylish.

 

[Remathilis]

Remember that getting your power from demons is a villainous path, but getting your power from devils is so normal it's practically the default

The hell knight rebukes this idea

 

[Remathilis]

We're getting a Book on Icky Badstuff for 5.5!

Ngl, it might be interesting to see them try their hand again at evil PC support. The last few tries in other editions have been lackluster

 

[Reynard]

I'm leery of the complexity the feat paths are bringing to the table. 5.5 can already run slow, wish these were more agile.

OTOH, I freaking LOVE the druid. This is a super awesome way to get people to embrace a wild shape approach that plays faster. I love giving players an incentive to go with a simpler approach. With more control over what you can turn into, it allows the designer to unleash some really awesome stuff.

I don't think simplicity is in itself a a worthy goal. Simplicity can be valuable, but so can the right kind of complexity.

 

[Remathilis]

I'm leery of the complexity the feat paths are bringing to the table. 5.5 can already run slow, wish these were more agile.

I'm guessing that this is a rather niche product for more experienced players and DMs, so I think they have a good place here as more complicated rule to allow a normally forbidden option. I would not like to see them be used Willy Nilly in books aimed towards beginners.

 

[TwiceBorn2]

Very interesting. I wonder what they are aiming for. As @Whizbang Dustyboots suggests, it is too close to the release of the Ravenloft splat for these to be in that.

I think it is reasonable to imagine a "Season of [Evil]" next year...

It could still be part of Season of Champions. Maybe the book(s) for that season will contain Champions of Evil/Good, etc. Lich and Death Knight PCs would definitely be exemplars of that. Pure speculation, of course.

 

[bedir than]

It could still be part of Season of Champions. Maybe the book(s) for that season will contain Champions of Evil/Good, etc. Lich and Death Knight PCs would definitely be exemplars of that. Pure speculation, of course.

Path of the Celestial and Path of the Animal Lord would be fun counterpoints