Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Zardnaar" data-source="post: 6704013" data-attributes="member: 6716779">V. FeatsAgain, with the Paladin demanding intensive attention both on a physical stat (STR or DEX) and on CHA, the opportunities to take feats are very limited. A typical Paladin with at least +2 worth of bonuses in relevant stats and a 15, 15, 13, 10, 10, 8 point buy can take only one feat (two if a Variant Human) if they want 20s in both their attack stat and CHA. A second feat (third if Variant Human) might be worth the sacrifice of a 20 CHA, at least, for a few builds. Because feats are going to come at a premium for Paladins, it’s very important to pick wisely, and preferably with an eye toward the long term. Hence, only feats that Paladins conceivably would consider will be mentioned here. If using a two-handed weapon:Great Weapon Master: A bonus action attack whenever you kill an enemy essentially serves as overkill protection and is great in fights against multiple foes and hordes (again, your class' weakness). Getting that on a crit also makes it decent against a boss. As for the -5 to hit for +10 to damage per hit trade, you'll mainly be using that if you get your attack rolls buffed in some way (e.g. Advantage from Vow of Enmity, bonus from Sacred Weapon), in which case your damage potential climbs dramatically. If you're Vengeance and using a greatsword, consider this mandatory, since between the Vow and your Oath spells you’ll be getting advantage and extra attacks often. If you’re using a polearm, Polearm Master is the higher priority, although the -5 hit /+10 damage trade from this certainly plays nice in addition on the butt-end attack from Polearm Master if you’re going for pure damage. If using a glaive or halberd:Polearm Master: Let’s face it, this feat is THE VERY REASON you’d want to use a glaive or halberd. Getting an extra trigger for an OA — when the enemy moves to your 10-foot reach — is huge, and a reliable source of reaction attacks. Bonus action is covered, too, with an attack with the butt end of your weapon that even adds your STR modifier (and plays very well with your Improved Divine Smite!). This feat combos very well with Sentinel, in which case your OAs upon approach stop your enemy dead in their tracks. That’s a combo worth sacrificing a 20 CHA for. Or if you just prefer raw damage, take Great Weapon Master for its -5 hit/+10 damage trade instead, which works its magic on the butt-end attack. If using a shield:Shield Master: Solid set of benefits, with some limitations on them all that keep this feat from true greatness. The bonus action to shove is great if you’re a STR-attacker with Athletics proficiency, creating free advantage for your ensuing Attack action if you choose the prone option — but remember that shove is limited to Large or smaller. Shield bonus to DEX save, likewise, great against single-target effects, but no use against area of effect abilities like a dragon’s breath. The last benefit gives you a partial Evasion-type effect when you make any DEX save (this one works against AoEs), using your reaction to take no damage; a DEX-attacker will actually benefit from this quite often with Aura of Protection in play, but STR-attackers not quite as much. Overall, still a very good pick, but just mind the limitations. General options:Alert: +5 to initiative is good for just about everyone, and you’re no exception. Getting to act at least before the enemy gets to take a turn can be pretty huge. And, you know, if your Wizard ally gets off a Hold Monster, it’d be nice if you got in your auto-crit smites before the enemy got a chance to save, eh?Defensive Duelist: Worthy pick for DEX-Paladins with a finesse weapon, who stand a pretty good chance of turning a hit against them into a miss every round. Does use your reaction to do that, though.Heavy Armor Master: Absolutely fantastic for a 1st-level Variant Human, when the 3-point damage reduction vs. nonmagical weapons will be of the highest benefit (plus with the +1 STR attached to this feat, it's a way for a Variant Human to start with effectively a +2 STR bonus). The benefit does taper off at higher levels vs. harder-hitting enemies or enemies who have some sort of magical weapons, but even then it’s still a neat boost to overall survivability numbers, particularly against enemies with Multiattack.Inspiring Leader: You’ll certainly qualify for it, and if you’re expected to play more of a leadership/support role, this is easily a top-tier choice. Between short rests you grant yourself and all allies in a typical party an amount of temporary hit points not much less than a Cleric’s Mass Cure Wounds spell can heal.Lucky: Hardly a character-defining feat like others on the list, but its 3 per-day rerolls of a d20 is a solid enough benefit to be mentioned here.Mounted Combatant: All Paladins get easy access to a mount via their 2nd-level spell Find Steed. With that in mind, this one is fantastic in a mounted combat-friendly campaign (i.e. ones that take place more outdoors than in dungeons or buildings). Aside from the constant advantage on attacks vs. enemies smaller than your mount, the largest benefit is the ability to take the hits for attacks targeted at your mount. Giving your mount an Evasion-type effect on DEX saves can also be a real mount-saver, particularly working with your Aura of Protection.Resilient (Constitution): Getting proficiency in CON saves, along with a +1 to CON itself, is as good a pick as any for you. CON is targeted often and by some of the nastiest stuff in the game. And then there's Concentration checks so you can keep your buff and smite spells alive when taking damage; in fact, combined with Aura of Protection and a decent CON bonus (+2 or +3) you can get Concentration checks into auto-save territory against most typical instances of monster damage. (e.g. Lv. 9 Paladin with CHA 16, CON 14, and Resilient = +3 CHA +2 CON +4 proficiency = auto-save on DC 10 checks.)Sentinel: If you played the Fighter in 4th Edition, this will look very familiar; it pretty much gives you that Fighter’s two main Defender mechanics used to punish an enemy and/or keep them stuck next to you. This feat becomes MUCH more effective if your DM has marking in effect (DMG p. 271), in which case you’ll be able to get those speed-sapping OAs against more than just one enemy every round. The other case in which this feat becomes much more valuable, as mentioned before, is with Polearm Master.War Caster: A nigh-mandatory pick for arcane gish-types, but for you … not nearly so. That’s because of the beauty of holy symbols that can be inlaid on your shield, taking care of the requirements to cast V,S,M spells even fully armed and shielded. As for V,S spells, just cast them before you draw your weapon. If you’re using a two-hander, or otherwise don’t use a shield, you’re golden for both V,S,M and V,S spells fully armed with a holy symbol worn as an amulet. In any event, Resilient (CON) is a much higher-priority choice for Paladins, by far. On the other hand, if you’re multiclassing with an arcane caster somehow, then this feat starts looking appealing again.</blockquote>

Verification