On January 15, Dungeons and Dragons shared a document filled with four never-before-seen subclasses. Each new option is focused on the art of spellcasting – though some of the DnD classes represented here hardly ever cast a spell. Rogues who steal magic from the mouths of mages and Monks with a little bit of Sorcerer in them stand side-by-side with Cleric-like Warlocks and spell-buffed Paladins. I’m pretty intrigued by all four of them, but I definitely have favorites – so here’s a ranked list of the new options.
A quick note, before we jump in. This is a first impressions ranking – while I’m eager to get playtesting, I need more time to get each subclass to a table.
4. Magic Stealer Rogue
I honestly like all of these subclasses, but somebody had to go in last place. The Magic Stealer gets to deal extra Sneak Attack damage after standing near someone who cast a spell. More importantly, they can spend an action (or, at higher levels, a bonus action) to touch a creature and remove a spell affecting them. This then gets converted into a spell slot for the target – possibly one that’s higher than the spell affecting them. At higher levels, you can spend Cunning Strike dice to debuff enemies, and you can even use your empowered Sneak Attack to counter spells entirely.
The reason this subclass is in last place is that it doesn’t solve a big problem that the core Rogue class has – how situational it is. Empower Sneak Attack is only useful if you can set up a spell and Sneak Attack combo first. You can only recycle a spell once per rest, and your counter spell ability relies on the enemy failing a Constitution saving throw. Plus, there’s a level-13 feature that lets you cast Nondetection for free, which feels like a bit of a waste of time when the big bad boss could just scry on a different party member.
This is a Support-focused Rogue that, like many Rogues that have come before, will find itself falling behind as the party levels up – and maybe being pushed out of the spotlight more than is fun.
3. Vestige Patron Warlock
Based on concept alone, this is my favorite of the four subclasses. The Vestige Warlock made a pact to serve a dying god, desperate to get their power back. They’re so desperate, in fact, that they’re prepared to follow you everywhere you go as a floating summons.
In practical terms, this is a ‘Pet’ subclass where most of your subclass features are dedicated to introducing and improving a companion. The problem with these classes has always been that buffing your pet and not your character can often feel unfun in practice. I expect that to be the case here. Even at its most powerful, your Vestige Companion is a helpful ally, but not an overwhelmingly powerful one. Its best trick is creating an aura that gives your entire party resistance to three common damage types and some pesky conditions. That same aura can also resurrect you if you hit zero HP – pretty darned good for a level-10 feature.
As for the Warlock themself, they get an expanded spell list by dipping into one of the Player’s Handbook’s Cleric domains. This adds a handful of great Blaster options to your repertoire (depending on which domain you pick), but you’re still a limited spellcaster with hardly any slots.
2. Warrior of the Mystic Arts Monk
A spellcasting subclass seems like a natural fit for the Monk, right? If the Rogue and the Fighter get one, why not the Monk? The Warrior of Mystic Arts gets a small slice of the Sorcerer spell list to play with, and while their martial arts won’t leave much space for Blaster spells, they can certainly use magic to defend themselves better. Mage Armor, Absorb Elements, Shield, and Blur all look very appealing. Alternatively, you can ignore your spells altogether and convert the slots into more Focus Points to fuel your regular punching powers.
That’s plenty of fun, but my biggest gripe is that this Monk gets significantly less interesting after level six. Replacing an attack with a cantrip could be handy for bypassing damage resistances and bumping your damage output, but what do we get after that? Inconsistent advantage on concentration saves and the ability to replace a regular attack with a leveled Sorcerer spell that has the casting time of an action. Both are useful, don’t get me wrong, but they don’t quite seem worth waiting so long for.
1. Oath of the Spellguard Paladin
Conceptually, I’m not a fan of a Paladin whose only goal is to hunt evil spellcasters and protect good ones. Mechanically, however, this is yet another Paladin with explosive abilities. They go all in on Defense from level three, choosing an ally whose AC they can buff as a reaction. They get an excellent spell list for utility and debuffs, and later, they can spend a reaction to attack an enemy casting a spell (and even counterspell them).
The base Paladin’s aura was already strong, but now it gives everyone inside advantage on saving throws. If you make it to level 20, it also gives advantage on saving throws against all spells, and any incoming spell attacks have disadvantage. Plus, your chosen defended character from before? Resistant to all damage. It’s frankly a bit ridiculous.
The biggest weakness of this subclass is that it has multiple features that require you to spend a reaction. Beyond this and a weak oath description, though, there’s not much to fault. I wouldn’t be surprised if this even got a small nerf in the second draft.
If you haven’t checked out the playtest document yet, you can see all the new rules here. Or, if you’d like to share your own opinions on the subclasses, join the conversation in the Wargamer Discord.