Art Credit: Hyeong-seop Lim
Oath of the Styx
The Oath of the Styx draws to it both the servants of life and watchers of the grave. Whatever the reason it is taken — to stop undead plaguing a village, to bring down a Lich threatening the safety of the innocent, to dissolve a brutal cult aiming to claim immortality at any cost — the Paladins of the Styx commit themselves to watching the line between life and death, and to ensuring the sanctuary of the afterlife. These Paladins, sometimes called Grave Watchers or Reapers, hone their powers to not only prevent the dead from rising, but also to protect those living, especially those with things still left to accomplish. They often adorn their armour with symbols of death: ravens, scythes, and skulls of all types of creatures, demonstrating that death shows no descrimination.
Tenets of the Oath of the Styx
The oath is followed by many paladins of the god of death Myrkul and thought to have been originated from the Raven Queen.
Let Death Lie. I will not disturb the slumber of a person whose business on this earth is finished. Vanquish Undeath. The desecration of corpses by means of reanimation is an abomination. Those dead shall rest once more.
Balance. Those who pursue immortality disturb the natural balance of life and death, and they must be brought to justice.
Unfinished Quests. All beings have a time they are meant to depart from the world. Those who have this time brought early may be returned to life to complete their unfinished business.
There is no escape. Souls that have escaped the underworld or escape death when their time is very long overdue for the purpose of disturbing the natural balance must be sent back to where they belong.
Variant Options
Because paladins of this oath emphasize life and death, the radiant damage of the paladin's Divine Smite feature, might not seem entirely appropriate for the theme of this Oath. For interested players and DMs, the following optional features can be included as part of this sacred oath option when it's taken or as part of the paladin's progression: Reaper Smite
Starting at 2nd level, when you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack, you can expend one spell slot to deal extra either Necrotic or Radiant (choice) damage to the target, in addition to the weapon's damage. The extra damage is 2d8 for a 1st-level spell slot, plus 1d8 for each spell-level higher than 1st, to a maximum of 5d8. The damage increases by 1d8 if the target is an undead or fiend.
Oath Spells
You gain oath spells at the paladin level listed.
Oath of the Styx Spells
| Paladin level | spells |
|---|---|
| 3rd | sanctuary, protection from evil and good |
| 5th | gentle repose, shadow blade |
| 9th | beacon of hope, revivify |
| 13th | phantasmal killer, death ward |
| 17th | destructive wave, enervation |
Channel Divinity
When you take this oath at 3rd level, you gain the following two Channel Divinity options.
There is No Escape. Your proximity to death allows you to draw from its power. If you are bloodied, as an action, you can also stare at one enemy, causing it to see a reaper above the paladin. A loud bell sound is heard by all creatures in a 100 foot radius. One creature 30 feet away that the paladin can see is frightened of the paladin for 1 minute. If a creature frightened by this effect ends its turn more than 30 feet away from the paladin, it can attempt a Wisdom saving throw to end the effect on it. This creature's move speed is halved and cannot willingly move from your sight if it is bloodied and frightened. One weapon you are holding then becomes magical.
All flames in a 50 foot radius turn dark green.
You can end this effect on your turn as part of any other action. If you are no longer holding or carrying this weapon, heal any hit points or if you fall unconscious, this effect ends.
Turn Undeath. As an action, you present your holy symbol and speak a prayer censuring forces that disturb the balance of life and death, using your Channel Divinity. Each fiend or undead that can see or hear you within 30 feet of you must make a Wisdom saving throw. If the creature fails its saving throw, it is turned for 1 minute or until it takes damage.
A turned creature must spend its turns trying to move as far away from you as it can, and it can't willingly move to a space within 30 feet of you. It also can't take reactions. For its action, it can use only the Dash action or try to escape from an effect that prevents it from moving. If there's nowhere to move, the creature can use the Dodge action.
Aura of the living
Starting at 7th level, you and friendly creatures within 10 feet of you can resist the call of death. When one of these creatures would fall unconscious from damage and not outright die, before they fall unconscious, you can use your reaction to make a Charisma saving throw (DC 5 + Damage Taken). If you succeed, they drop to 1 hit point instead and can not be affected by this again until they finish a long rest. All creatures within your aura have advantage on death saving throws.
At 18th level, the range of this aura increases to 30 feet.
Blessing of the Styx
The wellspring water of the river Styx flows through you.
Death Incarnate
At 20th level, you can assume the form of an inevitable reaper of death. Your form becomes shrouded in shadow and your face becomes gaunt and skull-like.
Each creature of the paladin's choice must make a Wisdom saving throw if it can see the paladin. On a failed save, the target is frightened of the paladin for 1 minute. If a creature frightened by this effect ends its turn more than 30 feet away from the paladin, it can attempt another Wisdom saving throw to end the effect on it.
- Bloodied hostile creatures that can see you have disadvantage on saving throws against the Frightened condition.
- You can transform one weapon you touch, giving it the appearance of a death scythe. When you hit a creature with this scythe you can cause it to make a Constitution save against your spell save. On a fail, its hit point maximum is reduced by the amount of damage taken.
- You can cast Toll of the dead once per turn on the same action you use to attack a creature that is frightened.
- You have advantage on Charisma (Intimidation) checks made against any creature that can see your face.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.
