Oath of the Fist
The Oath of the Fist compels a paladin to the ideal that unarmed combat is a purer form than using weapons. Many who swear this oath are devoted to neutral good gods, because they tend to come from rough backgrounds and dislike unjust authorities. These paladins are accustomed to tavern brawls, and are not afraid to fight their enemies publicly.
Tenets of the Fist
The tenets of the Oath of the Fist are normally for self-improvement, whether for athleticism, labor, etc. Paladins of this oath tend not to bring weapons to the battlefield, and thus their tenets sometimes reflect extreme routines.
Take Workouts. You must keep your body in top shape to survive against great evil.
Take Risks. You must not be a stranger to dangerous tasks. In the face of overwhelming odds, who else to face them than you?
Take Responsibility. You must deal with the consequences of your actions, and you are responsible for doing the hard work right.
Oath Spells
| Paladin Level | Spells |
|---|---|
| 3rd | jump, thunderwave |
| 5th | enhance ability, hold person |
| 9th | bestow curse, water walk |
| 13th | freedom of movement, stoneskin |
| 17th | Bigby's hand, hold monster |
Prerequisite
This oath requires you to have the Unarmed Smiting feature, which you can take at 2nd level in place of the Fighting Style feature gained from this class. If you did not choose Unarmed Smiting in place of your paladin fighting style, you must replace your fighting style with Unarmed Smiting when you choose this oath.
Unarmed Smiting
Replaces the paladin's Fighting Style feature
Your unarmed strike is considered a nonmagical weapon only for the purpose of your paladin features and your paladin spells. If a spell requires you to target a weapon, you are the target.
In addition, you can roll a d6 in place of the normal damage of your unarmed strike. If you aren't wielding any weapons or a shield, the d6 becomes a d8.
Channel Divinity
At 3rd level, you gain the following two Channel Divinity options.
Champion Challenge. As a bonus action, you issue a challenge that compels other creatures to do battle with you. Each creature of your choice that you can see within 30 feet of you must make a Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, a creature can't willingly move more than 30 feet away from you. This effect ends on the creature if you are incapacitated or die or if the creature is more than 30 feet away from you.
Guided Strike. You can use your Channel Divinity to strike with supernatural accuracy. When you make an unarmed strike, you can use your Channel Divinity to gain a +10 bonus to the roll. You make this choice after you see the roll, but before the DM says whether the attack hits or misses.
Aura of Excitement
Beginning at 7th level, you emanate an aura that excites your allies in a brawl. When you roll for initiative, you can spend one spell slot as a reaction to cast the heroism spell as a paladin spell with a casting time of 1 reaction and a range of 10 feet. When you cast the spell this way, you do not have to touch a creature to target them, but they must be willing and within range.
At 18th level, the range of this casting of the spell increases to 30 feet.
Empowered Strikes
Starting at 15th level, when you make an unarmed strike, you can make the attack as if your unarmed strike is under the effects of a 4th-level magic weapon spell.
If your unarmed strikes are already benefiting from a magic weapon spell or an elemental weapon spell, you choose which benefit to use, but you can't choose both.
Invincible Brawler
At 20th level, you gain the ability to harness extraordinary prowess in unarmed combat. As an action, you can magically gain the following benefits for 1 minute:
- You have resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical attacks.
- When you use the Attack action to make an unarmed strike, you can make one additional unarmed strike as part of that action.
- Your unarmed strikes score a critical hit on a roll of 18-20.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.
By Keith MacDonald
Additional Options
The following spell and feat are available for players to use.
Spell: Sacred Fist
- Evocation cantrip
- Divine (cleric)
- Casting Time: 1 bonus action
- Range: Self
- Components: V, S, M (a holy symbol)
- Duration: 1 minute
Your unarmed strikes are imbued with divine power. For the duration, you gain the following benefits:
- You can use your spellcasting ability instead of Strength for the attack and damage rolls of your unarmed strikes.
- You can roll a d4 in place of the normal damage of your unarmed strike.
- You can make your unarmed strike magical on a hit.
Feat: Imbued Fighter
1st-Level Feat
- Prerequisite: None
- Repeatable: No
You learn how to use a magical technique to enhance your fighting, granting you the following benefits:
- Cantrip. You learn the sacred fist or shillelagh cantrip (your choice). Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma is your spellcasting ability for this spell (choose when you select this feat). Consult the Player's Handbook for the rules on spellcasting.
- Double Bonus Action. When you cast sacred fist or shillelagh on your turn, you gain another bonus action for that turn only. Once you do this, you cannot do so again until you finish a long rest, unless you spend a spell slot if you have any.
- Improved Shillelagh. When you cast shillelagh, you can target any wooden melee weapon you are holding to gain the spell's benefits, and you can use the weapon's normal damage roll instead of a d8.
Whenever you gain a new level, you can replace the spell you chose for this feat with the other.