Paladin 5e Class Guide — How to Play and Build a Paladin

Table of Contents

• •Quick Answer
• •Paladin Basics
• •Paladin Class Table (2014)
• •Paladin Class Table (2024)
• •Key Features Explained
• •Oath of Devotion
• •How to Build a Paladin
• •How to Play a Paladin at the Table
• •Paladin in the 2024 Rules
• •Multiclassing a Paladin
• •Frequently Asked Questions

Quick Answer

The paladin is a heavily armored melee fighter with a d10 Hit Die and half-caster spellcasting that runs on Charisma. Its signature move is Divine Smite: after you hit with a melee attack, you can spend a spell slot to add 2d8 radiant damage, plus 1d8 per slot level above 1st, and another 1d8 against fiends and undead. At level 6 it gains Aura of Protection, which adds your Charisma modifier to every saving throw you and nearby allies make.

Build it with Strength first and Charisma close behind, wear the heaviest armor you can, and stand next to your party. The SRD's subclass is the Oath of Devotion. The 2024 rules turned Divine Smite into a spell, which limits it to once per turn but removes the old damage cap.

Paladin Basics

Chain mail gives AC 16 and lists Strength 13. With a shield that is AC 18 at level 1. A paladin with Constitution 14 starts with 12 hit points and, taking the fixed 6 per level, has 44 at level 5. The HP calculator does the math for any level.

Paladin Class Table (2014)

From SRD 5.1. The numbers are spell slots per spell level.

Paladin Class Table (2024)

From SRD 5.2.1. Spellcasting starts at level 1, Channel Divinity is a class feature from level 3, and Prepared Spells has its own column.

Key Features Explained

Divine Smite

2014: when you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack, you can expend a spell slot to deal extra radiant damage: 2d8 for a 1st-level slot, plus 1d8 for each level above 1st, to a maximum of 5d8. Add 1d8 if the target is undead or a fiend. It is a class feature, not a spell. You decide after you know the attack hit, and nothing in the text limits it to once per turn.

2024: Divine Smite becomes a level 1 spell that paladins always have prepared from level 2 (Paladin's Smite). You cast it as a Bonus Action immediately after hitting with a melee weapon or an Unarmed Strike. It deals 2d8 radiant, +1d8 per slot level above 1, +1d8 against Fiends and Undead, with no maximum. Paladin's Smite lets you cast it once per long rest without a slot.

Smite on critical hits. A critical hit doubles all of the attack's damage dice, and both SRDs say extra dice such as Sneak Attack are doubled too. A 2nd-level smite on a critical hit against an undead target rolls 8d8 radiant (36 on average) on top of the doubled weapon dice. Because you choose to smite after you see the hit, saving a slot for a natural 20 is a real option.

Worked example. A level 5 paladin with Strength 16 hits a zombie with a longsword (1d8 + 3) and smites with a 2nd-level slot: 4d8 radiant because the target is undead. That averages 18 + 7.5 = 25.5 damage, and 5d8 + 3 reaches the 2014 zombie's 22 hit points about 78% of the time. Undead Fortitude doesn't trigger on radiant damage; the text doesn't say how it treats a hit that is part slashing and part radiant, so that call is a DM ruling, not rules text.

The trade-off in 2024: smiting uses your Bonus Action, and the SRD 5.2.1 rule is that you can expend only one spell slot per turn. A 2024 paladin who smites with a slot can't also cast another spell with a slot that turn. A 2014 paladin can smite on every hit, including both attacks after Extra Attack.

Lay on Hands

You have a pool of healing equal to 5 × your paladin level, refilled on a long rest. You can spend any amount of it on a creature you touch. In 2014 it takes an action and 5 points from the pool can cure a disease or neutralize a poison. In 2024 it takes a Bonus Action, and 5 points removes the Poisoned condition. The 2014 version doesn't work on undead or constructs.

A level 5 paladin has 25 points. The pool can bring a downed ally back from 0 hit points with a single point, which ends their death saving throws, so keeping a few points spare is often worth more than topping someone off.

Fighting Style (level 2)

• •2014 options: Defense (+1 AC while wearing armor), Dueling (+2 damage with a one-handed melee weapon and no other weapons), Great Weapon Fighting (reroll 1s and 2s on damage with a two-handed or versatile weapon) and Protection (use your reaction to impose disadvantage on an attack against an adjacent ally, needs a shield).
• •2024 options: a Fighting Style feat (the SRD has Archery, Defense, Great Weapon Fighting and Two-Weapon Fighting) or Blessed Warrior, which gives you two cleric cantrips such as Guidance and Sacred Flame that use Charisma. In 2024 Great Weapon Fighting treats any 1 or 2 on a damage die as a 3 instead of rerolling it.

Aura of Protection (level 6)

You and friendly creatures within 10 feet add your Charisma modifier (minimum +1) to every saving throw. At level 18 the range becomes 30 feet. In 2014 you must be conscious. In 2024 the aura is a 10-foot Emanation that turns off while you are Incapacitated, and a creature can benefit from only one paladin's aura at a time.

This is the paladin's best feature. With Charisma 16, an ally with a +0 Wisdom save facing a DC 15 Hold Person fails on 14 or lower (70%) without the aura and on 11 or lower (55%) inside it. The bonus applies to every save, every time, for free.

Divine Sense and Channel Divinity

In 2014, Divine Sense is a level 1 action you can use 1 + Charisma modifier times per long rest. Until the end of your next turn you know the location of any celestial, fiend or undead within 60 feet that isn't behind total cover. Channel Divinity comes from your oath at level 3, once per short or long rest.

In 2024, Channel Divinity is a class feature at level 3 with two uses (three at level 11). You regain one use on a short rest and all of them on a long rest. Divine Sense became one of its options: a Bonus Action that lasts 10 minutes. At level 9, Abjure Foes is another option: a number of creatures equal to your Charisma modifier within 60 feet make a Wisdom save or are Frightened for a minute or until they take damage.

Later features

Oath of Devotion

The SRD includes one oath, the Oath of Devotion. Oaths such as Vengeance and the Ancients are in the Player's Handbook and are not in the SRD.

Sacred Weapon is the feature you will use most. With Charisma 16 it adds +3 to hit, which against AC 15 turns a +6 attack (hits on 9+, 60%) into a +9 attack (hits on 6+, 75%). More hits means more chances to smite. The 2024 version lasts ten times longer and no longer costs your action.

Aura of Devotion protects the party from charm effects, including a vampire's Charm and the succubus or incubus's Charm.

How to Build a Paladin

Ability scores

1. •Strength for melee attacks and heavy armor.
2. •Charisma for your spell DC, Aura of Protection and Sacred Weapon. Every point of Charisma modifier helps the whole party's saves.
3. •Constitution for hit points and concentration.

The 2024 SRD's Standard Array suggestion is Str 15, Dex 10, Con 13, Int 8, Wis 12, Cha 14. With point buy, Str 15, Con 14, Cha 14, Wis 12, Dex 8, Int 8 costs 9 + 7 + 7 + 4 = 27 points. Heavy armor ignores Dexterity, so a low Dex costs you little beyond Dexterity saves and initiative. Try spreads in the point buy and ability score calculator.

Then add bonuses. In 2024 the SRD's Soldier background raises Strength, Dexterity or Constitution (Strength 17 is the natural pick) and gives the Savage Attacker feat. In 2014 the SRD 5.1 dragonborn (+2 Strength, +1 Charisma) and half-orc (+2 Strength, +1 Constitution) both suit a paladin, and the human's +1 to every score works too. Use your Ability Score Improvements to push Strength and Charisma toward 20.

A Dexterity paladin with a rapier or another finesse weapon also works, since Divine Smite needs a melee hit in both editions, but you give up heavy armor's high AC.

Spells

Paladins prepare spells from their list each day. In 2014 you prepare Charisma modifier + half your paladin level (rounded down, minimum one). In 2024 the Prepared Spells column of the table sets the number. Oath spells are always prepared and don't count against it.

The 2014 SRD has no 1st-level smite spells (Searing, Thunderous and Wrathful Smite are Player's Handbook spells). The 2024 SRD includes Searing Smite at level 1 and Shining Smite at level 2.

Spell slots versus smites. Every slot you spend on a spell is a slot you can't smite with. Concentration spells such as Bless and Shield of Faith keep working across many turns, while a smite is one burst of damage. One approach is to open a fight with Bless and keep the rest of your slots for smites and emergencies.

Find Steed. In 2014 the spell takes 10 minutes and gives you a warhorse, pony, camel, elk or mastiff that is a celestial, fey or fiend. In 2024 it takes an action, uses its own Otherworldly Steed stat block, and level 5 paladins can cast it once a day for free.

Feats

SRD 5.1 has one feat, Grappler. SRD 5.2.1 has more: Fighting Style feats at level 2, Ability Score Improvement at 4, 8, 12 and 16, and an Epic Boon at 19 (the class text recommends Boon of Truesight). Feats such as Great Weapon Master, Polearm Master and Sentinel are in the Player's Handbook, not the SRD.

How to Play a Paladin at the Table

Stand where your aura reaches. From level 6, Aura of Protection is worth more than most spells. A 10-foot radius is small, so think about where your allies are before you charge.

Smite on the hit that matters. Spending every slot on the first goblin leaves nothing for the boss. Smites are strongest against fiends and undead, on critical hits, and when the extra damage finishes a dangerous enemy this turn.

Use Lay on Hands to pick people up. One point from the pool brings a dying ally back to consciousness. You don't need to spend 20.

Know your oath. The tenets are character guidance. The 2014 SRD says an impenitent paladin who willfully breaks their oath might be forced to abandon the class at the GM's discretion. The 2024 text says to talk to your GM and suggests taking a more fitting subclass or abandoning the class. Talk with your DM about how strictly your table plays this before the first session.

Ride in. Find Steed gives you a mount that shares your initiative in 2024. Ask your DM how much of the campaign happens in places a horse can go.

Paladin in the 2024 Rules

In play, the biggest difference is pacing. A 2014 paladin can smite twice in one turn and dump four slots into a single round. A 2024 paladin smites once per turn but gets 6d8 from a 5th-level slot instead of the 5d8 cap, a free smite and a free steed every day, and a stronger Lay on Hands as a Bonus Action.

Multiclassing a Paladin

To take a level in paladin you need Strength 13 and Charisma 13, plus the minimum for your current class. A first paladin level gives you light and medium armor, shields, and martial weapons (2014 also lists simple weapons). Check combinations with the multiclass calculator.

• •Spell slots: paladin levels count as half for the Multiclass Spellcaster table. 2014 rounds down; 2024 rounds up. A paladin 5 / sorcerer 1 counts as a level 3 caster in 2014 (four 1st and two 2nd-level slots) and a level 4 caster in 2024 (four 1st and three 2nd). The spell slot tracker handles the bookkeeping.
• •Extra Attack doesn't stack with Extra Attack from another class or with the warlock's Thirsting Blade.
• •Channel Divinity (2014): if you also have it from cleric levels, you gain both classes' options but extra uses only come from the class level that grants them.
• •Pact Magic: warlock slots return on a short rest. The 2014 multiclassing text says only that Pact Magic slots can cast spells you know or have prepared from classes with the Spellcasting feature, and Spellcasting slots can cast warlock spells you know. It says nothing about Divine Smite, which is not a spell; Divine Smite itself asks you to expend "one spell slot" without naming a kind, so a Pact Magic slot meets that wording (you need paladin level 2 to have the feature). The 2024 text says Pact Magic slots can cast spells you have prepared from classes with the Spellcasting feature, and Divine Smite is a paladin spell you always have prepared. See our warlock guide.

The paladin shares Charisma with the bard, sorcerer and warlock, and shares its Wisdom and Charisma saving throw proficiencies with the cleric.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does Divine Smite work in 5e?

In the 2014 rules, after you hit with a melee weapon attack you can expend a spell slot to add 2d8 radiant damage, plus 1d8 per slot level above 1st, up to 5d8, plus 1d8 against undead and fiends. In the 2024 rules Divine Smite is a level 1 paladin spell you cast as a Bonus Action right after a melee hit, with the same dice and no 5d8 cap.

Can you Divine Smite on a critical hit?

Yes. You decide to smite after you know the attack hit, so you can wait for a critical hit. Both SRDs double all of an attack's damage dice on a critical hit, including extra dice from features like Sneak Attack, so the smite dice are doubled too.

Can you smite more than once per turn?

In 2014, yes: nothing limits Divine Smite to once per turn, so you can smite on each hit if you have the slots. In 2024 Divine Smite is a Bonus Action spell, so you can cast it once per turn, and if you use a slot for it, the one-slot-per-turn rule stops you casting another spell with a slot that turn.

What is the best paladin oath?

The SRD only includes the Oath of Devotion, which is the oath this guide covers. It is a strong default: Sacred Weapon adds your Charisma modifier to attack rolls, Aura of Devotion stops charm effects, and its oath spells include Shield of Faith or Sanctuary, Zone of Truth and Dispel Magic. Other oaths are in the Player's Handbook, not the SRD.

What are the best stats for a paladin?

Strength and Charisma first, then Constitution. Strength drives your attacks and lets you wear heavy armor, Charisma sets your spell save DC and your Aura of Protection bonus, and Constitution keeps you standing and holding concentration. The 2024 SRD suggests Str 15, Dex 10, Con 13, Int 8, Wis 12, Cha 14 with the standard array.

How many spells can a paladin prepare?

In 2014 a paladin prepares Charisma modifier plus half its paladin level, rounded down, minimum one. A level 5 paladin with Charisma 14 prepares four. In 2024 the class table sets the number directly: two at level 1, six at level 5, ten at level 11 and fifteen at level 19. Oath spells are extra in both editions.

What happens if a paladin breaks their oath?

The SRD says a paladin who breaks a vow usually seeks absolution through a vigil or a fast and then starts fresh. In 2014, a paladin who willfully breaks the oath without repenting might be forced to abandon the class at the GM's discretion. The 2024 text says to talk to your GM and suggests switching to a more appropriate subclass or abandoning the class.

What changed for the paladin in the 2024 rules?

Divine Smite became a once-per-turn Bonus Action spell with no damage cap, and you get one free smite per long rest. Spellcasting and Weapon Mastery start at level 1, Lay on Hands is a Bonus Action, Channel Divinity is a class feature with Divine Sense as an option, and new features include Faithful Steed, Abjure Foes and Restoring Touch. Divine Health was removed.

Class tables and features: System Reference Document 5.1 (2014) and 5.2.1 (2024), Wizards of the Coast, CC-BY-4.0. Build advice and worked examples are Loreify's own.