Human Oath of Vengeance Paladin Build Guide
Playing a Human Oath of Vengeance Paladin lets you leverage versatile bonus feats to hunt down your sworn enemies with unmatched, single-target combat efficiency.
Free — no signup needed for the free tier.
Why Oath of Vengeance?
The Oath of Vengeance Paladin is a premier offensive "Striker" designed to lock onto a single boss monster and demolish them. By choosing Human, you gain immediate access to the Versatile trait, allowing you to select a free Origin feat at level 1. Feats like Savage Attacker or Tough perfectly complement your aggressive melee playstyle right from the start of your adventuring career.
Once you reach level 3, your subclass really shines with Vow of Enmity. This Channel Divinity option grants you advantage on attack rolls against a chosen target. Combined with the Human's Resourceful trait—which gives you a free point of Heroic Inspiration every day—you have incredible control over your dice rolls. This synergy ensures you rarely miss your target and can land those high-impact Divine Smites when they matter most.
To back up this offensive power, your stats focus on high Strength (15) for your physical attacks and Charisma (14) for your spellcasting. With the Human's Skillful trait, you can also pick up an extra skill proficiency, ensuring that your fearsome avenger is just as capable of gathering information out of combat as they are at dispensing justice on the battlefield.
Oath of Vengeance Features
Oath of Vengeance Spells
Level 3You gain oath spells at the paladin levels listed in the Oath of Vengeance Spells table. [Oath of Vengeance Spells: 1st - Bane, Thunderous Smite; 2nd - Hold Person, Misfortune; 3rd - Counterspell, Haste; 4th - Dimension Door, Guardian of Faith; 5th - Hold Monster, Scrying]
Vow of Enmity
Level 3As a Bonus Action, you can utter a vow to strike down a creature you can see within 10 feet of you. For the next minute, you have Advantage on melee attack rolls against the creature. You can end this vow early if the creature drops to 0 hit points or if you become Incapacitated.
Relentless Avenger
Level 7Your speed increases by 10 feet while you're not Incapacitated. In addition, when you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack, you can make a Bonus Action attack against the creature.
Soul of Vengeance
Level 15As a Reaction, you can attack a creature that has been hit by you or an ally within 10 feet of you during the last round. You can use this ability a number of times equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of once). You regain all expended uses when you finish a Long Rest.
Avenging Angel
Level 20As an action, you can transform into an avenging angel for 1 hour. You gain a Flying speed of 60 feet. You gain resistance to all damage. When you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack, that creature takes an extra 5d6 radiant damage. You can use this feature once, and you regain the ability to use it when you finish a Long Rest.
Recommended Ability Scores
Human Traits That Benefit Oath of Vengeance Paladin
Versatile
A free Origin feat provides a meaningful boost to any Paladin build right from level 1.
Resourceful
Free Heroic Inspiration each long rest gives a reliable reroll for critical moments.
Skillful
An extra skill proficiency expands the Paladin's out-of-combat versatility.
Combat Effectiveness
| Level | HP | Melee DPR | Spell DPR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Level 5 | 39 | 7.8 | 0 |
| Level 11 | 81 | 7.15 | 0 |
| Level 17 | 123 | 7.15 | 0 |
👉 Stop reading. Start playing.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths
- ♦ Oath of Vengeance grants Oath of Vengeance Spells at level 3
- ♦ High hit points for frontline durability
- ♦ Strong melee damage output
- ♦ Divine Smite provides burst damage
Weaknesses
- ♦ No Darkvision — may need light sources in dungeons
- ♦ May require careful feat selection to optimize
Pro Tips
Use your free Versatile feat from your Human heritage to grab an offensive origin feat that boosts your damage output or survivability.
Pair your Vow of Enmity with a high-level Divine Smite; having constant advantage drastically increases your chances of scoring a devastating critical hit.
Save your Resourceful Heroic Inspiration for crucial saving throws or to guarantee a hit against an elusive target when your Vow is unavailable.
Leverage Relentless Avenger at level 7 to chase down fleeing enemies without giving up your tactical positioning on the battlefield.
Other Paladin Subclasses for Human
Other Races for Oath of Vengeance Paladin
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Oath of Vengeance a good subclass for Human Paladin?
What makes Oath of Vengeance different from other Paladin subclasses?
Create Your Human Oath of Vengeance Paladin
Use Dice Will Decide's free character builder with optimized stats, spells, and equipment.
Create This Character