Vengeance Paladin
Meet Lucy - She is mad.
The Oath of Vengeance paladin is the relentless pursuer of justice. Where other paladins may offer mercy or peace, the Vengeance paladin burns with righteous fury to punish wrongdoers and right great wrongs. If you love playing a character driven by purpose and focused on hunting down evil, this subclass is your perfect match.
Core Features of the Vengeance Paladin
Channel Divinity: Vow of Enmity
Choose a foe and gain advantage on attack rolls against them for 1 minute — perfect for boss fights or important targets.
Relentless Avenger
When you hit a creature with an opportunity attack, you can move up to half your speed immediately after, keeping up the pressure.
Avenging Angel
Gain flying speed and an aura of fear—ideal for intimidating enemies and dominating the battlefield.
Combat Role and Tips
Focus on your Vow of Enmity to take down key enemies fast. Use it against big threats—dragons, arch-villains, or particularly nasty spellcasters.
Use your smite spells (Divine Smite) for burst damage. Save your spell slots for crucial moments when you can land those powerful attacks. The attacks will fuck up a mob or two, so really be selective when using your spells slots.
Positioning is vital. Use Relentless Avenger*to stay in melee range or chase down fleeing foes.
Coordinate with your party: tank in front for your squishier allies and mark targets with your aura and spells.
Roleplaying a Vengeance Paladin
Driven by justice (or revenge): Your character is defined by their mission—whether personal vengeance, punishing evil, or protecting the innocent. If you are following along with our Storm Kings Thunder play, you will see my take on Lucy Coppertoe, a grumpy Paladin fueled by rage and vengeance! I struggle playing a grumpy character and need to lean in on that more, but I absolutely love her back story and the role she plays within the party.
Moral complexity: Your relentless pursuit can make you harsh or inflexible. This can create compelling story arcs about mercy vs. justice.
Tiies to your faith: The divine source of your vengeance shapes how you view the world—whether a stern god of retribution or a passionate guardian. Lucy for example is fueled by her thirst for vengeance against the elves she deems responsible for the murder of her family. Her divinity and power come from that Oath, not a god. Fuck you, you greedy elves!
Build Recommendations
Best Races: Dwarves, Tieflings, and Half-Elves all make excellent Vengeance Paladins, offering durability and charisma boosts.
Ability Scores: Prioritize Strength and Charisma for melee attacks and spellcasting. Constitution is next for survivability.
Feats to Consider:
Great Weapon Master to maximize damage output and re-roll those pesky 1s!
Polearm Maste if using reach weapons for opportunity attacks.
Resilient (Constitution) for better concentration saves.
Spells to Consider
Hunter’s Mark (if your DM allows multiclass or feats) to increase damage on a marked foe.
Shield of Faith to boost your AC when you need to survive longer.
Hold Person or Banishment for crowd control and shutting down spellcasters.
Let’s be real though - paladins are boss killers in 5E, and a big reason why is the divine smite. Tough for me to spend a valuable slot on anything else, but you do you!
Fuck you, greedy elves!!!
Final Thoughts
Playing a Vengeance Paladin is about more than just combat prowess — it’s about embodying relentless justice and the struggle between mercy and retribution. Whether you’re channeling Lucy Coppertoe’s fierce determination or crafting your own avenger, this subclass offers deep roleplaying and tactical opportunities.