The 15 Best Paladin Feats in D&D 5e [Ranked]

Paladins are one of the most broken classes in all of D&D, having insanely high AC, high damage, large HP pools, and spellcasting.

So many different Feats can go well with a Paladin that it becomes a bit difficult to choose the best ones.

However, the final choice will rest with the player, as there are certain Feats that are objectively better than others, but the final choice is to be made by taking what you want your Paladin to achieve into consideration.

Best Paladin Feats in 5e

15. Gift of the Metallic Dragon

Description

Manifest powers from metallic dragons, gaining benefits:

Draconic Healing – Learn Cure Wounds and be able to cast it without having to expend a spell slot. Casting the spell like this restricts you from casting it again until you’ve finished a long rest.

The spell may also be cast using spell slots you have. The spellcasting ability for it is Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma when cast with this feat (choose upon gaining the feat).

Protective Wings – Manifest protective wings capable of shielding others. If you or another visible creature within 5 feet is hit by an attack roll, use a reaction to manifest spectral wings from your back for a brief moment.

This grants a bonus to the target’s AC (equals your Proficiency bonus) against the attack roll, causing it to potentially miss. The reaction can be used a number of times equal to your Proficiency bonus.

All expended uses are regained when you finish a long rest.

Explanation

Protective Wings is a good shield alternative, and it can even be used to shield other players.

The only problem is that if you take Gift of the Metallic Dragon for protection, you should rather go with Fighting Initiate.

14. Fey Touched

Description

Gain the following benefits:

Increase Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma by 1 (maximum of 20)
Learn Misty Step and one 1st-level spell you choose. The 1st-level spell must be Divination or Enchantment, and both spells can be used without expending a spell slot.

Casting a spell this way means you cannot cast it like this again until you’ve finished a long rest.

These spells can also be cast using spell slots of the appropriate level, and these spells use the spellcasting ability increased by the feat.

Explanation

Misty Step is a good option when taking Fey Touched, as Paladins can’t get it otherwise. However, spells like Bless or Hex can also be exceptional if you want to buff allies or debuff enemies.

13. Gift of the Gem Dragon

Description

Manifest powers from gem dragons, gaining benefits:

Ability Score Increase – Increase Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma by 1 (maximum of 20).

Telekinetic Reprisal – Taking damage from a creature within 10 feet of you lets you use a reaction to emanate telekinetic energy.

The creature that dealt damage to you is forced to make a Strength save (DC equals 8 + your Proficiency bonus + ability modifier score increased by feat).

If the save fails, the creature will take 2d8 Force damage while being pushed up to 10 feet away from you.

If the save succeeds, the creature takes half damage and is not pushed. The reaction can be used a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus. You also regain all expended uses when finishing a long rest.

Explanation

Telekinetic Reprisal is really good, as it lets you punish enemies for damaging you.

The fact that you can increase one of the abovementioned Ability Scores decreases the cost of Gift of the Gem Dragon.

12. Piercer

Description

Gain the following benefits:

Increase Strength or Dexterity by 1 (maximum of 20).
Once every turn, hitting a creature with an attack dealing Piercing damage lets you reroll one of the attack’s damage dice, using the new roll.
Scoring a critical hit dealing Piercing damage to a creature lets you roll one additional damage die as you determine the extra Piercing damage the target will take.

Explanation

When used in combination with Divine Smite, Piercer can be quite devastating, but you’ll have to be using a weapon that deals Piercing damage.

You should try combining Piercer with Polearm Master!

11. Slasher

Description

Gain the following benefits:

Your Dexterity and Strength increase by 1, reaching a maximum of 20.
Once every turn, when you’ve hit a creature with an attack dealing Slashing damage, you can reduce the target’s speed by 10 feet until your next turn starts.
When scoring a critical hit that deals Slashing damage to a targeted creature, you will grievously wound it. Until your next turn starts, the creature will have disadvantage on all its attack rolls.

Explanation

As a Paladin, you can use Slasher to prevent enemies from getting away from you.

You won’t really crit, but just considering the movement reduction it gives you already makes it quite a good choice for a Defender.

10. Heavy Armor Master

Description

Gain the following benefits:

Increase Strength by 1 (maximum of 20).
Whilst wearing heavy armor, Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing damage from nonmagical attacks is reduced by 3.

Note: You must have proficiency with heavy armor to pick Heavy Armor Master.

Explanation

Heavy Armor Master is perfect if you are taking a lot of damage and don’t have any other way to keep your HP up.

The fact that you take reduced damage from the abovementioned melee damage types makes magical damage the only real threat to your character.

9. Resilient

Description

You gain the following benefits and choose one ability score:

Chosen ability score increased by 1 (maximum of 20)
Gain Proficiency in the chosen ability in saving throws

Explanation

Paladins don’t have Proficiency in Constitution saves, and they have a lot of spells that use Concentration.

With Resilient, you’ll have a much easier time keeping your Concentration up, and Constitution saves won’t be so daunting anymore.

8. Fighting Initiate

Description

Your martial training helped you develop a particular fighting style. Therefore, you learn one Fighting Style you choose from the Fighter class. If you already have a style, you must choose a different one.

Reaching a level granting the Ability Score Improvement feature means you can replace the feat’s Fighting Style with a different one (from Fighter class) you don’t already have.

Note: You must have Proficiency with a martial weapon to gain Fighting Initiate.

Explanation

Another Fighting Style won’t hurt you, and choosing one from the Fighter class is perfect, as they have more Fighting Styles than Paladins do.

Depending on what you want your Paladin to do, the additional Fighting Style from Fighting Initiate makes it much easier for you to realize your decision.

7. Lucky

Description

Gain 3 luck points. When making an attack roll, ability check, or saving throw, you may spend one luck point to roll an additional d20.

You may choose to spend one luck point after rolling the die but before the outcome is determined. You then choose which d20 will be used for the attack roll, ability check, or saving throw.

You may also spend one luck point when an attack roll is made against you, rolling a d20 to choose whether the attack uses your roll or the attacker’s.

More than one creature spending a luck point to influence the outcome of a roll will cancel each other out, and no additional dice will be rolled.

Expended luck points are regained when you’ve finished a long rest.

Explanation

Lucky is one of those Feats that just works in any class, so if you want to take a Feat but are worried about whether it’s good or not, just take Lucky. There’s not much that can go wrong with choosing Lucky.

6. Gift of the Chromatic Dragon

Description

Manifest powers from chromatic dragons, gaining benefits:

Chromatic Infusion allows you to use a bonus action and touch a martial or simple weapon, infusing it with one of these damage types: Poison, Lightning, Fire, Cold, or Acid.

For a minute, the weapon now deals an extra 1d4 damage on a hit of the infused damage type. After using this bonus action, you can’t do so again until after finishing a long rest.

Reactive Resistance lets you use your reaction to give yourself resistance to whichever damage you took out of the following types: Poison, Lightning, Fire, Cold, or Acid damage.

The reaction can be used a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, and you’ll regain all uses whenever you finish a long rest.

Explanation

Reactive Resistance takes care of damage that will ignore your high AC and is quite good in combination with Heavy Armor Master as a Defender.

Chromatic Infusion is also a good option, as it gives you or someone from your party a nice damage boost.

Gift of the Chromatic Dragon is perfect if you want more buffing abilities.

5. Shield Master

Description

While holding a shield, you gain the following benefits:

Taking the Attack action on your turn allows you to use a bonus action to try and shove a creature within 5 feet of you with your equipped shield.
If you’re not incapacitated, your shield’s AC bonus can be added to any Dexterity save you make against a spell or other harmful effect that only targets you.
Being subjected to an effect allowing you to make a Dexterity save to only take half damage means you can use a reaction to take no damage if you succeed on the save, interposing your shield between the source of the effect and yourself.

Explanation

Paladins do well with shields, so when combined with Shield Master and their high Strength, Paladins can abuse the shield shoving mechanic.

Shield Master gives you a good way to use your Bonus action and not have it go to waste.

4. Sentinel

Description

Hitting a Creature using an opportunity attack forces their speed to become 0 for the rest of their turn, and creatures provoke your opportunity attacks even if they take their Disengage action.

Whenever a creature attacks a target other than you (and the target doesn’t already have this feat), you may use a reaction and proceed to perform a melee weapon attack against the creature that’s attacking.

Explanation

Sentinel is the perfect Defender Feat. It goes well with Polearm Master and should be taken above Fighting Initiate if you only aim to use it for protecting others.

3. Great Weapon Master

Description

Gain the following benefits:

When it’s your turn, and you score a critical hit while using a melee weapon or reduce a creature’s HP to 0 with a melee weapon, you may make a single melee weapon attack as a bonus action.
Before making a melee attack using a melee weapon you have proficiency in, you can decide to take a -5 penalty to its attack roll. If the attack were to hit, you would add +10 to the damage of the attack.

Explanation

Paladins have a lot of ways to increase their attack rolls. Therefore, if you use Great Weapon Master correctly, it would be like you’re expending almost nothing but gaining +10 damage on a melee weapon attack.

It’s also pretty cool to see your Paladin prance around with a massive Greatsword!

2. Inspiring Leader

Description

Spend 10 minutes inspiring your companions, choosing up to six friendly creatures (including yourself) within 30 feet of you who can hear, see, and understand you.

Each chosen creature gains temporary HP equal to your level + your Charisma modifier. A creature cannot gain the temporary HP from this feat again until it has finished a short or long rest.

Note: Your Charisma must be 13 or higher to obtain Inspiring Leader.

Explanation

Paladins have a lot of Charisma due to it being used as their Spellcasting Ability.

Temporary HP to up to 6 creatures is exceptional and can add an insane amount of durability to your party, making Inspiring Leader a pretty valuable Feat to have.

1. Polearm Master

Description

Gain the following benefits:

Taking the Attack action and attacking with only a spear, glaive, halberd, or quarterstaff allows you to use a Bonus action and perform a melee attack with the opposite end of your weapon.

Attacking this way uses the same modifier as the primary attack. Your weapon’s damage die for this attack is d4, dealing Bludgeoning damage.

While wielding a spear, glaive, halberd, or quarterstaff, other creatures will provoke an opportunity attack from you when entering the reach you have with that respective weapon.

Explanation

Polearm Master is considered to be one of the most popular Feats for the Paladin, and for good reason.

Since Paladins don’t really have a go-to option for their Bonus action, Polearm Master is a perfect candidate for it. It’s also a good Feat to combine with others on this list.

Final Thoughts

Paladins don’t have as many good Feats to choose from as Fighters do, but they still have a lot of Feats that work perfectly with whatever they want to achieve.

I suggest you first determine if the Feat will strengthen your current character build, and if it does, incorporate it into your build.

Not only will this strengthen your role in the party, but it will greatly increase your overall power in the campaign going forward.

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