Oath of the Umbral Crusade

The Oath of the Umbral Crusader draws its power from the mysterious and enigmatic realm of the ethereal plane. These paladins are dedicated to safeguarding the balance between the mortal world and the ethereal realm, ensuring that darkness and light coexist harmoniously. They have honed their abilities to peer into the ethereal plane, stepping into the shadows that bridge the realms and, at times, even drawing upon the essence of souls to serve a greater purpose.

Tenets of the Umbral Crusade:

The Oath of the Umbral Crusader is guided by a set of tenets that reflect their commitment to maintaining the balance between the material and ethereal realms.

The Veil of Truth. I pledge to seek the truth that lies beyond the mundane world. I shall peer into the ethereal plane to reveal hidden secrets and mysteries, never fearing the unknown.

Harmony of Shadows. I strive to maintain a balance between the material and ethereal realms, embracing the shadows as part of the natural order. I shall protect both realms from undue harm and maintain their equilibrium.

Ethereal Guardianship. I promise to safeguard the ethereal plane from those who would misuse its power, standing vigilant against those who seek to manipulate and control souls for their own gain.

Transcendence of Self. I pledge to transcend the limitations of my own mortality, for my connection to the ethereal plane grants me insights and resilience beyond the ordinary. I will use these gifts to protect and heal those in need.

Oath Spells

You gain oath spells at the paladin levels listed in the Oath of the Umbral Crusade Spells table. See the Sacred Oath class feature for how oath spells work.

Oath of the Umbral Crusade Spells

Channel Divinity

When you take this oath at 3rd level, you gain the following two Channel Divinity options. See the Sacred Oath class feature for how Channel Divinity works.

Gaze Beyond. You use your channel divinity to peer into the border ethereal. As an action, you can choose a number of creatures you can see within 30 feet of you, up to a number equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of one creature). For 10 minutes, you and the chosen creatures have 60 feet of truesight, allowing you to see in normal and magical darkness, see invisible creatures and objects, automatically detect visual illusions and succeed on saving throws against them, perceive the original form of a shapechanger or a creature that is transformed by magic, and see into the Ethereal Plane within the same range.

Soulflay. Immediately after you deal damage to a living creature with your Divine Smite feature, You may use your channel divinity as a bonus action to extract the creature's soul from its body. You pick an unoccupied space you can see within 30 feet and tether the creature’s soul to that location, causing a ghostly image of the creature to appear. While the soul is tethered this way, the creature it came from can still act as usual, and is resistant to all damage. The soul of the creature occupies space of the same size as the creature it came from, its AC is the same as the creature it came from minus your charisma modifier (minimum of one), has infinite hit points, fails all saving throws, is immune to all conditions, and has no damage immunities, resistances, or vulnerabilities. The soul cannot move or be moved and cannot act. The soul remains until the end of your next turn, and then vanishes as it returns back to the creature it came from. If the creature the soul came from dies, the soul immediately vanishes. When the soul returns, any damage that was dealt to it is immediately imparted onto the creature.

Aura of Etherealness

Starting at 7th level, you emanate an aura that causes you and nearby friendly creatures to exist in a constant flux of having their soul flickering in and out of the ethereal plane. You and any ally within 10 feet of you gains resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from non-magical attacks.

When you reach 18th level in this class, the range of the aura increases to 30 feet and also grants resistance to any source of bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage.

Umbral Eyes

Beginning at 15th level, you gain 30 feet of truesight permanently. Additionally, any creatures within range of your truesight vision have disadvantage on intelligence, wisdom, and charisma saving throws against your spells.

The Dark Crusade

At 20th level, you can fully merge yourself with the ethereal plane and connect with living souls. As a bonus action, you gain the following benefits for 1 minute:

• You have truesight out to a range of 1,000 feet.
• As a reaction, when an ally you can see starts their turn, you may momentarily soulflay a creature within 30 feet of you. You ignore the divine smite damage requirement and do not expend any channel divinity. A soulflay done this way lasts until the end of the triggering ally’s turn.
• Your soul enters the ethereal plane, while your body remains in its current plane. You have resistance to all damage, and are incapable of being charmed or frightened. You do not gain these benefits while your body is in the ethereal plane.

Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a long rest.