Hey everyone,

Our DND group just hit level three, and I need help deciding what subclass to choose. I can’t really figure out which one is going to be more fun to play mechanically. We use 2014 rules, and our group is:

1. An Aasimar (Scourge or Protection, undecided, would like input on this too) Paladin, sword and board, STR focused, but with decent CHA. Mainly a defender, with use as a support and striker. Can use extra powers to replace rolls as a diviner wizard.

2. An elvish hexblade warlock, mainly a striker, with some debuff and blaster capabilities, kills a lot of stuff. Can use extra powers to conjure illusions and deal physic damage. 

3. A human bard (college of lore), not very mechanically optimized, mostly just here for jokes and vibes, with some control and support. Can use extra powers to become strong and summon fire 

4. Changeling shepherd druid, healing and support to the nines, makes mechanical choices for the RP. Can use extra powers to be fast and control lightning.

I play the paladin, definitely the best optimizer out of the four of us. It’s a difficult, but epic fantasy campaign, and I’ve gone down quite a a few times, as well as the rest of my party have had their own little brushes.

My main choices for subclasses are vengeance or redemption, and I’m maybe considering conquest, crown, or devotion. It’s likely I’ll get a magic weapon sometime in the campaign. 

Any and all help is appreciated

-Raccoon

I would suggest Oath of Conquest. As a party defender, the ability to do an AOE fear effect can be pretty effective, and after level 7 any Frightened enemy in your aura will have their speed reduced to 0. It's a pretty nice way to lock down a couple enemies for a round or two. 

Oath of Redemption also is pretty nice at higher levels. Their level 15 feature Protective Spirit gives them passive hit point regeneration when they are [Tooltip Not Found]. It's pretty good, and pairs well with their ability to take damage in place of others, and reflect damage back on attackers with their Channel Divinity power Rebuke the Violent.

Oath of Conquest is honestly pretty heavy on the RP side if you've got a GM who's going to make you stick to your oath (and it can be tricky with party members).  Redemption's an even trickier oath.  I recommend Oath of Devotion of Oath of the Ancients, both are extremely strong defensively, especially with their 7th level auras.  And choosing Radiant Soul for your Aasimar ability gives you great mobility.

My DM has stated that he won’t make me stick to the specifics of the oath exactly, but since I’m an optimizer first, I try to play into the story side of the options I choose. 

Specifically for this character, who is sort of a demigod like character, blessed by the gods, chosen one, etc, the conquest would reflect as me imposing the will of my god and punishing those who oppose him, similar to how it would be with vengeance. For redemption and devotion, it would be more of balancing the gods wishes with the urge to be a hero.

Also, if I did go conquest, I would multiclass into warlock undead for a level after level 8 in Paladin, and I’d prolly go fallen Aasimar. Overall, taking the character down a darker path.

Basically the main conflict of this character is balancing their responsibilities and powers with the urge to do good and be a hero, even if it means going against the grain. Conquest and Redemption are kind of on opposite sides of that scale for the character

Looks like you're using the VGM Aasimar. If so, I'd recommend avoiding the Scourge version if you plan to cast any concentration spells. The fact that you take damage from radiant consumption means one extra con check every round.

Oh sorry, my habit is to refer to them by their VGM names, I'm actually using MOTM, sorry for the confusion!