Verdant Knight ✦

In the heart of the wilderness, where the boundary between the Feywild and the mortal realm grows thin, the Verdant Knights stand vigilant. Bound by sacred oaths to the ancient rhythms of nature and the enigmatic weave of fey magic, these stoic protectors are the embodiment of the wild's indomitable will. With every leaf's whisper and every stone's steadfastness, they draw forth their power, channeling the raw essence of the natural order into their martial discipline.

The Verdant Knights are the sworn guardians of all that grows and breathes, the stalwart defenders of places untouched and untamed. Theirs is a path interlaced with bramble and bloom, where spells are sung in the language of root and river, and blades are forged in the spirit of the primeval forces—vine-wrapped swords, stone-hewn axes, and bows strung with silken spider thread.

Rejecting the arcane traditions that draw from the codified schools of wizardry, the Verdant Knight instead embraces the druidic circles' living lore. They do not merely call upon the elements; they are the whispering wind and the thundering tempest, the creeping vine and the unyielding oak. In their hands, the very essence of the world is a weapon, and they wield it with the same precision as their steel.

As a Verdant Knight rises in power, so too does their bond with the natural world deepen. They become avatars of the land's might, capable of invoking the primal spirits to cloak their allies in resilience or to strike down foes with nature's unbridled fury. Through them, the pulse of the lifeblood that courses through the wildlands infuses the tapestry of battle, turning the tide in a harmony of primal magic and cold steel.

Walk the ancient paths and take up the mantle of the Verdant Knight, for in you resides the legacy of the land, the strength of the stone, and the whispers of the fey.

Spellcasting

When you reach 3rd level, your bond with nature deepens, allowing you to channel its power through spells. See Spells Rules for the general rules of spellcasting and the Spells Listing for the druid spell list.

Cantrips You learn two cantrips of your choice from the druid spell list. You learn an additional cantrip from this list at 10th level.

Spell Slots The Verdant Knight Spellcasting table shows how many spell slots you have for casting your spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these druid spells, you must use a slot of the spell’s level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you complete a long rest.

For example, if you know the 1st-level spell Entangle and have both a 1st-level and a 2nd-level spell slot available, you can cast Entangle using either slot.

Spells Known of 1st Level and Higher You know three 1st-level druid spells of your choice, two of which you must choose from the spells typically associated with the practice of nature's guardianship and the cycle of life and death within the druid spell list.

The Spells Known column of the Verdant Knight Spellcasting table shows when you learn more druid spells of 1st level or higher. Each of these spells must be of a level for which you have spell slots, and they remain predominantly within the spheres of natural balance and growth. For instance, when you reach 7th level in this class, you can learn one new spell of 1st or 2nd level.

The spells you learn at 8th, 14th, and 20th level can be from any area of the druidic magical tradition.

Whenever you gain a level in this class, you can choose one of the druid spells you know and replace it with another spell from the druid spell list, which also must be of a level for which you have spell slots.

Spellcasting Ability Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for your druid spells, as your magic draws on your devotion and attunement to nature. You use your Wisdom whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Wisdom modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a druid spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.

Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Wisdom modifier

Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Wisdom modifier

Verdant Knight Spellcasting

Fighter Level	Cantrips Known	Spells Known	— Spell Slots per Spell Level —
			1st	2nd	3rd	4th
3rd	2	3	2	—	—	—
4th	2	4	3	—	—	—
5th	2	4	3	—	—	—
6th	2	4	3	—	—	—
7th	2	5	4	2	—	—
8th	2	6	4	2	—	—
9th	2	6	4	2	—	—
10th	3	7	4	3	—	—
11th	3	8	4	3	—	—
12th	3	8	4	3	—	—
13th	3	9	4	3	2	—
14th	3	10	4	3	2	—
15th	3	10	4	3	2	—
16th	3	11	4	3	3	—
17th	3	11	4	3	3	—
18th	3	11	4	3	3	—
19th	3	12	4	3	3	1
20th	3	13	4	3	3	1

Nature's Bond

At 3rd level, you learn to forge a mystical bond with weapons that are born of the natural world. Through an hour-long ritual, which you can conduct during a short rest in the midst of a natural setting, you imbue a piece of the wilderness into your armament—be it a stone hammer, a vine-wrapped bow, or a blade of pure crystal. As you perform the ritual, you must be surrounded by the elements of the wild, allowing their essence to seep into the weapon.

Once the ritual is complete, the chosen weapon becomes an extension of your will and a conduit for the spirits of nature. You can summon this bonded weapon to your hand as a bonus action. As it appears, the weapon materializes with an audible sigh of the wilderness, materializing in a cascade of leaves, an eruption of blossoms, or borne upon a zephyr that murmurs secrets of the forest. This vivid arrival of your weapon serves not just as a display of your connection to the natural world, but also as a manifestation of the profound pact between the Verdant Knight and the primeval forces they channel.

You can maintain a bond with up to two such natural weapons, choosing to summon one with a bonus action during battle. Should you desire to bond with a new weapon, you must first release one of your current bonds, letting the previous weapon revert back to the wilds from whence it came, ensuring the cycle of natural order is respected and maintained.

Spirit Weaver's Strike

Beginning at 7th level, when you use your action to cast a cantrip, you can make one weapon attack as a bonus action. This reflects your growing ability to intertwine your spellcasting with martial prowess.

Natural Strike

At 10th level, your strikes infuse the target with the essence of nature, making it more susceptible to your spells. After hitting a creature with a weapon attack, that creature has disadvantage on the next saving throw it makes against a spell you cast before the end of your next turn.

Spirit Step

At 15th level, you gain the ability to step through the natural world to teleport up to 30 feet to an unoccupied space you can see when you use your Action Surge.

Elder Spirit Strike

Starting at 18th level, when you use your action to cast a spell, you can make one weapon attack as a bonus action. This represents your mastery of calling upon the ancient spirits to empower your combat abilities seamlessly.