Oath of the Ferryman

The Oath of the Ferryman calls to paladins who serve as the impartial guides between life and death, escorting souls to their final rest. These paladins honor a solemn duty, embracing the role of the Ferryman, akin to Charon or DEATH from the Discworld, to ensure that the transition from the mortal world to the afterlife is both dignified and just.

Guided by the principles of balance and neutrality, Ferryman paladins understand that death is a natural part of existence. They do not seek to hasten it, nor do they fear it. Their sacred mission is to provide comfort to the dying, to guard against those who would disrupt the natural order, and to ensure that no soul is left wandering and lost.

Wielding scythes or lanterns as their symbols, these paladins often adorn their armor with tokens of passage and remembrance. They are a comforting presence on the battlefield, offering solace to the fallen and ensuring their journey to the afterlife is undisturbed.

Ferryman paladins are respected and feared in equal measure. They traverse the veil between worlds, standing as a bulwark against necromancers, undead, and those who would exploit the cycle of life and death for their gain. Though their demeanor may be somber, they carry out their duties with compassion and honor, reflecting the inevitability and necessity of their sacred charge.

In their quest to uphold the balance of life and death, Ferryman paladins often contemplate their own mortality, striving to live a life worthy of a peaceful passage when their own time comes. Their path is not one of sorrow, but of acceptance, duty, and the unwavering conviction that in death, as in life, all souls deserve respect and guidance.

Oath Spells

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

Oath of Conquest 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.

Out of Body. As an action, you can cause a creature to fall unconscious. The creature must make a Wisdom saving throw to resist this effect, which it can choose to fail automatically. If the creature falls unconscious, its body falls to the floor, and it maintains control of a noncorporeal version of itself. It can move up to its speed but cannot interact with anything directly. After 30 seconds (at the end of your 5th turn), the creature must make a Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, its noncorporeal body disappears, and its hit points are reduced to 0. On a successful save, its body is teleported to the location of its noncorporeal form, and it wakes up.

Rite of Passage. As an action, you can touch a creature that is at 0 hit points and bestow either 2 failed or 2 successful death saving throws.

 

Aura of Serenity

Starting at 7th level, you can stabilize a creature in need, preventing it from slipping closer to death.

Aura of Serenity. You and friendly creatures within 30 feet of you are surrounded by a calming aura that grants protection in times of dire need. When a creature within this aura drops to 0 hit points but is not outright killed, you can use your reaction to stabilize that creature. The stabilized creature does not need to make death saving throws and remains unconscious but stable.

Additionally, while within this aura, stabilized creatures regain 1 hit point after 1 minute if they are not healed by other means.

At 18th level, the range of this aura increases to 60 feet.

Ferryman's Neutrality

Starting at 15th level, you can invoke the impartial nature of the Ferryman to quell hostility and promote a state of neutrality among your foes.

Ferryman's Neutrality. As an action, you present your holy symbol and call upon the authority of the Ferryman. Each creature of your choice within 30 feet of you that can see or hear you must make a Wisdom saving throw (DC {{savedccha}}). On a failed save, a creature becomes non-hostile towards all creatures for 1 minute or until it takes damage. While non-hostile, the creature cannot take offensive actions or cast spells that deal damage or impose harmful conditions.

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

Death's Emissary

At 18th level, you fully embody the role of the Ferryman, becoming a living emissary of death. You gain the following benefits:

• Aura of Finality: You emit an aura of 30 feet that instills the inevitability of death in your enemies. Hostile creatures that start their turn within this aura must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or be frightened for 1 minute. Frightened creatures can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of their turns, ending the effect on a success.

• Shield of the Departed: You and friendly creatures within your Aura of Serenity are immune to being frightened and gain resistance to necrotic damage. Additionally, stabilized creatures within your aura regain 1 hit point after 1 minute, even if they have been healed by other means.

• Command of Souls: As an action, you can target one creature you can see within 30 feet that has 0 hit points and is not undead. That creature must make a Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, the creature's soul is bound to you, and it cannot be resurrected by any means other than a wish spell until you release it. You can release the soul as a bonus action. If you have a soul under your command, you can use it to ressurect any creature you have met before that has died, regardless of any other conditions of their death.

Once you use Command of Souls, you can’t use it again until you finish a long rest.