Each class in the Dungeons & Dragons 2024 Player’s Handbook Gets a “capstone feature” at level 20. These features are incredibly powerful, and either boost the strength of existing class features, or provide new ways for characters to interact with the world. And Most of the options here are completely new to this handbookReplacing or modifying existing features.
But even so, there are some massive power imbalances in which characters get at max level. The capstone abilities should incentivize players to keep getting stronger and more proficient at what they do, however Some classes will get more motivation than others. It can take a long time for players to reach level 20 in many games, but they should still take a look at the power in store for them, priming themselves for excitement or disappointment.
12
The ranger suffers from too much focus on a particular spell
Hunter’s mark both makes and breaks this class
In a sea of ​​great abilities and powerful buffs, the ranger stands out like never before The only capstone feature that most would consider objectively bad. It’s not even that much to say. At level 20, the damage from a ranger’s hunter’s mark increases from 1d6 to 1d10.
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This is bad, and not just because it relies on Rangers constantly using a first-level spell to increase their damage. The damage increase, an average of two points, is borderline insult. At the same level, wizards can cast wishes, or stop time, and The increase of 2 points of damage is a drop in the bucket of a high-level monster’s health pool.
11
The Warlock gets more spell slots, but too late in the game
A feature that would have been more exciting in earlier levels
Right off the bat, the Warlock Capstone feature is miles better than the Ranger’s, though still not terribly exciting. It affects their magical cunning feature, which allows warlocks to regain spell slots over a minute of concentration. Before, it sounded half of a warlock’s total Magic Slots Pack; Now, it restores them all.
Warlocks have always had an interesting relationship with spell slots, only getting a few at a time, but recovering them on a short rest. That hasn’t changed, however This magical arch feature can be used much quicker Once a day. This is nice to have, but the times when a party can rest in safety for a minute but not an hour are fewer than one might think, and it probably won’t come that often.
10
The druid gets a mix of powerful and symbolic abilities
Some bark and some bite
Druids get a few different abilities combined in their capstone feature. They can Recover a wild form charge at the start of combatConvert wild form charges into spell slots, and they now age much more slowly.
The aging feature is more of a gimmick than anything, but the first two bits are quite useful. Wild Form is a druid’s main ability, aside from spellcasting, and this allows them to do that a bit more. However, the wild form to instant slot conversion only provides lower level slots And burns up that resource quickly. Often, it won’t be a good deal.
9
The bard draws on the power of the spoken word
Unique versions of some powerful spells
Bards gain permanent access to two iconic ninth-level spells: Power word kill and power word heal. Casting classes don’t get to learn a ton of this high-level magic, so adding two to their sheet is pretty good. In addition, bards can cast the spells to affect two targets instead of one.
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This is admittedly pretty powerful, especially since Power Word Kill has an upgrade in these 2024 Feb. But it’s worth noting that bards still have to cast the spells with ninth-level slots, and they still only get one of those per day. This feature has potential, but in no way changes the game.
8
The wizard receives several new signature spells
A feature that favors endurance over strength
Wizards are getting a new version of their signature spell ability now Let them add two third-level spells to the list. Wizards can cast signature spells without a slot, and always have them prepared. The more spells a wizard has prepared, the more powerful they are, and there are some great third-level options like Blink and Fireball to choose from.
Unfortunately, this version doesn’t work quite as well as it does at level 18, when wizards get it for first- and second-level spells. The third-level choices can only be cast without a slot once per short restWhich is a little more limiting. Plus, certain spells like Counterspell that would once have been clear choices have gotten serious debuffs.
7
The rogue builds on their skill expertise
Combining luck and talent for a powerful boost
Rogues gain a trait that, much like their reliable talent ability, allows them to subvert the rules of chance in favor of sheer skill. Once per short rest, when a rogue fails a check, They can choose to instead make this check on a critical success. This means automatic critical hits for weapon attacks, assured saving throws, and in general, more skills than before.
Currently, this ability can only be used sparsely, but it’s powerful enough to make that not much of an issue. The only real problem is that This ability may conflict with reliable talent, Since the rogue needs to fail a check to use this, and reliable talent makes failure rare. Still, if the only problem is that they aren’t failing enough, this seems like a good issue to have.
Upgrades to some new sorcerer abilities
The sorcerer’s capstone feature is reliant on two of their earlier abilities, native sorcery and metamagic. Innate spells are new to the handbook, but effectively, sorcerers can enter a state of enhanced magical energy to command their spells, save DC, and spellcasting in general. Now, while in this form, Sorcerers can use one metamagic ability per turn without spending any sorcery points.
This is already good, but is made better when you consider an earlier feature, magic reincarnation. This lets Sorcerers spend two sorcery points to activate their native sorcery, Rather than only being able to use it twice per long rest. In other words, as long as the state lasts more than one or two turns, the sorcerer can save points in each fight or encounter.
5
Fighters keep building on their combat prowess
More attacks than any other class
The capstone feature of the fighter is very simple, but very effective. It gives them an additional attack on their turn, Bring their total per turn up to four with extra attack. Taking four attacks on a turn, every turn, with no resource cost, is great. The potential for stacking damage buffs and breaking enemy concentration is huge.
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Fighters may still struggle to keep up with the damage output of spellcasters using area-of-effect spells like fireball. But this makes them incredibly formidable when it comes to single-target damage and quickly wearing down a strong opponent.
4
Barbarians get some basic stat improvements
An effective but uninspired upgrade
The Barbarian is one of two classes whose capstone feature is a simple ability score increase. in this case, Barbarians gain a +4 bonus to their Strength and Constitution scoresUp to a maximum of 25. Obviously, an additional eight points to ability scores is phenomenally powerful, boosting a Barber’s health, AC, and damage.
The downside here only comes if the barbarian already has insanely high stats, such as 29 strength from a belt of storm giant strength. At max level, it is possible for characters to have the legendary gear, That could render the ability score boost useless.
3
Monks get a similar ability score boost
Faster and smarter than before
The Monk gets a similar boost to the Barbarian, with a +4 bonus to their Dexterity and Wisdom scores. Much like with the Barbarian, this feature is super powerful, but it has a couple of reasons to give it a leg up.
For one, there aren’t as many items that provide huge bonuses to Dexterity and Wisdom as there are that buff Strength and Constitution. Monks are less likely to have stats that are already higher than 25. In addition, A monk’s dexterity and wisdom synergize in certain ways, Such as both boost their AC and certain subclasses use wisdom to boost damage.
2
The cleric can commune with their deity on a higher level
An acolyte’s wish finally fulfilled
The Cleric Capstone feature represents what high-level abilities should be: powerful, awe-inspiring, and providing players with a new way to use their character. in this case, The cleric can now use their divine intervention ability to cast the instant wish. Wish is one of the most powerful spells in the game, if not the most powerful, and is usually not available to most classes.
Wish can replicate any spell of eighth-level or lower, and can permanently change the world around the players. Granted, once clerics use divine intervention for this, They cannot use this feature for another 2d 4 days. But this is actually more lenient than the typical wish restriction, because for most characters, there is a chance when they cast the spell that they can never cast it again.
1
Paladins gain a variety of amazing powers at max level
The ultimate form of a holy warrior depends on their subclass
Finally, the Paladin Capstone feature stands above the rest, on the merit of actually having multiple different features. The paladin’s subclass determines what kind of temporary buff they can apply to themselves and those around them, either once per day or with spell slots of fifth level.
The buffs range from providing a flying speed to enhancing damage, to regenerating health to enabling more powerful spellcasting. Each is great in its own right, however The Oath of the Ancients Paladin gets the strongest defensive form in the entire game. The fact that these abilities are limited in duration is important, of course, but being able to essentially cast them as spells makes them so much more powerful than they were in the original 5th edition rules for Dungeons & Dragons.