D&D: 10 Best Unearthed Arcana Subclasses That Didn’t Get Published, According To Reddit

The release of the Unearthed Arcana: Heroes of Krynn article in early March signaled to players that Wizards of the Coast is making plans to bring the Dragonlance setting to 5e. Among the new playtest options the setting introduces to D&D players is the Lunar Magic Sorcerer, the newest in a long line of Unearthed Arcana subclasses that Wizards of the Coast has released.

While some fans speculate on what the official release will look like, Redditors have given voice to their favorite subclasses that never made it to publication.

Sacred Oath – Oath Of Treachery

A paladin with no tenets, the Oath of Treachery subclass was intended to join the Oathbreaker as the subclass for paladins of questionable oaths, flavored around betrayal and deceit.

Having an evil character in large D&D groups can be difficult to manage; when necromancy is involved, as with the Oathbreaker, it can be even more challenging. As Redditor Piledriver17 points out, “Treachery Paladin gives more room to be neutral or good alignments and still fit in with a good aligned party,” making the concept a great alternative to Oathbreaker. 

Divine Domain – City

Presented as part of Unearthed Arcana: Modern Magic, the City domain Cleric is presented as what Redditor Straight_Attention_5 calls “a cleric who’s adapted to modern civilization…” The subclass is given abilities that specifically function in a city and even some (including a few spells) that are unique to Modern Magic.

These spells have little function in the typical high magic D&D settings, with many of them involving electronics, but an official Modern Magic book would have been a perfect setting for a Cleric of the city.

Ranger Archetype – Primeval Guardian

Residing in the deep forests and following ancient druidic traditions, the Primeval Guardian Ranger was presented as Rangers that channel animal and plant characteristics into their defense of druid groves and elder forests.

As Redditor OlemGolem points out, “The Primeval Guardian would push more towards a melee Ranger,” meaning it fills an often forgotten role the Ranger can play; many Rangers end up being primarily archers. A Primeval Guardian Ranger wielding a whip could fight with an impressive reach of twenty feet, controlling the battlefield despite having low movement speed.

Arcane Tradition – Theurgy

The Wizard, one of D&D‘s best magical classes, has a large number of subclasses to choose from. Redditor dogdogsquared points out the main theme of the subclass, saying “I really like the flavour of the academic approach to the divine.”

This gives the Wizard limited access to a Cleric domain appropriate to their chosen god; however, the subclass gains the final domain feature three levels before the Cleric, a feature that would likely need to be revisited were the Theurgist to make a return.

Otherworldly Patron – The Raven Queen

The Raven Queen Warlock patron was one of the more restrictive presented Warlock subclasses, limiting the patron to being specifically the Raven Queen, but Redditor Frebux says the subclass “Wasn’t OP or anything but thematically it made sense and was very fun to play as a utility caster.”

Most Warlock subclasses allow the player to choose their patron from a theme, leaving the specifics open to the player and game master. While the subclasses are very different mechanically, the role of the mysterious Shadowfell entity was filled by the Hexblade.

Sorcerous Origins – Phoenix Sorcery

As is the case with most playtest releases, Redditors like the_lamentors_three “loved the idea” of the Phoenix Sorcerer, but felt the “execution was a little lacking.” The fire-fueled subclass draws on the powers of the phoenix, but Redditors noted that it doesn’t deal with resurrection at all, one of the bird’s most famous abilities.

The features do include abilities that keep the sorcerer alive in a burst of fire, but for many fans, the feature didn’t hold a flame to the mythical creature’s ability to recover from death.

Martial Archetype – Brute

Presented as the Fighter’s answer to the Barbarian, the Brute martial archetype is a strong, simple combatant that revolves around durability, force, and damage.

Redditor Alaaen calls the Brute “everything the Champion should have been. Still simple, but also actually strong,” which is a common sentiment around the subclass. The Champion is arguably one of D&D‘s most overpowered subclasses, but the Brute filled a very similar role in a way that many fans found more enjoyable.

Artificer Specialist – Gunsmith

The Artificer has had a long journey into 5th Edition D&D, beginning as a Wizard subclass before being introduced as a standalone class. The original version of the 5th Edition Artificer looked very different from the official version, including a Gunsmith subclass.

Equipped with its signature Thunder Cannon, the Gunsmith’s abilities revolved around improving their weapon, in addition to the core abilities of the class. While the official Artificer replaced the Gunsmith with the Artillerist, Redditor MrJ_Sar found the original more enjoyable.

Arcane Tradition – Onomancy

Studying the power of names and language, the Onomancy Wizard subclass gave players abilities to learn and utilize a creature’s true name, empowering their spells with words of power.

Redditor Olwrekr pointed out the synergy between the subclass’s abilities and wizard spells, as well as the needed clarification on rules for true names if the Onomancer were to return to 5e. With the wizard having some of the most powerful spells in D&D, a clearer version of the class would prove to be a powerful, versatile mage.

Sorcerous Origin – Stone Sorcerer

One of the attempts to create a melee-focused Sorcerer, the Stone Sorcery subclass was a favorite among Redditors trying to make a true master of weapons and magic.

In the words of Hollowed-Be-Thy-Name, “I want a sorcerer subclass that gives this feeling of weaving spells and attacks, and stone was the closest they ever got to this.” With Bards, Warlocks, and Wizards having access to martial subclasses, it’s unfortunate that there’s no such official option for Sorcerers.

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