This might be one of the worst subclasses in 5e strictly from a design standpoint. Our features do so much nothing that it’s tempting to ignore their existence entirely. We’re talking single digit damage, even at level 20, and it takes our bonus action, or minuscule amounts of temporary HP.

Here it is, we’re finally at it. The bottom of the barrel. The last pick on the schoolyard. The rotten apple that ruins the whole bunch. My personal least favorite subclass, and my vote for the worst subclass in the game.

Sadly all this generic design means our feat selection is should be pretty box standard, but I actually surprised myself with some of the feats that actually work really well for us.

The Cavalier is one of the strangest designs for a Fighter subclass printed so far. The class advertises itself as a mounted combat master,  but gives exactly one feature that mentions a mount and it’s mostly a ribbon feature, meaning it doesn’t actually help us in any meaningful way.

The Samurai is one of the most interesting to optimize Fighter subclasses. Our main feature gives us advantage on all attacks for a turn, but consumes our bonus action, and we only get to use it 3 times per day.

Flavor-wise, I think the Psi Warrior is my favorite Fighter subclass. Obvious comparisons to a galaxy far far away aside, the harmony between the added psychic elements and the existing Fighter playstyle is sublime, and the progression of our psychic powers feels natural and consistent.

The Rune Knight is one of the most interesting and fun subclass designs in 5e. The ability to grow to large size is normally only possible through Polymorph-style effects or the Enlarge spell. This ability is such an amazing point to build your character around that it ends up making Rune Knights feel so incredibly different than almost any other character.

The Battle Master is the gold standard for martial subclass design in my opinion, so much so that a lot of groups actually add the maneuvers to all Fighters, sometimes even all spell-less martials. The nature of the maneuvers list also makes this one of the most highly customizable martials in 5e, meaning feat selection could vary wildly from Battle Master to Battle Master.

Arcane Archer mixes faux-casting in with its martial prowess to produce some pretty potent effects, but only a few times per day. The trick to this subclass is which Arcane Arrow to pick, and how to make the most use out of them.

The Monster Slayer is a confused, jumbled up mess of abilities that fail to have any cohesion. None of the abilities build off of each other in meaningful ways, some are just outright bad and encourage sun-optimal play, and Hunter’s Sense would be a cool ability in any other TTRPG where vulnerabilities actually ever come up.

Oof, I’ve seen neutered subclasses before but this is just sad. I’ll start with the good. A few nice spells like Misty Step and Banishment, Etherealness for one turn is a neat trick, and that’s all I’ve got. Everything else is laughably bad.

The thing is, the subclass isn’t mechanically bad, it’s probably right dead center in comparison to the rest of the Ranger subclasses. The options are just so bland that it is hard to find much synergies with feats beyond what a normal Ranger would take, but let’s see what we can manage.

When you decide to play a Monk, one sometimes asks: how do I make myself even more Monk-like. My good sir/ma'am, this is it. When it comes to portraying a monastery's Grandmaster, this is how you make it... unless it is a monastery dedicated to a particular Monk style.

This subclass is awesome all around, and the addition of a summoned drake to attack and take hits really opens up a ton of possible synergies for us to take advantage of. Feat selection may actually look quite different for us than it does for the average Ranger, so let’s dive in.

Beastmaster isn’t the best Ranger subclass, but it’s definitely in the upper tier, so let’s see what feats can elevate it even higher. We’re looking for synergies with our animal companion and generically good Ranger feats.

There is no class quite like the Echo Knight, conjuring an image of yourself on the battlefield to terrify and confuse your foes essentially means you can fight safely from afar while the echo does the work, or you can get stuck in with the echo by your side and do huge amounts of damage.

Now this is how you make a fey themed subclass! We get awesome features at every level, a very good list of free spells, a unique thing that only we can do (double Summon Fey), and a really cool build around theme of fear and charm. As for feats, we definitely want the standard Ranger fare, but we’ll also look for any particular synergies with our features.

Not a single one of our abilities synergize with any feats, and the literal only spell we get worth mentioning is Death Ward. We are basically playing a subclassless Warlock, so if that’s what you really want, then have at it.

I guess we could focus on protecting our concentration since a lot of those good expanded spells require it. Yeah I’m grasping at straws on this one guys, I know people love the concept of serving Cthulhu but 5e just doesn’t deliver on that fantasy.

A patron of tricks and charms, the Archfey adds a pinch of mischief to your Warlock and provides a reprieve from all the edge normally associated with the class. Sadly, what you gain in levity, you also lose in power.