It’s my belief that Paladin is the class whose subclass selection has the least impact on your character. That isn’t to say that these subclasses are bad, just that the things they add rarely change anything major about your build or add significant power or utility, unlike the subclasses of most other classes.

Paladin takes the martial character weapon and armor proficiencies and spices them up with some magical class features alongside some spell slots that fuel Divine Smites (or actual spells should the mood strike you). It excels at walking the line between caster and martial, offering a best-of-both-worlds kind of feeling in the low to mid tiers while scaling into a melee support

Oathbreaker is the “oath” for paladins who revoke their goody-two-shoes original oath to goodness and chastity or whatever. Oathbreakers want to be spooky and hateful for the sake of being spooky and hateful. They aren't here to bring holy, righteous divine energy; they're here to turn that holy energy into raw, unrestricted power to boost themselves to greatness, the rest of the world be damned.

Where Oathbreakers are the ultimate evil, a paladin broken of oath seeking to raise undead minions and claim ultimate power, Oath of Vengeance presents a path for an avenger character, somebody driven by hatred of another to an end. That end being murder.

Are you sick of mages ruining the world with their magical crap? Have you seen one too many fights trivialized by a well-timed Fireball or Polymorph? Take those mages on headfirst with Oath of the Watchers, the oath for people who really hate extraplanar BS and magic users.

An Arthurian knight embodies courage, loyalty, and chivalry. Oath of the Crown can fall into this camp, empowering a character to take up the tenants of courage and law. Alternatively, it works great as a zealous warrior blindly following the rule of a tyrant and carrying out their evil without question.

For those who want to have been an edgy character in the past, now moving forward and hoping to repent and help others become better people, seek the Oath of Redemption.

This archetype embodies the fantasy of demigods like Heracles: divine warriors undergoing a series of trials. Where these ancient, often tragic figures didn’t necessarily love going through these trials, the Oath of Glory embraces the tests with tenants dedicated to Discipline, Challenge, and pushing their bodies to their maximum.

Do you want to be the capital P Paladin? The righteous, heavily armored defender with a mace for smiting and a shield for shielding? While imperfect, Oath of Devotion does a perfectly fine job delivering on that fantasy.

When I envision an evil paladin, my mind turns to a dark knight clad in black and red armor. They’re terrors of the land, crushing enemies underfoot and ruling through terror and brutality. Oathbreakers can embody this fantasy, but I think Oath of Conquest fits this theme perfectly.

Where Devotion and Vengeance clearly highlight holy knights driven by holy power or a vendetta against sinners, Oath of Ancients presents a group of paladins who fundamentally look different than their divine counterparts.