Summary
Once you reach level 19 inDungeons & Dragons, you’ll be able to pick an epic boon, a feat exclusive to the heroic players that made it to the endgame of the TTRPG. These feats were always a thing, but the 2024 Player’s Handbook added new and improved versions of them.
Granted, most campaigns don’t make it to such high levels, but they are worth the investment. If you are unsure if getting to such levels is even worth it, you should check the boons you could gain and see if they can entice you to keep going.
12Boon Of Skill
Gain Proficiency In All Skills
At level 19, you will have the highest possible proficiency bonus available to players, so being able to constantly use it whenever you need to roll for any skill can be powerful. This boon also gives you expertise in any skill that lacks it, so you can even be better at doing what you’re already doing.
The issue with this boon is that, well, you are level 19; whatever skills you weren’t using, you are clearly doing fine without them. It’s not like there isn’t a scenario where this boon could be powerful, but in a game where you play with several other people, often the skills you lack proficiency in are covered by some other party member.
11Boon Of Spell Recall
Recover Spell Slots From 1 To 4
he 2014 incarnation of this Boon allowed you to cast a spell without spending a spell slot, once per long rest. Now, it only counts for spells of 4th level or lower, and you have to roll a D4 to see if the slot is spent or not-but hey, at least there are no usage limits!
Full casters have more than enough spell slots of low level, while half casters have way better boons to choose from. Warlocks might get some use out of this, but it will solely depend on how the DM interprets the boon, since warlocks are constantly upcasting their spells to use “higher” spell slots.
10Boon Of Fate
Impact Any D20 Test
The idea behind the boon of fate is a really good one, acting as a sort of upgrade to the lucky origin feat. Whenever a D20 test either succeeds or fails in a 60 ft radius around you, you may roll 2D4 and either add or subtract the total from the D20 roll, possibly changing the outcome.
The thing is, at this stage of the game, 2D4 will rarely matter, and you can only use this once per short rest (or initiative roll). The previously mentioned lucky feat might only affect you, butit gives you advantage on rolls,and you can use it multiple times, so it is hard to justify taking this boon over some basic feat.
9Boon Of Fortitude
Gain 40 Hit Points
Boon of Fortitude is… a little boring, all things considered. However, it might be just the thing your master tank needs, or maybe your caster is constantly being one-shot, so having 40 more points of health could help, even if only slightly.
Keep in mind that the boon is clearly meant to be used by high Constitution characters, since it also makes it so you gain additional hit points when healed equal to your Constitution modifier, once per turn. Surviving is important, but flat numbers will hardly matter when the enemy Beholder petrifies you or you end up charmed by a Vampire Lord.
8Boon Of Combat Prowess
The boon of combat prowess lets you, once per turn, change a miss into a hit when doing an attack roll. This can be any attack roll, from melee, to ranged, to spell attacks, so it clearly has its advantages. Although for pure martial classes, you are already attacking over four times per turn.
Still, it can always happen that you miss four times in a row, so having a guaranteed way of hitting a target is always worth it. Paladins can combine it with the spell Shining Smite, and by hitting an enemy with their first hit, they have advantage on all subsequent hits.
7Boon Of Speed
Disengage As A Bonus Action
The boon of speed might seem like barely an upgrade, but it adds up to becoming the perfect way to escape nearly any situation. Disengaging as a bonus action lets you reposition yourself across the entire battlefield, and ending the grapple condition for free is also important: the higher level you are, the bigger monsters want to grab you.
The speed improvement is also a large blessing, particularly when you need to dash, since gaining 30 ft of extra speed is essentially doubling it for most characters. That is without mentioning the possibility of drinking a potion of speed, since in those cases you might end up breaking the sound barrier by dashing everywhere.
6Boon Of Dimensional Travel
Teleport Whenever You Attack
The boon of dimensional travel allows you to teleport 30 ft whenever you take the attack or magic action, letting you reposition yourself whenever you need to without any risk of your enemies landing a hit on you.
Of course, enemies at this stage of the game will have ways to catch you, but an instant reposition is still a huge advantage in combat. You should talk to your DM as to how the boon works, since even if you have multiple attacks, you likely only teleport once (since all other attacks are part of the same attack action).
5Boon Of Irresistible Offense
Ignore Physical Resistances
Many enemies you’ve encountered in your path have resisted the most common ways of dealing damage, namely bludgeoning, piercing and slashing, and many more will resist it moving forward. The boon of irresistible offense lets you ignore said resistance, but you should always remind your DM that you have this boon, otherwise they might count the resistance out of habit.
The added perk of this boon is more critical damage when landing a natural 20. It isn’t a lot of damage, but it is something: it is equal to either your Strength or Dexterity bonus, whichever you increased when choosing this boon.
4Boon Of Energy Resistance
Resist Damage From Up To Two Sources
The boon of energy resistance does just what you expect, giving you resistance to two damage types of your choice. Said types include the dreaded psychic damage that is often hard to mitigate, and you may swap your resistances after a long rest.
On top of that, you can deal damage as a reaction whenever you get hit by one of your chosen energy types, although doing this doesn’t reduce the actual damage you take any further. If the target fails a Dexterity saving throw, they take 2D12 plus your Constitution modifier in damage, so it is mostly meant for characters with a lot of health.
3Boon Of Truesight
See Everything
The boon of truesight can seem potentially pointless, but it actually opens you up to a lot of roleplay scenarios, as long as you are open with your DM about it. Not only can you see past illusions, invisibility and darkness, but you may also see into the ethereal plane, which might prompt your DM to use you for some quest hooks.
Of course, truesight might also completely break whatever late game plans your DM had in store for you, so don’t hide the fact that you have this ability. If they prevent you from having it, it means that they have something special planned, but the fact that some DMs might think twice before letting players have truesight speaks volumes on its strength.
