Harry Potter D&D Characters: The Gryffindor Paladin

Aren’t all Harry Potter characters wizards?

Well, the Harry Potter D&D character build for House Gryffindor presented in this article is a paladin. Specifically, it’s an Oath of Devotion paladin who wields the sword (and maybe the shield) of Gryffindor in combination with their wizardry, and innate bravery, chivalry, and determination

In the Harry Potter universe, all students at Hogwarts are called wizards and witches. But if we want to play a Harry Potter campaign in Dungeons & Dragons, we can use the classes of D&D to create D&D expressions of Harry Potter characters. (We have done something similar previously with the Suicide Squad D&D party).

The goal is to create a party of characters in the Harry Potter universe, which make for an interesting, diverse, and effective D&D party. The easiest way to do so, is to reskin other classes, in order to create D&D expressions of Harry Potter character archetypes.

The ground rules for Harry Potter characters

The Harry-Potter-themed character build for a player character from House Gryffindor below, and any other Hogwarts D&D characters that follow, start at character level 3. This is so they unlock features of their subclass, as well as the Spellcasting feature, if they have one. Even though these characters aren’t all wizards, they nonetheless are magical.

No race is specified for the Gryffindor character build because there could be many different races in a D&D version of Hogwarts. We could play a Harry Potter D&D game with all humans, but we could also assume that in our version of Hogwarts, humans walk the hallways alongside elves, centaurs, goliaths, and many other races.

The Gryffindor paladin

“You might belong in Gryffindor, Where dwell the brave at heart, Their daring, nerve, and chivalry Set Gryffindors apart”
The Sorting Hat

The virtues of House Gryffindor are bravery, chivalry, nerve, and determination. In D&D, a paladin fits this theme well: a character with a high Charisma score, who upholds chivalric ideals.

Level 1 Gryffindor paladin: Keen senses, and healing magic

At first level, our Gryffindor paladin gains two stand-out features: Divine Sense, and Lay on Hands. Here is how we can reskin them for our Harry-Potter-themed D&D character build:

Divine Sense. A Gryffindor keeps a cool head in stressful situations. Their senses remain alert, allowing them to identify otherworldly threats with precision.
Lay on Hands. Our Gryffindor character has learned some simple healing spell, or even some trick of herbology to quickly mend wounds.

Level 2 Gryffindor paladin: The sword (and shield) of Gryffindor

At second level, we gain a Fighting Style, Divine Smite, and Spellcasting. Our Gryffindor character wields the Sword of Gryffindor, granted to them, in order to brave the threats of whatever Harry-Potter-themed adventure we throw them into. This sword might be a mundane longsword but if we continue the campaign to higher tiers of play, the sword might unlock additional magical features.

To make this character effective as a D&D character, we might also pick up a shield. Perhaps, in our version of the Harry Potter universe, there is a forgotten Shield of Gryffindor which our paladin has found.

Here is how we can use or reskin the paladin class features for our Gryffindor D&D character:

Fighting Style: Interception. As a Gryffindor, we protect the weak.
Divine Smite. We can use our innate magic to empower the Sword of Gryffindor with the radiant power of House Gryffindor.
Spellcasting. If we are wielding a longsword and a shield, we might not be able to hold a wand at the same time. However, it is possible that the forgotten Shield of Gryffindor has a special handle, which allows a wand to be held together with the shield.

Level 3 Gryffindor paladin: Oath of Devotion

At level three, we gain Divine Health (a minor ability), and our Sacred Oath, as well as Channel Divinity. Here’s how we use these features for our Gryffindor character:

Sacred Oath: Oath of Devotion. Courage, compassion, and honor are all tenets of devotion and they fit well for a character who fulfills the virtues of a Gryffindor.
Channel Divinity.
- Sacred Weapon. This another empowerment of the Sword of Gryffindor.
- Turn the Unholy. The Patronus Charm (Expecto Patronum) allows our Gryffindor character to repel dementors (specters, wraiths, shadows in D&D) and similar monsters.
- Harness Divine Power. Gryffindors always have another reservoir of strength that they can draw on when they are exhausted. This one restores magical powers.

Level 3 Gryffindor paladin spell selection

Here are spells which match the virtues of our 3rd-level Gryffindor D&D character:

Protection from evil and good (Oath spell). We protect the weak against devious threats.
Sanctuary (Oath spell). Gryffindors protect those in harms way.
Heroism. Slytherins make fun of Gryffindors for their “pointless heroics.” With this spell we can show them why heroism is never pointless.
Searing Smite. Fire is associated with House Gryffindor (think of the pheonix Fawkes), we can brandish our weapon in powerful flames.
Shield of Faith. Some luck is always involved when defending ourselves and others. This spell gives us a better chance at dodging the enemy’s attacks.
Command. A Gryffindor can be a commanding presence. Sometimes their word, spoken with determination, is enough to force an enemy to obey.

A D&D expression of a Gryffindor character

And thus, we have outlined a D&D character build which is an expression of a character from Gryffindor in a D&D game. The character wields the Sword (and Shield) of Gryffindor, protects their allies bravely, and fights with chivalry, nerve, and determination.