Smite-Stacking Ancients Paladin
Paladin 7 (Oath of the Ancients)A Level 1–7 Oath of the Ancients Paladin tuned for Honour Mode. Smite spells feed a Divine Smite reaction on the same hit for multi-instance bursts, while Great Weapon Master pumps raw numbers and The Whispering Promise procs Bless off every Healing Radiance tick to cancel the -5 attack penalty. Adamantine Splint Armour hits 18 AC with flat -2 damage and crit immunity, and the Ancients auras shut down spell damage across the whole party.
Damage
60+ damage per swing stacking Smite spell + Divine Smite reaction + GWM; Colossal Onslaught AOE-wipes trash packs
Survivability
18 AC base, flat -2 damage reduction, crit immunity, Reeling on attackers, +CHA aura to party saves
Boss
Nature's Wrath restrain + upcast Branding Smite bursts trivialise Act 1 and early Act 2 bosses in 2–3 turns
Paladin
Paladins can burn spell slots on a hit to deal a huge chunk of extra damage, and this build stacks two of those bursts onto the same swing. The Oath of the Ancients subclass layers party-wide protection on top: a short-rest group heal and two auras that make allies harder to hit with spells.
+2 Charisma fuels Aura of Protection and Smite spell DCs, and Fleet of Foot's extra movement lets you reach distant enemies or downed allies in a single turn.
Mid-Act 1 centerpiece. The Colossal Onslaught weapon action fires a line AOE in front of you, and every enemy struck rolls its own attack, which means Divine Smite (reaction) can trigger on every single hit for AOE Smite spam. Great Weapon Master's +10 damage rider also applies to every target in the line.
Alternatives
- Early Act 1 Alt: Everburn BladeWiki
How to Obtain
The survivability keystone. Sets AC to 18 regardless of DEX, slaps a flat -2 damage reduction on every incoming source, makes the wearer immune to critical hits, and Reels any melee attacker for 3 turns (a -1 to hit debuff). Crafted at the Adamantine Forge in Grymforge. The single best body slot available for the entire L1–7 window.
How to Obtain
Every time a Smite spell applies a condition (Frightened from Wrathful Smite, Burning from Searing Smite, Prone from Thunderous Smite, etc.) the wearer gains Temporary HP equal to their Charisma modifier. At CHA 16 that's +3 THP per condition applied, which stacks with Healing Radiance ticks into a nearly unkillable opener.
How to Obtain
Combat Strategy
- ▸Upcast Aid at your highest spell slot for +10/+15 max party HP before the pull.
- ▸Confirm Aura of Protection (L6+) and Aura of Warding (L7) are active.
- ▸Set Divine Smite to 'Ask' in Reactions for every spell level so the game prompts on each hit.
- ▸Short-rest between encounters to refresh Healing Radiance and Nature's Wrath charges.
- ▸Open with Colossal Onslaught (Jorgoral's Greatsword line AoE) and accept every Divine Smite reaction prompt.
- ▸Main action: queue a Smite spell (Thunderous, Wrathful, or Branding) and stack it with a Divine Smite reaction on the same hit.
- ▸Bonus action: Healing Radiance every other turn to Bless the party via The Whispering Promise.
- ▸On kills or crits, Great Weapon Master's Bonus Attack fires a free melee swing.
- ▸Lead bosses with Nature's Wrath for guaranteed Advantage, then upcast Smites with Divine Smite reactions.
- ▸Drop below 50% HP to activate Moondrop Pendant's no-OA window for safe repositioning.
- ▸Pile CC-applying Smites to proc Helmet of Smiting Temp HP stacks on every condition.
- ▸Against spell-immune targets, drop GWM's -5 toggle and rely on raw accuracy plus Smite spell damage.
Sources
Verified: 2026-04-14 · All content is original with full credit to original creators.