The refined rules for the 5.5 Edition of Dungeons and Dragons allow characters to obtain more Feats, or extra abilities tied to personal backgrounds and individual growth. Instead of simply increasing character stats, players can opt to pick a Feat that opens up new possibilities, sometimes defying what their class or subclass could do normally. Oftentimes, the best Feats are underrated chances to gain a unique skill to play to your character’s natural strengths.
Videos by ComicBook.com
The 2024 5.5e rules divide Feats into two categories — Origin Feats and General Feats. Origin Feats are ones that come with whatever Background you choose, while General Feats are taken as you level up and meet certain stat requirements. Common Feats like Tough, Tavern Brawler, Sentinel, Crusher, or Polearm Master are excellent for a wide variety of martial character builds in D&D, but there are some picked less often that can provide good benefits for you and your party.
5. Observant
The Observant Feat doesn’t have a big new skill for players, nor does it provide some benefit for battles or big combat encounters. However, this Feat is excellent for players who want to learn more details about the world they are in, picking apart the nuance of a situation to help their party possibly avoid a fight. Taking this Feat automatically gives your character a boost to their Intelligence or Wisdom Ability Score, making the Feat at least good for classes who rely on those stats. A Druid, Wizard, Cleric, or Ranger can put this Feat to great use.
With this Feat, you gain the “Keen Observer” trait, which gives you proficiency in either the Insight, Investigation, or Perception skills. However, if you are already proficient in any one of these traits, you can choose to have Expertise in it instead. Having Expertise in these skills is excellent for your party, for a variety of reasons. Good Insight allows you to make sure characters aren’t lying, Investigation can be the difference between finding a trap and someone’s death, and Perception Expertise is perfect for characters who never want to be ambushed or surprised.
Meanwhile, the Observant Feat also gives you the Quick Search option, giving your character the chance to to do the Search action as a bonus action instead. Search is a new option in 2024 5.5e rules for D&D, letting your character make a Medicine, Perception, Survival, or Insight check. When combined with an Expertise or new proficiency from Keen Observer, doing this as a swift bonus action can raise your party’s awareness greatly, keeping everyone on the same page and prepared for many unpredictable scenarios.
4. Skulker
Some Feats are underrated because they work best with one or two classes, rather than being something universal that could benefit a variety of character builds. Skulker is one such Feat, acting as an option for Rogues and Rangers with high Dexterity scores for those looking for a way to enhance their stealth. From the start, this Feat gives you a bonus to your Dexterity Ability Score, possibly increasing a modifier depending on that stat’s value. You also gain 10ft of Blindsight, keeping you aware at all times even if you’re in complete darkness.
Through the Fog of War trait, the Sulker Feat gives you advantage on any Dexterity (Stealth) check you make as part of the Hide action during combat. For Rogues, this is an easy way to ensure they stay hidden, almost guaranteeing their potent Sneak Attack feature for extra damage every turn. At the same time, the Sniper part of the Feat makes sure that an attack you make while hidden doesn’t reveal your location, even if you miss.
3. Inspiring Leader
Excellent for Bards, Clerics, or even a suave Sorcerer, the Inspiring Leader Feat gives you a Charisma or Wisdom boost for your character, based on your personal preference. Unlike other Feats, Inspiring Leader is amazing in its simplicity, letting you enact a Bolstering Performance, such as a song, dance, or rousing speech. Doing this gives up to six allies (possibly including yourself) within 30ft a number of Temporary Hit Points equal to your character’s Level and the modifier you increased with this Feat added together.
This is an easy ability to use every time your party completes a Short or Long Rest, bolstering their health to ensure everyone survives battles for longer. The Temporary Hit Points provided through an Inspiring Leader could be exactly what a low health spellcaster build in D&D needs to survive one more hit, before taking out whatever enemy is giving your group trouble. Having a “buffer” of sorts to your party’s health is always fantastic to have, but the expression of your character’s inspiring act also makes this Feat great for those seeking fun roleplay opportunities in their game.
2. Resilient
Although it doesn’t seem like much at first, the Resilient Feat is far more interesting than it appears. This is one Feat that has a level of creative freedom, giving you the option to increase one Ability Score in which you don’t have a saving throw proficiency. This is a great Feat to take at later Levels, when your character already has their primary stats raised to a high place through earlier progression.
For example, a Wizard who has high Intelligence can use this Feat to gain a bonus to Constitution for better HP, or Dexterity for better Initiative rolls or Armor Class. When you upgrade an Ability Score through this Feat, you also gain a saving throw proficiency with it, usually aiding your character in one category they would typically be weak in. Adding your proficiency bonus to a saving throw you fail often balances out areas of your character that are vulnerable, aiding you in an unorthodox way if you are willing to invest in this Feat.
1. Shield Master
Shield Master is a Feat that is often not selected due to Fighters, Paladins, and other martial characters either choosing not to wield a Shield or having some benefit of their defense tied to a Fighting Style from their class. That being said, anyone trying to become a pure tank in D&D should consider taking up this Feat, as it bolsters your character’s Strength the moment you take it. Furthermore, the Shield Bash trait of the Feat gives you an opportunity to knock an enemy Prone or push it back 5ft after landing an attack against it.
Although Shield Bash can only be used once per turn, this extra property of a hit can be combined with Weapon Mastery features introduced in 5.5e rules. On top of that, the Shield Master Feat gives you “Interpose Shield,” an ability that activates whenever your character is forced to make a Dexterity saving throw. If you succeed the throw, you can use your Reaction to take no damage from an effect that would inflict damage to you, instead of taking half from the success.
This single ability makes up for a huge weakness of slow characters, basically giving them the Evasion feature seen on Monk or Rogue characters. For a Paladin or Fighter with low Dexterity, this could be dodging a Fireball entirely, keeping their large health pool intact to keep defending their allies. With the additional Armor Class bonuses that typically come with a Shield, this Feat synergizes well with a variety of builds in Dungeons and Dragons, making it a niche choice that will pay off in the long run.
What Feat do you think is the most underrated in D&D‘s new 5.5e rules? Leave a comment below or join the conversation in the ComicBook Forum!
