One of the new options available in the upcoming Tasha's Cauldron of Everything Dungeons & Dragons sourcebook is the ability for players to change their subclass if desired. This was previously not an official possibility, although depending on the Dungeon Master, many players were able to get away with it. Tasha's Cauldron of Everything will add other rules in addition to this one, as well as new subclasses, spells, sidekicks, and more.
Oftentimes players get so far into a campaign only to realize that their chosen subclass isn't working out like they had hoped, which makes continuing with that character much less fun than originally planned. Other times there could be a major shift in the story, allowing for character growth or transformation that the initial subclass no longer vibes with. Sometimes DMs are open to letting a player switch up their subclass, but aren't really sure how to go about doing that. This is where the new D&D rule in Tasha's Cauldron of Everything comes in handy.
The book's Lead Rules Designer Jeremy Crawford lists some of these reasons as the inspiration for creating this feature. In an interview with IGN, he explains this is basically D&D giving "official permission," as some DMs are reluctant to stray from the literal written rule. This is a never-before-seen optional feature, and Tasha's Cauldron of Everything has a page dedicated to explaining it.
How D&D Players Change Their Subclass In Tasha's Cauldron Of Everything
Not only does the book confirm that it's fine to switch up a character, it also offers more ways of going about it, such as altering former D&D race rules. Additionally, it demonstrates exactly how to approach these transformations. For the former specifically, Crawford explains that this resource will give "concrete guidance on when is a good time to change your subclass," and "how you might go about it." Tasha's Cauldron of Everything includes tools and comments for the DM in regard to whether or not in-world training should be involved when changing a character's subclass.
There are a few separate websites that have mentioned that undergoing this process can only be done when a character levels up, and it requires lengthy in-game time and quite a few gold pieces to achieve the desired result. The specific amount of time and gold supposedly varies quite a bit depending on a character's level, but there may be a way for clever D&D players to work around this. It's important to note that these websites all cited the same source, which appears to no longer be available. Regardless if it was taken down due to inaccurate information or if it was a leak that faced repercussion, it seems plausible that a player wouldn't be able change a subclass without some kind of hefty payoff, especially if their character is at a very high level.
Outside of the obvious reasons as to why players should be excited for this new option, Tasha's Cauldron of Everything will include 30 subclasses, with 22 of them being newly canonized. For players who would like to implement some of the tools from the new sourcebook into their current D&D campaigns, it should come as a welcome surprise for them to be able to have so many new choices at their disposal if they're looking to alter their characters. Crawford concludes his statements on subclass changes by encouraging players to make the tweaks necessary for enhancing their Dungeons & Dragons experience.
Tasha's Cauldron of Everything is expected to release November 17, 2020
Source: IGN