Become the Monster in the Shadows with 7 Terrifying Subclasses From Ravenloft: The Horrors Within

Are you ready to join the horrifying ranks of Ravenloft creatures? Whether you’re a servant of a Darklord looking for a way to break the deal or a mad scientist with a passion for piecing broken things together, Ravenloft: The Horrors Within is ready to shape you into a most macabre adventurer.

Below, we’ll review these new subclasses and show you how you can use them to frighten your fellow players and DM alike!

• Reanimator (Artificer)
• College of Spirits (Bard)
• Grave Domain (Cleric)
• Hollow Warden (Ranger)
• Phantom (Rogue)
• Shadow Sorcery (Sorcerer)
• Undead Patron (Warlock)

Reanimator (Artificer)

IGNATIUS BUDI

Reanimators are Artificers who blend the biological with the mechanical, the necromantic with the scientific. A Reanimator weaves flesh and blood—in addition to magical trinkets—into something so much more. By combining their intellect with the dark forces of the weave, Reanimators create terrifying flesh golems that dominate the battlefield.

From the Lab to the Adventuring Party

Reanimators cobble together pieces of corpses and assemble them into something much more terrifying: an undead monster imbued with magical power. This Reanimated Companion can prevent opponents from taking Opportunity Attacks, absorbs Lightning damage, and erupts in a Death Burst that harms nearby creatures when it dies.

With their Reanimator Spells, they are well-equipped to hinder enemies, restore their Reanimated Companion to health, and keep themselves alive (because necromancy is only fun if you’re the one holding the tools). They use their Jolt to Life feature to cast a boosted Spare the Dying that heals the ally and harms nearby enemies.

As the Reanimator’s skills develop, they are able to add Strange Modifications to their companion to increase its ferocity or allow it to act as an arcane conduit. As they continue to experiment, they will gain Improved Reanimation (increasing the power of that Death Burst) and Macabre Modifications, further expanding the potential upgrades for their Reanimated Companion—increase its size and damage, give it a climbing speed and the ability to Frighten opponents, or modify it so that it can swim, squeeze through small spaces, and deal blowback damage to nearby enemies.

When they get to the top of their game, the Reanimator will be able to use Facilitated Revival to raise the dead, add three modifications to the companion, and use Life Transfer to absorb any of the companion’s remaining Hit Points when under fire.

College of Spirits (Bard)

IGNATIUS BUDI

College of Spirits Bards embrace their connection to the afterlife, drawing power from the spirits they channel as easily as a Wizard reads a spellbook. Controlling the spirits is, of course, quite another matter entirely.

Say Their Name Three Times

The Channeler feature provides the opportunity to cast Guidance with a range of 60 feet, which means that when a Spirits Bard shouts at a friend that they’ve really got to get their act together, they actually might. When a College of Spirits Bard gives a creature Bardic Inspiration, their Spirits from Beyond feature will allow them to invoke a random spirit for additional power by rolling on the Spirits from Beyond table. They may call upon spirits like the Sharpshooter or Brute to deal damage, demand aid in healing allies from the Beloved or the Priest, ask the Fortune Teller to buff a friend by granting them Advantage on D20 Tests, or invoke the Coward and Trickster to Frighten and Charm opponents. If they want to channel a specific spirit, they can also expend a Bardic Inspiration for that purpose.

As their connection to the beyond deepens, they can use Empowered Channeling to call upon the spirits for additional help. They’ll add an extra 1d6 to spells that deal damage or restore Hit Points, and tap into the knowledge of the dead to cast a supercharged Spirit Guardians.

Once they master the art of communing with the afterlife, these Bards gain the Mystical Connection feature to sharpen their spirit-channeling skills. Now when they give Bardic Inspiration to an ally, they will roll on the Spirits from Beyond table twice and pick their preferred option.

Grave Domain (Cleric)

IGNATIUS BUDI

A Grave Domain Cleric understands that death is a natural part of the world’s cycle, a pivotal step on the path to somewhere else. But in a world with liches, vampires, ghosts, and others who resist the pull of death, shepherds of divine power work to ensure everybody is following the rules of the cosmos — no exceptions.

Death as a Neutral Arbiter

Early in their spiritual journey, a Grave Domain Cleric will gain access to additional spells, ensuring that the power of life and death always remains at their fingertips. Their Pull of Death benefit will allow them to deal extra damage to creatures that are missing any Hit Points, while the Return to Life feature will allow them to heal the maximum amount possible when helping a downed ally. Throwing out a Spare the Dying as a Bonus Action and then casting Cure Wounds on a downed ally as an Action makes Grave Clerics a steadfast ally on the battlefield.

With Path to the Grave, these clerics can curse an enemy, imposing dire debuffs and dealing extra damage.

As they creep closer and closer to death, Grave Domain Clerics can use Sentinel at Death’s Door to take a Reaction that halves incoming damage and cancels Critical Hits. Once they embrace their full power and stand in the barrier between life and death, the Divine Reaper feature will make them an expert in Necromancy and will grant them the ability to regain Hit Points when an enemy dies.

Hollow Warden (Ranger)

AUDY RAVINDRA

Hollow Warden Rangers derive power from the ancient, menacing terrors that skulk in the dark and forgotten places of the world. Guardians of the darkest and most dangerous corners of the wilds, they transform into ghastly forms to overcome their foes.

Use Fear as a Weapon

Hollow Warden Rangers step straight out of a nightmare and onto the field of battle. Unlike other Rangers, Hollow Wardens can morph their body with Alter Self and manifest their connection to nature’s darker elements with Phantom Steed. They take on the Wrath of the Wild to transform into a ghastly form that gains bonuses to AC, uses an Unnerving Aura to Frighten foes, and strikes enemies with a retributive Reaction.

As they embrace primordial spirits and forgotten forces, Hollow Warden Rangers will use their Hungering Might feature to gain a bonus to Constitution saving throws and the ability to regain Hit Points on a hit when Bloodied. Later, the Rot and Violence feature will amplify their Wrath of the Wild form, preventing enemies who fail their save against Unnerving Aura from regaining Hit Points or using their Reaction and allowing the Ranger to activate the Sap or Slow property with any weapon.

When they reach the height of their power, the Ancient Might feature deals extra damage to Frightened creatures, grants Immunity to Exhaustion, and allows a downed Hollow Warden Ranger to suddenly surge with Hit Points.

Phantom (Rogue)

IGNATIUS BUDI

Rogues with a penchant for death might find themselves suffused with its energy, straddling the border between the here and the hereafter. These masters of murder use eldritch power to consult the dead for information and channel the power of departed souls — and they aren’t asking.

Carry Souls like Keys on a Ring

A Phantom Rogue uses ghostly powers to succeed on and off the battlefield. With Whispers of the Dead, a Phantom Rogue can draw on the knowledge of the departed, choosing a skill or tool proficiency whenever they finish a Short or Long Rest. Wails from the Grave will extend the power of Sneak Attack to a nearby opponent, damaging them with screams from beyond.

As the Phantom Rogue becomes a true expert in delivering death, they act as a magnet for the spirits of the dead. These Rogues gain the ability to steal slivers of souls as they depart for the afterlife, storing them in a trinket that they can consult later or expend to deal additional damage. They will also gain Advantage on Death Saving Throws and Constitution saving throws as long as they have at least one trinket, and they gain additional maximum soul trinkets as they increase in power.

As the Rogue inches towards the afterlife, they can take a spectral form that flies, is incorporeal, and is very tough to hit. At their peak, their Wails from the Grave damage becomes Necrotic for both targets, and the Phantom Rogue will gain 1 soul trinket when they enter battle if they had none remaining, effectively ensuring they always have Advantage on Death and Constitution saving throws in combat.

Shadow Sorcery (Sorcerer)

IGNATIUS BUDI

Shadow Sorcerers often get their powers from the Shadowfell or some equivalent dark dimension, but they may also come from exposure to a macabre magical beast or an evil object of power.

Power from the Dark

Shadow Sorcerers manipulate darkness to veil their allies, deliver deadly poisons, and hinder enemies with impressive spells that other Sorcerers cannot access. Their Eyes of the Dark feature grants them a touch of Blindsight, extended Darkvision, and ensures they can always see through their own magic’s Darkness. With Strength of the Grave, Shadow Sorcerers can cheat death — once per day, anyway.

At higher levels, these Sorcerers can summon a beast made of shadow that hinders nearby enemies’ ability to resist their magic. As they grow, they will use their Shadow Walk feature to teleport from one dark corner to another.

At the pinnacle of their power, Shadow Sorcerers can adopt an Umbral Form that gains Resistance to most damage types and passes easily through walls and other physical objects.

Undead Patron (Warlock)

IGNATIUS BUDI

For some, death is merely a suggestion, an inconvenience to be overcome with an act of sheer will—or perhaps with a curse, or simply by doing an awful lot of reading. But whether they performed the right rituals or angered the wrong god, they—that lich, mummy, ghost, or vampire—are here now. Indeed, they may have been here all along, doling out power to the most ambitious and conniving among us.

From Beyond the Grave

However they came by it, the Undead Patron Warlock is a mage wrapped in eerie power, ready to send opponents to their graves (for good, one presumes). Very early on in their pact, their Form of Dread allows them to take on their patron’s power and transform into a frightening figure. They’ll also use Undead Spells to ensure they are a master of debilitating and lethal magic.

As their connection to their patron grows, the Undead Patron Warlock uses the Grave Touched feature to ignore Resistance to Necrotic damage and imbue their spells with deathly energies. They no longer gain Exhaustion from most effects, and they lose the need to sleep.

At higher levels, they gain the Necrotic Husk feature, granting them greater protection against necrotic power. These warlocks also use the Unholy Resuscitation feature to rise from the brink of death, blasting nearby enemies with necrotic magic in the process.

At their peak, these Warlock’s Superior Dread feature massively heightens their Form of Dread. When taking on their nightmarish aspect, they can now Fly, hover, move through solid objects, cast certain spells with but a thought, and resist most physical damage.

Into the Darkness: Dive into Ravenloft Today

For heroes that are at once terrifying and bewildering, for adventurers who blend the dark with the strange: Ravenloft: The Horrors Within awaits. Travel the realms with deathly powers at your fingertips, striking fear and revulsion into the hearts of your enemies.

Get ready to meet the spooky residents of Ravenloft: The Horrors Within—they’re ready to meet you!

Damen Cook (@damen_joseph) is a lifelong fantasy reader, writer, and gamer. If he woke up tomorrow in Faerûn, he would bolt through the nearest fey crossing and drink from every stream and eat fruit from every tree in the Feywild until he found that sweet, sweet wild magic.