Deranged Clergy (Acolyte Variant)

You spent your life in the service of a temple or order dedicated to a specific god or pantheon of gods, but the times, and you, have changed. Sometime along the way, you stopped acting as merely an intermediary between the realm of the holy and the mortal world and delved into forbidden, arcane esotery and unhinged fanaticism. You no longer serve the divine in a recognisable or typical way, if it is the divine you serve at all, and are instead engaged in occult practices that others may see as peculiar, concerning, or even blasphemous. You once performed sacred rites, but now your sacrament is sinister.

Choose a god, a pantheon of gods, some other quasi-divine being, or some other entity, and work with your DM to detail the nature of your religious 'service'. Were you a lesser functionary in a temple who delved into a dark secret within and abandoned the rites in which the priests raised you? Or were you a high priest who suddenly experienced a call to serve your god in a 'different' way? Perhaps you were the leader of a small cult outside of any established temple structure, or even an occult group that served a fiendish master that you now embrace in a way that is not even recognisable to your former peers.

Skill Proficiencies: You are proficient in either Insight or Persuasion, either Deception or Investigation, and either Religion or History.

Tool Proficiencies: You are proficient in the use of either Poisoner's Kit or Forgery Kit.

Languages: Two of your choice, one of which must be Exotic or Secret.

Equipment: A derelict holy symbol (a gift to you when you entered the priesthood; its ruin is a reminder of the manic heresy you have embraced) or a holy symbol that represents your heresy itself (and may be cursed or imbued with sinister power), a spellbook containing forbidden knowledge or a staff that focuses your dark aura, unholy vestments, a set of common clothes, and a pouch containing 10 gp of dubious origins.

Spell List

Through exposure to sinister ideals and unholy power, if you have the spellcasting or pact magic abilities, you gain access to the Deranged Clergy spell list. Normal class requirements are overridden by this feature, however, your character must be capable of spellcasting in order for the spells in this list to become available. You are still restricted to the normal number of spells your character can cast at each level. Attack modifier and advantage are negated when using a spell from this list unless your character was able to learn that spell without the Deranged Cleric background.

Spell Level	Spells
Cantrip	infestation, mind sliver, thaumaturgy, toll the dead
1st	charm person, command, false life, hellish rebuke, hex, illusory script, unseen servant
2nd	augury, borrowed knowledge, darkness, mind spike, suggestion
3rd	bestow curse, fear, incite greed, motivational speech
4th	confusion, sickening radiance
5th	enervation, geas, scrying
6th	mass suggestion, true seeing
8th	feeblemind, maddening darkness
9th	weird

Suggested Characteristics

Deranged Clergy are shaped by their fall from grace, either from their own good intentions or from the rejection of religious communities. Their study of the history and tenets of their heresy and their relationships to strange and forbidden places and ideas have become manic, even perverse. They were once idealists, but have delved into a flawed pattern of thought and belief and embraced heresy. They are more flawed than whole, and their dogma is shunned by those who do not share their uncanny philosophy.

d8	Personality Trait
1	I revile a particular hero of my former faith, and constantly envy or put down that person’s deeds and example.
2	I can deceive even the fiercest enemies, manipulating them and always working to placate them.
3	I see omens in every event and action. The shadows try to speak to us, we just need to listen.
4	Nothing can shake my ambition.
5	I quote unholy texts and dark proverbs in almost every situation.
6	I am intolerant of other faiths and condemn the worship of other gods or principles.
7	I’ve rejected the fine food, drink, and high society among my former temple’s elite and embraced ragged living.
8	I’ve spent so long engrossed in the bizarre that I have lost my ability to relate to people.

d6	Ideal
1	Occult tradition. The lost traditions of worship and sacrifice must be resurrected. (Lawful)
2	Misanthropy. I condemn those in need and believe that suffering is behoven. (Evil)
3	Change. We must help bring about the changes the gods are constantly working in the world. (Chaotic)
4	Power. I hope to one day rise to the top of my heresy's religious hierarchy. (Lawful)
5	Faith. I trust that my deity will guide my actions. I have faith that if I work hard, their vision will be realised. (Lawful)
6	Aspiration. I seek to prove myself worthy of my god’s favor by matching my actions against his or her teachings. (Any)

d6	Bond
1	I would die to recover an ancient relic of my cult that was lost long ago.
2	I will someday get revenge on the corrupt temple hierarchy who branded me a heretic.
3	I owe my life to the entity that empowered me when I was at my lowest.
4	Everything I do is for the entity.
5	I will do anything to restore the ruins of the temple of my occult fixation.
6	I seek to preserve a sacred text that my enemies consider heretical and seek to destroy.

d6	Flaw
1	I judge others harshly, and myself even more severely.
2	I invest too much energy in the pursuit of power within my cult, to my mental or physical detriment.
3	My impiety sometimes leads me to baselessly suspect even those that profess faith in my heresy.
4	I am inflexible in my thinking.
5	I look down upon the commoners like a wolf over sheep.
6	Once I pick a goal, I become obsessed with it to the detriment of everything else in my life.