Demon Slayer

The Demon Slayer Corps is an organization that has existed since ancient times, dedicating its existence to protecting humanity from demons. There are hundreds of Demon Slayers within the organization, however they are not officially recognized by the government.

Demon Slayers are warriors that imitate the elemental power of mother nature using a mystical breathing technique called Breath Style with the sole purpose to hunt every fiend and monster that plagues the world.

(The credit for this homebrew goes to MaoStyle on GMBinder. I simply ported it to D&D Beyond for easy use.)

Focused Warrior

When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you choose a Breathing Style. You can use Breathing Styles only with weapons that lack the Heavy & Two-Handed (excluding versatile weapons) properties.

Breathing Styles. You choose one Breathing Style to practice.

Breath Forms. You choose two Breath Forms from your chosen Breathing Style. Many Forms enhance an attack in some ways. You can use only one such Form per attack. You learn one additional Breath Form of your choice at 5th, 10th, and 15th level from your previously selected Breathing Style. Each time you learn a new Form, you can also replace one Form you know with a different one.

Breath Points. The number of Breath Points you have is equal to 2 + your Constitution modifier (minimum of 1). A Breath Point is expended to use a Breath Form. You regain all expended Breath Points when you finish a short or long rest.

Saving Throws. Some of your Breath Forms require your target to make a saving throw to resist the Form’s effects. The saving throw DC is calculated as follows:

Breath Form save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Constitution modifier

Breathing Styles

Breathing Styles ( are swordsmanship styles practiced and taught by Demon Slayers. All known Breathing Style currently taught is derived from Sun Breathing, the first one ever created. The majority of known Breathing Styles mimic a certain element of nature (i.e. flame, stone, water and wind) and replicates it with the user's movements, techniques and abilities. The weapon attacks of Demon Slayers who use Breathing Styles are also longer ranged, possibly due to shockwaves or air pressure generated from their weapon itself when swinging and striking.

Flame Breathing

Flame Breathing is a Breathing Style that mimics flames and replicates it with the user's movements, techniques and abilities. Most, if not all, known techniques and forms involve extremely powerful singular strikes which 'burn' their opponents, with most attacks being initiated from a high stance. Users of Flame Breathing also visualize themselves seemingly creating and manipulating fire when unleashing its techniques.

Stone Breathing

Stone Breathing is a Breathing Style that mimics earth and stone and replicates it with the user's movements, techniques and abilities. Most, if not all, known techniques and forms utilizes the ground beneath the user and the vast surroundings to generate powerful and sturdy attacks that specialize in both offense and defense.

Water Breathing

Water Breathing is a Breathing Style that mimics water, specifically the flow, flexibility and adaptability of the liquid and replicates it with the user's movements, techniques and abilities. Most, if not all, known techniques involve the user bending their body, arm and weapon in a fluid motion to match the movements of rushing or flowing water. Users also visualize themselves seemingly creating and manipulating water when unleashing its techniques.

Wind Breathing

Wind Breathing is a Breathing Style that mimics wind, specifically powerful torrents of air and whirlwinds, and replicates it with the user's movements, techniques and abilities. Most, if not all, known techniques and forms involve purely offensive attacks, most of which utilizing rotating movements to generate swift whirlwind-like slashes that greatly increase the wielder's striking range or utilizing the air around them to deliver sharp sickle-shaped attacks. Users of Wind Breathing also visualize themselves seemingly creating and manipulating wind when unleashing its techniques.

Breath Forms

The Breath Forms are presented in Form order, grouped by Breathing Style.

Flame Breathing, 1st Form: Unknowing Fire

If you moved at least 20 feet in a straight line before you attacked a creature you may expend one Breath Point, in order to deal an extra 1d10 damage, in addition you can make one additional attack as a bonus action.

Focused Boon: The first attack has advantage and the extra damage increases to 2d10.

Flame Breathing, 2nd Form: Rising Scorching Sun

When you hit with a melee weapon attack you may expend one Breath Point to make a creature unable to take reactions until the start of its next turn.

Focused Boon: In addition, if the attack causes the target to make a CON saving throw to maintain concentration, it has disadvantage on that save.

Flame Breathing, 3rd Form: Blooming Flame Undulation

When you get hit by a melee weapon attack you may expend one Breath Point, and use your reaction to gain +2 bonus AC for that attack.

Focused Boon: You gain +3 AC instead.

Flame Breathing, 4th Form: Flame Tiger

When you hit a creature with a weapon attack you may expend one Breath Point, and force the creature to make a WIS saving throw or become frightened by you until the end of your next turn.

Focused Boon: If the target is frightened by you due to the effect of this Form, they take an additional 1d8 psychic damage from your next weapon attacks while they’re frightened.

Flame Breathing, 5th Form: Heat Haze

When you land a critical hit on a creature you may expend one Breath Point and add an extra 1d6 to the damage roll.

Focused Boon: You add an extra 3d6 instead.

Stone Breathing, 1st Form: Serpentinite Hydra

When a creature damages you with a melee weapon attack, you may expend one Breath Point and use your reaction to gain resistance to that attack.

Focused Boon: Your next attack against that creature is at an advantage.

Stone Breathing, 2nd Form: Upper Smash

When you hit a creature with a weapon attack you may expend one Breath Point, and force the creature to make a STR saving throw. On a failed save, it drops an object you choose that the creature is holding in its hands. The object lands at its feet.

Focused Boon: You deal an additional 2d8 damage.

Stone Breathing, 3rd Form: Stone Bulwark

As a reaction you may expend one Breath Point to impose disadvantage on an enemy that targets an ally of yours who is within 5 feet of you.

Focused Boon: In addition, you give your ally +3 Bonus AC for the attack.

Stone Breathing, 4th Form: Rapid Conquest

When you hit a creature with a weapon attack you may expend one Breath Point, and force the creature to make a CON saving throw or become stunned until the end of its next turn.

Focused Boon: In addition, you push the target back 10 feet.

Stone Breathing, 5th Form: Mountain Arc

Immediately after you hit with a weapon attack you may expend one Breath Point, and use your bonus action to attempt to grapple the target.

Focused Boon: You have advantage on checks to maintain the grapple, and the target has disadvantage.

Water Breathing, 1st Form: Water Surface Attack

When you make a weapon attack roll against a creature you may expend one Breath Point, to add an additional 1d8 to the roll. You can use this Form before or after making the attack roll, but before any effects of the attack are applied.

Focused Boon: You add the extra roll to the damage.

Water Breathing, 2nd Form: Water Wheel

When you make a melee weapon attack you may expend one Breath Point, in order to choose another creature within 5 feet of the target to take equal damage, if the original attack roll would hit the second creature.

Focused Boon: The first target needs to make a STR saving throw or fall prone.

Water Breathing, 3rd Form: Dance of the Rapid Current

Immediately when you hit with a weapon attack you may expend one Breath Point, and you can move 15 feet without provoking an attack of opportunity.

Focused Boon: You gain a +1 to hit on your next weapon attack.

Water Breathing, 4th Form: The Merciful Rain of a Dry Day

When you reduce a creature to 0 hit points you may expend one Breath Point to gain the damage dealt as temporary hit points (maximum of 20 Hit Points).

Focused Boon: Every ally within 30 feet also gains half of the damage as temporary hit points.

Water Breathing, 5th Form: Water Flow

You may expend one Breath Point, in order to use the Dash action as a bonus action.

Focused Boon: You gain +10 movement speed and your movement is unaffected by Difficult Terrain.

Wind Breathing, 1st Form: Dust Whirlwind Cutter

As a reaction when a creature within 5ft of you misses you with a melee weapon attack, you can expend one Breath Point, and move up to half your speed away from it without provoking an attack of opportunity.

Focused Boon: You also get to attack that creature.

Wind Breathing, 2nd Form: Rising Dust Storm

As a reaction, you can expend one Breath Point to create a defensive dust wind current around you in order to interrupt incoming projectiles. All ranged weapon attacks have disadvantage to hit you until the start of your next turn.

Focused Boon: You also gain a +2 to your AC until the start of your next turn.

Wind Breathing, 3rd Form: Purifying Wind Claw

When you make a melee weapon attack you may expend one Breath Point to extend your range up to 20 feet.

Focused Boon: You deal an additional 2d6 bludgeoning damage.

Wind Breathing, 4th Form: Clean Storm Wind

When you take the Attack action on your turn, you can forgo one of your attacks and expend one Breath Point to make every Large or smaller creature within 5 feet of you make a STR saving throw or be pushed 20 feet away.

Focused Boon: The creatures that failed the saving throw also fall prone.

Wind Breathing, 5th Form: Reverse Gust

As a bonus action, you may expend one Breath Point, and attempt to pull a creature using the air around it towards you. Choose a target within 15 feet of you that is Large or smaller, they must make a STR saving throw. On a failed save you pull them within 5 feet of you.

Focused Boon: You can pull up to 4 creatures instead, and you deal an extra 1d6 bludgeoning damage to the ones that failed the saving throw.

Hunter of Demons

At 3rd level, you can awaken one of your senses to detect an undead or fiendish presence near you.

As an Action for 1 minute, you know the general location of any fiend, undead or place that has been desecrated within 1 mile of you, but not their numbers or identity.

In addition, you can cast Protection from Evil and Good once without material components to yourself.

Both of these traits refresh after you finish a short or long rest.

Total Concentration Breathing

Starting at 7th level, you master a state where Breathing Style users inhale the maximum amount of oxygen with a specific breath pattern to raise their physical and mental strength to their utmost limits.

When you use a Breath Form, you can use Total Concentration Points to enable the Focused Boon of the Form.

You have a number of Total Concentration Points equal to 1 + your Constitution modifier (minimum of 1). You can use this feature even without Total Concentration Points left, but for every time you use it you will gain a level of exhaustion until you finish a long rest.

One with the Elements

At 10th level, depending on the Breathing Style you practice, you gain an additional benefit.

Breath of Flames

You are a raging fire. Any attack roll you make against a target is a critical hit on a roll of 19 or 20 on the d20.

Breath of Stone

You are as strong as a mountain. You have advantage on all Strength ability checks.

Breath of Water

You flow like water. Your movement speed increases by 15.

Breath of Wind

You are as light as the wind. When you fall you can glide up to 30 feet in a line without taking damage (falling from higher altitudes still adds to damage).

Breathing Style Prodigy

At 15th level, you mastered your Breathing Style to the point that you are able to harness the actual power of your element for one deadly attack. You can use your action to use your most powerful breathing technique of your Breathing Style, the Final Breath. You can use this feature once per long rest.

Flame Breathing, Final Breath: Purgatory

You call the power of the fire element for a devastating fire attack initiated from a high stance.

You purge everything in a line of 100 feet long and 5 feet wide from you in a direction you choose. Each creature in the line must make a DEX saving throw. A creature takes 12d6 fire damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.

Stone Breathing, Final Breath: Stone Rupture

You call the power of the earth element, and you create a huge rupture around you. The technique carves a deep impression in the ground.

Each creature in a 40 feet radius sphere originating from you must make a DEX saving throw. A target takes 6d12 bludgeoning damage and falls prone on a failed save, or half as much damage and doesn’t fall prone on a successful one. Additionally, the ground in that area becomes difficult terrain.

Water Breathing, Final Breath: The Dragon of Change

You call the power of the water element to create a water dragon form that extends your weapon range, and make a continuous attack that increases in power with each rotation.

Choose up to five creatures you can see within 30 feet of you. Make a melee weapon attack against each target. On a hit, the target takes your weapon damage + 1d8 cold damage that increases by 1d8 on each creature hit, to a max of 5d8. After using this ability, you can’t take reactions until the start of your next turn.

Wind Breathing, Final Breath: Winter Gale

You call the power of the wind element, and you create an incredibly powerful whirlwind that obliterates everything in its path.

You create a 10 feet wide 30 feet tall whirlwind that moves in a 60-foot straight line. Each creature in that line must make a DEX saving throw. On a failure, a target takes 7d10 bludgeoning damage and are thrown up 15 feet in the air. On a successful save, a target only takes half as much damage and is not lifted into the air.

Vanquisher of Demons

At 18th level, your intimidating presence makes demons quiver in their boots.

Fiends and the undead have disadvantage on all attacks and saving throws against you. In addition, when you roll initiative and have no Breath Points remaining, you regain half of your maximum Breath Points.