Oath of the Martyred Gorgon

When an oath of the martyred gorgon paladin takes their oath they stare into an eye of medusa as they make the pledge. The act of taking the pledge is what stops them from completely becoming stone immediately. The path of strength laid out is that as you grow stronger in your oath you gain the ability to greater resist the power that turns you to stone, so you allow more of it to infect your body supplementing your abilities making yourself more powerful.

The people who become paladins under the oath of the Martyred Gorgon can do so for many reasons, but they are united under two banners, by a sheer force of will and by a hatred against corrupt rulers and leaders, akin to that of Medusa's against Poseidon and Athena, for their crimes which the paladins known as the 'Petra Derma', see fit.

The strengths gifted by the oath do not come without their downsides. The oath in itself is a death sentence as someday it will consume you and turn you to stone as you grow old and weak, as in your age the moment your strength fails you become stone. Those who become more powerful in the oath become visibly stone like, initially a jagged and frightening outward appearance of skin hardening to stone those who can withstand the pain have their stone-flesh chiseled, shaped, and formed.

Oath Spells

You gain oath spells at the paladin levels listed.

Oath of the Martyred Gorgon Spells

Paladin Level	Spells
3rd	Command, Earth Tremor
5th	Suggestion, Maximilian’s Earthen Grasp
9th	Meld into Stone, Erupting Earth
13th	Stone shape, Phantasmal Killer
17th	Wall of Stone, Medusa's Smite*

 

Along with your Gorgon magic you become permanently affected by the changes your body is undergoing. Having starred into the eyes of Medusa your skin is in the early stages of petrification, your stone-hide resilience grants you an unarmored defence brought about by;

• Your fortitude, equal to your Constitution modifier, and
• Your ability to resist the disabling magic of the gaze causing your skin to harden giving you an added bonus to your unarmored defence equal to your Charisma modifier.

The process of the skin hardening does have it's penalties, as your ability to move and dodge incoming attacks is hindered, you no longer gain a Dexterity bonus to your armour class.

*Medusa's Smite is a published homebrew spell which will need to be added to your saved homebrew to function with this class.

Channel Divinity

When you take this oath at 3rd level, you gain the following Channel Divinity options.

Curse of Stone. As a bonus action, you allow the memory of Medusa's gaze to wash over you. Your body hardens becoming more stone-like growing jagged formations across your body, increasing your AC by your proficiency bonus, when unarmored, and granting resistance to poison, psychic, non-magical piercing, slashing and bludgeoning damage. While in this state your movement speed is halved and you have disadvantage on Dexterity checks and saving throws. This form lasts for 1 minute and cannot be dispelled without dispel magic or unless you choose to end this effect (no action required)

Force of Will. As an action, you can cry out and share your mental fortitude with a number of allies equal to twice your Charisma modifier (minimum of 1). Each creature of your choice that can hear you within 60 feet of you ends the frightened or charmed conditions.

 

Corrupted strikes

Starting at 7th level, your stone form begins to infect your weapons. Your stone skin curse begins to affect the victims of your strikes beginning the process of merging them into the statue you will one day become, causing the target's movement to be reduced by half until the end of your next turn.

Gorgon's Blood

Starting at 15th level, When you are hit by an enemy you may use your reaction to bleed the blood of the gorgon on those around you. You may chose to share your healing blood with an ally within 15ft restoring 1d8 + your Constitution modifier HP and dealing poison damage equal to the amount healed to a target within 15ft of you.

Revered Sculptor

At 20th level, you fully embrace the curse upon you, giving up your last vestiges of humanity and becoming your stone form. You can use your action to gain the following benefits for 1 minute:

• You gain Tremorsense with a range of 60ft.
• You make the area around you turn to jagged rock and become difficult terrain within a 30ft radius, you and your allies are unhindered by this terrain.
• Creatures within the difficult terrain have disadvantage on spell saves against you.
• Critical hits with your melee weapon cause the target to come under the effect of the Flesh to Stone spell, without requiring concentration.

This effect ends early if you are incapacitated or die. Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a long rest.