Circle of Bone

While most druids venerate the living world, there are those who patrol the boundaries at its edges. Bone Druids see death as merely a continuation of the natural cycle of life. Here they ease the transition of those passing on to whatever awaits them, or bringing those back who have passed, through misfortune or misadventure, too soon.

These figures tend to inhabit age-old places of death that have long since been reclaimed by nature - long forgotten ossuaries, ancient burial grounds, tombs and cemeteries that have long since been reclaimed by nature with the passage of time, and the battlefields of yore. Here they tend to the final resting places of the dead, taking it upon themselves to protect the sanctity of such places and to prevent the dead from returning. 

It is a solitary task, and most Bone Druids live as hermits, far away from civilisation. Indeed, given the nature of the places that they inhabit, many a Druid from this circle has been the basis for local ghost stories and folktales about the terrifying, unearthly protectors of the old and dark places where death has laid claim.

Circle Spells

2nd-level Circle of Bone feature

Your extensive experience living on the boundary between life and death has given you a much deeper understanding of both. At Level 2 you learn the Spare the Dying and Toll the Dead Cantrips.
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At 3rd, 5th, 7th, and 9th level you gain access to the spells listed for that level in the Circle of Spores Spells table. Once you gain access to one of these spells, you always have it prepared, and it doesn’t count against the number of spells you can prepare each day. If you gain access to a spell that doesn’t appear on the druid spell list, the spell is nonetheless a druid spell for you.

Circle of Bone Spells

Druid Level	Spells
2nd	Spare the Dying, Toll the Dead*
3rd	Gentle Repose, Find Steed (Skeletal Warhorse only)
5th	Life Transference*, Speak with Dead
7th	Blight, Stone Shape
9th	Danse Macabre*, Raise Dead

 

*These spells are not included in the PHB, and as such the subclass could not be published with them in it. Due to this, they will not appear on your character sheet. I have made it so that, if you have XGtE, you can learn/prepare them, however this will unfortunately count against the total number of cantrips known, and the total number of spells prepared.

If you wish to use this yourself without the above issue, then you can create your own version of this subclass with these spells automatically included and simply not publish it, as it will still be useable in your campaigns.

Bone Armour

2nd-level Circle of Bone feature
Starting from level 2, you can expend one use of Wild Shape as Bonus Action to bring forth a whirling mass of bones that stick to you, forming a armoured exoskeleton.

As with Wild Shape, this is a magical effect rather than a spell, and so cannot be dispelled, however it can be suspended temporarily when within an antimagic field.

Bone Armour lasts for a number of hours equivalent to half your Druid Level, rounded down.

The armour has its own AC and Hit Points, which cannot be healed by magic, calculated as below:

- Armour Class: 10 + Wisdom Modifier + Half your Proficiency Bonus rounded down.
- Hit Points: 20 (10 + 5 x your Druid Level)

The armour also has the following damage resistances and vulnerabilities which are conferred to the druid while the armour is active.

- Vulnerable to Bludgeoning Damage
- Resistant to Slashing Damage
- Immune to Poison Damage and the Poisoned condition.

Bone Armour is quite horrific to most people, and makes a lot of noise, conferring the following benefits and drawbacks:
- Advantage on Intimidation Checks
- Disadvantage on Stealth and Persuasion Checks

You can cast spells and wield weapons and shields normally in this form, gaining their benefits. Magic items also function as normal, however you do not benefit from any bonuses specifically granted by armour.

When reaching 0 hp, the Bone Armour splinters and falls to the floor, and any excess damage is carried over to the druid. Additionally, when it falls to the floor, the armour creates an area of difficult terrain with a 5ft radius until the beginning of the druid's next turn. Any creature moving through this terrain on its turn takes 1d6 piercing damage.

If any spell or effect that would instantly kill a creature upon reducing it to 0hp (such as Power Word: Kill, Extract Brain, Disintegrate etc) causes the bone armour to drop to 0hp, it explodes. All creatures within 5ft of the druid must make a dexterity saving throw against your spell save DC, or take 2d6 piercing damage. The druid, and any creature grappling or being grappled by the druid, has disadvantage on the save.

This ability cannot be used while Wildshape is already active. Activating Wildshape when Bone Armour is active will also cause the armour to explode.

Roll the Bones

6th-level Circle of Bone feature
Starting from level 6, whenever you activate Bone Armour, roll [roll]1d4[/roll] and consult the following table:

d4	Effect
1	Hollow Bones. You gain advantage on dexterity saving throws you make to avoid or reduce damage, but the bone armour loses its resistance to slashing damage.
2	Bone Spikes. Whenever you are hit with a melee attack by a creature within 5ft of you, you deal 1d6 piercing damage to the attacker. This increases to 2d6 at level 10, and 3d6 at level 14.
3	Living Bones. Your bone armour regenerates at a rate of 1hp per round, happening on the beginning of your turn. This increases to 2hp per round at level 10, and 3hp per round at level 14.
4	Solid Bone. Gain an Additional +1 AC, but suffer disadvantage on all dexterity saving throws and your movement speed is reduced by 5ft. The bonus AC increases to +2 at level 10 and +3 at level 14.

 

Once this result has been obtained, it is set for the duration of that particular armour, and you cannot roll the d4 again until your next activation of Bone Armour.

Additionally, all damage caused by your bone armour counts as magical.

Bone Garden

10th-level Circle of Bone feature
At level 10, while clad in Bone Armour, as an action you can cause sharp bones to rise up out of the deep earth and burst through the surface of the ground surrounding you. A circle with a radius of 15 feet, centred on you and moving with you, becomes difficult terrain for all creatures you choose. Once per turn, when a creature enters or moves within this area, they take 2d6 magical piercing damage for every 5ft they travel. Flying creatures are not affected.

The effect lasts for one minute unless cancelled by you. It will also cease if the Bone Armour is destroyed.

If Bone Armour is not active, you can summon the Bone Garden as an action, targeting an area you can see within 150ft. This effect is stationary, and lasts for one minute unless cancelled by you.

You can use this ability twice per long rest, increasing to three times per long rest at level 14.

Fingers of Bone

10th-level Circle of Bone feature
Also at level 10, while Bone Armour is active, your unarmed strikes do 2d6 + your wisdom  modifier magical bludgeoning damage, using your spell attack bonus to hit. This increases to 3d6 at level 14.

Seeds of the Sepulchre

14th-level Circle of Bone feature
Starting at level 14, as an action you can throw a handful of enchanted teeth into the ground around you, summoning a number of undead minions selected from the following table.

Name	Challenge Rating
Skeleton	1/4
Skeletal Giant Owl	1/4
Skeletal Warhorse	1/2
Minotaur Skeleton	2
Skeletal Swarm	2

The minions are friendly to you and your party, and you can command them using a bonus action. If you give them no orders they will not move, but will engage any enemy that is within their range. If there is no enemy in range, they will take the Dodge action. These minions last for one minute, unless dismissed by you sooner.

The maximum number of creatures you can summon is your 1 + your wisdom modifier (minimum of 1), and the total Challenge Rating of the creatures you summon cannot exceed your proficiency bonus.

Once you have sown the Seeds of the Sepulchre, you cannot sow them again until you have taken a long rest, during which you must spend at least 1 hour preparing them.

Mysterious 3rd Level Feature

A feature that you only ever discover when you're dead.

Once dead you find out everything you ever wanted to know about a specific subject or person.

If resurrected or brought back to life in by any means, this knowledge is permanently and irrevocably lost.