School of Plagues

The School of Plagues is a school of magic that is typically not taught in schools or colleges. The reason for this is due to its incredible volatility and the danger behind brewing diseases. Even if some diseases can be strangely beneficial or protective, most are destructive and dangerous. Wizards going down this path rarely stay sane enough to think carefully when using this magic. Most magical orders try to eliminate practicing wizards of plague magic because of their abundance danger, especially in cities.

You were taught this way out of desperation, or perhaps simple medical curiosity. You had a teacher, a mentor in the ways of the viral and bacterial. You were not taught in a classroom. You were most likely taught in the ways of Viromancy in an abandoned ruin, a crypt, or a strange person's basement (which is oddly not that strange for most medical students in this world).

No matter how you were taught, you now wield the powers of the unseen foe. The microbiological world is yours to command. Destroy with rot and palsy with a joyful gleam, or create new forms of life with a maddening cackle.

Necromancy Savant

Beginning when you select this school at 2nd level, the gold and time you must spend to copy a necromancy spell into your spellbook is halved.

Plague Brewing

Once per short rest, you can brew a new disease to infect your enemies, or aid your allies. You can select from a variety of vectors/modes of transmission for your diseases which effect how your disease is spread, but can only choose one. At levels 6, 10, and 14 you will gain new maladies and remedies to unleash in your plagues. When making a plague, you will need to select from the maladies, or remedies tables below (which you can roll on or choose by hand). You can choose up to 3 symptoms your plague will manifest as.

The infected targets of your disease can't be reinfected by you for another 24 hours, or in the case they die. You are always considered to be immune to your diseases except for remedies which can only aid you and your party members/allies. You can also brew cures to your diseases for your party members, or allies, where they will be protected for up to 24 hours after ingesting.

Additionally, you can imbue your other normal spells with a plague theme. You can change the damage type of your magic to either that of necrotic, or acidic for a spell that originally does not feature it. You must declare before casting the spell if you wish to invoke this effect.

If you choose to roll on the symptom table and a result is for a symptom that you have not yet unlocked, you can re-roll again until you achieve a result that is available to you.

d6	Transmission TABLE
1	Bloodborne Pathogen (transmission via contact with infected blood during an active infection) For initial infection of this type of plague, you will need to make a melee weapon attack using a needle or syringe of some kind, but you can choose to use your INT Modifier instead of your STR or DEX. You are always considered proficient for this attack and damage wise it is considered an unarmed strike
2	Airborne Pathogen (transmission via respiratory droplets such as coughing or release of spores carried by a draft of wind) For this mode of transmission, you make a small canister of condensed plague gas. You can throw the canister and have it treated as a fragmentation grenade that does not deal damage, and the save required determines whether or not a creature is initially infected
3	Direct Contact (transmission via direct contact with the infected's epidermis) For initial infection of this type of plague, you will need to make a melee weapon attack, but you can choose to use your INT Modifier instead of your STR or DEX. You are always considered proficient for this attack and damage wise it is considered an unarmed strike
4	Insectborne (transmission via an insect breaking the skin barrier of a creature. Choose this mode of transmission allows you have a small swarm of insects of your choosing that can attack a creature for initial infection. For the sake of use, the swarm has the same stats as Swarm of Insects except for the following changes: The insect swarm cannot damage creatures, only infect them with your plague.
5	Waterborne: (transmission via drinking water sources) This mode of transmission can be spread by splashing infected water, or forcing a creature to drink infected water directly. You can also infect a water supply to increase exposure to your plague, but beware this may come with dire in-game consequences!
6	Dreamborne: (transmission via infecting sleeping and dreaming creatures) By far the most odd and metaphysical mode of transmission, but once it gets started, it can be devastating. Initially, this diseases must be administered intravenously to a creature while it is sleeping and dreaming. When they dream, they will soon begin to dream about contracting a disease via meeting a stranger in their dreams called 'The Leper'. The Leper is a dream metaphor of you, the plague bringer, as an intruder in their dreams and mind. Once they finish their sleep after being visited by 'The Leper', if they tell another about what they dreamed of, then those who hear their tale of their nightmare will be visited by 'The Leper' that same night. This continues until the tale dies with the infected, or until those who dream cannot anymore.

 

d6	REMEDIES TABLE
1	Copiosa vitalis: The infected feels a new refreshing sensation wash over them. They regain 1d8 + Your Int Modifier worth of hit points
2	Venenum Comedentis: If a patient was originally inflicted by the Poisoned condition, this remedy will cure upon administration and make them immune to the Poison effect for 24 hours
3	Mitis Mors: This remedy is a sad affair of one, but it sometimes is all we can hope for. A dying creature administered this remedy will be given an easy and gentle, painless death. This also acts as a formaldehyde type substance which preserves their body for up to 1 year after their death
4	Oculi vitae: A creature given to this remedy will notice their eyesight become enhanced to the point where they can see what diseases and maladies another is afflicted with. This can help give insight as to what they are experiencing or will soon display symptoms of
5	Sanguis furor: A remedy which allows a creature to inherit a blood filled rage within them. The target takes on the same limitations and conditions as the Barbarian class's Rage feature for 1 minute
6	Subito genius: When this remedy is administered, the patient becomes an incredibly genius. They gain advantage on all Intelligence checks and saving throws for the next minute

 

 

 

 

d10	Maladies Symptom Table
1	Conjunctivitis: The infected victim's eyes become red and swollen with massive irritation and bulge from their head(s). The target must make a Constitution saving throw DC 15. On a failure, the victim is Blinded for 1 minute. On a success, they still display the symptom but are not blinded
2	Dysentery: The infected immediately evacuates their bowels in a fiery, furious fit of explosive diarrhea. The target must make a Dexterity saving throw DC 15, or on a fail fall to the ground painfully knocking them prone for one round
3	Bubo lymphadenitis: The infected grow disgusting bubonic and infected boils all over their body which swell at a massive rate. All other enemies/living creatures within 5 feet of the infected, must immediately make Dexterity saving throws, DC 15, or else be infected by your plague. The newly infected do not need to make the same save once they are infected, but they do suffer your plague's effects immediately as if you infected them on your turn.
4	Rash: The infected develop an incredibly itchy rash all over their body with spots appearing all over them. The infected must make a Wisdom saving throw DC 15. On a failure, when the infected rolls an ability check, saving throw, or attack roll, your intelligence modifier will be subtracted from the result. A critical hit will not be effected by this malady
5	Hysteria: The infected become obsessed with a random target in its sight and range. The infected must make a DC 15 Intelligence saving throw. On a failure, you can command the creature to target and attack a position of your choosing, sacrificing its turn to do as you command. It cannot directly harm, or kill itself. On the next round, the creature breaks free from this temporary hysteria and has free will once again
6	Influenza: The infected become stricken with a violent flu that cause them to violently vomit upon being contaminated. The infected must make a Constitution saving throw of DC 15. On a failure, the infected spend their turn vomiting the contents of their stomachs at a random creature within 5 feet of them. This is considered a melee weapon attack using the infected's Strength modifier. On a hit, the target of the infected take 1d6 acid damage.
7	Reanimation (Level 6): Death is not an escape from their frightening malady of your plague. This symptom appears when the target has died without losing its head(s) and was previously infected by you prior. When the infected finally dies, they are resurrected as a Zombie. No matter the in game statistics it once had, it now has the same as a zombie (size does still matter for damage dice reasons) so long as they were living creatures before hand. If an Ogre or Beholder was infected, they become their undead counterpart forms instead (see Ogre Zombie and Beholder Zombie). The undead will remain animated for 24 hours from their initial rise and will do as you command to the best of their abilities. Your undead plague zombies will always follow after you in the initiative order
8	Malady of Melancholy: The infected's brain chemistry or thought patterns become afflicted with this sad malady. The infected must make a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw, or else spend their turn feeling a dark despair grip their mind for 1 round. They must then use their reaction to run away from you as far as they can. If they cannot run, they can instead take the dodge action.
9	Rapid Necrosis (Level 10): Infection does not always mean living to you anymore. The infected are treated with an aggressive organic and inorganic consuming bacteria. This specific malady can infect constructs and the undead alike (and the living) as the bacteria does not care for where its food is coming from. The infected take 1d6 acid damage each round for 1 minute after initial infection. Your mode of transmission does not matter when you choose to have this malady in your plague since the bacteria only needs to have some form of initial contact in the infection
10	Lungworm (Level 14): The infected are treated to an unwelcome intrusion in their lungs by a terrible parasite known as a Lungworm. The lungworm burrows into the lungs an infected and begin to restrict its breathing. The infected's breathing is considered being suffocated and they have a number of rounds equal to their Constitution modifier until they drop to 0 hit points. The infected can take their entire turn coughing up the lungworms 1d4 rounds to stop the effect (if their Constitution modifier is lower than their time needed to cough all the worms up, they will fall to 0 hit points first in that case)

The Omens of Malady

At 6th level you can summon at will a murder of crows that encompass your form and allow you teleport up to 60 feet to an unoccupied space. Additionally, you can have the crows surround you providing an advantage to Intimidation checks.

The Walking Immunity

You have immunity to all natural diseases, resistance to Necrotic damage, and cannot be Poisoned as your diseases have bolstered your own immune system to the point of supernatural resistance.

The Plaguelord Arrives

Starting at 14th level, you have become a master of disease and plague. Your name is whispered in fear by villages who barely survived your infectious wrath. As an action, you can summon a plague infected griffon with the bird part of a crow instead of that of an eagle. You will use the in-game stats of a Griffon with the following change: the griffon is considered Undead.

The creature's body is infected with a plague of your choosing that you can build via your Plague Brewing tables. Every attack from the creature automatically infects the enemy with your chosen disease. The plague griffon's turn immediately follows yours in the initiative order and it can be mounted.