Pollutant Druid

As a player who has chosen the Pollutant Druid subclass, you embrace a unique and controversial path within the world of Dungeons and Dragons. Your character taps into the powerful forces of pollution to command dark energies and manipulate the environment. This subclass allows you to become an agent of both protection and corruption, wielding the destructive aspects of pollution for your own purposes.

Your appearance might mirror the conflicted nature of your powers. Your skin could be tinged with faint hues of sickly green or veined with dark streaks, representing the influence of pollution on your body. You might wear a mix of traditional druidic garments and armor adorned with symbols or motifs associated with toxic substances or decay.

In contrast to traditional druids who prioritize the preservation of nature, your character's connection to pollution gives you a unique perspective. You understand that pollution is not inherently good, but you have learned to tap into its potent energies and bend them to your will. You might view your powers as a necessary evil, seeing them as a means to control and shape the world in the face of ever-encroaching industrialization and corruption.

Your approach to spellcasting and combat involves manipulating poison and acid, harnessing their destructive qualities to both protect yourself and harm your enemies. You might command acid rain, toxic fumes, or corroding touch in battle, unleashing them upon your foes in devastating fashion. Your spells and abilities bypass resistance to poison and acid damage, ensuring that your enemies are unable to easily withstand your vicious attacks.

In addition to your formidable combat abilities, you possess a unique aura of toxic energy. When creatures come into contact with your aura, they may suffer poison damage and become poisoned, helping you control the battlefield and discourage would-be attackers.

Through your journey, you gradually unlock even more potent abilities. At higher levels, you gain the power to transform into an elemental form imbued with pollution, granting you resistance to poison and acid damage. You can also inflict curses on foes struck by your poison or acid spells, reducing their maximum hit points, imposing disadvantage on their saving throws, or reducing their speed to a standstill.

However, with great power comes great responsibility. Your character may grapple with moral dilemmas regarding the use of pollution and its potential consequences. Are you driven by a desire to restore balance to a world overwhelmed by pollution, or are you motivated by a desire for personal power? Your decisions and actions will shape your character's journey and the perception others have of you.

 

Polluted Spellcasting

When you choose this subclass at 2nd level, you gain access to additional spells relating to pollution, which are added to the druid spell list for you. These spells can include spells like "Acid Rain," "Toxic Fumes," or "Corroding Touch." You can choose these spells when you gain a level in this class.

Corrosive Aura

At 3rd level, your connection to pollution allows you to emit an aura of toxic energy. When a creature starts its turn within 10 feet of you, it must make a Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, it takes poison damage equal to your proficiency bonus, and it is poisoned until the start of its next turn. The damage increases as you gain levels in this class.

Nature's Decay

At 6th level, your spells and abilities that deal poison or acid damage ignore resistance to those damage types. Additionally, when you deal damage with a spell or ability that deals poison or acid damage to a creature, you can choose to reduce the creature's speed by 10 feet until the start of your next turn.

Corruptive Transformation

At 10th level, you can use your action to transform into an elemental form imbued with pollution, becoming an embodiment of decay and destruction. This transformation lasts for 1 minute, and you can use it once per long rest. While transformed, you gain the following benefits:

- You gain resistance to poison damage and acid damage.

- Whenever a creature starts its turn within 10 feet of you, it takes poison damage equal to your proficiency bonus. The damage increases when you reach 14th level.

Malediction of Pollution

At 14th level, your control over pollution intensifies, allowing you to unleash a potent curse. When you hit a creature with a spell or ability that deals poison or acid damage, you can inflict one of the following effects on the target:

- Reduce their maximum hit points by an amount equal to the damage dealt.

- Impose disadvantage on their saving throws until the end of your next turn.

- Reduce their speed to 0 until the start of your next turn.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.