Introduction to Ephialancy

‎In the vast and intricate tapestry of magic, a new and mysterious school has emerged: Ephialancy, the ninth school of magic. Unlike the traditional arcane arts, Ephialancy bridges the waking realms with the dream plane of existence, weaving together the fabric of dreams and reality.

This enigmatic form of magic taps into the subconscious, allowing practitioners to harness the power of dreams and nightmares. It is a magic not bound by logic or intellect, but by imagination, will, and belief.

The Nature of Ephialancy

Ephialancy is a school of magic that defies conventional understanding. Its effects cannot be analyzed through logical means, making it inaccessible through mere intelligence. Instead, Ephialancy is fueled by the caster's imagination and conviction.

The essence of Ephialancy lies in the belief that if one wills something to happen and truly believes in it, the magic will make it so. This is reminiscent of the legendary Orcs from Warhammer, whose sheer belief in their makeshift technology makes it function. Similarly, an Ephialancer's faith and imagination are the keys to unlocking their magical potential.

The Mechanics of Ephialancy

Ephialancy is typically channeled through Charisma, reflecting the caster's ability to impose their will upon reality. In some cases, Wisdom may be used, representing a deep, intuitive connection to the dream realm. However, it is ultimately up to the Dungeon Master (DM) to decide what ability scores Ephialancy can be used with in their game.

The wizard subclass detailed in this supplement, School of Ephialancy, includes a feature that shifts the casting focus from Intelligence to Charisma, emphasizing the unique nature of this magic. DMs can choose to retain Intelligence as the casting ability if they prefer a more traditional approach.

Purpose and Goals of Ephialancy

For DMs looking to incorporate Ephialancy into their game, it offers a wealth of opportunities for creative and dynamic storytelling. Ephialancy is intended as an arcane practice that little is known about, allowing it to easily fit into any traditional D&D game setting

The primary goal of introducing Ephialancy is to bring dream-focused magic into the game, offering players a unique and creative option. It caters to those who seek to explore the mysteries of the subconscious and wield the power of dreams and nightmares. By integrating Ephialancy, players and DMs alike can delve into a realm where imagination reigns supreme and reality is shaped by the strength of one's will.

This supplement introduces a new wizard subclass, the School of Ephialancy, alongside a collection of spells that can be cast using this new school. These spells blend dream and reality, providing unique effects that can surprise and challenge players.

DMs can use Ephialancy to infuse their campaigns with dream-like scenarios, where the boundaries between the real and the unreal blur, and the power of belief shapes the world.

What makes Ephialancy Unique

While other spell schools involve deliberately creating something the caster envisions, ephialancy inherently brings the caster's imagination and perception into reality, sometimes unknowingly. Instead of consciously deciding on a specific creation, ephialancers unknowingly transform their surroundings based on their will and perception, making the magic deeply personal and unpredictable.

While ephialancers can still influence what their magic creates, activating their magic is more about convincing themselves of this new reality, as opposed to bending the weave personally to create this reality.

Modifier used for Ephialancy Spells (Optional)

A spell can exist under multiple spell schools. but it can only be casted under one spell school at a time. When you cast as an ephialancy spell and your spellcasting ability for it is usually Intelligence, you must instead use Charisma.

School of Ephialancy Wizard

‎In the eyes of most people, sleeping is a waste of time. Being unconscious for 8 hours a day doesn't bring anything; it just restrains even more the amount of time they have in a day. But, for those who were able to pierce the thin veils that separate the awakened and the sleeping world through Ephialancy magic, dreaming becomes a useful tool they can use to shape reality.

Wizards that study and actively try to understand the powers of dreams are known as Ephialancy Wizards. Through the ancient and arcane art of Ephialancy, these wizards bridge the worlds of sleep and wakefulness. Awake, they use their magic and imagination to bring to life the fantasies and nightmares from their own dreams and those of the people around them. Once asleep, they traverse the dreamscape, wielding the power to alter the fabric of dreams and influence the minds of those they encounter.

Ephialancy Savant

Beginning when you select this school at 2nd level, you choose one 1st-level ephialancy spell and add it to your spellbook for free. In addition, whenever you reach an odd level in this class, you can add one Ephialancy spell from the Wizard spell list to your spellbook for free.

Existing Spells that now can use Ephialancy:

Spell Level	Spells
Cantrips	Minor Illusion - Thaumaturgy - Mind Sliver
1st Level	Cause Fear - Dissonant Whispers - Sleep
2nd Level	Calm Emotions - Detect Thoughts - Phantasmal Force - Mind Spike - Mirror Image
3rd Level	Catnap - Enemies Abound - Fear - Hypnotic Pattern - Major Image - Conjure Animals - Galder's Tower
4th Level	Confusion - Greater Invisibility - Phantasmal Killer - Hallucinatory Terrain
5th Level	Dream - Dominate Person - Geas - Mislead - Modify Memory - Synaptic Static - Passwall
6th Level	Eyebite - Mental Prison
7th Level	Etherealness - Power Word Pain - Project Image - Symbol
8th Level	Feeblemind - Maddening Darkness - Power Word Stun - Illusory Dragon
9th Level	Weird - Psychic Scream

 

New Spells that are Ephialancy only:

• Spell Level	Spells
  Cantrips	Peek (Dream Shifter) - Skip Strike (Dream Shifter) - Whirling Whisps (Dream Shifter) - Gravity Trick (Cinder's Cosmic Compendium)
  1st Level	Manifest Dream (Dream Shifter) - Fall (Steinhardt)
  2nd Level	Warpscape (Dream Shifter)
  3rd Level	Echoed Terror (School of Ephialancy)
  5th Level	Dream (5e Player's Handbook, optional only ephialancy) - Heart's Burden (Legends of the Psionics)

Oneiric Conjuration

Starting at 2nd level, You can use your action to conjure up an object or a beast in your hand or on the ground in an unoccupied space that you can see within 10 feet of you.

If you chose an object, it can be no larger than 3 feet on a side and weigh no more than 10 pounds, and its form must be that of a nonmagical object that you have seen.

If you chose a creature, it must be a small or smaller beast of challenge rating 1/4 or lower. The creature is friendly to you and your allies, but will otherwise act as a normal animal would.

Any objects or beasts made with this feature are translucent and appear visibly magical.

The object or creature disappears after 1 hour, when you use this feature again, or if it takes or deals any damage.

Additionally, you can choose to be immune to any spell that puts you to sleep or alters your dreams.

Arcane Imagination

(Optional - If not using, replace all mentions of CHA to INT)

Beginning when you select this school at 2nd level, as a practitioner of ephialancy, you harness the raw power of dreams and imagination to cast your spells. Your sheer will and belief in your craft allow you to bypass traditional arcane methods. After extensive practice with sigils and runes, you trust in your mastery and let your conviction fill in the gaps. To the eyes of conventional wizards, your runes appear chaotic and incorrect, yet they work flawlessly.

Any Wizard class feature that refers to your Intelligence now instead use your Charisma. Your belief and imagination fuel the magic, making it a unique and mysterious art.

If your saving throw proficiencies come from Wizard, manually go into your character sheet and set your Charisma saving throws to "Proficient," and set your Intelligence saving throws to "Not Proficient."

Walker of Both Realms

Beginning at 6th level, You can use your bonus action to step into a fragment of the dream plane, even when you're awake. You can see and hear the plane you originated from, but everything there looks distorted. While in the dream plane, you can only affect and be affected by other creatures on that plane. Creatures that aren't in the dream realm can't perceive you and can't interact with you unless a special ability or magic has given them the ability to do so.

You also gain the following benefits while you're in the dreaming world:

• Your movement speed is increase by 10 feet.
• You gain a flying speed equal to half of your current speed.
• You can see the thoughts of other people around you. You gain the benefits of the detect thoughts spell for as long as you are in the dreaming world.

This effect lasts until the end of your turn, or, you can expend another use of this ability to extend the effect until the start of your next turn. When this effect ends, you immediately return to the plane you originated from in the spot you currently occupy.

You can use this ability a number {{modifier:cha}} times and regain expended uses at the end of a long rest.

Dreams of Unity

Beginning at 10th level, you can bind allies together in a shared dream, giving you benefits in the waking world. At the beginning of a long rest, choose a number of willing creatures equal to half your proficiency bonus (rounded down) that are taking a long rest within 30 feet of you. You then pick one of the following themes, which you and the chosen creatures dream about and are affected by. Each dreamer's dreams contain shared elements based on the theme. At the end of the long rest, they receives a bonus based on the theme. These bonuses last until the next long rest. If a dreamer's long rest is not completed, or another being communicates with a dreamer during the dream, they do not gain the benefits of the shared dream.

• Magical Mimicry: Through the power of belief and the empowering of your connection to the dream realm from the prior night, you can mimic the magic you witness. Once before the dreamer's next long rest, they can cast any 1st-level spell that they saw another creature cast since their previous long rest without expending a spell slot. When you reach 14th level, the spell can be 2nd-level, and if the spell casted is 1st-level it is upcasted to 2nd-level.

• Vigilant Imagination: Your dreams are filled with imagery of aggression and the heat of battle. All of the dreamers can add their proficiency bonus to their initiative rolls.

• Confident Reverie: By effortlessly resisting the arcane forces, you manifest an aura that empowers allies, bolstering their resolve against similar trials, fueled by the conviction that such resilience should be shared. When a dreamer rolls a natural 20 on a saving throw against a spell or magical effect, this ability is triggered, and the dreamer emits an aura in a 20ft radius around them. The dreamer and all their allies in that radius can add your Charisma modifier to all saves of the same ability type as the one that triggered this ability, including the triggering save. Also if the spell or magical effect that triggered this ability causes damage, reduce the amount of damage from everyone within the aura by an amount equal to your Charisma modifier (this can stack with multiple Confident Reverie's). This ability ends after the dreamer's turn has ended twice.

• Manifested Chaos: Harnessing the tumultuous energies of dreams, you weave their unpredictable essence into reality, offering others a glimpse of their wildest imaginings to wield as their own. Roll on the anomaly table twice. Each dreamer on this effect can choose one of the rolled anomalies to gain until their next long rest. At level 14, dreamers instead gain both anomalies. If the roll is the same anomaly twice, the second anomaly available to everyone is any singular anomaly of the group's choice.

Additionally, you can expend an additional use of the Walker of Both Realms feature to bring a willing creature within 5 feet of you into the dream world with you. The creature returns from the dream when you return.

Anomaly Table

When rolling on the table, roll a d20. Table credit to Dream Shifter Class.

1	Abstract: You don't need to breathe. Additionally, you are immune to disease and the poisoned condition.
2	Aiming: As a bonus action you can take aim to add 1d6 to the next attack roll you make this turn.
3	Camouflage: You can use an action to become invisible. Anything you are wearing or carrying is invisible as long as it is on your person. This effect ends immediately after you attack, cast a spell, or move.
4	Crackling: You can add your Charisma modifier (minimum of +1) to one damage roll of any cantrip you cast.
5	Distorting: You can use a bonus action to turn the area in a 15-foot radius around you into difficult terrain until the beginning of your next turn.
6	Deflecting: Damage taken is reduced by your Charisma modifier.
7	Elastic: When you make a melee attack on your turn, your reach is increased by 10 feet.
8	Fluid: You are immune to being grappled and restrained and you can move through a space as narrow as 1 inch wide without squeezing.
9	Glowing: You shed bright light in a 30-foot radius and dim light for an additional 30 feet. You can end and restore this effect as a bonus action.
10	Indomitable: You are immune to being paralyzed and stunned and magic can’t put you to sleep.
11	Nimble: You can take the hide action as a bonus action.
12	Obscure: Whenever you take the dodge action, you gain resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage until the beginning of your next turn.
13	Psychedelic: As a bonus action, you can choose a creature you can see within 10 feet. The next time it makes a skill check or saving throw this turn, it must roll 1d4 and subtract the number rolled from the skill check or saving throw.
14	Puzzling: While not wielding a shield, you have a +2 bonus to your AC.
15	Responsive: You gain a bonus to initiative rolls equal to your Charisma modifier and you can’t be surprised.
16	Slippery: You can take the disengage action as a bonus action.
17	Swift: You can take the dash action as a bonus action.
18	Symbiotic: You can take the help action as a bonus action.
19	Tranquil: Whenever a creature within 10 feet takes damage, the damage becomes non-lethal.
20	Weightless: You have a flying speed equal to half your walking speed and you can hover.

Waking Dream

Beginning at 14th level, your mastery of the plane of dreams allows you to pull from your dreams imagination into the space around you.

• Projected Perceptions. The area within a 30ft radius sphere around you is considered to be your Waking Dream. On your turn, you can manipulate the appearance, texture, sound, taste, or smell of everything within a 10ft radius of a point you choose within your Waking Dream. These projections have the perception of mass and substance, and are nearly indistinguishable from reality. Once you project your Waking Dream in an area, you can't do so again until the start of your next turn. A projection that is outside of your Waking Dream's radius at the end of your turn disappears.

• Inspection. These projections are ephemeral and don't hold up under inspection. A creature can attempt an Intelligence saving throw against your Spell Save DC to discern what is a projection and what is real. On a success, your projections appear ephemeral to that creature for 1 hour.

• Dream Spirit. As an action, you can create a dream spirit, which is projection of a creature of your choice which does not have to exist. The dream spirit uses the fey spirit stat block from the summon fey spell as if it were cast at 3rd level, but it only has 1 hit point. When you create the dream spirit, you can change its perceived size up to large, but it is still considered to be small in terms of its strength and capabilities. When you create the dream spirit, you can choose to concentrate on it, giving it its full hit points and the ability to take damage without disappearing. When you lose concentration, it disappears.

• Fading Dreams. A dream spirit disappears if it ends its turn outside of your Waking Dream radius or if you create a dream spirit while another one exists.

Additionally, you regain all of your uses of the Walker of Both Realms ability when you finish a short or long rest.