Path of the Blighted

A disease blights this barbarian, threatening to sicken and even kill them, lest the disease not be undone. The origins of this disease seems to be magical, causing the barbarian to have little understanding or control over what is happening.

The disease eats away at the barbarian over time unless the barbarian harnesses the power lingering within them, empowering natural attacks and allowing them to spread the disease onto others through their rage. If they do not use their rage to spread the disease throughout their enemies, the disease will become more likely to eat away at the barbarian themselves.

Level 3: Empowering Blight

When you enter your rage, you can transform, revealing the blighted power within you. Until the rage ends, you manifest natural weapons. They count as a simple melee weapons for you, and you add your Strength or Constitution modifier to the attack and damage rolls when you attack with them, as listed below.

You gain these weapons each time you rage:

Bite. Your mouth is empowered by the disease lingering within you, causing it to froth and bubble with rabid power. It deals {2d4 + your Strength modifier} piercing damage on a hit. Once on each of your turns when you damage a creature with this bite, you regain a number of hit points equal to your Constitution modifier, provided you have less than half your hit points when you hit.

Claws. Each of your hands grow larger claws, which you can use as a weapon if your hand is empty. It deals {1d6 + your Strength modifier} slashing damage on a hit. Once on each of your turns when you attack with a claw using the Attack action, you can make one additional claw attack as part of the same action. As a bonus action, you may also make a further claw attack if you used your attack action to attack with one of your natural weapons.

Level 6: Adapting Blight

You can also alter your form to help you adapt to your surroundings as the blight tries to keep its host alive at all costs. When you finish a short or long rest, choose one of the following benefits, which lasts until you finish your next short or long rest:

Climbing

 

You gain a climbing speed equal to your walking speed, and you can climb difficult surfaces, including upside down on ceilings, without needing to make an ability check.

 

Jumping

 

When you jump, you can make a Strength (Athletics) check and extend your jump by a number of feet equal to the check’s total. You can make this special check only once per turn.

 

Swimming

 

You gain a swimming speed equal to your walking speed, and you can breathe underwater.

 

You gain a sort of magical rejuvenation, allowing you to lose two levels of exhaustion on a long rest, rather than just one. On the other hand, your blight grows and develops inside you, eating away at you. To rage exhausts you. When you exit your rage, you gain one level of exhaustion.

On top of this, you gain resistance to poison damage and advantage on saving throws against the poisoned condition as the blight tries to become the only thing to threaten your body, striving for you to host only it.

Level 10: Infectious Blight

When you hit a creature with your natural weapons while you are raging, the blight within you can infect your target with rabid fury. Choose one of the following effects (your choice):

• The target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw {DC = 8 + your Constitution modifier + your proficiency bonus} or fall into a rabid frenzy for up to a minute. While in this rabid frenzy, the target attacks the closest targets to it, friend or foe. If there is more than one person within the same distance, roll to see which one they attack. They must use their action and may use their bonus action to attack in any way possible, aiming to do as much damage as possible. At the end of each turn, they may reroll their Wisdom saving throw.
• The target takes {2d12 + your Constitution modifier} psychic damage and {4d6 + your Constitution modifier} poison damage.
• The target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw {DC = 8 + your Constitution modifier + your proficiency bonus} or be poisoned for 1 minute. While poisoned in this way, the target can not make reactions and takes poison damage equal to your proficiency bonus each round. This poison damage ignores resistance, but enemies that are immune to either poison damage or the poisoned condition are immune to this effect entirely.

You can use this feature a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, and you regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.

Level 14: Slaughterous Blight

As a bonus action while in your rage, you can incite this Slaughterous Blight, which lasts for up to 1 minute as if holding concentration.

On each of your turns, you must make a Constitution saving throw {DC = 3 x the number of rounds the slaughterous blight has been active} or take 8d8 poison damage, ignoring the resistance you may have. If you somehow have immunity to poison damage, this damage treats that immunity as a resistance instead.

While the Slaughterous Blight is active, you have the following benefits:

• Any attacks made with your natural weapons are made with advantage.
• You land critical hits with your natural weapons on a 19 or 20.
• You gain resistance to all damage apart from psychic damage.
• Any damage you deal with your natural weapons ignores resistances and treats immunities as resistance.
• The hit points you regain from your bite attacks is always the maximum you can roll.
• Your AC increases by your Constitution modifier on top of armour or unarmoured defence.

When you exit a Slaughterous Blight state, you gain two levels of exhaustion and must make a Constitution saving throw {DC = 3 x the number of rounds the slaughterous blight was active} or become poisoned until your next short or long rest. You have the standard advantage against the poisoned condition unless the Slaughterous Blight lasted 6 or more rounds.

You can enter this Slaughterous Blight a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus and regain all expended uses on a long rest.