Base Class: Fighter
The Heishou Pack are a group of mutant assassins and combatants each assigned to a different branch themed after the Chinese zodiac. Those of the Mao Branch follow the way of the Hare, developing springing limbs and blinding agility to eviscerate their targets in the blink of an eye.
There are many creatures and shady people who walk wreathed by moonlight, and among those are the ones who make use of both blade and talisman to perform impactful, quick and deadly actions in the name of another. The Moonshadow Wardens are such people, serving their leash-holders with swift, deadly efficiency. As an Adept of the Heishou Pack's Mao Branch, you guide your lesser Rabbits in service of your lord.
Conditions
Deathrite - Fissure
When a creature with points of Deathrite - Fissure would take additional damage from Rupture, their movement speed is reduced by 5 feet for each point of Rupture removed, recovering 5 feet at the end of each of their subsequent turns. Furthermore, that creature’s Initiative is reduced by the same value, being restored by 1 at the end of their subsequent turns. After these effects are applied, the afflicted creature loses a point of Deathrite - Fissure.
Deathrite - Haste
A creature with points of Deathrite - Haste takes an additional 1d8 damage when attacked for each 15 feet the attacker has traveled during their turn. The strength of the die increases depending on the amount of Deathrite - Haste on the target; 1d10 at 2 stacks, and 1d12 at 3. After taking this damage, they gain stacks of Rupture equal to the amount of extra dice used.
Once the attack successfully hits, they lose all of their stacks of Deathrite - Haste and the condition ends.
Rupture
A creature suffering from the Rupture condition takes extra dice of damage whenever they’re attacked equal to half their stacks of Rupture, rounded up. The additional damage die depend on the attacking creature’s Proficiency Proficiency Bonus, being d4 at +2 Bonus, d6 at +3 Bonus, d8 at +4 Bonus, d10 at +5 Bonus and above.
Once an attack successfully hits and the condition is triggered, they lose all of their stacks of Rupture and the condition ends.
Strider【Mao】
A creature with Strider【Mao】gains 5 feet of movement speed for each point of Strider【Mao】they have. A creature loses all points of Strider【Mao】at the end of their turn.
Additionally, as a bonus action, you can jump a number of feet equal to five times your proficiency bonus, without provoking opportunity attacks. You can use this feature once, and only if your speed is greater than 0. You regain all expended uses on a long rest.
Creatures with points of Strider【Mao】take on the appearance of rabbits, usually by morphing their feet into rabbit paws or developing a fluffy tail.
Blade Wreathed in Heavenly Authority
Knowledge in how to write talismans is one of your bare necessities to protect your lieges and companions, and as such you’ve mastered the means to use said talismans to bolster more power. During a long rest you may apply a series of talismans onto the blade or alongside the body of a weapon you are proficient win, transforming it into a Weapon of Heavenly Authority.
A Weapon of Heavenly Authority deals only half the damage rolled with it, after adding any additional modifiers, but inflicts 1 Rupture on every hit. While you wield it, it gains the Light and Finesse property and loses the Two-Handed and Heavy properties (if it does not already have these effects). When you deal damage with a Weapon of Heavenly Authority, you gain a single stack of Tianjiu Star’s Blade, for a maximum amount equal to your Proficiency Bonus. While you are using your Weapon of Heavenly Authority for two weapon fighting you may use it to perform an additional attack with it during your Attack action by spending your Bonus Action instantly and then resume any attacks you could still perform. Tianjiu Star’s Blade is reduced to 0 at the end of combat.
The amount of Rupture inflicted on a hit is increased to 2 when you reach 8th level, and to 3 when you reach 14th level. You may only have one Weapon of Heavenly Authority at any given time, and if you make a new one the older of the two loses its power.
Trained Under Moonlight
The artistry involved in creating deathrite talismans is one you’ve spent your time honing to a fine point alongside the way to carry yourself in a battlefield, both when making yourself scarce amidst the shadows or visible under moonlight. You gain proficiency in Calligrapher's Tools and the following effects:
- Admist Shadows. You gain proficiency in Stealth.
- Under Moonlight. You gain a cumulative +1 bonus to Perception skill checks per every other friendly creature within 10-ft of you, to a maximum equal to your Proficiency Bonus. You also gain the same bonus to your Passive Perception score, but its maximum is equal to double your Proficiency Bonus Instead.
Swiftfeet Protection
The defense of another isn’t measured through layers of armor, but through speed and force. When a friendly creature would be hit by an attack, you may use your reaction to spend a number of Tianjiu Star’s Blade stacks to move up to 10-ft per stack spent towards that creature. If you arrive within 5-ft of said creature, you manage to intercept the attack, having the attack instead be aimed against you, potentially turning the attack into a miss if your AC surpasses the original value rolled. Afterward you may instantly perform a melee weapon attack against the initial attacking creature, inflicting an additional 2 Rupture on a hit.
When you spend Tianjiu Star’s Blade like this, you gain a bonus to your Armor Class equal to the amount spent. This lasts until the end of the current creature’s turn. Furthermore, if you spent 2 Tianjiu Star’s Blade during this reaction, you also inflict Deathrite - Haste on a hit. If you spent 3 Tianjiu Star’s Blade, you also inflict Deathrite - Fissure on a hit.
Over the Moon
Your swiftness in dispatching of a target is fearsome, needing only a leap to inflict true damage. When you take the Dash action on your turn, you gain 3 stacks of Strider【Mao】. During that action you may jump for up to your movement speed in a straight line as part of the same action, performing a melee weapon attack against a creature within the travelled distance. When you do so, any hostile creature that you pass by that would have an Opportunity attack against you make it at disadvantage, and when you hit a creature with your own attack, the target suffers 3 Rupture- this attack does not reduce the target's Rupture value if triggered.
Furthermore, when you would hit a wall while jumping you may spend your bonus action to put more force into pressing against it, gaining an additional 20-ft of movement until you touch the ground, being able to wall-jump much farther like this. If using this feature would require an Athletics check, you do so with advantage.
Once you use this ability, you can’t use it again until you finish a short rest
Sleeping Beasts' Rite
Your knowledge on talismans has allowed you to make new tools for your trade, also bolstering your fellows in the process. During a short or long rest you may grant yourself and up to your Proficiency Bonus’ worth of friendly creatures a Talisman of Haste, which becomes inert when you next take a Short or Long rest. While wearing a Talisman of Haste, a creature gains an additional 10-ft of length for their jumps and has your Proficiency Bonus’ worth as an additional modifier to Athletics and Acrobatics Skill Checks. When a creature wearing a Talisman would roll for initiative, it activates, having their body surge with otherworldly speed, granting them a bonus to their roll equal to your Proficiency Bonus.
Traceless to Sight and Sound Alike
You’ve reached a point where your aptitude to the work you must perform is above most others, granting you the ability to strike with speed as if you never even moved. At the start of your first turn during combat or when you hit another creature using your Swiftfeet Protection reaction you may attempt to roll a Stealth check against hostile creatures’ Passive Perception. When you take the Attack action while hidden, you aren’t seen and do not trigger Rupture’s extra damage until the last attack that would hit during your turn as your slices pierce flesh so cleanly and silently that it takes a moment for the target to react to the pain they truly are in. Additionally, each attack that does not trigger Rupture’s extra damage instead has the creature suffer an additional stack of Rupture.
Cloudsplitting Manifestation
To leave a beast whimpering is to ready it for its death. That teaching is one you’ve taken to heart, and as such you’ve truly embodied the capabilities of a guardian that needs not defense to guard it’s master. Once per long rest you may spend your Action to perform Midnight Storm.
When you perform Midnight Storm you start a chain of attacks to punish your target beyond what anyone can sustain, or at least push them as far as you can from your master while doing so. You perform any attacks you could as per the Attack action against a single target, afterward you may perform an additional weapon attack against the same creature for each stack of Rupture they are suffering from. Attacking like this does not trigger the condition, instead reducing it by one per attack that hits, also pushing the target back 5-ft in the opposite direction with you being moved by the same value to follow within 5-ft of them. For this duration, you gain Advantage to your next attack roll if your previous one during this turn has hit its target, as your momentum carries you forward.
You may also use Midnight Storm instead of attacking as in the use of your Over the Moon feat. After using Midnight Storm, you may only do so again after a taking a Long Rest.
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