Rose Knight (2014)

The Rose Knight is a fearsome warrior, dedicated to the Order of Roses that serves within Virtus’s Temple. Trained from an early age to hunt and incapacitate spellcasters, they are fearsome fighters who have also incorporated the arcane arts into their own fighting styles. Though members of this Order typically remain within the city of Gravehallow, occasionally lone knights have defected, or been sent further afield on official business.

Working under Morveth Bellefate, a renowned vampire lord, Rose Knights share in the same curse and use their thirst for blood to bolster their fierce fighting styles. Each knight has their own personal choice in weapon, though bolas, shoge, and flails are often favoured.

The uniform of the Order is typically composed of red garments and black armour, accented with roses in gold embroidery and ornamentation. Those more senior in rank and superiority typically wear golden crowns, which become more ornate the greater their seniority within the Order.

Caedem

When you choose this martial archetype at third level, you are promoted within the Order of Roses to the Caedem rank. In keeping with Rose mandates, this is the point at which a normal recruit is fully accepted into the Order—and gifted the blessings of vampiric blood.

At this point, your official race changes to the dhampir lineage, if you are not one already. Your original racial or lineage stats do not change, but you gain the following dhampir traits:

Darkvision. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You discern colours in that darkness as shades of grey.

Deathless Nature. You don’t need to breathe.

Vampiric Bite. Your fanged bite is a natural weapon, which counts as a simple melee weapon with which you are proficient. You add your Constitution modifier, instead of your Strength modifier, to attack and damage rolls when you attack with this bite. It deals 1d4 piercing damage on a hit. While you are missing half or more of your hit points, you have advantage on attack rolls you make with this bite.

When you attack with this bite and hit a creature that isn’t a construct or undead, you can empower yourself in one of the following ways of your choice:

• You regain hit points equal to the piercing damage dealt by the bite.
• You gain a bonus to the next ability check or attack roll you make; the bonus equals the piercing damage dealt by the bite.
• You can empower yourself with this bite a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, and you regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.

 

Relentless Pursuer

By 3rd level, you have perfected your studies in hunting down those who would misuse their magic. You gain proficiency in Intelligence (Arcana) checks, and also gain advantage on any Wisdom (Survival) and Intelligence (Investigation) checks required to track spellcasters.

 

Know Your Enemy

To know your enemy, you must become your enemy. At this level your studies have helped you to understand how to cast your own magic in order to better hunt the arcane.

You learn various spells as you level up, expending some of your life force to fuel your casting. For every level that you cast a spell at, you must expend a number of hit dice equal to that spell’s level. For example, to cast Counterspell at 5th level, you would expend 5 hit dice to do so. The maximum level a spell can be cast at is equal to half of your Fighter level, rounded up.

Fighter Level Spells

3rd Absorb elements, detect magic, shield

7th Dispel magic, silence

10th Counterspell, magic circle

18th Wall of force

Since you have learned your magic through a martial discipline, Constitution is your spellcasting ability for these spells. In addition, you use your Constitution modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.

Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Constitution modifier

Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Constitution modifier

 

Sanguine Strength

At 7th level, you have lived with your affliction long enough that you have learned to control your hunger, or at least gain some benefit from your body’s cravings for blood. You gain a bonus to attack rolls equal to your current missing hit dice, up to a maximum of half of your proficiency bonus (rounded down). Additionally, when you score a critical hit against a target you may choose to imbue your attack with some of your own life force. You may roll one of your hit dice to inflict additional damage equal to the roll plus your Constitution modifier.

Innate Sanctuary

Beginning at 10th level, you have learned to shield yourself with the very same magic that you seek to destroy in others. You gain advantage on any saving throws made against spells.

Spellcaster's Bane

At 15th level, when an attacker that you can see hits you with a magical attack, you can use your reaction to halve the attack’s damage against you.

No Escape

You gain the ability to halt a magic-user’s attempts to escape, or to move around the battlefield. When a creature you can see casts a spell that will magically teleport them elsewhere, such as Misty Step, Dimension Door, or Teleport, you can use your reaction to attempt to stop them. The target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. If the check fails, the spell does as well, and the action used to cast the spell is wasted. Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a short or long rest.