Path of the Ker

Your powerful rage has attracted an ancient undead spirit that thirsts for blood. Those that walk this path will find themselves exploring this profane bond, and utilising it to achieve new heights of violence and savagery. 

Level 3: One foot in the grave

Your connection to your vengeful spirit companion has imbued you with necromantic power and a link to the realm of the dead. 

You learn the Speak with Dead spell and one 1st-level spell of your choice. You can cast this spell without expending a spell slot a number of times equal to your constitution modifier (minimum of 1) and you regain all expended uses of it when you finish a long rest. You can also cast this spell using spell slots you have of the appropriate level.

You also learn one cantrip of your choice from the necromancy school of magic.

Constitution is the spellcasting ability for both of these spells. 

Ker Bond

Your preternatural rage has drawn the attention of an undead spirit: a Ker. Whether this be the ghost of an ancient warlord, the vengeful revenant of a family member, or the collective fury of a destroyed grove is up to you. This spirit has bonded with you in a mutualism that grants you power, and it the ability to inflict greater violence upon the world around it. 

While inert, your Ker manifests as a tiny spectral object, hovering in an unoccupied space of your choice within 60 feet of you. You determine the spirit's appearance, some look like a death mask, a bleeding heart, or a bloodied animal. The Ker is intangible and doesn't occupy its space, and it sheds dim light in a 10-foot radius, as a bonus action, you can cause the Ker to hover up to 30 feet to an unoccupied space that you or it can see. It can pass through creatures but not objects. The Ker can hear and see, and it has darkvision with a range of 60 feet. It can also speak and understand one language of your choice. If Dispel Evil and Good is cast on the Ker or it travels more than 100 feet away from you, instead of being transported to the shadowfell, it is teleported to a random unoccupied space 5 feet from you. 

When you activate your rage, your Ker manifests into a more corporeal form. For the duration of your rage it becomes a Frenzied Ker. The Frenzied Ker is friendly to you and your companions and obeys your commands. The Frenzied Ker shares your initiative count, but it takes its turn immediately after yours. It can move and take its Reaction on its own, but the only action it takes is the Dodge action unless you take a Bonus Action to command it to take an action. That action can be one in its stat block or some other action. You can also sacrifice one of your attacks when you take the Attack action to command the Ker to take the Ker's Strike action. If you are incapacitated, the Frenzied Ker can take any action of its choice, not just Dodge. As a bonus action on your turn, or when it reaches zero hitpoints, the Frenzied Ker returns to its incorporeal form. If returned to its inert form by damage, the Ker cannot become frenzied again until after a short rest. 

 

Level 6: Deathborne Strikes

Whenever you deal weapon damage, you can choose to change the damage type to Necrotic. Additionally, any damage dealt by you or your Frenzied Ker ignores resistance to Necrotic damage

Level 10: Deepened Bond

Your bond to your Ker companion has grown. When attempting an insight, investigation, perception, or Intimidation check, it can use your Strength modifier in place of its own, even if the check normally uses a different ability. 

Additionally, when Frenzied, it now gains resistance to Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing damage and can make Reckless attacks. Once per combat, you can expend a bonus action to command the Ker to perform a Brutal Strike as if it were a barbarian of your level. If the attack misses, you can keep attempting this until it hits.

Level 14: Undead Mastery

When in a rage, you can choose to deal half of all damage you take to your Ker instead, if it is Frenzied. As a reaction, when your Ker is damaged you can choose to take half of it yourself. Additionally, if you are within 5 feet of your Ker during combat, both of your attacks trigger critical damage on a roll of 19 or 20.