Base Class: Ranger
Blood-Stalked Reaper
While most Rangers act as wardens of the natural world, the Blood-Stalked Reaper serves a more primal, visceral master: the pulse of life itself. These hunters are often found where the veil between life and undeath is thinnest, moving through the world not as observers, but as apex predators seeking the rhythm of a beating heart. For a Dhampir, this path is less of a choice and more of a homecoming—a realization that the hunger within is not a curse, but a finely tuned compass for the hunt.
The Pulse in the Dark
A Blood-Stalked Reaper does not track by broken twigs or disturbed moss; they track the scent of iron and the vibration of arteries. To them, a wounded creature isn't just an objective—it is a beacon. They are masters of the "First Strike," specialized in closing the distance with unnatural speed before their prey even realizes a predator is in the room. They thrive in the chaos of the fray, where the air grows thick with the copper tang of blood.
A Symbiotic Hunger
Unlike traditional vampires who hide in gothic spires, these Reapers are gritty survivalists. They use their dhampiric physiology to traverse vertical cliff faces and ceiling beams, raining down arrows or dropping like stones to deliver a lethal bite. They don't just kill; they harvest. Every drop of vitality spilled by their blades fuels their own unnatural resilience, allowing them to shrug off wounds that would fell a mortal man and vanish into a mist of crimson when cornered.
To encounter a Blood-Stalked Reaper is to realize that you are not just being followed—you are being measured by the strength of your own blood.
Level 3: Crimson Senses
At 3rd level, your dhampiric nature sharpens. You gain expertise in the Survival skill when tracking creatures that do not have all of their hit points. Additionally, you can sense the heartbeat of any creature with blood within 60 feet of you, revealing their general location even through total darkness or invisibility (though they still have total cover if behind a wall).
Level 3: Blood-Stalked Reaper Spells
When you reach a Ranger level specified in the Blood-Stalked Reaper Spells table, you thereafter always have the listed spells prepared.
| Ranger Level | Spells |
|---|---|
| 3 | False Life, Charm Person |
| 5 | Hold Person |
| 9 | Vampiric Touch |
| 13 | Blight |
| 17 | Hold Monster |
Level 3: Predator's Surge
At 3rd level, you become a blur of motion when the scent of blood is in the air. At the start of your first turn of each combat, your walking speed increases by 25 feet until the end of that turn.
If you take the Attack action on that turn, you can make one additional weapon attack or one Vampiric Bite attack. If that attack hits, it deals an extra 1d8 necrotic damage. If you use your Vampiric Bite for this extra attack, you gain a double bonus and get advantage on your next ability check or attack roll.
Level 7: Sanguine Fortitude
By 7th level, your blood is a cocktail of necrotic resilience. You gain proficiency in Constitution saving throws + Wisdom saving throws.
Level 11: Hemorrhagic Strike
At 11th level, you learn to exploit every nick and cut. Once on each of your turns, when you hit a creature with a weapon attack, you can cause it to bleed profusely. The target takes an extra 1d8 damage of the weapon's type.
Furthermore, if the target is below its hit point maximum, you can choose to regain hit points equal to the extra damage dealt. You can use this healing feature a number of times equal to your Proficiency Bonus, regaining all uses after a long rest.
Level 15: Mist-Form Evasion
At 15th level, you can momentarily dissolve into a cloud of red mist to avoid harm. When you take damage, you can use your reaction to give yourself resistance to that instance of damage and teleport up to 30 feet to an unoccupied space you can see.
If you teleport to a space within 5 feet of a creature, you can make one Vampiric Bite attack against them as part of the same reaction.
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