Many mages are drawn to the art of blood magic, becoming sorcerers whose power literally flows through their veins. Though the practice of blood magic is shunned, feared, or even outlawed, it can provide a path to incredible magical potential for those with the courage to risk everything to take it.
Blood Spells
1st-level Blood Mage feature
You learn additional spells when you reach certain levels in this class, as shown on the Blood Spells table. Each of these spells counts as a sorcerer spell for you, but it doesn’t count against the number of sorcerer spells you know.
* Whenever you gain a level in this class, you may choose to swap dominate beast or hold person (or their replacement) for a different spell from dominate beast, dominate person, hold person or hold monster, so long as you are of a high enough level to cast it. Regardless of how you learn these spells, they are always considered Blood Spells for you.
Blood Sacrifice
1st-level Blood Mage feature
You can use your own blood to fuel abilities in this sub-class as a blood sacrifice, by spending a number of your sorcerer hit dice to power them. You must roll each spent dice (without any modifiers) and subtract the result from your current hit points.
Fuelled by Blood
1st-level Blood Mage feature
You have the ability to draw upon the power of your own blood. As a bonus action on your turn you may do one of the following:
Use blood sacrifice to regain a number of sorcery points equal to the hit dice spent.
Spend two or more sorcery points to regain d6 hit-points for every two sorcery points spent – if this would bring you above your maximum hit-points you will gain temporary hit-points equal to the excess.
Hemorrhagic Conduit
6th-level Blood Mage feature
Your control over the strength of your blood has enabled you to empower yourself directly, gaining the following benefits:
You may use blood sacrifice to fuel your Metamagics, spending any mixture of hit dice and/or sorcery points.
When you cast one of your Blood Spells you may use blood sacrifice instead of a spell slot, spending a number of hit dice equal to the level at which the spell is cast.
If you fail a saving throw you may blood sacrifice one or two hit dice to increase the result by the hit-points lost (potentially turning the failure into a success).
Crimson Puppeteer
14th-level Blood Mage feature
Your control over the blood, or other vital fluids, of other creatures enables you to manipulate them to your whims. Whenever a creature succeeds on a saving throw that would end one of your spells that is currently affecting it, you may use your reaction and spend one sorcery point (or blood sacrifice one dice) to force it to re-roll the saving throw – it must use the new result.
Purification
14th-level Blood Mage feature
Your mastery over your blood enables you to clear all but the most unusual poisons and diseases. At the start of each of your turns you may spend one sorcery point (or blood sacrifice one dice) to end one disease or poison you are currently suffering.
Sanguineous Surge
18th-level Blood Mage feature
The power within your blood is almost too much to contain, manifesting as a surge of crimson violence. As a bonus action on your turn you may initiate a sanguineous surge, gaining the following benefits:
When you activate this feature, and again at the start of each of your following turns, you will regain one sorcerer hit dice.
Your Blood Spells have advantage on attack rolls, and your target(s) have disadvantage on their first save against them.
When you use blood sacrifice, you may choose one creature you can see within 30-feet. Instead of losing the full number of hit-points, you instead lose half (rounding up) and your target takes the same amount in necrotic damage.
The effects last for up to a minute, ending early if you fall unconscious or choose to end them. Once you have used this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a long rest.
Optional Rule: Ritual Sacrifice
While sacrificing your blood to fuel your powers is taboo, sacrificing others' causes blood magic to become an act of evil.
Your DM may permit you to perform a ritual sacrifice in order to recover your strength. Doing so takes one hour, and cannot be performed during a rest, as it requires the preparation of your sacrifice(s), and the performance of a ritual that ends in their death. The sacrifice(s) must remain within 10 feet of you throughout.
If you are able to successfully complete the ritual, you may spend the sacrifice(s) hit dice to do any combination of the following:
Spend one sacrificial hit dice to recover one spent Sorcery Point (up to your Sorcery Point maximum).
Spend two sacrificial hit dice to regain d6 hit-points (up to your hit-point maximum).
Performing a blood sacrifice is considered to be an act of unquestionable evil, even when performed upon "deserving" victims. Doing so even once will cause your alignment to become chaotic evil, requiring substantial acts of redemption to return to even a neutral alignment. If you perform multiple ritual sacrifices your DM may establish additional consequences, such as gaining the attention of deities (both good and evil), or being pursued by mage hunters.
Notes
I know blood magic is done to death (and there are Critical Role sub-classes, and a class, themed around it), yet I've always been tempted to try my hand at implementing a sub-class based upon it anyway. The aim is to create a high-risk Sorcerer that can inflict damage upon itself in exchange for some powerful options, hoping to defeat an enemy before they kill themselves instead.
1st: Spell List: This was actually one of the easier DDB friendly spell lists I've come up with. While there are a few sorcerer spells on it, their being "Blood Spells" is important later. The wording on swapping hold person and dominate beast may be a little clunky, but the idea is to allow a player to swap lower level versions they may stop using, or use their normal picks to have a full list of dominate/hold options at different levels, and still have them all count as Blood Spells. Note: dominate monster is excluded on purpose as it's a powerful spell already, however it is still affected by Crimson Puppeteer.
1st: Blood Magic: This is the main feature, and it's a tricky one; basically you can trade sorcerer hit dice (losing d6 hit-points per dice) in exchange for more sorcery points, letting you fuel more spells and metamagic, or you can trade sorcery points to heal, however the healing is a lot weaker (it's not a 1:1 trade). While in theory you could spend all of your hit dice, in practice I think you probably won't spend more than half except in extreme circumstances, though the ability to do so could be crucial.
6th: Hemorrhagic Conduit: Yes it's the best name I could come up with. This lets you spend your hit dice directly to cast Blood Spells or use Metamagic, which increases the efficiency in sorcery point cost and action economy. You can also spend one hit dice to add it to a failed save. In all cases, spending the dice damages you as for Blood Magic.
14th: Crimson Puppeteer: Sorcery points (or hit dice) for a forced re-roll on a save that might end a spell. This doesn't help on inflicting the spell in the first place, but does help you prolong it, keeping enemies locked down for longer.
14th: Purification: Can end disease or poison, 'nuff said.
18th: Sanguineous Surge: Yes I have a thesaurus. Avatar state that slowly recovers hit dice, makes Blood Spells extra nasty, and lets you split the damage you inflict upon yourself to another within a short range. The damage may seem strong but I think in practice it's okay, as to maximise it you'd need to hold onto all of your hit dice at 20th-level then turn them all into sorcery points for 20d6 (average 70) dealing 35 to yourself and 35 necrotic to your target, so equivalent to casting a 4th- or 5th-level spell with a hefty drawback.
I think overall it should be somewhat balanced though I've concerns about possible exploits I haven't thought of yet. Basically it's a sorcerer who can harm themselves to use even more spells or metamagics, with the most efficient use being for Blood Spells that mostly favour close range, necromancy and targeted control. It has notable synergy with bloodwell vial due to the spending of hit dice. I'm fairly happy with it in its first form, but eager to hear feedback!
This is a very well done homebrew :) Compared to other blood mage subclasses this one would be the one I would play. It is nice to have a spellcaster equivalent to the blood hunter. Good if you want an evil or freaky sorcerer. Think of the how well this would go with Bloodwell Vials..
Many mages are drawn to the art of blood magic, becoming sorcerers whose power literally flows through their veins. Though the practice of blood magic is shunned, feared, or even outlawed, it can provide a path to incredible magical potential for those with the courage to risk everything to take it.
Blood Spells
1st-level Blood Mage feature
You learn additional spells when you reach certain levels in this class, as shown on the Blood Spells table. Each of these spells counts as a sorcerer spell for you, but it doesn’t count against the number of sorcerer spells you know.
Blood Spells
* Whenever you gain a level in this class, you may choose to swap dominate beast or hold person (or their replacement) for a different spell from dominate beast, dominate person, hold person or hold monster, so long as you are of a high enough level to cast it. Regardless of how you learn these spells, they are always considered Blood Spells for you.
Blood Sacrifice
1st-level Blood Mage feature
You can use your own blood to fuel abilities in this sub-class as a blood sacrifice, by spending a number of your sorcerer hit dice to power them. You must roll each spent dice (without any modifiers) and subtract the result from your current hit points.
Fuelled by Blood
1st-level Blood Mage feature
You have the ability to draw upon the power of your own blood. As a bonus action on your turn you may do one of the following:
Hemorrhagic Conduit
6th-level Blood Mage feature
Your control over the strength of your blood has enabled you to empower yourself directly, gaining the following benefits:
Crimson Puppeteer
14th-level Blood Mage feature
Your control over the blood, or other vital fluids, of other creatures enables you to manipulate them to your whims. Whenever a creature succeeds on a saving throw that would end one of your spells that is currently affecting it, you may use your reaction and spend one sorcery point (or blood sacrifice one dice) to force it to re-roll the saving throw – it must use the new result.
Purification
14th-level Blood Mage feature
Your mastery over your blood enables you to clear all but the most unusual poisons and diseases. At the start of each of your turns you may spend one sorcery point (or blood sacrifice one dice) to end one disease or poison you are currently suffering.
Sanguineous Surge
18th-level Blood Mage feature
The power within your blood is almost too much to contain, manifesting as a surge of crimson violence. As a bonus action on your turn you may initiate a sanguineous surge, gaining the following benefits:
The effects last for up to a minute, ending early if you fall unconscious or choose to end them. Once you have used this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a long rest.
Optional Rule: Ritual Sacrifice
While sacrificing your blood to fuel your powers is taboo, sacrificing others' causes blood magic to become an act of evil.
Your DM may permit you to perform a ritual sacrifice in order to recover your strength. Doing so takes one hour, and cannot be performed during a rest, as it requires the preparation of your sacrifice(s), and the performance of a ritual that ends in their death. The sacrifice(s) must remain within 10 feet of you throughout.
If you are able to successfully complete the ritual, you may spend the sacrifice(s) hit dice to do any combination of the following:
Performing a blood sacrifice is considered to be an act of unquestionable evil, even when performed upon "deserving" victims. Doing so even once will cause your alignment to become chaotic evil, requiring substantial acts of redemption to return to even a neutral alignment. If you perform multiple ritual sacrifices your DM may establish additional consequences, such as gaining the attention of deities (both good and evil), or being pursued by mage hunters.
Characters: Bullette, Chortle, Dracarys Noir, Edward Merryspell, Habard Ashery, Legion, Peregrine
My Homebrew: Feats | Items | Monsters | Spells | Subclasses | Races
Guides: Creating Sub-Races Using Trait Options
WIP (feedback needed): Blood Mage, Chromatic Sorcerers, Summoner, Trickster Domain, Unlucky, Way of the Daoist (Drunken Master), Weapon Smith
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This is a very well done homebrew :) Compared to other blood mage subclasses this one would be the one I would play. It is nice to have a spellcaster equivalent to the blood hunter. Good if you want an evil or freaky sorcerer. Think of the how well this would go with Bloodwell Vials..
this is pretty cool ! a way to get around the sorcery point shortage at a sacrifice.
This is an amazingly cool idea, I'm only sad that you beat me to it