The Order of the Necromantic Blood is the one of the least understood and unknown of the orders, to a point where practitioners often hide their order's true nature from others. With the secrets of blood magic and refining it for combat, the members of this order go down an even darker path. The Necromantic Blood seek out and study life and death, they study the very unholy power that they hunt. They use necromancy to bolster their own health, to counter act their life loss and maybe even extend their own life essence towards that of the undying. They collect shadows to hide within and move vast distances, they can even summon the undead as allies or even bring someone back to life. They must be careful to not fall too far into the darkness of necromancy, for in the end it is their intent to destroy terrors wherever they arise, not become them.
Rite of the Dark Essence
When you join this order at 3rd level, you learn the Rite of the Dark Essence esoteric rite (detailed below).
Rite of the Dark Essence. Your rite damage is necrotic damage. While the rite is active, you gain the following benefits:
Your weapon reduces your surroundings to dim light out to a radius of 10 feet. If you are in dim light, it reduces the light down to darkness to a radius of 10 feet and beyond that another 5 feet is considered dim light.
You gain advanced Darkvision of 60 feet, you can see in complete darkness as if it was dim light and also see through magical darkness as if it was dim light.
You have resistance to necrotic damage.
As of 3rd level, you also learn the necromancy spell False Life, which you can cast at the 1st level. You can cast this as a bonus action one time per short rest and intelligence is used for the casting of this spell. This will cast as a higher level spell (2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th) as you gain levels 9, 12, 15 and 18.
Blood Curse Specialist
At the 3rd level, your ancient order teaches advanced mastery over blood curses. You gain an additional use of your Blood Maledict feature. In addition, your blood curses can target any creature, whether it has blood or not.
Cursed Shadow Soul
Upon reaching 7th level, at the start of your turn, if you aren’t incapacitated, you can choose to magically step into the shadows and disappear. Once in the shadows, regardless of if you are hidden or not, you can teleport over to other shadows. Dim light is considered to be within the shadows for this ability, if you have activated your Dark Essence, while holding your weapon(s), you can begin your shadow step from your current location.
Within 1 minute you can teleport for a number of times equal to your Intelligence modifier (minimum of 1).
If you choose to shadow step away from a creature, they can take an attack of opportunity as per normal, this includes feats like sentinel as well.
You can use this feature twice. Beginning at 15th level, you can use your Shadow Step feature four times between rests. You regain all expended uses when you finish a short or long rest.
Also upon reaching 7th level, casting as bonus actions, you gain access to the necromancy spells Inflict Wounds and Blindness/Deafness. You can cast these spells equal to your intelligence modifier. You regain all expended uses when you finish a short or long rest.
7th level Dark Essence feature:
Through the Crimson Rite and your Dark Essence, you gain control of your body through a Blood Curse. From level 7 onward, after a long rest you can choose to curse your own blood to extend your life. Though, long life could be considered a curse to many, to your Crimson Rite it amplifies your very life. You don’t need to eat or drink after a regular full meal and long rest period for 3d6 days. Your cursed blood sustains the body so that you suffer the frailty of old age at a much reduced rate, and you can’t be aged magically while the curse is within your blood. Longer lived races receive the same benefits; you can still die of old age at some point, but you can extend your life as long as you keep your blood cursed.
You can begin to live and eat normally if you choose to not cast the Blood Curse on yourself for any given period of time. You will need to roll a 1d4 to determine number of days you will suffer from 2 levels of exhaustion that you will receive as your blood returns to normal. The only other side-effects being normal aging and possibly the forming of a greater appetite.
Brand of Summon Undead
At 11th level, you gain the necromantic ability to cast Speak with Dead and Blight spells, which you can cast 2 times per long rest.
Also at the 11th level, you learn to enhance your curse's potential. Whenever you damage a branded creature with your Crimson Rite, your weapon deals one additional hemocraft die of rite damage. In addition, the branded creature can’t move through creatures or objects.
In addition, if a branded or cursed creature is killed, you can choose to use your reaction to summon their spirit as an undead minion. This feature functions as theSummon Undeadspell, but the dead body is the spell casting component. You can add half your Blood Hunter level to its base hit points:
UNDEAD SPIRIT
Medium undead
Armor Class 11 + the level of the spell (natural armor)
Hit Points 30 (Ghostly and Putrid only) or 20 (Skeletal only) + 10 for each spell level above 3rd
Festering Aura (Putrid Only). Any creature, other than you, that starts its turn within 5 feet of the spirit must succeed on a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC or be poisoned until the start of its next turn.
Incorporeal Passage (Ghostly Only). The spirit can move through other creatures and objects as if they were difficult terrain. If it ends its turn inside an object, it is shunted to the nearest unoccupied space and takes 1d10 force damage for every 5 feet traveled.
Actions
Multiattack. The spirit makes a number of attacks equal to half this spell’s level (rounded down).
Deathly Touch (Ghostly Only).Melee Weapon Attack: your spell attack modifier to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 1d8 + 3 + 3 (the spell’s level) necrotic damage, and the creature must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC or be frightened of the undead until the end of the target’s next turn.
Grave Bolt (Skeletal Only).Ranged Spell Attack: your spell attack modifier to hit, range 150 ft., one target. Hit: 2d4 + 3 + 3 (the spell’s level) necrotic damage.
Rotting Claw (Putrid Only).Melee Weapon Attack: your spell attack modifier to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 1d6 + 3 + 3 (the spell’s level) slashing damage. If the target is poisoned, it must succeed on a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC or be paralyzed until the end of its next turn.
Blood Curse of Leeching Life
At the 15th level, you’ve honed your hemocraft to siphon at a creature's blood energy. You gain the Blood Curse of Leeching Life for your Blood Maledict feature. This doesn’t count against your number of blood curses known.
Also at the 15th level, you gain access to Necromancy's Vampiric Touch. As you concentrate, you can now siphon life from another to heal your own wounds. You can cast this twice per long rest.
Blood Rite Revival
Upon reaching 18th level, you learn to protect your fading life by absorbing your blood rite. When you are reduced to 0 hit points while you have an active Crimson Rite, but don’t die outright, the rite ends and you drop to 1 hit point instead. This can activate equal to the amount of rights you have activated. If you have rites active on multiple weapons, you choose which one ends.
As of the 18th level, limited to once per day, you can raise the dead by transferring part of your own soul. You gain the necromantic spell Raise the Dead. You can use this once per long rest (must have a diamond worth at least 500 gp on you, which the spell consumes). You also must take 1 full point of exhaustion after raising the dead, as you lose part of your own essence to do so. You must take a long rest to be restored to full energy levels. Since you are using part of yourself to raise the dead, you forgo the normal 1 hour casting time of the spell and you only require 1 minute to complete your casting.
Hey again,
Working on a even more brooding Blood Hunter order. Take a look below if you have the time and make suggestions if you have them, thanks!
NOTE: I may add in the darkness spell to this build as well...any other spell that would fit, please comment!
UPDATED BELOW
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Order of the Necromantic Blood is the one of the least understood and unknown of the orders, to a point where practitioners often hide their order's true nature from others. With the secrets of blood magic and refining it for combat, the members of this order go down an even darker path. The Necromantic Blood seek out and study life and death, they study the very unholy power that they hunt. They use necromancy to bolster their own health, to counter act their life loss and maybe even extend their own life essence towards that of the undying. They collect shadows to hide within and move vast distances, they can even summon the undead as allies or even bring someone back to life. They must be careful to not fall too far into the darkness of necromancy, for in the end it is their intent to destroy terrors wherever they arise, not become them.
Rite of the Dark Essence
When you join this order at 3rd level, you learn the Rite of the Dark Essence esoteric rite (detailed below).
Rite of the Dark Essence. Your rite damage is necrotic damage. While the rite is active, you gain the following benefits:
As of 3rd level, you also learn the necromancy spell False Life, which you can cast at the 1st level. You can cast this as a bonus action one time per short rest and intelligence is used for the casting of this spell. This will cast as a higher level spell (2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th) as you gain levels 9, 12, 15 and 18.
Blood Curse Specialist
At the 3rd level, your ancient order teaches advanced mastery over blood curses. You gain an additional use of your Blood Maledict feature. In addition, your blood curses can target any creature, whether it has blood or not.
Cursed Shadow Soul
Upon reaching 7th level, at the start of your turn, if you aren’t incapacitated, you can choose to magically step into the shadows and disappear. Once in the shadows, regardless of if you are hidden or not, you can teleport over to other shadows. Dim light is considered to be within the shadows for this ability, if you have activated your Dark Essence, while holding your weapon(s), you can begin your shadow step from your current location.
You can use this feature twice. Beginning at 15th level, you can use your Shadow Step feature four times between rests. You regain all expended uses when you finish a short or long rest.
Also upon reaching 7th level, casting as bonus actions, you gain access to the necromancy spells Inflict Wounds and Blindness/Deafness. You can cast these spells equal to your intelligence modifier. You regain all expended uses when you finish a short or long rest.
7th level Dark Essence feature:
Through the Crimson Rite and your Dark Essence, you gain control of your body through a Blood Curse. From level 7 onward, after a long rest you can choose to curse your own blood to extend your life. Though, long life could be considered a curse to many, to your Crimson Rite it amplifies your very life. You don’t need to eat or drink after a regular full meal and long rest period for 3d6 days. Your cursed blood sustains the body so that you suffer the frailty of old age at a much reduced rate, and you can’t be aged magically while the curse is within your blood. Longer lived races receive the same benefits; you can still die of old age at some point, but you can extend your life as long as you keep your blood cursed.
You can begin to live and eat normally if you choose to not cast the Blood Curse on yourself for any given period of time. You will need to roll a 1d4 to determine number of days you will suffer from 2 levels of exhaustion that you will receive as your blood returns to normal. The only other side-effects being normal aging and possibly the forming of a greater appetite.
Brand of Summon Undead
At 11th level, you gain the necromantic ability to cast Speak with Dead and Blight spells, which you can cast 2 times per long rest.
Also at the 11th level, you learn to enhance your curse's potential. Whenever you damage a branded creature with your Crimson Rite, your weapon deals one additional hemocraft die of rite damage. In addition, the branded creature can’t move through creatures or objects.
In addition, if a branded or cursed creature is killed, you can choose to use your reaction to summon their spirit as an undead minion. This feature functions as the Summon Undead spell, but the dead body is the spell casting component. You can add half your Blood Hunter level to its base hit points:
UNDEAD SPIRIT
Medium undead
Armor Class 11 + the level of the spell (natural armor)
Hit Points 30 (Ghostly and Putrid only) or 20 (Skeletal only) + 10 for each spell level above 3rd
Speed 30 ft.; fly 40 ft. (hover) (Ghostly only)
Damage Immunities necrotic, poison
Condition Immunities exhaustion, frightened, paralyzed, poisoned
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 10
Languages understands the languages you speak
Challenge — Proficiency Bonus equals your bonus
Festering Aura (Putrid Only). Any creature, other than you, that starts its turn within 5 feet of the spirit must succeed on a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC or be poisoned until the start of its next turn.
Incorporeal Passage (Ghostly Only). The spirit can move through other creatures and objects as if they were difficult terrain. If it ends its turn inside an object, it is shunted to the nearest unoccupied space and takes 1d10 force damage for every 5 feet traveled.
Actions
Multiattack. The spirit makes a number of attacks equal to half this spell’s level (rounded down).
Deathly Touch (Ghostly Only). Melee Weapon Attack: your spell attack modifier to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 1d8 + 3 + 3 (the spell’s level) necrotic damage, and the creature must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC or be frightened of the undead until the end of the target’s next turn.
Grave Bolt (Skeletal Only). Ranged Spell Attack: your spell attack modifier to hit, range 150 ft., one target. Hit: 2d4 + 3 + 3 (the spell’s level) necrotic damage.
Rotting Claw (Putrid Only). Melee Weapon Attack: your spell attack modifier to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 1d6 + 3 + 3 (the spell’s level) slashing damage. If the target is poisoned, it must succeed on a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC or be paralyzed until the end of its next turn.
Blood Curse of Leeching Life
At the 15th level, you’ve honed your hemocraft to siphon at a creature's blood energy. You gain the Blood Curse of Leeching Life for your Blood Maledict feature. This doesn’t count against your number of blood curses known.
Also at the 15th level, you gain access to Necromancy's Vampiric Touch. As you concentrate, you can now siphon life from another to heal your own wounds. You can cast this twice per long rest.
Blood Rite Revival
Upon reaching 18th level, you learn to protect your fading life by absorbing your blood rite. When you are reduced to 0 hit points while you have an active Crimson Rite, but don’t die outright, the rite ends and you drop to 1 hit point instead. This can activate equal to the amount of rights you have activated. If you have rites active on multiple weapons, you choose which one ends.
As of the 18th level, limited to once per day, you can raise the dead by transferring part of your own soul. You gain the necromantic spell Raise the Dead. You can use this once per long rest (must have a diamond worth at least 500 gp on you, which the spell consumes). You also must take 1 full point of exhaustion after raising the dead, as you lose part of your own essence to do so. You must take a long rest to be restored to full energy levels. Since you are using part of yourself to raise the dead, you forgo the normal 1 hour casting time of the spell and you only require 1 minute to complete your casting.
Updated a bunch.
Updated again...think this is it now...?
Hey, I think this is a really good idea but I don't see any links to the actual subclass. Can you please provide a link?
Is this on d&d beyond because I can't find it
Jamie Connor