Hexenbiest

 Sacrificed during a despicable ritual, thirst for revenge make you raise from your desecrated grave. Living a twisted existence, splitted between good and evil, on the edge of madness by what you became, you seek retaliation for your murdered child and your stolen life.

Of all rituals that a wizard can accomplished to become a Lich, the Two Innocent Hearts is maybe one of — if not the most — worst one. It involve abducting a young pregnant woman who is about to welcome her first child. By a moonless night, excruciating pains from sadistic tortures must trigger the labour. Then, before the very first cry of the new born, an obsidian dagger must pierce the two beating hearts of the infant and the mother. Buried by the roots of a dead oak, the two sacrificed bodies will serve as catalyst for the yet-to-be Lich, feeding over their innocent souls to reach lichdom and immortality.

But sometimes — Is it by the will of a deity that cannot withstand a such terrible act or is it a powerful desire of vengeance from the mother ? No one knows — something emerge from the fresh grave.

If the twisted and broken body, that seeks to pull itself from the soil, does not succumb to the immense sorrow and madness of its new condition — becoming a Banshee if it do so — then an Hexenbiest is born.

Appearance

Laying eyes on a Hexenbiest is not exactly a pleasant experience, at least when they are under their true form.

An emaciated body, nearly squeletical, bearing a parchmented and withered skin, covered by stigmates of horrid tortures. Pure white hair frames a face frozen in an expression of immense sadness. From its empty orbits, where an unreal glow evoking madness resides, ooze a liquid resembling coagulated blood.

Fortunately for their own good, Hexenbiest have the capacity to hide their dreadful apparence by changing it to what they look like before they were sacrified, with the notable exception of their hair, that will stay white as fresh snow. Some of their scars will persist into their human form, leaving white or reddish traces over their skin.

As most of Hexenbiest were sacrificed during their youth, they often look like young ladies in their prime but their eyes will always have that empty stare, common to people who have lost everything they cherish.

Should an Hexenbiest be killed, their last breath will be a sigh of profond relief, before turning into ashes.

Behavior

Frightened — and very aware of — by the reactions their true appearance might trigger, Hexenbiest tend to live in reclusion or in fringes of populated area. In country sides they are often the local herborist, midwife or bone-setter. Overcomed by sorrow, they spend countless nights sobbing or crying their lost child.

As they do not age they have to flee every decade or so, to avoid raising suspicions, forced to start over a new life in a different location. The eternal youth of their human form is also a cruel curse, as their fairness attract young men. These suitors will inevitably be rejected, as the pierced heart of a Hexenbiest will never know love again.

If threaten, or push over their limits, they resort to the fear induced by their true form to dispose of any aggressors. More than one bandit has met a horrible end at the hands of a Hexenbiest, wrongly saw in this young woman in the middle of the woods, an easy prey.

Also, they have a profound hate for undeads — and those who raise them — and will use any means at their disposal to destroy or put them to eternal rest.

Seeking Revenge

On rare occasions, an Hexenbiest manage to overcome their sadness and hit the road, seeking revenge against the one who torture and stole their life. As their body is imbued by arcane's energy, their usually become spellcasters but some might choose the sword over the wand.

Their path have only one goal and one end : accumulating power and knowledge, preparing the inevitable confrontation against their tormentor.

As Hexenbiest are the excessively rare product of a very secret ritual, no documented case exist about what happen if one succeed destroys the Lich responsible for their condition.

Creating an Hexenbiest

Creature Type: Humanoid

Size: Medium (about 4—7 feet tall)

Speed: 30 feet

Languages: You can speak, read and understand Common language and another non-rare language of your choice.

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 colors in that darkness as shades of gray.

Alignment restriction: As your life is a perpetual shift between the light of your human side and the darkness of your undead side, you must select a Chaotic alignment at start.

Background restriction: No matter what you've been before being sacrificed, it's no longer relevant. You cannot select a Background.

Ageless: You don’t age, and effects that would cause you to age don’t work on you.

Restless: You don’t need to sleep, and magic can’t put you to sleep. You can finish a Long Rest in 4 hours if you spend those hours in an inactive, motionless state, during which you retain consciousness.

Lifeless: You don't need to drink, eat or breath. You have Advantage on Constitution saving throw to avoid Disease and Poisoned condition, as well as a resistance to Poison damage. You can ingest liquid or food if you wish to do so — mainly to look like a normal person for people oblivious to your real condition — but even the most lavish meal will leave you with a taste of ash in your mouth, and sipping a fine wine can be no better than stale water.

Deathless: You have Advantage on Death Saving Throw. Should you die, your body display briefly your true form before turning into fine ashes, scattered by an eerie wind. You can only be bring back to "life" by a True Resurrection or Wish spell.

Graveless: Despite your are Humanoid, you register as Undead to spells and other effects that affect the Undead creature type. The exception is spells or effects that detect Undeads, for which see the Hiding the Truth trait for details.

Hexenbiest Traits

As an Hexenbiest, you have these special traits.

Ability Score Improvement

As your body decay and wither, your mind clings to your desires of retaliation. Apply the following adjustments to your statistics :

• +2 to Wisdom
• +2 to Intelligence OR Charisma
• -1 to Constitution
• -1 to Force OR Dexterity

None of these adjustments can raise an ability score above 20.

Skill Proficiencies

You have proficiency in Arcana and Medicine.

Hiding the Truth

You hide what you've become under the appearance close to the one you had before the sacrifice. This is a shape-shift effect with the following rules :

• The transition between your True Form and Human Form is nearly instantaneous and changing between the two cost you a Bonus Action.
• Your hair will stay white, either in True or Human Form. Should you have dye them, it will disappear during the transition, crumbling as a fine colored dust. Same for make-up.
• Your equipment/clothes are not affected by this effect.
• You cannot alter, other by magical means, what your True Form or Human Form look like.
• If you are in your Human Form and if your fall under a spell or effect that try to detect the presence of Undead, such as Detect Evil and Good, you may roll a Wisdom saving throw (against caster's Spell DC) to hide the truth. If success, you are not detected and you are immune to further detection attempts from the same caster until the next dawn and said caster do not know that his detection had failed. On a failed save, you do not shift to your True Form but you are detected as Undead under the conditions of the spell/effect.

At the discretion of your DM, should you be Frightened, Charmed, angry or under high stress, you may roll a Wisdom saving throw to keep your composure and not shifting to your True Form against your will.

You also gain the following natural ability :

Dreadful Form
When you take the Attack action on your turn, you can replace one of your attacks by revealing the whole horror of your condition.

Each creature within 30ft, that is not Undead or Construct, that can see you must roll a Wisdom saving throw (DC 8 + your Charisma Modifier + your PB). On a fail, they have the Frightened as long they are within your line of sight. At the end of each turn, affected creature can roll again the saving throw to try to overcome their fear. Should they break the line of sight — or should you return to your Human Form — the effect end immediately.

A creature that succeed to overcome their fear is immune to your ability for 1 hour.

You can use this ability a number of times equal to your Proficiency Bonus and you regain all expended uses when you finish a Long Rest.

When you reach character level 3, allies aware of your true nature are not affected by this ability.

When you reach character level 5, the range of your ability increase to 60ft.

Of Light and Dark

The duality between your undead body and the last string of your humanity make you both vulnerable and resistant to the opposite forces that split you apart.

As result, you have Disadvantage on Constitution saving throws induced by Radiant spells or effects. Conversely, you have Advantage on Constitution saving throws induced by Necrotic spells or effects.

When reaching Level 7, that duality overcome you even more, granting you a Resistance to Necrotic damages but in return, a Vulnerability to Radiant damages.

Despised Necromancy

You despise and hate Necromancy with every fibers of your being. You cannot willingly cast a spell from — or use an object, like a Scroll, associated to — Necromancy School without the risk of suffering terrible consequences. Be it with good intents or not.

Should you do, and after applying the result of the spell/effect, roll a Wisdom saving throw, with Disadvantage, against your own Spell DC (or the Spell DC of the object if applicable). On a fail, you take a number equal to your Proficiency bonus of d10 Force damages.

These damages will hit directly your HP pool, ignoring any Temporary Hit Points you may have at this time. These damages also overcome any Resistance or Immunity you may have at this time, and in general manners cannot be counteract or reduced by any magic or non-magical means.

Either on a failed or succeed save, you also gain 1 Exhaustion level.

Bind of the Tormentor

Not only that Lich have stolen you everything — your past, your life, your beloved child to come, your future and any dreams or aspirations you may have — but your must "live" with that persistent sensation of its despicable presence. Its like a constant itching at the back of head, whisper in nights, faint shadows at the edge of your sight, a disgusting mouvement under your skin, that this monster, your Tormentor, is still here, somewhere. Worst of all, its here because of you and you're here because of it.

When reaching character level 9 — and during a Short or Long Rest — you can open your senses to these sensations, overcoming the repulsion, to know the general distance and direction of the Lich that is responsible for your demise.

Sooner or later, you two will have to settle it for good. Avenge your child or die trying.

At the discretion of your DM, and should the Lich body has been vanquished, you can also use this sense to detect the evil aura of it's Spirit Jar if in close vicinity.