battle before death calls rites

Book of Vile Darkness

Magic Items Dungeon Master’s Guide

, foul rites that allow one to transform into a death knight or lich, or long-lost spells crafted by beings so evil their names ought never to be spoken aloud. Vile Speech. While the book is on your

attuned to the book, you can cast the following spells (save DC 18) from it: Animate Dead Circle of Death Dominate Monster Finger of Death Once you use the book to cast a spell, you can’t

Sword of Kas

Magic Items Dungeon Master’s Guide

detrimental property Spells. While the sword is on your person, you can cast the following spells (save DC 18) from it: Call Lightning Divine Word Finger of Death Once you use the sword to

cast a spell, you can’t cast that spell again from it until the next dawn. Spirit of Kas. While the sword is on your person, you gain the following benefits: Battle Hunger. You add 1d10 to your

Eye and Hand of Vecna

Magic Items Dungeon Master’s Guide

Vecna the Archlich;Vecna was a mighty wizard who, through magic and conquest, forged a terrible empire. For all his power, however, Vecna feared death and took steps to prevent his demise by becoming

a lich. A treacherous lieutenant named Kas the Betrayer;Kas brought Vecna’s rule to an end in a terrible battle. Of Vecna, all that remained were one hand and one eye, grisly Artifacts that

Cleric

Classes Player’s Handbook

, a Cleric can reach out to the divine magic of the Outer Planes—where gods dwell—and channel it to bolster people and battle foes. Because their power is a divine gift, Clerics typically

prayers and rites that help them draw on power from the Outer Planes. Not every member of a temple or shrine is a Cleric. Some priests are called to a simple life of temple service, carrying out their

Kraul Death Priest

Monsters Guildmasters’ Guide to Ravnica

, with little grasp of metaphor or nuance. The death priests occupy the highest roles in kraul society. They lead the buzzing chants of the kraul rites. Their inscrutable clicks and buzzing can summon

Feed on Death. When a creature within 30 feet of the kraul drops to 0 hit points, the kraul or another creature of its choice within 30 feet of it gains 5 (1d10);{"diceNotation":"1d10","rollType

Cadaver Collector

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

great battle—either where one is in progress, where one is imminent, or where one once took place. They encase themselves in the armor and weapons of fallen warriors and impale the corpses of those

warriors on the lances and other weapons embedded in their salvaged armor. Corpses that accumulate on a cadaver collector’s shell aren’t just grisly battle trophies. A cadaver collector

Cadaver Collector Legacy

Monsters Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes

collector calls up the enslaved spirits of those it has slain; 1d6;{"diceNotation":"1d6","rollType":"roll","rollAction":"Summon Specters"} specter;specters (without Sunlight Sensitivity) arise in

. Cadaver collectors respond to a summons from a mortal only when they are called to the scene of a great battle — either where one is in progress, where one is imminent, or where one once took place

Gladiator Legacy

Monsters Basic Rules (2014)

would hit it. To do so, the gladiator must see the attacker and be wielding a melee weapon.Gladiators battle for the entertainment of raucous crowds. Some gladiators are brutal pit fighters who treat

each match as a life-or-death struggle, while others are professional duelists who command huge fees but rarely fight to the death.

Ogre Chitterlord

Monsters Monstrous Compendium Vol. 4: Eldraine Creatures

rodent allies fail them, chitterlords can also turn the tide of any battle with their prodigious strength and druidic magic.Call Rats (1/Day). The ogre magically calls 1d4;{"diceNotation":"1d4

Heralds of Dust Exorcist

Monsters Adventure Atlas: The Mortuary

(exorcist’s choice). Admit Entity (Recharge 5–6);{"diceNotation":"1d6", "rollType":"recharge", "rollAction":"Admit Entity"}. The exorcist thins the veil of death for a creature it can see within 60

, speak with dead 1/day each: banishment, dispel evil and goodDauntless in the face of death, exorcists in the Heralds of Dust cleanse hapless creatures and resting places haunted by ghost;ghosts, specter

Space Swine

Monsters Spelljammer: Adventures in Space

also make fine trackers and capable beasts of burden. Space swine that are trained for battle are typically outfitted with half-plate barding and are referred to as death squealers. A fully grown

Witherbloom Professor of Decay

Monsters Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos

): At will: druidcraft, spare the dying 1/day each: antilife shell, bane, feign death, speak with deadProfessors of decay wield magic that drains and twists the essence of the professors&rsquo

their foes. In battle, they steal the essence of their enemies to heal their own wounds and create spears of sickly green life-draining energy. Witherbloom teachers who espouse the decaying side of the

Sofina

Monsters Thieves’ Gallery

each: Evard's black tentacles, finger of death, time stop Swarm of Meteors (1/Day). Sofina magically calls down a meteor swarm that detonates in four 40-foot-radius spheres, each one centered on a point

practitioner of magic with ties to Thay’s tyrannical magocracy. Sofina specializes in necromancy. Death magic and fear are both tools in her arsenal. As Red Wizards are shunned outside Thay

Fensir Devourer

Monsters Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants

Death Curse. When the fensir starts its turn with 0 hit points and doesn’t regenerate, it releases a curse on those around it. Each creature within 30 feet of the fensir when it dies must

, the creature must succeed on a DC 13 Charisma saving throw or take 11 (2d10);{"diceNotation":"2d10", "rollType":"damage", "rollAction":"Death Curse", "rollDamageType":"psychic"} psychic damage

Skeletal Knight

Monsters Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen

damage.Skeletal knights are powerful Undead that arise to serve even more wicked beings—often death knight;death knights. Those who become skeletal knights were typically virtuous in life but betrayed

free to pursue its own ends. Skeletal knights are relentless in battle and difficult to destroy. They cling to the sins that curse them, and they fight until their skulls are reduced to shards. Their

Golgari Agent

Backgrounds Guildmasters’ Guide to Ravnica

You are a member of a teeming horde — one small part of a sprawling organism. Just as you are part of the swarm, the swarm is part of a larger ecosystem, a never-ending cycle of life, death

Golgari, no fear of death or taboo about the dead, just a fierce affirmation of the cycle. Skill Proficiencies: Nature, Survival Tool Proficiencies: Poisoner’s kit Languages

Champion of Madarua

Monsters Quests from the Infinite Staircase

see the attacker and be wielding a melee weapon.Champions of Madarua represent the most skilled warriors in the faction. Hardened by battle, they lead the charge into the fray and inspire their

, death, and the seasons. Each member bears a small tattoo of a sickle on the inside of their left wrist. Warriors of Madarua recognize and respect the ever-changing complexity of life. In combat

Catoblepas

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

succeed on a DC 16 Constitution saving throw or be stunned until the start of the catoblepas’s next turn. Death Ray (Recharge 5–6);{"diceNotation":"1d6", "rollType":"recharge", "rollAction

":"Death Ray"}. The catoblepas targets one creature it can see within 30 feet of it. The target must make a DC 16 Constitution saving throw, taking 36 (8d8);{"diceNotation":"8d8", "rollType":"damage

Warrior of Madarua

Monsters Quests from the Infinite Staircase

wielding a melee weapon.Warriors are the foot soldiers of the faction. They thank Madarua for each battle they see and train daily with spears to follow her to victory. Warriors of Madarua Members

of the Warriors of Madarua wear bronze masks that depict the determined the face of Madarua, an ancient Cynidicean god of birth, death, and the seasons. Each member bears a small tattoo of a sickle on

Witherbloom Professor of Growth

Monsters Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos

traditional material components. In battle, they flood their allies with vital essence, healing wounds and soothing ailments. Their foes face the wrath of nature itself, from grasping plants and

conjured poisonous vines to avatars of nature’s wrath. These professors teach their students to focus on the growth side of the natural cycle of life and death and to avoid wasting resources. They

Greater Death Dragon

Monsters Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen

", "rollType":"damage", "rollAction":"Cataclysmic Rush", "rollDamageType":"necrotic"} necrotic damage. A creature can take this damage only once per turn.Some death dragons manage to retain almost all

of their former selves, albeit twisted by their state of being. These greater death dragons scheme to achieve their ends, all the while amassing and jealously guarding treasure hoards as they did in

Spawn of Kyuss

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

Orcus who plundered corpses from necropolises to create the first spawn of Kyuss. Even centuries after Kyuss’s death, his malign disciples continue performing the horrific rites he perfected

Bozak Draconian

Monsters Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen

Death Throes. When the draconian is reduced to 0 hit points, its scales and flesh immediately shrivel away, and then its bones explode. Each creature within 10 feet of it must succeed on a DC 10

Dexterity saving throw or take 9 (2d8);{"diceNotation":"2d8", "rollType":"damage", "rollAction":"Death Throes", "rollDamageType":"force"} force damage. Glide. When the draconian falls and isn’t

Rak Tulkhesh

Monsters Eberron: Rising from the Last War

death until the children of Eberron and Siberys rose up against them. Armies of dragons fought against the fiends of Khyber. And though the overlords couldn't be destroyed, the couatl sacrificed

can't die permanently. Upon its death, it reforms elsewhere in the multiverse and becomes active again at a time set by the DM. Rak Tulkhesh Called the Rage of War, Rak Tulkhesh is the incarnation of

Duke Zalto

Monsters Storm King's Thunder

ancient enemies: dragons. Duke Zalto has set his minions to the task of finding and unearthing fragments of a dragon-slaying colossus called the Vonindod (“titan of death”). Pieces of it were lost in

battle, while the rest was dismantled at the end of the ancient war between giants and dragonkind. Once all the pieces are found, Zalto plans to reforge the Vonindod and unleash it on the world

Mordakhesh

Monsters Eberron: Rising from the Last War

commanders of his age, and a dragon-slaying specialist. For this, he earned the nickname Shadowsword, along with a legendary reputation for leaving death in his wake. Mordakhesh serves as the prakhutu or

“speaker” of his imprisoned master, Rak Tulkhesh, and he seeks to free his lord by bathing the world in blood. Like a spider with multiple webs, he has agents and pawns (which he calls his “claws

Donaar Blit'zen

Monsters Acquisitions Incorporated

skill in battle, and for his propensity to fall asleep as soon as a fight is done (as well as countless other inopportune times). More immediately notable is the unique physical trait that all members

, giving rise to a driving paranoia that this regurgitation might damage his teeth. As testaments to his obsession with dental hygiene, Donaar named his greatsword Toothbrush and calls his whip Floss. He

Reborn

Species Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft

Death isn’t always the end. The reborn exemplify this, being individuals who have died yet, somehow, still live. Some reborn exhibit the scars of fatal ends, their ashen flesh or bloodless

veins making it clear that they’ve been touched by death. Other reborn are marvels of magic or science, being stitched together from disparate beings or bearing mysterious minds in manufactured

Lady Illmarrow

Monsters Eberron: Rising from the Last War

island domain. Long ago, it was revealed that the elven line of Vol — a house that practiced the art of necromancy and bore the Dragonmark of Death — was engaged in secret blood rites

, polymorph 5th level (3 slots): cloudkill, cone of cold, hold monster, scrying 6th level (2 slot): chain lightning, circle of death, create undead 7th level (2 slot): finger of death, forcecage

Eye and Hand of Vecna Legacy

Magic Items Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)

power, Vecna couldn’t escape his own mortality. He began to fear death and take steps to prevent his end from ever coming about. Orcus, the demon prince of undeath, taught Vecna a ritual that

would allow him to live on as a lich. Beyond death, he became the greatest of all liches. Even though his body gradually withered and decayed, Vecna continued to expand his evil dominion. So formidable

Deck of Many Things Legacy

Magic Items Basic Rules (2014)

30 feet of you. The fighter is of the same race as you and serves you loyally until death, believing the fates have drawn him or her to you. You control this character. Moon. You are granted the

. Skull. You summon an avatar of death--a ghostly humanoid skeleton clad in a tattered black robe and carrying a spectral scythe. It appears in a space of the GM's choice within 10 feet of you and attacks

Lich Legacy

Monsters Basic Rules (2014)

6th level (1 slot): disintegrate, globe of invulnerability 7th level (1 slot): finger of death, plane shift 8th level (1 slot): dominate monster, power word stun 9th level (1 slot): power word

the lich’s lair. The lich calls forth the spirits of creatures that died in its lair. These apparitions materialize and attack one creature that the lich can see within 60 feet of it. The

Arkhan the Cruel

Monsters Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

daily at dawn. Arkhan can cast the following spells from the hand by expending the specified number of charges (spell save DC 18): finger of death (5 charges), sleep (1 charge), slow (2 charges), and

means of freeing Tiamat from her prison in the Nine Hells, but only if the hand doesn't kill him first. The hand is slowly corrupting Arkhan's flesh and decomposing his body on one side. In battle

Traag Draconian

Monsters Monstrous Compendium Vol. 2: Dragonlance Creatures

, it subtracts up to 50 feet from the fall when calculating the fall’s damage. Death Throes. If the draconian is reduced to 0 hit points, its body erupts into sludge that fills a 10-foot-radius

engines of carnage. Few commanders have successfully used a traag draconian’s reckless violence to their advantage in battle; for most, a traag draconian is as much of a danger to its allies as it is

Path of the Zealot Legacy

Classes Xanathar's Guide to Everything

Some deities inspire their followers to pitch themselves into a ferocious battle fury. These barbarians are zealots — warriors who channel their rage into powerful displays of divine power. A

, Warrior of the Gods 6th Fanatical Focus 10th Zealous Presence 14th Rage beyond Death

D&D Beyond

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