Homebrew Cursed Blade Species Details
Cursed Blades are spirits fused with their weapon of choice from their previous life. Confined to this weapon their only form of transportation and communication is to control the body of someone who wields them. Some Cursed Blades become attached to these vessels however others go through them like they're nothing more then disposable trash.
Bladed Body
A Cursed Blade is a weapon, unable to move or talk. They can see and hear everything around them and have no need to sleep in the traditional sense. They can only move and converse by controlling a sentient creature that decides to wield them as a vessel. Once they find a vessel they control that individual and imbue them with the strength stored within themselves. Their own durability, magics and abilities that they've cultivated over the years are imbued into that vessel, however because of their general unfamiliarity with their vessel's physiology they can barely take advantage of that creatures strengths and weaknesses. Cursed Blades can churn through many a vessel but continue to grow, becoming stronger with each and every encounter.
A Cursed Blade's vessel must willingly pick up the Cursed Blade itself, although it doesn't take much for a Cursed Blade to take over a vessel they cannot do so if the blade is forced upon someone. The vessel itself cannot control its own body whilst being controlled by the Cursed Blade, but they can converse with the blade telepathically and, if the blade is willing, can allow the vessel to regain control for a predetermined amount of time. The cursed Blade can also decide that when handing over control weather or not the vessel keeps its memories of their interactions, they are also immutable and transfer this ability to their vessel.
The Obsidian Tongue
Many cultures around the world tell of the legend of the Obsidian Tongue, a pitch black blade that been passed down form wielder to wielder. Over the years each person who had wielded this blade immediately changed, they became cold, calculated, powerful and unrelenting. Becoming shells of what they once were, only pushing on to becoming more and more powerful. The blade now stays locked with the drowned layers of the Depthrest, lest they fall to the Obsidian Tongue's curse.
—Martial Feyfeather
Twisted Steel
Despite being constricted to immutable steel, Cursed Blades grow similar to that of normal organic creatures. Where as most living creatures grow and mature, becoming bigger and stronger over the years so too does a Cursed Blade. However along with becoming stronger and more durable the curse binding their soul to the steel slowly twists and deforms, cultivating different magical capabilities unique to their curse. Eventually the curse grows strong enough to transcend the confines of their weapon form, gaining the ability to temporarily move their soul into the vessel to save themselves from being torn from said vessel. A highly experienced Cursed Blade can become almost near impossible to be removed from a vessel it has taken a fancy to.
Warriors put to Rest
A Cursed Blade is created when a warrior of the past falls to the one they consider their rival, the hatred and resentment they feel in that moment of death binds themselves to the blade that fell them. Being bound to the weapon that killed them, used by the person they hate the most solidifies the curse strengthening it. This hatred is what fuels the curse, however the opposite, although rare, can also be found.
Cursed Blades created through sorrow are extremely rare and are bound to their weapon through sheer hopelessness and melancholy. These emotions that fuel their curse torment the vessel they inhabit, both spirit and vessel constantly being bombarded by negative emotions. This commonly results in both parties being driven to put the Blade to rest, the only way to dispel the curse, killing the blade, is by the wish spell.
Cursed Blade Titles
It is not uncommon for a Cursed Blade to be referred to by its title and not its actual name as many consider a Cursed Blade as nothing more then a powerful magic item. Despite Cursed Blades usually resentful a lot of them also claim these titles as their own and rarely refer to themselves as the old name.
Cursed Blade Titles: The Endbringer, The needle, The Waycarver, The Rend, The Glass longsword , The World Crasher.
Cursed Blade Traits
Your Cursed Blade shares these features with all that share their curse.Ability Score Increase
Your Constitution score increases by 2 and your Strength score increases by 1.
Ability Score Decrease
Your Dexterity score decreases by 2.
Age
Cursed Blades lives as long as their curse stays intact, they can only die if their curse is dispelled by a wish spell.
Alignment
Cursed Blades tend to be fallen soldiers that have been bound to their own blade after death, because of this they are hateful and angry. They tend to lean towards a Neutral or even an Evil alignment.
Size
Your size as a weapon is Tiny or Small depending on the weapon and when controlling a vessel you gain their size.
Speed
As a weapon your movement is 0 and whilst controlling a vessel your base movement is 30ft or their movement if it is higher then your own. Your base movement for Flying, Burrowing, Climbing and Swimming are all 0.
Weapon Form
You are a weapon, you start off with a weapon that you cannot get rid of as you are that weapon. You cannot move or talk in this form unless someone talks to you through means of telepathy, and your weapon grows stronger as you hit 5th level and 13th level.
Control Vessel
When not controlling a vessel you cannot move or speak, you can only talk to others if they have the capability of speaking telepathically to you. You are conscious of everything around you whilst not controlling a vessel.
When your weapon form is willingly picked up by any sentient creature you gain their movement, size and one ability of your choice that the creature has. This creature must make a Charisma saving throw of 12 plus your proficiency and your Charisma modifier or become a vessel. If the creature succeeds they must make the same save every hour until they fail. Once you take control of a vessel you gain the following abilities:
- The vessel gains your Health, Skills, Abilities, Class features, Modifiers and any Feats or Features that you already had.
- You gain the vessel's Movement if they have more then your base movement of 30ft, this also includes Flying, Burrowing, Climbing and Swimming.
- You gain the vessel's Size.
- You gain the vessel's Vulnerabilities, Resistances and Immunities.
- You gain the vessel's Senses
- You gain 1 ability that your vessel had that you did not, but only whist controlling that vessel.
- You can converse telepathically with your vessel.
- You can hand over control back to your vessel for a predetermined amount of time.
- Whilst handing over control back to a vessel or when abandoning a vessel for a new one you can force the vessel to make the same Charisma save as earlier, if they fail they forget any memory they had of the Cursed Blade.
After the vessel fails its save they cannot save again to regain control of their body until they either die or are abandoned by the Cursed Blade.
Twisted Curse
Your curse twists and corrupts with the stronger your spirit gets, you gain extra abilities that you can use up to 1 plus your Proficiency modifier each day.
At 5th Level, choose two of the following options:
- Ira thrall - As a passive ability you now enthrall people to wield you, anyone who focuses on your weapon form for more then a couple seconds must make a Charisma saving throw equal to your curse save and on a fail become compelled to wield you.
- Vincula odio - A dark and jagged chain wraps around your weapon form, as an action your weapon's reach extends to 15ft and the creature you were attacking must succeed a Strength save equal to your curse save or be pulled 10ft in any direction of your choice, if you send it 10ft in the air it fill fall to the ground on its next turn and take 1d10 Bludgeoning damage.
- Ferrum odio - Your weapon form begins to emanate a constant stream of smoke and embers, as an action you can attack everyone within 5ft around you in a full 360 rotation and do an extra 1d8 Fire damage. For flavor you can choose any element (type of damage other then melee) other then fire however the element is set and cannot be changed.
- Daemonium vigilem - Your weapon form grows fleshy veins along its handle, after knocking a creature down to 0 hitpoints as an action you can force that creature to rise from the dead as a Slowed version of itself under your control until it takes 3 hits. The undead creature keeps its old initiative.
- Mens loquatur - Your weapon form begins to emanate a magically dark mist, you can now telepathically talk to anyone within 120ft of your weapon form. You retain this feature regardless of weather or not you have a vessel.
- Forma pugione - You now gain a second Cursed Blade weapon form that can be any light weapon, you now need both weapon forms disarmed to lose control of your vessel.
- Fortius odio - Your weapon form grows sharper as you now are a plus 1 weapon.
Once you hit level 13 your curse grows stronger again and you gain another ability.
At 13th Level, choose one of the following options:
- Regno infestos - Your weapon form grows extra eyes as you can now force an enemy within 30ft as an action to make a Charisma save equal to your curse save or is under your control until the end of your next turn.
- Erycina tendril - Inky black tendrils wrap around the handle of your weapon form and the arm of your vessel as an action you gain 2d10 temp hit points and 2 extra tendril attacks that last until you lose all your temp hit points. The tendril attacks have a plus to hit equal to your normal weapon attack and does half of your normal weapon damage.
- Ventus vasa pretiosa - Once you become particularly fond of a certain vessel your main weapon form replaces one of their limbs of your choice, after selecting this the only way to be disarmed is through amputation. Once amputated you return back to your weapon form and can reuse this feature on any new vessel of your choosing.
- Et iratus - For a moment your weapon form doubles in size and grows veins of lava along its body, as an action you can make your next attack do an extra damage dice of that weapon's type and an extra 1d10 fire damage or any prior set elemental type.
- Insolubilis odio - Your weapon form becomes extremely jagged with spines growing along your weapon form as you now are a plus 2 weapon, regardless of if you have taken Fortius odio.
Anima Extensa
When a creature disarms your weapon form from your vessel you can make a Charisma save equal to your curse save, on a success you can stay in your vessel detached from your weapon form for 3 turns. On a fail you are forced back into your weapon form until someone willingly wields you. However if you have Ventus vasa pretiosa you instead gain the ability to cast Clone without needing the 1,000gp diamond, the cube of meat and you can use any container large enough to replace the 2,000gp vessel. This activates once your limb weapon form is amputated and your vessel is killed, you can choose to activate this ability for your current vessel or use it on another vessel of you choice. You can also store multiple different vessels at the same time and this ability resets once every month.
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