Death Knight (5e fighter subclass)

Most warriors who fall in battle remain at rest, but there are some that the Ferryman of Souls deems worthy to be his champions. Death Knights are made to be death incarnate, capable of causing devastating damage and instill fear in all who lay eyes upon them. They are commonly known as just bedtime stories to scare misbehaving, but the stories are only partly true.

What is not commonly known about Death Knights however is their commitment to honor. There are few better allies than that of a Death Knight, and there are even fewer worse enemies.

You were returned to ensure that the dead are not disturbed, to return rampaging undead to rest, and annihilate any who abuse the powers of necromancy by any means. The world is yours to roam as you see fit, so long as you protect the dead and punish those who mistreat them.

Death Runes

At 3rd level, when you choose to take on the mantle of Death Knight, you have been armed with this order's signature equipment: the rune weapon. The material, shape, form, and function of the rune weapon are chosen by you when you gain this feature. You can chose any melee weapon you are proficient with to receive the benefits of becoming a rune weapon. You learn how to empower your weapon with magical runes. this process takes one hour per rune, and you can inscribe 2 runes into your rune weapon.

You may also take any magic melee weapon and apply its bonuses to attack and damage rolls to your rune weapon over the course of a one hour ritual, at the end of this ritual the weapon is destroyed and its magic properties may be added to your rune weapon. This does not apply bonuses that would require attunement.

The rune weapon is always with you, you can store or draw the weapon from the void itself and you can’t be disarmed of that weapon unless you are incapacitated. Doing this doesn't require an action. You can have only one rune weapon at any given time.

You gain an additional runes at levels 5, 10, 15 and 18. Each time you gain a level in this class, you can change one of the runes inscribed in the weapon.

Each rune can be inscribed only once. All benefits described bellow, unless stated otherwise, apply as long as you are wielding or carrying the weapon.

Rune of Cinderglacier

prerequisite: 5th level

Your attacks with your rune weapon deal additional damage your equal to your Charisma modifier. The damage type is cold.

Rune of Death's Sight

prerequisite: 10th level

As an action you can sense of the location of any invisible or hidden creature within 30 feet of you, provided that the creature isn’t magically hidden from you. This sense does not detect constructs, but it does detect undead.

You may invoke this rune three times. You regain any expended uses when you finish a long rest. You do not need to be holding or wielding your rune weapon to invoke this rune.

Rune of Deathwind

As a reaction when you or a creature within 30 feet of you takes fire, poison, thunder, necrotic or cold damage, you can invoke this rune to give that creature resistance against that damage type until the start of your next turn.

You may invoke this rune three times. You regain any expended uses when you finish a long rest.

Rune of Etherfloat

As a bonus action you invoke this rune to hover a few inches from the ground. You do not trigger pressure plates or the like; you can cross liquid surfaces if they are still; and you descend to the ground harmlessly as if under the effect of the 'Feather Fall' spell.

You may activate and deactivate this rune an unlimited number of times. You do not need to be holding or wielding your rune weapon to invoke this rune.

Rune of Frightening Presence

Your power strikes fear in those who look upon you. You gain an advantage on all intimidation checks as long as you have this rune inscribed. .

You do not need to be holding or wielding your rune weapon to gain the effects of this rune.

Rune of Grasping Grave

Prerequisite: 10th level

As an action you can invoke this rune to make hands of the dead shoot up from the ground around you in a 30-foot radius centered on yourself for 1 minute or until you end the effect. While this is active the area becomes difficult terrain.

You may invoke this rune once. You regain any expended uses when you finish a long rest.

Rune of Gravemist

prerequisite: 5th level

As an action you can invoke this run to cause an eerie mist to surround you for 10 minutes or until you end the effect. You and all allies within 30 feet are lightly obscured. All physical and all ranged attacks made against you, or your allies within the radius, are made with -2 to the attack rolls.

You may invoke this rune once.  You regain any expended uses when you finish a long rest.

Rune of Lichbane

prerequisite: 5th level

You gain advantage on all attacks against undead creatures.

Rune of Soulflay

As a bonus action you can invoke this rune to make a creature you choose within 30 feet of you to have disadvantage on a single saving throw of your choice until the end of your next turn.

You may invoke this rune three times. You regain any expended uses when you finish a long rest. You do not need to be holding or wielding your rune weapon to invoke this rune.

Rune of Terror

As a bonus action you can activate an aura that makes your eyes glow blue, and one target within 60 feet must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or become frightened of you until the end of your next turn. This has no effect on undead or constructs.

You can invoke this rune a number of times equal to your Charisma modifier (a minimum of once). You regain any expended uses when you finish a long rest. You do not need to be holding or wielding your rune weapon to invoke this rune.

Rune of the Deathbringer

Your rune weapon has an increased critical hit range of 1 and deals an additional damage die of the weapon type upon landing a critical hit..

Rune of Unholy Fortitude

Your weapon empowers you even from the void. You gain a +2 to your AC as long as you have this rune inscribed.

You do not need to be holding or wielding your rune weapon to gain the effects of this rune.

Power Over Death

At 3rd level your ability as a Death Knight has granted you the power over life and death.

At level 3 you know the spare the dying and Chill Touch cantrips.

At level 5 you may cast the False Life and Detect Evil and Good spells a number of times equal to your charisma modifier.

At level 7 you may cast the Gentle Repose and Shatter spells once per long rest.

At level 10 you may cast the Revivify spell once per long rest and the Speak with Dead spell an equal number of times equal to your charisma modifier.

Necrostrike

At 3rd level, you can channel a Necrostrike as a bonus action when you take an attack action with your rune weapon. For the duration of your turn, your strikes with your rune weapon deal an extra 1d6 necrotic damage per rune on your rune weapon on a hit. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum once). You regain all charges after a long rest.

Unliving

At 3rd level you have fully become undead, you no longer require to eat, drink, breathe or sleep and have resistance to necrotic damage. You may still gain the benefits of a long rest if you spend 8 hours undertaking light activities such as reading or keeping watch.

Your body has been preserved and returned to this world by the Ferryman of Souls, for every 10 years that pass, your body ages only 1 year, and you are immune to being magically aged, in addition your body does not decompose but your form is still clearly undead.

If your race if your race doesn't have it you gain darkvision out to a range of 60 feet.

Unholy Vigor

At 7th level when you finish a short or a long rest, you gain 10 temporary hit points. When you roll initiative, you and friendly creatures within 30 feet of you gain additional 5 temporary hit points.

In addition you can't be killed by any mortal means. Any action or effect that would kill you, so long as your body is not destroyed, instead puts you into a deep slumber for 7 days, upon which you awaken, as if you have completed a long rest.

Shadow Meld

At 10th level, as an action you may teleport yourself and one willing creature to a point you can see within 60 feet if you and that point are both in dim or dark light. The creature must be within 5 feet of you when you use this ability, and there must be an unoccupied space within 5 feet of your destination space for the creature to appear in; otherwise, the creature is left behind. You may use this once per long rest.

Additionally, you also gain immunity to being frightened. You are the nightmare.

Certainty Of Death

At 15th level, your training as a Death Knight has granted you the capabilities of landing killing blows known not to mortals. Your weapon attacks made with your rune weapon score a critical hit on a roll of 19 to 20.

In addition you deal an additional damage die of the weapon type upon landing a critical hit with your rune weapon.

Avatar Of Death

At 18th level, as a bonus action, you can become an avatar of death for 1 minute. While in this form, your size becomes one size larger and your body is completely covered in a dark shadow while in this state. you gain immunity to non-magical weapons, and resistance to all damage types.

Additionally, any hostile creature that begins its turn or enters an area of 120 foot-radius around you while in this form must make a wisdom saving throw or becoming frightened of you. The condition lasts for the duration of your transformation, and in each of its turns, the frightened creature can make another wisdom saving throw to end the effect.

Creatures that would otherwise be immune to the frightened condition are not immune to this effect, but these creatures make the saving throw with advantage.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

The save for this is 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier.