Circle of the Crimson

Where many druids believe death to be a natural part of the cycle of life, a select few believe death to be an aberration. To these druids, the pursuit of preserving life is futile without first rejecting the enemy of life: death.

And so, this circle taps into a force forbidden: The Crimson. In exchange for a prolonged life, they are afflicted with cancerous mutations of their own body though these can make them more powerful. Others may be disgusted with their ways, believing it to be unnatural and horrific. But they believe that they will one day free the world from the shackles placed upon it by the Gods of the grave and have everything become Crimson.

 

Crimson Malformities

d8 Malformity 

1-Whenever you transform into an animal with Wild Shape, you instead have your body contort into the shape of the beast.

2-You have grown an extra vestigial limb, or three.

3-After not moving for a while, web like patterns of sinew grow between your limbs that easily breaks away.

4-Your body is now an amalgamation of various animal parts replacing your own.

5-Objects on your person start to become more organic, growing sinew, eyes, veins.

6-Most of your skin has peeled off revealing muscle underneath. it is surprisingly painless.

7-Everything you touch becomes stained with blood, even if you are not injured. 

8-A tumor has grown over the mouth you were born with, but you have grown two other mouths on your body that you can talk and speak through. 

 

Limb Restoration

At 2nd level, whenever one of your body parts is severed, it grows back in 1d10 days. 

You many choose to have it grow in the same position and shape it was originally, or in a different one of your choice, but it always retains the same properties. 

Gruesome Transformation

At 2nd level, you gain the ability to use your Crimson Magic to mutate your own body. As an action, you can expand a use of your Wild Shape feature to undergo a horrific mutation,  transforming into a beast form and forcing creatures that you can see with in 20 feet of you to make a Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, a creature becomes frightened of you for 1 minute. The frightened creature can repeat this it's saving throw at the beginning of its turn, ending effect on itself once successful. 

Benefits:

-You have natural armor in the form of bone like growths over your body. This sets your AC to 12 + Con modifier.

-You can mutate your arms into natural weapons such as bone claws. You deal slashing or piecing damage equal to 1d6 damage + STRENGTH modifier. These arms are crude and can not manipulate tools or other weapons, but can preform sematic components of your druid spells. 

-These effects last for 1 hour and can be canceled with a bonus action.

Organic Combat Training

At 2nd level you have become familiar with how to use the weapons nature has given you in combat. When you use the Attack action with an unarmed strike from a natural weapon on your turn, you can make one unarmed strike with a natural weapon as a bonus action. 

Animalistic Mutation

After mutating yourself many times using the Crimson, you have grown new mutations similar to those of certain animals. At the 6th level, choose one of the following options:

Crimson wings: You have flaps of flesh and sinew that you can use as wings to slow your fall or allow you to glide. When you fall and are not incapacitated, you can subtract up to 100ft from the fall for damage. You can move up to 2ft horizontally for every 1ft you descend.

Mangled Climber: Large bone like claws replace your finder nails. You have a climbing speed equal to your walking speed. 

Aspect of the Blood Fin: You grow gills and finds somewhere on your body. You can breathe air and water. You have a swimming speed equal to your walking speed. 

Curse of the Flesh

Using the power of the Crimson, you can curse the living to have their own body turn against them at 6th level. The first creature that isn't a construct or undead you can infect them with a Crimson Curse. You can use this once per short rest. Your ability to curse increases as you level, at level 10 you may use this features twice per short rest. At level 14 you may use it 3 times and can add your proficiency bonus to the DC. At level 18 you have mastered your curses and can apply all three at once. When you apply this curse, choose one of the following:

Crimson Plague : When the cursed creature hits a creature other than you with an attack, the its digestive system is infected with spores and it must make a constitution saving throw. On a failure, the creature is poisoned for 1 minute and must repeat the saving throw on each of its turns until it succeeds.

Tendon Burst: When cursed, the creatures has to succeed on a strength save of 14. If failed, tendons burst from it flesh and grapple it for 1 minutes. The creatures can make a strength save on its turn. It take 1d4 damage once it breaks free. 

Crimson Madness: When the cursed creature hits a creature other than you with an attack, it must make a wisdom save as the Crimson attempts to attack its mind. On a failure, the creature takes 2d6 psychic damage.

Extra Attack

Beginning at 6th level, you can attack twice whenever taking the Attack action on your turn.

Volatile Strikes

Starting at 6th level, your unarmed strikes ooze with Crimson Blood Magic. They are now considered magical attacks for the purposes of overcoming magical resistance. 

Limb Bequeathal

At the 10th level, you have learned how to give the gift of the Crimson to others. Over the course of 10 minutes. you can plant a Crimson seed into a creature's severed body part and it will grow back in 1d10 days. You may choose to have it grow in the same position and shape it was originally or in a different one of your choice, but it always retains the same properties. 

Perfected Transformation

At 10th level you have practiced enough with the Crimson Magic to improve your mutations cause by it. When you use your Gruesome Transformation, you gain 2 temporary hit points for each level you have in this class. Additionally, you gain the following benefits while your in Gruesome Transformation:

You gain a flying speed equal to your walking speed.

The Damage die of your natural weapons increases to a d8

You may now use two curses per short rest when using the Curse of Flesh feature. 

 

Defy Death

The unwavering devotion to the Crimson has given you the ability to deny the gods who desire to divert the world from its true destiny. At 14th level you regain 1 hit point whenever you roll a 19 or 20 when making a death saving throw. Additionally, you require four death saving throw failures instead of three to die.