Circle of Undeath

 

"Aye, I know the glade you speak of, went there once myself. We saw the skeletons hanging in the trees, some macabre warning, or waiting to do their masters bidding, we never found out. But that wolf, that glade's guardian, I never seen a beast like it. Dead it was, with flesh missing and bones on show, but it fought. Smartest and toughest wolf I ever saw. We ran, lucky to escape with our lives we were. There's darkness in them trees, I'll not be going back."

- Eldon Daergel, Gnome Scout, turning down work as a guide.

 

Druids of the Circle of Undeath, like most druids, are protectors of the wilds and their homes. They claim no mastery over death, but see it as a tool for the protection of nature. When a creature perishes and it's spirit passes on, what's left, as far as members of this circle are concerned, is a resource. Whether the body is consumed by other beasts, whether it decomposes to feed the plants, or whether it is reanimated to protect it's former home is of little consequence to them.

The "civilized" peoples of the world do not share this view of the undead and as such these druids are often shunned by society. In some extreme cases they are even mistaken for witches, hags, or other malevolent beings.

Worse yet, druids of the Circle of Undeath spend much of their lives being watched. Dark deities and demons stalk them from the shadows waiting to claim their prize. For it takes but a stumble on this precarious path for a druid to fall to the corruption of these evil powers.

Dark Ward

When you choose this circle at 2nd level, your steps into dark magic grant you the knowledge of the False Life spell.

You always have it prepared, and it doesn't count against the number of spells you can prepare each day. This spell is considered a druid spell for you.

Shape of Undeath

Starting at 2nd level, you can borrow the power of deceased creatures when you transform into your Wild Shape. This could take the form of dark energy or even physical bones rising from the ground beneath you to merge with your transformation.

While in your Wild Shape, your creature type is undead and your beastial form is visibly so. This could be manifest through rotting flesh, a skeletal figure or a powerful stench.

In addition, whilst in your Wild Shape you benefit from the following feature:

Undead Fortitude (Wild Shape only). If damage reduces your Wild Shape to 0 hit points, before you revert to your normal form you must make a Constitution saving throw (using the beast's Constitution) with a DC of 5 + the damage taken, unless the damage is radiant, from a silvered weapon, or from a critical hit. On a success, your Wild Shape drops to 1 hit point instead.

Circle Spells

Your connection necrotic energy infuses you with the ability to cast certain spells. At 3rd, 5th, 7th, and 9th level you gain access to circle spells connected to undeath.

Once you gain access to a circle spell, you always have it prepared, and it doesn’t count against the number of spells you can prepare each day. If you gain access to a spell that doesn’t appear on the druid spell list, the spell is nonetheless a druid spell for you.

Druid Level	Spells
3rd	Blindness/Deafness, Ray of Enfeeblement
5th	Animate Dead, Vampiric Touch
7th	Blight, Death Ward
9th	Antilife Shell, Cloudkill

Undying Soul

Starting at 6th level, your connection to undeath and necromantic magics allow you to survive the most grievous of wounds. If you are reduced to 0 hit points, you immediately make a Constitution saving throw with a DC of the damage taken. On a success you are instead reduced to 1 hit point.

Aura of Death

When you reach 10th level, you emanate a deathly aura that extends 30 feet in every direction while you are not incapacitated. The aura is blocked by total cover. While in the aura, you and any friendly undead are immune to the frightened condition and have resistance to radiant damage.

In addition, all living creatures suffer disadvantage on death saving throws while in the aura.

Animating Mould

When you reach 14th level, as an action you can seed one corpse of a humanoid or a Large or smaller beast within 5 feet of you with the spores of an animating mould. 24 hours later after the mould has spread over the corpse, it rises as a spore servant. The corpse stays animated for 1d4 + 1 weeks or until destroyed, and it can't be animated again in this way. To extend the animation of a spore servant for another 1d4 weeks, you must use this feature on the creature again before the current animation window ends.

You can only control one spore servant at a time. Uncontrolled spore servants are docile as their plant side takes over. Most will seek out rich damp soil to rest in, moving only to defend themselves, until their ultimate demise.

Once your have used this feature you can't use it again for 7 days. 

Statistics for spore servants can be found on page 230 of the Monster Manual, with the following amendments:

Type. Your spore servant's type is "plant (undead)", and it loses any other tags. As such your spore servants are affected by spells and abilities that target both plants and undead creatures.

Languages. Your spore servant loses all known languages, but it responds to orders given to it by it's creator.