Child of Pestilence

Deep within the annals of history, there exists a haunting lineage known as the Children of Pestilence. These sorcerers, born of ominous circumstances and touched by the baleful forces of decay and disease, carry an undeniable aura of malevolence and destruction. Whether their origins lie in an age of rampant plagues, a pact with a sinister entity, or a cursed bloodline, these sorcerers wield their innate magic to harness the powers of rot and contagion, unleashing devastation upon their foes and sowing chaos wherever they tread.

Marked by the foul touch of pestilence, the Children of Pestilence are cursed and blessed in equal measure. At the core of their power lies their deep understanding of diseases and toxins. They possess an innate affinity for Nature's secrets, gaining unparalleled insight into the maladies that afflict the living. With a mere touch, they can sense the nature of diseases and poisons that wrack the bodies of those around them, unlocking the secrets of these afflictions and revealing potential remedies to aid or exploit.

As they delve deeper into their sorcerous path, the Children of Pestilence discover their unique talent to corrupt and manipulate the very essence of magic. With a dark and twisted understanding, they can twist their spells into conduits of contagion. When casting a spell that typically inflicts damage of any kind except poison, they possess the ability to infuse it with the essence of pestilence, transforming the damage into a venomous toxin. Those unfortunate enough to fall victim to this wicked sorcery face an additional agony—a poison that seeps through their veins, inflicting further torment even after the initial strike.

The Children of Pestilence carry an aura of decay, an inescapable reminder of their twisted heritage. As their powers grow, they emanate a field of maleficence that corrupts and weakens those around them. Within this pestilent aura, they and their allies find themselves resilient against the perils of poison, their bodies bolstered against the ravages of venomous substances. Meanwhile, any hostile creature foolish enough to linger within the aura's reach suffers the consequences. The noxious miasma seeps into their bodies, forcing them to confront their mortality with every breath. The weakened and wretched enemy must fend off the toxic onslaught, lest they succumb to the relentless assault.

At the pinnacle of their power, the Children of Pestilence become harbingers of plague and the living embodiment of pestilence itself. By channeling their sorcerous might, they can assume the form of a Plaguebearer—a grotesque and terrifying visage that strikes fear into the hearts of those who witness it. While transformed, their very essence exudes a sickening aura that afflicts their enemies. Their melee attacks and cantrips, already steeped in venom, transcend conventional resistances and even reduce the impenetrable walls of immunity to mere defenses against the onslaught. A single touch or strike from the Plaguebearer is enough to poison the veins and weaken the sturdiest of adversaries. And with each foe vanquished, their tainted power rejuvenates their own vitality, fortifying their own fragile mortality with each life extinguished.

The ultimate pinnacle of their path is the mastery of epidemics, a sinister understanding of the intricate workings of contagion. The Children of Pestilence become true masters of poison, capable of inflicting unparalleled devastation upon their enemies. Whenever they unleash a spell that deals poison damage, their command over the venom grows. They can roll additional dice to amplify the toxicity, aided by their profound connection to the deadly forces they command. Furthermore, those struck by their Contagious Spellcasting feature find themselves doubly cursed, as the poison's potency makes their attempts

Plagueborn

At 1st level, you gain proficiency in the Nature skill, and you have advantage on saving throws against diseases. Additionally, you can spend 1 sorcery point as an action to analyze the nature of a disease or poison affecting a creature within 30 feet of you. Upon a successful Intelligence (Nature) check (DC determined by the DM based on the disease or poison), you gain insight into the nature of the affliction, its effects, and potential remedies.

Contagious Spellcasting

Starting at 1st level, whenever you cast a spell that deals damage of a type other than poison, you can spend 1 sorcery point to infuse it with pestilence. The spell's damage changes to poison damage, and if the target fails its saving throw, it suffers an additional 1d6 poison damage at the start of its next turn.

 

Pestilent Aura

At 6th level, you emanate an aura of decay and sickness. You and friendly creatures within 10 feet of you have resistance to poison damage and advantage on saving throws against poison. Additionally, whenever a hostile creature starts its turn within the aura, it must make a Constitution saving throw against your sorcerer spell save DC. On a failed save, the creature takes poison damage equal to half your sorcerer level (rounded down).

 

Plaguebearer

At 14th level, you can channel your sorcerous power to become a vessel of pestilence. As an action, you can spend 7 sorcery points to transform into a Plaguebearer for 1 minute. While in this form, you gain the following benefits:

• You gain resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage.
• Your melee spell attacks and cantrips that deal poison damage ignore resistance to poison damage and treat immunity as resistance.
• When you hit a creature with a spell attack that deals poison damage, the target is poisoned until the end of its next turn.
• When you kill a creature, you regain hit points equal to your sorcerer level + your Charisma modifier.

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

Epidemic Mastery

At 18th level, your mastery over pestilence reaches its peak. Whenever you deal poison damage with a spell, you can roll an additional number of damage dice equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of 1). Additionally, creatures damaged by your Contagious Spellcasting feature have disadvantage on their saving throws to resist the additional poison damage.