Order of Nihility

With a belief that all is meaningless, those who follow the Order of Nihility don't often interact with one another. They can even come across as lazy, with their belief that the universe will come to nothingness, and thus nothing matters. Others may follow a less intense philosophy, internalizing their feelings of oblivion rather than applying it to the world around them. Either way, through their combat abilities those who follow the Order of Nihility can impose a sense of helplessness and shared failure on their enemies with a focus on damage over time and debuffing abilities.

Sensory Labyrinth

When you hit a creature with a weapon you currently have an active Rite on, you can force that creature to make a CON save against your hemocraft save DC or be inflicted with Suffering. The Suffering effect depends on the Rite used. Once afflicted, you can use your bonus action to add a stack of Suffering, up to 3 stacks, to the creature as long as you hit that creature that turn. Each stack lasts two turns, until the end of the turn of the creature. It deals damage at the start of the creature’s turn. Lesser restoration or similar spells remove all Suffering stacks. If the creature is immune to the damage type of Suffering, they are immune to its status effects as well.

 

Rite of the Flame. The damage dealt by Suffering is fire. Suffering causes a burn that deals damage equal to your hemocraft die at the start of the creature’s turn. The burn increases damage received by a number equal to your intelligence (hemocraft) modifier, and the creature cannot hide while Suffering.

Rite of the Frozen. The damage dealt by Suffering is cold. Suffering causes a freeze that deals damage equal to your hemocraft die at the start of the creature’s turn. The burn also slows the creature, reducing their movement speed by half.

Rite of the Storm. The damage dealt by Suffering is lightning. Suffering causes a shock that deals damage equal to your hemocraft die at the start of the creature’s turn. It also causes a number (equal to the stacks of Suffering) of nearby hostile creatures up to 20 ft away from the creature with Suffering to take the same amount of lightning damage.

Rite of the Dead. The damage dealt by Suffering is necrotic. Suffering causes a festering wound that deals damage equal to your hemocraft die at the start of the creature’s turn. The festering wound also decreases any healing the creature received by half.

Rite of the Oracle. The damage dealt by Suffering is psychic. Suffering causes a mental anguish that deals damage equal to your hemocraft die at the start of the creature’s turn. Suffering gives a creature -1 to saving throws per stack.

Rite of the Roar. The damage dealt by Suffering is thunder. Suffering causes reverberations that deal damage equal to your hemocraft die at the start of the creature’s turn. Once the reverberations reach 3 stacks, the next successful attack against the target will stun it.

Rite Tools for the Job

Starting at 3rd level, you know an additional Rite. At 11th level, you may learn one of either Rite of the Dead, Rite of the Oracle, or Rite of the Roar.

Rite of the Flame.

 The extra damage dealt by your rite is fire damage.

Rite of the Frozen

The extra damage dealt by your rite is cold damage.

Rite of the Storm

The extra damage dealt by your rite is lightning damage.

Variant Hemocraft Ability Score

As a blood hunter, you use your Intelligence modifier for some of your class and subclass features. However, with your DM’s permission, if you choose the Order of Nihility, you can choose to instead use your Charisma modifier for all your blood hunter features that use your Intelligence modifier by default.

Charisma

Use your Charisma modifier for all your blood hunter features that use your Intelligence modifier by default.

Hunter’s Pursuit

At 7th level, when an ally deals damage to an enemy that is the same type as one of your rites and you have a rite active, you can use your reaction to immediately make an attack against that enemy, provided you are in range. This applies one stack of Suffering, without the use of a bonus action.

Brand of Emptiness

At 11th level, your Brand of Castigation deals additional damage equal to the number of conditions (charmed, poisoned, stunned, etc.) the target currently has. Each stack of Suffering counts as a separate condition for the purpose of this ability.

Weakness Break

Starting at 15th level, your rites can overcome damage resistances, and can treat immunities as resistance. This extends to the weapon the rite is currently on. Additionally, you know the Blood Curse of Thorns for your Blood Maledict feature. This doesn’t count against your number of blood curses known.

Blood Curse of Thorns

As a bonus action, you curse a creature that you can see within 30 feet of you, which must make a Constitution saving throw. On a failure, it takes damage equal to your hemocraft die, or half as much on a success. Its hit point maximum is also reduced by this amount until its next long rest.

Amplify. This curse lasts for 1 minute. The cursed creature can make a Constitution saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the curse on itself on a success.

Coup de Grâce

At 18th level, twice per day you gain the ability to change which rite you have active without dealing damage to yourself as a bonus action as long as you previously had one active and you took damage within the last round. All stacks of Suffering are of whatever type you most recently dealt damage with to the afflicted creature. Additionally, you know the Blood Curse of Duality for your Blood Maledict feature. This doesn’t count against your number of blood curses known.

Blood Curse of Duality

As a bonus action, you curse a creature that you can see within 30 feet of you. For the next minute, that creature will be afflicted with the same stacks of Suffering you apply normally to one other creature. 

Amplify. For the next minute, the cursed creature must pay the hemocraft die in place of you when you next spend it after this use. This damage can’t be reduced in any way.