Order of the Risen

The Order of the Risen is a secret order of elite warriors dedicated to the fallen. They practice in dark rituals that bind their souls to those of fallen brethren, their bodies acting as vassals in order to enact vengeance. These rituals are looked down on by most blood hunters, due to participants often suffering severe insanity, self-mutilation, and even death. They are known for performing wicked and cruel acts of violence and appear as if they are caught between two planes of existence. They grow in strength the more they kill, feeding themselves and the spirits within them on the life force of those they slay. Those that are successful in their binding have even become powerful enough to summon the spirits within them to assist in battle.

Those who choose this order have chosen no easy path. This order offers high risk but with high rewards. This class focuses on melee combat and using a singular weapon, as it is the weapon where the Risen channel their inner powers. Your weapon will almost appear sentient to you, while your body will become infused with multiple spirits, forever changing its interaction with the regular world. Your mind will sense things no one else can, hear things that cannot be understood, your voice echoing and splitting in different tones as you channel the spirits within you. Your body and spirit will be constantly fighting over its very existence with other souls trapped within you, walking the realms of both the ethereal and overworld. However, those who keep a strong will and focused mind will use these weaknesses to their advantage, becoming an unstoppable abomination that seeks death and violence to any that dare cross its path.

Rite of Bereavement

At level 3 you have successfully taken on the spirits of your fallen brethren by performing the Risen ritual. In return, the spirits give you the esoteric Rite of Bereavement. This rite deals radiant damage and causes your blade to pulsate and glow, as well as to whisper in exotic languages such as abyssal or infernal. Casting this rite deals double damage however, for it requires a great amount of lifeforce to wield. This also grants access to Corpse-Maker, a unique ability to the  Order of the Risen.

"The blade hummed and hissed in his hands, its red glow pulsing as it sensed others drawing near. It was hungry."

Corpse-Maker

With multiple spirits confiding within your mind and body, you will require life-force to remain in control and to gain strength and power. Mastering this energy transfer through your weapon can have some massive benefits, yet failing to gain energy can be detrimental as well. Final blows with your weapon gain Kill-Count, or KC (as detailed below), while missed attacks cause for rite damage to yourself or to attack the closest creature. On failed attack, roll a d20. If under dc10 take rite casting damage to your health. If under dc5 take the same damage and attack the next closest creature on your next possible attack.

Kill-Count (KC)-

For each final blow dealt on enemies, you gain 1 KC. KC can be spent mid-battle or saved for later uses. KC will reset to 0 if you are dying, or decay by 5 KC/hour if unwillingly unconscious. 

0 KC - Satisfaction

If the blade can be satisfied, it will reward you. Maintain 2xBloodhunter levels of KC when deactivating Rite of Bereavement to gain back lost health for casting it.

The blade's red aura began to dull, its whispering grew quiet as the corpses lay still. It was enough for now.

3 KC - Lucky Satisfaction

Lucky Satisfaction enables you to avoid punishment so long as you have been feeding the blade. Using 3 KC will negate punishment for 1 missed attack. 

The Risen fought the urge to strike his fellow companion, the blade nearly leaping from his hand for a taste.

5 KC - Mutual Health

The blade hungers for more and you need its help. Mutual Health allows the blade to feed and donate its energy to you. All rite damage dealt in one round for 5 KC is rewarded back in health.

The beast slowly turned to ash, the blade still implanted deep within its chest cavity. The Risen hummed in satisfaction nearly as much as the blade.

7 KC - Risen Smite

Feeding the blade makes it attack more ferociously.  For 7 KC, use Death Lingers on an attack roll to roll twice the amount of rite damage. 

The Risen stood upon a pile of corpses, the bodies slowly turning to ash. The blade pulsated so vibrantly it seemed as if to scream into the void as a beacon, saying, "Here we are...now come and join them."

Bereaved Weapons

As you fight, you begin to feel your powers grow within your weapon. Feeding it has granted it new abilities to use in combat. At each Bereavement level, you must perform a 4-hour ritual in which you inscribe your weapon. The ritual involves superheating the weapon and adding your own blood to it. The weapon will then begin to inscribe itself with an inscription that reads a new level of power at each level. Performing this ritual will leave you at half your maximum health for 4 hours. 

Level 1 Empowered-Wielder (50 KC Spent):

All self-induced rite damage is now halved. Gain advantage with failed attacks to avoid punishments.

Level 2 Spectral-Warrior (100 KC Spent):

Summon 1 Spirit to fight alongside you for 1 minute. Spirit is a clone of yourself in terms of stats and weapon type. Spirit kills reward  KC. Costs 15 KC.

Level 3 Risen-Captain (200 KC Spent):

Summon 1d4 Spirits to fight alongside you for 1 minute. Costs 30 KC regardless of number summoned. You can take rite damage once to double the time they stay to fight for you.  

Horrifying Influence

At level 7, you discover Horrifying Influence, which allows you to summon spirits to help intimidate your foes into submission. Summoned spirits get added to intimidation/persuasion rolls based on the number rolled. 1d4 at level 7, 1d6 at level 11, 1d8 at level 18. 

The warriors dropped their weapons, frozen in fear. "Oh how quickly you've realized the end," spoke the spirits all at once, twisting unnaturally to face them, "a realization you've all made too late."

Plane-Walker

Upon reaching 11th level, you have learned to traverse the spirit realm for a brief period of time (1 min per use), or to attack in a swift and deadly strike. When you use the Attack action on your turn, you can expend a use of this feature to attack three times, instead of twice, and you temporarily become spectral. Until the end of your next turn, you can move through other creatures and objects as if they were difficult terrain. You take 1d10 force damage if you end your turn inside an object. If you are inside an object when you are no longer spectral, you are immediately shunted to the nearest unoccupied space that you can occupy and take force damage equal to twice the number of feet you moved. You may expend a use of this feature as a bonus action instead of making an attack.

You can use this ability a number of times equal to your Constitution modifier per short rest.

The bandit knocked his arrow to shoot the insane man, but he had vanished. He felt a sudden coldness and peered down to see the red blade protruding from his chest, dripping his own blood. "I warned you," whispered the man as he became flesh once again.

Spectral Insanity

When reaching level 15, the power of the Risen overcomes you. As a bonus action, with the Rite of Bereavement active, you can enter into a state of spectral insanity. The world in your eyes becomes a black void with dim grey outlines and all creatures in a 40-foot sphere around you become a bright red aura. Kills in this state of being offer twice the KC, but failed attacks grant disadvantage on punishment rolls as well as twice the rite damage done to yourself. Staying in this state for more than a minute will tax your sanity and life essence. For each extra minute spent in this state, double damage in rite damage will be dealt to you until leaving. Using Bereaved weapons allow you to take only normal damage.

"In the end, we're all just walking corpses waiting to be set free," spoke the Risen to the crowd, his eyes suddenly emitting fierce light with blood pooling from his mouth and sockets.

Deathless

At level 18 you have mastered control over the spirits within you. When you are killed, roll 1d10 to determine how many spirits spawn to defend you. Your spirit will also join the fray. Each spirit, including your own, has the exact same stats as you. They will also use similar weapons and armor based on what your spirit uses from your corpse. Each spirit can cast Rite of Bereavement with no punishments. For each death blow dealt by these spirits or your own, you will regain those points in health. This will last for 30 seconds only, or until you die. This ability can be used a number of times based on the highest bereavement level of your weapons (min 1). This ability will reset after a month's time has passed, allowing your spirit and body to recuperate. 

"We are Death... it was fated to be."