The Rat King - INT

You have struck a pact with the Rat King, a being that dwells in the forgotten corners of cities, where secrets and survival intertwine. This entity, a master of the unseen, now offers you its clandestine power. As a Warlock of this shadow sovereign, your true dominion is the currency of secrets and the silent orchestration of power from the depths.

You could be a street urchin, who once talked to the rats in the alleys for companionship, now finding in them powerful allies and a path to rise above the bleakness of the streets. Or perhaps you are a spy, whose every step weaves through the labyrinth of secrets, each whisper a thread in the intricate tapestry of espionage. Maybe you're a noble, fallen from grace, who now embraces the shadows, seeking redemption or revenge in the underbelly of the city.

Wielding the Rat King's gifts, you become the unseen orchestrator of the streets, an urban shepherd of swarms whose very presence bends the city to your will. Through the skittering legions that answer to you, you can reshape the narrative of power within the city. You need not strike a blow when a single, well-placed whisper can collapse a dynasty; you need not raise a weapon when a rumor can unmake a hero; and you need not show your hand when, through manipulation, a villain's ascent serves your enigmatic ends. In the grand chessboard of the city's endless game, you are the unseen player, the one who knows all moves before they are made, your patron’s clandestine will enacted with a whisper and a scurry in the dark.

The powers the Rat King progressively bestows upon you include the dominion over rats, the gathering of intel from the creatures consumed by his powers, and the ability to thrive in the darkness of the city's underbelly.

Warlock Level	Feature
1st	Expanded Spell List, Rat King’s Secrets, Rat Companion
6th	Feast of Whispers, Underworld Resilience
10th	One with the Swarm, Rodent Communion
14th	Royal Aura of Pestilence

Expanded Spell List

The Rat King lets you choose from an expanded list of spells when you learn a warlock spell. The following spells are added to the warlock spell list for you.

Rat King Expanded Spells

Spell Level	Spells
1st	speak with animals, purify food and drink
2nd	pass without trace, zone of truth
3rd	speak with dead, stinking cloud
4th	vitriolic sphere, locate creature
5th	scrying, legend lore

Rat King’s Secrets

Starting at 1st level, the Rat King shares some of his secrets with you.

You gain darkvision out to a range of 60 ft. (+30 ft. if you already have it). You also have advantage in your History checks if they are related to an urban environment. You have advantage on Charisma check against rodents.

Rat Companion

Starting at 1st level, the Rat King bestows upon you dominion over vermin.

You can summon a rat which appears in an unoccupied space you can see within 30 feet of you. Rats you control can execute simple tasks such as carrying a light object, distracting creatures, gathering simple intel, etc. In combat, the rats you have summoned share your initiative count, and they take their turn immediately after yours. You can add your Charisma modifier to their bite attacks.

The number of rats you can summon, their number of hit points, their AC, and the time they remain at your service are detailed in the table below. You regain expanded charges after you finish a long rest.

Level	Charges / long rest	Hit points	AC	duration
1	1	5	12	1 h
2	1	6	12	1 h
3	1	7	12	1 h
4	1	8	12	1 h
5	2	11	13	3 h
6	2	12	13	3 h
7	2	13	13	3 h
8	2	14	13	3 h
9	3	17	14	6 h
10	3	18	14	6 h
11	3	19	14	6 h
12	3	20	14	6 h
13	4	23	15	12 h
14	4	24	15	12 h
15	4	25	15	12 h
16	4	26	15	12 h
17	5	29	15	24 h
18	5	30	16	24 h
19	5	31	16	24 h
20	5	32	16	24 h

Feast of Whispers

Starting at 6th level, you are able to gather information from the flesh of the fallen.

You can summon a swarm of rats belonging to the Rat King so they can consume a dead body of a creature that is large or smaller. The swarm of rats uses the swarm of rats statistics. However, it can't do any action other than consuming the body. You can use this feature once per short rest at level 6, and twice per short rest at level 12.

When the body is consumed, the swarm seeks to merge with the Warlock. It uses its movement to reach the space occupied by the Warlock if possible. When it reaches it, it disappears and the Warlock gains temporary hit points and can retrieve some information about the consumed creature (at the discretion of the DM).

The time required, and the temporary hit points gained at the end vary according to the size of the target.

Size	Required time	Temporary Hit Points
Tiny	15 minutes	2 * proficiency bonus
Small	30 minutes	3 * proficiency bonus
Medium	1 hour	4 * proficiency bonus
Large	2 hours	5 * proficiency bonus

You can use the following table to decide the kind of information the Warlock receives:

D8 Roll	Result
1	What the creature has eaten recently.
2	The creature’s general state of mind in the last 24 hours.
3	The creature’s very last thoughts before it died.
4	A few of the creature’s recent thoughts that would be relevent to the Warlock.
5	The creature’s name or origin.
6	The creature’s class, or whether a specific ability was higher than the one of the Warlock, or if it had a higher CR/level than the level of the Warlock, etc…
7	Extensive details about the creature’s last 48 hours.
8	You can ask one “yes” or “no” question to the DM about the creature.

If the consumption is interrupted, the body is left in a state proportional to the time left before the action was finished. The consumption is interrupted if the swarm of rats has less than half of its hit points, in which case it disbands and disappears, if it or the Warlock dies, or if the Warlock takes a short or long rest before completion.

Underworld Resilience

Starting at 6th level, your patron fortifies your mind and provides you with guidance to enact his will from the shadows.

You gain resistance to psychic damage, and can have advantage to Stealth, Perception and Deception when in dim light or darkness.

One with the Swarm

At 10th level, you fully become part of the Rat King's swam of rodents.

You gain the ability to change into a swarm of rats to evade harm. When you are hit by an attack, you can use your reaction to transform into a swarm of rats. As long as you are in this shape, you are resistant to Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing damage, as well as the type of damage that was targeting you. You also automatically succeed any Dexterity saving throw, but have disadvantage on any Strength, Intelligence, or Charisma saving throws. You can not use this reaction if you are Incapacitated. As a swarm of rats, you become immune to Charmed, Frightened, Grappled, Paralyzed, Petrified, Prone, Restrained, and Stunned. Although, if you were already affected by one of these conditions, their effect is suspended, not neutralized.

You can use this reaction twice and regain all expended charges on a short rest.

Rodent Communion

Starting at 10th level, your mind is able to fully connect with the mind of your rat companions.

You can now use Speak with Animals without expending a spell slot, but it only works with rodents.

Once per long rest, you can take control of a rat within 5 feet that you can touch. Your main body becomes unconscious. The effect lasts up to 10 minutes, but ends if the controlled rat dies or if your main body is attacked. If your main body takes damages, it regains consciousness, losing the link to the rat, and you become prone instead of unconscious.

Royal Aura of Pestilence

At 14th level, you can harness the full might of the Rat King to unleash a plague that reveals its victims' secrets to your Patron.

As an action, you create a 20-foot radius aura of pestilence around yourself, and any rat you control emit a similar aura in a 10-foot radius. The aura spreads around corners. It lasts for up to 1 minute (10 rounds), but you must use your bonus action on each of your turns to maintain it. The effects of multiple overlapping pestilent auras do not stack.
If you die, the effects stop. If a rat dies, their body doesn't emit the aura anymore. 
When you activate the Royal Aura of Pestilence, you can choose any number of creatures within the aura. Each chosen creature must make a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC. On a failed save, a creature takes 3d10 poison damage plus an additional amount equal to three times your Charisma modifier. On a successful saving throw, the damage is halved.
If a creature either starts its turn within the aura or enters it on a turn, it must make a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC if you decide so. On a failed save, the creature takes 2d10 poison damage plus your Charisma modifier. On a successful save, the damage is halved. 
Additionally, if a creature dies within your pestilent aura, you gain knowledge of one secret about it, at the discretion of the DM.

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