Order of the Old Ways

The human knelt in the dirt, drawing lines of crimson across the stones with a careful, practiced hand. The air around her crackled as unseen forces shifted, the weight of ancient power pressing against reality. A ward woven from her own lifeblood, pulsed in the dim torchlight.

A dragonborn walked through the battlefield, bare feet sinking into mud thick with blood. He whispered as he passed, his voice a low hum, a curse carried on the wind. The wounded groaned, their flesh blackening, veins turning to writhed knots beneath their skin. He did not stop. He did not look back. The rot had already set in.

The elf felt it now, the chains coiled beneath her skin. They no longer rattled in her grip but moved with her, through her, a part of her as much as her own flesh. The others called her name, but it no longer sounded right. She had been strong once, held firm against the whispers, against the creeping hunger. But the line had blurred, and now, when she looked in the mirror, she saw nothing of herself. Only something twisted, something withered.

---

 

The Order of the Old Ways is not recorded in tomes, nor whispered in the halls of scholars. They are etched into flesh, bound in blood, carried by those who walk the line between sacrifice and corruption. To follow the Old Ways is to let the chains of forgotten covens twist through marrow and mind, and to wield magic that was never meant to be tamed. Let the iron and crimson of the hunt shape you, bear the weight that no longer binds, but empowers. Older than prayer, it is an ancient path woven in curses, sealed in blood and steeped in the forbidden craft of the first witches. 

It is said that those who walk too far into the Old Ways risk sharing their fate. Moving closer to the whispers of those who came before, the covens that fell, and those who have lost themselves. Their flesh twisted and spirits blackened under the weight of their own magic. Forever changed. Forever lost.

 Order of the Old Ways Features

Chained to the Coven

When your order calls upon you at 3rd level, whispered incantations filled the air amidst a heavy shroud of decay and mystery. Magic flows through your blood, flesh, and bone. You can perform a 1-hour ritual to forge a spellcasting focus to tap into the magic of your order. It becomes a living extension of yourself, growing and evolving alongside you, granting protection and spellcasting.

You can add and attune to the Chains of the Blood Rite in your inventory. Upgrades of the Chains of the Blood Rite are available at levels you gain a subclass feature in The Order of the Old Ways. While attuned to your Chains of the Blood Rite, you have  a unique spell list.

Of Sight

Starting at 3rd level, you tap into the power passed down from the first witches who wielded blood magic. Their gifts now awakens within you, granting you a heightened connection to magic. You learn that you have the innate ability to detect magic. You can cast detect magic at will without expending a spell slot.

Witch's Ward

Upon reaching 7th level, you feel a change in the Chains of the Blood Rite. You have unlocked a powerful gift from your order's past, weaving a protective ward around yourself. This ward is a legacy of their power, shielding you from forces both unnatural and malevolent. You are always under the effects of protection from evil and good.

Of Truesight and Mind

At 11th level, the Chains of the Blood Rite awakens new insight. Your understanding of the hidden truths of magic has deepened, allowing you to perceive and unravel its workings with unnatural clarity, seeing things as they truly are. You gain truesight and have expertise in Intelligence (Arcana) Checks.

Hex Marked

Starting 11th level, when you use Brand of Castigation, the branded creature is immediately under the effects of hex. The spell lasts as long as the Brand of Castigation remains active, no concentration required.

Blood Curse of the Coven

At 15th level, your communion with the Chains of the Blood Rite deepens, revealing a darker nature of magic. The curse you invoke is no mere binding, but a twisted force of empowerment and suffering. You gain the ability to invoke the Blood Curse of the Coven. This doesn’t count against the number of blood curses known.

Blood Curse of the Coven

You can invoke the Blood Curse of the Coven. As a bonus action, you can expend the use of your Blood Maledict feature to target a creature within 30 feet. You choose one ability score. While cursed, the target has disadvantage on ability checks and saving throws made with that ability score.

Amplify. When you hit the target with an attack, you can regain hit points equal to one roll of your hemocraft die.

Wretched Malediction

Upon reaching 18th level, you gain advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects. Additionally, spells you cast no longer require vocal or somatic components.

As a bonus action, you can invoke The Old Ways altering your form for 1 minute. You gained the following benefits when transformed: 

• As an action, you can expend a use of your Blood Maledict feature to invoke the Blood Curse of of the Coven, amplified, extending its reach in a 30 feet radius around you, targeting a number of creatures equal to your Hemocraft modifier (minimum of 1).
• You can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.
• When a creature within 60 feet of you damages you, you can use your reaction to lash out, channeling the vile magic of the Old Ways. The creature must make a Constitution saving throw. It takes your choice of necrotic, poison, or psychic damage equal to 3 rolls of your hemocraft die on a failed save. It takes half as much damage on a successful one.

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