Grave Lord

Most sorcerers draw their power from the elements, the stars, or wild chaos, but the Grave Lord draws from the stillness of the tomb. Whether born from a lineage cursed by an ancient lich, surviving a brush with the Ethereal Plane, or being "gifted" by a deity of the underworld, these sorcerers possess a macabre elegance that separates them from standard practitioners of magic.

To a Grave Lord, the dead are not merely remains to be animated, but a resource to be harvested. This connection begins with a physical transformation—the manifestation of Bone Armor that knits across their skin, providing a grim defense against those who would seek to send the sorcerer to an early grave. As their power matures, they learn to beckon spirits from the ether, snapping their fingers to raise an Undead Legion of fragile but lethal skeletons that act with a hive-mind precision.

At the height of their journey, a Grave Lord ceases to be entirely human. They can slip into a Ghostly Form, drifting through solid stone and ignoring the blades of the living as if they were nothing more than a passing breeze. In their most terrifying state, they become a mobile Domain of the Dead, an aura of terminal energy where the dying rise instantly as their servants and the living find their lifeforce siphoned away to fuel the sorcerer’s own vitality. While others fear the end, the Grave Lord stands at the threshold, commanding the very forces that haunt the dreams of mortal men.

Bone Armor

Your skin hardens or spectral bones knit across your body. When you aren’t wearing armor, your AC is equal to 13 + Dexterity modifier.

Undeath

• Your soul is tethered to the veil. Once per long rest, when you would drop to 0 HP, you can drop to 1 HP instead.

Undead Legion

At 6th level, you can spend 3 Sorcery Points as an action to snap your fingers and pull the spirits of the fallen into the physical realm. You summon a number of Skeletons equal to your Proficiency Bonus (minimum of 1) in unoccupied spaces within 30 feet.

• Stat Changes: They have 1 HP and gain a bonus to their Attack and Damage rolls equal to your Charisma modifier.
• Command: They share your initiative count and take their turn immediately after yours. They obey your mental commands (no action required).
• Duration: They last for 1 hour, until they drop to 0 HP, or until you use this feature again.

Once you use this feature, you must finish a Long rest before you can use it again.

Ghostly Form

As a bonus action, you can partially transition your body into the Ethereal Plane. For 1 minute, or until you take an action or use a bonus action to end this effect, you gain the following benefits:

• Incorporeal Movement: You ignore difficult terrain, and 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.
• Spectral Escape: Your movement does not provoke opportunity attacks.
• Spirit Shield: You have resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical attacks.

Once you use this feature, you cannot do so again until you finish a short or long rest.

Domain of the Dead

As an action, you can spend 6 Sorcery Points to emanate an aura of terminal power. For 1 minute, a 30-foot radius centered on you becomes a threshold between life and death. The aura moves with you and provides the following benefits:

• Reap the Fallen: Whenever a Small or Medium creature (other than a construct or undead) dies within the aura, it immediately rises as a Skeleton under your command, as if summoned by your Undead Legion feature. These skeletons do not count toward your usual limit and disappear when the aura ends.
• Grave Ward: You and any allies within the aura gain the benefits of your Undeath feature. If an affected creature would drop to 0 HP, they can drop to 1 HP instead. This can only happen once for each creature per casting of Domain of the Dead.
• Siphon Life: At the start of each of your turns, any enemy within the aura takes Necrotic damage equal to your Charisma modifier. You regain hit points equal to the total Necrotic damage dealt this way.

Once you use this feature, you cannot do so again until you finish a long rest, unless you spend 7 Sorcery Points to use it again, and while using this feature you must maintain concentration on it.