Order of the Council of Fourteen

Long ago, in times of legend and myth, a race called the wingles lived together in harmony. This small tribe had peaceful ways, and their magic was clean and bright... but deep within a member of the tribe was a dark and taboo desire to explore the boundaries of life and death. And so he did, a just and noble unicorn friend of the tribe being his subject. When the magic was uncovered it fractured the whole race, leading some to take to the sky on a large wandering earthmote.

The wingles that remained below gradually became warlike to compete with their neighbors, but among all, the original dark magic remained forbidden and unspoken of... openly. There were some who walked in those ways- outcasts of all societies- who sought to master life and death, and perfect the dark magic that divided the wingle people. The tribe of fourteen the wingles claimed descent from still watched over their kind from on high, even as their families warred over the weapons meant to protect themselves in their absence. But after one great and bloody conflict, the mighty weapons were reclaimed, leaving the wingle people in fear and desperation.

And so, with the safeguards of their kind gone, and having learned the secrets of blood magic from other races, certain wingles turned again to their ancestors for help. Individually, the council had various works of might and magic in their mythos, but collectively, their power was immense. The bright magic of the council of fourteen ancestors became unyielding and eerie, the path girded around by the ancient darkness that was once a shame. But those times when the Order of the Council of Fourteen were filled with bitter struggle, for not only did their magic frighten many, but the Council set the fledgling order against mighty celestial foes few were willing to face. To survive, the order had to take in those of other races, and by the old pains of those recruits, the few that remained were strengthened in their convictions.

The Order of the Council of Fourteen has never been large, even by Blood Hunter standards, but its members are especially tight with each other. The order has stood fast side by side against the evils of the world and beyond, the Council drawing them through ages of chaos and apocalyptic turmoil.

New recruits are treated cautiously and strictly tested, for within the order are secrets a whole race would have expunged from history. But, once loyalty is proven, the Hunter's Bane is crafted and taken in. The Hunter's Bane of the order is particularly viral and active, changing the body over time in preparation for its final stages, when the blood hunter becomes something more than just a mere mortal. Some of the order's time-honored techniques first emerged as a way to deal with these changes, while others came about once they were mastered and weaponized. The far reaches of the bane's extent are not always survived to or accepted, but those that fully embrace it become the pillars of the order that lead it into the unknown dangers of the future.

Astral Navigation

The presence of strong evil- fair, foul, or otherwise- registers on your senses like your skin crawling. The attunement of your Hunter's Bane also gives advantage on Wisdom (Survival) checks to track celestials, as well as on Intelligence checks to recall information about them.

As an action, you can draw on your Hunter's Bane to open your awareness to detect such forces. Until the end of your next turn, you know the location of any celestial, fiend, fey, or undead within 60 feet of you that is not behind total cover. You know the type (celestial, fiend, fey, or undead) of any being whose presence you sense, but not its identity (the vampire Eduardo Perrito, for instance). Within the same radius, you also detect the presence of any place or object that has been consecrated or desecrated, as with the hallow spell.

You can use this feature a number of times equal to 1 + your Intelligence modifier. When you finish a long rest, you regain all expended uses.

Rite of Virulence

When you join this order at 3rd level, you learn the Rite of Virulence esoteric rite (detailed below). While many associate the Council with light and radiance, toxins and venomous plants and creatures are also within its reach. The Council chose poison, an element so strongly tied to the world of the living, to do the work of laying waste to those outside the world of the living.

Rite of Virulence. Your rite damage is Poison damage. While the rite is active, you gain the following benefits:

• Your Rite of Virulence deals an additional die of damage on a critical hit.
• Your Rite of Virulence damage ignores immunity to Poison damage, treating targets immune to Poison damage as resistant instead.
• Your weapon deals one additional hemocraft die of rite damage when you hit a celestial.

Chains of Affinity

Beginning at 3rd level, your Hunter's Bane entwines deeply with your blood, changing it into something arcane and mystic. It reinforces your conditioning, and it empowers your fascinations and curiosity, mirroring the Council's own insights.

You gain hit points based on your Intelligence instead of Endurance. In addition, you can use Blood Maledict to roll a Hemocraft Die when you make a skill check, adding the total HP lost to the check result.

Syuveil's Balm

The myths of the ancient unicorn Syuveil recount his nobility, and the power his blood bestowed on the blade that bore his name when it was quenched in it. In a similar way, your blood is empowered further, the council endowing it with an aspect of a Crimson Rite you perform, and enabling its magic to shield and sustain you.

When you use a Crimson Rite, you gain temporary hit points equal to a roll of your hemocraft die+half Blood Hunter level and resistance to non-magical Bludgeoning, Slashing, and Piercing damage. If you reduce a creature to zero hit points or fewer with damage from the Crimson Rite you can heal hit points equal to the temporary hit points you have remaining from this feature and lose this feature's temporary hit points and resistances for the duration. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Intelligence modifier before a long or short rest.

Brand of Constellations

Beginning at 11th level, your Brand of Castigation now locks your foe's vision into a starry void, evoking visions of the mystic power of your Hunter's Bane. Whenever you damage a branded creature with your Crimson Rite, the target's vision becomes normal and it treats the spaces of all creatures within 30 feet of it as lightly obscured with bright light. In addition, the branded creature sheds bright light for 15 feet around it and dim light an additional 15 feet beyond that.

Blood Curse of the Shadowed Path

At 15th level, you’ve explored the arcane depths within your blood, and have honed your hemocraft to harness the darkness cast over the path your Hunter's Bane lights. You gain the Blood Curse of the Shadowed Path for your Blood Maledict feature. This doesn’t count against your number of blood curses known.

Until the end of your next turn, the target can't recharge powers or regain hit points, and the target also suffers a level of Fatigue. Amplified: The target takes 1d6 extra Necrotic damage every time it is damaged by an attack or spell.

Glorious Purpose

Upon reaching 18th level, the Council has strengthened your Hunter's Bane, by binding their power invested in you to your life force. In a way that recalls the legends of their own bindings from the times of myth when their kind were fractured, you now have an eidetic causality to your magic imparted by the Council. The boon is a heavy burden many refuse, for in becoming inured against the common evils of the world and beyond the plane, the attention of the ancient foes capable of erasing you is caught. But with length of life can come wisdom, and with that wisdom, the power to do the work you set out on the path for.

You no longer physically age and are immune to disease, and always start your turn under effect of Spare the Dying cantrip even when unconscious. In addition, you cannot suffer instant death at 0 hit points or fewer unless your body is destroyed(DM decides that), and you are immune to Necromancy spells cast by hostile creatures while at 0 hit points or fewer(DM might make exceptions). While you are at 0 hit points or less, indistinct whispers are clearly audible 15 feet around your body, and other sounds become flat and muted.

While you might survive unthinkably gruesome injuries, it may be that after sustaining enough damage you return to life permanently disabled, until healed by something such as a Wish spell or Greater Restoration.