Circle of Vermin

You can hear them, writhing behind your eyes, gnawing, tunneling, screaming. Day in and day out you can hear the Swarm advancing inside your head, sometimes taking bits of you and replacing it with them. They tried to heal you, when it started- to remove those eggs the moment they discovered their existence, at the very back of your eye socket. You wouldn't let them. Even then, you knew you were onto something- even then you heard the Swarm's whisperings. And sometimes, in the wee hours of the night, when your companions are long tucked away or far away on guard duty, you whisper back.

-Finnigan, Chosen of the Swarm

 

The Circle of Vermin is a druid order that has long been gently ignored by more civilized society, deeming them unclean and unnerving. However, each druid accepts that on some level, vermin, too, must be tended to- not all beasts can be the graceful deer of the forest or the mighty bears of the hills. Insects outnumber these creatures vastly- and so too shall they have their protectors. The other druid orders simply wish the Circle of Vermin followers didn't get so in-depth about it all. 

These druids possess swarms of insects and other vermin within them, primarily to keep them safe. Often it is a situation of circumstance that one joins this circle- an innocent commoner may well fall asleep one day and awake to find his vision fading fast due to a bug that has laid eggs behind his eyes, or to find himself unable to move his arm due to the nerves themselves being frayed away overnight. Circle of Vermin druids do not fear such a thing- the bugs, the vermin they protect, in turn protect the druid. Hundreds of thousands of tiny moving parts, each doing their part to maintain an enormous flesh-colossus- that's you. 

"Bugged" Feature

D&D Beyond's builder won't hide this. So here's a "bugged" feature for your bug druid. Yes, I realize how much of a comical genius I am. You're very welcome. Yes, yes, applaud away, it will do wonders for my fleeting self-esteem. Thank you. Too kind, really. Farewell, enjoy the class. 

Disgusting Droning

When you choose this circle at 2nd level, a swarm appears within you, fledgling and meager for now. A barely audible humming constantly emanates from you and can be heard ever so faintly at a range of 10 feet. You have disadvantage on Stealth checks made to move silently. As an action, you may focus, and internally communicate to your swarm of your need of them, to not hum but scream as loudly as they can. When you do so, you may choose any number of creatures within 20 feet of yourself to make a Wisdom saving throw with a DC equal to your spell save DC - 2. On a failure, they become inflicted with a random status effect, decided by rolling a d4 below. Each creature suffers a unique reaction to this effect. Already deafened creatures are immune to this ability. 

d4	Status
1	Frightened
2	Deafened
3	Stunned
4	Incapacitated

 

After using this ability, you must complete a short or long rest before using it again. At 11th level, the range of this ability increases to 30 feet. At 20th level this range again increases to 60 feet.

Bug Eyes

Starting at 2nd level when you take this subclass, you can call forth singular insectoid servants to serve as scouts for you as an action. When you do so, the scout bug flies out of your mouth or some other appropriate orifice, and you immediately assume control of its eyes and ears, and form a wordless bond with it that allows it to understand and adhere to your mental commands for 10 minutes or until you stop the connection as a bonus action. While using this feature you are blind and deafened to the world around your own body. 

The called upon scout has 1 hp, 12 AC, and a fly speed of 20 feet. It is Tiny, and has a bonus to Stealth and Perception checks equal to 3 + Your Proficiency Bonus. You may call upon a number of such scouts per day equal to your proficiency bonus, though you may only use one at a time. After severing the connection with a scout bug, it is impossible to reform it with that particular vermin again.

Spire of the Unclean

Starting at 6th level, you are noticeably lighter- a result of the swarm within you carving out their colonies inside your body. You are not in danger- they have made sure to preserve all vital organs and have steered clear of dangerous areas such as the heart. However, you may choose how they further modify your body.

• Fortress: The spare materials made by the swarm's tunneling are put to good use fortifying your body. Your skin becomes hard, as if there were a shell just underneath it. When you take bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing damage, it is reduced by 1d4+1. Additionally, you become proficient with Constitution saving throws.
• Siege Tower: The insects burrow to the surface in places- here, you can see them constantly move, almost imperceptible, just under the skin. Once per turn while in combat, you may exude acid or burning liquid from pores in your skin as a bonus action. When you do so, target a creature within 30 feet of you- they must succeed a Dexterity saving throw or take 3d6 acid or fire damage (your choice). You may use this feature a number of times per day equal to your Druid level. 
• Booby Trap: The swarm loves and nourishes you- and it would die for you, if you asked it to. And so you shall. Some of the swarm, caustic beetles and other more rancid specimens, are laid to rest just under the skin, each filled with nauseating chemicals. When you are struck, you may use your reaction to trigger one of these corpses, allowing them to explode outwards. You take 1d6 damage, but your attacker must succeed a Dexterity saving throw or take 3d8 fire or acid damage (your choice). This feature has 10 charges, and you regain 1d6+2 charges daily at dawn.
• Trojan Horse: Your insects have formed access tunnels to the outside of your skin from deep within. What appear to be dreadful blisters are in fact chutes leading several inches into your skin, each a quarter of an inch across. Once per day you may use these to summon a Swarm of Insects as an action- when you do so, you may grant it a number of temporary hit points up to your total Druid level. You take this as damage to yourself. Every round, you may give the Swarm a telepathic command as a bonus action- it obeys unerringly. The swarm lasts for 2 hours, until dismissed (by bringing it back within the Druid), or until slain. At your decision, the swarm may instead choose to deal fire or acid damage.
• Prosperous Hive: You inform the swarm that they have done everything right thus far and allow them to continue along their day. Without special modification, excess material is consumed and saved, and you feel spry. Your movement speed increased by 10 feet and you become proficient in Dexterity saving throws. 

You may choose to change the structure of the swarm's hive within you. Doing so requires a week of non-strenuous activity. At 13th level, your swarm has become complex enough to allow for two of these modifications to exist at once simultaneously. 

Blessings of the Scourge

Starting at 10th level, your body begins to go through an immense metamorphosis- outwardly you appear ill, sickly, with your skin constantly shifting ever so slightly under scrutiny. The swarm has now consumed much of your unneeded inner mass and have become advanced enough to replace the functions of simple organs. You bleed insects, and gain a number of traits as a result. 

• You no longer require a full 8 hours of rest to benefit from a long rest- much like an elf (assuming you were not one already) you are now sustained after only 4 hours of rest.
• You regain 2 hit points per round until you are at maximum health. Lone bugs pour through the cracks in your skin made by wounds while they quickly patch you up.
• You have blindsight at a range of 10 feet. Your skin crawls at the detection of unidentified movement.

 

The Horde Feeds

At 14th level, the insects within you have become more than a small collective or a single hive- indeed, they are a hulking, churning mass, constantly seeking more to sustain them. Once per day, you may attempt to infect another individual with your swarm as an action. To do so, you must successfully make a grapple check against them as part of this action, or they must be grappled/restrained/incapacitated/etc already. The target creature must succeed a Constitution saving throw or become poisoned for 1 hour. If they succeed the saving throw, you retain your usage of this ability- you must successfully infect an entity before this usage is lost.

When poisoned in such a way, your swarm rapidly and brutally tears through their body, dealing 1d8 piercing and 1d8 slashing damage per round at the start of each of the target creature's turns. At the end of their turn, the target creature may repeat the saving throw, ending the effect on a success- the DC of this saving throw increases by 1 each round, to a total of 10 over your default Spell saving throw DC. While your swarm infects a creature like this, you gain advantage on all attack rolls made against that creature.

Each round as a bonus action while the creature is poisoned in this way and you can see them, you may attempt to order the swarm to inflict even greater pain upon them- when you do so, the target creature must succeed a Constitution saving throw or become paralyzed until the end of their next turn. This saving throw is separate from the one to become un-poisoned.

You may use this feature once per long rest.