Order of the Accursed Keeper
There exists a highly secretive sect of Blood Hunters, even more so than the others, who stumbled across a deadly Warlock's lair, slaying him as they battled his foully summoned creatures of horror and madness. Upon his death, they raided his library for knowledge of the dark arts he employed. What they found was worse. Reviled by the tome that taught passage to the Accursed Archive, and the knowledge they knew the dark library to contain, they swore to safeguard the vile heresies within from those that would seek to do harm with them. To further this end, the newly founded Order of the Accursed Keeper began to employ some of those very secrets to hunt the other evils of the world.
Damned Gate
Starting when you choose this order at 3rd level, you gain the ability to enter the Accursed Archive as an action. You can take up to four willing companions into the Archive with you. Time does not pass outside the Archive while you are within, and you cannot rest, recover hit points, or maintain concentration while inside. For more information on the Archive, see the "Inside the Archive" section. You replace the Charisma save when using the Index Incarnatus with a Wisdom save. When you choose to depart, you and your companions return instantly to the point from which you entered. Once you do this, you cannot do so again until you complete a long rest.
Heretical Arcana
Also at 3rd level, your visitations to the Accursed Archive have imprinted upon your mind the knowledge of dark arcana, from a more sinister source than any Profaned Soul could hope to bargain with. See chapter 10 of the Player's Handbook for the general rules of spellcasting and the end of this subclass description for the Accursed Archive spell list.
Accursed Keeper Spellcasting
| Blood Hunter Level | Spells Known | ―Spell 1st |
Slots 2nd |
per |
Spell 3rd |
Level― 4th |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd | 3 | 2 | ― | ― | ― | ||
| 4th | 4 | 3 | ― | ― | ― | ||
| 5th | 4 | 3 | ― | ― | ― | ||
| 6th | 4 | 3 | ― | ― | ― | ||
| 7th | 5 | 4 | 2 | ― | ― | ||
| 8th | 6 | 4 | 2 | ― | ― | ||
| 9th | 6 | 4 | 2 | ― | ― | ||
| 10th | 7 | 4 | 3 | ― | ― | ||
| 11th | 8 | 4 | 3 | ― | ― | ||
| 12th | 8 | 4 | 3 | ― | ― | ||
| 13th | 9 | 4 | 3 | 2 | ― | ||
| 14th | 10 | 4 | 3 | 2 | ― | ||
| 15th | 10 | 4 | 3 | 2 | ― | ||
| 16th | 11 | 4 | 3 | 3 | ― | ||
| 17th | 11 | 4 | 3 | 3 | ― | ||
| 18th | 11 | 4 | 3 | 3 | ― | ||
| 19th | 12 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | ||
| 20th | 13 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
Cantrips. You learn two cantrips of your choice from the Warlock Spell list. Neither can be eldritch blast.
Spell Slots. The Accursed Keeper Spellcasting table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells of 1st-level and higher. To cast one of these spells, you must expend a slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest.
For example, if you know the 1st-level spell ice knife and have a 1st-level and 2nd-level spell slot available, you can cast ice knife using either slot.
Spells Known of 1st Level and Higher. At 3rd level, you know three 1st-level spells of your choice from the Accursed Archive spell list. The spells known column of the Accursed Keeper table shows when you learn more Accursed Archive spells of your choice of 1st-level and higher. A spell you choose must be of a level no higher than what's shown in the table's Slot Level column for your level. When you reach 7th level, for example, you learn a new Accursed Archive spell, which can be 1st or 2nd level.
Trading Spells. When you visit the Accursed Archive, you can trade a number of spells you know of 1st-level and higher equal to your Proficiency Bonus for others from the Accursed Archive spell list. To do so, you must spend 15 minutes reading from the tomes in the Archive per spell you wish to trade. After you do, you replace one spell you know with another from the heretic spell list of the same level.
Spellcasting Ability. Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for your heretic spells, so you use your Wisdom whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Wisdom modifier for setting the saving throw DC for a heretic spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.
Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus +
your Wisdom Modifier
Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus
+ your Wisdom modifier
Forbidden Lore
At 7th level, select three Eldritch Invocations, found within the Warlock class description, that you meet the prerequisites for, and choose one to gain the effects of. You cannot choose any invocations that call for you to use a warlock spell slot, with prerequisites above 7th level, or with prerequisites involving a Pact Boon. Anything that refers to your Charisma modifier instead uses your Wisdom modifier. When you visit the Archive, you can spend 15 minutes studying the other Invocations, swapping the one you have for the one you don't. Once you do, you can't do so again until you complete a long rest without visiting the Archive.
Nightmarish Aspects
Starting at 11th level, you gain several features akin to those of the Silent One. You gain blindsight out to a range of 15 feet. Additionally, when you score a critical with a weapon that is affected by your Crimson Rite, the target of the attack gains 1 point of exhaustion.
Rend Chronology
Starting at 15th level, You can use an action to call forth the Archive's stagnant passage of time, suffering damage equal to your Crimson Rite damage die.
You gain three additional actions, which you may use to Attack (one weapon attack only), Dash, Disengage, Search, Use an Object or enter the Archive. Once you have used this feature, you must finish a long rest before you can do so again.
Accursed Librarian
Starting at 18th level, the labyrinthine bookshelves and halls of the Accursed Archive are home to you. When you enter the Archive and spend an hour perusing the shelves and reading the books, you gain the benefits of a short rest, ignoring the restrictions to healing from being in the archive. You can do this once, regaining the ability to do so when you complete a long rest without visiting the Accursed Archive.
Accursed Archive Spell List
| Spell Level | Spells | |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Blackflame2, Cause Fear1, Charm Person, Detect Evil and Good, Ice Knife1, Inflict Pain2, Ray of Sickness, Reaper's Scythe2, Tasha's Hideous Laughter, Wrathful Smite | |
| 2nd | Bestow Curse, Darkness, Darkvision, Dark Secret3, Hold Person, Locate Object, Misty Step, Necromantic Burst2, Protection From Poison, Silence, Spider Climb, Suggestion | |
| 3rd | Blackened Heart3, Blasphemy3, Counterspell, Dispel Magic, Enemies Abound1, Fear, Hypnotic Pattern, Life Transference1, Maim2, Protection From Energy, Speak With Dead, Summon Lesser Demons1, Umbral Form2 | |
| 4th | Banishment, Blight, Charm Monster1, Confusion, Death Ward, Elemental Bane1, Evard's Black Tentacles, Forbidden Obelisk3, Locate Creature, Sickening Radiance1, Shadow of Moil1, Summon Greater Demon1 |
Additional Information
The Accursed Archive is a Warlock patron featured in the Compendium of Forgotten Secrets. It is a place where all sorts of foul magical secrets can be found, from powerful spells of hemomantic or otherwise dark nature to the true names of demons and devils to the rites to summon creatures from beyond known existence. The Blood Hunter class can be found on the DM's Guild.
Some of the spells on the spell list are not in the Player's Handbook. If a spell is marked with a 1, it comes from Xanathar's Guide to Everything. A spell marked with a 2 comes from the Dark Arts Player Companion. A spell marked with a 3 comes from the Compendium of Forgotten Secrets.
Artist Credits:
Rise of the Necromancers by Simon Fetscher
Blood Hunter by From Software