Otherworldly Patron
At 1st level, a warlock gains the Otherworldly Patron feature. Here is a new option for that feature: the King in Yellow.
The King in Yellow
Along the shore the cloud waves break, The twin suns
sink beneath the lake, The shadows lengthen in Carcosa. Strange is the night where black stars rise, And strange moons circle through the skies But stranger still is Lost Carcosa.Songs that the Hyades shall sing, Where flap the tatters of the King, Must die unheard in Dim Carcosa.
Song of my soul, my voice is dead; Die thou, unsung, as tears unshed Shall dry and die in Lost Carcosa.
—Cassilda's Song in "The King in Yellow," Act i, Scene 2
You have read "The King in Yellow", and ushered in the truths contained within its pages. You laughed, you cried, your soul screamed in the face of a king among kings, emperor among emperors. Your mind is gripped by thoughts about the Lake of Hali, thin and blank, without a ripple to stir it, and the towers of Carcosa behind the moon. The King's calling rings in your ears and you follow.
King in Yellow Features
| Warlock Level | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1st | Expanded Spell List, The Yellow Sign |
| 6th | Royal Decree |
| 10th | Black Star |
| 14th | Revelations of Cassilda |
Expanded Spell List
The King in Yellow lets you choose from an expanded list of spells when you learn a warlock spell. The following spells are added to the warlock spell list for you.
King in Yellow Expanded Spells
| Spell Level | Spells |
|---|---|
| 1st | command, sleep |
| 2nd | moonbeam, Nystul's magic aura |
| 3rd | meld into stone, sending |
| 4th | Leomund's secret chest, phantasmal killer |
| 5th | contagion, geas |
The Yellow Sign
At 1st level, you have learned of the Yellow Sign, the mark of the King. As an action, you can touch a creature or object you can see, placing an invisible, yellow mark on it. An unwilling target can make a Wisdom saving throw against your warlock spell save DC. On a success, the target is unaffected by this feature and is immune to it for 24 hours.
While marked, you always know the target's location, and it can't become hidden from you, as long as the two of you are on the same plane of existence. The mark remains until you use this feature again, or a remove curse spell is cast on the target.
Royal Decree
Starting at 6th level, your voice carries the authority of a king among kings, emperor among emperors. When a creature you can see within 120 feet of you targets you with an attack, you can use your reaction to speak the King's command. If the creature can hear you, it must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw, or it targets itself with the attack instead.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Black Star
Starting at 10th level, your soul mirrors the dark wanderers drifting beyond the clouds cloaking Carcosa. You are always under the effects of a nondetection spell.
Revelations of Cassilda
At 14th level, the Yellow Sign turns into a messenger of the King. As an action, you can flood the mind of a creature marked by The Yellow Sign feature with the terrible truths contained within "The King in Yellow". The target has to make an Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma saving throw against your warlock spell save DC, and it suffers the following effects based on the number of failed saving throws.
- If it fails at least one saving throw, the target is afflicted with indefinite madness, as described in the Dungeon Master's Guide.
- If it fails at least two saving throws, the target is afflicted with short-term madness, as described in the Dungeon Master's Guide, until it takes any damage.
- If it fails all three saving throws, the target dies at the end of its next turn.
If the target succeeds on at least one saving throw, it can't be affected by this feature again.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.
Credits
- Written and edited by u/sandwichbear. This subclass is inspired by The King in Yellow (1895), written by Robert W. Chambers.
- Made using GM Binder.
- Artwork by Diana Franco.
