Prestige Class Option:
The Blood Mage
He seemed like just another mage. Nothing special about him, from the way he looked and dressed, to the way he spoke. There was never anything different about him. He was one of us. He was our friend.
I still remember the day. Completely average, nothing out of the ordinary. We were in the library, doing our research in silence, as normal. Suddenly, the silence was broken by the doors slamming open. A large man walked in, covered head to toe in silver plating, his armour adorned with an insignia of the sun. He scanned the room, looking from person to person, before he locked eyes with us. He began to walk over to us, his hand on his blade. As he did, Roa turned to me, a look of fear in his eyes. His eyes darted around the room, his expression turned from fear to despiration. Eventually, he simply looked down, and muttered "I'm sorry". The knight stopped right infront of his table, reaching out to grab him, when Roa pulled an ornate dagger from under his robes and stabbed the knight's arm. As the knight pulled back, drawing his blade from his side, Roa brought the dagger down again, this time into his own palm. As he did, flames began swirling around him, the blood dripping from his open wound flowing through the air, fueling the fire. Before long, the room was filled with a roaring infermo, the warm orange glow replaced with an oppressive blood red. By the time we were able to contain the flames, they had already consumed the knight, and Roa had disappeared.
I would never have expected that level of raw power from him. Roa was never a particulary gifted mage, if anything he was painfully average. Even to this day, I'm not entierly sure what he did. There was something... wrong was his magic, but I am unsure of the source of the corruption. The blade he used was ornate, and it did seem to radiate a faint magical essence, but it certainly didn't seem that powerful.
No, the power he used definately came from within him, but it was not natural. Did he gain this power through some sort of ritual, similarly to that of a lich? Or was it some new form of magic. Whatever the source of it, whatever magic he used, one thing is clear; it is evil, and it should have never been created.
Maleficars, Haemomancers, Blood Mages, whatever name you choose to give them, those who practice blood magic tap into a potent and unused source of power. When the gods first created mortals, they were overflowing with magical potential. That magic still exists, trapped within the blood that flows through one's veins. While some sorcerers and magi are able to tap into the magic of their bloodline, they merely scratch the surface of what is possible. When one is willing to open their own wounds, to let the crimson run, to let the power flow, only then can they truely unlock their full potential. Only then can they know true power.
Prerequisites:
In order to become a Blood Mage, you must meet the following prerequisites (In addition to the multiclassing prerequisites of your current class).
- Constitution 13. Blood magic is very taxing on the body, and as such, requires a certain fortitude.
- Ability to Cast 3rd Level Spell. In order to properly use Blood Magic, you must have a intimate grasp on the concepts of spellcasting.
- Must be of a Living Race. Blood Magic requires the caster to be a living creature, as it uses one's blood and life force.
- Complete a Special Task. Blood magic is a well kept secret. To become a Blood Mage, you must either find a master who is willing to teach you, or come across the knowledge in another way, such as an ancient scroll or grimoire.
The Blood Mage
| Level | Features | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Blood Magic, Sacrificial Dagger, Blood for Power | 2 | — | — |
| 2nd | Corpse Siphon, Volatile Blood | 3 | — | — |
| 3rd | Blood Ritual, Fortified Blood | 4 | 2 | — |
| 4th | Puppeteer | 4 | 3 | — |
| 5th | Sanguine Resilience, Crimson Vial | 4 | 3 | 2 |
Class features
As a blood mage, you gain the following class features.
Hit Points
- Hit Dice: 1d8 per blood mage level
- Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d8 (or 5) + your Constitution modifier per blood mage level
Proficiencies
- Saving Throws: None
- Skills: None
Equipment
As a Blood Mage, you gain the following equipment:
- A Sacrificial Dagger
Blood Magic
As the name implies, Blood Mages are powerful magi, combining their knowledge of the arcane with the raw magical power that flows through their blood.
Preparing and Casting Spells
The Blood Mage Table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these blood mage spells, you must expend a spell slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest.
Any spell on the Blood Mage Spell list available to your level is always considered to be prepared for you, and does not count against the number of spells you can know or prepare.
Spellcasting Ability
Constitution is your spellcasting ability for your blood mage spells, as you draw power from your own blood and lifeforce. In addition, you are able to use Constitution as your spellcasting ability for any spell you are able to cast, regardless of it's source.
You use your Constitution whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Constitution modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a blood mage spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.
Spell Save DC
Spell attack modifier
Spellcasting Focus
You can use your sacrificial dagger as a spellcasting focus for all of your spells.
Blood Mage Spells
| Blood Mage Level | Spells |
|---|---|
| 1st | False Life, Inflict Wounds |
| 2nd | Crown of Madness, Hold Person |
| 3rd | Life Transferance , Vampiric Touch |
Sacrificial Dagger
To properly draw out and utalize the power of blood, one must use the correct tools. To use your Blood Mage abilities, you must have a sacrificial dagger, an ornate magical blade that allows you to harness the magic that flows in your blood. If you lose your dagger, you can make a new one by performing a 1-hour ritual, allowing you to turn any dagger into a sacrifcial dagger, including magic or enchanted daggers. Turning an enchanted blade into a Sacrificial Dagger does not destroy or distrupt the enchantment in any way.
Blood for Power
Starting at 1st level, you have learned the basics of blood magic, allowing you to harness your own lifeforce to empower your spells. When you cast a damaging spell of 1st level or higher, you can choose to expend a number of hit die, dealing necrotic damage equal to the number rolled on the dice to both you and the creature you hit. The maximum number of dice you can spend at once equals your Constitution modifier (minimum of one die). You can only use this feature once per turn.
Starting at 4th level, you've learned to better control your magic, allowing you to restrain yourself if need be. If the damage you take from 'Blood for Power' would reduce you to 0 HP, you will instead drop to 1 HP. Once you do so, you cannot do so again until you finish a long rest.
Corpse Siphon
At 2nd level, you've begun to look into the possibility of using the blood of other creatures instead of you own. However, it is much more difficult to draw power from another living creature, and the blood of dead creatures loses its magic too quickly. But if you act quickly, you can drain what little lifeforce remains in the recently deceased.
As an action, you can drain the blood of a corpse of a creature that has blood and that died within the last 10 minutes, healing yourself. The amount of healing gained is based on the size of the creature.
You can use this ability a number of times equal to your Constitution modifier (Minimum of once).
Corpse Siphon
| Creature Size | Healing Gained |
|---|---|
| Tiny | 1d4 |
| Small | 3d4 |
| Medium | 3d6 |
| Large | 3d8 |
| Huge | 3d10 |
| Gargantuan | 5d12 |
Volatile Blood
Also at 2nd level, your blood begins to react violently when anyone draws it but you. When a creature hits you with a melee attack, you can use your reaction to cause your blood to lash out, forcing the creature to make a Dexterity Saving Throw, taking 2d8 piercing damage on a failure, or half as much on a success.
You can use this ability a number of times equal to your Consitution Modifier (Minimum of once).
Fortified Blood
At 3rd level, your repeated use of blood magic has hardened your body, making you more resilient. You can proficiency in Constitution Saving Throws if you did not already have it, as well as resistance to poison damage, and advantage on saving throws against poison. Finally, you are immune to disease.
Blood Ritual
Alt 3rd level, you've begun to learn how to use other creature's blood to fuel your magic, if only in a minor way for now. You gain the 'Ritual Casting' feature if you did not already have it, allowing you to ritual cast spells that have the ritual tag if you know them or have them prepared.
In addition, you are able to use the blood of other creatures to fuel your spells and rituals, gaining the following benefits:
- When you begin casting a ritual spell, you can drain the blood of a recently deceased or restrained creature, reducing the cast time to 1 minute. If the creature is restrained, they must remain restrained for the duration of the ritual.
- When casting a spell or ritual that requires a material with a gold cost, you can instead use the blood of nearby corpses. For the purpose of this feature, each corpse has a certain gold value, based on their size. To successfully cast the spell, the gold worth of the corpses must equal the gold cost of the material needed for the spell. For example, if you wanted to cast the revivify spell, you could use the blood of three medium corpses in place of a 300 gp diamond.
Blood Ritual
| Creature Size | Gold Value |
|---|---|
| Tiny | 10 GP |
| Small | 25 GP |
| Medium | 100 GP |
| Large | 250 GP |
| Huge | 500 GP |
| Gargantuan | 1000 GP |
Puppeteer
At 4th level, you've learned to exert your will on the blood of living creatures, allowing you to control them like puppets. As an action, you can attempt to take control of a creature's body. For the next minute, or until your concentration breaks (As if concentrating on a spell), the creature must make a Constitution saving throw at the start of their turn. On a failure, you take control of the creature for that turn, and you decide its movement and actions. You can force the creature to make attacks, but you cannot force it to cast spells.
Once you use this ability, you must finish a long rest before you are able to do so again.
Sanguine Resilience
At 5th level, your body has become accustomed to the repeated use of blood magic, strengthening your life force. Your Constitution Score increases by 2, up to a maximum of 22.
Crimson Vial
Also at 5th level, you've finally learned how to fully tap into the power of other creatures blood. You gain a Crimson Vial, a magical vial that has the ability to hold other creature's blood without the magical essence fading. As an action, you can drain the blood from a deceased corpse to add into your vial. The vial can hold up to 5 Blood Points, which is the equivalent of 5 Medium creatures worth of blood. The amount of blood points gained is based on the creatures size.
Crimson Vial
| Creature Size | Blood Points |
|---|---|
| Tiny | 1/4 Blood Points |
| Small | 1/2 Blood Points |
| Medium | 1 Blood Point |
| Large | 2 Blood Points |
| Huge | 3 Blood Points |
| Gargantuan | 5 Blood Points |
The blood in your vial can be used as a substitute for any of your abilities that require blood. This includes:
- Blood for Power: You can spend 1 or more blood points to use your Blood for Power feature in place of your hit die. You do not take damage when using Blood for Power in this way.
- Blood Siphon: You can use an action to spend 1 or more blood points to use your Blood Siphon feature. For each blood point you spend, you regain health as if you had drained a medium creature.
- Blood Ritual: By spending 1 Blood Point, you can perform a Blood Ritual as if you had a corpse or restrained creature. If the spell or ritual has a gold cost, you can spend multiple blood points, each blood point having a value of 100 gp.
You can only have Crimson Vial at a time. If you lose your Crimson Vial or it is somehow destroyed, you can perform a 1-hour ritual to create a new one.
The Blood Mage
Tap into the art of blood magic and harness the power of your own life force in this prestige class for the world's greatest roleplaying game. Sacrifice your own life force to empower your spell, and learn to control and manipulate the blood of others for your own gain.
Class created by DM_Havuhk
Created using GMBinder
Art Credits:
Blood Shaman - Conor Burke
Bloddy Mage - Musketeer Studio
Blood Magic - Dmitry Desyatov
Lorna - Elisa Serio
Blood Mage - brezs
If you like what you see, you can find more of my homebrew content over on my Reddit or my Tumblr page.
Reddit: u/DM_Havuhk
Tumblr: Elizabeth's Homebrew Emporium