WARLOCK PATRON (5E): The Great Machine

You have entered into a pact with a vast, mechanistic intelligence. It has transcended beyond material existence and uses warlocks to pursue its inscrutable goals.

Expanded Spells
1st – floating disk, shield
2nd – acid arrow, levitation
3rd – lightning bolt, protection from energy
4th – arcane eye, fabrication
5th – animate objects, creation

Mecha-Empathy
At 1st level, the warlock is able to communicate with machines; by questioning a device, they can learn who last used it or where it has been in the last 24 hours. The more complex the device, the more detailed answers it provides. 

Calculating Infinity
At 6th level, the warlock can draw upon the computational power of their patron to temporarily rewire their brain.

As a bonus action, the warlock can use this ability to gain proficiency with a skill, tool set, vehicle, or weapon they do not possess, or double their proficiency bonus for a skill, tool set, vehicle, or weapon they do have.

This increased aptitude lasts until the next time they use this ability, and the warlock cannot use this ability again until they complete a short or long rest.

Utility Sprite
At 10th level, the warlock gains a special familiar, an infinitesimal fraction of their patron’s essence.

The utility is a Tiny, intangible magical construct that floats around the warlock. The sprite can move up to 30 feet in any direction, but can never be more than 100 feet from the warlock. It will only verbally acknowledge the warlock (in the most literal way possible) and can only answer “Yes” or “No.”

Glitchcraft
At 14th level, the warlock can harness the power of the great machine to tamper with the fabric of physical reality. As a bonus action, the warlock could, for example:

1. Undo their last set of actions and perform the turn over again, or
2. Move through a barrier, whether material (like a wall) or intangible (like an energy field) as if it wasn’t there, or
3. Cause a magic spell or spell-like effect to end, or
4. Cause a target to lose a known resistance or immunity.

Every time the warlock uses this ability, their Wisdom score decreases by 1d4+1.

 

 

Headgear Heptad

Roll 2d4:

2: LION OF BATTLE

As a standard action, the wearer can emit a thunderous roar. Creatures within 30 feet that hear the sound must succeed a Wisdom saving throw or become incapacitated with fear for 1 round. A creature can only be affected by this ability once every 24 hours. Crystalline or vitreous objects take 1d10 damage; on a result of 10, roll another 1d10 damage. After using the helmet’s ability, there is a 1-in-6 chance it will recharge at the start of the next round.

So fearsome is the aspect of the helmet that the wearer and their allies have Disadvantage on all ability and skill checks to negotiate and deal peaceably with others.

3: GOLDEN DEATH COWL

The wearer gains 2d4 temporary hit points whenever a living creature within 10 feet dies, but they cannot benefit from magical healing until those extra hit points are spent.

4: DEMON LUNG

The wearer gains Advantage on saving throws against poisonous or otherwise harmful gases, but they are unable to smell anything while the mask is on.

As a standard action, the wearer can emit a blast of eye-stinging, foul-smelling fumes that fills a 15 ft. x 15 ft. x 15 ft. cubic space. Creatures inside the area of effect must succeed Constitution saving throws or be nauseated by the malodorous gas. The fumes linger for 1 minute before dissipating. After using the helmet’s ability, there is a 1-in-6 chance it will recharge at the start of the next round.

5: NIGHTHUNTER’S HOOD

The wearer gains darkvision and Advantage on Perception and Stealth checks at night or other low-light conditions. However, they have Disadvantages on saving throws against effects involving bright light or loud noises.

Every full moon, there’s a 1-in-10 chance the wearer contracts lycanthropy from the hood.

6: DREAD LORD BATTLE-CROWN 
As a full-round action, the wearer can reanimate a “fresh” (no more than 24 hours dead) corpse. A reanimated corpse has the same stats as a zombie, but follows and obeys the commands of whoever wearers the battle-crown.

A living creature that dies while wearing the battle-crown reanimates as a wight (or similar intelligent undead creature) 1d20 hours later.

7: FRACTURED FACE

As a full-round action, the wearer alter their appearance to become the mirror image of another creature that they can see. All details of the disguise will be identical, but reversed. The first time the wearer suffers damage, the disguise “shatters,”  and the effect ends.

8: WARBEAST

Once per day, the wearer can assume a terrifying chimerical form: their size increases by one category (small to medium, medium to large), their Strength and Dexterity scores increase by  4, they can make an extra melee attack per round, and all melee attacks deal an extra 1d6 damage on a hit.

After 4 rounds, the wearer must make a Constitution check at the end of each round, with a cumulative -1 penalty to the check per round; failure indicates that they return to normal. After 10 rounds in warbeast mode, if the wearer succeeds their next check to sustain, they become trapped in that form forever.

 

 

 

 

SHADOW DOMAIN (5E)

photograph by Simon Leipelt

Domain Spells
1 – feather fall, sleep
3 – darkness, silence
5 – gaseous form, nondetection
7 – arcane eye, greater invisibility
9 – mislead, modify memory

Level 1: Nocturnal Proficiency
A cleric of the shadow domain gains proficiency with all weapons that have the ‘finesse’ property; additionally, they can use their Wisdom modifier instead of their Dexterity or Strength modifier for attack and damage rolls with such weapons.

Level 2: Channel Divinity – Fade to Black
A shadow cleric can expend a use of channel divinity to suffuse their body with darkness.

For a number of rounds equal to their cleric level, the character takes on a dim, translucent aspect. They gain advantage on Stealth checks to hide and have resistance to non-magical bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage. In low-light conditions, the cleric becomes fully intangible

Level 6: Speed of Dark
As a move action, the cleric can walk into a shadow and teleport 5 feet per character level to another shadow they can see. 

Level 8: Sight-stealing Strike
Once on each of your turns when you hit a creature with a weapon attack, instead of dealing damage you can strike the target blind for one round per character level. Alternatively, the cleric can establish a link with the target through which they can access everything the target sees and hears

Level 17: Living Shadow
The cleric can expend a use of channel divinity to transmute their body into pure shadow. As a two-dimensional being, they can slide through openings of any size and attackers have disadvantage on rolls to hit the cleric. While in this form, the cleric is immune to cold, necrotic, and psychic damage, but vulnerable to fire, lightning, and radiant damage.

This ability has no duration, but the cleric must make a death saving throw at the end of each round. If they roll three failures while in this form, the cleric dissipates into wisps of darkness, irrecoverably lost to the Plane of Shadow.