Trio of Subclasses
Today I'd like to share 3 new class options in development. If you're a fan of the official Unearthed Arcana that have been released lately, you may recognize one of the new options, but there should be some new and exciting content to inspire you. First we look at a new Barbarian path that would be perfect for a dunmer or redguard character. Strong family ties make these races perfect for the Path of the Ancestral Guardian. Crusader's continue to fight evil with the Exorcist and mages learn how to master the school of Necromancy, for practical uses.
BARBARIAN
BARBARIC PATHS
Different barbarians attribute their might to different sources. For some, their scars become symbols of victories won, while others look within to their unyielding spirits.
PATH OF THE ANCESTRAL GUARDIAN
Some barbarians hail from cultures that revere their ancestors. These tribes teach that the warriors of the past linger in the world as mighty spirits, who can guide and protect the living. When a barbarian who follows this path rages, the barbarian contacts the spirit world and calls on these guardian spirits for aid in a time of need.
Barbarians who draw on their ancestral guardians can better fight to protect their tribes and their allies. In order to cement ties to their ancestral guardians, barbarians who follow this path cover themselves in elaborate tattoos that celebrate their ancestors’ deeds. These tattoos tell sagas of victories against terrible monsters and other fearsome rivals.
ANCESTRAL PROTECTORS
Starting when you choose this path at 3rd level, spectral warriors appear when you enter your rage. These warriors distract a foe you strike and hinder its attempts to harm your companions. While you’re raging, the first creature you hit with an attack on your turn becomes the target of the warriors. Until the start of your next turn or until your rage ends, that target has disadvantage on any attack roll that doesn’t target you, and creatures other than you have resistance to the damage of the target’s attacks.
SPIRIT SHIELD
Beginning at 6th level, the guardian spirits that aid you can provide supernatural protection for your allies. If you are raging and a creature you can see within 30 feet of you takes damage, you can use your reaction to reduce that damage by 2d8.
When you reach certain levels in this class, you can reduce the damage by more: by 3d8 at 10th level and by 4d8 at 14th level.
CONSULT THE SPIRITS
At 10th level, you gain the ability to consult with your ancestral spirits and use them to scout far off areas.
When you do so, you cast the clairvoyance spell, without needing a spell slot. Rather than creating a spherical sensor, the spell invisibly summons one of your ancestral spirits to the chosen location. Willpower is your spellcasting attribute for the spell.
After you cast the spell in this way, you can’t do so again until you finish a short or long rest.
VENGEFUL ANCESTORS
At 14th level, your ancestral spirits grow powerful enough to strike foes that dare to harm those you protect. When you use your Spirit Shield to protect a creature damaged by an attack, the attacker takes the same amount and type of damage that your Spirit Shield prevents.
CRUSADER
DEVOTIONS
At 3rd level, a crusader devotes themselves by following a way of life that defines them. Here is a new option for that feature: the Exorcist.
EXORCIST
An Exorcist devotes themselves to ridding the world from evil in all of its forms. A dark and dangerous path that places the crusader in constant peril, against malevolent forces and personal corruption. Those that follow this devotion are dedicated to protecting their allies from the effects of evil, and bringing quick death to those that deserve it.
Exorcists are often ardent disciples of Arkay, expelling corruption and other abhorrent creatures from the mortal plane.
DEVOTION SPELLS
You gain devotion spells at the crusader levels listed.
EXORCIST DEVOTION SPELLS
Crusader Level Spells
3rd Bane, Shield
5th Gentle Repose, Hold Person
9th Counterspell, Revivify
13th Death Ward, Ottiluke's Resilient Sphere
17th Antilife Shell, Raise Dead
BONUS PROFICIENCY
When you choose this devotion at 3rd level, you gain proficiency with heavy armor.
CHANNEL DIVINITY
When you choose this devotion at 3rd level, you gain the following two Channel Divinity options.
Path to the Grave. As an action, you can touch a creature and use your Channel Divinity to mark another creature's life force for termination. The next time that creature takes damage from a spell or an attack from you or an ally, it is vulnerable to that spell or attack’s damage. If the source of damage has multiple damage types, the creature is vulnerable to all of them. The vulnerability applies only to the first time that source inflicts damage, and then ends.
If the creature has resistance or is immune to the damage, it instead loses its resistance or immunity against that spell or attack when it first applies damage.
Abjure Enemy. As an action, you speak a prayer of denunciation, using your Channel Divinity. Choose one creature within 60 feet of you that you can see. That creature must make a Willpower saving throw, unless it is immune to being frightened. Daedra and undead have disadvantage on this saving throw.
On a failed save, the creature is frightened for 1 minute or until it takes any damage. While frightened, the creature's speed is 0, and it can't benefit from any bonus to its speed.
On a successful save, the creature's speed is halved for 1 minute or until the creature takes any damage.
AURA OF DEVOTION
Starting at 7th level, you and friendly creatures within 10 feet of you can't be charmed while you are conscious.
At 18th level, the range of this aura increases to 30 feet.
DIVINE SMITE: BANISHMENT
Also at 7th level, whenever you use the Divine Smite feature to deal damage, you can also try to temporarily banish your target to a harmless pocket realm of Oblivion. The target must succeed on a Personality saving throw or be banished. While banished in this way, its speed is 0, and it is incapacitated. At the end of its next turn, the target reappears in the space it vacated or in the nearest unoccupied space if that space is occupied.
DIVINE RITUALS
Beginning at 15th level, you have learned how to cast powerful holy spells beyond your natural ability. Once each day, you can cast one of the following spells as a ritual: Antimagic Field, Antipathy/Sympathy, Etherealness, Resurrection, True Seeing, or Word of Recall. These spells count as Crusader spells for you and they are always prepared.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.
ZEALOT OF PURITY
At 20th level, you gain the ability to harness the power to repel evil. As an action, you become an avatar of divine repulsion, gaining the following benefits for 1 minute.
You radiate with a purifying aura, casting bright light from you in a 30 foot radius.
Whenever a creature starts its turn within that aura, it takes 5 radiant damage. If the creature is an undead or daedra, the damage is doubled.
Whenever a creatures enters the aura for the first time or starts its turn within the aura, it must make a Willpower saving throw. On a failed save, the creatures speed is reduced to 0. On a successful save, their speed is halved. A daedra or undead creature has disadvantage on this roll.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.
MAGE
ARCANE TRADITIONS
The study of magic is ancient, stretching back to the dawn of time. It is firmly established in the world of Nirn, with various traditions dedicated to its complex study.
NECROMANCY
A mage who focuses their studies in the school of necromancy dedicates themselves to the responsible aspects of this dark practice. Rather than the conventional uses of the dark arts, mages are devoted to the extension of mortal lifespans.
NECROMANCY PRODIGY
Beginning when you select this school at 2nd level, you gain access to spells from the necromancy spell list, and these spells count as mage spells for you. The gold and time you must spend to learn a necromancy spell is halved.
CIRCLE OF MORTALITY
At 2nd level, you gain the ability to manipulate the line between life and death. When you cast a spell that restores hit points to a living creature currently at 0, treat any dice rolled to determine the spell’s healing as having rolled their maximum result. In addition, if you have the spare the dying cantrip, you can cast it as a bonus action.
EYES OF THE GRAVE
Starting at 2nd level, you gain an innate sense of creatures whose existence is an insult to the natural cycle of life. If you spend 1 minute in uninterrupted contemplation, you can determine the presence and nature of undead creatures in the area. This detection extends up to 1 mile in all directions. You learn the number of undead and their distance and direction from you. In addition, you learn the creature type of the undead in that area that has the highest challenge rating.
Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a long rest.
SENTINEL AT DEATH’S DOOR
Starting at 6th level, you gain the ability to impede death’s progress. As a reaction when you or an ally that you can see within 30 feet of you suffers a critical hit, you can turn that attack into a normal hit. Any effects triggered by a critical hit are canceled.
Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
SPEAKER FOR THE DEAD
Beginning at 10th level, you have an innate connection to the souls of the recently departed. You can cast the spell speak with dead as a ritual. Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a long rest.
EMPOWERED LIFE AND DEATH
Also at 10th level, the mastery you maintain over magic allows you to empower your spells that restore or destroy life.
Bring Death. Whenever you cast a mage spell that deals acid, cold, fire, force, lightning, radiant, or thunder damage, you can spend 2 focus points to substitute that damage with necrotic damage.
Bring Life. Whenever you roll dice to determine the number of hit points a mage spell of yours restores, you can spend 1 focus point to reroll any number of those dice once.
KEEPER OF SOULS
At 14th level, you gain the ability to manipulate the boundary between life and death. When an enemy you can see dies within 30 feet of you, you or one ally of your choice that is within 30 feet of you regains hit points equal to the enemy’s number of Hit Dice. You can use this feature as long as you aren’t incapacitated, but no more than once per round.
