User:Eiji-kun/Sandbox/Bloodcaster (3.5e Class)

Bloodcaster
There is magic in blood, this has always been known through the existence of dragon disciples and magical creatures and their offspring which brings forth strange powers. Blood is used in magic rituals, in bargains with outsiders, and is the very manifestation of a persons essence. It is no wonder than one may discover the secret behind what makes blood so special and learn how to tap into that energy. Where wizards draw from the leylines of magic, clerics summon from gods, and psions pull energy from their thoughts, the bloodcaster expends the blood of herself, and sometimes others, to bend the universe to her whim.

Making a Bloodcaster
Abilities: The magic of the bloodcaster relies on a sensitive knowledge of the body and how it works, with its spells working off of Wisdom. However as the source of spells, their effective spell slots per day, runs off their hit points a strong Constitution is also a must, if not more important as they will be taking damage as they cast. As with any poorly armored class, they enjoy a healthy Dexterity score and the benefits which come with such ability. Intelligence for skillful bloodcasters is important, and Charisma for the purpose of dealing with summoned and bound creatures, leaving Strength as their least important ability score.

Races: The path of a bloodcaster is a grim one. While not inherently evil, they share a stigma with necromancers for messing with powers man was not meant to use, and having a grim appearance to them. They are often scarred and the field does attacked sadists and masochists. For races and societies which tolerate necromancers, bloodcasters can fit in most at home.

Alignment: Any. While a lawful good bloodcaster is extremely strange, given taboos and thoughts on blood magic, it is not impossible. More likely bloodcasters tend towards non-lawful and non-good alignments.

Special: You must possess blood to take levels in bloodcaster. Fluids equal in importance to blood, such as vital fluids inside certain living constructs, do count and can work with this class.

Starting Gold: 5d4&times;10 gp (125 gp).

Starting Age: As wizard.

Class Features
All of the following are class features of the Bloodcaster.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Bloodcasters are proficient with all simple weapons. They are not proficient with any type of armor or shield. Armor of any type interferes with a bloodcaster’s gestures, which can cause his spells with somatic components to fail. All blood spells require active injury to the caster as somatic components, even if it is simply digging in with one's fingernails.

While hit points can be replenished by any effect which would recover hit points, use of spells tires out the bloodcaster and he requires 8 hours of rest to restore his spell fatigue back to 0. Each time he casts a spell, his spell fatigue increases by an amount described in the spell itself. In effect, maximum spell fatigue is the number of spell levels she may cast per day, be it a few large spells, or many small spells.

Her base daily allotment of maximum spell fatigue is given on Table: Bloodcaster. In addition, she receives bonus Maximum Spell Fatigue per day if she has a high Constitution score, identical to how a psion would receive extra power points (see Table: Ability Modifiers and Bonus Power Points).

She can cast any blood spell she knows without preparing it ahead of time, much like a sorcerer. To learn or cast a blood spell, a bloodcaster must have a Wisdom score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The difficulty class for a saving throw against a bloodcaster's spell is 10 + the spell level + the bloodcaster's Wisdom modifier.

The amount of spells a bloodcaster can cast per day relies on two factors; if they have enough hit points to cast a spell, and their maximum spell fatigue. If they run out of hit points, or exceed their maximum spell fatigue for the day, they cannot cast any more spells. The maximum spell fatigue increases slightly based on the Constitution modifier of the bloodcaster (see Maximum Spell Fatigue above).

A bloodcaster's selection of blood spells is limited. A bloodcaster begins play knowing all 0th level spells and three 1st level spells of your choice. At each new bloodcaster level, he gains additional spells known as indicated on Table: Bloodcaster. She may choose any spell up to the maximum spell level known for her level. Upon reaching 4th level, and at every even-numbered bloodcaster level after that (6th, 8th, and so on), a bloodcaster can choose to learn a new blood spell in place of one she already knows. In effect, the bloodcaster "loses" the old spell in exchange for the new one. The new spell's level must be at least one level lower than the maximum spell level known. A bloodcaster may swap only a single spell at any given level, and must choose whether or not to swap the spell at the same time that she gains new spells known for the level.

Bloodcasters may employ metamagic feats. Instead of spell slots, they cost additional hit points and fatigue. For each point of level increase in a spell level, a bloodcaster gains an extra point of spell fatigue, and spends an additional 2 hit points. They may use metamagic spontaneously, and the casting time is increased by one step (typically to a full-round action).

Bloodcasters choose their blood spells from the following list:

0&mdash;Bleed, Bruise, Clean Wound, Life Spark, Light Drop, Needle, Staunch, Summon Mosquito.

1st&mdash;Aerobic Step, Aggravate Wound, Bloodforge Weapon, Boost Immunity, Sharp Blood.

2nd&mdash;Delay Poison

3rd&mdash;<-powers, powers, powers->

4th&mdash;<-powers, powers, powers->

5th&mdash;Keen Blood

6th&mdash;<-powers, powers, powers->

7th&mdash;<-powers, powers, powers->

8th&mdash;<-powers, powers, powers->

9th&mdash;<-powers, powers, powers->



To learn or cast a blood spell, a bloodcaster must have an Wisdom score of at least 10 + the spell’s level.

With this comes certain benefits and penalties. Unlike the traditional mage, a bloodcaster has no spell slots per day, instead behaving closer to psionics, drawing from a pool of points, in this case their own hit points. Through the act of cutting (anything from scratching with nails to injury with a weapon) and the appropriate arcane method is enough to activate the spells. In spite of lacking spell slots, blood magic counts as arcane magic for the purposes of feats, prestige classes, items, and other things which rely on arcane magic. However, a blood mage cannot make use of spell slots he does not have, though he may count for possessing certain arcane spells if blood magic spells refer to them for their effect. Blood magic is subject to arcane spell failure as normal.

When you cast a blood magic spell, you lose a certain amount of hit points and gain a certain amount of spell fatigue. Hit points may be replaced by any normal means of restoring health, but spell fatigue does not abate until you receive 8 hours of rest. You are too tired to go over your maximum spell fatigue, and will pass out before completing the spell if you cast blood magic and drop under 0 hp as part of the casting. Hit points lost through the casting of blood magic is more difficult to heal than normal wounds, requiring twice as much healing as normal wounds. For ease of use, it is best to treat damage from casting blood magic spells as you would non-lethal damage, where you pass out once your current hit points reaches your spell damage. If you are magically healed, you may choose to split your healing as you see fit, restoring normal damage or spell damage or both. Non-magical healing such as from simple bed rest restores spell damage as if it were normal damage and is not halved. Fast healing and regeneration also count as natural healing for these purposes, even if they originate from spells such as lesser vigorSpC.

 : Bloodcasters lose a lot of blood, but their bodies have learned to rebound. Add your class level to the amount of health recovered during rest. In addition, you now restore half your class level in ability damage (minimum 1) instead of 1 point per night of rest. For example, a Bloodcaster 12/Fighter 4 with 16 HD would recover 12+16=28 points and recover 6 points of ability damage from a night's rest.

 : At 2nd level, a bloodcaster's constant recycling and purging of blood helps fight poison and disease. They receive the listed bonus on saves against poison and disease.

 : At 2nd level, a bloodcaster can use his life-enriched blood to aid in the healing of others. As a standard action, she may lose up to 5 hp per level, and touch someone granting twice that amount in healing. For example, a Bloodcaster of level 18 can lose 18x5=90 hp and restore 180 hp to an ally.

 : At 3rd level, you may take as well as give, draining away the blood of those who die by your arm. Any adjacent opponent you kill grants you healing equal to the victim's HD. This is considered natural healing, and therefore is not halved when healing spell damage done to yourself. You may only absorb one victim's blood per round, and it does not function when defeating creatures without blood, like most constructs, elementals, oozes, plants, and undead.

 : At 4th level, your blood quickly clots to protect you from massive blood loss. You are immune to any form of bleed damage, and any constitution damage via blood loss is reduced by your Con modifier. For instance, a Con modifier of +4 renders you effectively immune to any constitution damage 4 or less. This does not function on constitution loss unrelated to blood loss, such as the effect of certain spells.

You may select any of the abilities below.

 : Gain 5 hp permanently. You may select this ability multiple times. Each time, you gain an amount of hit points equal to the previous amount +5 (aka 5, 10, 15, 20, 25...)

 : You can scent, but only for creatures with blood. If a blood-bearing creature is wounded, it is considered a strong scent, and the range is doubled to 60 ft, barring wind conditions.

 : Your blood flows over you and scabs, granting you a semi-solid organic armor. You gain a +4 armor bonus. This armor can be targeted by spells and effects which enhance armor (like magic vestment), but because they routinely fall off and regrow with the body, they cannot be permanently enhanced. There is no armor check penalty, maximum dex, or arcane spell failure. You may take this ability multiple times; each time, it grants an additional +2 armor bonus.

 : Your blood becomes dangerous, generating excess heat, stealing away warmth, releasing bioelectric energy, or swarming with caustic fluid. Anyone who pierces your skin with a slashing or stabbing melee non-reach weapon takes 1d6 points of elemental damage (choose between fire, cold, electric, and acid, the choice is permanent). You are immune to the effect of your blood. Your blood rapidly loses potency once exposed to the air, lasting only for the moment of impact. You may select this ability multiple times, each time you may either choose a new element, or the same one. The damage stacks.

 : When you use at least 5 hp for your transfusion ability, you can choose to absorb part of the target's blood into your own, stealing away their poisons and diseases. You are immediately subjected to a save against their poisons and/or diseases at -4, and the victim is cleaned of the aforementioned threat as if they had successfully saved.

 : You can convert some of your internal organs into a bloody soup which continues to function. Devoid of solid parts to injure, this grants you 25% fortification. This ability may be taken multiple times, each time increasing the fortification amount by 25%, to a maximum of 100%.

 : Choose a type (construct, elemental, ooze, plant, or undead). You may now treat that type as if it possessed blood, drawing out the elemental energy, slime, sap, or negative essence as if it were blood. However, the targets gain a +4 bonus on any saves against your blood magic. You may take this ability multiple times, each time selecting a new type.

 : Your blood can supercharge itself with positive energy. Any magical healing you receive over your normal maximum becomes temporary hit points, up to your HD over your maximum hit points. These temporary hp last for 8 hours or until expended. In addition, you become immune to "death by awesome" over-healing trait of the positive energy plane.

 : At 6th level, your blood no longer flows out of wounds, leaving bloodless cuts and automatically stabilizing you if you fall under 0 hp.

 : At 7th level, your blood mutates as needed, allowing you to possess any blood type and indeed, any blood from any species. This ability allows you to count as another race, such as a human duplicating an elf, a bugbear, or a pixie. This only applies to effects which check for it (such as magic which only works against fey, or a magic sword that reacts only to gnomes) and does not actually change your race. If you duplicate a creature with dangerous blood, such as acidic blood, it retains all properties save for the harmful elements, only visually seeming dangerous. True Seeing does not show the original blood composition, the change is real and will persist after becoming separated from the body.

 : At 10th level, your blood has filled you with great vitality. You may heal 1 point of ability drain a day through rest, even if it would otherwise be a permanent effect.

 : At 11th level, the blood begins taking strange properties. Your blood pressure rises, but you experience no negative symptoms beyond seeming to possess much more blood than your body should reasonably hold. You no longer need to eat or breath, the blood constantly refreshed with nutrients and oxygen from sources unknown.

 : At 12th level, poisons and diseases seem to be washed away from the body, replenished by fresh blood from unknown sources far faster than it can harm them. They become immune to all poisons and diseases.

 : At 15th level, the bloodcaster can communicate to the blood of others, using it as a medium to translate on a spiritual level. They may speak with any blood-possessing creature as if using tongues.

 : At 15th level, a bloodcaster is forever rejuvenated by her blood. She no longer takes penalties to her ability scores for aging and cannot be magically aged. Any such penalties she has already taken, however, remain in place. Bonuses still accrue, and the bloodcaster still dies of old age when her time is up.

 : At 16th level, you can discorporate your body into blood and organic slurry, transforming into a bloody ooze-like creature as a swift action. You may stay in "ooze" form for up to one round per class level per day. While an ooze, your items are absorbed into your body, and you lose your armor bonus to AC (unless employing the Armor Rune ability or employing magic such as mage armor). Your type changes to ooze, and you become blind. You gain blindsight out to 60 ft, immunity to critical hits, and a slam attack which deals 1d6 points of damage for medium creatures. You cannot speak or cast in this form, but you are under a constant freedom of movement effect, and may squeeze through extremely tight spaces (2 inches square for Medium creatures) without needing to use Escape Artist. It is a good form to assume for stealth and to escape grapples and other dangers. At 20th level, the duration becomes unlimited, many bloodcasters choosing this form as their natural form when resting.

 : At 19th level, a bloodcaster can tear open the source of the blood flowing through her body in a violent explosion upon her death. Whenever a bloodcaster dies, she may choose to detonate her body in a shower of blood and shards of bone, dealing 10 points of damage per HD to all targets in a 20 ft radius burst from herself, Reflex save for half DC 10 + 1/2 HD + Wis. If the bloodcaster possesses damage from contact with her blood (such as the effect of the energy rune) this also applies. She may exclude up to one person per point of Con bonus if she wishes. Death Throes does not activate of the subject died by a non-hit point draining effect such as failing a save against death. The bloodcasters body is destroyed, leaving only her items and a whole lot of gore behind.

 : At 20th level, if the bloodcaster has been killed, but the body is intact and not destroyed by an effect such as disintegrate or the bloodcasters own Death Throes ability, then they will come back to life in 1d10 days. Until they return to life, the bloodcasters life force takes the form of a small crystal egg that appears inside of the chest of the corpse (hardness 20, 10 hp per HD) which immediately starts gathering energy to recreate the bloodcaster, bursting from the corpse days later. The egg may be safely removed without disrupting the regrowth, but if the egg is destroyed before the respawn is complete, the bloodcaster is dead and must be raised from the dead by other means.

Epic Bloodcaster
Blood Mark: The epic bloodcaster gains an additional blood mark at 21st and every four levels after.



Epic Bloodcaster Bonus Feat List: PENDING.

Human Bloodcaster Starting Package
Weapons: Knife, Light Crossbow.

Skill Selection: Pick a number of skills equal to 3 + Int modifier.

Feat: Improved ToughnessCW.

Bonus Feats: Improved Initiative.

Gear: Backpack, Waterskin.

Gold: 95g.

Playing a Bloodcaster
Religion: Religions which worship the essence of blood and power through employing one's own body are popular, crossing over with some of the darker monk sects. Unfortunately gods which employ blood as their theme tend towards evil, and so religion bloodcasters are often of questionable morales.

Other Classes: The bloodcaster is seen much like the necromancer… a untrustworthy, creepy spellcaster who will find no love with paladins and good clerics, nor affection from guardians of nature and normal order. Around those willing to accept the disturbing nature of his power, he proves to be a competent aid, best against living targets, and apt in the ways of the body and how to heal or harm it.

Combat: Bloodcasters are similar to sorcerers in style, though they must retain a strong vitality to survive battle and their own casting. The nature of blood magic makes their limited spells known more versatile however, and they are focused on the restoration or destruction of most forms of life. Against undead, constructs, elementals, oozes, and plants bloodcasters suffer the most. Their other abilities buff them enough to survive against these usually difficult opponents.

Advancement: As blood magic is compatible with arcane magic, they may indulge in any arcane-required prestige class they wish. However, certain classes which employ spell slots may not be fully functional with blood magic. The Blood Magus from Complete Arcane is an obvious choice.

Bloodcasters in the World
"Let's paint the town red!"

Daily Life: Bloodcasters understand that their magic harms the body in its use, and so they must have a strong body to make up for it. They often are very health focused, exercising, eating right, and eating a great deal to make up for losses the body incurs.

Notables: July the Bloodcaster is the mistress of the Tower of Blood, a place of decadence, pleasure, and pain. She is tolerated by the surrounding kingdom, as she and her slaves provide services to rich eccentrics, and a prison to extract information out of others using questionable tactics.

Organizations: Bloodcasters rarely can organize publicly due to the stigma of their work, but secret underground cults and meetings do take place. The nature of these meetings is difficult to find, but provide a means of bloodcasters to pick up tricks learned by others.

NPC Reactions: A bloodcaster must keep her art secret, for few act kindly to the nature of their magic, even for one which focuses around a living substance rather than an undead one. They keep their magic and the resulting scars to themselves, using their magical knowledge to pose as other classes or even commoners.

Bloodcaster Lore
Characters with ranks in Knowledge Arcana can research bloodcasters to learn more about them. When a character makes a skill check, read or paraphrase the following, including information from lower DCs.

Bloodcasters in the Game
Adaptation: The sacrifice of blood could easily be religious, sacrificing blood to a deity or demonic presence.

Sample Encounter: An ally of the party has been captured and sent to the Tower of Blood for torture. They must enter the Tower under guise of patrons, and secretly free their ally, lest they cause an international incident, and all under a watchful eye of the bloodcaster July.

EL 15: PENDING.