Necromancer

Skeletal Steed

Starting when you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you've trained in the saddle as a mounted combatant. You gain proficiency with light armor, medium armor, shields, battleaxes, flails, lances, longswords, morningstars, war picks, and warhammers.

Additionally, when you perform your Animate Thralls ritual, you can animate the skeleton of a horse or similar animal as a warhorse skeleton.

Charnel Shield

At 3rd level, you can fortify yourself with necromantic energy to lessen blows. As a reaction when you take damage from a creature you can see, you can expend a number of points from your Charnel Touch pool, up to half the damage dealt. Reduce the damage by the number of points expended.

Headless Sight

You can see normally within 60 feet of you without needing eyes. Magical darkness doesn't impede this vision.

Death's Steed

Your undead mount becomes a deathly specter. It gains resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical attacks, and its speed increases by 20 feet.

Reaping Charge

When you move at least 20 feet straight toward a creature and hit it with a melee weapon attack while mounted, the creature must succeed on a Strength saving throw (DC 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Strength or Intelligence modifier) or be knocked prone. If the creature is prone, your mount can immediately make one melee weapon attack against it as a bonus action.

Ascendant Spells

When you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you learn additional spells as noted in the table below. Each of these spells counts as a necromancer spell for you, but doesn't count against the number of necromancer spells you know.

Enthrall Humanoid

Starting when you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you can use your action to touch an incapacitated humanoid, bringing them under your necromantic control. The creature becomes enthralled by you. While enthralled, the creature is charmed by you and follows your commands. It remains enthralled until a remove curse spell is cast on it, the charmed condition is removed from it, you use this feature again, or you release the creature as an action.

An enthralled creature counts against the total number of thralls under your control and the total CR of thralls you can control. If the creature is of a higher CR than the total CR of thralls you control, you can't enthrall it. You can release thralls under your control as a part of the action used to enthrall a creature.

Charnel Drain

At 3rd level, you drain the essence of those you slay. When you reduce a hostile creature or an enthralled humanoid to 0 hit points with your Charnel Touch ability, you regain hit points equal to your Intelligence modifier + your necromancer level (minimum 3). Additionally, you can choose to knock the target unconscious instead of killing it.

Bat

You transform into a Tiny bat. While in bat form, you can't speak, your walking speed is 5 feet, and you have a flying speed of 30 feet. Your statistics, other than your size and speed, are unchanged.

Mist

You transform into a Medium cloud of mist. While in mist form, you can't take any actions, speak, or manipulate objects. You are weightless, have a flying speed of 20 feet, can hover, and can enter a hostile creature's space and stop there. In addition, if air can pass through a space, you can do so without squeezing, and you can't pass through water. You have advantage on Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution saving throws, and you have resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage.

Coffin Phylactery

Your phylactery is a coffin filled with grave dirt. When you drop to 0 hit points, you reform in your coffin after 1 hour. You are permanently weakened until you spend 24 hours resting in the coffin. During this time, your hit point maximum is reduced to 1, and you drop to 0 hit points if you begin your turn in sunlight.

Regeneration

At the start of each of your turns, you regain 10 hit points. You don't gain this benefit if you have 0 hit points or you are in direct sunlight.

Vampiric Agility

Your movement speed doubles. Additionally, you can climb difficult surfaces, including upside down on ceilings, without needing to make an ability check.

Corpse Florist Spells

When you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you learn additional spells as noted in the table below. Each of these spells counts as a necromancer spell for you, but doesn't count against the number of necromancer spells you know.

Garden of the Grave

Also at 3rd level, you cultivate corpse flowers—necromantic plants that root in corpses. When you perform your Animate Thralls ritual following a long rest, you can choose to plant corpse flowers in any of your thralls, causing each such thrall to have the following changes:

Charnel Entangle

At 3rd level, weeds and brambles sprout at your touch. When you hit with a Charnel Touch attack and expend 5 or more points, the target must succeed on a Strength saving throw against your spell save DC or be restrained by weeds until the end of your next turn.

Flowering Phylactery

Your phylactery has also changed with your transformation. Your soul has been transferred into thirteen immortal flowers of different types located in places important to you. Each one has a specific weakness, which you must determine with your GM, and your regeneration is only stopped when all thirteen flowers are destroyed. When you drop to 0 hit points, you regenerate in the soil at your nearest phylactery flower.

Crone Spells

When you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you learn additional spells as noted in the table below. Each of these spells counts as a necromancer spell for you, but doesn't count against the number of necromancer spells you know.

Charnel Curse

At 3rd level, your touch bestows curses. When you hit with a Charnel Touch attack and expend 5 or more points, the target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC or be cursed for 1 minute.

While cursed, the target subtracts 1d6 from any attack rolls, ability checks, or saving throws it makes. At the end of each of the target's turns, it can make a Wisdom saving throw against the curse, ending the effect on a success.

You can only curse one creature with this feature at a time, and you can end this curse early on your turn (no action required).

Athame

By enchanting a dagger or similar weapon over the course of a short or long rest you create a ritualistic knife called an athame. You can use your athame as a spellcasting focus.

As an action, you can expend 25 points from your Charnel Touch pool to target a creature that you can see within 60 feet using the athame. The target must make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. On a failed save, for the next hour, the target loses any resistances to damage and treats any immunities to damage as resistances instead.

Effigy

You can use your bonus action to construct an effigy composed of clay, twigs, or rags of a creature you can see within 60 feet of you, magically linking the creature and the effigy. As long as the creature is within 1 mile of you, you can cast spells and use your Charnel Touch through the effigy to target the creature even if the creature is out of range or you can't see it.

The effigy retains its potency for 8 hours. Once you use this feature to create an effigy, you can't do so again until you finish a long rest.

Evil Eye

You can expend 20 points from your Charnel Touch pool to cast the spell fear without expending a spell slot. You can also expend 35 points to cast eyebite, or 40 points to cast mirage arcane without expending a spell slot.

Cyber Spells

When you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you learn additional spells as noted in the table below. Each of these spells counts as a necromancer spell for you, but doesn't count against the number of necromancer spells you know. Additionally, you learn the technomancy cantrip, which is a necromancer spell for you and doesn't count against your number of cantrips known.

Construct Corpses

Also at 3rd level, you learn to raise the dead through blasphemous technology. When you perform your Animate Thralls ritual following a long rest, you can choose to animate any of your thralls as Constructs, causing each such thrall to have the following changes:

Charnel Blaster

At 3rd level, your Charnel Touch deals damage to Constructs. Additionally, when you use your Charnel Touch and expend 5 or more points, you can coalesce your necromantic energy into an antimatter beam. Make a ranged spell attack against a target you can see within 30 feet of you instead of making a melee spell attack, dealing necrotic damage as normal on a hit.

Phylactery Device

A computing device, such as an arcane terminal, houses your soul and acts as your phylactery. You can upload your soul to a connected arcane terminal, ship computer, or datapad in an upload that you perform over the course of 10 minutes. Once your soul has left a device, it no longer bears the invulnerability typical of a phylactery. When you drop to 0 hit points, you regenerate in hardlight form within 5 feet of your phylactery device.

Hardlight Form

You interact through the world with a hardlight avatar, a physical representation of the ones and zeros of your soul that shifts and moves as you think. You are immune to radiant damage.

Infect Construct

As an action, your body becomes immaterial, and you attempt to infect a Large or smaller Construct you can see within 10 feet of you. This target must make a Charisma saving throw against your spell save DC. A Construct with a challenge rating greater than 10 automatically succeeds on this save.

If it fails its saving throw, you disappear and infect the Construct. While infecting the Construct, you control it. You maintain your Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma scores and your alignment, but otherwise use the creature's statistics. You don't gain access to the target's class features or proficiencies.

The infection lasts until the Construct drops to 0 hit points, you end the infection on your turn as a bonus action, or you are forced out by an effect like the antivirus spell. When the infection ends, your body reappears in an unoccupied space within 5 feet of the Construct.

Inhabit Technology

You can use your action to inhabit a piece of magical technology such as an arcane terminal or datapad that you can see within 5 feet of you. You disappear and gain control over the device. While inhabiting the device, you can't be targeted by any attack, spell, or other effect, and you can perform any function the device is capable of without first hacking into it. As a bonus action, you can transfer yourself to any other piece of magical technology that is connected to the current device, or end the inhabitation.

The inhabitation ends early if the device is destroyed or if you are forced out by an effect like the antivirus spell. When the inhabitation ends, you reappear within 5 feet of the inhabited device.

Dead Mist Spells

When you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you learn additional spells as noted in the table below. Each of these spells counts as a necromancer spell for you, but doesn't count against the number of necromancer spells you know. New spells are marked with an asterisk.

Charnel Consumption

At 3rd level, you can draw the withering Dead Mists into your soul at the cost of your own life essence. When you expend 5 or more points when making a Charnel Touch attack, you can instead choose to lose an equal number of hit points instead of expending Charnel Touch points.

Because of the soul-draining nature of the Dead Mists, you can't regain hit points from any spell you cast.

Damage Resistance

You gain resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical attacks.

Gaseous Body

Your lich form is gaseous and indistinct. You can enter and occupy the spaces of other creatures. Additionally, you can pass through small holes, narrow openings, and even cracks, though you treat liquids as though they were solid surfaces. You gain a flying speed equal to your walking speed and cannot fall. You remain hovering in the air even when stunned or otherwise incapacitated.

Master of the Mists

Once on each of your turns when you deal necrotic damage to a hostile creature with your Charnel Touch or a necromancer spell, you drain some of the target's life essence with the Dead Mists. You regain hit points equal to 2d6 + your Intelligence modifier, up to a maximum equal to the damage dealt.

Intensive Combat Research

Starting when you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you've honed your body and mind to the various tools of war. You gain proficiency with medium armor, shields, and martial weapons. Additionally, you can perform the somatic components of spells while wielding weapons or shields you are proficient in, as long as you have your arcane focus on your person.

Charnel Strike

Also at 3rd level, when you take the Attack action on your turn, you can channel your Charnel Touch through a weapon strike as part of the attack. When you do so, make an attack with a melee weapon instead of a spell attack. On a hit, the target suffers the weapon attack's normal effects, in addition to the necrotic damage of Charnel Touch. You can only deal necrotic damage using this ability once per turn.

Additionally, whenever you deal damage using this ability or a Charnel Touch attack, you gain temporary hit points equal to the necrotic damage dealt, up to a maximum of half your total hit points.

Completed Combat Research

You gain proficiency in heavy armor if you did not have it already, and gain resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage.

Peerless Charnel Strike

The necrotic damage caused by Charnel Touch ignores resistance and immunity to necrotic damage.

Additionally, you can gain any number of temporary hit points from your Charnel Strike, instead of a maximum of half your total hit points.

Footloose

Starting when you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you gain proficiency in the Acrobatics and Performance skills if you don't already have them. Your proficiency bonus is doubled for any ability check you make that uses either of those proficiencies.

Additionally, you gain proficiency with the rapier, scimitar, shortsword, and whip.

Backup Dancers

At 3rd level, each of your thralls gains the ability to take the Dance action, which allows it to dance until the start of its next turn. When one or more of your thralls are dancing, you gain a number of benefits shown in the Backup Dancers table.

You also gain a special bonus to your Armor Class, attack rolls, damage rolls, Charisma (Performance) checks, and saving throws called a Backup Dancers Bonus. Your Backup Dancers Bonus starts as a +1 and increases as you gain additional dancers.

Charnel Groove

Also at 3rd level, your touch confers the need to dance. When you hit with a Charnel Touch attack and expend 5 or more points, the target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC or be compelled to dance until the end of your next turn.

A creature that can't be charmed automatically succeeds on this saving throw. For the duration, the target must use all its movement to dance without leaving its space and has disadvantage on attack rolls and Dexterity saving throws.

Dance-Off

You can use your action and expend 20 points from your Charnel Touch pool to magically challenge up to ten creatures you can see within 60 feet of you to an impromptu dance competition. A creature that can't be charmed is unaffected.

Make a Charisma (Performance) check. Each creature you challenge must succeed on a contested Charisma (Performance) check or take 8d6 psychic damage and have disadvantage on the next attack roll it makes before the end of its next turn. On a successful save, a creature takes half as much damage and doesn't have disadvantage.

Moonwalk

You and each of your thralls are always under the effect of the spell freedom of movement.

Smooth Criminal

Your Dexterity and Charisma scores become 20 if they were lower.

Overlord Spells

At 3rd level, 5th, 7th, and 9th level you learn the following spells, which don't count against your number of spells known. If you gain access to a spell that does not appear on the necromancer spell list, the spell is nonetheless a necromancer spell for you.

Charnel Boon

At 3rd level, you can grant a boon to minions by empowering them with your own potency. As a bonus action on your turn, you can expend any number of points from your Charnel Touch pool to empower each of your thralls within 30 feet. Until the beginning of your next turn, the thrall gains a +1 bonus to attack rolls, damage rolls, and their AC for every 5 points expended, up to a maximum of +3.

Immortal Rule

If you drop to 0 hit points, you can choose to possess a nearby body, instead of beginning the process of reforming at your phylactery. When you do so, choose an unconscious humanoid or the corpse of one that has died within the last minute that is within 100 feet of you to possess (a creature warded by a protection from evil and good or magic circle spell can't be possessed).

Once you possess a body, you control it. Your game statistics are replaced by the statistics of the creature, though you retain your alignment and your Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma scores. If the body has 0 hit points when you possess it, its type becomes undead and it regains 50 hit points, up to its hit point maximum. You retain the benefit of your own class features. If the target has any class levels, you can't use any of its class features.

If you possess the body of an unconscious creature, the creature makes a Charisma saving throw against your spellcasting DC every 8 hours. On a success, you are ejected from the body and begin the process of reforming at your phylactery. You are also ejected if the body dies or you choose to leave it as an action. You can only possess a creature once using this ability.

Tyrant's Influence

You can expend 25 points from your Charnel Touch pool to cast the spell dominate beast without using a spell slot or spell components. You can spend 30 points to cast the spell dominate person, or 60 points to cast the spell dominate monster without using a spell slot or spell components.

Pale Master Spells

When you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you learn additional spells as noted in the table below. Each of these spells counts as a necromancer spell for you, but doesn't count against the number of necromancer spells you know. New spells are marked with an asterisk.

Charnel Empower

Starting when you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you can empower your spells with potent necromantic energy from your own well of magic. When you cast a necromancy spell of 1st level or higher which deals damage, you can expend a number of points up to your level + your Intelligence modifier from your Charnel Touch point pool. When you do so, you add necrotic damage equal to the number of points spent to one of the spell's targets.

Undead Empathy

Also at 3rd level, your command of the undead affects the will of those who aren't under your control. Whenever an undead creature tries to attack you, it must make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. On a failed save, its attack misses and, if its Intelligence is 4 or lower, it becomes friendly to you and your allies.

Additionally, you have advantage on Charisma checks you make against undead with Intelligence of 5 or higher.

Devour Soul

When you reduce an hostile creature to 0 hit points, you can immediately devour the creature's soul to refuel your horrific powers (no action required). Roll 1d8, and regain a number of expended spell slots whose combined level is no greater than the number rolled. You can't use this feature again until you finish a long rest.

A creature whose soul is devoured cannot be restored to life by means other than a true resurrection or wish spell.

Paralyzing Touch

When you expend 20 or more points when making a Charnel Touch attack, the target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC or be paralyzed for 1 minute. The target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.

Pharaoh Spells

At 3rd level, 5th, 7th, and 9th level you learn the following spells, which don't count against your number of spells known. If you gain access to a spell that does not appear on the necromancer spell list, the spell is nonetheless a necromancer spell for you. New spells are marked with an asterisk.

Additionally, you learn the thaumaturgy cantrip, which is a necromancer spell for you and does not count against your total number of cantrips known.

Channel Divinity

Starting at 3rd level, you can channel your pseudodivinity to fuel magical effects. You start with one effect: Ankh of Radiance. When you use your Channel Divinity, you choose which effect to create. You must then finish a short or long rest to use your Channel Divinity again. Additionally, if you expend 15 Charnel Touch points as an action, you can regain your Channel Divinity

Holy Symbol

Also at 3rd level, you can use a holy symbol as a spell focus for your necromancy spells.

Canopic Phylacteries

Your phylactery has also changed with your transformation. Your stomach, lungs, intestines, and liver have been removed and placed into canopic jars. Each one has a specific weakness, which you will need to discuss with your GM, and your regeneration is only stopped when all four canopic jars are destroyed. When you are destroyed, you reform at your sarcophagus.

Mummy Rot

When you expend 20 or more points when making a Charnel Touch attack, the target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC or be cursed with mummy rot. The cursed target can't regain hit points, and its hit point maximum decreases by 10 (3d6) for every 24 hours that elapse. If the curse reduces the target's hit point maximum to 0, the target dies, and its body turns to dust. The curse lasts until removed by the remove curse spell or other magic.

Whirlwind of Sand

As an action, you can magically transform into a whirlwind of sand, move up to 60 feet, and revert to your normal form. While in whirlwind form, you are immune to all damage, can't be grappled, petrified, knocked prone, restrained, or stunned. Equipment you are wearing or carrying remain in your possession.

Charnel Toxin

At 3rd level, even your touch can cause sickness. When you expend 10 or more points when making a Charnel Touch attack, the target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC or be poisoned until the beginning of your next turn.

Vile Congregation

Starting at 3rd level, leagues of vermin cling to your skin and swarm over others nearby. Whenever a creature within 5 feet of you makes an attack roll or saving throw, you can roll 1d4 and subtract the result from its attack roll or saving throw. This ability has no effect on constructs and undead.

Gore Burst

When you drop to 0 hit points, your body explodes in a shower of plague and necromantic energy. Each creature in a 20-foot sphere centered on you must make a Dexterity saving throw against your spell save DC. On a failed save, a creature takes 5d10 necrotic damage and 5d10 poison damage and is poisoned until the start of your next turn. A creature is not poisoned and takes half as much damage on a successful save.

Master of Disease

When you use your Charnel Toxin ability and expend 25 or more points from your Charnel Touch pool, the target creature is poisoned for up to 1 minute on a failed save. Additionally, you can also apply two of the following effects of your choice which affect the creature while it is poisoned:

At the end of each of its turns, the creature can make a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC, ending this effect on a success.

Skilled Surgeon

Beginning when you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you gain proficiency in the Medicine skill, if you did not already have it. You can use your Intelligence, instead of Wisdom, for Wisdom (Medicine) checks.

Mad Science

At 3rd level, you can spend 10 minutes installing a monstrous graft on one of your thralls that does not have the Incorporeal Movement trait. Additionally, your thralls don't lose hit points or hit dice from installing or removing grafts, and it takes them no time to recover after the attachment of a new graft.

Charnel Voltage

At 3rd level, you supplement your necromantic energies with arcing bolts of electricity. You can choose to deal lightning damage with your Charnel Touch. When you expend 5 or more points when making a Charnel Touch attack and deal lightning damage, you can cause the energy to arc to a second creature within 5 feet of the target. The creature must make a Dexterity saving throw against your spell save DC, taking lightning damage equal to half the number of Charnel Touch points expended on a failure.

Augmented Incision

The thrall gains advantage on attack rolls and ability checks until the end of its turn (no action required).

Bulwark Backstitch

The thrall casts shield when an attack would hit it.

Fleet Threads

The thrall's movement speed is tripled until the end of its turn (no action required).

Searing Suture

On a hit, the thrall deals an additional 3d6 necrotic or lightning damage (your choice).

Golem Form

Your Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution scores become 20 if they weren't already higher, and you have resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical weapons that aren't adamantine. Additionally, you don't lose hit points or hit dice from installing or removing grafts, and it takes you no time to recover after the attachment of a new graft.

Magic Resistance

You have advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.

Reaper Spells

When you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you learn additional spells as noted in the table below. Each of these spells counts as a necromancer spell for you, but doesn't count against the number of necromancer spells you know.

Shroud of Death

Starting when you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you manifest a wispy cloak of darkness about your person, which you can hide or reveal as a bonus action. While cloaked, you levitate one inch off the ground and ignore nonmagical difficult terrain. Additionally, you can walk across fluid surfaces, such as water and quicksand.

Charnel Veil

At 3rd level, you can fade from view like a specter of death. Whenever you expend 5 or more points when making a Charnel Touch attack, you can become invisible until the start of your next turn. During this time, you make no sound while you move.

Death's Touch

When you use Charnel Touch against a creature you can see and roll an 11 or higher on the d20 for the spell attack roll, you hit the target, regardless of its AC.

Fell Flight

You gain a 50-foot flying speed.

Grim Harvest

When you kill a humanoid using Charnel Touch, you rip their soul from their body, which animates as a visage under your control.

Slaymates

Starting when you choose this ambition at 3rd level, you learn to bind the souls of the dead into Construct vessels—namely porcelain dolls, clockwork toys, wooden puppets, and stuffed animals. When you perform your Animate Thralls ritual, you can summon slaymates. You command these creatures as your thralls and they count as Undead for the purpose of your necromancer class features.

Additionally, two slaymates count as one thrall for your maximum number of thralls. When one of these creatures is reduced to 0 hit points or released by you, it collapses into a heap of ruined materials.

Charnel Puppet

At 3rd level, using a supply of material stored in your bag of bones, you can animate slaymates at a moment's notice. You can use an action and expend 5 or more points from your Charnel Touch pool to animate two slaymates under your control for every 5 points expended, which count as your thralls. These slaymates appear within your space or in an unoccupied space within 5 feet of you.

Evasion

If the thrall is subjected to an effect that allows it to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, it instead takes no damage if it succeeds on the saving throw and only half damage if it fails, provided it isn't incapacitated.

Clockwork Body

Your soul is bound to a Construct body with your statistics. Your type is Undead. However, spells and effects that specifically affect Constructs affect you as well.

In your clockwork body, you are immune to being blinded, charmed, deafened, frightened, paralyzed, or stunned. Additionally, you are immune to any spell or effect that would alter your form.

Reconstruction

You can spend 10 days and 500 gp of materials to build an additional clockwork body to act as a safeguard against death. Whenever you die, your soul transfers to another clockwork body that you have built of your choice. If you have no clockwork bodies available, you reform at your phylactery in the body of a slaymate, but you retain your alignment, personality, and mental ability scores.

Spell Immunity

You are immune to three spells of your choice, which you select when you build the clockwork body.