The Stygian Tide
Deep in the far realm lays the floating black oceans. Those inky dark waves concealing the marble temples of the deep ones and their kin the kuo-toa and aboleth. In the material plane those fish-frog abominations merge with mortal races and beg them back to the tides darker than the void itself.
Expanded Spell List
Stygian Tide Expanded Spells
| Spell Level | Spells |
|---|---|
| 1st | create or destroy water, fog cloud |
| 2nd | blur, detect thoughts |
| 3rd | slow, tidal wave |
| 4th | control water, watery sphere |
| 5th | contagion, telekinesis |
Kin of the Abyss
At 1st level, you gain access to the unearthly language of Eldertongue. Eldertongue sound like madding gibberish to any sane creature but a creature under the effects of a Madness can understand it perfectly. Additionally, when you are submerged gills grow from your neck or fan out from behind your ears, your fingers become webbed, or you grow lashing cilia that extend through your clothing. You gain a swimming speed equal to your walking speed and the ability to breathe water.
Visions of that Black Sea
Additionally, at 1st level, when you hit a creature with a weapon attack, you can use your bonus action to inflict that creature with visions of the abyss. The creature must make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. On a failed save the creature is frightened of you for 1 minute. A creature may repeat this save at the end of each of their turns. Additionally, while you are submerged creatures have disadvantage on saving throws against this effect.
You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Charisma modifier and regain all uses after finishing a long rest.
Affinity for the Tides
At 6th level, you have advantage on weapon and spell attacks against frightened creatures. Additionally, when you are underwater your body, along with any equipment you are wearing or carrying, becomes slimy and pliable and as an action, you can become invisible as per the rules of the invisibility spell once per long rest.
Call of the Far Realm
At 10th level, you can cause a creature to go mad. When a creature is frightened of you, you can as an action, choose to have it make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. On a failed save, the creature must roll on the Short-Term Madness table in the Dungeons Master's Guide. You can use this feature once per long rest. Additionally, when you are submerged your body undergoes a horrid mutation. Choose one of the following benefits when you are submerged;
- You grow a lure like protrusion from your head. Frightened creatures can only move towards you rather than away from you and you can shine bright light up to 30ft.
- Your eyes turn black or become writhing sensory tendrils. You gain a blindsight up to 60ft.
- Your skin hardens into a dense carapace. Your AC increases by 2.
Stygian Tide
At 14th level, as an action, you strike a surface and spring forth the darkest waters of the far realm for 1 minute. The water fill a sphere 30ft centered on you.
- Creatures within this water are subject to the overwhelming pressure of the dark sea. Creatures that end their turn within the area take 2d12 force damage.
- Creatures within this area have disadvantage on any weapon or spell attack made against you in this area.
- As an action, you can cause large tentacles to grab and constrict a creature within 60ft of you. The creature must make a Dexterity saving throw or be restrained. At the start of each of that creatures it is dragged 10ft closer to the center of the water and the creature at the end of its turns may remake this save.
You can do this once per long rest.
Eldritch invocations
Drowning Blast
Prerequisite: Stygian Tide Patron, Eldritch Bast cantrip
When you cast Eldritch Blast, you can use your bonus action to inflict the curse of the Stygian Tide upon them. Any creature struck by you eldritch blast suffers an effect from the table below, determined by the number of beams they were struck by.
- 1: Their movement speed is reduced by 10ft until the end of their next turn.
- 2: The creature is thrown 15ft in a direction of your choosing.
- 3: The creature is knocked prone.
- 4: That creature and all creatures in a 15ft radius of that creature must make a Dexterity saving throw against your spell save DC. On a failed save, a burst of inky black water erupts from the original creature dealing 3d10 additional cold damage
Feeding Frenzy
Prerequisite: 5th level warlock, Stygian Tide Patron
As an action, you can summon up to 4 aberrant sharks for 10 minutes. These sharks use the stats of the Reef Shark and have a flight speed equal to their swim speed. These creatures are under the charmed condition for the duration they are active and return to the waters of the far realm after the duration of this invocation is up or they are killed.
You can do this once per long rest.
Shielded Mind
Prerequisite: 10th level warlock, Stygian Tide Patron
You gain immunity to the frightened condition and resistance to psychic damage.
Those Other Waters
Prerequisite: 15th level warlock, Stygian Tide Patron
You can cast the plane shift spell once per long rest. When you cast this spell using this invocation you can only choose the elemental plane of water as the destination.
Aesthetics of Pact Boons with the Stygian Tide
When you create a weapon from the Pact of the Blade, the weapon may appear to be covered in barnacles and dripping wet. Familiars from the Pact of the Chain may be eldritch or drowned versions of the creature you choose and the spellbook from the Pact of the Tome may come in the form of a stone slab whose marking change as they are looked upon.