Primal Path
Path of the Demon Soul
Barbarians who follow this accursed path discover a demonic presence within themselves, yearning for release. This presence may be the result of a demonic curse, over exposure to Abyssal magics, or even demonic possession. In any case, when these barbarians lose control, their fiendish nature manifests itself visibly, warping their appearance and allowing them to unleash an unholy fury upon their foes.
Demonic Surges
When you reach 3rd level, the dark powers coursing through you give you access to demonic abilities in the form of Demonic Surges. Demonic Surges are supernatural abilities that momentarily boost your combat abilities or create demonic spell-like effects. If a Demonic Surge requires you to make an attack roll, treat the attack as though it is being made with a simple weapon. If a Demonic Surge requires a saving throw, you use your Constitution modifier to determine the DC.
Surge save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Constitution modifier
Surge Slots. The Demonic Surges table shows how many surge slots you have to use Demonic Surges of 1st level and higher. To use one of these surges you must expend a slot of the surge's level or higher. You regain all expended Surge Slots when you complete a long rest.
Surges Known of 1st-Level and Higher. You know three 1st-level Demonic Surges of your choice from the list at the end of this document.
The Surges Known column of the Demon Soul Surges table shows when you learn more Demonic Surges of 1st level or higher.
Whenever you gain a level in this class, you can replace one of the surges you know with another surge of your choice. This surge must be of a level for which you have surge slots.
Demon Soul Surges
| Barbarian Level | Surges Known | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd | 3 | 2 | — | — | — |
| 4th | 3 | 3 | — | — | — |
| 5th | 3 | 3 | — | — | — |
| 6th | 4 | 3 | 1 | ─ | ─ |
| 7th | 4 | 4 | 2 | — | — |
| 8th | 5 | 4 | 2 | — | — |
| 9th | 5 | 4 | 2 | — | — |
| 10th | 6 | 4 | 3 | 1 | ─ |
| 11th | 6 | 4 | 3 | 1 | ─ |
| 12th | 7 | 4 | 3 | 1 | ─ |
| 13th | 7 | 4 | 3 | 2 | ─ |
| 14th | 8 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| 15th | 8 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| 16th | 9 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| 17th | 9 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| 18th | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| 19th | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| 20th | 11 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
Fiendish Resilience
Starting when you choose this path at 3rd level, your rage grants you increased resistances. You now have resistance to lighting, fire, and cold damage while raging.
Reckless Surge
At 6th level, when you use a Demonic Surge that requires a saving throw, you may choose to force all affected to make their saving throw with disadvantage. If you do, all attack rolls against you have advantage and you have disadvantage on all saving throws until the start of your next turn.
Demonic Visage
At 10th level, you begin manifesting the traits of a specific type of demon. Choose one of following demonic traits.
Butchery
While you're raging, when you reduce a creature to 0 hit points with a melee attack on your turn, you can use you bonus action to move up to half your move speed and make one melee weapon attack.
Madness
While raging, the effects charmed or frightened condition are suspended for the duration of the rage.
Savagery
While raging, when you use your Reckless Surge or Reckless Attack feature, you also gain temporary hit points equal to your Strength or Constitution modifier (your choice and a minimum of 1). They vanish if any of them are left when your rage ends.
Undeath
While raging you have resistance to necrotic damage, your hit point maximum can't be reduced, and you also have advantage on saving throws against any disease.
Demonic Resistance
Starting at 14th level, your demonic physiology has allowed you to better ignore the effects of magic. If you fail a saving throw while raging against a spell or other magical effects, you can reroll it, and you must use the new roll. You can use this ability only once per rage.
Demonic Surges
1st Level Surges
Abyssal Skulk. As action, you can magically turn invisible. The invisibility lasts for 1 minute or until you attack, make a damage roll, or force a creature to make a saving throw.
Burning Trail. In place of an attack that is part of your attack action, you cause a line of abyssal fire that is 20 feet long and 5 feet wide to emanate from you along the ground in a direction you choose. Each creature in the line must make a Dexterity saving throw. A creature takes 3d6 fire damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
Defiled Earth. In place of an attack that is part of your attack action, you cause the ground in a 10-foot radius centered on a point within 30 feet of you to become blackened and blighted for the 10 minutes or until you lose your concentration (as if you were concentrating on a spell). When a creature moves into or within the area, it takes 1d6 necrotic damage for every 5 feet it travels.
Demonic Infestation. As a bonus action, you place a disease on a creature that you can see within 60 feet of you. The disease lasts for 1 minute or until you lose your concentration (as if you were concentrating on a spell). The first time on each of your turns that you hit the diseased target with an attack, you deal an extra 1d8 necrotic damage. Additionally, if the target would regain hit points, it gains half as much instead. If the target drops to 0 hit points before this duration ends, you may move the disease to a new creature within 60 feet of it.
Fiendish Dread. In place of an attack that is part of your attack action, you unleash demonic shades that attack the mind of a creature you can see within 60 feet of you. The target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or become frightened of you for 1 minute or until you lose your concentration (as if you were concentrating on a spell).
The frightened target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.
Fiendish Smite. When you hit a creature with a melee weapon Attack, you may use a bonus action to deal an additional 3d6 fire damage.
Fresh Meat. As a action, you feast on the corpse of one small or larger creature within 5 feet you that died within the past minute. You regain a number of hit points equal to 1d12 + your Strength modifier.
Hungering Jaws. As part of your attack action, you replace one of your attacks with a bite from your razor sharp jaws. The bite is considered a natural weapon you are proficient with and it deals 2d8 piercing damage. You regain a number of hit points equal to half the damage dealt by this attack.
Hypnotic Summons. In place of an attack that is part of your attack action, you whisper madding words that only one creature of your choice within 60 feet of you can hear, twisting its mind and drawing it toward you. The target must make a Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, it takes 3d6 psychic damage and must immediately use its reaction, if available, to move as close as its speed allows toward you. The creature doesn’t move into obviously dangerous ground, such as a fire or a pit. On a successful save, the target takes half as much damage and doesn’t have to move towards you. A deafened creature automatically succeeds on the save.
Insanity Gaze. In place of an attack that is part of your attack action, you let loose a madding gaze towards a creature you can see within 60 feet of you. The target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or it uses its action on its next turn to make a melee attack against a randomly determined creature within its reach. If there is no creature within its reach, the creature does nothing during it's turn.
Primal Grudge. In place of an attack that is part of your attack action, you magically undo the works of civilization by choosing a creature or nonmagical object. The target must be made of manufactured material such as stone, crystal, wood, or metal. The target makes a Constitution saving throw if it is a creature and takes 4d8 necrotic damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
If the target is an object, it automatically fails the saving throw, and until the start of the next turn, if a creature is holding or wearing the object, that creature has disadvantage on attack rolls and ability checks.
Savage Rush. As a bonus action you take the Dash action and are filled with unholy vigor. Until the end of the turn, your speed increases by 10 feet, you don't provoke opportunity attacks, you are unaffected by difficult terrain, and climbing and swimming don't cost you extra movement.
Searing Spear. In place of an attack that is part of your attack action, you summon and throw a spear made out of brimstone using a free hand. You may treat the attack as a thrown weapon with range of 60/120 and you may also add you rage damage to the attack if you are raging. On a hit, the target takes 1d6 piercing damage. Hit or miss, the spear then explodes, and the target and each creature within 5 feet of it must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or take 2d6 fire damage.
Unholy Stench. In place of an attack that is part of your attack action, you cause a foul smell to emanate in a 10-foot radius around yourself. Each creature other than you in that area must make a Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, the creature takes 2d8 poison damage and is poisoned until the end of your next turn. On a successful save, the creature takes half as much damage and isn’t poisoned.
2nd Level Surges
Abyssal Pincers As an action, you grow two pincers on the ends of your hands to strike out at nearby enemies. You may make up to two attack with the pincers. They each have a reach of 10 feat and deal 2d10 bludgeoning damage. If they strike a target that is a medium or smaller creature, it is grappled. Each pincers lasts until it is no longer grappling a creature, and while you have at least one pincer you can use your action subsequent turns to make a another pincer attack against each creature you have grappled.
Arcing Smite. When you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack, you may use a bonus action to deal an additional 3d4 lighting damage to it. You can then cause lighting to leap from the target to a different creature of your choice that you can see within 15 feet of it. The second creature takes 3d4 lighting damage as well.
Burning Whip. As an action, you summon burning whip into a free hand that you can use to immediately make a single attack against a creature within 30 feet of you. On a successful hit, it deals 5d6 fire damage and the target must succeed on a Strength saving throw or be pulled up to 25 feet toward you. The whip disappears at the end of your turn
Cruel Revival. You speak dark words to awaken a small or medium corpse you can see within 30 feet of you that died within the last 10 minutes. The corpse immediately stands up and becomes a zombie (the statistics for zombies can be found in the Monster Manual), and it gains a bonus to its attack and damage rolls equal to your Strength ability modifier. In combat, the Zombie shares your initiative count.
While the zombie is within 60 feet of you, you can use a bonus action to mentally command it to do your bidding, otherwise it takes no actions and does not move. The Zombie crumbles to dust after 10 minutes.
Defiled Weapon. As a action you touch a nonmagical weapon. Choose one of the following damage types: acid, fire, necrotic, poison, or psychic. For the next hour, while you are welding the weapon it counts as a magic weapon that deals a extra damage of the chosen type equal to your rage damage.
Demonic Eyes. As an action, you cause your eyes take on a demonic traits and appearance. For the next 8 hours, you gain darkvision out to 120 feet and blindsight out to 10 feet.
Horror Nimbus. As an action, you magically emit scintillating, multicolored light. Each of creature of your choice within 15 feet of the you that can see the light must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or be frightened until you lose your concentration (as if you were concentrating on a spell). A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.
Monstrous Charge. As an action, you grow large demonic horns and you may move up to your movement speed horizontally in a straight line. If you run into an object or a creature during this movement, you make a single attack with your horns as part of this action. Your horns deal 4d8 piercing damage, and if the target is a creature, it must succeed on a Strength saving throw or be knocked prone. If the creature fails the saving throw, you may also push it up to 10 feet away from you.
Primal Reversion As an action, you choose a creature within 120 feet of you, forcing it to unleash its uncontrollable primal nature. That creature must succeed on an Intelligence saving throw or be subjected to this primal savagery for 1 minute or until you lose your concentration (as if you were concentrating on a spell).
While under this effect, the creature must use any of its actions to make melee attacks or dash actions. The creature can no longer cast or concentrate on spells while under this effect.
The creature can make a Intelligence saving throw at the end of each of its turns. On a success, the effect ends.
Rotting Presence. As a bonus action, you cause decay and pestilence spew forth from you and out to a distance of 15 feet for 1 minute or until you lose your concentration (as if you were concentrating on a spell). You can designate any number of creatures you can see to be unaffected by this effect.
When any other creature enters the effected area for the first time on a turn or starts its turn there, it must make a Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, the creature takes 2d6 necrotic damage, and on a successful save, it takes half as much damage.
Stream of Corruption. As an action, you spew forth a stream of corrosive bile. Each creature in a 15-foot cone in front of you must make a Dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, the creature takes 3d4 acid damage and another 3d4 acid damage at the end of its next turn unless a creature uses its action to scrape or wash the acid off of it beforehand. On a successful save, a creature takes no additional damage at the end of its next turn.
3rd Level Surges
Dark Flight. As an action, you cause wings to spring from your back and you gain a flying speed of 60 feet for the next 10 minutes. If the effect ends while you are in the air, you immediately begin falling unless some other effect prevents this.
Devour. As an action, your jaw unhinges and you attempt to magically swallow a medium or smaller creature within 5 feet of you that you can see. The creature must make a Dexterity saving throw or be swallowed by you. A swallowed creature is blinded and restrained, it has total cover against attacks and other effects outside you, and it takes 3d4 acid damage at the start of each of your turns.
The creature is swallowed until you lose your concentration (as if you were concentrating on a spell except it can be maintained while raging). If you lose concentration, the swallowed creature is regurgitated and falls prone into space of your choice within 5 feet of you.
Fire Stomp. As an action, you slam the ground, causing fire to erupt out from you in a 15-foot radius. Each creature other than you in that area must make a Dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, a creature takes 6d6 fire damage and is knocked prone. On a pass, it takes half as much damage and is not knocked prone. The fire spreads around corners and ignites flammable objects in the area that aren’t being worn or carried.
Ghoul Claw. As an action, you cause one of your hands to temporarily turn into a pale claw, and you use it to make a single attack against a creature within 5 feet of you. The claw deals 2d8 slashing damage on a hit and, if the target is a non-undead, it must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or be paralyzed for 1 minute or until you lose your concentration (as if you were concentrating on a spell). The target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.
Howling Flail. You use your bonus action to call on abyssal shadows, solidifying them into a three headed flail of solid darkness in your hand. This magic flail remains for 1 minute, it counts as a simple melee weapon with which you are proficient, and it deals 2d8 psychic damage on a hit. In addition, when you take the attack action while holding the fail, you can attack three times instead of making your normal amount of attacks. All these attacks must be with the flail.
If you drop the flail or throw it, it dissipates at the end of the turn. Thereafter, while this effect persists, you can use a bonus action to cause the flail to reappear in your hand.
Lightning Lance. As an action, you launch a bolt of lightning in a line 60 feet long and 10 feet wide. Each creature in the line must make a Dexterity saving throw, taking 6d8 lightning damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
Predator's Mark. As an action, you choose a creature you have seen within 120 feet of you within the past 24 hours. For the next 8 hours, or until you use this surge again, the creature is marked by you. As a bonus action, you can move up to your speed toward the marked creature if you can see or hear it. You must end this movement closer to it than you started. You may also make a single melee weapon attack against the marked creature as part of this bonus action.
While the creature is marked, you get +5 on any Wisdom (Perception) or Wisdom (Survival) check you make to find it, and the creature gets -5 on any Wisdom (Perception) or Wisdom (Survival) check it makes to find you. You also can see though any magic effects targeting the creature as if you had truesight.
Rotting Smite. When you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack, you may use a bonus action to deal an additional 3d8 necrotic damage. The creature has disadvantage on the next saving throw it makes before the end of your next turn.
Teleport. As a action, you teleport, along with any equipment you are wearing or carrying, up to 120 feet to an unoccupied space you can see. Before or after teleporting, you can make one attack as part of this action.
Undying Evil. You gain the demon's ability to escape death. As an action, you place a ward on yourself that lasts for 8 hours or until you use this surge again. If you die while the under the effects of the ward, your body dissolves into foul ichor leaving behind only the equipment you were wearing or carrying. After 1 minute, you reform in the unoccupied space closest to the location where you died. Your soul must both be both willing and able to reform and you can’t return to life if you died of old age. When you reform, you return to life with 1 hit point and the ward ends.
Warp Flesh. As an action, you target a creature you can see within 60 feet of you and warp it's body with chaotic magics. It must make a Constitution saving throw. On a failed save the creature's body is racked with chaotic energy for the next 1 minute or until you lose your concentration (as if you were concentrating on a spell), While affected in this way, at the start of it's turns the creature takes 4d10 force damage, and it suffers one level of exhaustion. The target repeats the saving throw at the end of each of its turns ending the effect on a success.
After the effect ends, the targeted creature removes a level of exhaustion caused by this effect at the end of each of its turns.
4th Level Surges
Demon Hide As an action, you cause your skin to take on a fiendish appearance and resilience. For the next hour, while you are not wearing any armor, your AC equals 13 + your Dexterity modifier + your Constitution modifier. You can use a shield and still gain this benefit.
Infernal Wrath As an action, you unleash a torrent of fiendish fire in a 60-foot cone. Each creature in the cone must make a Dexterity saving throw. A creature takes 8d6 fire damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. The damage ignores fire resistance as well the fire immunity of devils and celestials
The fire ignites any flammable objects in the area that aren’t being worn or carried.
If damage from this surge reduces a target to 0 hit points, the target is turned to ash.
Limb Storm As an action, you briefly grow extra sets of demonic limbs which strike out at nearby creatures. You may make up to six attacks with these limbs as part of this action, each dealing 1d8 piercing damage on hit. The limbs disappear at the end of your turn.
Pestilent Cloud As an action, you create a 20-foot-radius sphere of green, nauseating cloud of disease centered on a point within 90 feet of you that you can see. The cloud spreads around corners, and its area is heavily obscured. The cloud lingers in the air for up to 1 minute or until you lose your concentration (as if you were concentrating on a spell).
Each creature that is completely within the cloud at the start of its turn must make a Constitution saving throw against its disease. On a failed save, the creature spends its action that turn retching and reeling. You and other demons and undead automatically succeed on this saving throw and can see through the cloud as though its area is lightly obscured.
Stunning Screech. As an action, you emit a horrific screech. Each creature within 20 feet of you that can hear it must succeed on a DC Constitution saving throw or be stunned until the end of your next turn.
Summon Demon You utter foul abyssal words, call a demon forth from the chaos of the Abyss. Choose a demon of CR 5 or lower such as a Shadow Demon or a Barlgura. The demon appears in an unoccupied space you can see within 60 feet of you, and it disappears when it drops to 0 hit points or after 1 hour has passed.
The demon obeys your commands, and in combat, it shares your initiative count, but it takes its turn immediately after yours. The demon spends its turns pursuing and attacking the nearest non-demons, unless you use a bonus action on your turn to command it to take a different action. That action can be one that is listed in its stat block or any other action that the demon would be capable of.
Soul Rend. Your chest cracks open and projects a vortex of life-draining energy out to 30 feet from you. Each creature in the area must make a Constitution saving throw, taking 6d10 necrotic damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. For each creature that is small or larger dropped to 0 hit points by this effect, you gain a number of hit points equal to your Constitution modifier.
Wall of Nightmares You conjure up a wall of swirling magical darkness on the ground at a point you can see within 90 feet of you. You can make the wall up to 30 feet long, 10 feet high, and 10 feet thick, and it vanishes after 10 minutes or if you lose your concentration (as if you were concentrating on a spell). Creatures other than yourself with darkvision can’t see through this darkness, and nonmagical light can’t illuminate it.
Furthermore, the first time a creature attempts enter the darkness on a turn, the creature must make a Wisdom saving throw. On a fail, the creature can't move into any space within the darkness for the rest of its turn. You may choose to have a creature automatically pass the saving throw if you can see it.
If any of the wall's darkness overlaps with an area of light created by a spell of 3nd level or lower, the spell that created the light is dispelled.
| d12 | Demon Soul Origin |
|---|---|
| 1 | You underwent a dark ritual in exchange for the power needed to achieve your goals |
| 2 | You hail from a demon worshiping barbarian tribe. You've abandoned the tribe and their evil ways, but you still wield the dark forces they bestowed upon you. |
| 3 | A gateway to the Abyss opened near your home town. You survived the ordeal, but were forever changed by its demonic energies. |
| 4 | You were the subject of dark and bizarre arcane experiments. |
| 5 | All you remember were fiends attacking your town. Now, when you're in danger, you black out. When you come to, you're surrounded by bodies and left with only brief flashes of what happened. |
| 6 | You took it upon yourself to trap the soul of a demon within yourself, thereby preventing it from returning to the Abyss and reforming. |
| 7 | You were subjected to a fiendish curse which you struggle to keep from consuming your soul entirely. |
| 8 | You have fiendish parentage, which you learned about when you came of age and your fiendish traits began manifesting. |
| 9 | You've attracted the attention of a demon lord who is bestowing its "gifts" upon you in hopes of corrupting your soul. |
| 10 | You were once a demon, but sought to escape the Abyss and find redemption by reincarnating yourself as a mortal. |
| 11 | You are dedicated to fighting demons by using their own powers against them, and you've turned yourself into an unrelenting slayer who brings doom to any fiend you find. |
| 12 | Your powers aren't fiendish in nature, but have some other planar origin, such as Limbo, the Far Realm, or the Elemental Plane of Fire. |
Art Credit
- Demon Berserker Token - Magic the Gathering - Wizards of the Coast.
- Frenzied Raider - Magic the Gathering - Wizards of the Coast.
- Demonic Gifts - Magic the Gathering - Wizards of the Coast.
0.0.0 Changes
- This is a place holder for the change log
