Cybald the Insane's
Tome of Cursed Transmutation
Within your grasp are powers you've only dreamt of. Want to soar through the clouds? The Tome of Cursed Transmutation can give you the wings of the harpy. Do you wish for the eternal, time-stopping beauty of the medusa? It's yours. The strength and fury of a lycanthrope are at your disposal. Do you lack sufficient strength of arms to defeat your mortal enemy? Why not give yourself more? The power of the drider's curse is within your grasp. Do the secrets of the sea call to you? The rituals of the tome can give you the power to transform your body to breathe in sea water and swim with enchanting mermaids.
Yes, of course there is a price. There is always a price. But what fun is life without a little risk?
You wouldn't have found the tome if you were afraid of risk.
Read on. Your dreams may soon come true.
Dungeon Master's Guide to Discovering the Tome
Players dream of being able to fly, or change into a magical creature at will. Some want to look like a cute kitsune character but the race doesn't exist in your world. These wants are often at odds with a balanced campaign–but this is the stuff of imagination! This is why we play D&D!
Enter the Tome of Cursed Transmutation, a legendary spellbook that gives players access to their wildest dreams, with a balanced cost that will make playing the character a fun, possibly dangerous and unique experience.
Each ritual described in the arcane tome creates a cursed magical item that binds to the wearer, granting the strength of a werewolf, the eternal beauty and time-stopping gaze of a sa sa, the wings of a harpy, the eight-legged terror of a drider, the equine body of a centaur, or the serene swimming speed of the merfolk, and the ability to transform back to normal...mostly.
The Tome of Cursed Transmutation should be a treasure the players discover early enough in a campaign that the powers granted by the curses help define a character's overall identity and development. Even 1st level is not too early.
This is also a great way to re-invent a character a player is bored of, or which isn't contributing well in the campaign.
This book includes mechanics for practical flight combat (harpy wings transmutation) which balance the flight ability.
The materials and spells necessary to complete the rituals should either become quests for the players or side-goals for the players in the campaign, and DM's should provide ample opportunities for players to obtain the necessary items early enough in the campaign that the transformation is achieved between third and fifth level. This makes it a goal the player feels good about accomplishing, rather than a cheap victory or an impossible goal.
Transmutations are mutually exclusive. Players only get one.
Your players may all decide to take the same transformation. All of them might want the power to transform into merfolk, and the campaign could explore wrecks along the sea coast. Or, they could all take the transformation of drider and explore the Underdark.
Perhaps only one of them wishes a transformation. Their curse will be a great boon to the team, but the dangers of their curse will keep everyone on their toes and offer excellent fodder for role-playing and intrigue.
The Tome
The Tome of Cursed Transmutation is an intricately crafted spellbook, metal-framed, jeweled, and protected with arcane runes against the spoilage of time, water, and even fire. Its creator dared not risk any damage to his life's work.
If someone attempts to destroy the tome, or its bearer is consumed by fire or some other disaster that would destroy the book, a contigency spell activates. The tome is teleported to one of many possible locations the writer explored in his lifetime. Players can attempt to recover the tome by visiting sites Cybald the Insane was known to have visited, namely a lot of very dangerous lairs.
The tome is written in common, although parts of the rituals are written in fey, celestial, abyssal, aquan and undercommon.
The pages of the tome contain lists of ingredients, diagrams of rune circles, dire warnings, grotesque illustrations of failed transmutations, and ominous blood stains which do not come out with prestidigitation.
Secrets of the Tome
| 1 | Campaign Ideas and Encounters |
| 2 | The Mastered Lycanthrope |
| 3 | Taming the Harpy |
| 4 | Unending Beauty: Secrets of the Medusa |
| 5 | Dimensional Transmutations: Drider and Centaur |
| 6 | Gift of the Deep Sea: Merfolk |
Campaign Ideas and Encounters
1. The Were-war
Call to action The lycanthrope invasion continues. Villages fall. Innocents die. Like a plague, the werewolves and their ilk ravage the land. There is a legend of Cybald the Insane, a wizard who claimed to have found the cure to the lycanthrope curse. The team is hired to find his hidden lair and seek the cure to the cure.
Challenge: The team finds the lair, battling their way to the center in a classic dungeon crawl, only to discover that Cybald is dead. Only a few lurking servant creatures remain, who can offer the players scraps of hints. Eventually, the team finds the tome and must decide whether to share it with their patron, who may even be in league with the lycanthropes, or to take matters into their own hands.
Complications: Once the players have their lycanthrope transmutations, they are able infiltrate the lycanthrope society. But rather than finding evil degenerates, they find refugees trying desperately to recover lands confiscated by the throne. The plot thickens as players find friends and even romantic interests among the lycans. Will they return with the information the empire needs to crush this threat, or will they sabotage the empire's offensive to allow the lycans to retreat, regroup and find a home?
Resolution: With the lycanthrope community finding hope in a future of mutual respect and cooperation with the empire, the players find themselves at the boundary of society. Are they loyal citizens? Are they lycans? What will come next? Is there a greater threat that will demand the cooperation of both societies?
2. Lake Safe'N Kozy Kamp for Kids
This campaign begins before level 1, when players are just NPCs with no character class.
Call to action: A group of young misfits sent to summer camp by their parents who want little to with them, discovers a map in the bones of an old explorer. They yearn to see where this map leads. It is cryptic, as if the writer didn't want a casual reader to be able to decipher it.
The players sneak away from Lake Safe N' Kozy Kamp for Kids. With Kamp Kounselors pursuing them, they seek for the lost treasure. Along the way, players fight animals, discover magical abilities and forge a deep friendship.
Shady Creek: Hungry, wet, cold, injured and fleeing ravenous beasts, the kids seek shelter in a village near the base of mountains shrouded in mist. They meet old timers and has-been adventurers who regale them with tales and warnings and who point them to an abandoned mine and give them tips on dungeon delving. Unlike their camp counselors, these folks seem to think kids need to get out and explore the world.
But the more the kids learn, the more they realize they may be in way over their heads. But, there may be more to these kids than meets the eye. Each player receives a boon from their encounters with old timers in the quiet village that helps them forge their identity and class: a soldier's old sword for a young fighter, a dagger and a five-minute crash course on lock picking for a rogue from an old thief stuck in jail (whom they help to escape by picking the jail lock), a holy symbol for a cleric at the old run-down chapel where a player has their first manifestation from a god, and so on. Maybe, just maybe, they do have a chance.
Cybald's Dungeon: Full of courage and trepidation, with their beloved hand-me-down sword, staff, or dagger in hand, the kids head off to the old mine, following their map and clues. Through many adventures they find the dungeon of Cybald the Insane.
All manner of creatures have to laid claim to Cybald's Dungeon and players have to fight, slink and bargain their way through, only to find that Cybald's treasure has already been looted by vermin from the underdark. But without the kids' map, the goblins couldn't find the hidden room with the Tome of Cursed Transmutation. The book is there for the taking.
The Decision: With the tome in hand–the real treasure of Cybald the Insane–the kids face a choice. Do they leave it for another day and return to camp, or do they embark on yet another adventure to acquire the skills and resources to make these fantastic transmutations possible. Just think what those bullies back at camp would think if the kids came back flying or riding across the hills as centaurs!
The High Witch of the Andyron School of Magic: Realizing they need advanced spells, the kids journey to a nearby big city Andyron where they face bullies, thieves and finally get access to the head of the school of wizardry who hears their petitions for spell scrolls. An old runaway herself, she agrees to provide the kids with some help, if they earn it by doing tasks for her that she can't trust to people in her school. They can also pick up bits of magic here and there as they pass through the school.
The team rapidly progresses from delivering secret messages to infiltrating the homes of conspiring nobles and stopping black market thieves from stealing the school's powerful scrolls and ancient secrets.
The Rituals: Finally, the day comes for the long-promised spell scrolls. But the powerful witch, the city's greatest protector, has been killed as a prelude to an invasion. The kids have mere hours before the city will be overrun. With a city-wide evacuation underway, the kids must sneak away, break into the sealed library, find the scrolls they need and begin the rituals as soon as possible. Otherwise they will have no chance to survive the invasion.
Vengeance: With their newfound powers, the adventurers break through the enemy lines and escape. They are free and have powers greater than they ever dreamt of. But returning home doesn't sit well. The witch who took them under her wing was murdered. They learn that the dagger left in the witch's back was the signature of a famous assassin, the right hand of the evil warlord who has just taken over the city. How will they deal with this threat? The evacuees look to the adventurers for help. Somehow, someway, they must face down the terror. For the prince's cavaliers have no chance to retake the city while the gates are shut and the warlord's undead army patrols the walls.
The Heist: Back to their old tricks, the team sneaks into the fallen city. They plan their revenge, but find that they have fallen into a trap. The warlord is ready for them. And there is no escape. Will the kids find a way to defeat their foe, banish his undead army and open the city gates for the prince's cavalry to retake the city?
Resolution: For their courageous actions, the throne rewards each of the adventurers with a royal boon: sacred weapons, enchanted relics, and tomes of learning. Only then, do the persistent Kamp Kounselors arrive, stocked with powerful weapons of their own, recovered from the fleeing evil army. The true name of the camp is revealed: Lake Safe N' Kozy Prison Kamp for Annoying Kids their Parents Don't Want Anymore. And these Kamp Kounselors never give up. Once a Kozy Kamper, always a Kozy Kamper. And no refunds! The final battle ensues. Can the kids defeat the Kounselors and free the other kids?
3. The Gladitorium Insurgency
Call to action: The team is captured by slavers who supply fighters for a powerful ruler whose empire is built on tourism. Visitors come to watch the legendary sky fights of the Gladitorium. Thrilling, violent and often deadly, there is no greater spectacle.
Challenge: Once captured, the players are given the choice to fight on the ground as "support" (cannon fodder) or to undergo the harpy transformation and get wings of their own. The players must prepare for each battle, investigate their opponents and the corruption within the system that leads to human trafficking, while plotting their own escape. Powerful demons and mind flayers keep the gladiators under lock and key.
Complications: One of the players will discover a friend or family member who is also enslaved. The team can't leave without trying to rescue the other slaves. That will mean taking on the the entire system and rooting out the corruption from the top. The team builds their skill and renown in the arena, but the odds are increasingly stacked against them. When a character is seriously injured the players have to decide where to get out now or to finish the fight and complete the coup.
Resolution: Once free, the players get to decide whether to keep their wings or to sever them and all ties to their time in the Gladitorium.
4. The Sky Islands Mystery
Call to action: A wealthy patron recruits volunteers for a dangerous mission. The sky islands are a source of resources vital to the region, but supply airships have gone missing and they can't risk sending more until they know what they are up against.
The patron's wizard has discovered the Tome of Cursed Transmutation and the patron is requesting the volunteers undergo the harpy transformation, fly to the sky islands, and investigate.
Complications: Each sky island village the players visit is facing a critical problem. Evil lurks among the floating forests and in the caverns of the floating islands. What is causing the resurgence of evil? Messenger birds carry the team's news back to their patron and they have occasional messages on sending stones. But there are also treasures here, ancient items the miners of the sky islands lack the firepower and wings to reach. Overarching it all is the emergence of the plot of a rival kingdom's to crash the sky islands down, destroy much of the kingdom and then conquer it easily.
Resolution: Upon undoing the evil plot, the team finds their actions have paved the way for greater change and progress. New villages are opening in the sky islands. Trade is resuming. Will they take roles as administrators and protectors in the newly established royal sky realm province. Or will they give up their wings and try to return to their former lives?
5. The Sunken Fleet of Brigadorn
Call to action: A treasure hunting firm has taken investment to plunder the remains of the famous lost fleet of Brigadorn. The fleet's location was scryed out, but due to the depth, no salvage has ever been successful. That was before the Tome of Cursed Transmutation was found.
Now Sir Endmin Arnsbahker only needs volunteers to become merfolk and find the valuables within the sunken ships.
Lured by the promise of adventure and treasure the players investigate the opportunity. The company has provided a mirror of life trapping to hold the lower bodies while they become merfolk. After the mission, the bodies of all the participants can be restored. They have tested the spell on some other animals with good results. The players, however, have to find their own way to breathe underwater. They consult a wizard who teaches them about spell permanence and they do a small coastal wreck salvage mission while building up enough duration in their alter self spells. This one is time-critical as their water breathing spells only have one hour. They are introduced to the difficulties of underwater D&D combat as well as the treasures that can be found underwater. Characters receive good and useful items from the first mission that will help them underwater.
Challenge: One the team has enough permanence in their alter self spells to breath underwater for a week at a time (about 3.3 days of casting alter self every 10 hours) they can undergo their transformations. With the timeline crunch for handling donor sea creatures, several characters may have to make do with less ideal bodies (see merfolk unique features table) ranging from shark or dolphin to giant squid. With their merfolk bodies they venture into the deep.
Complications: They discover merfolk are desperately trying to protect the powerful artifacts in the wreckage from monstrous sea creatures which could use them to destroy the merfolk civilization. Will the team grab the
goods and run, or stay and
help the merfolk?
The Mastered Lycanthrope
The curse of the lycanthrope is as infamous as it is terrifying. Yet, what warrior does not lust for the strength of the bear or the fury of the wolf?
But those cursed with lycanthropy lose their minds to the animal instinct. And, in their madness, they pass their curse to other unwilling victims.
In my studies I have found volunteers to undergo the following transmutations, all of which were remarkably successful, in that they were either successful...or remarkable.
Other transmutations may be possible, but the results are not guaranteed. In fact nothing is guaranteed.
The good news is, the ritual is easy. It's just not so easy to undo. Actually impossible. But don't let that stop you!
Lycanthrope Transmutations
| Animal |
|---|
| Werebear |
| Werewolf |
| Werefox |
| Werecat |
| Werebat |
Instructions
There are two steps to the mastered lycanthrope transmutation. To obtain the powers you seek, you will first create a charm that contains the lycanthrope curse. Then you will put it on and step into moonlight...and scream. Note, the ritual must be performed at the full moon.
Silver sensitivity
Once you complete your curse of the mastered lycanthrope you take an additional 1d4 poison damage from slashing and piercing attacks made with silvered weapons.
Required materials
| Ingredients |
|---|
| a blood ruby of 250 gp value or more |
| blood of a lycanthrope of any variety |
| blood from a bear, wolf, fox, or cat (still living) |
| glyph of warding spell or scroll including required materials (diamond dust, etc.) |
| remove curse spell or spell scroll |
| a leather choker necklace, preferably from skin of the bear, wolf, fox, or cat, with the fur lining–for comfort, and style |
| two to ten claws and teeth of the lycanthrope, or the desired animal |
| spell or scroll of revivify or animate dead |
Instructions
- Attach the ruby to the front of the leather chocker necklace. Tip: pay a jeweler to set the ruby in a nice setting with eyelets. Only be sure they don't use silver!
- Attach the claws and teeth of the animal or lycanthrope around the choker, with the sharp part facing the skin. (Yes, this will be uncomfortable. But do you want legendary strength, or not? Stop being a whiner.)
- Inscribe the glyph of warding on the inside of the leather choker necklace with the spell remove curse.
- Dip the necklace in the blood of lycanthrope mingled with the blood of the animal whose powers you desire. If you are using blood from a lycanthrope that is not the desired type, make sure you use at least 10 times as much blood from the animal you desire. Maybe 20 times as much.
- Eliminate the rest of the animal from your plane of existence. If using revivify you must complete this step in less than a minute. Try casting rope trick and stuffing the creature inside the extraplanar space.
- Put the necklace on and step into the moonlight.
- Tell everybody nearby to put in ear plugs.
- Cast revivify or animate dead on the necklace.
Expected results
If you have done everything properly, while in moonlight, the claws and/or teeth of the necklace will bite into your neck and deliver the curse. It is a minor inconvenience. You'll get used to it. The fur lining of the choker is supposed to hide this so people don't see it and freak out.
Once the claws and teeth dig in, the curse of the lycanthrope will attempt to enter your body, but the glyph of warding spell will activate the remove curse spell. This abjuration is not strong enough to end the curse of the lycanthrope, but does weaken it and partially contain it. This will allow you, the bearer of the cursed necklace of the mastered lycanthrope to undergo a partial transformation without losing your mind.
Also, your bite cannot transfer the curse. You're welcome.
Moonlight transformation
Whenever the ruby is lit by moonlight, your curse will activate. You may attempt to restrain the curse to prevent the transformation.
To restrain the curse make a Wisdom saving throw of DC 10 + a moon phase modifier.
| Moon phase | Modifier |
|---|---|
| Full moon fiveday | 6 |
| Waning/waning tendays | 3 |
| Crescent fiveday | 1 |
On a fail, you transform and remain transformed until the ruby is out of moonlight for 1d4 hours.
When you transform back, make another Constitution saving throw of 5 + the number of hours you were transformed. On a fail you suffer one level of exhaustion. If you are suffering more than one level of exhaustion, you cannot make the lycanthrope transmutation.
You may hide the ruby from the moonlight by covering it with a sash or cloak. Such coverings can become dislodged while dashing or grappling. The DM may ask you to make a Dexterity save to avoid exposing the ruby during such actions.
Transforming when attacked
Each time you take damage you must attempt to control the beast within you. At the beginning of your turn, attempt a Wisdom saving throw against a DC of 5 + (half the damage you took since your last turn). On a fail, you transform for a minimum of 1d4 hours. You can willingly fail the save.
Werebear Transformation
While you are transformed the follow affects apply.
- Your Strength increases to 18 if it is lower, or +1 up to 20.
- Your Dexterity reduces to 12 if is higher.
- Your Constitution increases to 16 if it is lower. You hit points are (6 + transformed Con modifier) x level and your hit dice is 1d10
- Your Intelligence reduces to 8 if it is higher.
Bear essentials
- You grow long claws and teeth and have a ferocious growl, granting you proficiency in Intimidation.
- You have proficiency in Perception checks involving smell, and Nature and Survival checks for finding food.
Multiattack
- When you attack with claws you may make a bite attack as a bonus action. Strength is your attack ability.
- Bite: 1d6 + Strength modifier piercing damage
- Claws: 2d4 + Strength modifier slashing damage
Thick hide
While transformed you have resistance to slashing
and piercing damage.
Additional effects
- While transformed, you have disadvantage on actions requiring precise finger control that such as medicine checks, tying buckles and ropes, playing instruments, picking locks, etc.
- You have no proficiency with shields while transformed.
- You have disadvantage using finesse and ranged weapons.
Werebear permanent effects
Your curse of the mastered lycanthrope permanently alters your nature. Roll 1d6 to determine additional details.
| Roll | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | Your voice is permanently altered by the curse and you can make a terrifying deep growl even without transforming. You gain proficiency in Intimidation and your Charisma is reduced by 1 permanently. |
| 2 | You grow permanent grizzled sideburns that grow back overnight if you attempt to shave them off. This makes you look like a used wagon salesman. You inexplicably gain proficiency in Persuasion tasks involving bartering despite giving off a decidedly creepy aire. |
| 3 | You give off the impression of a huggable, adorable person. While not transformed, your endearing nature grants you +1 to your Charisma and disadvantage on intimidation. |
| 4 | You gain furry round bear ears, permanently (and you can keep your fuzzy bear tail when you transform back if you desire). Also, if anyone is scratching your ears or back, you experience ecstatic pleasure and have disadvantage on Charisma saving throws against Persuasion. |
| 5 | When you transform you grow thick fur over your vital areas and find clothing to be unnecessary and bothersome. After transforming, make a Wisdom saving throw of DC 10 + your Strength modifier. On a fail you spend a bonus action on your turn removing a piece of clothing. This continues until you either pass a Wisdom saving throw or don't have any major clothing articles om (tunic, coat, cloak, pants, shirt). |
| 6 | You have a weakness for fish and berries, a craving that can never quite be satisfied. |
Unique appearance
Your curse gives you lush hair that is the envy of all which matches the creature whose blood you used. Roll 1d4 to determine your transformed appearance, or choose your preference.
| Roll | Hair color |
|---|---|
| 1 | Sleek black hair |
| 2 | Rich Brown hair |
| 3 | Exotic orange/red hair |
| 4 | Distinguished grizzled hair |
Werewolf Transformation
While you are transformed the follow effects apply.
- Your Strength increases to 14 if is lower, or +1 up to 20.
- Your Dexterity increases to 12 if it is lower
- Your Constitution increases to 14 if it is lower. Your hit dice is 1d8 and hit points are (5 + transformed Con modifier) x level.
- Your intelligence reduces to 12 if it is higher
Speed
- You walking speed is 35 ft.
Predatory instinct
- You gain proficiency in Nature tasks involving tracking
- You gain proficiency in Stealth
- You have proficiency on Perception checks involving smell and hearing and Nature and Survival checks for finding food.
Pack instinct
- Wolves have an instinctual ability to distract prey and coordinate attacks. Also, you are simply too terrifying to ignore. When allies attack a creature that is within 5 ft. of you, their weapon attacks deal 1d6 extra damage.
Fearsome visage
- You grow sharp claws and teeth and have a ferocious growl, granting you advantage on Intimidation checks.
- You have darkvision. You can see in dim light within 60 ft. of you as if it were bright light and in darkness as if it were dim light.
Multiattack
- When you attack with a claw swipe you may make a bite attack as a bonus action. You can use Strength or Dexterity as your attack ability.
- Bite: 1d6 + Strength modifier piercing damage
- Claws: 2d4 + Strength modifier slashing damage
Werewolf transformation details
Your curse of the mastered lycanthrope permanently alters your nature. Roll 1d6 to determine additional details of your curse.
Permanent effect
| Roll | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | Your eyes were altered by the curse and you have the unnerving gaze of the hungry wolf. Your Charisma is permanently reduced by 1. You are proficient in intimidation even when not transformed. |
| 2 | You grow permanent shaggy sideburns that grow back overnight if you attempt to shave them off. This makes you look like a used wagon salesman. You inexplicably gain proficiency in Persuasion tasks involving bartering despite giving off a decidedly creepy aire. |
| 3 | You're body becomes exquisitely toned and the envy of all and your natural musk is intoxicating. You gain +1 to your Charisma and proficiency in Persuasion. However someone who makes a DC Perception or Investigation check will see your sharp canines and have advantage against your charms. |
| 4 | You gain furred triangular wolf ears, permanently (and you can keep your wolf tail when you transform back if you desire). You apply your proficiency bonus to your passive Perception for hearing. |
| 5 | When you transform you grow thick fur over your vital areas and find clothing to be unnecessary and bothersome. After transforming, make a Wisdom saving throw of DC 10 + your Strength modifier. On a fail you spend a bonus action on your turn removing a piece of clothing. This continues until you either pass a Wisdom saving throw or don't have any major clothing articles on (tunic, coat, cloak, pants, shirt). |
| 6 | You have a weakness for raw meat, a craving that can never quite be satisfied. |
Werefox Transformation
While you are transformed the follow effects apply.
- Your Strength increases to 12 if it is lower.
- Your Dexterity increases to 16 if it is lower, or +1 up to 20.
- Your Constitution increases to 12 if it is lower. Your hit dice is 1d6 and hit points are (4 + transformed Con modifier) x level.
- Your Intelligence reduces to 14 if it is higher.
- Your Wisdom increases to 14 if it is lower, or +1 up to 20.
Speed
- Your walking speed is 35 ft.
Sly as a fox
- You gain the Rogue's Cunning Action ability to dash, disengage, or hide as a bonus action.
- You have a difficult-to-read expression and gain proficiency in Deception.
- You have proficiency in Perception checks involving smell and hearing, and Nature and Survival checks for finding food.
- You gain proficiency in Stealth.
- You have darkvision. You can see in dim light within 60 ft. of you as if it were bright light and in darkness as if it were dim light.
Multiattack
- When you make a claw attack you may make a bite attack as a bonus action. You use dexterity as your attack ability.
- Bite: 1d4 + Dexterity modifier piercing damage
- Claws: 1d6 + Strength modifier slashing damage
Crippling strike
- When you make a single successful bite attack (1d4 + Dex mod damage) as your only action, you deliver a cunning bite that slows your enemy. On the next turn the bitten creature has only half of its usual half movement speed.
Werefox transformation details
Your curse of the mastered lycanthrope permanently alters your nature. Roll 1d6 to determine additional details of your curse.
Permanent effect
| Roll | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | You like to slink away when no one is watching. Even when not transformed you have proficiency on Stealth, and you advantage on Stealth checks involving sneaking away. But, you have disadvantage on Wisdom and Intelligence checks if people have been talking for longer than two minutes and you haven't managed to sneak away. |
| 2 | You grow permanent shaggy sideburns that grow back overnight if you attempt to shave them off. This makes you look like a used wagon salesman. You inexplicably gain proficiency in Persuasion tasks involving bartering despite giving off a decidedly creepy aire. |
| 3 | You're body becomes exquisitely toned and the envy of all and your natural musk is intoxicating. You gain +1 to your Charisma and proficiency in persuasion. However someone who makes a DC Perception or Investigation check will see your sharp canines and have advantage against your charms. |
| 4 | You gain furred triangular fox ears, permanently (and you can keep your fox tail when you transform back if you desire). You apply your proficiency bonus to your passive perception for hearing. Also, all children everywhere instantly adore you. All adults everywhere instantly suspect you. Apply advantage to Persuasion checks against juveniles and young adults disadvantage to Persuasion against middle-aged or older creatures. |
| 5 | When you transform you grow thick fur over your vital areas and find clothing to be unnecessary and bothersome. After transforming, make a Wisdom saving throw of DC 10 + your Strength modifier. On a fail you spend a bonus action on your turn removing a piece of clothing. This continues until you either pass a Wisdom saving throw or don't have any major clothing articles on (tunic, coat, cloak, pants, shirt). |
| 6 | You have a craving for rabbit meat which you can never quite satisfy and an instinctual fear of hunting horns. When you hear a horn or trumpet make a Wisdom saving throw of DC 10 or become frightened for one round. If you pass your saving throw you are immune to the fear of horns for one minute. |
Werebat Transformation
The werebat transformation was a special request from a client who wanted to infiltrate a vampire society. The real challenge was creating a mastered lycanthrope with the ability to drink blood like a vampire without having the nose and hair of a bat. My solution was blood from a cross breed of a bats and a stirges. Bats are hairy with a squat nose, while stirges have less hair and a longer snout. The two cancel out.
While you are transformed the follow effects apply.
Abilities
- The light build of the Werebat reduces your Constitution to 12 and Strength to 10, if normally higher.
- Increase your Dexterity to 12 if it is lower or increase by +1 up to 20.
- Increase your Wisdom to 16 if it is lower or increase by +1 up to 20.
- Apply your proficiency to Dexterity saving throws.
- Your fangs remain even while not transformed granting you advantage in intimidation and disadvantage on persuasion checks.
- You have sunlight sensitivity, suffering disadvantage on attack rolls and saving throws in sunlight.
Speed
- Your walking speed is 20 ft. due to the talons on your feet and shorter legs. (You will need new footwear.)
- Your climbing speed is 20 ft. Your flight speed is 30 ft.
- You gain spider climbing for surfaces that you can grip with claws.
- You gain blindsight to 15 ft.
Attacks
- Claw: When you attack with your claws, you make two attacks. Add your proficiency and Dexterity modifier to claw attack rolls, for 1d4 + Strength slashing damage on each hit.
- Seize: Grab your prey using your proficiency and Dexterity modifier. On a success a small or tiny creature is grappled, or a medium or large creature is encumbered by your weight and has disadvantage on Dexterity saves and attacks. When seizing creatures beneath you, you have advantage. To free themselves, a creature must make a successful contested Athletics or Acrobatics check, as with grappling.
- Bite: On a successful seize you may immediately make a bite attack as a second action, with advantage: 1d4 + Strength modifier piercing damage.
- Draw blood: When you make a successful bite attack you may use a bonus action to draw blood, dealing 2d6 necrotic damage. On consecutive turns following a successful bite, if you are still seized on a creature, you may draw blood as an action.
Flighty
When a creature attempts to free themselves from you seize, you may use your reaction to attempt to disengage, moving to an available space 10 ft. away without provoking an attack of opportunity. Make a Dexterity saving throw against a DC of 8 + the creature's athletics modifier.
Wings and Flight
- You can carry a half of your walking load while flying (without spending flight points)
- You can fly continuously a number of minutes each hour up to your constitution (not constitution modifier).
- You cannot fly with medium or heavy armor.
- While flying if you make an attack with a weapon with the heavy property, it suffers disadvantage.
- You can ascend or descent a distance up to half of your movement (without spending flight points)
- You must travel forward a distance of at least half of your movement to maintain flight (without spending flight points)
While transformed, three of your fingers (middle, ring, and pinkie) extend to at least the length of your forearm and your fingers are clawed and webbed with black-skinned bat wing. The wing attaches near your hip. The distended fingers cause you disadvantage on fine motor tasks like tying shoelaces or operating a crossbow.
Flight Points
In initiative, you have a number of flight points equal to your constitution modifier. You can spend flight points as a bonus action prior taking movement to make a strenuous flight maneuver. You recover one flight point per round that you do not fly and do not dash.
| Bonus action | Flight Maneuver |
|---|---|
| Swoop | You can move up to your movement speed vertically up or down. |
| Dash | Use your action to make additional flight. |
| Hover | You can maintain flight with horizontal movement less than half your movement speed. |
| Hoist | You can carry up to your walking load while flying but your flight speed is halved. |
Werecat Transformation
Abilities
While you are transformed the follow effects apply.
- Your Strength increases to 12 if it is lower.
- Your Dexterity increases to 16 if it is lower, or +1 up to 20.
- Your Constitution increases to 12 if it is lower. Your hit dice is 1d8 and hit points are (5 + transformed Con modifier) x level.
- Your Intelligence reduces to 14 if it is higher.
Speed
- Your walking speed is 35 ft.
Cat's reflexes
- Apply your proficiency to Dexterity saving throws.
Nine lives
- Apply your proficiency bonus to Dexterity saving throws.
- You have advantage on Perception checks involving smell and hearing and Nature and Survival checks for finding food.
- You gain proficiency in Stealth.
- You have darkvision. You can see in dim light within 60 ft. of you as if it were bright light and in darkness as if it were dim light.
Multiattack
- When you make a claw attack as your action, you can make a bite attack as a bonus action. You use dexterity or strength as your attack ability.
- Bite: 1d4 + Strength modifier piercing damage
- Claws: 2d4 + Strength modifier slashing damage
Pounce
- When you take the dash action, you can attempt to grapple the target as a bonus action. Target makes a strength saving throw against DC 10 + your Strength modifier. On a fail they are grappled until the end of their next turn. A grappled target suffers 1d+4 + Strength modifier piercing damage.
Werecat transformation details
Your curse of the mastered lycanthrope permanently alters your nature. Roll 1d6 to determine additional details of your curse.
Permanent Effect
| Roll | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | You like to be admired and adored and tend to position yourself where everyone can see you. You gain +1 to your Charisma for your sultry and seductive manner. But if someone approaches you and tries to talk to you, you must a make a DC 10 Wisdom save not to walk away. You like playing hard to get. |
| 2 | Your claws are always out. You can make 1d6 + Strength modifier damage unarmed attacks even when not transformed. However, when faced with a long stretch of carpet, upholstered furniture, or a tapestry, you must make a DC 8 Wisdom save not to rake your claws on it. |
| 3 | You're body becomes exquisitely toned and the envy of all and your natural musk is intoxicating. You gain +1 to your Charisma and proficiency in Persuasion. However someone who makes a DC Perception or Investigation check will see your sharp canines and have advantage against your charms. |
| 4 | You gain furred triangular cat ears, permanently (and you can keep your cat tail when you transform back if you desire). You apply your proficiency bonus to your passive Perception for hearing. Also, all children everywhere instantly adore you. Apply advantage to Persuasion checks against juveniles and young adults, and disadvantage to persuasion against people who own dogs. |
| 5 | When you transform you grow thick fur over your vital areas and find clothing to be unnecessary and bothersome. After transforming, make a Wisdom saving throw of DC 10 + your Strength modifier. On a fail you spend a bonus action on your turn removing a piece of clothing. This continues until you either pass a Wisdom saving throw or don't have any major clothing articles on (tunic, coat, cloak, pants, shirt). |
| 6 | You sleep very lightly, waking at the slightest sound or movement and cannot be surprised while sleeping. Also, you really hate dogs. When a dog is in your presence, you must make a DC 10 Wisdom saving throw to avoid hissing at it. |
Taming the Harpy
Reader, I invite you to consider the possibility of flight. Can you imagine your joy as you soar with the eagles? How easy to escape your foes? How fun to drop things on unsuspecting trespassers! You can leap from a high window to escape exceptionally awkward situations involving the company you are keeping and the untimely arrival of someone who shouldn't have been there to find you. I am totally not speaking from experience. Purely hypothetical situation.
Even wizards can only fly for the durations of their spells, and you can't change your race without dying and being reincarnated as an Aarakocra–what a bother.
How about it? Want the wings of a harpy? All you need are a couple of cursed daggers and a willing (or unwilling) harpy who will totally survive and not be harmed in any way by this ritual. Except the life transference part. You can't get around that. But you can fix them up afterwards and send them on their way. Harpies have short memories. Or, so I've heard. Er, hoped.
Required materials
| Ingredients |
|---|
| spell or spell scrolll of glyph of warding containing the spell life transference and required materials (diamond dust, etc. |
| sharp dagger |
| alter self spell or scroll |
| iron neck shackle scribed with a glyph of warding containing the spell silence on the outside and a glyph of warding containing the spell detect good and evil on the inside and associated spell components (2x the diamond dust, etc.) |
Instructions
- The ritual only works if you have good or neutral alignment. Otherwise, the evil of the harpy curse can't be distinguished and will rage unchecked.
- Catch a harpy
- Prepare the glyph of warding containing the spell life transference.
- Prepare the iron neck shackle and have it welded shut on your neck.
- Cast the alter self spell to make it appear as though you have wings. Make sure they are wings you like and they are big enough, etc.
- Have your friend stab you in the back twice, once for each wing. Alternatively, you can be cut on the backs of your arms and have feathers grow on your existing arms–totally up to you. Use your imagination and try to come up with something that looks like it will work.
- Remove everybody else from the room.
- Release the harpy in the the glyph of warding. The spell wall cast life transference draining the harpy's vitality and putting it into you, since you are the only person around.
- Figure out what to do with the angry harpy.
Harpy Transmutation
Expected results
If you have done everything properly, you'll have tricked the life transference spell into healing your fake wings, using the harpy's own vitality. Congratulations! You have wings.
The good news is nobody will hear you scream during the ritual. You'll be silenced. In fact, as long as the shackle is in place, you won't be able to sing the harpy's seductive song ever. The shackle collar detects evil and silences you. As a minor, rather unimportant subnote, you most certainly won't be able to lie, or say mean things. Not being able to make snide remarks, witty banter, snarky comments or sarcasm is less common effect (25% chance) This may or may not affect your ability to cast inherently evil spells (25% chance). These benefits are hard to predict. But think how positive you'll be!
Minor side effects include severe muscle and joint pain for several months. On the positive side you'll lose weight as your bones hollow out. You're welcome. You may also experience violent mood swings (50% chance), vertigo when walking distances longer than 1/2 mile (25% chance) and infertility (25% chance). Talk to your doctor about whether harpy wings are right for you.
Oh, and feet talons (25% chance). Talk to a competent cobbler if you experience changes in your feet.
After the harpy transmutation the following effects apply.
Ability adjustments
- Your Dexterity increases to 13 if your original Dexterity was lower, or +1 up to 20.
- Your Constitution increases to 13 if it is lower.
- Due to the burden of wings on your body, you have less energy for focus mental effort. Your intelligence reduces to 12 if it is higher.
- Due to your unnatural appearance, your Charisma reduces to 12 if it is higher
Skills
- The instincts of the harpy grant you proficiency in nature and survival and you when you can fly you have advantage on proficiency checks for hunting and finding food.
Harpy Song
You have discovered a strenuous mental technique for bypassing the constraints of the iron collar ward. Once per long rest you can make the luring song (MM pg. 181) of the harpy. After doing so you must make a Wisdom saving throw of DC 5 + number of rounds you sustained the song. On a fail, your maximum flight points are temporarily reduced by half and can recover on a long rest.
Movement
- Your flying speed is 40.
- If you have feet talons, your walking speed is reduced by 5 ft and you gain a climbing speed equal to your walking speed.
- You can carry a half of your walking load while flying (without spending flight points)
- You can fly continuously a number of minutes each hour up to your constitution (not constitution modifier).
- You cannot fly with medium or heavy armor.
- While flying if you make an attack with a weapon with the heavy property, it suffers disadvantage.
- You can ascend or descent a distance up to half of your movement (without spending flight points)
- You must travel forward a distance of at least half of your movement to maintain flight (without spending flight points)
Flight Points
In initiative, you have a number of flight points equal to your constitution modifier. You can spend flight points as a bonus action prior to your movement to make strenuous flight maneuvers. You recover one flight point per round that you do not fly and do not dash.
| Bonus Action | Flight Maneuver |
|---|---|
| Swoop | You can move up to your movement speed vertically up or down. |
| Dash | Use your action to make additional flight. |
| Hover | You can maintain flight with horizontal movement less than half your movement speed. |
| Hoist | You can carry up to your walking load while flying but your flight speed is halved. |
| Strafing attack | You can make a strafing attack. |
Claw attack
Your unarmed strikes deal slashing damage and the damage die is a d6.
Raptor's instinct
You have proficiency with swords that deal slashing damage.
Strafing Attack
Roll on the following table to determine the nature of your unique harpy strafing attack made while flying, against creatures on the ground. When you spend one flight point as a bonus action, you can use your action to make your strafing attack.
| d4 | Strafing Attack Description |
|---|---|
| 1 | Raking attack: unarmed strikes with your claws or slashing weapon deal 1d6 extra damage. |
| 2 | Kicking attack: 1d4 + Strength modifier bludgeoning damage and target makes save against DC 14 or falls prone. |
| 3 | Haul up: Make an unarmed strike on a scrWhen you hit a medium or smaller creature with an unarmed strike, you can haul the creature up half of your movement speed vertically 15 ft. before dropping them. The creature takes 2d6+2 bludgeoning damage and must succeed on a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw or they fall prone. |
| 4 | Impale: When you attack your target with a javelin or spear, you can target the vital torso region. You have -5 to hit, but deal 10 extra damage and the weapon leaves your possession. The target is slowed (half movement, attacks against it have advantage, and disadvantage on Dexterity saving throws) until they take an action to remove the javelin or spear. |
Uniquely you
The harpy transmutation affects you in a unique and unexpected way. Roll 1d4 to determine your unique traits or choose from the options below.
| Roll | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | You have an affinity with birds and bats. You can innately cast speak with animals to communicate with these flying creatures a number of times per day equal to your proficiency bonus. Your time spent with animals enhances your flight efficiency. You have a beautiful feather headress, feathers over your vital parts and a plumed tail. You find clothing restricts your flight. You have Constitution + 1 flight points. |
| 2 | The harpy must have ingested a tropical bird before the ritual because your wings have flamboyantly-colored feathers. You incur no penalty to your Charisma ability but the heavy feathers limit your max flight points to Constitution - 2. You have proficiency in Deception involving mimicking sounds. |
| 3 | Despite best efforts, you have creepy black bat-like wings. Your appearance engenders extreme suspicion on sight. Your Charisma reduces to 9 if higher. You also inexplicably acquired the ability to speak abyssal and infernal and use the cantrip thaumaturgy. You gain proficiency in Intimidation and +1 to your strength and you have Constitution +1 flight points. You can fly proficiently with medium armor. |
| 4 | A mistake in your rune scribing gave you gorgeous white angel feathers that glow faintly. Unfolded, they cast dim light to 15 ft. In twilight and dark conditions you have a disadvantage on Stealth tasks requiring you not to be seen. Once per day, as an action you may wrap a creature in your wings and cast the cantrip spare the dying. Also once per day, if you wrap a creature in your wings (including yourself) for ten minutes they recover 1d4 hit points as if you had cast the spell healing word. Your feathers are fancy but heavy. Your flight points are your full Constitution ability - 1. Also, your voice was affected and you have an angelic singing voice. You gain proficiency in Performance, suffer no penalty to your Charisma and your Wisdom increases by +1. Every sarcastic or cutting remark you try to say comes out sounding like genuinely sincere compliment. |
Unending Beauty: Secrets of the Medusa
First, a confession. This is not a true medusa's curse. That's a magical mess beyond even me. However, it is possible to largely replicate the curse's beneficial effects, while leaving off some of its worst bits.
It's a win-win for everyone!
The ritual will give you the power to steal time from other creatures and add it to your own life. This allows you to slow the progression of age and preserve your beauty indefinitely...in theory.
There are no side effects whatsoever.
Even better, those who suffer your "petrifying" gaze are not turned to stone! You can actually have friends instead of a sculpture garden. Instead, you just steal a little of their time.
In this ritual, you will enchant a brass circlet made of intertwined brass serpents. When activated the serpents animate and focus their magic on whatever creature's gaze you are holding. Sure, they lose a little of their life, but it's all for a good cause: your eternal youth. And, let's face it, you are certainly better looking than they are (at least you will be after the ritual) and ending their ugly lives early is just doing a great service for society.
Prerequisite: neutral or evil
Honestly, if you are a goody two-shoes, robbing people of their lives a little at a time will not sit well.
Required materials
| Ingredients |
|---|
| a circlet of twelve intertwined metal serpents of dwarven or duergar craftsmanship of value 500 gp, scribed with a glyph of the spell animate objects containing twenty-four diamonds of value 10 gp each for the eyes of the serpents. |
| Concentric ritual glyphs of warding circles on the floor for the spells polymorph and hold person |
Instructions
- Prepare the brass circlet of intertwined serpents with diamond eyes.
- Hire an artificer to imbue the spell animate objects into the circlet.
- Prepare the concentric glyphs of warding as the ritual circle. You may need spell scrolls for spells above your level like polymorph and hold person.
- Wear the circlet and step into the glyphs. In succession cast the animate objects and speak the keywords to activate the polymorph and hold person spells.
Expected results
The polymorph turns you into the most beautiful version of yourself. (There is no point in unchanging appearance if you are having a bad hair day or an acne breakout!)
The animate objects spell and the hold person spells compete and ultimately merge, allowing you to animate the serpents and channel magic through them to attempt to hold other humanoids in time, siphoning from their timeline and adding to yours.
Abilities
After the ritual, apply the following modifications.
- Your matchless beauty enhances your Charisma which increases to 14 if it is lower or +1 up to 20.
- Perfection tempers your hulking muscles. Your Strength and Constitution reduce to 13 if any are higher.
Medusa's gaze
As a bonus action you can activate your snakes on your circlet. When you activate the circlet and as a bonus action on subsequent turns, you can focus your gaze on a creature that can see you. The creature must attempt a DC 15 Constitution saving throw. On a fail they suffer the Slowed condition until the beginning of your next turn: half movement speed, attacks against them have advantage, and they have disadvantage on Dexterity saving throws. At the end of their turns the affected target may attempt a saving throw to break the gaze. The condition ends if the target moves out of your line of sight. If you maintain your gaze on a creature for five rounds in a row, the creature suffers one level of exhaustion.
Once you use this feature, you cannot do so again until you complete a long rest.
Serpent's curse
The circlet requires power. Due to the strain of the curse, if you activate your serpents and do not successfully capture a creature with your gaze, at the end of the serpent's active period you must attempt a DC 12 Wisdom saving throw. On a fail you suffer 2d4 psychic damage as the circlet draws power from you, or half damage on a success.
Mystic serpents
The craftsmanship of your serpent circlet evokes its own magic. These abilities function even when the circlet is not active, unless specified. Roll 1d6 on the Mystic Serpents Feature table to determine your circlet's mystical nature.
| Roll | Mystic Serpents Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | Watchful Eyes: you add your proficiency to initiative rolls. You are not surprised if you are attacked while sleeping. |
| 2 | Piercing Gaze: you gain proficiency in Perception or expertise if you are already proficient in Perception. |
| 3 | Venom: while your circlet is active, you can make a melee weapon or melee spell attack with your serpents. On a hit, the target creature suffers 1d4 + proficiency bonus piercing damage and attempts a DC 13 Constitution saving throw. On a fail the creature is poisoned until the beginning of your next turn. |
| 4 | Snake Charming: you gain proficiency in Persuasion, or expertise if you already have proficiency in Persuasion. |
| 5 | Vain Fury: when your serpent circlet is active and a creature makes a melee attack against you with a weapon that does not have the reach property, you may use your reaction to strike back. Make a melee spell attack, dealing 1d4 + proficiency bonus damage on a hit. |
| 6 | Vain Glory: as a bonus action you can make yourself too dazzling to gaze upon. Your snakes emit beams of light toward a creature you can see within 30 ft. The creature must attempts a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw. On a fail they have disadvantage to attack you and any allies within 5 feet of you until the end of your next turn. |
Medusa curse unique effects
Your ideal self embraces not only your conscious ideals, but subconscious desires. When your true form is revealed you may find much has changed. Roll on the tables below, or choose your preference.
Skin color
| Roll | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | alabaster |
| 2 | cream |
| 3 | almond |
| 4 | chocolate |
| 5 | ebony |
| 6 | golden |
| 7 | lavender |
| 8 | blue |
Most enviable feature (female)
| Roll | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | entrancing eyes |
| 2 | exotic long legs |
| 3 | tempting curves |
| 4 | perfect face |
| 5 | heart-melting smile |
| 6 | hair that always frames your features perfectly |
Most enviable feature (male)
| Roll | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | rugged jaw line |
| 2 | chiseled pects and abs |
| 3 | the details: frame, fragrance, poise, posture, hands, voice |
| 4 | dashing smile |
| 5 | eyes like the summer sky or ocean |
| 6 | perfect wavy hair |
Hair type
| Roll | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | celestial white |
| 2 | platinum blond |
| 3 | sun-kissed sandy blond |
| 4 | light almond brown |
| 5 | rich dark brown |
| 6 | satin black |
| 7 | streaked hair: roll two colors |
| 8 | strawberry blond |
| 9 | fiery red |
| 10 | blue |
| 11 | green |
| 12 | purple |
| 13 | pink |
| 14 | metallic |
| 15 | luminescent pastel |
| 16 | flower-woven |
| 17 | shadowy |
| 18 | animated (prehensile) |
| 19 | feather headdress |
| 20 | auspicious horns |
Eyes
| Roll | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | your original eye color |
| 2 | a new eye color to complement your skin |
| 3 | a new eye color to complement your hair |
| 4 | multi-colored or iridescent eyes |
Dimensional Transmutations: Drider and Centaur
Have you dreamed of riding effortlessly across the hills on your own set of centaur legs? Or, are you that kind of creepy person that just wants to tie up terrified people with webs? Perhaps you just like exploring caves and need better equipment.
If so, I have the transmutation ritual for you. It's fun. It's easy. It's so adaptable. And nobody will ever regret taking part.
This transmutation involves making belts that teleport the lower half of your body somewhere else and the lower half of something else's body to you. Then you just use the regenerate spell to complete the attachment. It is highly recommended that you don't accidentally put on one of the belts upside down, unless you want another head for your bottom half. (This is obviously a hypothetical risk. I would totally never accidentally do that to a test subject.)
Transmutation options
There are so many fun and easy ways to do the transmutation. Choose your favorite. Note, this transmutation takes at least 2 minutes during which you will experience character-building sensations of soul-rending pain.
- For a quick and easy permanent transmutation, find a giant spider or horse. (Tip: check the gender.) Create a dimension gate belt with the arcane gate, hold person and regenerate glyphs. Create a dimension gate collar for the giant spider with the arcane gate and hold monster glyphs.
- For lower bodies that you can swap as needed, find a drider or centaur of the same gender who wants legs and work out a time-share deal. This method requires two belts each with arcane gate, hold person/hold monster and regenerate glyphs. The dimension gate belt requires one month to draw enough arcane energy to reactivate. You must be within 500 ft. of the other belt in order to swap. Otherwise you have to spend the spell slots.
- For swappable lower bodies without a time-share partner, prepare two dimension gate belts with hold person, arcane gate and regenerate glyphs, and a dimension gate collar with arcane gate and hold monster glphs and a simulacrum of you. After the initial "round-robin" transmutation, dispose of the simulacrum's severed legs and the spider head, then break the dimension gate collar. The dimension gate belt requires one month to draw enough arcane energy to reactivate. You must be within 500 ft. of the other belt in order to swap. Otherwise you have to spend the spell slots.
- An alternate method for above-mentioned swappable lower bodies is to use a very rare mirror of life trapping instead of simulacrum. Scribe the dimension gate runes directly onto the frame of the mirror. It will keep your lower half alive and frozen in time. If you have the mirror of life trapping the body swapping method is scalable to a possibly large number of lower body types.
Honey, where are my...pants?
If your simulacrum, mirror of life trapping or partnered drider/centaur is destroyed, you lose the lower body parts that were attached to it. It is, therefore, advisable to check before attempting to swap.
Simulacrum storage
You can keep your simulacrum in an apartment or tell it to stay in a cave. You can also park it safely in a demiplane.
Dimension gate belt/collar
You will need one or more dimension gate belts. Diamond dust is not used for the glyphs as sliver is magical grade.
- Silver metal belt/collar: 1225 gp for yours, 1400 gp for a centaur/drider, and 625 gp for a spider/horse collar.
- Glyph of warding, scribed into the silver, containing the spell arcane gate, to be triggered by a word of command and shut off by the casting of hold person.
- Glyph of warding, scribed into the silver, containing the spell hold person (for you) or hold monster for a spider, horse, drider or centaur, to be triggered by a the casting of the spell arcane gate.
- Glyph of warding, scribed into the silver, containing the spell regenerate to be cast upon the closing of the arcane gate. Regenerate is not used in a dimension gate collar for a spider or horse.
Instructions
- Prepare a dimension gate belt for you and put it on.
- Prepare a dimension gate belt for each donor drider, centaur, and storage simulacrum or a dimension gate collar for a donor spider or horse.
- Speak the command word to activate the glyphs.
- After the transmutation you can remove the belt. You only need to put it on when you want to do a swap again.
Expected results
Drider Transmutation
After your transmutation to an eight-legged drider you will experience a range of new sensations. Be prepared for the following general side effects.
- shortness of breath and insomnia
- spraying web filament from your spinerettes when you are startled
- extreme hunger (this is unlikely to go away)
- aggressive behavior
Monstrosity
You are no longer a humanoid and cannot be affected by spells like calm emotions, charm person, crown of madness, dominate person, hold person, magic jar, and reincarnate.
Movement
Your walking speed and climbing speed is 30 ft.
Abilities
-
Your Constitution increases to 14, if it was lower, or +1 up to 20
-
Your Charisma reduces to 13 if it was higher. (Who is going to trust a spider?)
-
Your hit dice is 1d10, if previously lower, and your hit points are (6 + your Constitution modifier) x your level, if previously lower.
-
Your armored chitin provides increased durability. Your AC is 15 + your Dexterity modifier. If you have proficiency and wear medium or heavy armor on your humanoid torso, increase your AC by 1 or 2 respectively. Using a shield with proficiency increases your AC by 1 (most of your body is already armored).
-
You gain proficiency in your choice of Stealth or Athletics
-
You gain the drider's spider climb ability (MM pg. 120)
-
You gain the drider's web walker ability (MM pg. 120)
Size
Depending on your spider body donor, you can be either medium or large size.
Medium size drider
- Your carrying capacity is that of a large creature.
- Your Dexterity increases to 14, if it was lower, or +1 up to 20.
- You require three times the food of a human.
Large size drider
- Your carrying capacity is 1.5x that of a large creature.
- You require four times the food of a human.
- Your Strength increases to 14, if it was lower, or by +1 up to 20.
- Due to the burden of maintaining your physical form you have less energy for focused thought. Your Intelligence reduces to 13 if it was higher.
No flanking
You have plenty of legs for dealing with multiple attackers. Attackers gain no advantage when striking from opposite sides.
Drider Attack
Your transformation grants you an additional combat ability. Roll on the drider attack table to determine the nature of your attack.
| d6 | Drider Attack Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | Slam: As an action or bonus action you can make an unarmed strike with one of your drider legs. The damage die for this unarmed strike is a d4. |
| 2 | Stab: Your drider legs are vicously sharp. As an action you can attempt to impale a foe. Make a melee weapon attack against a target creatures within reach, dealing 3d6 + str piercing damage on a hit. When you take this action to make a precision strike, you may not use a bonus action. |
| 3 | Slash: Your front drider legs have razor-sharp edges. Your legs count as melee weapons with the the light and finesse properties and deal 1d6 + (str or dex) slashing damage on a hit. |
| 4 | Snatch: As an action or bonus action you can make an unarmed strike against a large or smaller target with one of your drider legs. One a hit, the target is grappled. You can grapple up to two creatures this way. While you have one creature grappled and take movement, if the creature is medium or smaller size you are not slowed. |
| 5 | Impede: As an action you can spray creature within 15 ft. with your webs. Make a ranged melee weapon attack. On a hit, the target is Restrained as if by a net. A creature can use its Action to make a DC 10 Strength check, freeing itself or another creature within its reach on a success. Dealing 5 slashing damage to the net (AC 10) also frees the creature. You may use this action a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus. You recover 1d4 uses up to your proficiency after a short rest which includes eating a meal, or all uses after a long rest. |
| 6 | (Roll again.) |
Reaction
- When an attacker you can see attempts to move under you to attack your underbelly you may use your reaction to make a grappling or impede attack, with advantage.
- Starting at 5th level When a creature you can see moves into melee range you may use your reaction to make a kick attack.
Soft underbelly
Your underbelly is less armored. To get under your body an attacker must be smaller than your size and make an acrobatics check for their movement (see table). If the attacker is undetected, namely invisible or you walk over their hidden position and they have an attack readied, they have advantage on their acrobatics check.
If your grapple or impede reaction attack fails or you have already used your reaction, their attack proceeds with advantage and deals critical damage on a hit. There is no additional bonus from a critical hit roll.
Underbelly attack acrobatics check
| Attacker size | Your size | Acrobatics DC |
|---|---|---|
| Medium | Large | 13 + your Dex mod |
| Small | Large | 11 + your Dex mod |
| Small | Medium | 13 + your Dex mod |
Drider unique features
Your transmutation ritual and the creatures involved affect you in unique ways. Roll 1d6 to discover additional details about your new body. With DM approval, you may choose a relevant feature from either the female or male drider table.
Drider body type
Roll 1d10 and/or consult the following table for ideas for your spider body type.
| Roll | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | black widow |
| 2 | blue-legged tarantula |
| 3 | daddy long legs |
| 4 | red-legged golden orb weaver |
| 5 | wolf spider |
| 6 | crab spider |
| 7 | pink jewel tarantula |
| 8 | translucent cave spider |
| 9 | iridescent mirror spider |
| 10 | spider with glowing abdomen |
Drider leg and body proportions
Consult the following table for possible spider body shapes and associated features.
| Roll | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | With long spindly, needle-like legs and a tiny abdomen like a daddy long legs, your build is built for catching other spiders. You have advantage grappling other spiders and driders. Add 5 ft. to your movement speed and reduce your load capacity by 200 lbs. At rest, Your legs extend upward out of your abdomen and bend back down and your height is that of a medium creature. Fully extended in combat, your height is that of large creature. |
| 2 | With powerful short legs and large abdomen, low to the ground, you are a creature of medium size. You have the ability to leap one and a half times your strength score laterally in ft. and vertical distance equal to your strength score. When you make a leap as your movement action, your grapple attack has advantage. |
| 3 | With legs and abdomen of similar proportions, you have an elegant form perfect for hunting large prey on the move. When you dash as your action you can make a grappling attack as bonus action. |
| 4 | You have very long forelegs for grappling flying prey counterbalanced by a round-shaped abdomen. Your grappling strike and foreleg attacks have 10 ft. reach. |
| 5 | You have a bulbous round abdomen well-suited to deflecting blows. When you suffer piercing, bludgeoning and slashing, reduce the damage by 1d4. |
| 6 | You have a thin, oblong abdomen convenient for carrying up to two riders, even without a saddle. Creatures within 5 ft. must use a weapon with reach in order to attack your riders and gain +1 AC from the cover provided by your torso and many legs. |
Drider features
Consult the following table for additional unique drider features.
| Roll | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | Socks and sweaters for everybody Your have developed exquisite control over the properties of your web filament. You can produce spider silk that is less sticky and suitable for weaving. You can weave, knit or crochet up to a yard of spider silk fabric per day, or 50 ft. of high quality, multi-strand, twisted rope, or 200 ft. of twine, which can be used for instruments, fishing nets and bowstrings. Spun coarsely, you can make up to 4 hammocks. Spinning your maximum quantity takes 1d4 hours of work. (Other transmuted driders produce half that.) You've also discovered that you can change the silk's color by drinking various colored liquids. Your creations are a valued commodity. You gain proficiency in Persuasion ability checks related to selling your silk. |
| 2 | You've got legs The shock of transmutation caused your spider body to lose its hairy protrusions, leaving a smooth, beautiful chitin which can be polished to a shine. The change has also done wonders for your shapely physique. You draw more double-takes than a spilled coin purse at a thieves guild convention. Losing the sensing hairs reduces your Dexterity by 1, but your enviable appearance increases your drider Charisma by 2 or you may keep your original Charisma if higher. |
| 3 | Salutations (female) The spider body you swapped legs with was pregnant. You now have a clutch of baby giant spiders. If you spend 10 minutes with one of the spider babies you can attune to it and create a psychic link. The attuned spider baby ability is effectively similar to the find familiar spell. The baby spider has the stat block of the giant wolf spider but it is small size. It can use its venom once per day. (MM pg. 330) |
| 4 | Eyes in the back of your head After your transmutation you grew two clusters of spider eyes on each side of your head: one at your temples and one higher up and a little further back. You gain the alert feat (can't be surprised) and have advantage on Perception checks related to seeing motion. But your truly freakish appearance drops your already low Charisma another notch (minus 1 to drider charisma). |
| 5 | Arachnophobia The transmutation has affected your mind, allowing you to project pyschic power. You innately cast the spell charm person which aids in luring victims into your lair, or for other purposes. You also innately cast the spell fear, causing extreme arachnophobia to those who fall victim to your spell. Each spell can be used once per long rest. You also cast the cantrip mind sliver. Use wisdom as your spellcasting ability if you aren't from a spellcasting class. However, these added powers did not come without a cost. You have an extreme phobia of your own. When faced with your fear, you must succeed on a DC 12 Wisdom save or become frightened for 1 minute. You may attempt another saving throw at the end of each turn. Roll 1d6 to discover your fear. (1) Open water, boats, crossing streams, drowning and so on. (2) Open fire, campfires, forges, torches, fire spells, lava, etc. (3) Old people which could be hags or other creatures out to get you. (4) Fear of falling objects, standing at the bottom of a cliff, under tall trees, next to high buildings, etc. (5) Other driders and spiders. They all remind you of what it cost to gain your drider body–they're out for revenge. Out to get you!.(6) Government officials, customs agents, police officers, guards, tax collectors, guild clerks or anyone who looks official. They could be investigating you. They could discover what you have done! |
| 6 | It's just a phase Somewhere in the lineage of the spider whose body you possess there must have been a phase spider. The magical transmutation has awoken that latent ability. A number of times per day equal to your proficiency you can take an ethereal jaunt, phasing into ethereal plane where you see objects in the material plane as hazy translucent shapes. In the ethereal plane you can move up to your movement speed passing freely through any object in the material plane. You can remain in the etherial plane for up to one minute. After the duration or as a bonus action to end the effect early, you return to the material plane. If there is an object heavier than you can carry occupying the space where you would return, you take 4d6 force damage and move to the nearest open space. This ability is useful for surprising enemies by phasing out of a wall to strike suddenly, by-passing deadly obstacles and traps, and escaping danger. If you have uses of etherial jaunt remaining, when you take damage you must make a constitution saving throw of DC equal to the damage you took, up to 15, or you will use the ethereial jaunt as a reaction and phase into the etherial plane. If you fail the save, either by roll or willingly and take the etherial jaunt, the damage is halved. |
Centaur Transmutation
Your life as a centaur begins with hitting your head on the ceiling. But it's all good from there on out. Apply the following modifications.
Equine Build
- In addition, any climb that requires hands and feet is especially difficult for you because of your equine legs. When you make such a climb, each five feet of climbing height costs you fifteen feet of movement.
Choose your physique
Sturdy build
- Your size is large, occupying two five foot squares or hexes.
- Your carry/push/drag capacity is 2x that of a medium creature.
- Increase your Strength to 14 if it was lower.
- Increase your Constitution to 14 if it was lower or +1 up to 20.
- Decrease your Dexterity to 12 if it was higher.
- A physical demands of your body leave you less energy to spend on deep focus. Reduce your Intelligence by 1.
- Your HP is (6 + Con modifier) x your level. Your hit dice is a d10 if it was lower.
- Your movement speed is 35 feet.
- You require three times as much food as a normal human.
Elegant build
- Your size is medium.
- Your carry/push/drag capacity is 1.5x that of a medium creature.
- Increase your Constitution to 12 if it was lower or +1 up to 20.
- Reduce your Dexterity to 14 if it was higher.
- If your hit dice is lower than 1d8, your new hit dice is 1d8.
- Your HP is (5 + Constitution modifier) x level. Your hit dice is a d8, if it was lower.
- Your movement speed is 45 feet.
- You require twice as much food as a normal human.
Hooves of fury
Apply your proficiency bonus and strength modifier to attack rolls for unarmed strikes.
- Hooves: Unarmed strikes with your hooves deliver 1d6 plus your strength modifier bludgeoning damage on a hit for an elegant build or 2d4 + your strength modifier for an sturdy build.
- Charge: If you move at least 20 feet straight toward a creature of medium or smaller size, you make shove attacks with advantage. On a success versus the target's Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) the target falls prone and you may make a bonus action hooves attack. On a successful save, you may use a bonus action to attempt to make a melee weapon attack at the creature from weapon in your arms, dealing an additional 1d4 damage on a hit.
Bare back
If you only wear armor designed for humanoids on your upper body instead of buying full horse armor, you gain only half the AC benefit. For example, a chestplate that offers 14 base AC to a humanoid, delivers a base AC of 12 to a centaur.
Mounted Combat
A creature on your back may ready actions to take during your movement. On your turn, when you move at least 20 feet straight toward a target, a melee weapon or thrown weapon deals 1d4 extra damage. When you take the dash action, rider melee attacks and ranged attacks (including spells with an attack roll) have disadvantage.
Centaur's Protection
- Seated riders only benefit from a maximum of +2 from Dexterity modifier to their AC due to limited mobility.
- However, riders mounted on your back have +1 AC due your torso and arms acting as partial cover, or +2 if you use a shield with proficiency.
Unique Features
You are no ordinary centaur. The circumstances of your transmutation have altered your form with some rather remarkable affects. Roll 1d4 for a surprise or choose.
1. Illusion
After completing the rune scribing on your belt of transformation, you realized there was enough room for one more spell. You scribed the spell alter self to function via a clockwork switch. When activated, your appearance shifts to make you appear as a humanoid creature matching your height. Your belt draws dimensional energy granting you one use of the spell per day which has a duration of 1 hour. You can toggle the effect on and off via the switch until the hour is spent. You still have a centaur body which people can run into, but at first glance, and unless someone makes an Investigation check, you don't appear to be a centaur. Tip: your disguise should have boots that appear to make loud clopping noises.
2. Night rider
During your transmutation, something went horribly wrong. Your centaur body died and you were moments from death. The only scroll in reach was animate dead. The results were nothing short of terrifying. You are a being who is part undead and even your human form shows the change. Your eyes are sunken, your skin sallow and your voice breathy and ghostly, your hair grey and lifeless. Your living form tapers off into horse's skeleton. Any clothing you wear over the centaur body form fades into threadbare rags. Your corrupted nature cannot be hidden. You gain resistance to necrotic damage, but you can be affected by spells and abilities like turn undead which specifically target undead creatures but you have advantage on saving throws–you're only mostly dead. You can innately cast the spell vampiric touch once a day. If fact, if you don't use the spell and succesfully harvest vitality from a creature, you have a 25% chance of suffering one level of exhaustion after a long rest. You have the zombie's undead fortitude ability, vulnerability to bludgeoning damage and resistance to slashing and piercing damage.
2. Wings of Mercy
The magic of your transmutation resonated with nearby magical objects of ancient origin. A planar shift occured and your spell crossed momentarily into the celestial realm. The body you merged with and you own were altered dramatically. The first thing you remember doing after the transmutation was stretching your wings. You are a pegasus centaur. Unfolded, your wings extend ten feet out on either side and cast a soft, radiant glow, illuminating to 15 ft. around you with dim light, giving you disadvantage on Stealth checks requiring you not to be seen in the evening or at night. The hair of your centaur body is pure white, as is the hair on your head. Your flight speed is 40 ft. You have ten minutes per hour flight time. Your flight points and flight is as described in the werebat transmutation. If you bear a medium or smaller rider (only one) your flight time is halved and flight movement costs each increase by +1. You have resistance to radiant damage. Your alignment also shifts one step toward lawful good. The price of your angelic form is the target on your back. While in the material plane, you have a 25% chance per day of being attacked by a devil or a demon. When your group faces a devil or demon the first enemy creature to attack will automatically target you. Also, you are frequently beset with requests for boons and to help pitiable causes. If you decline to aid in such a circumstance, you suffer 1d4 psychic damage. If you take such damage by refusing to help, you are immune to additional conscience-driven damage for 1 hour.
4. Rainbow Sparkle Unicorn
When you took your first centaur steps and glowing sparkles rose into the air, you immediately knew someone–likely a pixie–had meddled with your rune scripts. Looking back, you took your first horrified glance at your rainbow-colored centaur tail. And you hair takes on a random color after a long rest. (Use the 1d20 chart for the medusa transmutation.) When you hear good news you must make a DC 12 Wisdom saving throw to avoid bursting spontaneously into song. If you fail, you sing for up to one minute about the good tidings, or until somebody slaps you back to your senses, or until you hear bad news, whereupon you must make a DC 12 Wisdom saving throw to avoid bursting into tears. Also, you have a glittery unicorn horn. If you cut it off, it grows back on a long rest. You innately cast the cantrip light by touching an object with your horn. You can also cast the spell shield once per long rest. With the shield active, you or whomever you cast the spell on appears to be standing in the middle of a snow globe with sparkles drifting all around. Once per day you may cast the spell healing word by shooting healing sparkles from your horn. You have disadvantage at Stealth checks relying on not leaving tracks on the earth because flowers tend to bloom around your footprints, leaving a blatantly obvious trail. Your horn functions as a spellcasting focus. You have disadvantage on Persuasion checks to resist giving free rides on your back to petitioning children, or letting them touch your horn or braid your rainbow tail, or stomping around on the ground to fill the air with sparkles to their delight. Instrument strings made from your tail hair grant any performer proficiency with the instrument. Also the instrument generates sparkles when played.
Centaur appearance
Consult the following random table for options for your centaur body appearance.
| d10 | Feature |
|---|---|
| 1 | Draft horse: you are massive sturdy horse built for hauling heavy loads no other horse could hope to carry. You have signature shaggy white hair on your lower legs, and a contrasting deep brown coat. You have no trouble enduring extreme cold and are known for loyalty. |
| 2 | Arabian: defiant and spirited, and brave enough for battle, you are an elegant horse with white hair. Originally bred for war, your breed was perfected for speed and beauty by royal families over millenia. You share that regal aire, commanding respect and attention in any circle. Though aloof, you inevitably form the deepest of attachments to your friends. |
| 3 | Palomino: you have a head-turning gold goat and white mane. Even elves envy your beauty. Your active, alert personality makes you the center of attention and easy to make friends with. |
| 4 | Mustang: you have a medium build with a unique dappled coat and remarkable endurance. The mustang's wild spirit rises up inside you, yearning to to run free and giving you a strong connection with nature. |
| 5 | Thoroughbred: You are a born racer with muscles taut and bulging, and a lustrous gleam to your coat – a specimen of raw power. At a glance your body screams perfection. But once you hit your stride, you become poetry in motion–at least until you pass in a blur. You love a challenge and rise to the occasion with the confidence of a born champion. |
| 6 | Zebra: You bear the exotic striped coat of the wildest of horses: the zebra. Even your hair has begun to grow in stripes. You draw curious looks and it is certain your mystique enhances your magic. |
| 7 | Hanoverian: you are the most acrobat of horses, capable of making great leaps and precise turns. Even as a centaur, you can hold your own on the dance floor of a royal ball. And your warmblooded temperament makes you less likely to fly off the handle than a flighty thoroughbred or arabian. |
| 8 | Appaloosa: your signature spotted coat proclaims to all who know anything about your kind that you can do it all, from the race track, to the farm, from herding to leaping. You are the jack-of-all-trades of the horse world. |
| 9 | Walking horse: few horses can do what you can, namely walk at the speed other horses canter. You have a famously steady gait, with almost no bounce, which makes you easy to ride even for people without experience, or without a saddle. You can travel much longer distances than other horses which can gallop and then then have to rest. |
| 10 | Quarter horse: easy going and hard working, you get things done without a fuss. You form lifelong bonds and are a loyal to the death. Your versatility and endurance are as steady as your even coat and your breed boasts a wide range of smooth colors from chestnut, bay and black to roan and dun. There's a reason your breed is the most popular: everyone sees something to admire, and nothing to fear. But you would never brag about it. |
Gift of the Deep Sea: Merfolk
There are two levels or steps to the mermaid/merman transmutation. The first gives you the ability to breathe underwater for extended periods of time: days, months or even years, which you can dispel at will. The second gives you the tail of a merfolk.
If you've read the previous section on the drider/centaur transmutation then you should have a good idea about hot to get a merfolk tail.
Mermaid/merman tail transmutation.
- Find donor for a swimming tail. Candidates might include a shark, dolphin, merfolk or merrow.5d
- Prepare dimension gate belts as described in the drider/centaur section. For swappable tail and legs you'll need either a merfolk donor, simulacrum or mirror of life trapping as described in the same section.
- Perform the transmutation ritual as described.
It's simply, semi-permanent, and reversible and very stylish in some undersea societies. Now you just need to be able to breathe underwater.
How to breathe underwater for extended periods
Believe it or not, all you need is the second level spell alter self which grants the ability to breathe underwater...but only for an hour. You can also use the 3rd level spell water breathing for 24-hour duration. For even a semi-permanent affect, you need to understand a principal of arcane magic known as permanence.
The gist of permanence is that the world tries to stay the way it is, just like your pillow. Squeeze it, it changes. Let go, it changes back. However if you squeeze it over and over again, eventually it flattens permanently. You change its nature and now it stays that way.
When you repeatedly use magic to alter the world, eventually the magically-altered form becomes the new version of reality that the world tries to keep. When someone casts teleportation circle in the same spot every day for a year to make a permanent portal, this is what they are doing.
Casting every day for a year works, but it isn't the most efficient method.
There are many levels of permanence ranging from one hour to an epoch. If your goal is be able to cast alter self to last for up to a tenday–plenty for underwater adventures–you'll only need to cast the spell identically a total of 30 times.
If you have the 3rd level spell water breathing with 24-hour duration, you can skip to step 3.
Step 1: increase alter self permanence to 8 hours.
Nature recalls it's effect for up to ten times after the spell's duration. To build up permanence we simply repeat the spell, let it end (e.g. one hour later), then repeat the spell before 9 more of its durations (e.g. hours) pass. Fairly quickly, reality starts to get the idea.
To reach the second level of permanence, cast the underwater breathing version of alter self a minimum of every ten hours. Do this ten times. It will take a little over 3 days. Of course, if you have spell slots to burn, you can cast it more frequently than that. This is just the minimum. However, you absolutely cannot have any gaps longer than ten hours or permanence is lost and you have to start over!
If you can only cast two level 2 spells per day, you'll need help from an ally for the third casting every other day, or use spell scrolls.
Step 2: Increase alter self permanence to one day
After casting the spell ten times in about three days its permanence will have increased to 8 hours. This means you cast it a minimum of once every 80 hours or 2.4 days. But that takes too long so just cast it every day for a tenday. At that point you reach third level permanence and it lasts for a day.
Step 3: Increase permanence indefinitely
Once you've done this you can begin your underwater adventure. Just keep casting alter self or water breathing once a day and you'll continue building up permanence to the next duration (1 tenday) in 10 more castings, at which point you only need to cast it once a tenday, and so on. Note, even with permanence you can cancel the spell at any time.
Step 3: Increase alter self permanence to a week
Once alter self lasts a day, you could cast alter self once a tenday to continue building permanence, however, you may want to get the next ten castings over with more quickly than that. If you continue cast every day you'll reach one week permanence in another tenday.
Note: An increased permanence spell is still a deviation from reality, so you can dispel it at will.
If you need more permanence, cast another ten times and it will last a month per casting, then a year, and so on.
Remember, if you don't cast the spell within ten times the spell's current duration, you lose all permanence as reality finishes healing and you have to start over. It's like a wound healing.
Expected Results
Once you have completed your merfolk tail transmutation and extended duration alter self water breathing spell, the following affects apply.
Movement
Your swimming speed is 30 ft. Your land movement speed is 5 ft.
Abilities
Your merfolk abilities are largely similar to your original abilities. However there are subtle changes.
- Increase your Charisma by 1 up to 20. It's simple. You're beautiful. People love beauty.
- You have darkvision to 60 ft, seeing in dim light as if bright light and an in darkness like dim light.
- Your altered self has immunity to cold damage from ocean water temperature.
- Thanks to the extended duration alter self spell you can breathe in both air and water. You can also speak underwater.
Natural armor
Your scales offer a protection level equivalent to leather armor. Your AC is 11 + your Dexterity modifier.
Natural hunter
- Merging with a sea creature gives you the innate ability to navigate under water. You gain the survival skill when under water and apply your proficiency to checks for finding food underwater and for unarmed combat melee attack rolls.
- In merfolk form, your body grows claws which do 1d6 + your strength modifier slashing damage.
- Tail: your tail is a useful weapon. You fold in your fins to allow it to move quickly without propelling you and you adorn it with hard, knobby shells–a merfolk's brass knuckles. It deals 1d4 + your Strength modifier bludgeoning damage. When you deal damage with your tail you may disengage as a bonus action with another flick of your tail.
- You gain proficiency in one underwater combat weapon such as a spear, dagger, or trident. Because of water's viscosity and the drag it produces, undersea weapons are either long and thin for piercing, or short for slashing.
Unique features
Your merfolk transformation includes surprising and unexpected changes. Roll 1d8 to determine the nature of the changes or choose from the following.
1. Aquatic Camouflage
Within minutes of immersing yourself in water your head and arms grow seaweed like extensions that match the color of similar danglies on your tail. Are they mutant fins? Are they some kind of weird hair? It isn't clear. But maybe that's the point. When stationary you are almost indistinguishable from seaweed growing off the sea floor. You gain the Stealth skill when underwater and have proficiency in skill checks requiring hiding or moving slowly without being seen.
2. Puffer Fish
The creature in your transmutation ritual had just eaten a puffer fish. Why someone would eat a poisonous fish, you have no idea, but the restoration spell appears to have merged the puffer fish's constitution with your tail. You can also swell the tip of your tail in a defensive "puffer" mode. In this condition, you can use your reaction to attempt to strike a creature that makes a melee attack on you or an ally within 5 ft. The puffer mode lasts one minute, cannot be ended early, and recovers on a short or long rest. On a successful tail strike your spines deliver a powerful toxins. The creature must make a Constitution saving throw of DC 12 or become poisoned and suffer 2d6 poison damage (half on a save). The poisoned condition has a one minute delay of onset and lasts for one hour. In puffer mode your movement is halved.
3. Electric Eel
The creature in your transmutation ritual had just eaten an electric eel. Why someone would eat an electric eel, you have no idea, but the restoration spell appears to have merged the electric eels's constitution with yours. The sensing electrodes along your body grant blindsight to 15 ft.
You also also innately cast the cantrip shocking grasp with proficiency, using Wisdom as your spellcasting modifier if you don't already have one. A number of times per day equal to your proficiency you can deliver a powerful blast of stunning electricity using a melee attack. This eel strike deals 2d8 lightning damage and the target can't take reactions and has disadvantage on saves and attack rolls until the end of their next turn.
4. Shark
At the last minute the creature you had lined up for your transformation ritual got cold fins and escaped. The best you could come up with on short notice was a shark. The shark's tiny electic field sensing ampullae grant you blindsight to 30 ft. when it comes to sensing creatures and metal. You have blindsight to 10 ft. for nonliving objects. In combat the shark's killer instinct rises up in you. When you make a successful melee strike, you may make an additional melee strike as a bonus action. If your strike fails, you may use your bonus action to disengage. Also, your strength increases by 1 up to max of 20 and your Charisma reduces by 1. Nobody trusts a shark.
5. Exotic Merfolk
The creature you merged with was of a tropical variety. Your scales are iridescent and brilliantly colored. In the water your hair takes on a vibrantly-colored hue and even your eyes sparkle with dazzling color. You innately cast the cantrip dancing lights, which only enhances your dazzling appearance. You have disadvantage at Stealth checks related to not being seen when attempting to sneak past sources of light. You gain +1 Charisma and have the skill Persuasion when dealing with underwater creatures. You gain the hope of the sea ability. Your dazzling presence allows you to inspire courage in your allies. In initiative, prior to your first attack, all allies you pass within 5 ft. of gain 1d4 bonus to their next attack or save. On your hope of the sea action you may dash as a bonus action to inspire more creatures.
6. Dolphin
At the last minute the creature you had lined up for your transmutation ritual got cold fins and escaped. The best you could come up with on short notice was a dolphin. Merging with a dolphin gave you unbelievable grace in the water. Your Dexterity increases by 1 up to avmax of 20 and you gain the acrobatics skill and apply your proficiency bonus to acrobatics in, or leaping out of the water. Your gain the skill Persuasion when dealing with undersea creatures and innately speak aquan. You innately cast the spell speak with animals for water beasts a number of times per day equal to your proficiency. Dolphins have an innate ability to coordinate attacks. When you attack a creature on the same turn as an ally has attacked it, you have advantage to attack and deal 1d4 extra damage on a hit. Holding your action until after an ally strikes is a useful way to take advantage of this ability. Also, when you take the dodge or dash action and pass within 10 ft. of an enemy in a luring feint, your allies have advantage to attack that creature, due to your distracting maneuver, as if they are flanked.
7. Giant Squid (cecaelia)
At the last minute the creature you had lined up for your transmutation ritual got cold fins and escaped. The best you could come up with on short notice was a giant squid a fisherman had just dragged up. Sure your legs are just squishy tentacles covered in grotesque suckers, and that's just awkward for everybody. But, these things are seriously useful. To start, you've got eight arms with suckers for grabbing stuff and two even longer tentacles with with extra sticky grips on the end for grabbing snacks. Your arms have the reach property to 10 ft. and your tentacles have the reach property to 15 ft. Your swimming speed is lackluster at 20 ft. But in terms of style, you've got everyone beat...in your opinion. Sure most folks think you're an abomination, but just see if they dare say anything about it around you.
Apply your proficiency to grappling attacks. Also, you have advantage grappling any creature within range of both your tentacles and arms. If they get close, it's over. You see, your tentacles learned something from your humanoid anatomy: how to grow sharp teeth. When a creature starts its turn grappled, it takes 1d6 + your strength modifier bludgeoning damage from being crushed and an additional 1d4 + your strength piercing damage from the sharp teeth.
You can also take the thrashing action, turning the water around you into a deadly zone of slashing tooth-tipped tentacles. Any creature within 10 ft. must make a DC 13 Detexity saving throw or suffer 1d4 + str slashing damage. Lastly, you can use your reaction to make a reflex grapple of anyone who enters your melee range. Add +2 to your Dexterity, and reduce your Charisma by 2–you're just hideous and totally gross people out. But you don't care about that much. Also, managing this many arms is mentally taxing leaving you less focus. Reduce your Intelligence by 1.
8. Enchanting Merfolk
Despite the ritual leaving your upper half virtually unchanged, your merfolk transmutation has gone to your head. The ritual seems to have unlocked a latent bloodline ability for enchanting magic. You can innately cast the spell charm person a number of times per day equal to your proficiency using Charisma as your spell modifier. You speak aquan innately.
When dealing with nonaquan humanoids your unique charm grants you skill in Persuasion, Deception, and you have proficiency in Persuasion checks involving convincing land lubbers to run errands for you on land as well as luring people into the water on romantic pretenses. When you sing for one minute, anyone who listens to your beautiful music is at disadvantage to your charm person spell. Increase your Charisma by 1 and decrease your Strength by 1.
Art Credits
Pixabay (noncommercial)
Ancient book by Burkard Meyendriesch.
Werewolf and Woman wizard
Eagles background by Peter Keller
by pendleburyannette
Bear by Dorothe
Big werewolf by Ria Sopala
Map by MasterTux
Medusa by Stefan Keller
clouds and woman by Peter
Cave by Mstork
Centaurs by Parker West and fantasy forest by Susann Mielke
Pegasus Wings by Dorota Kudyba
Centaur brute by Parker West
Mermaid silhouette and Lying mermaid by Sergei Tokmakov
Shark by Enrique Meseguer
Giant octopus by Jean photosstockDriveThruRPG (one time use license)
Drider by Dean Spence
Change Log
| Date | Change |
|---|---|
| 2022.08.26 | updated/nerfed medusa by removing backbiting and limiting medusa gaze activation to 1/day. Removed medusa wisdom bonus. Consolidated all the random abilities into the rollable mystic serpents table--there were too many features to keep track of and it was OP. Also combined the drider's many attack features into a rollable table (pick one). HUGELY simplified flight points. Adjusted harpy movement speed. Simplified Harpy attacks (pick one). |
| 2022.05.16 | Nerfed centaur and homogenized with some MPMoM concepts and Common Sense Mounted Combat. |
| 2022.05.16 | Nerfed stat bonus to drider. |
| 2022.04.12 | Nix harpy strength adder. Flight points are no longer a bonus action (either attack or movement), nerfed werecat dex to 16, nerfed lycan claw attacks, pegasus flight point explanation improved |
| 2022.03.27 | Werebat [OP] clerical typo fixes, nerf to strength and blindsight and removed stealth as a given proficiency. Added sunlight sensitivity. Adjusted Medusa ability scores (nerf). Nixed medium armor for werebat. |
| 2022.03.21 | Nixed heavy armor for flight, imposed disadvantage of flying attacks with heavy weapons, disadvantage on ranged attacks while hovering |
| Date | Change |
|---|---|
| 2o22.03.19 | Nerfed Drider: no web spell, nerfed kick attack |
| 2022.03.07 | Clerical fixes and HP description updates to lycanthropes |
| 2022.02.19 | Added Werebat |
| 2022.02.17 | Update flight mechanics: remove flight point cost for landing |
| 2022.02.10 | Updated attacks of opportunity for Centaur trample and charge |
| 2022.02.07 | Clerical updates 2 new images remove medusa spellcaster requirement |
| 2022.02.06 | Initial release on GMBinder.com |