Blood Hunter

When the young man's blindfold was
removed he found himself in a dimly lit
room surrounded by hooded figures. He
stood in front of a small dais that held a
vial of gleaming crimson liquid. Months of
training had led him to this moment. If he
survived drinking the vial, the Hunter's Bane,
he would never be the same. Becoming more
than human, he would finally have the power
to avenge his family that lay dead all these years.

As the horde of demonic spawn lurched toward
her, the aging half-elf ran her thin blade along her
palm, coating it in her blood. In an instant, the blood
ignited, wreathing her sword in a ghastly blue flame.
She fell upon the horde as a blur of azure fire and cold
steel. She would show no mercy to the hellspawn today.

In the light of the pale moon, an almost feral halfling got down on all fours to sniff the tracks before him. The scent of
goblin was unmistakable, vile rags and rotten meats. With a bestial howl, the halfling grew in size and wiry gray fur burst forth from his arms and legs. As fast as the wind, the halfling werewolf began another hunt in the light of the full moon.

All of the strange and monstrous warriors described above are Blood Hunters, guardians who infect and inoculate their very blood with accursed power so they may hunt monsters.

Hit Points

• Hit Dice: 1d12 per Blood Hunter level
• Hit Points at 1st Level: 12 + your Constitution modifier.
• Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d12 (or 7) + your Constitution modifier per Blood Hunter level after 1st

Proficiencies

• Armor: Light armor, medium armor, shields
• Weapons: Simple weapons, martial weapons
• Tools: Alchemist's supplies

• Saving Throws: Constitution, Charisma
• Skills: Choose two: Athletics, Acrobatics, Arcana, History, Insight, Investigation, Nature, Religion, and Survival

Equipment

You start with the following equipment, in addition to
the equipment granted to you by your background:

• (a) a martial weapon or (b) two simple weapons
• (a) a light crossbow and 20 bolts or (b) four javelins
• (a) studded leather armor or (b) scale mail armor
• alchemist's supplies and an explorer's pack

Alternately if your group uses the starting wealth rule to purchase equipment, Blood Hunters start with 5d4 x 10 gp.

Quick Build

You can make a Blood Hunter quickly by following these suggestions. First, make either your Strength or Dexterity your highest ability score, followed by your Constitution. Second, choose the Haunted One background.

Hunter's Bane

You have survived the Hunter's Bane, a dark alchemical ritual that suffuses your blood with sinister magic, granting you an enhanced knowledge and awareness of evil. At 1st level, you gain proficiency in either Nature, Religion, or Survival.

Whenever you make an Intelligence (Nature), Intelligence (Religion), or Wisdom (Survival) check related to fey, fiends, or undead you treat a roll of 7 or lower on the d20 as an 8.

Blood Rites

At 1st level, you learn to draw upon the sinister power within your bloodstream to invoke the dark magic of Blood Rites:

Saving Throws

If a Blood Rite requires a creature to make a saving throw, your Rite saving throw DC is calculated as follows:

Rite save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus
+ your Constitution modifier

Warning: Depictions of Self Harm

This class contains mild descriptions of self-harm. If you, or a player in your game, are uncomfortable with depictions of self-harm, then you should think twice before playing a Blood Hunter character.

Archery

You gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls with ranged weapons.

Dual Wielding

While two-weapon fighting, you make your off-hand weapon attack as part of your Attack action instead of a bonus action, and you add your ability modifier to the damage of this attack.

When you do, you cannot also make a bonus action attack.

Dueling

When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with it.

Featherweight Fighting

While you are unarmed or wielding only light weapons, and are not wearing medium or heavy armor, your walking speed increases by 10 feet, and you gain a +1 bonus to your damage rolls with light melee weapons and unarmed strikes.

Great Weapon Fighting

When you make a two-handed melee attack with a heavy weapon as part of your Attack action, you treat a total roll
of 5 or lower on the weapon's damage dice as a 6.

Melee Marksman

Having a hostile creature within 5 feet of you doesn't impose disadvantage on your ranged weapon attacks, so long as you are attacking a creature within 5 feet.

When you make a ranged weapon attack against a creature within 5 feet, you can use your bonus action to make a melee attack against it with your ranged weapon. On hit, you deal bludgeoning damage equal to 1d4 + your Strength modifier.

Thrown Weapon Fighting

You can draw a weapon that has the thrown property as part of the attack you make with the weapon. Moreover, when you hit with a ranged weapon attack using a thrown weapon, you gain a +2 bonus to the damage roll of that attack.

Versatile Fighting

While wielding a single versatile weapon and no shield, you gain a +1 bonus to your attack rolls with that weapon. While doing so, you can also use your bonus action to make a single grapple or shove attack, or to take the Use an Object action.

You can sear your foes with blood magic. Starting at
6th level, when you damage a creature with Crimson Offering, you can Brand it with blood magic as part
of your attack. While this Crimson Brand lasts, you
gain the following benefits:

• You always know the exact direction of the creature,
  so long as you are both on the same plane of existence.
• When the creature damages you or a friendly creature that you can see within 5 feet of you, it takes damage
  of your Crimson Offering type equal to your Rite Die.

The Crimson Brand lasts until the creature is slain, or
until you mark another creature with this feature. The effect of your Crimson brand can be dispelled by remove curse.

Once you use this feature you must complete a short or long rest before you can use it again. If you have no uses
left you can make a Vital Sacrifice to use this feature again.

Grim Psychometry

Your familiarity with dark magic allows you to decipher the influence of similar effects. Starting at 9th level, you can use alchemist's supplies to cast identify as a ritual spell. Also, when you cast identify you also learn if the object is cursed.

You also learn to cast legend lore as a ritual, targeting one creature or object you touch, or your current location. The target can have a sinister, violent, or cursed history in place of being a target of legendary importance. When you cast it this way, you use alchemist's supplies and make a Vital Sacrifice to replace the normal material components of the spell.

Dark Augmentation

You can draw on the magic of your blood to enhance your physical abilities. Starting at 10th level, whenever you make an ability check or saving throw that uses Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution, you add a roll of your Rite Die to the result.

Improved Crimson Offering

You are a master of combining blood magic with martial skill. Starting at 11th level, when you use Crimson Offering, you can choose for the bonus damage to be necrotic, psychic, or thunder, along with the other damage type options.

Also, you can use Crimson Offering without making a Vital Sacrifice. Once you do so, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again without making a Vital Sacrifice.

Vital Control

Also at 11th level, you gain a greater measure of control over your blood magic. Whenever you make a Vital Sacrifice, you can roll your Rite Die twice and choose which result to use.

In addition, when you invoke a Blood Rite you know, you can choose to empower it without making a Vital Sacrifice. Once you do so, you must finish a long rest before you can
    empower any Blood Rite you know in this way again.

Occult Order

Choose the Order that best represents your Blood Hunter: Order of Alchemists, Order of the Pale Moon, Order of Salt
& Iron, Order of Undying Thirst, or Order of Witch Knights.

Mutagens

Below are the Mutagens available to the Order of Alchemists. If a Mutagen has a Blood Hunter level prerequisite, you can learn it at the same time you meet that level prerequisite.

You only gain the benefits of your Passive Mutagens when you Mutate. Until then, they lie dormant in your bloodstream.

Beast Form

3rd-level Order of the Pale Moon feature
You can control your lycanthropy, allowing you to shift your form . Choose a beast of CR 1 or lower, without a flying or swimming speed, to be the Beast Form of the animal that your lycanthropy is based upon. Common Beast Forms include boars, brown bears, dire wolves, tigers, and rats.

As an action, you can make a Vital Sacrifice to transform into your Beast Form. When you transform into your Beast Form, you follow all the rules of Wild Shape from the Druid class, as found in Chapter 3 of the Player's Handbook.

If you make a Vital Sacrifice in Beast Form, you reduce
the maximum hit points of both the Beast Form and normal form, but only the current hit points of your Beast Form.

Your Beast Form transformation lasts for up to 1 hour. You revert to your normal form early if you are reduced to 0 hit points or you use a bonus action on your turn to do so.

Once you transform into your Beast Form you must finish
a short or long rest before you can transform again.

Hybrid Form

3rd-level Order of the Pale Moon feature
As a bonus action you can transform into a Hybrid Form, a fusion between beast and humanoid. When you transform into your Hybrid Form, you gain the following benefits:

• Your walking speed increases by 10 feet.
• You gain temporary hit points equal to your level.
• Your hands and teeth become claws and fangs that count as simple weapons. They use your Strength modifier for attack and damage rolls, and on hit, they deal slashing damage equal to two rolls of your Rite Die.

Your Hybrid Form transformation lasts for 1 minute. You revert to your normal form early if you are reduced to 0 hit points or you use a bonus action on your turn to do so.

Once you transform into your Hybrid Form you
must finish a short or long rest before you can
transform again. If you have no uses left, you
can make a Vital Sacrifice to transform
into your Hybrid Form again.

Feral Senses

3rd-level Order of the Pale Moon feature
Your lycanthropy heightens your primal senses. When you make a Wisdom (Perception) or Wisdom (Survival) check that is based on your sense of hearing, sight, or smell, you gain a bonus to your roll equal to one roll of your Rite Die.

Lycan Warrior

7th-level Order of the Pale Moon feature
You are able to draw out more power from your curse. While you are in Beast or Hybrid Form you gain the benefits below:

• The weapon attacks of your Beast and Hybrid Forms count as magical for the sake of overcoming resistance and immunities to nonmagical attacks and damage.
• You gain resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical and non-silvered attacks.
• If you are holding a Crimson Offering weapon, you can transfer the effect to the weapons of your Form. The effect returns to your weapon at the end of your transformation.

Feral Prowess

13th-level Order of the Pale Moon feature
Your curse fuels your bloodlust and allows you to shrug off minor wounds. At the start of each of your turns while you are in Beast or Hybrid Form, you regain hit points equal to your Constitution modifier (minimum of 1), so long as you have at least 1 hit point and less than half your hit points.

Also, you have advantage on attack rolls against creatures marked by Crimson Brand while in Beast or Hybrid Form.

Transformation Mastery

18th-level Order of the Pale Moon feature
You have achieved total mastery over the lycanthropic curse that flows in your blood. You can transform into your Beast Form or your Hybrid Form at will, without needing to make
a Vital Sacrifice to do so. Moreover, your Beast Form and Hybrid transformations last indefinitely.

Finally, you can take the Dash action as a bonus action
on your turn, so long as you end this movement closer
to a hostile creature you can see.

Spectral Nature

3rd-level Order of Salt & Iron feature
You have tainted your soul with ghastly power.
You require half the amount of sleep, food, and
drink for the average member of your race.

Also, you can use a bonus action to enter a
temporary Spectral State, which lasts until the
end of your current turn. While in this state, you are resistant to all bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from non-magical attacks, and you can move through solid objects and creatures as if they were difficult terrain. If you end your turn inside a creature or object, you are instantly shunted to the nearest unoccupied space and take 1d10 force damage for every 5 feet you were forced to travel.

Once you use this feature you must complete a short or
long rest before you can use it again. When you have no
uses of this feature remaining, you can make a Vital
Sacrifice as a bonus action to use it again.

As your reach certain levels in this class, the
duration of this Spectral State increases:
at 7th-level it lasts for 1 minute,
at 13th-level for 1 hour, and at
18th level you remain in this
Spectral State until you use a bonus action to end it.

Warrior of the Dawn

3rd-level Order of Salt & Iron feature
Your blood magic is especially potent when used against the undead. When you use Crimson Offering you can empower the weapon with the signature radiant magic of your Order, granting it the following additional benefits for the duration:

• The bonus damage of Crimson Offering is radiant.
• You gain resistance to necrotic damage.
• The weapon sheds bright light in a 20-foot radius, and
  dim light an additional 20 feet beyond that.

Curse Specialist

7th-level Order of Salt & Iron feature
Your knowledge and experience with undead enhances the power of your blood magic. You can target any creature with your Blood Rites, even if they do not have blood in their veins.

In addition, at the end of each long rest you can choose one Blood Rite you know. You can invoke that Rite one additional time before you must make a Vital Sacrifice to use it again.

Blood Magic Specialist

3rd-level Order of Undying Thirst feature
Your curse grants you increased control over your blood magic. You learn one additional Blood Rite, but it doesn't count against your total number of Blood Rites Known.

Also, when you roll a Rite Die for the purposes of a Blood Rite, you use a d6 instead of a d4. At certain levels,
the Rite Die you roll for Blood Rites increases again:
at 5th level (d8), 11th level (d10), and 17th level (d12).

Finally, when you use Crimson Offering, you can choose
for the additional damage to be necrotic.

Vampiric Nature

3rd-level Order of Undying Thirst feature
The ancient disease of your Order has irreparably changed your physiology. Your teeth elongate into fangs which count as natural weapons for you. These fangs use your Strength modifier for attack and damage rolls, and on hit, they deal piercing damage equal to one roll of your Rite Die.

Essence Drain

7th-level Order of Undying Thirst feature
You can drain the very life-essence from your foes. When you hit a creature with a fang attack, you can restore a number of your maximum hit points equal to the piercing damage dealt.

Once you use this feature to restore maximum hit points must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.

Sinister Resilience

7th-level Order of Undying Thirst feature
Your vampiric power waxes in the darkness and wanes in the light of the sun. When you deal necrotic damage to a creature with a Blood Rite or another Blood Hunter feature, you gain temporary hit points equal to the necrotic damage dealt.

While you have temporary hit points from this feature, you are resistant to necrotic, poison, and bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical and non-silvered attacks, and you are immune to the poisoned condition.

However, if you take radiant damage, all of your temporary hit points from this feature are immediately dispelled, and the radiant damage is then applied to your normal hit points.

Misty Escape

13th-level Order of Undying Thirst feature
Your sinister power allows you to evade your foes. When a creature you can see hits you with an attack, you can use your reaction to turn into a cloud of swirling mist. The triggering attack automatically misses, and you instantly reappear in an unoccupied space you can see within 30 feet.

Once you use this reaction you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again. When you have no uses left,
    you can make a Vital Sacrifice to use this reaction again.

Order of Witch Knights

Blood Hunters who join the dark Order of Witch Knights are driven by an overwhelming desire to destroy the great evils of the world. Those especially dedicated, those willing to give up anything, are often approached by Eldritch Powers, beings of otherworldly might. These benefactors offer power in return for a fraction of the warrior's soul or unquestioning fealty.

Sanguine Warrior

7th-level Order of Witch Knights feature
You can seamlessly weave minor spells with weapon attacks. When you take the Attack action on your turn, you can cast a Witch Knight cantrip in place of one of your attacks.

Moreover, when you cast a Witch Knight spell while you are holding a weapon empowered by Crimson Offering, you can cause the spell to deal the damage type of your Crimson Offering in place of the normal damage of that spell.

Bewitched Strikes

13th-level Order of Witch Knights feature
The Eldritch magic in your blood seeps into your weapons. When you hit a creature with a weapon attack, that creature has disadvantage on the next saving throw it makes against a Blood Rite or spell you cast before the end of your next turn.

Profane Sacrifice

18th-level Order of Witch Knights feature
You can offer the death of your foes to your Eldritch Power
  for enhanced abilities. When a creature dies within 30 feet
        of you, you can use a reaction to regain one expended
       Pact Magic spell slot, or gain temporary hit points equal
     to one roll of your Rite Die + your Intelligence modifier.

Once you use this feature you must finish a short or long
   rest before you can use it again.

Witch Knight Spell List

Here's the list of spells you consult when you learn a Witch Knight spell. It is organized by spell level, not character level. The spells below are from the Player's Handbook, Xanathar's Guide to Everything*, and Tasha's Cauldron of Everything**.

Spells marked with LL are found in the laserllama Spell Compendium, which includes both new and alternate spells.

Rite of Agony

As a bonus action, you can invoke this Rite to force a creature that you can see within 30 feet to make a Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, until the end of your next turn it has disadvantage on Strength and Dexterity ability checks and saving throws and takes necrotic damage equal to one roll of your Rite Die each time it makes a weapon attack.

When you invoke this Rite you can make a Vital Sacrifice to empower it. If you do so, the effects last for 1 minute. The creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its
    turns, ending the effect on a success.

Rite of Anxiety

As a bonus action, you can invoke this Rite and curse one creature you can see within 30 feet, making it susceptible
to outside influence. For the next minute, creatures of your choice that attempt to influence it with a Charisma check gain a bonus to their rolls equal to one roll of your Rite Die.

When you invoke this Rite you can make a Vital Sacrifice to empower it. If you do so, the creature has disadvantage on the next Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma saving throw it is forced to make before the end of your next turn.

Rite of Binding

As a bonus action, you can invoke this Rite and force a Large or smaller creature that you can see within 30 feet to make a Strength saving throw. On a failed save, its speed is reduced to 0 and it can't use reactions until the end of your next turn.

When you invoke this Rite you can make a Vital Sacrifice
to empower it. If you do so, you can target
a creature of any size, and the effects of
this Rite last for 1 minute. The target
can repeat this saving throw at the
end of each of its turns, ending the
effects of this Rite on a success.

Rite of Confusion

As a bonus action, you can invoke this Rite and curse one creature you can see within 30 feet that is concentrating. It must subtract a roll of your Rite Die from every Constitution saving throw it makes before the start of your next turn.

When you invoke this Rite you can make a Vital Sacrifice to empower it. If you do so, the target must subtract one roll of your Rite Die from every Constitution saving throw that it makes to maintain its concentration on its current spell.

Rite of Blindness

When a creature you can see within 30 feet makes an attack roll, you can use your reaction to invoke this Rite. The target must subtract one roll of your Rite Die from its attack roll. You can invoke this Rite after the creature rolls, but before you know if its attack hits or misses its target.

When you invoke this Rite you can make a Vital Sacrifice to empower it. If you do, it must subtract one roll of your Rite Die from all attack rolls before the start of your next turn.

Rite of Revelation

As a bonus action, you can invoke this Rite and choose one creature you can see within 30 feet. You immediately learn
of one damage resistance, immunity, or vulnerability that creature has. If it has none of the traits above, the DM must instead reveal one of the creature's abilities of their choice.

When you invoke this Rite you can make a Vital Sacrifice to empower it. If you do, you can choose one immunity the creature has and turn it into resistance, or one resistance
the creature has and dispel it. This effect lasts for 1 minute.

Rite of Siphoning

As an action, you can invoke this Rite and force
one creature you touch to make a Charisma
saving throw. On a failure, it takes necrotic
damage equal to two rolls of your Rite Die,
and you gain temporary hit points equal to
the necrotic damage taken by the creature.

When you invoke this Rite you can make
         a Vital Sacrifice to empower it.
                If you do so, the creature
                  takes the maximum possible
                     necrotic damage.