Grim Portent
2022-01-26, 09:23 PM
So I like the idea of evil ritual magic, I mean really who doesn't like to have a bunch of cultists in a circle doing some evil stuff and human sacrifice to perform an act of magic that should be well beyond them?
But I don't like having options be NPC gated, because that assumes PCs aren't going to do evil stuff for power, so I figured I'd take a stab at making a simple 5e style Feat for ritual magic performed through human sacrifice. Because it's an alternative to conventional spellcasting it's going to be a bit wordy just to clarify the basics, but the core feature itself isn't all that big.
Blood Mage
You have learned the dark art of sacrificing mortal life in exchange for magical power. By sacrificing three sapient beings with a combined hit dice total of at least 3 in a ritual lasting 30 minutes, you can cast one first level spell from any spell list. You do not need to have the spell on your class spell list, or to have the Spellcasting or Pact Magic class features.
If the spell deals damage or restores hit points, the damage dealt or hit points restored is always considered to roll the maximum possible value.
If the spell has a duration that duration is multiplied by three. If the number of sacrificed creatures is at least one hundred, the spell's duration is instead permanent.
If the spell allows a saving throw or requires an attack roll, the spellcasting ability modifier is equal to the highest Challenge Rating or class level among the creatures sacrificed plus the highest proficiency bonus among the ritual casters.
If multiple characters with the Blood Mage feat, or the Blood Magic trait (NPC equivalent,) work together, they can cast spells of a level equal to the number of Blood Mage's involved in the ritual. The number of sacrificed creature hit dice required doubles with each additional spell level, and the time required to cast the ritual also doubles with each spell level.
If the ritual is interrupted for a period of at least five rounds, it fails, the spell is not cast and one third of the intended sacrifices are slain by the unrestrained ritual magic, creatures that possess a challenge rating or class level greater than the spell level the ritual was intended to cast cannot be slain by this effect.
Example: Bob, Alice and Tim want to cast a third level spell through Blood Magic. They must sacrifice humanoids, giants or other sapient creatures with a total combined hit dice of at least 12, such as 12 commoners, 6 goblins, or 1 frost giant, and spend two hours performing the ritual magic. With the ritual completed using a frost giant, the spell is cast using Tim's proficiency bonus of +3, the highest between the ritualists, and the giant's challenge rating of 8, for a total modifier of 11 for any attack rolls or saving throws.
But I don't like having options be NPC gated, because that assumes PCs aren't going to do evil stuff for power, so I figured I'd take a stab at making a simple 5e style Feat for ritual magic performed through human sacrifice. Because it's an alternative to conventional spellcasting it's going to be a bit wordy just to clarify the basics, but the core feature itself isn't all that big.
Blood Mage
You have learned the dark art of sacrificing mortal life in exchange for magical power. By sacrificing three sapient beings with a combined hit dice total of at least 3 in a ritual lasting 30 minutes, you can cast one first level spell from any spell list. You do not need to have the spell on your class spell list, or to have the Spellcasting or Pact Magic class features.
If the spell deals damage or restores hit points, the damage dealt or hit points restored is always considered to roll the maximum possible value.
If the spell has a duration that duration is multiplied by three. If the number of sacrificed creatures is at least one hundred, the spell's duration is instead permanent.
If the spell allows a saving throw or requires an attack roll, the spellcasting ability modifier is equal to the highest Challenge Rating or class level among the creatures sacrificed plus the highest proficiency bonus among the ritual casters.
If multiple characters with the Blood Mage feat, or the Blood Magic trait (NPC equivalent,) work together, they can cast spells of a level equal to the number of Blood Mage's involved in the ritual. The number of sacrificed creature hit dice required doubles with each additional spell level, and the time required to cast the ritual also doubles with each spell level.
If the ritual is interrupted for a period of at least five rounds, it fails, the spell is not cast and one third of the intended sacrifices are slain by the unrestrained ritual magic, creatures that possess a challenge rating or class level greater than the spell level the ritual was intended to cast cannot be slain by this effect.
Example: Bob, Alice and Tim want to cast a third level spell through Blood Magic. They must sacrifice humanoids, giants or other sapient creatures with a total combined hit dice of at least 12, such as 12 commoners, 6 goblins, or 1 frost giant, and spend two hours performing the ritual magic. With the ritual completed using a frost giant, the spell is cast using Tim's proficiency bonus of +3, the highest between the ritualists, and the giant's challenge rating of 8, for a total modifier of 11 for any attack rolls or saving throws.