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Aquatic / PirateCharacter BuildsClassesD&D 5eFrom the Depths

Salt in the Blood: Oceanic Bloodline for 5th ed Sorcerers

Sorcerous Origins (Oceanic)

Sorcerers draw their magical power from a variety of sources. Some are the result of an unusual bloodline (draconic), while others tap into powerful arcane or divine forces (wild magic). Sorcerers who manifest powers from an oceanic origin may have had their bloodline affected by a powerful creature such as an aboleth, bronze dragon, elemental, hag, or kraken, or may have learned to tap into the primal energy inherent to the most fundamental element of life.

Special Effects: In addition to the mechanics listed below, the special effects of numerous spells can be altered to appear aquatic in origin. For example, burning hands can be a wave of superheated steam. Shield may be a solidified disk of water. Black tentacles could be composed entirely of water, or look like the actual tentacles of a giant cephalopod. With the DM’s permission, you could also alter the damage type of a spell to reflect this origin. For example, the waterwhip cantrip below is based on the thornwhip druid cantrip with the piercing damage changed to bludgeoning. Bludgeoning and cold are appropriate damage exchanges, but oceanic sorcerers also control weather, so wind-like effects, lightning, and thunder are also appropriate. A cleric of Poseidon in my game altered the sacred flame cantrip to sacred lightning with little alteration. By taking the Magic Initiate feat and selecting sacred flame (lightning), a human oceanic sorcerer could start at 1st level with the same effect.

Command Water

Starting at 1st level, you gain the waterwhip cantrip and add the create or destroy water spell to your list of spells known. These spells are considered sorcerer spells.

Waterwhip

Transmutation cantrip
Casting time: 1 action
Range: 30 feet
Components: V, S, M (1 pint of water or other non-caustic liquid)
Duration: Instantaneous

You create a long, whip-like tendril of water that lashes out at your commend toward a creature in range. Make a melee spell attack against the target. If the attack hits, the creature takes 1d6 bludgeoning damage, and if the creature is Large or smaller, you pull the creature up to 10 feet closer to you. This spell’s damage increases by 1d6 when you reach 5th level (2d6), 11th level (3d6), and 17th level (4d6).

Primal Magic

Starting at 6th level, you may spend sorcery points to create spell slots. Unlike the Flexible Casting class feature, these spell slots may only be used to cast the spells listed below. You may cast the spells listed using a spell slot higher than normally required by spending the appropriate sorcery points. For example, you may use 5 sorcery points to cast call lightning as a 3rd level spell, or 10 sorcery points to cast the same spell as a 6th level spell.

You may spend 2 sorcery points to consider your Primal Magic spells to be on the sorcerer spell list for the purposes of spell scrolls or similar magic items and effects. This effect lasts for 1 minute. This does not make Primal Magic spells available to cast using your sorcerer spell slots, but will allow you to cast a Primal Magic spell from a scroll. For example, if you wish to use a wall of ice scroll, a spell not normally on the sorcerer spell list, you may spend 2 sorcery points. If the spell is of a level higher than you can normally cast you must make an ability check against a DC of 10 + the spell’s level as normal.

You may still use the Flexible Casting class feature to create additional spell slots for your sorcerer spells up to 5th level.

Primal Magic Spell List

Cantrip (1 sorcery point): druidcraft
1st (2 sorcery points): purify food and drink, speak with animals
2nd (3 sorcery points): locate animals or plants, protection from poison
3rd (5 sorcery points): call lightning, wind wall
4th (6 sorcery points): conjure minor elemental (water or wind only), control water
5th (7 sorcery points): commune with nature, conjure elemental (water or wind only)
6th (10 sorcery points): wall of ice, wind walk
7th (12 sorcery points): regenerate
8th (14 sorcery points): control weather, tsunami
9th (16 sorcery points): storm of vengeance

Aquatic Agility

Starting at 14th level, your mind and body adopt the flexibility, power and adaptability of water. You gain proficiency with Dexterity saving throws.

Elemental Form

Starting at 18th level, you may spend 10 sorcery points to transform into an air elemental or water elemental for up to 8 hours. This ability otherwise works as the shapechange spell.

 

Playtesting

We’re always looking for playtesters for our races, classes, archetypes and other designs here at Tribality. Wizards had the benefit of 175,000 playtesters over 2 years to get their ideas to the table; clearly we don’t have that luxury. Each of our builds are as balanced as we can design with a small playtest group and decades (over a century, maybe, I haven’t done the math) of gaming XP, and we are always excited to hear when players get these ideas on the table and provide us with constructive ways to make them better.