Blood Mage (Homebrew Prestige Class)

Blood mages harness their vitality and manipulate it to their advantage, using it to cripple their enemies, strengthen themselves, and to cast spells. As a blood mage, you learn to control the life force within yourself and command it to your will.

### Requirements

To qualify to become a Blood Mage, a character must fulfill all the following criteria:

* **Caster Level:** 5
* **Skills**: 8 Ranks in Knowledge (Arcane)

### Class Skills

The Blood Mage's class skills are Craft (Int), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (all skills, taken individually) (Int), Profession (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).

Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.

### Class Features

The following are the class features of the Blood Mage prestige class.

**Weapon and Armor Proficiency:** Blood Mage's gain no proficiency with any weapon or armor.

#### Casting

An Blood Mage may combine spheres and talents to create magical effects. An Blood Mage is considered a High-Caster. (Note: All casters gain 2 bonus talents and a casting tradition the first time they gain the casting class feature.)

#### Spell Pool

An Blood Mage gains a small reservoir of energy he can call on to create truly wondrous effects, called a spell pool. This pool contains a number of spell points equal to his class level + his casting ability modifier (minimum 1). This pool replenishes once per day after roughly 8 hours of rest.

#### Magic Talents

An Blood Mage gains 1 magic talent every level, according to Table: Blood Mage. The Blood Mage also gains a bonus magic talent at every odd Blood Mage level, however, these bonus talents at every odd level can only be used to gain talents from the blood sphere.

#### Flesh Runes

A Blood Mage gains the witchmarked drawback, he inscribes arcane formulas required for his spherecasting deeply into his skin. These scarred runes allow him to channel his lifeblood into the magic he wields. The scars make the Blood Mage suffer a -4 penalty on his Disguise check to hide the fact that he is a Blood Mage. Anyone who does see the runes however does not necessarily realize their significance, which requires a DC 15 Knowledge (Arcana) check. This counts as the witchmarked tradition drawback in all ways other than those noted here. You may choose any blood sphere talent you qualify for, but can never buy this drawback off.

#### The Power of Blood (Su)

At 1st level, a Blood Mage gains the Blood sphere as a bonus talent, or a talent from the Blood sphere if they already possess the base sphere. Additionally, the Blood Mage may use blood mage class abilities and blood sphere effects on any creature by tearing at the creature's very essence, even those normally immune to such effects.

#### Superior Bloodwork

At 1st level, the Blood Mage gains the incanter sphere specialization for blood sphere. When determining the abilities for this specialization, he treats his incanter level as equal to twice his Blood Mage level.

#### Blood Magic (Su)

At 2nd level, a Blood Mage gains the ability to turn his life force directly into the raw magical energy required to power his magic. He can opt to take an amount of Constitution damage to spontaneously cast a spell without expending spell points. The Blood Mage takes constitution damage equal to the number of spell points he is replacing. If the Blood Mage dies from this Constitution loss, then the last spell still functions normally. This constitution damage can be healed through the same methods as any other ability score damage, but may not be mitigated in any way. A character without a constitution modifier may not make use of this ability unless they have blood. If they have blood and no constitution score, they instead take 50% more damage as charisma damage.

#### Bloody Touch (Ex)

At 3rd level, when the Blood Mage successfully strikes a target he may, as a free action, spend a spell point to initiate his blood sphere blood control ability. He may use this ability only a single time a round at 1st level, and then an additional time her round at 6th level.

#### Bonus Feat

At 3rd, 6th and 9th levels, a blood mage gains a bonus feat. This may be spent to gain an extra magic talent, drawback, proxy, and theurge feats, or any feat which has casting as a prerequisite (item creation feats, metamagic feats, Sphere Focus, Circle Casting, etc.).

#### Burning Blood (Ex)

At 4th level, a Blood Mages blood has become so potent that it immediatly burns out any toxins introduced to your system. With the exclusion of specific blood diseases, the blood mage becomes immune to poison and disease. In addition, any creature that comes into contact with the blood mages blood takes 1d8 damage per character level of the blood mage. This damage is half fire and half acid. This ability does not work with weapons formed out of the blood mages blood from other classes, races or abilities.

#### Tainted Blood (Su)

At 4th level, any time the blood mage causes a bleed effect on the target, it must make a fortitude save (DC equal to the bleed damage taken this round), or be stricken with hemophilia, there is no effect on a successful save and the target does not need to make a save versus the effect again for 24 hours. This disease increases the DC for any efforts to stop bleed effects by 10. When casting a spell or a sphere effect to cure the disease, the caster must make an MSB check against your MSD, the spell fails and any spell points or spell slots are lost if the check is not successful.

#### Greater Blood Control (Su)

At 5th level, creatures effected by the blood mages blood control ability no longer gain a save every round. Instead they must wait a number of rounds equal to half of your blood mage levels, rounded down.

#### Bloody Retribution (Ex)

At 6th level, the magic you infuse your bleed attacks with become more vicious. Any bleed effects you apply to a creature that is already bleeding are increased by 50%.

#### Self Sacrifice (Su)

At 7th level, the Blood Mage has improved her control over her blood magic. She can now use her own life force to enhance her spells. She may increase the save DC of any spell, power or sphere effect by taking unavoidable damage equal to 2d6 for every +1 she wants to add to the DC of the effect, the maximum increase from this ability is equal to her blood mage class levels.

#### Fountain of Blood (Ex)

At 8th level, as a standard action, a blood mage can spray blood from its veins in a great cascade. Each creature within a 15-foot radius is covered in blood and must succeed on a Fortitude save or be immediately afflicted by the blood mages blood control. The blood fills the area until the blood mage’s next turn. Creatures entering the spray while it persists are subject to its effects, but a creature can be affected only once per round. If the Blood Mage also possesses the Crimson Vortex talent, the base range is increased by 5 feet and may be enhanced in any fashion that would also apply to crimson vortex.

The area covered by the blood spray becomes coated as though by a blood slick and remains slippery for 1 round per two Hit Dice the blood mage possesses. The blood remains until it is washed away with at least 5 gallons of water or other liquid, or burned away with normal or magical fire as a full-round action. Creatures and objects within the area that do not have total cover are coated with the blood, and a creature wishing to use, pick up, or cling to an item coated in the blood must succeed on a Reflex save (save DC is Charisma-based) to do so. Failure means the item is immediately dropped. A creature coated in blood gains a +10 bonus on Escape Artist checks. The Blood Mage may use this ability once per day per 10 hit dice.

#### The Fine Art of Blood Play (Su)

At 9th level, the Blood Mage has learned to manipulate blood to such an extent that when she initiates blood control, she may now apply one (quicken) or (still) ability as well as a (blood art) effect as part of initiating blood control.

#### Awaken Blood (Su)

At 10th level, a Blood Mage can bestow momentary consciousness on an opponent’s blood. If he successfully strikes a target that is currently affected by his blood control ability with an attack, the opponent’s blood tries to get free of its confinement—all at once. The pressure disrupts the victim’s tissues causing it to explode in a shower of blood and flesh, dealing constitution damage equal to the total bleed damage on the target unless the creature makes a Fortitude save (DC 10 + half the total bleed damage on target + Blood Mage’s casting modifier). This ability is usable only once per day, but a Blood Mage can try to use it again later in the day if his previous attempt failed. The effect is instantaneous.