Black Blood Corruption

The mysterious substance known as Black Blood courses through your veins, slowly seeping the life out of you.

**Catalyst**

Through repeated exposure to it in its natural form, twisted experimentation on your body, or cruel misfortune of birth, your blood is black as a moonless night.

Note: A creature with this corruption is immune to the usual negative effects of black blood, such as the damage it deals to living creatures

**Progression**

Whenever you take 25 points or more of negative energy or bleed damage from a single source (whether it heals or harms you), are exposed to black blood from a source beyond yourself, or fail a saving throw against a necromancy effect that pertains to blood, you must make a Fortitude save (DC 15+ Manifestation level) or become maddened by the black blood. While in this state, you are unable to discern friend from foe or reality from fantasy. You may take no actions other than babbling incoherently to yourself (unless you are attacked, in which case you do your best to kill your attacker). This state lasts for 1 hour per manifestation level; if you are killed during this time, your body is consumed by your blood and you become a CE blood elemental of your size after 1d10 minutes under the the DM's control.

**Corruption Stage 1:** The first time you recover from this state, you are left traumatized by the experience. You take a -2 penalty to your Wisdom score, and a -2 penalty to saves against confusion, insanity, or madness-based abilities.

**Corruption Stage 2:** The second time you recover from this state, your mind is left wasting from the experience. You take an additional -2 penalty to Wisdom and your alignment shifts one step closer to chaotic evil (on the good/evil axis first).

**Corruption Stage 3:** The third time you recover from this state, you have been consumed by the black blood. You become a mindless CE killing machine under the DM's control.

**Removing the Corruption**

Curing black blood is a difficult and dangerous procedure that nearly no one is aware of, and even fewer are willing to undertake as they would then be exposed to the black blood themselves. In the event you find someone knowledgeable and willing to undergo the treatment, it requires six 1-hour long surgeries over the course of at least 12 months to allow the body to heal. It requires an additional surgery and two month recovery period per manifestation level beyond first. The recommended DC for related checks for the surgery is 25+ manifestation level.

**Manifestations**

The following are manifestations of the black blood corruption.

**Black Blood Harvest**

*Your understanding of how black blood functions improves.*

**Prerequisite:** None

**Gift:** You are adept at handling black blood. You may extract it from yourself or outside sources and preserve it for up to 1 hour per manifestation level. It can be used as Unholy water in this way. It typically takes 10 minutes per gallon to extract.

**Stain:** The black blood is making your neurons fire more sluggishly. You take a -2 penalty to your Intelligence.

**Black Blood Retribution**

*Your icy blood can lash out at foes that dare spill it.*

**Prerequisite:** Black Blood Harvest

**Gift:** As an immediate action whenever you take piercing or slashing damage, you can cause some of your black blood to spray from the wound to strike any creature within 10 feet. Make a touch attack to hit the target. If you hit, you deal 1d8 points of cold damage +1 point per Manifestation level.

**Stain:** Your blood is becoming heavy in your limbs, as if it is pumping ice along with it. Your base land speed is reduced by 10 ft.

**Blackened Breath**

*Black blood fortifies your lungs.*

**Prerequisite:** Blackened Sight, Blackened Touch

**Gift:** You are able to breathe in all liquids as if they were air. This does not protect you from damage that the liquid may deal, however.

**Stain:** You take a -6 penalty against diseases and inhaled poisons.

**Blackened Sight**

*Your black blood provides clarity in the darkness.*

**Prerequisite:** None

**Gift:** You gain darkvision to a range of 60 feet. If you already have darkvision, the range of your darkvision increases by 30 feet instead. You also gain a +2 bonus on Perception and Stealth checks. At manifestation level 3rd, the bonuses increase to +4.

**Stain:** You gain light sensitivity, causing you to be dazzled in areas of bright light.

**Blackened Touch**

*The chill of your blood seeps into everything you touch.*

**Prerequisite:** Blackened Sight

**Gift:** Whenever you take piercing or slashing damage, you may as an immediate action treat any weapon you are wielding as if it had the Frost weapon property for one minute.

**Stain:** You are treated as an undead creature, but only for effects that would not be beneficial to you (such as detect undead or favoured enemy). These effects inform the user that you are still a living creature, however.

**Blood Resilience**

*Your black blood fortifies you against many conditions.*

**Prerequisite:** Blood Resistance

**Gift:** You gain a +2 bonus on saving throws against ability drain, death effects, disease, energy drain, and paralysis. At manifestation level 6, you may reroll a failed save against one of these effects with an additional +2 bonus once per day per two manifestation levels.

**Stain:** You heal from negative energy and are harmed by positive energy, as if you were undead.

**Blood Resistance**

*Black Blood pumps like ice in the veins, and is cool to the touch.*

**Prerequisite:** Manifestation level 2

**Gift:** You gain resistance 5 against cold damage. This increases to resistance 10 at manifestation level 5 and imunity to cold at manifestation level 8.

**Stain:** You take a -2 penalty to saves against all necromancy effects. This becomes -4 at manifestation level 5, and -6 at manifestation level 8.

**Dark Reach**

*The black blood inside you twists and elongates your limbs.*

**Prerequisite:** Dark Reflexes, Manifestation level 3

**Gift:** Your reach increases by 5 ft.

**Stain:** Your limbs seem to be restless at all times. You take a -4 penalty on all dexterity based skill checks.

**Dark Reflexes**

*Your black blood darts you away from danger.*

**Prerequisite:** None

**Gift:** You gain a +2 bonus on reflex saves. At manifestation level 5, this increases to +4.

**Stain:** You become jittery, as if your blood is flying through your veins. Whenever you take bleed damage, you take an additional amount equal to your manifestation level.