Hand of the Kraken (5e Class)
(This idea came from the League of Legends champion Illaoi)
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Hand of the Kraken
Nagakabouros is the Serpent Isles' god of life, ocean storms, and motion (the literal translation of its name is 'the unending monster that drives the sea and sky'). Also called The Mother Serpent, The Great Kraken, or even The Bearded Lady, Nagakabouros is usually depicted as an enormous serpent head with tentacles spiraling around it in endless motion, with no beginning and no end. The religion of Nagakabouros focuses on four main concepts: every spirit was born to serve the universe; desire was built into every living being by the universe; the universe only moves toward its destiny when living creatures chase their desires; death is the true end in which our souls return to the universe to keep it going, anything that does not stay dead is seen as an abomination for it may cause the universe to become unbalanced.
“There can be no rest. We are the motion." ~ from 'The Twenty Wisdoms of Nagakabouros'
Creating a Hand of the Kraken
Keep in mind that you are as servant to your god, and you live to serve. You are here to spread the word of your loving and caring god, and to show others the true path. You live to help others and keep them on their path of destiny. You hate undead, anything that has arisen from the grave you see as an abomination and it is your mission to return it to the grave.
- Quick Build
You can make a Hand of the Kraken quickly by following these suggestions. First, Wisdom should be your highest ability score, followed by Constitution. Second, choose the Sailor or Shipwright background. Third, choose any form of two-handed weapon that you are proficient with, as you do not require armor.
- Alignment
A Hand of the Kraken is always some sort of Lawful.
Class Features
As a Hand of the Kraken you gain the following class features.
- Hit Points
Hit Dice: 1d10 per Hand of the Kraken level
Hit Points at 1st Level: 10 + Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d10 (or 6) + Constitution modifier per Hand of the Kraken level after 1st
- Proficiencies
Armor: All armor, no shields
Weapons: Simple melee weapons, Martial melee weapons
Tools: none
Saving Throws: Constitution and Wisdom
Skills: Pick 3 from: Arcana, Athletics, History, Insight, Intimidation, Investigation, Medicine, Perception, and Religion
- Equipment
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:
- (a) Warhammer or (b) Longsword, or or (c) Mace
- (a) Greatsword or (b) Greataxe, or or (c) Maul
- (a) Scale Mail or (b) Leather Armor, or or (c) Chain Mail
- (a) A Priest's Pack or or (b) an Explorer's Pack
| Level | Proficiency Bonus | Features | Tentacle Damage | —Spell Slots per Spell Level— | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | ||||
| 1st | +2 | Unarmored Defense, Slam, Spellcasting. | - | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2nd | +2 | Tentacles | 1d6 | 2 | — | — | — | — |
| 3rd | +2 | Great Kraken's Gift | 1d6 | 3 | — | — | — | — |
| 4th | +2 | Ability Score Improvement, Ability Score Improvement | 1d6 | 3 | — | — | — | — |
| 5th | +3 | Extra Attack | 1d6 | 4 | 2 | — | — | — |
| 6th | +3 | Kraken's Gift Ability | 1d8 | 4 | 2 | — | — | — |
| 7th | +3 | Harsh Lesson | 1d8 | 4 | 3 | — | — | — |
| 8th | +3 | Ability Score Improvement | 1d8 | 4 | 3 | — | — | — |
| 9th | +4 | Prophet of an Elder God | 1d8 | 4 | 3 | 2 | — | — |
| 10th | +4 | Kraken's Gift Ability | 1d10 | 4 | 3 | 2 | — | — |
| 11th | +4 | Test of Spirit | 1d10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | — | — |
| 12th | +4 | Ability Score Improvement | 1d10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | — | — |
| 13th | +5 | — | 1d10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — |
| 14th | +5 | Kraken's Gift Ability | 1d12 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — |
| 15th | +5 | — | 1d12 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — |
| 16th | +5 | Ability Score Improvement, Extra Attack | 1d12 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — |
| 17th | +6 | — | 1d12 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| 18th | +6 | Challenging Test | 2d6 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| 19th | +6 | Ability Score Improvement | 2d6 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| 20th | +6 | Leap of Faith | 2d6 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
Unarmored Defense
While you are not wearing any armor, your Armor Class equals 10+ your Constitution modifier + your Wisdom modifier. You cannot use shields.
Slam
At 1st level, you gain the ability to harness the powers of your patron. You can bond your soul to a chosen melee weapon (magical or not). Over the course of 1 hour, which can be done during a Short Rest, you perform a ritual which bonds you to the chosen weapon. While bonded to this weapon, you cannot be disarmed (unless you are slain or fall unconscious) as ghostly tentacles latch around your arm, holding the weapon in at least one of your hands, you can switch hands normally. If you left your weapon on the ground within 20ft of you, you can reach out toward it, causing spectral tentacles to reach out and latch to your arm, pulling your weapon to you. You can add your Wisdom Modifier to your attacks with this weapon and damage, instead of your Strength. The weapon ceases being your bound weapon if you die, if you perform the 1-hour ritual on a different weapon, or if you use your 1-hour ritual to break your bond to it. You cannot effect Sentient weapons with this ability.
Additionally, as an action, you make a large overhead swing with your bonded weapon, slaming downward in front of you. As you do, you conjure a large spectral tentacle that slams downward in a 15ft line in front of you. Anyone caught in this area may make a Dex. Save. with a DC equal to your Spell DC. Failure means the victims take 2d6 force damage, or half as much on a success. You can use this ability a number of times equal to your Wisdom Modifier, before needing to spend a long rest. The damage for this ability increases to 3d6 at 12th level, and 4d6 at 17th level.
Spellcasting
At 1st level, you gain the ability to cast spells. To do so, pick between the Paladin or Ranger. You learn and regain spells at the same rate as the chosen class. You also can cast spells from the chosen class spell list. Your Hand of the Kraken class level determins your caster level in the chosen class. Wisdom is your casting modifier when using spells, and determining spell attack bonus and spell DC saves.
Tentacles
At 2nd level, Nagakabouros grants you the ability to summon her limbs onto the battlefield. As a bonus action you can summon a spectral tentacle to an area you can see within 60ft, each of which must be at least 25ft apart and cannot get closer to each other. These tentacles have an armor class of 10+ your wisdom modifier, and have 1 hit point, and are immune to magical effects, diseases, poisons, and psychic damage. A tentacle takes up a 5ft square, and any enemy traveling through a space containing a tentacle treats it as difficult terrain. Tentacles last for 1 minute, until destroyed, or dismissed by you as a free action. As part of the bonus action to summon, you can cause the tentacle to slam down in a 15ft line at any nearby targets. Anyone caught in the slam area can make a Dex. Save with a DC equal to your Spell DC. Failure means the victims take 1d6 force damage and their speed is reduced by 10ft until the start of your next turn, on a success they take no damage and are not slowed. As a bonus action on your turn, you can move any number of tentacles up to 30ft and repeat the attack with one of them. You are immune to your own tentacles. You can have a maximum number of tentacles summoned at once equal to your Wisdom Modifier. The damage for these tentacles increases at levels determined by the graph above.
Great Kraken's Gift
At 3rd level, you chose one of the two choices of the Great Kraken's Gift. Choose between Gift of the Depths, Gift of the Ocean detailed at the end of the class description. Your choice grants you features at levels 3, 6, 10 and 14.
Ability Score Improvement
When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can't increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.
Extra Attack
Beginning at 5th level, when you take the attack option, you may attack twice.
Harsh Lesson
At 7th level, as part of your attack action, you can leap toward a target up to 15ft away from you. You slam down on the target with your bound weapon, dealing normal weapon damage, and causing all tentacles within range to also slam down on top of your target. The target can make the usual Dex. Save, stated in the tentacle ability, but will take half damage on a success instead of none. You can only use this ability as part of the attack action once a round. You can use this ability a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus before requiring a long rest.
Prophet of an Elder God
At 9th level, your connection with your patron and the universe becomes more powerful that you expected. You now heal for half the damage dealt by your tentacles, including your Slam ability.
Test of Spirit
At 11th level, as an action you strike out with your bound weapon toward a target within 25ft of you, sending forth a spectral tentacle to grapple the targets spirit. Make a melee attack against the target's AC. Upon landing the hit, you do not deal damage, instead you grapple the target's spirit, forcing it to stand next to you as an echo of your target. The spirit's AC is equal to that of your target's minus 5, and has a number of hit points equal to half of the target's current hit points, and any saves the spirit must make uses the owner's save at dissadvantage (it is immune to mind altering effects and does not benefit from legendary resistances). Any damage dealt to this spirit echos half the damage to the spirit owner. This spirit lasts for 1d4+1 rounds, or until slain. You can use this ability twice per short rest.
Extra Attack
Beginning at 16th level, when you take the attack option, you may attack three times.
Challenging Test
At 18th level, your Test of Spirit ability now deals full damage to your victim instead of half. The spirit also now lasts for 1d6+1 rounds instead of 1d4+1. Your nearby tentacles also now automatically strike the spirit upon it being pulled.
Leap of Faith
At 20th level, Nagakabouros has bestoyed upon you the strength and power of life and the seas. Choose a location within 30ft of you, any enemies within a 15ft radius of the chosen location must make a Dex. Save. equal to you spell save DC or take 4d8 Bludgeoning Damage, or half as much on a success, as you come slaming down in the area. You spawn a number of tentacles equal to the number of enemies (including any spirits created by Test of Spirit) caught in the radius. These tentacles instantly slam down on a target of your choosing within range. These tentacles last for a number of rounds equal half your Widsom Modifier (rounded up), and do not count toward your tentacle limit, and are not subject to the distance or hit points restrictions. You must finish a long rest before using this ability again.
Gift of the Depths
Having once been shipwrecked and on the brink of drowning, your patron's grasp offered you a chance at a new life, and you promised to serve until you die.
- Deep Dweller
At 3rd level, you gain a swimming speed of 40 feet, and you can breathe underwater as easily as air.
- Deep Whispers
At 6th level, you gain the ability understand and speak to all creatures of the sea as if with the Speak With Animals spell, you also gain dark vision of 60ft.
- Godly Protection
At 10th level, your tentacles can defend you and others, interposing itself between them and harm. When you or a creature you can see is attacked, while within 15ft of a tentacle, you can use your reaction to choose one of those creatures and cause the attack made against them to be at dissadvantage, if you or the ally are still hit, they take half damage instead at the cost of the tentacle being destroyed due to taking half the damage for them.
- Gift Unto Thee
At 14th level, You can touch a number of creatures equal to your constitution modifier and grant them water breathing, a swimming speed of 30ft, and dark vision of 60ft for one hour. You can also now use your reaction to have a summoned tentacle make an attack of opportunity within its reach.
At 17th level, you all gain cold resistance while this ability is active.
Gift of the Ocean
You have spend so much time on the seas either as a sailor or just travling, that you have gained new skills, and your patron has granted you new abilites to help you along your travels.
- Sailor at Heart
At 3rd level, you add your proficiency bonus to all rolls that have to do with sailing or the sea (this includes constelation, and knowing true north). You also gain Dark Vision of 60ft due to your many days sailing at night.
- Sailor's Endurance
At 6th level, your body has grown accustom to the harsh cool sea air. You gain resistance to cold damage. You can go a number of days without eating and sleeping equal to your constitution modifier without taking exhaustion, however if you go your full modifier amount of days without doing either you take two levels of exhaustion.
- Sailor's Bond
Your bond with your chosen bound weapon becomes something of legend. While you are taking a short or long rest, you rest peacefully as your patron extends its senses through your weapon to guard you while you sleep. At 10th level, while you sleep you can have your weapon keep guard for you, your weapon wakes you in times of trouble or unwanted intrusion. Also, when you strike with your bound weapon, you deal an additional 1d6 cold damage.
At 17th level, this cold damage increases to 2d6. Your tentacles now also add your wisdom modifier to their damage.
- Hurrican Aura
At 14th level, as a bonus action you cause the sky to darken as storm clouds begin to swell in the skies above for a 2 mile radius centered on you. Heavy rain begins to pour, and winds begin to pick up. But, around your body, this rain and wind is moving much faster in a 10ft radius as your body becomes the center of this Hurrican. Anyone who moves within 10ft of you or starts their turn within 10ft of you takes 2d6 cold damge and 2d6 bludgeoning damage. This ability lasts for 1 minute, and you must finish a long rest before using this ability again.
At 17th level, you gain fire resistance while this ability is active.
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