Mesmerist (5e Class)
Mesmerist
Mesmerist are magical duelists who wield deception as a weapon. Using powerful illusions, clones, and phantasmal magic to ensure that their enemies can’t believe their own eyes, mesmerist tip the balance of every fight in their favor.
Creating a Mesmerist
- Quick Build
You can make a mesmerist quickly by following these suggestions. First, Charisma should be your highest ability score, followed by Constitution or Dexterity. Second, choose the Charlatan background.
Class Features
As a Mesmerist you gain the following class features.
- Hit Points
Hit Dice: 1d8 per Mesmerist level
Hit Points at 1st Level: 8 + Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d8 (or 5) + Constitution modifier per Mesmerist level after 1st
- Proficiencies
Armor: Light armor
Weapons: All weapons
Tools: Artisan's tools and Thieves tools
Saving Throws: Constitution, Charisma
Skills: Choose 3 from: Arcana, Deception, History, Insight, Investigation, Perception, Persuasion
- Equipment
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:
- Leather Armor
- (a) Rapier or (b) Any simple weapon
- (a) 3 daggers or (b) Light crossbow with 15 bolts
- (a) A diplomat's pack or (b) An entertainer's pack
| Level | Proficiency Bonus | Features | Cantrips Known | Spells Known | —Spell Slots per Spell Level— | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | |||||
| 1st | +2 | Clones, Soul Mask | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2nd | +2 | Mesmerizing Voice | 3 | 4 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 3rd | +2 | Reflect Fear | 3 | 5 | 4 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 4th | +2 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | 6 | 4 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 5th | +3 | Shatter | 4 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 6th | +3 | Hamstring Mind | 4 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 7th | +3 | Transposition, Misapprehension | 4 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 8th | +3 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 9th | +4 | Illusionary Hide | 4 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | — |
| 10th | +4 | Misdirection | 5 | 12 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — |
| 11th | +4 | Vanish | 5 | 13 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — |
| 12th | +4 | Ability Score Improvement | 5 | 13 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — |
| 13th | +5 | Phase Retreat | 5 | 14 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | — | — |
| 14th | +5 | Master Manipulator | 5 | 14 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | — | — |
| 15th | +5 | Enduring Image | 5 | 15 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — |
| 16th | +5 | Ability Score Improvement | 5 | 15 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — |
| 17th | +6 | — | 5 | 16 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 18th | +6 | Entrapment | 5 | 16 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 19th | +6 | Ability Score Improvement | 5 | 16 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 20th | +6 | Master Of Illusions | 5 | 16 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
Spellcasting
See chapter 10 for the general rules of spellcasting.
- Cantrips
At 1st level, you know two cantrips of your choice from the wizard spell list. You learn additional wizard cantrips of your choice at higher levels, as shown in the Cantrips Known column of the Mesmerist table.
- Spell Slots
The Mesmerist table shows how many spell slots you have per level. To cast one of these Mesmerist spells, you must expend a slot of the spell’s level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest.
- Spellcasting Ability
Charisma is the spellcasting ability modifier for your spells. You use your Charisma whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability modifier. In addition, you use your Charisma modifier when setting the Spell Saving DC and Spell attack bonus of your abilities.
Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier
Spell attack modifier= your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier
- Spellcasting Focus
You can use any weapon you are proficient with as a spellcasting focus for your Mesmerist spells.
Clones
Starting at 1st level, you can make an illusionary copy of yourself as a bonus action. You must maintain concentration as if it were a spell. As an action you may resummon clones that were defeated in battle recently.
Clones can spawn to a distance of 5 feet times half of your mesmerist level.
Your clones' Armor Class is equal to your AC during the time you summoned them; they will always have 1 hit point.
Clones have their own set of actions. They use the same attack roll, but roll damage individually. However, any bonuses given to you is halved (rounded down, minimum of 1) to them, and magical items turn into its mundane counterpart instead (e.g. legendary sword becomes a normal sword, a healing potion becomes an empty flask, a grimoire becomes an unwritten book). If they use weapons with ammunition, the ammo disappears after use.
They are able to pass through each other, but not through walls and other solid objects.
They are considered as magical, but they cannot cast spells. They can be dispelled by a dispel magic spell so long as the caster targets you instead of your illusions. The DC is your Spell Save DC.
When outside of combat, your clones can attempt to support a creature from doing skill checks. The target creature gets an advantage to their roll regardless of how many clones are participating.
Allies cannot heal the clones nor give buffs to increase their maximum Hit Points by any means, but they can grant them Temporary Hit Points and other bonuses instead. However, they can only benefit half (rounded down, minimum of 1) from its effects.
The number of clones that can be created at a time is equal to your Charisma modifier. More than 1 clone can be summoned with the same action.
A creature can not tell the difference between you and your clones unless it passes an Intelligence saving throw against your Spell save DC.
Soul Masks
Starting at 1st level, you gain a soul mask that functions as a magical headpiece which cannot be attuned to anyone other than yourself. Upon creating your mask, you determine the appearance of your mask when unequipped. While wearing the mask, it appears to blur with your face, faintly enhancing or adding features to your appearance.
At 1st level, you can select a Charisma based skill and add proficiency in that skill, or expertise if you are already proficient in it.
Upon reaching 6th level, you can elect to either gain proficiency (or expertise if relevant) in another Charisma based skill, or gain advantage on roll checks of a previously chosen skill. Alternative: You can choose to gain advantage in your Charisma saving throws.
Upon reaching 14th level, you can elect to either gain proficiency (or expertise if relevant) in another Charisma based skill, or gain advantage on roll checks of a previously chosen skill. Alternative: You can choose to increase your clones’ elusiveness and add +2 to their AC
Mesmerizing Voice
By speaking to a creature for a length of time, your voice can cause them to fall into a lull, dulling their senses and making them more pliable to your demands. At 2nd level, if you speak to a humanoid for up to a minute about any subject, they must succeed on a Intelligence save against your spell save DC or become charmed by you, and have disadvantage on perception checks. This effect ends after one hour, if the target takes any damage, or if it witnesses you attacking or damaging any of its allies. Even if the target succeeds on the saving throw, it has no hint that you tried to charm it. Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Reflect Fear
Upon reaching 3rd level, you may reflect fear back upon your enemies. Upon succesfully making a saving throw against an effect that would cause you to be frightened, you may reflect that fear upon the source of that ability as a reaction. The target must make the same saving throw against the same DC, or become Frightened (with you as the source) for the normal duration of the effect, along with any other effects inherent within the spell.
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.
Shatter
You improve to utilize the effectiveness of your clones. Starting at 5th level, your clones have the following features and can only be used once until a short rest:
- Mind Wrack
As an action or reaction, active clones can explode with psychic energy in a 10ft radius. Enemies caught in this radius must make an Intelligence saving throw versus the Spellcasters DC or suffer 1d4 + Charisma mod psychic damage. Creatures may be dealt multiple instances of this damage by the same saving throw if they are within overlapping areas of effect. The damage increases to 3d4 at 10th level and 4d4 at 15th level, and 5d4 at 20th level.
- Cry of Frustration
As an action or reaction, active clones can explode into mist engulfing a 15ft radius centered around them. Enemies caught in this must make an Intelligence saving throw versus the Spellcasters DC or suffer the effects of the Confusion spell.
- Daze
As an action or reaction, active clones can explode into a wave of psychic energy effecting a 10ft radius centered around them. Enemies caught in this must make an Intelligence saving throw versus the Spellcasters DC or become stunned. At the end of each of its turns, the target can repeat the saving throw. On a success, the effect ends.
Hamstring Mind
The mind is such a fragile thing, and so easily crushed if one simply knows what buttons to push. At 6th level, you may use a bonus action to force a creature to make an Intelligence saving throw or gain disadvantage on their next Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma saving throws until the end of your current turn. This ability recharges upon finishing a long rest.
Transposition
At 7th level you have learned how to confuse your enemies with limited teleportation magics. Once per turn, as a bonus action you may switch places with an existing clone that you can see.
Misapprehension
At 7th level, whenever a creature makes an attack against you or one of your clones, you may use your reaction to have every clone within range of the attacker make a melee attack against that creature. Each of these attacks deals an additional 1d6 psychic damage if they hit.
Illusionary Hide
At 9th level, you have become a master of deception. You may cast the spell disguise self at will. Additionally when you cast spells that alter your appearance, these spells affect your clones as well.
Misdirection
At 10th level, you can now see and gain line of sight from the perspective of your clones, you gain the ability to focus your spells through your clones. You may cast your spells as though they originated from your clone. If you cast a damaging spell this way, you may add your Charisma modifier to the damage.
Vanish
At 11th level, you gain the ability to vanish, leaving a clone behind. As an action, you may become invisible, leaving a clone behind as you do so. The invisibility breaks if you take any action other than creating more clones.
Phase Retreat
You learn to act quickly to escape deadly situations. Starting at 13th level, you can use a reaction to negate a fatal damage and teleport away. The attack's damage is reduced to zero and you teleport up to 10 x your Charisma modifier feet away. You regain use of this feature after you finish a long rest.
Master Manipulator
At 14th level, your knowledge of the mind deepens, allowing you to implant suggestions within creatures that they do not recall. As part of speaking to a creature for one minute, you may cast upon them the Suggestion spell without expending a spell slot. On a failed saving throw, the creature has no recollection that you were the one who suggested they do the deed. You may attempt use this on a creature only once every 24 hours. Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Enduring Image
Starting at 15th level, you have practiced to hold your concentration better, even in the hardest of times. As a reaction, you can choose to spend three hit dies to keep one illusion from disappearing unwillingly, maintaining any buffs applied to that illusion. Additionally, you gain +2 bonus in your Constitution saving throws for every three hit dies spent, and lasts for 1 hour.
Entrapment
At 18th level, the knowledge you have gained allows you to cause creatures to explain themselves when they would wish to divulge no information whatsoever. By speaking to a creature for one minute, you may force them to roll Intelligence and Charisma saving throws. Should one saving throw fail, they inadvertently tell you some minor secret. Should both saving throws fail, instead they divulge a major secret, and do not recall telling you it. You may attempt use this on a creature only once every 24 hours. Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Master Of Illusions
At 20th level, controlling clones become effortless. You may now summon clones as a free action. When you cast a spell using a spell slot, you can expend your bonus action and a spell slot of the same level to have your clone cast the same spell simultaneously. The clone ignores the spell’s usual casting time and components, and you may have it choose a different target if able. You may expend multiple spell slots if able to have additional clones cast the same spell.
You know all of the spells on the basic spell list and additional spells based on your subclass.
- 1st Level
<!-1st level spell list->
- 2nd Level
<!-2nd level spell list->
- 3rd Level
<!-3rd level spell list->
- 4th Level
<!-4th level spell list->
- 5th Level
<!-5th level spell list->
Multiclassing
Prerequisites. To qualify for multiclassing into the mesmerist class, you must meet these prerequisites: Constitution 13, Charisma 13
Proficiencies. When you multiclass into the mesmerist class, you gain the following proficiencies: Light Armor, Simple Weapons
Back to Main Page → 5e Homebrew → Classes