Voodun Domain (5e Subclass)

Voodun (Sacrifice) Domain

Cleric Subclass

Voodun (Sacrifice) Domain

To pay proper homage to Voodoo religion a quote from Encyclopedia Britannica "Vodou, also spelled Voodoo, Voudou, Vodun, or French Vaudou, a religion practiced in Haiti. Vodou is a creolized religion forged by descendants of Dahomean, Kongo, Yoruba, and other African ethnic groups who had been enslaved and brought to colonial Saint-Domingue (as Haiti was known then) and Christianized by Roman Catholic missionaries in the 16th and 17th centuries. The word Vodou means “spirit” or “deity” in the Fon language of the African kingdom of Dahomey (now Benin)... The primary goal and activity of Vodou is to sevi lwa (“serve the spirits”)—to offer prayers and perform various devotional rites directed at God and particular spirits in return for health, protection, and favour. Spirit possession plays an important role in Afro-Haitian religion, as it does in many other world religions. During religious rites, believers sometimes enter a trancelike state in which the devotee may eat and drink, perform stylized dances, give supernaturally inspired advice to people, or perform medical cures or special physical feats; these acts exhibit the incarnate presence of the lwa within the entranced devotee. Vodou ritual activity (e.g., prayer, song, dance, and gesture) is aimed at refining and restoring balance and energy in relationships between people and between people and the spirits of the unseen world." https://www.britannica.com/topic/Vodou

The Voodun/Sacrifice domain focuses on the potent boundaries between light and dark and has no fear to take living forces from one place to heal or enhance the powers of something else. The gods of Sacrifice promote a balance of duality and an accepted understanding of suffering in the cosmos as well as those who attain true power must pay a price whether from their own or from loved ones. A Host of good, neutral and evil intermediate and lesser deities are invoked and deals must be struck with these entities like Baron Samedi, Papa Legba, Bondye, Mama Bridgette, Damballa, Zaca, Loco, Kalfu and Ayida. On the other hand the Voodun domain followers will serve their community with fertility rites and curing diseases and crafting wards of protection from evil magic.

To the outside view of the Voodun some people might see their magic as flirting with evil but inside their communities the dark aspect of their magic is generally used to meet out punishments to vicious criminals who owe them a debt of blood. Hence a Zombie servant must have done something terrible in life to be forced to work in sugarcane plantations until they fall apart or carry the voodun around on a ivory sedan into battle.

Voodun/Sacrifice Domain Spells Cleric Level Spells:

1st.) Inflict Wounds, cure wounds

3rd.) Augury, Animate Dead

5th.) Vampiric Touch, Bestow Curse

7th.) death ward, Banishment

9th.) mass Inflict wounds, raise dead

Bonus Proficiency When you choose this domain at 1st level, you can spontaneously cast from Sacrifice Domain. Also your Cleric can now have a familiar (Find Familiar) but your Cleric can only use armor and weapons made from bones, silk, hide or wood (basically anything organic and now dead). If your Cleric crafts a Fetish they can now cast touch attack and healing spells at a range of 30 feet but at level 12 it can be up to 60 feet.. A Fetish can be a shrunken head of an enemy, a doll sewed up to represent a god or person, or a wand that is the mummified limb of some animal or carved wooden totem that can be held in one hand. The Voodun Domain cleric can use a shield as well giving them extra protection.

Disciple of Voodoo. Also starting at 1st level, your healing spells are more effective. You can upcast your healing spells by sacrificing life instead of burning spell slots, the amount healed is the amount of necrotic damage your Cleric takes to cast your healing spells at a higher level. Also Vampiric Touch, Inflict Wounds and Harm; actual heal health and Vampiric Touch heals equal to damage dealt, Inflict wounds heals hp equal to half of damage taken, this healing from both spells can be sent to another ally and not just Cleric. The Cleric can also sacrifice animals to upcast a spell as well, Tiny creature is one level, Small or medium is two levels, large or sentient creature is three levels.

Channel Divinity: Sacrifice of Life

Starting at 2nd level, you can use your Channel Divinity to redirect damage to minions, yourself and or allies if they wish.

As an action, Instead of sacrificing your character's health you can use any undead minion or even your familiar's hp instead to cast Cure wounds or Healing word at a higher level. The cleric can even choose to divide damage done to oneself and one minion or ally of choice. A Minion or Familiar can also be sacrificed to cast Revivify on a dead ally. The Cleric can also sacrifice animals to redirect the sacrificial damage, Tiny animal sacrifice absorbs 15hp damage, Small or medium animal sacrifice absorbs 30hp damage, large animal or sentient absorbs 50hp damage.

Sacred Blood Beginning at 6th level, When allies are healed from Inflict wounds, Vampiric touch or Harm now your cleric can also be healed for same amount and vice versa. The Cleric can choose to instead heal one of his Familiars or even an undead minion in this way.

Empowered Fetish At 8th level, you gain the ability add your wisdom modifier to the damage of cantrips. The Cleric can now replace his cantrips with cantrips from the Wizard spell list. The Voodun Domain Cleric can add a standard melee attack as a bonus action while casting a cantrip.

Serpents of the Light Starting at 17th level, when you would normally roll one or more dice to damage with an inflict, vampiric touch, harm spell instead you use the highest number possible for each die. For example, instead of dealing 3d10 necrotic damage with Inflict wounds to a creature, you deal 30 damage to one creature and heal 30hp and an ally is also healed 30hp. The damage inflicted to creatures by these spells can now be changed to Poison, Fire, Cold, Lightning, Radiant or Thunder.

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