Serpent's Chosen (3.5e Soulmeld)

Author: Zhenra-Khal (talk) Date Created: 5/16/2017 Status: Complete Editing: Clarity edits only please

Low - Moderate - High - Very High

Rate this article Your rating for this article: Favor Like Neutral Dislike Oppose Submit | Cancel Discuss this article

Serpent's Chosen 

Descriptors: Acid, Healing

Classes: Any

Chakra: Brow, Crown, Feet, Hands

Saving Throw: DC= 10 + Essentia invested + relevant ability modifier; See text.

When you shape this soulmeld, your eyes become more mesmerizing, your canine teeth lengthen to sharp points, and your tongue becomes forked. You can call upon the power of snakes as used by shamans for centuries, the ability of these creatures both to harm and to heal.

When you shape this soulmeld, you gain the ability to utilize a serpentine spirit as a weapon. With the action normally required to draw a weapon, you can form a ghostly cobra-like serpent, coiled around your arm, head poised above your hand as if to strike. The cobra can spit a glob of venom as an attack option, dealing 1d4 acid damage as a ranged touch attack with a range increment of 15ft and a critical profile of 19-20/x2; Targets immune to poison are immune to the acid damage from this attack. On a successful critical hit, the target is affected by venom, able to make a Fortitude save against the DC of this Soulmeld or take 1 point of Constitution each round for 2 rounds, +1 round per point of Essentia invested; A successful save negates the poison that round.

After firing ten such globs of venom, the serpent's stores run dry. However, as a standard action, the can launch the venom-less ghostly serpent at a target as a ranged touch attack (Same range as the venom globs). If it hits, the target takes damage as if struck by a glob of venom and must make a Fortitude save or be Paralyzed for one round; Targets immune to poison or fear gain a +2 saving throw against this paralyzation and targets immune to both are immune to the paralyzation from this attack, even if not otherwise immune to paralyzation. Once the serpent has been thrown, it takes two full rounds for it to become available to "draw" as a weapon once more.

Essentia: For every point of Essentia invested in this Soulmeld, the weapon gain a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls.  

Chakra Bind (Crown)

Mending Spirits: As a standard action, you may fire a beam from the eyes of your ghostly at an ally with a ranged touch attack (60ft range). This grants the target Fast Healing 1 per point of Essentia invested in this soulmeld, lasting 5 rounds, and instantly cures any poison the target is under the effects of, as long as the DC for the poison is equal to or lower than the Soulmeld's save DC at the time. This ability can only be used once every 1d4 rounds, and using it on a target already affected by it merely resets the duration. This healing is not positive energy, but doesn't affect constructs or undead. 

Chakra Bind (Brow)

Dread Serpent: Once per encounter, you can call upon the spirits to instill fear in enemies. As a standard action that expends your serpent weapon, you can hurl a dark orb at any solid or liquid point in space within Medium range. Upon striking a creature, a barrier or the point it was aimed at, the orb explodes outward, creating a 30' sphere of effect. Within this effect, light is dimmed (Illumination becomes dim illumination but dim illumination doesn't become darkness) and all foes within the sphere must make a Will save or become Panicked; If the save is successful, they are only Frightened (Both effects lasting for 1 round, plus 1 round per point of Essentia invested). Either way, the targets run away from the center of the orb and can't re-enter the orb without triggering another saving throw. The orb lasts three rounds, plus one round per point of Essentia invested. As this is a [Mind-Affecting] [Fear] effect, some creatures will be immune to it, but Undead are not immune to this ability like they are other fear/Mind-Affecting effects. You cannot reform your serpent until one round after the Dread Serpent's duration has ended. 

Chakra Bind (Hands)

Venom Gourd: As a standard action, you can form your serpentine spirit-weapon into a gourd of venom, then throwing the gourd as part of the action (15ft range increment, but you only have to hit the square you're aiming at, which is usually AC 5). When the gourd strikes creature, barrier or ground, it shatters, coating a 20-foot radius with venom. Enemies within the area take 1d6 acid damage every round while they are within the gourd's area, with a Fortitude save for half, and of course, this acid effect is treated as poison and thus creatures with immunity or resistance to poison react as such. Allies within the gourd's venom are instead healed for 2d4 each round. The gourd's effect lasts one round for every glob of venom that was remaining in the spirit-serpent at the time of making the gourd, plus one round per point of Essentia invested. After the gourd has been thrown, you may re-form your serpent-weapon normally. 

Chakra Bind (Feet)

Slither: As a swift action or Immediate action, you may move up to your land speed in any direction, ignoring difficult terrain but not barriers. Until the beginning of your next turn, you are Incorporeal. This ability takes 5 round to "cool down" (If used as a Swift action) or 6 rounds (If used as an Immediate action).

Disclaimer

While this is based on the character Mal'Damba from the game 'Paladins: Champions of the Realm' by HiRez Studios, neither I nor D&DWiki owns the character, the game or anything related to either. All rights to the original owners, and if asked, I will take this down; I simply enjoy the character quite a lot and wished to find a way to play a similar character in D&D, hence the implementation you see here. Didn't know if this was required or not, but it's better to be safe than sorry. --Zhenra-Khal (talk) 00:27, 15 May 2017 (MDT)

---

Back to Main Page → 3.5e Homebrew → Class Ability Components → 3.5e Soulmelds