Runeseeker
Hit Points
Hit Dice: d8 per Runeseeker level
Hit Points at first Level: 8 + Constituion Modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d8 (or 6) + Constituion Modifer
Proficiences
Armor: Light Armor
Weapons: Simple Weapons and Light Crossbow
Tools: Calligripher's Supplies, Painter's Supplies
Saving Throws: Constituion and Intelligence
Skills: Choose 2 from: Arcana, History, Religion, Investigation, Insight, Perception, or Nature.
Overview & Creation
The young woman bends down, examining the small flower growing off the rock, smiling as she see's what others don't. The subtle lines that shimmer in the light, almost not there, minuscule in design, chaotic in form, sit around the flower. It's a rune. A rune that is allowing the flower to grow from a rock that it shouldn't be able to. The rough form of the rune shows it's clearly natural; imagine what a perfect rune of this sort could achieve. She draws on the ground, a light trail from her finger lightly sitting staying behind like an ink trail. When she finishes, a shine of light appears then her spellbook manifests, the rune below it smoking away. She grabs it and opens it, flipping to a blank page, sketching into it the shape she sees. After several minutes, she closes her book, satisfied. An excitement builds in her. She may have discovered a new rune! Only time will tell. Perhaps it's already been discovered long ago. Perhaps she just unlocked a secret to life.
A Yearning to Learn
Runeseeker's are artists and scholars combined. The magic they wield is the language of the universe, the underlying laws manifest in words and script. What draws a person to be a runeseeker is varied, but often it starts with a pursuit towards different magical research. Some truly are artists, attempting to grasp these shapes they sometimes see in the corner of their eye. As adventurers, many are seeking out new runic patterns, trying to learn more of the hidden language of the universe. Others simple use what they have discovered thus far to pursue other directions. Runeseeker's are spellcaster that harness the language of the world for spellcasting. As a spellcaster first, they generally stay to the back or side of combat. Even martial runeseekers prefer to engage enemies with spells warding them or allies drawing attention away.
Class Features
Runic Weapon
A runeseeker isn't limited to writing spells in a book, though that's an option. The versatile nature of runes allows a runeseeker to use many medium's for their spells. They must make a choice on how they choose to carry their runes and fight in combat. This choice drastically alters how a runeseeker will move through life.
You have a weapon that you enchanted with runes, or that you found or received already bearing ancient runes. Your runic weapon is indestructible and you can summon it as a bonus action on your turn, causing it to teleport instantly in your hand, once before you must take a short or long rest. If your body is your runic weapon, it does not benefit from the indestructible or summoning features, though runes on your body can never be permanently destroyed by mundane injuries or scars.
The runic weapon does not require attunement but you can only use one runic weapon at a time. The runic weapon doesn't count as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage until it gets it's first rune.
You cannot change your weapon without performing a long ritual, due to complex runes inscribed on your weapon and the bond you have forged with it. To change your runic weapon, you must devote a number of weeks equal to your proficiency bonus. Once completed, the old runic weapon will dissolve from the stress of the ritual. The new weapon cannot be magical in nature, but may be made of any material. The new Runic Weapon must match the category of weapon you chose at 1st level. For example, you can choose to switch from a longsword to a mace if you chose Martial Weapons, but not from a longsword to a heavy crossbow.
Archery
You inscribe your runes into a bow, crossbow, or other ranged weapon. You can cast runes while holding that weapon, even if it is two handed. Chose a ranged weapon. You are now proficient in that weapon if you weren't before. If you do not already own this weapon, you may sacrifice one item from your starting equipment choice to have this weapon.
Martial Weapons
You prefer to keep your runes on a melee weapon of some sort. Swords, mauls, and other melee weapons are your preference. You can cast runes while holding that weapon, even if it is two handed. Chose a melee weapon, you are now proficient in that weapon if your weren't before. If you do not already own this weapon, you may sacrifice one item from your starting equipment choice to have this weapon.
Book
You prefer the use of your book and knowledge over martial combat. When giving your runic weapon a permanent rune you may select 2 runes, but one must possess the "Bonus" tag and
must be applied to your Book.
You also immediately learn 4 cantrips from the Runeseeker's Spellcasting List. Your book deals 1d4 damage if used as a weapon and you are considered proficient with it for this sake.
Body
Your body will hold your runes. You will carve them into yourself or tattoo them on, feeling them on your body in every moment. You may use Dexterity instead of Strength for attack rolls and damage with unarmed strikes. Your strikes deal d4 damage starting at level one, raising to d6 at 5th level, d8 at 11th, and d10 at 17th. You may also perform a single second strike as a bonus action if your second hand is free.
Rune Casting
Studying and inscribing runes onto your weapon allows you to channel magic. These runes are extremely concise and your runic weapon has enough space to contain all your known spells, growing more and more covered in inscriptions as your repertoire expands. You choose spells from the
Runeseeker's spell list. See chapter 10 on the Player's Handbook for the general rules of spellcasting.
Though you can read all the runes on your runic weapon at any time, the act of channeling the essence of the cosmos through it is both mentally and physically exhausting, limiting how often you can cast between rests. All of your spells recharge on a short rest.
See Spellcasting for more information.
Carvings
Starting at 2nd level you discover new runes that behave different from the spells you learned before. These runes are used to enchant your runic weapon permanently with great powers. Your runic weapon gains one rune of your choice. Your enchanting rune options are detailed at the end of the class description. Once you have applied this rune to your Runic Weapon, it is considered magical for the sake of overcoming magical resistance.
You learn new enchanting runes again when you reach 4th, 7th, 9th, 12th, 15th, 17th and 20th level.
In addition, some runes may be focused on in order to unleash their full potential. As a Bonus Action, you can activate a rune you have carved on an object for 1 minute. You can do this a number of times equal to your Intelligence Modifier, a minimum of once, which remains activate for 1 minute. You regain expended uses of this feature, after a short rest. If you activate another rune on an object you are using, you lose the activated effects of the previous rune.
If you know more runes than you can place on an object, you can trade Runes on a Long rest.
Archtype - Runic Languages
When you reach 3rd level, your knowledge of runes reaches new levels. You have learned how to speak, write, and sign the hidden language. Choose The Written Word, The Spoken Word, or The Silent Word, all detailed below. You gain a feature based on your choice at 3rd level, and again at 7th, 10th, and 15th level.
Extra Attack
Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.
If you chose
Book as your martial style, then you instead add your Wisdom modifier to the damage you deal with any runeseeker cantrip
Runescrolls
At 6th level, your practice writing Runes onto objects has given you a rudimentary ability to create scroll like objects with your spells. In a ritual that takes 10 minutes, you can transcribe a spell you know onto a piece of parchment, a small stone, or other simple objects, expending a spell slot in the process. The spell will have a soft glow with a rune on it. This runescroll can be activated by any character that you show it too, or by a character that succeeds at an Arcana check against your spellcasting modifier.
You can create a number of scrolls equal to your Intelligence modifier, with each scroll lasting the same number of hours. A mild energy connecting you keeping the power of the runes from outright destroying the medium. If you are ever rendered unconscious or go to sleep, the runescrolls will dissipate, destroying their medium as well. While a scroll you have created exists, the spell slot used to make it cannot recover.
Eyes of the Rune Keeper
When you reach 9th level your knowledge of ancient written languages reaches its peak. You can read all standard, exotic, and dead written languages and may attempt to read hidden languages, such as druidic, but not code language like Thieves Cant. This does not allow you to speak them. In addition, any spell that relies on a written symbol or word is instantly understood by you, allowing you to know what spell it is and what the meaning is behind the message.
Expanded Runecarvings
Starting at level 11, you have learned how to carve down Runes onto objects beyond your weapon. When you gain this feature, choose a category that you do not know how to carve on:
- Archery - This includes all Ranged Weapons that are not their own ammunition,
- Armor - Any Light, Medium, or Heavy Armor,
- Body - Your own physical body but no one else,
- Book - A book, such as a diary or spellbook,
- Clothing - Any clothing, to include robes, jewelry, helms, boots, and gloves,
- Martial - Melee weapons, or
- Shields - Any buckler, shield, or other defensive item on your arms
You can now carve runes on any item that matches that type of object, but the same restrictions as your Runic Weapon apply; the item cannot be magical in nature, but can otherwise be made of any material. Additionally, while you can use these items freely, any other person attempting to use them must attune to it, but cannot activate any runes on it, only benefiting from the passive abilities. You may activate runes on objects you created that others are using, following the same limitations as activating an object you are carrying. You can break a user's attunement with any object you created with this ability by a simple touch, and can instantly recognize any object as one you created.
If you carve on a book, the ability to gain additional bonus runes does not apply.
When you gain this feature, you can immediately change your runes to freely carve into a new object matching the category you have chosen. No object may have more runes than half the number on your runic weapon, rounded down. For example, if you have 4 runes on your runic weapon, any other object may have only up to 2 runes on it.
When you gain this feature again at 13th and 15th level, you choose new categories for each and can change runes freely once more.
Fading Runes
At 18th level, your Runescrolls you have can now last for up to twice your Int Modifier, no longer dissipating when you are unconscious or asleep. Runescrolls do not use up a spell slot either, allowing you to fully recover your spell slots while taking a short rest, though they still require a spell slot to create. You are still limited to a number of runescrolls equal to your Intelligence Modifier.
Perfected Runes
When you reach 20th level you learn how to carve runes with such perfection that they behave flawlessly. Any Runes you carve with a die associated with it immediately maximizes and you become aware of all runes, swapping them whenever you have the time dedicated to perform the appropriate ritual.
Starting Equipment
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:
- (a) one simple weapon and a quarterstaff or (b) a shortbow and 20 arrows,
- (a) Leather armor or (b) Padded armor,
- (a) A component pouch or (b) An arcane focus,
- and (a) An explorer's pack or (b) A diplomat's pack.
Spellcasting
Studying and inscribing runes onto your weapon allows you to channel the underlying magic of the universe through it. These runes are extremely concise and your runic weapon has enough space to contain all your known spells, growing more and more covered in inscriptions as your repertoire expands. You choose spells from the runeseeker spell list. See chapter 10 on the Player's Handbook for the general rules of spellcasting.
Runic Weapon as a Spellbook
When you get rune casting at 1st level, your runic weapon contains two1st-level runeseeker spells of your choice. The spells that you add to your runic weapon as you gain levels are each in the form of few specific runic characters coming from the research you conduct around ruins and in libraries, as well as from intellectual breakthroughs you have had about the way the runic characters interact.
You might find other spells during your adventures. You could discover a runic spell recorded on the grave of an ancient mage king, for example, or out of luck on a pebble on the side of a river, or on the sword of an evil runeseeker you just defeated. Copying a spell into the runic weapon works exactly like a wizard spellbook minus the gold expense, but you can't replace your runic weapon nor lose it.
Spells known of 1st Level and Higher
At 1st level, you know two 1sl-level spells of your choice from the runeseeker spell list. The Spells Known column of the Runeseeker table shows when you learn more runeseeker spells of your choice of 1st level and higher. A spell you choose must be of a level no higher than what's shown in the table's Spell Level column for your level. When you reach 6th level, for example, you learn a new runeseeker spell, which can be 1st, 2nd, or 3rd level. Additionally, when you gain a level in this class, you can choose one of the runeseeker spells you know and replace it with another spell from the runeseeker spell list, which also must be of a level for which you have spell slots.
Spell Slots
The Runeseeker table shows how many spell slots you have. The table also shows what the level of those slots is; all of your spell slots are the same level. To cast one of your runeseeker spells of 1st level or higher, you must expend a spell slot. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a short or long rest. For example, when you are 5th level, you have two 3rd-level spell slots. To cast the 1st-level spell thunderwave, you must spend one of those slots, and you cast it as a 3rd-level spell.
Spellcasting Ability
Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for your runeseeker spells; your understanding of the theory behind magic allows you to wield these spells with superior skill. You use your Intelligence whenever a runeseeker spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Intelligence modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a runeseeker spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.
Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier
Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your intelligence modifier
Ritual Casting
You can cast a runeseeker spell as a ritual if that spell has the ritual tag and you have the spell in your spellbook. You don’t need to have the spell prepared.
Spellcasting Focus
Your runic weapon counts as spellcasting focus for you. You cannot cast spells without your weapon on your person.
Somatic Components
You can perform the somatic components while holding your runic weapon in your hand, even if it is 2-handed. You cannot cast spells with somatic components if the weapon you are holding is not your runic weapon, even if it's the same style weapon.
Subclass Options
At 3rd level, you have learned enough of the runic language of the cosmos that you realize it would be impossible to learn all in one life. You choose to specialize with one of the three forms of language.
The Written Word
Forgoing the more exotic forms of the universe's natural language, you continue to delve into the runes that exist in the world, shaping and forming the runes in a very physical way. When you cast spells, you no longer need a verbal or component aspect of the spell. To cast a spell, you need only a medium to draw on.
Sigil Casting
Starting at 3rd level, you no longer need mundane components or vocal components to cast spells. If a spells requires a component with a cost, that component is still required. Casting a spell with runes requires a surface to draw on, such as parchment, chalkboard, or even sand. The casting time for these runes is the same as traditional casting.
In addition, you gain the ability to draw runes in the air to cast your spells. Casting in this manner makes it impossible for anyone other than another Runeseeker to identify the spell until it is already cast. It also removes the need for any medium to cast on. You can still cast in a traditional method, but cannot take advantage of runic abilities requiring Sigil Casting and will need all traditional requirements.
While the floating script will take on an appearance of your desire, it will always glow in a manner that is visible to others even in light. The sigil, while being draw, produces bright light in a 5 foot radius and dim light 5 feet beyond that. You can cast in this manner a number of times a day equal to your spell slots, regaining uses on a short or long rest.
Transient Runes
Starting at 6th level, you have learned to draw the runes you have on your equipment onto the equipment of others. A number of times equal to your intelligence modifier, you can draw a rune that is present on one of your pieces of equipment onto another piece of equipment. This takes a single action to do, but the runes only last a minute at a time. You can draw these runes again after a short rest.
Quill and Parchment Rune
At 10th level, you gain a unique Rune called "Quill and Parchment". The effects are determined by the type of weapon chosen:
Archery or Martial - Your weapon can polymorph into a writing utensil and medium of your desire, such as chalk and board or pen and paper. While they can take any form of your desire, they will always be of a size usable to you, changing sizes as you do. When changed back into a weapon, all writing is lost.
Anything written on this page and read will have the impression of authenticity, giving advantage on Persuasion checks on those that read the words.
Book - Your book becomes a labyrinth of infinite pages. You will always find a blank page in the book as you need it, with a seemingly endless number of pages to use. When searching your book, the pages you are looking for, if they exist, will be found immediately, no matter the page you flip to. Others will only get random, usually blank, pages and cannot use the book, even other runeseekers.
In addition, your book will transcribe events in your life as long as it is on your person. If you can remember the event in enough detail, you can find the page describing the event, giving essentially perfect recall.
Body - The Runes on your body move and shift in subtle ways. You can will them to take patterns of your desire. For non-ritual spells you can create runes to cast from the preexisting tattoos or scars on your body. These spell runes will disperse and return to normal afterwards. You can also create images and words, at will, on any place of your body that has scarring or tattoos.
You can use the tattoos to give an unusual pattern over your skin, scales, or fur, giving you advantage to any Disguise check you perform.
Held Runes
At 10th level, you can draw one rune in the air and hold on to it if it was cast with Sigil Casting. This rune will hover around you in a slow orbit for 1 minutes before dissipating, or if a character casts
Dispel Magic on it of the appropriate level. You may use a reaction to cast the spell at any time. You can only hold one rune in this manner at a time.
Rune Charging
At 14th level, you have learned to empower all runes that are connected to you. You can expend a spell slot to charge all runes connected to you. For 1 minute, damage from runic sources and AC bonuses add your Intelligence Modifier. Ranges and speed increase 5 ft. for every point in your Intelligence Modifier, and any duration's that would normally expire continue until this effect ends.
These features extend to runes you have placed on allies with
Transient Runes and spells cast with Runescrolls.
The Spoken Word
You have chosen to forgo the written language of the world, and instead speak them, telling the world how to shape directly. No longer needing to wave your hands and burn incense, you simply utter the ancient language and see your desires fulfilled.
Verbal Casting
At 3rd level, you no longer need mundane components or somatic components to cast spells. If a spell requires a priced component, that is still required. Casting a spell through Verbal Casting requires the ability to speak, so being silenced removes the ability to cast in this manner. Concentration spells now require you to continually mutter the spell to retain their effects, though a minimal break for additional spells can be tolerated. You can still cast in a traditional method, but cannot take advantage of runic abilities requiring Verbal Casting and traditional casting needs all traditional requirements.
In addition, any spell that requires you to have sight of a target only requires that target be able to hear you, even if they cannot understand you. If the target cannot hear, it cannot be target by this effect.
Infused Words
Starting at 6th level, the power of your words is so powerful that you can temporarily warp reality to your benefit. Your words can cause the spell effect
Prestidigitation and
Thaumaturgy without casting it. Your voice allows you to
Charm or cause
Fear in targets you attempt to Persuade or Intimidate. You can provide a
Help Action with your voice if you would have been able to help anyway.
Banshee Rune
At 10th level, you gain a unique rune called "Banshee". Your weapon of choice will emit a constant, quite, pleasing tune to all those that can hear it within a 15 feet radius. The effects are determined by the type of weapon chosen:
Archery, Martial, or Body - Your weapon vibrates and emits a screech as it strikes an opponent, at will, a number of times a day equal to your Intelligence modifier. Each successful strike requires them to roll a Constitution savings throw against your Spell Save DC. On a failure, they become stunned for 1 turn and deafened for 1 minute. This ability restores on a long rest.
Book - Your book holds the voice's of a choir trapped within it. Once a day, recharging after a short rest, you may open it to release the voices in a single burst of a 30 foot cone. Each creature in this cone must make a Constitution Save against your Spell Save DC. On a failure, they become stunned for 1 turn and deafened for 1 minute.
Cosmic Words
Starting at 10th level, you can now understand and speak every language, including hidden and lost languages. You do not know these languages however, and cannot teach them. You also cannot read these languages through this ability. In addition, your voice can be expertly thrown from any source, up to 60 feet away, and you can distort it in any means. You can replicate any person's voice you are familiar with, and attempt to replicate a voice you have heard in the last 24 hours.
Echos of Power
At 14th level, once between long rests, you may choose a spell cast through Verbal Casting, with a casting time of 1 action, and does not require concentration. That spell echoes out weaker and weaker after it's first cast. Before your turn on each round after the initial casting, your spell is recast at 1 lower level, you choose the origin point of the echo, but it must be at least 15 feet away from it's last location and must be within 120 feet of you.
After it casts at level 1, this effect ends.
The Silent Word
There are many ways of communicating beyond writing and speaking. You've learned this and embraced it. You have learned, through dance, signing, or some other form of gesturing, how to cast spells purely somaticly.
Hand Runes
You no longer need a component pouch or to speak the verbal parts of spells to cast them. If a spell requires components that have a value, you must still expend those specific components in order to cast them. You now cast spells through movement. While you choose the nature of the movements, they are typically done through hand gestures, dance, or some form of complex contortion.
Casting for you is now purely somatic spell. As such, your spells are naturally silent while casting. You must use at least one hand to cast in this manner if the casting time is 1 action or less. If the casting time is greater than 1 action, it will require both hands, which cannot be occupied by anything but your runic weapon.
Runic spells now require that at least 1 hand be used to continually hold the concentration. If you use the hand concentrating to grab something, you break the concentration, but can otherwise do momentary actions, such as shoving or dodging, without penalty.
Muscle Memory Casting
Your hand gestures or movements have become so ingrained in your muscle memory that you can cast brilliantly fast. Starting at 6th Level, spells that have a casting time greater than 1 turn require only half the time to cast. Spells with a casting time of 1 turn can be cast as a bonus action, but you cannot cast a second spell in this manner unless you could normally.
Hush Rune
At 10th level, you gain a unique rune called "Hush". The effects are determined by the type of weapon chosen:
Archery, Martial, or Book - Your weapon acts as a permanent source of a 5 foot
Silence Spell. It cannot be turned off but ceases to function if the weapon is polymorphed, sheathed, or closed. If you become large in size, the radius will grow to cover your entire person.
Body - You emit a small bubble of silence within a 5 foot radius of you. No sound leaves this bubble, much like the
Silence spell, but you can hear noises coming in, though slightly muffled. This gives you an advantage on all Stealth checks but a disadvantage on Perception checks requiring hearing. You can deactivate this rune at will, but it will revert back on when you are knocked unconscious or go to sleep.
Eternal Casting
At 10th level, any spell that requires concentration can be held beyond it's duration through immense effort. A spell can be held up to twice its duration, but causes a point of Exhaustion and reduces your movement to 0 if you go beyond the natural length. In addition, any time you would be forced to make a Concentration Check, you do so at disadvantage.
War Focus
At 14th Level, you have become so in-tuned to the somatic language of the universe that you can make the movements to cast spells without any thought. As long as you hold only a single concentration spell, you do not need to make concentration checks.
With this focus, you can hold an additional concentration spell by using each hand to hold the spell. Holding two concentration spells in this manner will take your action each turn to focus on both.
| Proficiency | Runes | | Spells | Spell | Spell |
|---|
| Level | Bonus | Known | Features | Known | Slots | Level |
| 1st | +2 | 0 | Runic Weapon, Rune Casting | 2 | 1 | 1st |
| 2nd | +2 | 1 | Carvings | 3 | 2 | 1st |
| 3rd | +2 | 1 | Archtype | 4 | 2 | 2nd |
| 4th | +2 | 2 | Ability Score Improvment | 5 | 2 | 2nd |
| 5th | +3 | 2 | Extra Attack | 6 | 2 | 3rd |
| 6th | +3 | 2 | Archtype Feature, Runescrolls | 7 | 2 | 3rd |
| 7th | +3 | 3 | --- | 8 | 2 | 4th |
| 8th | +3 | 3 | Ability Score Improvement | 9 | 2 | 4th |
| 9th | +4 | 4 | Eyes of the Runeseeker | 10 | 2 | 5th |
| 10th | +4 | 4 | Archtype Feature | 10 | 2 | 5th |
| 11th | +4 | 4 | Expanded Runecarving | 11 | 3 | 5th |
| 12th | +4 | 5 | Ability Score Improvment | 11 | 3 | 5th |
| 13th | +5 | 5 | Expanded Carving | 12 | 3 | 5th |
| 14th | +5 | 5 | Archtype Feature | 12 | 3 | 5th |
| 15th | +5 | 6 | Expanded Runecarving | 13 | 3 | 5th |
| 16th | +5 | 6 | Ability Score Improvment | 13 | 3 | 5th |
| 17th | +6 | 7 | --- | 14 | 4 | 5th |
| 18th | +6 | 7 | Fading Runes | 14 | 4 | 5th |
| 19th | +6 | 7 | Ability Score Improvment | 15 | 4 | 5th |
| 20th | +6 | 8 | Perfected Runes | 15 | 4 | 5th |
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