Homebrew:The Undying (Remastered)
(OOC: This is an implementation of The Undying subclass from Tasha's Crucible of Everything Else volume 1)
Base Class: Warlock
This subclass rebalances and reenvisions the Undying Otherworldy Patron found in the Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide.
Why These Changes?
A Note from the Designer
The original Undying warlock has a unique narrative: you are hard to kill, and when you’re around your allies are hard to kill. You are a master of death, undeath, and life. The issue is that, compared to classes and subclasses with a similar narrative, you aren’t very good at your job.
For one example, you learn the spare the dying cantrip at 1st level. The Grave cleric also learns this cantrip at 1st level, but can cast it as a bonus action with a range of 30 feet. For you, it takes an action and has a range of touch. This means the Grave cleric can contribute to the battle in other ways, in addition to stabilizing dying allies.
At higher levels, the original Undying warlock is also significantly weaker than its Player’s Handbook or Xanathar’s Guide to Everything counterparts. While the other subclasses get immunity to common conditions (e.g. the Archfey and the charmed condition) or resistance to damage types (e.g. the Fiend, the Great Old One, or the Celestial), Undying warlocks don’t need to eat, drink, or sleep, and can hold their breath as long as they are conscious. While that is certainly useful in some circumstances, it is not as frequently useful as, say, the Fiend’s ability to gain resistance to bludgeoning damage.
As for the 14th-level feature, the Undying warlock can regain a number of hit points equal to about 4 + its warlock level. This is similar to casting cure wounds on yourself as a 4th-level spell. The Celestial warlock gets a similar ability at 10th level, but can simultaneously give about half as many temporary hit points to nearby allies. At 14th level, the Fiend warlock gets a feature that is the equivalent of a 6th level damaging spell.
This remastered version aims to bring the Undying warlock up to snuff with other warlock subclasses or subclasses with a similar narrative in the following ways:
- Empowers your Undying Nature feature to be as useful as most other 10th-level warlock subclass features.
- Minor adjustments to the Among the Dead, Defy Death, and Expanded Spell List features to better enable your ability to keep your allies alive.
- Replaces your Indestructible Life feature with a different mechanic that better fits the narrative that you are very hard to kill.
Expanded Spell List
1st-level The Undying (Remastered) feature
The Undying lets you choose from an expanded list of spells when you learn a warlock spell. The following spells are added to the warlock spell list for you.
| Spell Level | Spells |
|---|---|
| 1st | false life, ray of sickness |
| 2nd | blindness/deafness, silence |
| 3rd | feign death, revivify |
| 4th | aura of life, death ward |
| 5th | legend lore, raise dead |
Among the Dead
1st-level The Undying (Remastered) feature
You learn the spare the dying cantrip, which counts as a warlock cantrip for you. It does not count against the number of warlock cantrips you know. For you, it has a range of 30 feet, and you can cast it as a bonus action.
Additionally, undead have difficulty harming you. If an undead targets you directly with an attack or a harmful spell, that creature must make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC (an undead needn’t make the save when it includes you in an area effect, such as the explosion of fireball). On a failed save, the creature must choose a new target or forfeit targeting someone instead of you, potentially wasting the attack or spell. On a successful save, the creature is immune to this effect for 24 hours. An undead is also immune to this effect for 24 hours if you target it with an attack or a harmful spell.
Defy Death
6th-level The Undying (Remastered) feature
You can restore vitality when you cheat death. When you succeed on a death saving throw or stabilize a creature with spare the dying, you can choose for yourself or the stabilized creature to regain hit points equal to 1d8 + your warlock level.
Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Undying Nature
10th-level The Undying (Remastered) feature
You do not need to breathe, eat, drink, or sleep, although you may still do so if you wish. Your body ages only 1 year for every 10 years that pass, and you are immune to being magically aged. You can reattach any of your severed body parts at will, and you are immune to poison.
Indestructible Life
14th-level The Undying (Remastered) feature
You partake of some of the true secrets of the Undying. If you die, another creature can attempt a DC 10 Wisdom (Medicine) check on your corpse within 24 hours. On a success, you are revived with 1 hit point. If your head or heart is missing, the check automatically fails. Any other missing body parts slowly regrow over the course of 7 days. If you are missing any vital body parts besides your heart and head, such as your blood or lungs, the magic of everlasting life sustains you while they regrow. Once you have been revived in this way, you can’t be so again for 7 days.