Soul Knife (5e Class)

Soul Knife

Never caught unarmed, the Soul Knife is the literal interpretation of using the power of the soul as a weapon. Creating a soul blade is the core of the Soul Knife, and with it, they are deadly combatants. Versatile and varied, the Soul Knife can be found in all shapes and sizes, wielding blades unique to the wielder and customized to fit the needs of the Soul Knife. Fluid in function, the Soul Knife has mastered how to alter her mind blade to fit the situation, bringing power and versatility into any combat.

A Soul Knife is all about options! When they get into combat they can focus on doing many things to fight off enemies or protect allies. what makes a Soul Knife a great addition to any party is their strong crowd control powers that allow them to stop enemies in their tracks!

Creating a Soul Knife

When creating a Soul Knife character, think about where your character comes from and his or her place in the world. Most Soul Knives are trained in special monasteries created by their Githzerai masters, others discover their power by themselves. Talk with your DM about an appropriate origin for your Soul Knife. Did you come from a distant land, making you a stranger in the area of the campaign? Or is the campaign set in a world full of psionic beings? Recommended background: Far Traveler or Hermit.

Quick Build

You can make a Soul Knife quickly by following these suggestions. First, make wisdom your highest ability score,followed by dexterity. Second choose the hermit background.

Class Features

As a Soul Knife you gain the following class features.

Hit Points

Hit Dice: 1d10 per Soul Knife level
Hit Points at 1st Level: 10 + Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d10 (or 6) + Constitution modifier per Soul Knife level after 1st

Proficiencies

Armor: Light armor, Medium armor and shields
Weapons: Simple weapons and short swords
Tools: none
Saving Throws: Dexterity and Wisdom
Skills: Choose three from Arcana, Athletics, Deception, Insight, Performance, Sleight of Hand, Stealth and Perception

Equipment

You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:

• (a) a Short Sword and a shield or (b) 2 Simple melee weapons
• (a) Padded leather and a short bow with 20 arrows or (b) Studded leather
• 10 darts
• (a) an explorer's pack or (b) a dungeoneer's pack

Table: The Soul Knife

Level	Proficiency Bonus	Features
1st	+2	Soul Knife DC, Mind Blade, Soul Sight
2nd	+2	Psychic Strike
3rd	+2	Soul Knife Archetype, Mind Blade, Psychic Assault
4th	+2	Ability Score Improvement
5th	+3	Extra Attack, Soul Weapon
6th	+3	Enhanced Mind Blade +1
7th	+3	Soul Knife Archetype feature, Speed Of Thought, Psychic Strike improvement
8th	+3	Ability Score Improvement
9th	+4	Psychic Assault improvement, Shatter Strike
10th	+4	Mind Barrier
11th	+4	Soul Knife Archetype feature, Enhanced Mind Blade +2
12th	+4	Ability Score Improvement, Psychic Strike improvement
13th	+5	Soul Sever
14th	+5	Phantom Knife, Soul Siphon
15th	+5	Shatter Strike improvement
16th	+5	Ability Score Improvement
17th	+6	Soul Knife Archetype feature, Enhanced Mind Blade +3
18th	+6	Knife to the Soul, Psychic Strike improvement
19th	+6	Ability Score Improvement
20th	+6	Mind Over Body

Class Features

Soul Knife DC

Your Soul Knife DC is equal to 8 + your Wisdom Modifier + your Proficiency Bonus

Mind Blade

As a bonus action, you can create a semisolid blade composed of psychic energy distilled from your mind. You can only have one of these blades at a time. The blade is identical in all ways (except visually) to a shortsword. The Mind Blade glows phosphorescently in the color of your soul, and sheds dim light in a 5 feet radius. You use your Wisdom modifier for attack and damage rolls made with this weapon. The blade lasts until you dispel it as a bonus action or it is forcefully removed from your grip/possession. You may throw your Mind Blade as a ranged weapon with a range of 30/60 feet. Whether or not the attack hits, the mind blade then dissipates.

Starting at 3rd level, your Mind Blade counts as magical for purposes of overcoming resistance and immunity and you can have up to two blade and wield both if you so choose.

Soul Sight

Your eyes have become attuned with the spiritual world. You can see the glow of others souls which appear as glowing outlines around their body. You can see the glow of their soul in any lighting except magical darkness. You cannot see this glow if they are obscured by thick walls or large objects as thick as at least 1 foot. Though you can see the souls of creatures faintly, this sight does not give you the ability to automatically discern if something is an illusion or not, instead it gives you advantage on Intelligence (Investigation) Checks to discern if an illusion of a living creature is real or not.

As an action, you can also faintly sense the location of creatures with a soul. Until the end of your next turn, you know the location of creatures with a soul that are not behind total cover within 60 feet of you. You do not know the type nor the identity of any being whose presence you sense. You have an amount of uses equal to your Wisdom Modifier + 1. You regain all uses this at the end of a short rest.

Psychic Strike

At 2nd level, you gain the ability to infuse your weapon strikes with destructive psychic energy. Once per turn, when you hit a creature with an attack, the attack deals an extra 1d6 psychic damage to the target. The damage increases when you reach 7th level to 2d6, 12th level to 3d6, 18th level to 4d6.

Soul Knife Archtype

At 3rd level, you choose an archtype that you strive to emulate: Soul Shaper or Seeker, both detailed at the end of the class description. Your choice grants you features at 3rd, 7th, 11th and 15th level.

Psychic Assault

Beginning at level 3, as an action, you may manifest a number of Mind Blades equal to your Wisdom modifier and throw them at any number of target creatures within 60 feet of you. Make a ranged attack roll for each blade thrown. For each hit, the target takes 1d6 piercing damage, and a blade becomes embedded in the target.

Beginning at level 9, while the targets have at least 1 blade embedded in them, they lose 10ft of movement per embedded blade, have disadvantage on Dexterity Saves to avoid attacks and cannot use the dodge action. Creatures with 4 or more blades embedded in additionally cannot move and automatically fails all Dexterity Saves. The blades cannot be removed and the blades dissipate at the end of your next turn.

Using this feature renders the Soul Knife unable to take any actions other than the Movement action on their following turn. The blades made by this feature do not count towards the number of summoned weapons for Mind Blades. You have an amount of uses equal to your Wisdom Modifier. You regain all uses of this feature at the end of a long rest.

Ability Score Increase

When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of you 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.

Soul Weapon

Starting at 5th level, you can take a hour during your long rest to fuse a magic weapon you are attuned to into your soul to make it your Soul Weapon. Your Soul Weapon can only manifest as the weapon it was originally and you gain proficiency with it if you don't already. You can only have one magic weapon fused at a time and if you were to attempt to fuse another, the previous becomes defused. This soul weapon does not count towards the number of summoned weapons.

Extra Attack

Starting at 5th level, when you take the attack action you may attack a second time.

Enhanced Mind Blade

Starting at 6th level, your mind blades gains a bonus of +1 to attack and damage rolls. This feature increases to a +2 at level 11 and a +3 at level 17. A soul weapon bound to you also gains this bonus, so long as it does not already give a magical bonus to attack and damage rolls.

Speed Of Thought

Starting at 7th level your ability to react and to perceive movements of the world around you grants you a 10ft bonus to your movement speed. You can do the following:

• When an attacker that you can see hits you with an attack, you can use your reaction to halve the attack's damage against you.
• You can nimbly dodge out of the way of certain area effects. When you are subjected to an effect that allows you to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, you instead take no damage if you succeed on the saving throw, and only half damage if you fail.

Shatter Strike

At 9th Level your attacks begins tearing at the fabric of a creatures soul. Your attacks now critical hit on a 19-20. When you roll a critical hit, you may reroll any damage dice that result in a 1.

At 15th level, your weapon attacks score a critical hit on a roll of 18-20.

Mind Barrier

Starting at 10th level, you gain resistance to psychic damage and advantage in saving throws against fear, charm, mind control effects and any affect that would attempt to alter your mind.

Soul Sever

Beginning at level 13, you may choose to attempt to temporarily sever the soul of a creature. As an action, choose one target creature within 30 feet of you and it must make a Wisdom saving throw against your Soul Knife Save DC. On a failed save, the creature takes 3d10 psychic damage and has disadvantage on all rolls for 1 minute. The creature may remake this save at the end of each of its turns until the effect has ended. You can only use this feature a number of times equal to 1 + your Wisdom modifier before taking a long rest.

Phantom Knife

Starting at 14th level, you can make an attack that phases through most defenses. As an action, you can make one attack with your Mind Blade. Treat the target’s AC as 10 against this attack, regardless of the target’s actual AC.

Soul Siphon

Once you reach level 14 your ability at manipulating the souls of others has grown exponentially. Whenever a living creature dies within 30ft of you, you may absorb its soul, granting yourself temporary hit points equal to its CR (minimum of 1) plus your Soul Knife level. You may use this feature a number of times equal to your intelligence modifier, regaining all uses after a long rest.

Knife to the Soul

Beginning at 18th level, when you hit a creature with the Mind Blade, you can choose to not do damage, and do the following instead: Choose between Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma. then roll 4d6. Reduce that creature's chosen ability score by the total roll, and if it would become negative, it becomes 0 instead. A creature affected by this feature is immune to it and regains its lost ability scores at the end of a Long Rest. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Wisdom modifier. When you finish a long rest, you regain all expended uses.

Mind Over Body

At 20th level, your mind has become so powerful that no creature dare tamper with it and your mind transcends the body giving you the following benefits:

• You are now immune to fear, charm, mind control effects and any affect that would attempt to alter your mind.
• You gain resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage.
• You no longer age
• Additionally, if you die, roll a d20. On a 10 or higher, you discorporate with 0 hit points, instead of dying, and you fall unconscious. You and your gear disappear. You appear at a spot of your choice 1d4 days later on the plane of existence where you died, having gained the benefits of one long rest.

Archetypes

Soul Shaper

Learning to enhance your abilities to the fullest. Using your keen mind to twist the soul weapon into new forms for additional effects.

Shape Soul

Starting at 3rd level you can now shape your Mind Blade into any simple or martial weapon, granting it the properties and damage of the weapon you turn it into. You are considered proficient with it regardless of type. 2-handed weapons count as 2 summoned weapons against the number you can summon using your Mind Blade feature.

Soul Armor

Starting at 3rd level, you can now use your soul to protect you from harm by shaping it into a suit of armor. While wearing this armor, you are considered proficient in it and your AC is equal to 10 + Wisdom Modifier + Dexterity Modifier. While in soul armor you can still gain the benefit of the Defense fighting style should you have it. Additionally, you can shape your Mind Blade into a shield, this count towards the summoned weapons. When your Mind Blade is shaped into a shield, it does not gain the benefits of the Enhanced Mind Blade feature (if you have it).

Soul Shackle

Starting at 7th level, as an action you can choose up to four enemies within 30 feet of you. Those targets must make a Wisdom saving throw or become soul shackled to each other. While soul shackled, targets cannot move more than 10 feet from each other. If they are already more then 10 feet from each other, move them to within 10 feet of the target closest to you and those creatures then take 5d8 Psychic damage. Each time one of the creatures attempts to move further then 10 feet from another, it must make a Wisdom saving throw with a DC of 8 + your Wisdom + Proficiency Modifier breaking itself free on a successful save and taking 5d8 Psychic damage on a failed save. You may use this feature a number of times equal to half your Wisdom modifier (rounded up, minimum 1) before taking a long rest.

Power Of The Soul

Starting at 7th level, you can now use your soul to conjure addition effects onto your attacks. Once per turn, when you take the Attack action and an attack hits a creature, you may choose one of the following effects to add to your attack. Some of these effects can also be activated using a bonus action, and do not count towards the once per turn limit. You have an amount of uses equal to your Wisdom Modifier plus your proficiency bonus. You regain all spent usages of this feature when you recover at the end of a short or long rest.

Flames of Hatred: The attacks damage type becomes fire and the target must make a Dexterity Saving Throw against your Soul Knife DC or be set on fire, a target that is on fire takes 1d10 fire damage at the start of their turn until they or another creature uses an action to douse the flames. This damage increases to 2d10 at level 10 and 3d10 at level 17

Calm Waters: Target must make a Wisdom Saving Throw against your Soul Knife DC or be put to sleep for up to 1 minute, if the target takes any damage during this time it wakes up or if another creature uses its action to wake the creature. This time increases to 2 minutes at level 10 and 3 minutes at lvl 17

Freedom of Will: As a bonus action, you can end a Condition on self or an creature within 30 feet of you that has at least 1 hit point.

Fury Of The Gods: Target must make succeed in a Wisdom Saving Throw against your Soul Knife DC or become infuriated. An infuriated creature must spend its turn moving towards the nearest creature, friend or foe, and attack it if possible. It repeats the save at the end of each of its turns.

Spirit Command: As a bonus action, you can choose a creature within 30 feet of you, other than yourself. If the target is willing, the target can move up to half their original movement speed and use their reaction to take the Attack or Dodge actions. If the target is unwilling, the target must make a Wisdom Saving Throw against your Soul Knife DC or be forced to use their reaction to move up to half of their original movement speed.

Inferior Souls: Every creature with fewer total hit dice than you within 30 feet who can see you must make succeed in a Wisdom saving throw or become frightened of you until the end of their next turn.

Baneful Strike: Choose an item that the target is holding, it must succeed in a Constitution Saving Throw against your Soul Knife DC or drop the item.

Soul Force: If the target is Large or smaller it must succeed in a Strength Saving Throw against your Soul Knife DC or be pushed back 15 feet away from you and it loses its reaction until the start of its next turn.

Blinding Strike: Target that you hit must succeed in a Wisdom saving throw against your Soul Knife DC or is blinded until the end of your next turn.

Warp Strike: As a bonus action, you may choose a creature within 30 feet of you and teleport to a unoccupied space 5 feet away from that creature that you can see.

Soul Barrier

At the 11th level, as an action, you can create a 40ft long and 20ft high line that prevents anything with a soul from crossing. A creature that has a soul that attempts to cross the barrier's area must make an Intelligence Saving Throw against your Soul Knife DC or be unable to cross the line and take 8d6 + your Intelligence modifier Psychic damage. On a successful save, they take half damage and is able to cross the line freely. The barrier lasts for 1 minute. The barrier is not visible to creatures without soul sight. You regain use of this feature after finishing a long rest.

Soul Crush

At 17th level you can attempt to destroy the soul of a creature which the soul you can see and you are in melee with. Once per turn, as an action, target a creature and it must make a Intelligence Saving Throw against your Soul Knife DC. On a failed save, the target's alignment (if it has one) changes to Neutral, and it ceases all action against you, becoming non-hostile. If the creature is attacked or damaged by your allies, or is forced to make a saving throw versus an effect created by an ally, it becomes hostile once more. If the target is a spirit or ethereal creature, it is reduced to 0 Hit points and destroyed. You can only use this feature an amount of times equal to your wis modifier, before taking a long rest.

Seeker

Searching for enlightenment a seeker attunes his own soul with that of nature, becoming a primal spirit of nature themselves. A seeker excels at keeping his enemies at bay by hindering their movements and actions by using nature against them.

Spellcasting

Starting at 3rd level, your attunement with nature has empowered your spirit with primal magics. See Chapter 10 of the Player's Handbook for the general rules of spellcasting.

Spell Slots per Spell Level

-	Cantrips Known	Spells Known	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th
3rd	2	2	2	-	-	-	-
4th	3	3	3	-	-	-	-
5th	3	3	3	1		-	-
6th	4	4	4	1	-	-	-
7th	4	5	4	2	-	-	-
8th	4	6	4	2	1	-	-
9th	3	7	4	3	1	-	-
10th	4	7	4	3	2	-	-
11th	4	8	4	3	2	-	-
12th	4	9	4	3	3	-	-
13th	4	10	4	3	3	1	-
14th	4	10	4	4	3	1	-
15th	5	10	4	4	4	1	-
16th	5	11	4	4	4	2	-
17th	5	12	4	4	4	2	1
18th	5	13	4	4	4	3	1
19th	5	14	4	4	4	3	2
20th	5	15	4	4	4	3	3

Cantrips: At 3rd level, choose two cantrips of your choice from the Druid or Sorcerer spell list. You learn additional Druid or Sorcerer cantrips of your choice at higher levels, as shown in the Cantrips Known column of the Seeker table.

Spell Slots: The Seeker table shows how many spells slots you have to cast your spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these Seeker 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.

Spells Known of 1st Level and Higher: You know three 1st level Druid or Sorcerer spells of your choice spells on the Druid or Sorcerer spell list. The Spells Known column of the Seeker Spellcasting table shows when you learn more Druid or Sorcerer spells of 1st level or higher. Each of these spells must be of a level for which you have spell slots. For instance, when you reach 7th level in this class. you can learn one new spell of 1st, 2nd, or 3rd level. The spells you learn at 4th, 8th, 12th, 16th and 20th level can come from any spell list.

Spellcasting Ability: Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for your Seeker spells, since the power of your magic relies on your ability to manipulate the power of life to project your will into the world. You use your Wisdom whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Wisdom modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.

Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Wisdom modifier

Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Wisdom modifier

Spiritbond

Starting at 3rd level, you become proficient in the following skills: Nature and Survival. Your proficiency bonus is doubled for any ability check you make that uses either of those skills.

Inevitable shot

Starting at 3rd level, the range when you throw your Mind Blade increases to 60/120 and all features granted by the Soul Knife class has their range increased to 60 feet. This does not include any spells. Also, when you miss a creature with a ranged attack, you can choose to make a ranged attack against an enemy within 60 feet of the creature you missed with advantage, using a square in that creature's space as the attack's origin square. You can use this feature an number of times equal to your Wisdom modifier + your Proficiency Modifier. You regain all uses of this feature after a long rest.

Primal Spirit

Starting at 7th level, Your soul becomes more deeply attuned with the primal spirits of nature and the elements. Your Wisdom modifier is doubled to your Perception and Insight skill checks.

Primal Awareness

Starting at 7th level, You gains an bonus to initiative equal to their Wisdom modifier. You can now keep hold of their soul far greater than that of a normal Soul Knife . After using throwing a Mind Blade, you can call to the blade for it to return to you instead of it dissipating, not requiring an action by you. The Mind Blade's damage dice also increases to that of a long sword (1d8). This damage increases to 1d10 at level 13 and then 2d6 at level 19.

Primal Smite

Starting at 11th, at the start of your turn, you can choose to imbue your attacks with Primal energies until the end of this turn. If you do, when you make a ranged attack on that turn, targets hit by the attacks have their speed reduced to 0ft and grant advantage to all your allies on attack rolls against those targets until the end of your next turn. You can use this feature an number of times equal to your Wisdom modifier + your Proficiency Modifier. You regain use of this feature after a long or short rest.

Spiritual Assualt

Starting at 17th level, whenever you use a move action and end the move at least 15 feet away from where you started, you gain a bonus to attack and damage rolls until the end of your turn. The bonus equals your Wisdom modifier, also whenever you can make an opportunity attack you can make a ranged weapon attack in place of a melee weapon attack(counting as 5 feet reach). Your ranged attacks also do not have disadvantage while within 5 feet of an enemy.

Multiclassing

Prerequisites. To qualify for multiclassing into the Soul Knife class, you must meet these prerequisites: Wisdom 13 and Dexterity 13

Proficiencies. When you multiclass into the Soul Knife class, you gain following proficiencies: light armor, shields, simple weapons, shortswords and choose one between Arcana or Insight

References

http://dnd4.wikia.com/wiki/Seeker

http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/classes/soulknife.htm

---

Back to Main Page → 5e Homebrew → Classes