The Binder Class - Dungeon Masters Guild -

THE BINDER CLASS

The classic magic class that binds itself to vestiges—beings trapped beyond life, death, and undeath, summoned by drawing their mystic seals—is now updated and expanded for fifth edition. Includes four distinct subclasses along with details of 45 vestiges, more than a dozen of which appear for the first time in vestige form herein! Nearly 100 pages of richly detailed lore and magically granted abilities drawing on source material from every D&D edition and incorporating elements and history from the Forgotten Realms, Eberron, Ravnica, Theros, the Inner and Outer Planes, and the Far Realm!

Individual vestiges magically grant a wide array of powers: martial, skill-based, spell-like, sensory, resistance, immunity, and more! The class lets you swap out one set of powers for another each day when your pact with a vestige expires and you summon and bind a new one, allowing for incredible versatility and modular game mechanics.

by Christopher M. Cevasco

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of the Coast, Forgotten Realms, Ravenloft, Eberron, the dragon ampersand, Ravnica, Theros, and all other Wizards of the Coast product names and their respective logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast in the USA and other countries.

This work contains material that is copyright Wizards of the Coast and/or other authors. Such material is used with permission under the

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All other original material in this work is copyright 2020 by Christopher M. Cevasco and published under the Community Content Agreement

for Dungeon Masters Guild.

Not for resale. Permission granted to print or photocopy this document for personal use only.

The following Dragon articles also provided inspiration: • Cordell, Bruce R. "Gontal: Dominions of Nehu." Dragon 375

(May 2009).• Cordell, Bruce R. and Ed Greenwood. "Gontal." Dragon 366

(Aug 2008).• Greenwood, Ed. "The Enchanting Incantatrix." Dragon 90 (Oct

1984).• Walker, Jason M. "Magic with an Evil Bite." Dragon 184 (Aug 1992).• Winter, Jon. "The Ecology of the Neogi." Dragon 214 (Feb 1995).

Art Credits ON THE COVER: Divination by Russian artist Sergey Solomko (1867 - 1928)

Illustration on page 48 modifies a public domain image by OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay.

Apart from images obtained through DMs Guild Creator Resource artpacks, all other illustrations and artworks herein are in the public domain or alterations thereof.

The page backgrounds are from Cole Twogood's old paper resource available at DMs Guild.

Bibliography The material herein draws significant inspiration from the following third-edition (v.3.5) sources: • Elder Evils (2007)• tome of magic (2006)

Along with the core fifth- and third-edition sourcebooks, the following books provided additional inspiration: • Al-Qadim: Land of Fate (1992)• Al-Qadim: Ruined Kingdoms (1994)• Baldur's gate: Descent into Avernus (2019)• Deities and Demigods (1980)• Eberron: Rising from the last war (2019)• Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide (2008)• Guildmasters' guide to ravnica (2018)• Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes (2018)• Mythic Odysseys of Theros (2020)• Secrets of Sarlona (2007)• Serpent Kingdoms (2004)• Sword Coast adventurer's guide (2015)• Tales from the Yawning Portal (2017)• Volo's Guide to Monsters (2016)Sam

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Foreword 2 .............................................................................

Binder 3 ................................................................................... Vestigial Powers 3 ............................................................ Seals and Summoning 3 ............................................... Bound Together 4 ............................................................ Creating a Binder 5 ......................................................... Binders as Adventurers 5 ......................................... Attitude Toward Vestiges 5 ...................................... Quick Build 6 ................................................................ Optional Rule: Multiclassing 6 .............................. Class Features 6 ................................................................ Binder Archetypes 10 ..................................................... Anima Mage 10 ............................................................ Knight of the Sacred Seal 12 ................................... Soul Slayer 14 ................................................................ Tenebrous Apostate 15 ...............................................

Vestige Descriptions 18 .................................................... Acererak, the Devourer 20 ........................................... Agares, Truth Betrayed 22 ............................................ Alaertha, Interstitial Nightstar 23 ............................ Amon, the Void Before the Altar 25 ......................... Andras, the Gray Knight 26 ......................................... Andromalius, the Repentant Rogue 27 ................... Atropus, the World Born Dead 29 ............................. Aym, Queen of Avarice 30 ............................................ Balam, the Bitter Angel 32 ........................................... Buer, Grandmother Huntress 33 ............................... Chupoclops, Harbinger of Forever 34 ..................... Dahlver-Nar, the Tortured One 35 ............................ Dantalion, the Star Emperor 36 ................................ Dune-Brood, Nephilim of Dust 37 ............................. Eligor, Dragon's Slayer 39 ............................................ Eurynome, Mother of the Material 40 ................... Father Llymic, Glacial Thought 42 ........................... Focalor, Prince of Tears 44 .......................................... Gith, She Who Awaits 45 .............................................. Haagenti, Mother of Minotaurs 46 .......................... Halphax, the Angel in the Angle 48 ......................... Haures, the Dreaming Duke 50 ................................. il-Lashtavar, the Darkness that Dreams 51 ........... Ipos, Prince of Fools 53 ..................................................

Ka'jz'zxl, Life from Death 55 ........................................ Karsus, Hubris in the Blood 57 .................................. Kyuss, the Worm that Walks 58 ................................. Leraje, the Green Herald 60 ........................................ Malphas, the Turnfeather 61 ....................................... Marchosias, King of Killers 63 ................................... Naberius, the Grinning Hound 64 ............................ Nehushta, Ghost in the Machine 65 ........................ Orthos, Sovereign of the Howling Dark 67 ........... Paimon, the Dancer 68 .................................................. Pandorym, Annihilation Stayed 70 ......................... Ronove, the Iron Maiden 72 ........................................ Savnok, Theran Instigator 73 ..................................... Sertrous, Vanguard of Will 75 .................................... Shax, Sea Sister 77 .......................................................... Tenebrous, the Shadow that Was 78 ....................... The Lost One 80 ............................................................... Velshox, Tyrant of the Sun 81 ..................................... Void, the Mourned God 83 ........................................... Yog-Sothoth, the Key and the Gate 85 ..................... Zagan, Duchess of Disappointment 86 ...................

Nonplayer Characters 89 ................................................ Scion of Dantalion 89 .................................................... Tenebrous Apostate 90 .................................................. Vanguard Mage 91 ........................................................... Witch-Blade of Pandorym 92 ......................................

Foreword The binder class made its first appearance in DUNGEONS & DRAGONS third edition (v.3.5) as a practitioner of pact magic detailed in Tome of Magic (2006) along with five related so-called prestige classes and details of thirty-two ves-tiges. Drawing heavily upon that guide, the binder class presented herein is fully integra-ted with fifth edition rules and mechanics and includes four subclass archetypes inspired by the earlier prestige classes. Nearly all of the original vestiges are inclu-ded herein and have been updated, expanded, and reconciled with fifth-edition lore. Details of more than a dozen new vestiges have also been added, drawing upon legendary entities from across all D&D editions and incorporating lore from the Forgotten Realms, Eberron, Ravnica, Theros, the Inner and Outer Planes, and the Far Realm!

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3 Not for resale. Permission granted to print or photocopy this document for personal use only. The Binder Class

I CALL UPON YOU BALAM, THE BITTER ANGEL. REN- der unto me your foresight and cunning, for I stand before your seal having given of my blood, and I possess your talisman. — Morden, dwarf binder, calling upon a vestige to make a pact

Between the mortal and the divine, beyond the strictures of life and even of undeath, some souls dwell in a place all but forgotten and nearly inaccessible. Mortals whose wills were too strong to pass into the afterlife, dead aberrations whose potency prevented their being absorbed into their planes of origin, even the dreams or unrealized ambitions of slain deities from a bygone age—these beings and others like them are known as vestiges. A seal drawn to the proper specifications forms a doorway between such beings and the rest of reality, but only those with the requisite know-ledge can open these doors. Binders alone pos-

sess that key, having learned the vestiges' indi-vidual seals and the special rituals by which they might be called forth from the void. By drawing the seal and speaking the proper words, a binder summons these entities, strikes bar-gains with them, and binds them to service.

Binders are practitioners of a specialized form of Pact Magic—distinct from but related to the type of magic used by warlocks. A binder gains supernatural powers by bargaining with the souls of remote entities called vestiges—remnants of once-living beings that have become trapped beyond the normal boundaries of life and death. Vestiges dwell in regions that are wholly unreachable, the very manner of their existence incomprehensible to mortals and gods alike. Distant as they are from reality, most vestiges are driven toward a form of madness fueled by utter isolation. They can only recapture a semblance of what is real by binding themselves to other souls. Binders are willing to share their souls with these exiles, summoning them by means of special rituals. And since all vestiges hunger for even a small taste of reality, they are always willing to answer the call of binders powerful enough to wrest them from the unfathomable void. Moreover, although vestiges might once have been beings of light or darkness—good or evil—their prolonged existence in a transformed state beyond reality has warped them into inscrut-able and wholly amoral entities. More impor-tantly, their particular natures have little or no bearing on the alignments of those who bind with them. Frightfully violent vestiges can lend their powers to goodhearted binders just as gentle, kindly vestiges might grant an evil binder the power to cause havoc. That said, the unfathomable, often chaotic minds of these lost souls are often disturbing to creatures of lawful outlook, so it is exceedingly rare for a binder to be lawfully aligned, and many tend to be neutral.

Each vestige is associated with a unique seal—a series of marks and lines within a circle—that acts as its symbol and as a portal through

Binder

Vestigial Powers

Seals and SummoningSam

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which it may enter normal existence. To sum-mon a vestige, a binder must know and be able to draw its seal. This might be accomplished in chalk, paint, or ink, might simply be traced on a dusty surface, or might involve the arrange-ment of sticks, string, or other materials. Indeed, any method that recreates the seal might be appropriate, and anyone at all can draw such seals; only someone with the power to host a vestige, however, can hope to create a pact that opens a door to it. Immediately after drawing a seal, a binder must ritually invoke the associated vestige's name and title so as to summon it. Binders can only summon those vestiges that are within their range of personal power. These ritualistic names and titles bear associations both to the

entity's previous existence in reality and its current vestigial state. Some of these appella-tions can even—rarely—change over time to reflect a new iteration of the vestige. As such, most binders devote significant time to study-ing the origins and theory of Pact Magic so as to permit them to foresee any unusual develop-ments. Once a summoned vestige manifests, a binder is expected to formally address it and request a pact. Such pacts always have the same general terms regardless of the particular vestige: in order to gain the powers that a vestige offers, the binder must agree to host its soul for a period of 24 hours. Once this pact is offered, a contest of wills ensues, taking any number of forms such as an argument, a staring match, or a posed riddle. Should the vestige win this contest, it maintains a degree of influence over the binder for the pact's duration, and if the binder does not act as the vestige wills, it can punish the binder. Should the binder triumph, however, the vestige quietly accompany its temporary host.

Once a binder has made a pact with a vestige, the two souls are inextricably bound. A sliver of the vestige fuses with the binder's own spirit, creating a bond so tight that the binder's body typically manifests some outward physical sign. Whatever inconvenience this gives rise to is but a small price to pay, however, for the superna-tural powers granted by the hosted vestige. And unlike more common forms of spellcasting—or even of a warlock's Pact Magic—these powers require no material components, gestures, or verbal utterances. When a binder wishes to use one of the abilities granted by a bound vestige, it is simply a matter of willing the desired result. The binder's will and the vestige's powers become one.

PACT MAGIC All magic practiced by mortals relies upon interac-tion with the Weave—that ephemeral fabric acting as an interface between the spellcaster and the raw magic of existence permeating the multiverse. Divine Magic accesses the Weave via the mediation of deities or nature harnessed through faith or devo-tion. Arcane Magic relies on an understanding—learned or intuitive—of the Weave's workings, and its practitioners pluck directly at the Weave to cast their spells. Pact Magic might be considered Divine or Arcane but is distinct inasmuch as it is reliant upon some type of formal pact or bargain that ren-ders itself sacrosanct and untouchable by outside influence. In his treatise, Planar Bargains and Arcane Covenants, Mordenkainen, writing about the fundamental principle of Pact Magic, states, "A pro-mise possesses power; an oath owns its maker." No form of pact magic hues closer to Morden-kainen's definition than the binding of vestiges. But other, more common forms of Pact magic abound. Warlocks, of course, make pacts with otherworldly patrons who thereby grant them eldritch powers. Paladins swear oaths to uphold a set of ideals, and their powers derive as much from this commitment as from devotion to any particular deity; likewise, monks pledge themselves to spiritual purity, and barbarians must ward their minds against lawful leanings or risk losing the wild emotions that fuel their powers. Some spells, such as planar ally, magically formalize a bargain between the caster and the conjured entity; other spells such as planar binding or geas create pacts between a caster and target even though the target might be unwilling.

Bound Together

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Among the various classes a character might choose, only that of the binder offers the unique opportunity to entirely redefine the character's role in an adventuring party on a daily basis. Each day, when the binder chooses to call and bind a particular vestige (or at higher levels, multiple vestiges), the character loses those abilities granted by previously bound vestiges and gains a new array of abilities. These powers are always useful, but their precise nature and the strategies employed while using them depend on the vestige(s) granting them. As a binder, you can choose which role to play on any given day—diplomat, scout, support, melee combatant, ranged combatant, and more. Your mutable powers complement those of the other members of any adventuring party. But what set your feet on the adventurer's path in the first place…?

For binders, given the appropriative nature of their peculiar form of Pact Magic, the most common reason for adventuring is the amas-sing of personal power. But that need not be the reason—or at least not the only reason—for your character. Consider rolling on the follow-ing table for one or more possible reasons or simply using the table to spark your imagina-tion and develop your own set of motives.

Another question to ask yourself when creating a binder pertains to the nature of your relation-ship to your hosted vestiges. Yes, their souls temporarily become a part of you, but do you see them as welcomed guests, tolerated nuisan-ces, or subdued enemies to be overpowered and subverted to your own will. Again consider rol-ling on the following table, or simply use it to spark your imagination as you answer this question.

Creating a Binder

Binders as Adventurers

REASONS FOR ADVENTURING d6 Reasons 1 Having tasted the wonder of hosting lesser vestiges, you're eager—even desperate—to contact more powerful ones that will only answer your call once you prove yourself worthy through your achievements. (Chaotic) 2 Your vestiges yearn to experience the reality they left behind; their influence on your psyche has led to an irrepressible wanderlust and desire to experience all that the multiverse has to offer. (Neutral) 3 Your studies have led to persecution by those who see binding as an affront to gods and mortals; your adventures arise from the need to flee that persecution. (Neutral) 4 Having acquired great power through binding, you believe it is now your responsibility to use that power to help others. (Good)

d6 Reasons 5 Arcane knowledge is the path to power and domi- nation, and there is always more to be gained by those bold enough to seek it out and grasp it. (Evil) 6 You will show all the naysayers they are wrong; one day, binding will be as respected an art as wizardry or the clerical mysteries! (Chaotic)

Attitude Toward Vestiges

ATTITUDE TOWARD VESTIGES d6 Attitude 1 My vestiges are like family. I don't always agree with them, but they are part of who I am. 2 A vestige is no more than a tool. Just as a carpen- ter chooses the proper hammer or adze, I bind whatever vestige is best suited to the task at hand.

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You can make a binder quickly by following these suggestions. First, Charisma should be your highest ability score, but if you plan to choose either the Anima Mage or Tenebrous Apostate archetype, you might instead make Wisdom higher than Charisma. Wisdom should be your second highest ability score, but if you you plan to choose the Knight of the Sacred Seal archetype, you might instead choose Strength as second highest; a Soul Slayer might choose Dexterity as second highest (but some who favor a versatile melee weapon make Strength higher than Dexterity). Finally, choose the acolyte or sage background (discredited academic, librarian, researcher, or scribe are likely specialties).

If your DM permits use of the optional rule on multiclassing in chapter 6 of the Player's Handbook, here's what you need to know if you choose binder as one of your classes. Ability Score Minimum. As a multiclass character, you must have at least a Charisma score of 13 to take a level in this class, or to take a level in another class if already a binder. Proficiencies Gained. If binder isn't your initial class, when you take your first level as a binder you gain proficiency with light armor, simple weapons, and either calligrapher's supplies or forgery kits. Spell Slots. If you choose the Anima Mage or Tenebrous Apostate binder archetype, add a third of your binder levels (rounded down) to the appropriate levels from other classes to determine your available spell slots.

As a binder, you gain the following class features.

Hit Dice: 1d8 per binder level Hit Points at 1st Level: 8 + your Constitution modifier Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d8 (or 5) + your Constitution modifier per binder level after 1st

Armor: Light armor Weapons: Simple weapons Tools: Choose either calligrapher's supplies or forgery kit Saving Throws: Charisma, Intelligence Skills: Choose two skills from Arcana, Decep- tion, History, Insight, Nature, Persuasion, and Religion

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

• (a) a simple melee weapon or (b) a simple ranged weapon with 20 pieces of ammunition

• (a) a scholar's pack or (b) an explorer's pack • (a) calligrapher's supplies or (b) forger's kit • Leather armor and 10 pieces of chalk

d6 Attitude 3 Hosting a vestige is among the highest privileges one can be afforded. Their insights into the forgotten times and distant realms of their collective past is a treasure to be cherished 4 A vestige's voice is like a buzzing gnat in my brain, and its outward physical manifestations are some- times a heavy burden, but I've learned to tolerate these disruptions in exchange for the power that comes with binding. 5 I consider myself fortunate. The ability to converse with powers beyond the reach of deities has shown me how farcically hollow most religions are, and I'm glad to dispense with such nonsense. 6 My power flows from entities expatriated from the rule of deities; I thus fear inciting the ire of those gods and pay homage to all deities while showing respect to their worldly servants and worshippers.

Quick Build

OUTSIDE PERSPECTIVES The deceptive ease with which pact magic seems to be performed along with the need to bind with an utterly alien being generates suspicion about bind-ers. Many churches actively hunt binders, seeking to eradicate evidence of binding to prevent the faith-ful from learning that beings exist beyond the reach of the gods. Its condemnation makes discovering the secrets of binding difficult. Many binders are defrocked priests or acolytes who took up pact magic after discovering vestige rituals in heretical texts kept locked away in secret temple libraries.

Class Features

Hit Points

Proficiencies

Equipment

Optional Rule: Multiclassing

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7Not for resale. Permission granted to print or

photocopy this document for personal use only. The Binder Class

Using methods known only to binders, you are able to contact a vestige and make a pact with it. At 1st level, you can only make a pact with one vestige at a time, but at higher levels, you can form and maintain pacts with multiple ves-tiges simultaneously, as shown on the Binder Table above. You must complete the summon-ing and binding process (see details below) with each vestige separately. Some vestiges will be impossible for you to contact until you achieve a sufficiently hight Effective Binder Level (EBL); your EBL equals your actual binder level plus half your Wisdom modifier (rounding up; minimum EBL is 1st level), and the Binder Table sets forth the maximum vestige level you can contact at your EBL. If the vestige you are trying to contact is of a higher level than your indicated maximum, you cannot summon it. Drawing the Seal. To contact a vestige, you must first draw its unique seal visibly on a

surface (usually the ground, although any relatively flat surface might work), making the image at least 5 feet in diameter. Most binders find that the easiest method for drawing a seal is with a piece of chalk, but inks, paints and other substances might also be used, or you might simply trace the seal in a thick layer of dust, scratch it in an area of dirt, etc. Drawing a seal requires that you be able to see the surface you are marking and takes 1 minute to complete. If you lose concentration during that minute (as if concentrating on a spell), the process fails and must be restarted. Similarly, if a seal is not used within 1 minute of its drawing, it loses its potency and must be redrawn to contact the vestige. A particular vestige might also have other unique requirements for the drawing of its seal, as noted in its entry (see Vestige Descriptions below). Summoning Ritual. Once the seal is drawn, you must use an action to perform a ritual that

THE BINDER Maximum Effective Maximum

Proficiency Simultaneous Binder Level Vestige Level Bonus Features Vestiges* (EBL)** Level 1st +2 Soul Binding 1 1st 1st 2nd +2 Pact Augmentation (1 ability), Suppress Mark 1 2nd 1st 3rd +2 Binder Archetype 1 3rd 2nd 4th +2 Ability Score Improvement 1 4th 2nd 5th +3 Pact Augmentation (2 abilities) 1 5th 3rd 6th +3 Soul Guardian (fear), Archetype feature 1 6th 3rd 7th +3 — 2 7th 4th 8th +3 Ability Score Improvement 2 8th 4th 9th +4 Soul Guardian (slippery mind) 2 9th 4th

10th +4 Archetype feature 2 10th 5th 11th +4 Pact Augmentation (3 abilities) 2 11th 5th 12th +4 Ability Score Improvement 2 12th 6th 13th +5 Soul Guardian (energy drain) 2 13th 6th 14th +5 — 3 14th 6th 15th +5 Archetype feature 3 15th 7th 16th +5 Pact Augmentation (4 abilities) 3 16th 7th 17th +6 Ability Score Improvement 3 17th 8th 18th +6 Soul Guardian (mind shield) 3 18th 8th 19th +6 Pact Augmentation (5 abilities) 3 19th 8th 20th +6 — 4 20th 9th ________________

* The total combined levels of your simultaneously bound vestiges can't exceed 2 x the maximum vestige level available to you.** Your Effective Binder Level is equal to your actual Binder Level plus half your Wisdom modifier (rounding up; minimum 1st).

Soul Binding

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summons the corresponding vestige. During this time, you must touch the seal and call out to the vestige using both its name and official title. The ritual fails if you can't be heard (e.g. if you're within the area of a silence spell). Other-wise, a manifestation of the vestige appears on or above the seal. This manifestation is not the actual vestige, but merely an illusory figment that can neither harm nor be harmed by any creature; this is apparent to any creature that interacts with or studies it. The figment ignores everyone but you, and if you fail to address it (it speaks and understands the language used to call it) within 1 round, it vanishes. Making a Pact. To make a pact with your summoned vestige, you must make a Charisma (Persuasion) check, the DC for which is provi-ded in the description of each vestige (see Vestige Descriptions below). The process of making this check takes 1 minute, but you can choose to make a rushed check as a single action at a -5 penalty. When making this pact, you must do so alone; others cannot use the Help action to aid you with your check. Whether the pact-making check succeeds or fails, you gain the powers granted by the particular vestige for 24 hours, as all vestiges are eager for these brief escapes back to reality. During that period, you manifest a specific physical sign of the vestige's presence (as described in its Vestige Description), and you cannot rid yourself of the vestige unless you have chosen the Expel Vestige option as one of your Pact Augmentation abilities (see below). Success or failure does, however, determine other aspects of your pact. If you fail the pact-

making check, the vestige influences your per-sonality and actions, and you are said to have made a poor pact; particular vestiges will alter your demeanor in specific ways and might force you to perform or refrain from certain actions. If your check succeeds, you are said to have made a good pact; the vestige has no control over you, and once you gain the Suppress Sign feature, you can even prevent your vestige's physical sign from manifesting on your person. While under the influence of a vestige (i.e. in the case of a poor pact), you must adhere to its requirements as best you can. If you are cons-cious and free-willed, and you encounter a sit-uation in which you can't or won't refrain from a prohibited action or perform a required one, you suffer from a -1 penalty on all attack rolls, saving throws, and ability checks until that ves-tige leaves you. If influenced by more than one vestige and you fail to adhere to multiple vestiges' requirements, the penalties stack. Vestigial Powers. Each vestige grants its own unique set of powers and abilities as per its Vestige Description. Some of these are magical or spell-like powers; unless otherwise noted, use your Charisma modifier when setting the saving throw DC or making an attack roll with one of these powers.

Vestige power save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier

Vestige power attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier

Vestiges are bound to your spirit by the pacts you make. Vestiges can't be targeted or expelled

Vestige of Andromalius

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by any attack, spell, or magical ability, nor can their granted powers be suppressed other than by an antimagic field or similar effect. Multiple Vestiges. Once a pact's 24-hour period expires, the vestige leaves, and you're free to summon and make a new pact with a different (or the same) vestige. At 1st level, you can only make a pact with one vestige at a time, but at higher levels, you can maintain pacts with multiple vestiges simultaneously, gaining all of their granted abilities: two vestiges at 7th level, three at 14th level, and four at 20th level. The total combined levels of your bound ves-tiges, however, can't exceed 2 x the maximum vestige level available to you. A 14th-level binder with a 12 Wisdom could thus bind up to three 1st- to 7th-level vestiges whose combined levels don't exceed 14 (e.g. two 7th-level vestiges; one 7th-, one 5th-, and one 2nd-level vestige; etc.).

Beginning at 2nd level, you draw more power from your vestiges. As long as you remain bound to at least one vestige, you can choose one ability from the table below and can change your choice each time you bind a vestige anew. As you reach higher binder levels, you can make additional selections from the table, gain-ing one more ability at 5th, 11th, 16th, and 19th level (to a maximum of five selections at 19th level). If you wish, you may choose a single ability multiple times (with the exception of Favored Vestige, which you may only choose once), and their effects stack. For example, at 16th level, you could choose bonus hit points twice and damage reduction twice, gaining +10

Pact Augmentation

PACT AUGMENTATION ABILITIES +1 Armor Class bonus+1 attack roll bonus+1 damage roll bonus+1 saving throw bonus+2 initiative roll bonus+5 hit points (also increases your hit point maximum) Damage reduction: -1 to any damage you take Expel Vestige (see details below) Favored Vestige (see details below) Resistance to acid and poison damage (see below) Resistance to cold and necrotic damage (see below) Resistance to fire and radiant damage (see below) Resistance to force and psychic damage (see below) Resistance to lightning and thunder damage (see below)

total hit points and a -2 reduction to any damage you take. Resistances. You may never possess more than one of the paired resistance abilities simultaneously. You can change this choice, selecting a different pair of resistances, when binding a new vestige, but can never have more than one resistance augmentation at the same time. Expel Vestige. If you choose this ability, you can, once per Long Rest, attempt to expel a ves-tige to which you are bound prior to its normal departure at the end of 24 hours. To do so, you must draw its seal and go through the entire summoning process as described above, and if you succeed on a new pact-making check, you expel the vestige and can summon a new one to replace it if you wish. Regardless of your suc-cess or failure, you take a -5 penalty on your next pact-making check with any vestige, and you must also apply the same penalty on your pact-making check the next time you summon the particular vestige you expelled. Favored Vestige. If you choose this ability, you establish a close, mystical affinity with one vestige of your choice from among those to which you have access. Once you choose a ves-tige as favored, this choice is permanent, and unlike all other pact augmentation abilities, you may not choose this ability more than once. Whenever you change your chosen abili-ties at the time of binding new vestiges, you can replace this ability with a different ability, but if you subsequently choose this ability again, the established affinity remains with the vestige you initially chose. Affinity with that vestige grants two benefits: (1) the save DC of each supernatural ability granted by the vestige receives a +1 bonus; and (2) once per day, you may choose one ability granted by the vestige that normally requires a short or long rest to regain expended uses, and you may use that ability one additional time before resting.

Suppress MarkAlso beginning at 2nd level, whenever you make a good pact (i.e. succeed on your pact-making check), you can choose not to exhibit the physi-cal alteration to your appearance that normally accompanies a pact with a vestige. You can suppress or reveal that alteration at will using a bonus action. With a poor pact, you cannot do so and manifest that alteration as normal.

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When you reach 3rd level, you choose one of four archetypes that you emulate in the exercise of your binder abilities: Anima Mage, Knight of the Sacred Seal, Soul Slayer, or Tenebrous Apostate. Each binder archetype is detailed at the end of the class description. Your choice grants you features at 3rd level and again at 6th, 10th, and 15th level.

When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, and 17th level, you can increase one ability score of your 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. It bears mentioning that as a binder, you receive fewer opportunities for ability score improvements than characters of any other class. This reflects the fact that the farther you progress as a binder, the more your sense of self is subsumed by the various other souls to which you bind—souls from which you borrow abilities rather than working on improving your own innate ones.

Beginning at 6th level, you gain immunity to the frightened condition as long as you are bound to a vestige. As you gain binder levels, your vestiges become even more protective of their time with you, granting additional wards from effects that would harm your soul or life energy and prevent their fully experiencing reality through you. At 9th level, you gain the slippery mind trait, which augments your ability to free yourself from any magical effect that would otherwise control or compel you. Specifically, if you fail your saving throw against an enchantment spell/magical effect, you can attempt the saving throw one additional time at the beginning of your next turn using the same DC and regard-less of whether the spell/effect normally grants a subsequent save attempt. At 13th level, you gain immunity to any magical effect that would drain your energy either by causing exhaustion or reducing one of your ability scores. Finally, when you reach 18th level, your bound vestiges fully shield your mind, granting

you immunity to any magical effect that would sense your emotions or read your thoughts, to divination spells, to the charmed condition, and to any other magical effect (including the wish spell) used to affect your mind or gain informa-tion about you.

All binders are defined by their facility with summoning and making pacts with vestiges. But different binders steer that facility in varying directions, embodied by the binder archetypes. Your choice of archetype is a reflection of your focus—of your priorities and preferred techniques, and of the particular ways in which you learn to draw power from your bound vestiges.

Anima Mages tend to give binders a bad name. Greedy for knowledge and power, they exploit the nature of their bound vestiges to advance their own abilities, often seeing vestiges as mere tools no different from spell component pouches or magic wands. Indeed, anima mages can learn to tap a resource all but unknown to their rivals to gain spellcasting abilities, meta-magical augmentations, and heightened awareness by directly touching the Weave through a bound vestige's unique existence outside the bounds of reality. These fragments of hidden arcane knowledge bear certain similarities to a warlock's eldritch invoca- tions and expand upon the forms of magic inherent in summoning and binding vestiges. With them, an anima mage gains a decided edge against spell-casters and non-spellcasters alike.

Binder Archetype

Ability Score Improvement

Soul Guardian

Binder Archetypes

Anima Mage

Half-Elf Anima Mage

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When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you gain proficiency with the Arcana skill. If you already have proficiency in this skill, then you may instead double your proficiency bonus when making an Arcana skill check.

Also at 3rd level, you gain the ability to cast spells by drawing upon the latent powers of your bound vestiges and their connections to unreal realms. See chapter 10 of the Player's Handbook for the general rules of spellcasting and chapter 11 of that guide (along with chapter 3 of Xanathar's Guide to Everything and chapter 4 of the Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide) for the warlock spell list and descrip-tions of the spells and cantrips thereon. Cantrips. You learn two cantrips: prestidigi-tation and one other cantrip of your choice from the warlock spell list. You learn another war-lock cantrip of your choice at 9th level and another at 16th level. Spell Slots. The Theurgic Spellcasting table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these 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 two 1st-level warlock spells of your choice, but you must choose these from the abjuration, conjuration, divination, or enchant-ment spells on the warlock spell list. The Spells Known column of the Theurgic Spellcasting table shows when you learn more warlock spells of 1st level or higher. Each of these spells must also be an abjuration, conjuration, divination, or enchantment spell of your choice, and must be of a level for which you have spell slots. Whenever you gain a level in this class, you can replace one of the warlock spells you know

with another spell of your choice from the warlock spell list. The new spell must be of a level for which you have spell slots, and it must be an abjuration, conjuration, divination, or enchantment spell. Spellcasting Ability. Unlike with other magical pact abilities granted by your vestige, Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for your warlock spells, since you learn your spells through the strength of your attunement to your vestiges and through your ability to intuit deeper arcane mysteries via that relationship. 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 warlock 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

Starting at 6th level, you have perfected the ability to use your prestidigitation cantrip to draw the seal needed to contact a vestige. As such, this step of the Soul Binding process only takes you 1 action rather than 1 minute, provided nothing is preventing you from casting the cantrip at the time.

ANIMA MAGE FEATURES Binder Level Feature 3rd Arcanist, Theurgic Spellcasting 6th Magic Seal, Vestige Metamagic (1/day) 10th Vestigial Awareness, Vestige Metamagic (2/day) 15th Pact Archimage, Vestige Metamagic (3/day)

Arcanist

Theurgic Spellcasting

Magic Seal

THEURGIC SPELLCASTING Binder Cantrips Spells —Spell Slots per Spell Level— Level Known Known 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 3rd 2 2 1 — — — — 4th 2 3 2 — — — — 5th 2 3 3 — — — — 6th 2 3 3 — — — — 7th 2 4 3 1 — — — 8th 2 5 4 1 — — — 9th 3 5 4 2 — — — 10th 3 6 4 2 — — — 11th 3 7 4 3 — — — 12th 3 7 4 3 — — — 13th 3 8 4 3 1 — — 14th 3 9 4 3 2 — — 15th 3 9 4 3 2 — — 16th 4 10 4 3 2 — — 17th 4 10 4 3 3 — — 18th 4 10 4 3 3 1 — 19th 4 11 4 3 3 1 — 20th 4 12 4 3 3 1 1Sam

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Also beginning at 6th level, you have learned to manipulate your theurgic spells to suit your needs. You gain one use of this Vestige Metamagic at 6th level, after which you must complete a short or long rest in order to use your Vestige Metamagic again. The number of times you can use your Vestige Metamagic between rests increases at higher levels: two uses when you reach 10th level and three uses when you reach 15th level. With the exception of the Empowered Spell option, which can be used in conjunction with the use of another Vestige Metamagic option, you can only use one Vestige Metamagic option on a spell when you cast it. Each of the following five Vestige Metamagic options indicates the number of uses you must expend in order to employ it; the Quickened option, for example, can not be used until you reach 10th level, as it requires two uses to employ. Distant Spell (expends 1 use). When you cast a spell that has a range of 5 feet or greater, you double the spell's range. When you cast a spell that has a range of touch, you instead make the range of the spell 30 feet. Empowered Spell (expends 1 use). When you roll damage for a spell, you can reroll a number of damage dice up to your Wisdom modifier (minimum of one). You must use the new roll(s). You can use this option even if you have already used a different Metamagic option during the casting of the spell. Extended Spell (expends 1 use). When you cast a spell that has a duration of 1 minute or longer, you double its duration, to a maximum duration of 24 hours. Heightened Spell (expends 3 uses). When you cast a spell that forces a creature to make a saving throw to resist its effects, you give one target of the spell disadvantage on its first saving throw made agains the spell. Quickened Spell (expends 2 uses). When you cast a spell that has a casting time of 1 action, you change the casting time to 1 bonus action for this casting.

Beginning at 10th level, you have learned how to force your bound vestige(s) to focus on alerting you to danger instead of simply letting it revel in the sensations it perceived through your pact. Whenever you make a good pact

with a vestige (i.e. succeed on your pact-making check), you gain a +2 bonus on initiative rolls for the duration of the pact.

Beginning at 15th level, you have discovered how to summon and bind vestiges with added speed and flexibility. First, when drawing a seal and summoning a vestige, you can ignore any special require-ments a vestige might normally place on its willingness to answer a summons (see Vestige Descriptions below). Moreover, once per day, you can bind a vestige extremely quickly, even in the heat of combat; the accelerated pact-making check takes only a single action rather than a full minute.

A Knight of the Sacred Seal is a binder that has formed a true partnership with one particular vestige. The pact oath these Knights swear require them to champion and protect their patron vestige, advancing its goals in the world and taking its seal as a personal symbol to adorn their shield or armor. As a Knight's rela-

tionship with a patron vestige deepens, a deeper well of abilities becomes

available, and most Knights remain bound to their pat-ron always, even though

able to bind with other ves-tiges in its place. Only when the unique

bond is maintained

do Knights of the Sacred Seal realize their full potential, becoming more than

they once were.

Vestige Metamagic

Vestigial Awareness

Pact Archimage

Knight of the Sacred Seal

Dwarf Knight of the Sacred SealSam

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When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you may select any one vestige that you have previously bound as your patron. The choice is permanent. You develop a stronger than usual relationship with this vestige, which grants you a number of benefits as you advance in this binder archetype. In order to maintain this bond, you must still renew your pact with your patron vestige each day, but you automatically succeed on your pact-making check, and thus always make a "good pact". If you choose not to renew your pact with your patron on any given day (i.e. to make a pact with a different vestige) or if you expel your patron using the Expel Vestige pact augmen-tation ability, you lose access to all features granted by the Knight of the Sacred Seal archetype (listed on the above table), only regaining them once you renew your pact with your patron. You would still, however, gain any abilities granted by binding other vestiges in the interim.

Also beginning at 3rd level, your deeper tie with your patron vestige allows you to channel its abilities so as to boost your own combat prowess. You gain proficiency with all armor and shields and with martial weapons as long as you are maintaining an active pact with your patron vestige. Moreover, as long as you are maintaining an active pact with your patron vestige, your melee weapon attacks (including your unarmed strikes) are considered magical for purposes of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage.

Beginning at 6th level, your relationship with your patron vestige deepens, prompting it to protect you when you are threatened. While actively maintaining a pact with your patron, if another creature targets you with an attack or

if you are subjected to an effect that requires you to make a Dexterity saving throw, you can use a reaction to gain a bonus that applies to your Armor Class and to your Dexterity saving throws. The bonus is equal to your Charisma modifier. This bonus benefits you with regard to the prompting attack/effect and as well as for any other such attacks/effects to which you are subjected during the next minute. Once you use this reaction, you cannot do so again until finishing a short or long rest.

Beginning at 10th level, whenever you invoke your Vestige's Protection feature, the protection fills an aura around you, providing the same protections to allies of your choice within 5 feet of you.

Also beginning at 10th level, you are able to draw upon the power of your patron vestige (as long as you are actively maintaining a pact with it) to briefly bolster your combat abilities and fortitude. You invoke this power as a bonus action, and until the beginning of your next turn, you gain 2 temporary hit points, a +2 bo-nus to your Strength score, a 10-foot increase to your base walking speed, and a +4 bonus to Wisdom and Constitution saving throws. You can invoke this power a number of times equal to your Charisma modifier. You regain all spent uses of this power once you complete a long rest.

At 15th level, your long association with your patron vestige has permanently transformed you. You develop a hybrid nature that gives you an additional creature type—aberration—even when you are not actively maintaining a pact with your patron. You can be affected by a game effect if it works on either of your two creature types. For example, the detect evil and good spell hereafter locates you as an aberra-tion, and the protection from evil and good spell imposes various disadvantages and disabilities upon you. Your apotheosis does, however, grant you a measure of otherworldly protection. Whenever you take non-magical damage, you can reduce the total amount of damage by 2; if you are actively maintaining a pact with your patron vestige when you take non-magical damage,

KNIGHT OF THE SACRED SEAL FEATURES Binder Level Feature 3rd Patron Vestige, Martial Prowess 6th Vestige's Protection 10th Vestige's Protection Aura, Vestige's Power 15th Apotheosis, Vestige's Surge

Patron Vestige

Martial Prowess

Vestige's Protection

Vestige's Protection Aura

Vestige's Power

Apotheosis

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you can instead decrease the total damage by 5.

Also beginning at 15th level, once per day, as

long as you are main-taining an active pact with

your patron vestige, you can use one of your patron vestige's granted abilities, your Vestige's Protection

feature, or your Vestige's Power feature one additional

time even if you have no remaining uses

and normally would not be able to use that ability or feature again until finishing a rest.

Part sleuth, part hunter, Soul Slayers are binders that channel the power of their vestiges' souls to stalk and kill savage horrors. As they often hire themselves out as monster slayers, the widespread mistrust of binders is somewhat mitigated toward Soul Slayers; many folk are more wiling to turn a blind eye to the fact that these individuals bind souls from beyond reality given that the hiring of a Soul Slayer is one of the most effective ways to help rid a region of monstrous or otherworldly threats. Some of this effectiveness derives from an ability to draw upon a vestige's past experiences and arcane knowledge; the rest comes from a Soul Slayer's knack for focusing vestigial power generally in ways that facilitate hunting and killing monstrous, magical, or extraplanar creatures.

When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you gain proficiency in your choice of either the Investigation or Survival skill. You also gain proficiency with medium armor, with hand crossbows, and with your choice of one martial melee weapon that has either the finesse or versatile property.

At 3rd level, you also develop an uncanny ability to successfully hunt a particular type of prey. Choose one creature type from among aberrations, dragons, elementals, fey, fiends, giants, humanoids, and monstrosities; your choice becomes your Slayer's Prey, and you derive additional archetype benefits with regard to that type of creature at higher levels.

Also beginning at 3rd level, drawing upon your vestiges' otherworldly senses and knowledge you can use a bonus action once per turn to do one of the following:

• Make a Wisdom (Perception) check to spot a hidden creature.

• Determine one feature of a creature you can see within 30 feet of you; that feature can be a condition immunity, a damage immunity, a damage resistance, or a damage vulnerability (your choice). You only learn one condition or

Vestige's Surge

Soul Slayer

SOUL SLAYER FEATURES Binder Level Feature 3rd Hunter's Proficiencies, Slayer's Prey, Slayer Sense 6th Vestige's Mettle 10th Arcane Disjunction 15th Slayer's Riposte

Hunter's Proficiencies

Slayer's Prey

Slayer Sense

Human Soul Slayer

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damage type to which the chosen feature applies, and if the creature does not possess the chosen feature, you learn nothing but still expend your bonus action. If the creature is of the same type as your Slayer's Prey, then you can determine two such features (or two conditions or damage types to which a single feature applies) rather than only one.

Beginning at 6th level, your bonds with vestiges have strengthened your fortitude and will, allowing you to shrug off many magical effects that would otherwise harm you. If you make a successful Constitution or Wisdom saving throw that would normally result in your taking half, rather than full, damage from a spell or other magical effect, you instead take no damage. If that spell or magical effect originated from a creature of your Slayer's Prey type, you also have advantage on the Constitution or Wisdom saving throw.

Beginning at 10th level, you have developed the ability to throw a bubble of your vestige's unreality around a creature, thereby potentially cutting it off briefly from the Weave. When you see a creature within 30 feet of you casting a spell or about to use a spell-like or other magical ability, you can use your reaction to force it to make a Wisdom saving throw, the DC of which equals 8 + your proficiency bonus, + your Charisma modifier. If the creature fails this saving throw, it is affected as if it is in the area of an antimagic field spell until the end of its next turn. If you choose to use this feature against a creature that is not of your Slayer's Prey type, then you must forfeit one of the granted abilities from one of your actively bound vestiges; you must have at least one currently usable granted ability in order to use this feature, and you do not regain a forfeited ability until you finish a short rest. If the creature is of your Slayer's Prey type, then you need not forfeit another ability. In either case, you may use this feature up to a number of times equal to your Charisma modifier, regaining spent uses upon finishing a long rest.

At 15th level, you gain the ability to counter-attack when a foe attempts to physically over-power you. If a creature forces you to make a Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution saving throw, you can use your reaction to make one weapon attack against the creature. You make this attack immediately before making the saving throw, and if your attack hits, you automatically succeed on the saving throw (in addition to the attack's normal effects). If the creature prompting you to make the saving throw is of your Slayer's Prey type, then you could choose to use one of your vestige's granted abilities rather than make a weapon attack against the creature, provided that the granted ability is one capable of either targeting the creature or subjecting it to an area effect. Under these circumstances, you can use the ability as a reaction even if it normally requires a full action.

A remnant of the divinity once possessed by the demon lord Orcus, Tenebrous is a vestige not quite like any other. In some places, the vestige is still worshipped as a god, and it thus possesses the ability to manipulate the world in distinctive ways. Many apostates of Tenebrous are binders who themselves revere Orcus and see Tenebrous as a fragment of their sundered god. Others view the vestige as a separate deity that attempted to manifest through Orcus but was laid low when the demon lord proved unworthy. In either case, you glean unusual powers over darkness and undeath from your devotion to Tenebrous, and you develop the ability to cast a limited number of cleric spells otherwise unavailable to binders.

Vestige's Mettle

Arcane Disjunction

Slayer's Riposte

Tenebrous Apostate

Earth Genasi Tenebrous Apostate

Not for resale. Permission granted to print or photocopy this document for personal use only. The Binder Class 15

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In order to choose the Tenebrous Apostate binder archetype, you must have both the strength of will and lack of scruples necessary to devote yourself to a former demon god. Specifically, you must have a minimum Wisdom score of 13 prior to choosing this archetype, and your alignment must be non-good (any neutral or evil alignment is appropriate).

As a devotee of Tenebrous, you are able to bind with that vestige even if your Effective Binder Level normally would not permit you to do so. Moreover, you no longer need to summon it every day; you are bound to Tenebrous con-stantly and cannot choose to bind a different vestige in its place. You can still attempt a binding check each day, however, as an attempt to negate Tenebrous's influence.

Also at 3rd level, you gain proficiency with the Religion skill. If you already have proficiency in this skill, then you may instead double your proficiency bonus when making a Religion skill check.

Beginning at 3rd level, you also gain the ability to cast spells granted by your devotion to Tenebrous. See chapter 10 of the Player's Handbook for the general rules of spellcasting and chapter 11 of that guide (along with chapter 3 of Xanathar's Guide to Everything) for the cleric spell list and descriptions of the spells and cantrips thereon. Cantrips. You learn two cantrips of your choice from among the following: guidance, mending, resistance, spare the dying, thauma-turgy, and toll the dead. You learn another cantrip of your choice from this list at 9th level and another at 16th level.

Spell Slots. The Tenebrous Spellcasting table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these spells, you must expend a slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expen-ded spell slots when you finish a long rest. Spells Known of 1st-Level and Higher. You know two 1st-level cleric spells of your choice, but you must choose these from the abjuration, divination, illusion, and necromancy spells on the cleric spell list. The Spells Known column of the Tenebrous Spellcasting table shows when you learn more cleric spells of 1st level or higher. Each of these spells must also be an abjuration, divination, illusion, or necromancy spell of your choice, and must be of a level for which you have spell slots. Whenever you gain a level in this class, you can replace one of the cleric spells you know with another spell of your choice from the cleric spell list. The new spell must be of a level for which you have spell slots, and it must be an abjuration, divination, illusion, or necromancy spell. Spellcasting Ability. Unlike with other magical pact abilities granted by your vestige, Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for your cleric spells, since the power of your spells comes from your devotion to Tenebrous. You

Special Requirements

TENEBROUS APOSTATE FEATURES Binder Level Feature 3rd Eternal Bondage, Dark Acolyte Tenebrous Spellcasting 6th Tenebrous's Rebuke, Aspect of the Dead 10th Umbral Body 15th Blast of the Void

Eternal Bondage

Dark Acolyte

Tenebrous Spellcasting

TENEBROUS SPELLCASTING Binder Cantrips Spells —Spell Slots per Spell Level— Level Known Known 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 3rd 2 2 1 — — — — 4th 2 3 2 — — — — 5th 2 3 3 — — — — 6th 2 3 3 1 — — — 7th 2 4 3 1 — — — 8th 2 5 4 1 — — — 9th 3 5 4 2 — — — 10th 3 6 4 2 — — — 11th 3 7 4 3 — — — 12th 3 7 4 3 1 — — 13th 3 8 4 3 1 — — 14th 3 9 4 3 2 — — 15th 3 9 4 3 2 — — 16th 4 10 4 3 3 — — 17th 4 10 4 3 3 1 — 18th 4 11 4 3 3 1 — 19th 4 12 4 3 3 1 1 20th 4 13 4 3 3 1 1

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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 cleric 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

Starting at 6th level, whenever you use the Turn Undead ability granted by Tenebrous (see Vestige Descriptions below), your link to your dark master permits you to channel the energy in a unique way. When you Turn Undead, you also deal force damage in an amount equal to 1d6 x half your binder level (rounded down) to each undead creature in range. An undead creature that succeeds on its Wisdom saving throw against the turn attempt takes only half of this damage. Note: This force damage does not end the turned condition as other damage would. Alternately, in lieu of turning or destroying undead, you can expend a use of your Turn Undead ability to cure undead creature within 30 feet of you, letting each regain 1d6 x half your binder level (rounded down) in hit points.

Also beginning at 6th level, Tenebrous's influ-ence has caused your body to begin to resemble that of an undead creature. Your skin grays so that you appear shadowy in dim light and corpse-like in bright light, and you lose approx-imately a third of your body weight. Because of these transformations, you gain a +1 bonus to Dexterity (Stealth) checks, and you have advan-tage both on Stealth checks to hide in dim light or darkness and on Dexterity (Acrobatics) checks to contest or escape from a grapple. Moroever, undead creatures with an Intelli-gence of 5 or lower believe you to be one of them and do not attack you other than in self-defense or when ordered to do so by another creature exerting control over them.

Beginning at 10th level, you can transform yourself (including anything worn or carried by you) into pure darkness once per day. While transformed, you are incorporeal, having no

physical body, and cannot be harmed other than by other creatures with an incorporeal trait (e.g. allips, ghosts, kalaraq quori, shadow demons, shadow horrors, specters, spirit trolls, will-o'-wisps), by magic weapons or attacks that are considered magical, or by spells or other spell-like or supernatural abilities; you have immunity to non-magical attacks and to the grappled, prone, or restrained conditions, and resistance to magical acid, cold, fire, lightning, necrotic, poison, and thunder damage. While transformed, you can attack other noncorporeal creatures normally, and your own unarmed strikes or other natural weapon attacks affect both corporeal and incorporeal targets and ignore any Armor Class bonus a corporeal target derives from natural armor, non-magical armor, and non-magical shields. Your attacks with non-magical melee weapons have no effect on corporeal targets, and your attacks with magical melee weapons deal half damage against corporeal targets. When you make a thrown or ranged weapon attack, the projectile becomes corporeal once you attack and can affect corporeal targets normally. Finally, while transformed, you can move through other creatures and objects as if they were difficult terrain, but you cannot end your turn in another creature's space, and you take 1d10 force damage if you end your turn inside an object, before being expelled to the nearest unoccupied space. You can remain transformed for a number of rounds equal to your binder level or return to your normal form early as a bonus action. Once you return to normal form, you can't use this ability again until finishing a long rest.

Beginning at 15th level, you can channel the touch of Tenebrous's dead existence beyond reality to disrupt the very molecular structure of your foes. Specifically, you can choose to expend one use of the Turn Undead ability granted by Tenebrous to instead deal necrotic damage in an amount equal to 1d8 x half your binder level (rounded down) to any type of creature within a 30-feet cone that extends from you. Each affected creature can attempt a Wisdom saving throw (DC 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Wisdom modifier), taking half damage on a successful save. Once you use this ability, you can't use it again until finishing a long rest.

Tenebrous's Rebuke

Aspect of the Dead

Umbral Body

Blast of the Void

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This section provides detailed descriptions of all the vestiges available to binders. The various elements of a vestige description are described immediately below.

Each description begins with a header consis-ting of the vestige's proper name and an epithet or official title by which the vestige is known.

Below or alongside the illustration of each vestige's seal is a boxed summary description of its essential characteristics, as follows: The Seal. Summoning a vestige requires that the binder draw its seal. The unique seal associated with each vestige appears above the summary information. Vestige Level. Each vestige has a level, which is given in its summary. A binder wish-ing to summon a vestige must meet or exceed the Effective Binder Level (EBL) required to summon a vestige of that level (see the Binder Table on page 7, above). For convenience, each vestige is listed by level in the table at right. Binding DC. The summary for each vestige also gives a binding DC for the check needed to determine whether a binder makes a good or poor pact with a summoned vestige. This DC also appears in the table at right. Special Requirement. If the vestige imposes any special requirements on its summoning, this entry will indicate "Yes," and details will appear under the Special Requirement section in the vestige's main description. Otherwise, it will read "No." The imposition of special require-ments is also indicated in the table at right.

Vestige Descriptions

Name

Seal and Summary

VESTIGES BY VESTIGE LEVEL Vestige Special Level Vestige Binding DC Requirement 1st Alaertha 14 No 1st Amon 20 Yes 1st Aym 15 No 1st Leraje 15 Yes 1st Naberius 15 Yes 1st Ronove 15 Yes 2nd Dahlver-Nar 17 No 2nd Gith 18 No 2nd Haagenti 17 Yes 2nd Malphas 15 No 2nd Savnok 20 Yes 3rd Andromalius 20 Yes 3rd Focalor 20 Yes 3rd Karsus 25 Yes 3rd Paimon 20 No 3rd Velshox 20 Yes 4th Agares 22 Yes 4th Andras 22 No 4th Buer 20 Yes 4th Eurynome 21 Yes 4th Nehushta 20 No 4th Tenebrous 21 Yes 5th Acererak 25 Yes 5th Balam 25 Yes 5th Dantalion 25 No 5th The Lost One 25 Yes 5th Void 25 No 6th Chupoclops 25 Yes 6th Father Llymic 25 No 6th Haures 25 No 6th Ipos 26 Yes 6th Shax 26 Yes 6th Zagan 25 Yes 7th Yog-Sothoth 28 Yes 7th Eligor 27 No 7th Ka'jik'zxi 25 No 7th Kyuss 28 No 7th Marchosias 27 Yes 8th Atropus 28 Yes 8th Halphax 28 Yes 8th Orthos 29 Yes 8th Sertrous 29 No 9th Dune-Brood 30 Yes 9th il-Lashtavar 30 Yes 9th Pandorym 30 Yes

Not for resale. Permission granted to print or photocopy this document for personal use only. The Binder Class

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This part of the description relates the vestiges origin legend. While in some cases this coincides with widely known history and lore, these back-grounds are largely known only to binders and might even be apocryphal. The legends detailed herein are the most widely accepted versions, but pact magic tomes differ and variants exists.

If the vestige imposes any special requirement(s) on its summoning, they are given in this section. If a binder fails to fulfill a vestige's special requirement, it does not manifest when summoned, and the binding attempt fails.

Vestiges take myriad different forms, but when they manifest, they become visible as images floating over their seals. The image is merely a figment representing the vestige; it can extend beyond the seal's borders but can never leave the area over the seal.

The bond between a binder and a vestige links their spirits, letting the vestige experience reality. The bond cannot be broken (an anti-magic field can suppress it), and it expresses itself in the binder's person as some physical sign peculiar to the vestige. The mark is a real change (i.e. not merely illusory) visible to any-one viewing the binder. This sign is only sup-pressed if the binding itself is suppressed, but a binder can hide the mark by mundane (e.g. cosmetic) or magical means. If the marks of two bound vestiges are mutually exclusive, that of the higher level vestige suppresses the lesser's. Binders with the Suppress Mark class feature can also choose whether to show such signs.

This section details the influence a vestige imposes on binders who make a poor pact with it (i.e. by failing their binding check). The influence constantly affects a binder's perso-nality and emotions, and particular vestiges might even require that the binder take (or

refrain from) certain actions. Binders who ignore these requirements take a -1 penalty on attack rolls, saving throws, and ability checks until the vestige departs at the end of the pact.

The supernatural abilities granted by a bound vestige are set forth in this section of its description. The following general rules govern all such supernatural abilities.

• All powers granted by a vestige are magical in origin, even if they replicate abilities that are not normally considered magical. As such, these granted powers are suppressed by an antimagic field, and the like.

• Granted abilities themselves cannot be dispelled, although a spell cast by means of such an ability can be dispelled as normal.

• The save DC for effects gained through one of these vestige-granted abilities is 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier, and the spell attack modifier for such spells is equal to your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier.

• Spells cast by means of a vestige's granted ability do not require verbal, somatic, or material components even if the spell normally requires them.

• Effects created by a granted ability end when the granting vestige leaves the binder or if the binder dies while bound.

• Using a granted ability consumes an action unless otherwise noted.

Legend

Special Requirement

Manifestation

Binding Mark

Influence

Granted Abilities

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Acererak was a human mage-priest of sur-passing evil, who laid claim to godlike power only to lose his grip on reality. His vestige grants abilities that mirror a lich's dreadful magic of undeath and channel the paralyzing chill of the grave.

Legend. Few but a handful of bards and scholars remember Acererak as anything more than the dark force whose final abode was the so-called Tomb of Horrors. In life, Acererak was a powerful wizard and a cleric of dark gods who sought out and completed the ritual for becom-ing a lich when he grew older and felt death's specter looming over him. For centuries, his power grew in the tomb wherein he kept his phylactery hidden, and scores of undead and fiendish servants attended him there. In the fullness of time, however, even the undead spark that animated him began to wane, and for the next eight decades, Acererak directed his servants to fill his tomb with a deadly array of traps and to magically hide it from casual discovery, while he sent his own soul forth to roam strange planes hitherto un-

ADAPTING BINDERS AND VESTIGES If you wish to alter the binder's role in your cam-paign setting or game, this can be easily accomp-lished without changing the class mechanics. Thematic Adaptations. To lend your binders a darker or lighter feel, have them bind with fiends or celestials rather than vestiges, perhaps limiting the class only to evil- or good-aligned characters. Bin-ders of a particular religious or secular order could bind with spirits of saints or folk heroes. Binding could even be a totemic rite that summons ances-tral spirits using tattoos or talismans. The mecha-nics of the class can remain largely the same in any of these scenarios, requiring only changes to the influences exerted by the beings you choose. Archetype Adaptations. The various binder sub-classes might also be tweaked to better fit your campaign. Perhaps Knights of the Sacred Seal are more like paladins in your world; instead of swear-ing oaths, they might accept possession by ghosts or let themselves be enthralled by aboleths, mind-flayers, rakshasas, or vampire lords. The Anima Mage archetype might only be available as a multi-class option for PCs already advanced in another spellcasting class; likewise, Soul Slayers might first need experience as rangers, rogues, or eldritch knights. The Tenebrous Apostate archetype is ideal for adaptation, serving as a template for creating customized archetypes specific to other vestiges. The binder class is intended to be usable in any campaign setting, but it might also be more closely tailored to specific worlds… Binders in Eberron. The vestige il-Lashtavar is explicitly linked to Eberron's Dal Quor plane, but maybe all vestiges are souls trapped on the dream plane. The magic of dragonmarks is also well suited to adapting a binder's magic of seals and summon-ing. Perhaps only characters who manifest dragon-marks can become binders and might only have access to vestiges thematically linked to that mark. Binders in Ravnica. The vestige known as Dune-Brood is one of the legendary Nephilim of Ravnica, and the Lost One vestige might easily be adapted to fit loxodon racial lore. Perhaps on Ravnica, all vestiges represent lost remnants from among the "old gods" that often serve as patrons to Ravnican warlocks—deities and demigods of a lesser stature than the Nephilim, far pre-dating the first Guildpact. Binders in Theros. The vestige Savnok once served the Theran gods, but others might represent the ancient archons, and vestiges like Eurynome or Nehushta could be remnants of vanquished titans.

ACERERAK

Vestige Level: 5th Binding DC: 25 Special Requirement: Yes

Acererak, The Devourer

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known and undiscovered. By this point, Acer-erak's physical form had diminished to little more than a skull—a demilich containing only a fragment of his once-potent malevolence. But he had also seen to it that rumors of his tomb and the supposedly vast treasures it contained would be circulated far and wide, ensuring a steady supply of tomb raiders and adventurers, few if any of whom would be powerful enough to survive even the outermost traps and magical wards surrounding his sepulcher. Had he wished to, Acererak could have restored himself to full lichdom by feeding even one of these adventurers' souls to his phylac-tery. Instead, he used their souls to fuel an arcane ritual, devised in his own twisted mind, that he hoped would merge his consciousness directly with the Negative Energy Plane. Had he succeeded, he might well have assumed control of any undead being on any plane, gained im-mortality, and effectively become a god. Already supplicants and acolytes had been drawn to the tomb—individuals who worshiped the skull hidden within and who would have been among his first clerics once he achieved divinity. But such a thing was not to be. Acererak's plan failed, some say owing to a band of tomb raiders who proved more powerful than he could have imagined possible and who de-stroyed his demilich form and phylactery. While such an end would normally have sent Acere-rak's damned soul onward to the Abyss or one of the Nine Hells, that did not happen. Perhaps because of the semblance of divinity conferred upon him by his misguided worshippers, his desire to merge with the Negative Energy Plane proved stronger than the pull of the Lower Planes. Souls do not, of course, travel to the Energy Planes upon death, so with no clear destination, Acererak's spirit went nowhere, becoming a vestige utterly divorced from reality. Special Requirement. You must place a gemstone roughly the size of a human tooth in the center of Acererak's seal. The gem is not consumed in the summoning. Manifestation. The gem placed within the seal floats upward to the height of your head as dust and eerie green flames swirl up from the ground to form a yellowed human skull with the gem as either a tooth or an eye. Within moments, both eyes and all its teeth transform into multihued, glowing gemstones, and Acererak speaks in a dry, contemptuous voice.

Sign. A gem replaces one of your teeth. If removed, it changes back to a tooth as a new gem appears in its place. Influence. As a vestige, Acererak has finally achieved the immortality he sought but none of the power. Should you fall under his influence, you are driven by an insatiable hunger for authority and sway. If presented with an opportunity to fill a power void over any group of creatures, the vestige requires that you attempt to do so. Granted Abilities. While bound to Acererak, you gain the following powers from him:

• Detect Undead. At will, you can expend an action to know if there is an undead crea-ture within 30 feet of you, as well as where the creature is located. This perception can penetrate most barriers but is blocked by 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of common metal, a thin sheet of lead, or 3 feet of wood or dirt.

• Hide from Undead. At will, you can expend an action to become undetectable to certain undead creatures. Undead creatures with an Intelligence score of 5 or lower automa-tically fail to detect you, but those with higher Intelligence can make a single Wis-dom saving throw, and on a success, they are able to perceive you for the next ten minutes even if you use an action to Hide from Undead again during that time. While hidden in this way, affected undead are unable to see, hear, or smell you by any means, including through such senses as blindsight, tremorsense, or truesight. An undead that has reason to believe unseen opponents are present, however can still attempt to locate and attack you at disadvantage (i.e. as if blinded with regard to you). If you attempt to attack, touch, or cast a spell that targets an affected undead, then that creature is immediately able to perceive you again.

• Lich Resistances. You gain resistance to cold and lightning damage.

• Negative Energy Tether. When you take damage that would reduce you to 0 hit points, you can use your reaction to briefly tether yourself with negative energy to a creature you can see within 30 feet of you. The targeted creature must make a Consti-tution saving throw (use your granted abili-ty save DC). On a failed save, you take only half the triggering damage (rounding down),

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and the target takes the remaining amount as necrotic damage, after which the tether disappears. Once you use this ability, you can't use it again until finishing a long rest.

• Paralyzing Touch. As an action, you can attempt to paralyze a creature within 5 feet of you. Make a melee spell attack using your granted ability attack modifier. On a hit, the target is paralyzed for a number of rounds equal to half your binder level (rounding up). A paralyzed target can make a Constitution saving throw at the end of each of its turns (use your granted ability save DC), ending the paralyzed condition on itself on a success. You can use this ability a number of times equal to your Charisma modifier, regaining all spent uses once you finish a short or long rest.

• Speak with Dead. You can question the dead at will as though casting the speak with dead spell. You can do so only for 1 minute each time you use this ability, but the effect is otherwise subject to the same limitations as the spell (e.g. you cannot question a creature you have questioned within the previous ten days nor one targeted by the actual spell in that time).

Agares was slain by his own allies for a wrong he did not in truth commit. As a vestige, he not only grants binders the ability to weaken foes

and shake the ground they walk on, but renders his host fearless and supernaturally

gifted with languages. Legend. In his own lifetime, Agares was among the most powerful of dao

genies, leading vast armies on the Elemental Plane of Earth. Second in authority only to the Great Khan of the dao, Agares was

utterly loyal to his leader. Nonetheless, that leader feared

betrayal by his general. Agares had become obsessed with a djinn commander

who had bested him on the field of battle more than once, and his wish to meet this djinn again in battle eventually blinded him to other tactical options. Indeed so obsessed was Agares with his foe, rumors began to circu-late that his esteem had

deepened into love. These rumors fueled the Great Khan's fear of betrayal, a fear that infected many of the soldiers serving beneath Agares. When the day finally came that Agares trapped the djinn's forces, he girded himself for personal combat and set out in answer to his enemy's challenge to a personal duel, riding astride an earth elemental in the shape of a giant crocodile, which was his signature steed in battle. In truth, however, there had been no challenge; the summons was a trap laid by Agares's own lieutenants, and when he least expected it, those allies fell upon him and slew him in sight of his great enemy. Special Requirement. You must draw Agares's seal either on the earth or an area of unworked stone. Manifestation. The ground beneath the seal trembles slightly as the great, brown head of an earth-crusted crocodile burst from beneath it. The crocodile's jaws part, revealing a black hawk that spreads its wings. The hawk's beak moves when Agares speaks, but the rumbling voice seems to come from the crocodile's throat. Sign. You develop a persistent cough that causes you to spew fine dirt and small pebbles from your mouth. This cough prevents you from casting any spells with verbal compo-nents. While bound to the vestige, you can resist the urge to cough for a number of rounds equal to your Constitution score, after which you must cough again before trying to resist again. During a round in which you cough, the cough confers advantage on any creature attempting a hearing-based Perception check to

AGARES

Vestige Level: 4th Binding DC: 22 Special Requirement: Yes

Agares, Truth Betrayed

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locate you and confers disadvantage on your Stealth checks made to hide. Influence. Agares's spirit became a vestige because his rage at being betrayed and his unfulfilled desire to meet his enemy in battle prevented the Plane of Earth from absorbing him into its essence. This anger and the loyalty he displayed in life give the vestige a deep hatred of falsehood. When influenced by Agares, you speak openly and with confidence and are incapable of using the Deception skill. When asked a direct question, you must answer truthfully and without evasion. Granted Abilities. While bound to Agares, he augments your martial prowess, makes the earth itself your ally, and grants you the ability to let your true words be understood by all. • Earth and Air Mastery. You gain a +1 bonus

on your attack and damage rolls provided both you and your target are touching the ground. Any airborne foe suffers a -1 penalty on attack and damage rolls against you.

• Earthshaking Step. If you use an action to stomp on the ground, each creature within 10 feet of you that is either standing or climbing on a surface connected with the ground must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw (use your granted-ability save DC) or fall prone. Neither you nor your Elemental Companion (see below) need make this saving throw. You can use this ability a number of times equal to half your binder level (rounding up), regaining all spent uses upon finishing a short or long rest.

• Elemental Companion. You can summon an elemental from the Plane of Earth to accom-pany and fight for you. This creature obeys your commands, but if it is more than 30 feet away from you at the end of your turn, if it or you are reduced to 0 hit points, or if you use this ability again, it dissolves. Once you use this ability, you can't do so again until finishing a short or long rest. You can summon more powerful elementals as you gain binder levels as set forth on the following table:

The summoned elemental rolls its own initiative, acting on its own turn, and requires no additional actions from you in order to follow your mental or verbal commands. The stat blocks for each of the elementals on the above table are in the Monster Manual.

• Fear Immunity. You are immune to being frightened by magical or mundane sources.

• True Speech. You can speak, understand, read, and write all languages spoken by creatures within 30 feet of you, but to speak an unfamiliar language you must first hear it spoken by a speaker you can see. Once you've used the language, you can continue to do so for as long as your pact with Agares lasts. When speaking or writing in a language with which you are otherwise unfamiliar, however, you cannot ever lie.

Alaertha was a human incantator who un-locked the secrets of existence outside reality's confines. Her vestige grants abilities that sharpen your intellect and allow you to access and manipulate the multiverse's magic Weave in unique ways. Legend. In life, Alaertha Greenweald was an Illuskan human who called herself the Incanta-trix of Redwaters and was rumored to have had dealings with members of the mysterious Arcane Brotherhood. As an incantator, she was a powerful spellcaster with outward similarities to a wizard but with unique spells and mastery over mysterious forms of metamagic. Having studied and come to intimately understand the Weave that powers all magic in the multiverse, she learned to wield both arcane and divine forms and to manipulate, steal, or negate the magic of other spellcasting beings. In particu-lar, Alaertha focused her studies on an esoteric discipline whose practitioners called themselves

Binder Level Elemental 5th or lower dust mephit 6th–10th gargoyle 11th–15th lesser earth elemental* 16th-20th earth elemental, galeb duhr

* A lesser earth elemental uses the stats of an earth elemental but with half the normal hit points and a -2 penalty on attack rolls, ability checks, saving throws, and saving throw DCs.

Alaertha, Interstitial Nightstar

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