Meddling with the ancient powers of nature was not meant for mortalkind. If you **trigger a [[Dark and Dangerous Magic|DDM]] effect** while using a druid ability or another kind of primal magic, **roll** on the Primal Corruptions table below. When making a Primal Corruptions roll, the **type of die** used depends on the character’s level or whether they are using a magical item: | **Level** | Primal Corruptions Die | | ---------- | ---------------------- | | 1-3 | `dice: 1d4` | | 4-6 | `dice: 1d6` | | 7-9 | `dice: 1d12` | | Magic Item | `dice: 1d12` | <br> ## Primal Corruptions Primal Corruptions represent the hivemind of bracken and beast clawing away at your mortality and individuality, steadily turning you feral. | `dice: 1d12` | Primal Corruption | | ---- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | 1 | **Dark Interference.** Roll on the [[Dark and Dangerous Magic\|Dark & Dangerous Magic]] table. | | 2 | **Lost Mortality.** Your Mortality is reduced by 1. | | 3 | **Dark Interference.** Roll on the [[Dark and Dangerous Magic\|Dark & Dangerous Magic]] table. | | 4 | **Lost Mortality.** Your Mortality is reduced by `dice: 1d3`. | | 5 | **Dark Interference.** Roll on the [[Dark and Dangerous Magic\|Dark & Dangerous Magic]] table. | | 6 | **Lost Mortality.** Your Mortality is reduced by `dice: 1d6`. | | 7 | **Dark Interference.** Roll on the [[Dark and Dangerous Magic\|Dark & Dangerous Magic]] table. | | 8 | **Lost Mortality.** Your Mortality is reduced by `dice: 1d8`. | | 9 | **Dark Interference.** Roll on the [[Dark and Dangerous Magic\|Dark & Dangerous Magic]] table. | | 10 | **Dread Price.** Roll on the [[Dark and Dangerous Magic\|Dark & Dangerous Magic]] table and reduce your Mortality by `dice: 1d8`. | | 11 | **Primal Blessing.** You regain `dice: 1d4` Mortality. | | 12 | **Transformation.** Roll on the *Lost Mortality* table. | --- ## Mortality Rolling on the *Primal Corruptions* table has the potential to cause you to lose Mortality. At the start of an adventure, your **Mortality is equal to twice your level.** When it reaches zero, you must roll on the ***Lost Mortality* table.** If you roll a trait that you already possess, roll again (some exceptions, noted in table entries). Mortality returns at a rate of **`dice: 1d6` per Long Rest.** If at any point you gain a number of *Lost Mortality* features **greater than half your level,** you must make a **Death save** (random Madness and `dice: 1d4` Con loss on success). | `dice: 1d20` | Lost Mortality | | ---- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | 1 | **Cat Eyes.** You gain yellow feline eyes and can see in black and white up to Far range in complete darkness. However, while you are in direct sunlight you have disadvantage on attack rolls and Perc checks that rely on sight. | | 2 | **Staglike.** A pair of stag-like antlers erupt from your skull, which deal `dice: 2d4` damage, and you grow `dice: 1d4` feet taller. However, you now require twice the normal amount of food per day and your lifestyle costs are doubled. | | 3 | **Vampiric.** Curved bat-like fangs grow from your mouth, which deal `dice: 1d6` damage and heal you for the same amount when attacking a creature with non-poisonous blood. However, if you do not drink fresh blood every day, your Con is reduced by `dice: 1d4`. | | 4 | **Goat Legs.** Your legs transform into furry and hooved digitigrade goat legs. Your walking speed is now Fast, but you must make a Morale check at the start of every combat to see if you flee and hide. | | 5 | **Moleish.** Your hands become huge mole-like claws that deal `dice: 2d6` damage and grant you a normal Burrow speed. However, your eyes shrink to miniscule size and you grow fleshy whisker-like feelers on your nose to compensate for your blindness, which gives you disadvantage on all sight-based Perc checks and attack rolls (primarily ranged attacks). | | 6 | **Serpentine.** Long snake-like fangs grow from your now unhinged jaw, which deal `dice: 1d10` damage and cause a random [[2 - Rules/Poison\|Moderate Poison]] effect unless the target succeeds on a *Luck* (Con) save. However, if you do not feast on live prey each day, your Con is reduced by `dice: 1d4`. | | 7 | **Arachnoid.** Fine and bristly spider-like fur sprouts all over your body and you grow another pair of fully functional arms below your current pair(s) (this effect stacks). You gain a Normal climb speed, but you are incredibly sensitive to temperature, taking double damage from fire and cold. | | 8 | **Amphibious.** You become grotesquely fish-like; you grow gills, you gain webbed hands/feet, your skin becomes slimy and murky green, your eyes become bulbous, and you loose all hair. You are able to breath underwater and swim at a Fast speed. However, you have disadvantage on Cha checks made against non-aquatic creatures. | | 9 | **Simian.** Coarse dark fur covers your body, save for your leathery face, while your limbs become far longer and ganglier. You gain a Fast climb speed, and can hold things in your new hand-like feet (including weapons). However, your Int is reduced by `dice: 1d4` and your speech becomes gruff and somewhat unintelligible. | | 10 | **Bear Claws.** Your arms become far more muscular and you sprout thick fur all along them. Your hands transform into clawed bear paws that deal `dice: 2d8+1` damage, but you are incapable of wielding normal weapons and cannot use implements that require apposable thumbs. | | 11 | **Porcupine Quills.** You grow sharp quills along your back, dealing `dice: 1d6` damage to melee attackers who miss you. You can also launch a ranged quill attack (`dice: 1d4` damage, Close range). However, you take double damage from crushing or bludgeoning attacks. | | 12 | **Owl Eyes.** Your eyes become enormous and owl-like, while patches of feathers grow across your face/body and your head can rotate 270 degrees. You gain advantage on all sight-based Perc checks and a +2 bonus to all ranged Perc-based attacks. However, your bones become hollow and more fragile, causing you to take double damage from falls, blunt-force trauma, or bludgeoning attacks. | | 13 | **Troglodytic.** Your skin becomes milky white and translucent, revealing your inner vasculature and organs. As an action you can cause your organs to glow, illuminating a Close area. You can end this effect as a free action. However, creatures intelligent enough to target your easily visible organs deal double max damage on a critical hit. | | 14 | **Bullish.** Your body becomes hideously muscular and vascular, increasing your Str by `dice: 1d6`, and you grow a massive pair of bull horns that deal `dice: 2d8` damage. However, at the end of every combat you must succeed on a *Luck* (Will) check or enter a rage for `dice: 1d6` rounds, during which you attack and attempt to kill all creatures around you (including unconscious allies). | | 15 | **Wolven Teeth.** Your teeth become long, pointed, and fanged, dealing `dice: 1d8` damage and allowing you to spend 1 minute outside of combat feasting on the corpse of an edible creature to regain hit points equal to `dice: 1d4` per level. However, when you are out of hearing and sight of your "pack," you have disadvantage on *Luck* checks. | | 16 | **Rattish Skin.** You lose all hair and your skin becomes hideously pale and wrinkled, like that of a naked mole rat. Twice per combat, you can regain hit points equal to `dice: 1d8` + your druid level. However, each day you spend in daylight causes you to become *[[Fatigued]]* (can be ended by spending a full day underground). | | 17 | **Scales.** Thick armadillo-like scales grow across your body, increasing your AC by 4. However, you can no longer wear armor, and the scales are heavy and awkward, reducing your walking speed to Slow. | | 18 | **Toad Warts.** Your skin turns mottled dark green and is covered in bulbous toad-like warts that secrete corrosive slime. The warts cause `dice: 1d6` acid damage to creatures that attempt to grapple you or successfully strike you within Melee. However, your warts produce a putrid smell, giving you disadvantage on Dex (Stealth) checks where applicable. | | 19 | **Eagle Wings.** Your arms transform into feathered eagle wings, allowing to fly at a Fast speed. However, you no longer have hands and cannot hold anything. | | 20 | **Bestial Blessing.** Roll on the Lost Mortality table again and gain only the beneficial aspects of the trait. | > ### Designer's Thoughts > *Lost Mortality* features pose severe and permanent consequences for druid characters. This is done to provide a true sense of risk for meddling with the primal powers of nature and to create an oracular process whereby a player "discovers" over the course of play what kind of druid they will be. As such, no two druid characters are ever alike, giving rise to entirely unique styles of play. Given these features' permanence and mechanical significance, a GM might allow a player to roll twice on the table and choose which *Lost Mortality* feature they desire. Otherwise, let the dice fall where they may!