Prestige Class: Lich

The secrets of immortality are perhaps the most guarded and most coveted of any in the multiverse. Dark deals and vile deeds are made and carried out in the pursuit of them. To become a lich is to cheat death itself, preventing one's soul from passing on so that it may live an endless number of lives.

A lich is a master of its spellcraft, and it uses this mastery to craft a container for its immortal soul, called a phylactery. It guards this artifact more closely than any of its other possessions, because only after a lich's phylactery is destroyed can the lich itself be truly defeated.

The dark magic that regenerates the lich comes with a steep price. The lich must feed the souls of sentient creatures to its phylactery, else the magic begin to fade, and with it, the lich's immortality. Some spellcasters go down the road towards immortality with the hope that they can use their longevity as a force of good, but this act of depravity can drive even the noblest of intentions into darkness.

Prerequisites

In order to undergo the ritual to become a lich, you must meet the following prerequisites (in addition to the multiclassing prerequisities for you existing class):

• Intelligence 13. The ritual required to attain lichdom is as complex to decifer as it is to perform. Individuals must have attained a high degree of intellect to even attempt it.
• Proficiency in the Arcana skill. An intimate understanding of the weave of magic is a neccessity for any who wish to attain the immortality that lichdom offers.
• Spellcasting, 16 levels. Liches are among the pinnacle of the magic artisans, and only those well-versed in the arcane can perform the necessary spells to complete the transformation. You must have at least sixteen levels in bard, cleric, druid, sorcerer, warlock, or wizard to gain levels in this prestige class. All levels must come from the same class.
• Complete a special task. It is not enough to simply desire to become a lich. A spellcaster must seek out or bargain for the ritual required to make the transformation. There are few secrets more closely guarded than that of immortality. Demon princes, ancient hags, and evil gods may require great sacrifice or sworn allegiance to divulge it, and even then great perils likely still stand between a spellcaster and lichdom.

Crafting a Phylactery

Before the ritual of lichdom can be attempted, a spellcaster must craft the vessel that will house their immortal soul, preventing it from passing on to the Outer Planes. The vessel, called a phylactery, is typically a small ornate box, though any object worth at least 50,000 gp which can have the necessary runes and sigil inscribed within it will work. Some liches will even choose to disguise their phylactery as a mundane object such as a teapot or an old boot as an added measure of protection to keep it safe.

Class Features

As a lich, you gain the following class features

Hit Points

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• Hit Dice: 1d8 per lich level
• Hit Points per Level: 1d8 (or 5) + your Constitution modifier per lich level

Proficiencies and Equipment

The lich prestige class does not grant any new proficiencies.

The Ritual of Lichdom and the Potion of Transformation

Your DM has the final say regarding the requirements for becoming a lich, but one example of the ritual and its components is provide here.

Inscribing the Runes. Ancient and corrupted words and imagery are inscribed on the inside surface of the future lich's phylatercy. These runes serve to restore the lich's body, should it be destroyed, and to house and feast on the souls that are fed to the phylactery.

The Sacrifice. Perhaps the most well-known component of the ritual is the sacrifice of a sentient creature. The creature's blood is used in crafting the Potion of Transformation. Many believe that a more powerful creature's blood leads to the creation of a more powerful lich, though others claim this is a cruel rumor, spread as a joke by forces of darkness that seek to destroy.

The Potion of Transformation. While chanting ritual words of vile darkness, the spellcaster combines deadly doses of poison with the blood of the slain creature. When the potion is completed, the spellcaster drinks the brew and falls dead. Its soul is ripped from its body and housed in the phylactery, while its body rapidly decays to a state of undeath. It rises again in 1d10 hours as a lich.

Failed Rituals. If the ritual is performed incorrectly or the potion brewed innaccurately, the spellcaster dies from the ritual, but fails to rise again as a lich. Their soul may remain trapped in the phylactery, preventing them from passing on or being resurrected until the soul is freed.

Lichdom

Once you have completed the ritual and become a lich, you gain the 1st level features of this class. You gain the following traits:

Rejuvination. If your phylactery is intact and you are slain, your body reforms in 1d10 days within 5 feet of your phylactery, regaining all its hit points and becoming active again.

Undead Nature. Your type becomes undead, and any abilities or features that affect undead affect you. You do not require air, food, drink or sleep. You have resistance to necrotic damage and immunity to poison damage, the poisoned condition, and all non-magical diseases. Finally, you have advantage on saving throws against any effect that turns undead.

Soul Feeding. Your phylactery requires souls to fuel its magic. You add the imprisonment spell to your list of spells known, and you always have it prepared. When you cast it, you magically trap a soul inside your phylactery instead of choosing one of the normal options. You must be on the same plane of existence as your phylactery for the spell to work in this manner. The soul remains trapped for 24 hours, when it is consumed. You must provide the soul of a sentient creature to your phylactery at least once every 6 days, or you gain one level of exhaustion which cannot be restored until the phylactery is fed. If you die as a result of these levels of exhaustion, you either fail to rise again, or become a demilich, at your DM's discression.

Spellcasting

Becoming a lich does not mean the end of one's development as a spellcaster. Starting at 1st level, you continue to gain the spell slots of your previous spellcasting class, as well as any spells or cantrips you would learn, though you do not gain any of that class's abilities associated with casting spells. Your spellcasting ability and the attack rolls and saving throws for your spells also remains consistent with that of your base spellcasting class.

Paralyzing Touch

At 2nd level, you gain the ability to send negative energy pulsing through an enemies body. As an action on your turn, you can make a melee spell attack against a creature within 5 feet of you. On a hit, the target takes 3d6 cold damage and must make a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC. On a failed save, the creature is paralyzed until the end of your next turn.

Scrying Defenses

Also at 2nd level, you add the scrying spell to your list of spells known, and you always have it prepared. You can cast scrying targeting the location of your phylactery without expending a spell slot. Once you have cast the spell in this way, you must finish a short or long rest before you can cast it in this way again.

Ability Score Improvement

When you reach 3rd 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. You also gain access to the Lich's Lair feat, which you can take in place of this feature.

Aura of Undeath

At 4th level, your mastery over undeath extends around you in a field of malice of desecration. Undead creatures of your choice that are within 60 feet of you add your spellcasting modifier to their damage rolls. Additionally, living creatures of your choice within 60 feet of you that would regain hit points from spells, abilities, or potions regain half the normal amount.

Feat: Lich's Lair

Prerequisite: 3rd-level lich

You learn a ritual to magically ward a specified area, such as a tomb or dungoen, against intruders. You gain certain features while within your lair:

• When you finish a short rest while in your lair, you can roll a d8, then regain an expended spell slot of that level or lower.
• Spells requiring repeated casting to gain permanancy, such as teleportation circle or forbiddance, require half the normal number of repetitions.
• When you use your Scrying Defenses feature, you can target your lair instead of the location of your phylactery.

Phylacteries and Lairs

A lich's lair is an extension of its power, and where it spends the majority of its immortal existence. It is here that the lich schemes, researches, and gathers power. But, it is rarely the location of its phylactery.

Every lich knows that its phylactery is the source of its immortality and that the destruction of the phylactery could mean the end of its undeath. It is because of this that many liches hide their phylacteries far away from their liars, ensuring that even if their lair is overtaken and they are slain, that they will remain immortal to seek vengeance and rebuild their empire.

Destroying a phylactery is no easy task. Most require a special ritual or weapon to destroy. It may take an entire adventure to find a lich's phylactery and a means for destroying it, before ever attempting to face the lich.

Artwork Credits

• lich by Yelyzaveta Nahurna
• Illithid Lich by Krisetya Pet
• Fantasy Castle Room by Belle Deesse
• The Nobility of the Night by yuan1985ag