Comments from the writer: Back in 2016 we started a run of divine domains for the four horsemen of the apocalypse: Pestilence, Famine, War, and Death. Of the set, only Pestilence made it into Valda’s Spire of Secrets. This is the most up-to-date version we released in that hardcover for any 5th edition party in need of a little more grunge and a little less sterility.
You worship gods who favor corruption and plague, the Domain of Pestilence, for, though you are ravaged by disease, it doesn’t harm you. Like a virus, you move through the population, spreading your Festering Faith to all who will listen. Unlike a virus, there is no immune system from the Festering Faith, only complete acceptance.
Pestilence Domain Spells
| Cleric Level | Spells |
| 1st | bane, detect poison and disease |
| 3rd | blindness/deafness, ray of enfeeblement |
| 5th | bestow curse, remove curse |
| 7th | blight, confusion |
| 9th | contagion, insect plague |
Carrier
Starting at 1st level, you are immune to diseases and the poisoned condition. Additionally, choose or randomly determine a lingering symptom that afflicts you:
| d8 | Symptom |
| 1 | You are always accompanied by a loud, sickening cough. |
| 2 | One of your limbs is black and withered, but completely functional. |
| 3 | The white and iris of one or both of your eyes are entirely blood red. |
| 4 | Intense shivers come at you in waves, alternating between mild trembles and great shudders. |
| 5 | A number of growths and tumors lump your body and hunch your back. |
| 6 | Your skin is riddled with boils and sores. |
| 7 | Your body is horrifically gaunt. |
| 8 | Constantly fevered, your skin is hot and covered in sweat. |
Bonus Proficiency
At 1st level, you have proficiency with heavy armor.
Tumor
Also at 1st level, your body sequesters its toxins in a bulbous protrusion. When a creature within 5 feet hits you with an attack, you can use your reaction to try to poison the creature with the tumor. The creature must make a Constitution saving throw or be poisoned for 1 minute. The creature can reattempt this saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on a success. After using this ability, you must finish a short or long rest before using it again.
Channel Divinity: Infection
At 2nd level, your divinity carries disease. You can use your action to touch a creature within your reach, which must make a Constitution saving throw, suffering one of the following diseases of your choice for 1 minute on a failed save. Since this ability induces a natural disease in its target, any effect that removes a disease or otherwise ameliorates a disease’s effects applies to it.
Bloodmore. Whenever the creature takes bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing damage, it loses an additional 1d6 hit points.
Joint Lock. The creature’s legs stiffen and its movement slows. The creature can move a maximum of 15 feet or half its speed, whichever is lower, on its turn.
Ruby-Eye. The creature can see normally out to 5 feet, but is blind beyond this radius.
Fester
Starting at 6th level, your infectious power festers and grows. You gain the following special abilities:
- Whenever you deal necrotic or radiant damage, you can change the damage type to poison.
- You ignore damage resistance to poison damage.
- Your cleric spells and abilities ignore immunity to the poisoned condition and being diseased.
- A creature that is immune to being poisoned or diseased instead has advantage on its saving throws to avoid or end being poisoned or diseased by your cleric spells and abilities.
Divine Strike
At 8th level, you gain the ability to infuse your weapon strikes with toxicity. Once on each of your turns when you hit a creature with a weapon attack, you can cause the attack to deal an extra 1d8 poison damage to the target. When you reach 14th level, the extra damage increases to 2d8.
Viral Infection
At 17th level, when you use Infection, the target also has disadvantage on ability checks and saving throws using one ability score of your choice while it is diseased.
Additionally, whenever a target of Infection is within 5 feet of another creature, you can use your reaction to cause the infection to spread to it as well. The creature must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or be infected by the same disease as the target for 1 minute.
