They say the earliest precursor to disaster is Strife. Strife takes many forms. Plague. Pestilence. Conquest. Wherever chaos and uncertainty surface, Strife is sure to manifest … and not long after, the others.
Strife is considered to be the "first" Rider of the four, even if that title is purely subjective. While the roles each Rider represents have been here since time immemorial, Strife is reliably and readily the first Rider to make their presence known in the multiverse whenever apocalypse threatens existence. It's never fully clear which side Strife is on, if only because Strife's powers as a rider are parallel and overlap with the nightmarish, unspeakable evils that crawl forth from the
Abyss at every given opportunity. For the time being, it seems Strife prefers keeping the apocalypse at bay, but who can say for certain? Not I.
The Rider Strife manifests the following powers in addition to those granted by the
Path of the Rider:
Spines of Corruption. As Strife, you gain the ability to manifest the
Spines of Corruption, a pair of dagger-like spines thought to have been plucked from Shuriig's back in ancient times. You can make the spines appear in your hands as a free action on your turn, and dismiss them the same. The spines each share the same properties as a dagger with the sword of wounding enchantment.
Once per turn, you can replace one of your attacks with Blade Dance, making an attack against all adjacent creatures using these weapons. A target marked by you cannot resist or reduce damage taken from these weapons in any way. In your Avatar state, the creature is additionally considered vulnerable.
Circle of Death. You learn the
circle of death spell, and may cast it once with a save DC of 18 at no cost. Once you have cast the spell this way, you cannot do so again until dawn (you may still use spell slots to cast it normally).
Command Evil. You can use an action to cast
dominate monster on an evil target (save DC 18). You can't use this property again until dawn unless you are in your Avatar state, during which you can use this ability freely.
Dark Lore. You can make an Intelligence check to recall information about some aspect of evil, such as lore about demons. When you do so, double your proficiency bonus on that check.
Lord of the Abyss. While inside the Abyss, you are considered invulnerable and cannot take damage unless you choose to allow it.
Silver Magic. You gain intimate knowledge of several horrific spells, some potentially even of your own design. These spells can impose dreadful curses, disfigure others, demand humanoid sacrifice, afflict creatures with crippling pain, spread vile plagues, and so on. Spells you know by this effect can be cast using your hit die instead of spell slots, rolling a number of your largest hit die equal to the spell's level (1 - 9). Whatever the result of your roll, you take half that much damage in order to cast the spell (this cannot be reduced nor negated by any means).
- Abhorrent Ward (3rd level Abjuration). This spell grants the same benefits as the sanctuary spell (save DC 18), with the additional benefit of being able to share these benefits with a number of creatures equal to your proficiency bonus (the target must be within range of the spell to be targetable). For the spell's duration, you may regain hit die equal to the number of creatures protected by this spell. A creature that attempts to target you or another creature you are protecting experiences an overwhelming surge of unease and foreboding.
- Abyssal Rift (9th level Conjuration). Wielding a Spine of Corruption, the caster makes a cut through space to create a planar gate as if by the effects of the gate spell. However, the space in between both openings of the rift is considered part of the Abyss, and lingers as a possible route for demons to emerge in one or both destinations later.
- Silver Lance (9th Level Necromancy). You must be a Blood Hunter to cast this spell. Transform your life essence into a piercing lance of devastating power, targeting all creatures in a 5-foot-wide, 100-foot line originating from you. Targeted creatures make a Dexterity saving throw against your Hemocraft save DC. A target that fails takes piercing damage equal to the result of your casting roll (9dX) plus nine times your Constitution modifier, in addition to suffering any effects or bonuses your currently equipped weapon would normally apply on a hit. If you are in your Avatar state, the range of this spell is increased to 600 feet. In exchange for one level of exhaustion, you may consider the casting roll to have been the maximum value and both take and deal damage as appropriate.
Dark Speech. You can use an action to speak the forgotten language of Dark Speech. When you do so, all creatures other than creatures that understand Dark Speech within 15 feet of you take 3d6 psychic damage.
First to Ride. You have advantage on initiative checks. Whenever another Rider of Apocalypse joins initiative, your initiative count increases by 1. In your Avatar state, this bonus increase by 2 instead.
Mark of Darkness. The Rider Strife is marked with a hideous disfigurement as a sign of your position. An evil rune might appear on your face, your eyes might become glossy black, or horns might sprout from your forehead. Or you might become wizened and hideous, lose all facial features, gain a forked tongue, or some other feature the DM chooses. The mark of darkness grants you advantage on Charisma (Persuasion) checks made to interact with evil creatures and Charisma (Intimidation) checks made to interact with non-evil creatures.
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