HYPERBOREA / Spells for a Blood Mage?

**Posted by Yora** 6/25/2014 3:30 pm

What spells would you suggest for a blood mage? In my campaign, these are sorcerers who can draw magical energy from the blood of living creatures or the recently dead, and are masters in manipulating muscles in other creatures in themselves. It's a distinctively different tradition from necromancy which gains its powers from health and vitality. Death and decay isn't part of it (unless the subject is killed from bloodloss or destroyed vital organs).
So far I have these:

Agonizing Touch
Danse Macabre (but also affecting still living targets)
Perceive Heartbeat
Strangle
Strengthen
Transfer Wounds
Vampiric Touch (the most bloodiest of blood spells)

**Posted by The_Great_Lestrade** 6/25/2014 5:27 pm

I haven't read all the spells in ASSH, but i'd add paralysis as causing the victims blood to thin might have such an effect.

**Posted by Yora** 6/27/2014 10:14 am

Good idea. I usually forget about that spell, since it's a poor mans hold person and doesn't appear in the spell lists.

**Posted by Blackadder23** 6/27/2014 11:02 am

Some suggestions:

Spells related to disease, such as contagion
Hold spells
Location and mind-reading spells (using a drop of blood of the target)
Magic jar (taking the form of a bloody cloud that enters the target's mouth and seizes control)
Spells that create emotions in the targets by affecting their metaphorical "hearts", such as friends and emotion
Finger of death (heart explodes or blood boils)
Spells that are symbols or sigils drawn in blood (scarlet snake sigil, explosive blood runes, and so forth)
Neutralize poison and remove paralysis
Cause lycanthropy with a blood ritual (maybe even cause vampirism?)
Summon insect swarm (mosquitoes) and maybe a spell like summon stirges
Transfer youthfulness with a blood ritual
Of course the usual utility spells like detect magic, dispel magic, etc.

**Posted by Blackadder23** 6/27/2014 11:35 am

Another idea is to give a higher level blood mage the same ability to make a voodoo doll that a witch has, but requiring the blood of the victim.