Blood Hunter 5e: The Complete Class Guide

The Blood Hunter is the class you pick when "Paladin but edgier" is a real character concept you want to play. Instead of drawing power from a god or a bloodline, the Blood Hunter draws power from their own hit points. They burn blood for magical weapon damage, cast spells with their life force, and specialize in hunting creatures that shouldn't exist.

It's a third-party class originally created by Matt Mercer, and The Endlessness supports it because players consistently ask for it. If you've ever wanted to play a monster hunter who bleeds on their sword to make it glow, this is your class.

The Pitch

Blood Hunter core features:

• Hunter's Bane at level 1. Advantage on Wisdom (Survival) checks to track and Intelligence checks to recall information about monstrosities, fey, fiends, undead, aberrations, and dragons.
• Blood Maledict at level 1. A mystical ritual that costs HP. Various curses.
• Crimson Rite at level 1. Imbue a weapon with elemental damage by spending HP. Lasts until short rest. Bonus damage die equal to the Rite.
• Fighting Style at level 2.
• Extra Attack at level 5.
• Brand of Castigation at level 6.

The class trades HP for damage and utility. You're always slightly damaged, on purpose.

Stat Priorities

1. Strength or Dexterity. Your weapon stat.
2. Constitution. HP (crucial since you burn HP for features) and concentration.
3. Intelligence. Blood Maledict save DC, some Order features.
4. Wisdom. Some saves and skills.
5. Charisma. Dump.

Classic Blood Hunter: STR 16, DEX 12, CON 16, INT 14, WIS 10, CHA 8.

Crimson Rite

Use your bonus action. Spend 1 Hemocraft Die worth of HP (rolled on a d6 at low levels, scaling up). Your weapon gains elemental damage for the duration (short rest).

The extra damage is a Hemocraft Die (averaging 3.5 at d6, scaling to d10 at high levels) added to every weapon attack with that weapon. It's a permanent-until-short-rest buff.

Example: Level 1 Blood Hunter with a greataxe. Spend 3 HP (roll d6 for HP cost). Greataxe now deals 1d12 + Str + 1d6 fire damage. All future attacks.

This is a damage economy. You pay HP upfront. You deal more damage for the rest of the fight.

Blood Maledict

Level 1 feature. You get access to blood curses (from a list you choose from). Cast one once per short rest without spending HP, or spend 1 Hemocraft Die of HP to amplify it.

Some curses:

• Curse of the Fallen Puppet. On a creature that dies, force it to use its reaction to attack another creature you designate.
• Curse of the Marked. Mark a creature. Attacks against them deal extra Hemocraft damage (once per turn).
• Curse of Exposure. Target has vulnerability to one damage type for a round.
• Curse of Binding. Restrain the target (save negates).

You learn more curses as you level.

Subclasses (Orders)

Blood Hunter picks a Primal Order at level 3. (Not SRD; this is Matt Mercer's class.)

Order of the Lycan

You are a werewolf (sort of). You gain Hybrid Transformation (bonus action, limited uses). In hybrid form, you have increased speed, extra damage, Predatory Strikes, and Bloody Frenzy at high levels. It's Wild Shape crossed with Rage.

Order of the Mutant

Alchemy-based. You brew mutagens (elixirs) that temporarily buff you. Trade weaknesses for strengths. Resistance to one damage type, disadvantage on another, etc.

Order of the Profane Soul

Warlock-lite. You gain Pact Magic-style spellcasting from a fiendish patron. Lower than full Warlock, but solid spellcasting layered on martial prowess.

Order of the Ghostslayer

Anti-undead specialist. Rite of the Dawn deals radiant damage that auto-crits on undead. Great anti-necromancer build.

Blood Hunter in Solo Play

Blood Hunter is B+/A-tier for solo. Strengths:

Strengths:

• Crimson Rite gives consistent bonus damage without slot expenditure.
• Self-damage pressure is mitigated by solo-heal options (potions, healing spells through multiclass or consumables).
• Strong against specific monster types (undead, fiends, aberrations).
• Subclass flexibility lets you build for different roles.

Weaknesses:

• Always at reduced HP from Crimson Rite and Blood Maledict costs.
• d10 hit die but you're constantly self-damaging.
• Spellcasting is limited (only Profane Soul has significant spells).

Solo Blood Hunter requires HP management. Never go below 1/3 HP from self-damage before combat. Use short rests to reset Crimson Rite and recover.

Leveling Path

• Level 1: Hunter's Bane, Blood Maledict (1 curse), Crimson Rite.
• Level 2: Fighting Style, Blood Hunter Path.
• Level 3: Primal Order.
• Level 5: Extra Attack.
• Level 6: Brand of Castigation.
• Level 9: Grim Psychometry (read the history of cursed items).
• Level 10: Dark Augmentation (proficiency in saves).
• Level 14: Brand of Tethering (prevent target teleport).
• Level 18: Hemocraft Mastery.
• Level 20: Order capstone.

Common Blood Hunter Mistakes

Overusing Crimson Rite. If you Rite every short rest, you're constantly down on HP. Use it when you know combat is coming, not as a default.

Blood Maledicting for damage only. Curse of Exposure's vulnerability on a damage dealer's target is often better than just more damage from the curse itself.

Ignoring Hemocraft DC. Your blood curses have a save DC based on Intelligence. Low Int = weak curses. Keep Int at 14+.

Picking the wrong Order. Lycan is all-in melee. Mutant is adaptable but needs prep. Profane Soul is best for utility seekers. Ghostslayer is niche but devastating against undead.

The Endlessness and the Blood Hunter

Our AI Dungeon Master supports the Blood Hunter class with full Crimson Rite tracking, Blood Maledict uses and HP costs, Hemocraft Die scaling, and Order features. When you activate Crimson Rite, the system deducts the HP cost and adds the elemental damage to future weapon attacks.

For related reads, our combat rules guide, action economy, and character creation guide are companion posts.

Final Verdict

Blood Hunter is for players who want a martial class with magical utility, a monster-hunter flavor, and a self-damage trade-off that rewards tactical HP management.

If you love the "Witcher" archetype, or you want to play a character who's always slightly bleeding but always hitting harder, the Blood Hunter is your class.

Start a Blood Hunter on The Endlessness, pick Order of the Ghostslayer if you want the anti-undead specialist, Lycan if you want the werewolf option, and burn blood for damage.