#souldrinker

Kothringi and Argonian blood was once offered to the Malada on high from its honed Welkynd edge. It was justice, then, that the same edge ended the life of the Ayleid witch who unleashed the Knahaten Flu.

-- Description of Anyavar, also named Souldrinker by Kothringi texts

 The third and final of the “fiendish obedience” prestige classes, the souldrinker venerates the neutral evil classical fiends, the daemons. Such fiends are the embodiment of nihilism, seeking to snuff out existence in its myriad forms, most notably by consuming souls, removing their quintessence from the cycle of renewal.

While demoniacs seek to become demons, and diabolists seek to use devils, souldrinkers emulate the daemons more directly, seeking to devour the essence of others to empower themselves and utterly end their foes.

Only someone whose nihilism reflects these dark creatures would ever consider such a path to power, for like the other two, choosing to become a souldrinker means pledging yourself to a dark power. However, in this case, one is less likely to be set up as a new servant or denizen of that lower plane, and more likely to be simply devoured, with the vast majority just more fodder for their destructive masters, only a few deemed useful enough to find new life as a daemon. Such individuals must surely not care about their own lives, and exist only to compound the suffering of others, their cruelty shaped by hateful influences and history.

Aside from knowledge of spellcasting and fiendish obedience, the only requirement of this prestige class is that the aspirant have ever existed as a disembodied soul, either having died and been revived, or having use the magic jar spell or similar effect.

 Like all such classes, these dread mystics continue to master their magic as they grow in power, albeit at a reduced rate.

As previously mentioned, souldrinkers pledge themselves to daemons, either to one of the four horsemen, or to one of the daemonic harbingers. Doing so nets them a one-way ticket to Abaddon, making them extremely difficult, if not impossible to resurrect. Naturally, they must also perform regular obediences to their patron to maintain their powers.

Early on in their careers, these cultists gain the services of a cacodaemon familiar, messily devouring any previous familiar as needed to free up the role.

Though in theory, souldrinkers can literally devour souls whole with the help of their dread familiars, their primary way to consume life force is blasts of life-draining negative energy.

These rays, along with any and all other ways that they can inflict energy drain, nets them soul energy they can use to help craft magic items, ward their own soul against assault, and even recover spell energy.

Like all obedience prestige classes, fiendish or otherwise, this prestige class puts one on the fast track to rapidly gaining all the obedience boons for that particular path for that deity.

What’s more, souldrinkers also gain one of four sets of abilities based on which of the four horsemen they venerate, or which harbinger most closely matches one of the four. Those following the horseman of pestilence are immune to disease while also spreading it magically, death wards the soul while draining life with a touch, war protects against blood loss and enfeeblement while inducing bloodthirst and fury, while finally famine protects them from ingested and inhaled poisons and removes the need to eat while also bestowing curses.

The various builds possible with this prestige class are numerous, so this should really be more of a character decision than anything else, rather than merely going for an effective build. Their ability to fuel their spellcasting with drained energy can be quite effective from a back of the line build, though.

 While not typically tyrants or destroyers, souldrinkers are a mix of both, and exploring the terrible atrocities that have to occur to shape someone into such a being is part of the fun of developing them as NPCs, or perhaps as evil characters in an evil campaign.

  Desperate to reforge the Crucible of Truth, the party must diligently work to gather the esoteric components to do so… but there is another way. A terrible dark way being offered to them by the cult of the Great Devourer. However, to travel that path would surely corrupt the crucible.

 Rarely worshipped by bipeds, one of the great spirits of destruction is the Maw Wyrm, a primordial draconic spirits of devouring and death. However, some evil dragon cults, particularly those with degenerate wyvarans as members, do follow that path, and are granted ravenous boons.

Souldrinker – War Is Coming

Artist: Souldrinker Album: War Is Coming Genre: Metal Label: El Puerto records Gbr Release Date: November 24, 2017 Reviewed by: Bobby Caughron

Review:

Wow! This album has the ferocity and some of the same energetic vibe of Pantera‘s “Cowboys From Hell” Album, but…..wait for it…..with incredibly powerful female vocals propelling it. This is my first listen to Souldrinker and “War Is Coming”is one…