Updating The Blood Hunter For D&D 2024 (5.5e)

Bringing the blood hunter inline with the changes to D&D 2024.

The blood hunter is perhaps one of the most well-known, 3rd party classes. Created by Critical Role’s Matt Mercer and features on D&D Beyond, it’s a popular option and a fairly solid and unique class.

But with the arrival of D&D 2024, many classes have had a glow up. But there’s currently no indication that the blood hunter will be getting the same treatment.

If you’ve shifted to D&D 2024 and are planning on using a blood hunter, but don’t want to be underpowered compared to improved classes, then this article is for you.

I’ve been diving into the 2024 rules and character options in loads of detail over the last several months. So below I’ve used what I’ve learnt to provide some advice on how and where to update the blood hunter to bring it inline with the other 2024 classes. Just remember that the existing blood hunter is perfectly usable without adjustments in D&D 2024, but the changes I’ve proposed below should help bring it inline with other changes.

Blood hunter core class

We’ll start with the core blood hunter class. Below is what I’d change for a 2024 campaign:

Equipment: 2024 classes have the option of taking gold instead of set equipment and buying their choice of supplies instead. I’d allow the option of starting with 150gp in place of their standard equipment.
Weapon mastery: Martials in D&D 2024 got weapon mastery, giving their weapon attacks additional effects. I think blood hunters are most akin to rangers. This would mean giving blood hunters weapon mastery with 2 different weapons and allowing swapping weapon masteries when they take a long rest.
Fighting style: At 2nd level, blood hunters get a fighting style from a limited number of options. In D&D 2024, these are now their own category of feat and all of them are available to any class with a fighting style. I’d suggest allowing the blood hunter to choose from any fighting style feat.
Blood curse of bloated agony: This grants disadvantage on strength and dexterity checks. In the 2014 rules, this creates problems for the target because things like grapples are contested ability checks. This is no longer the case in D&D 2024. Instead, you make a saving throw against the attacker’s DC. I’d alter this blood curse so it causes disadvantage on strength and dexterity saving throws. It ups the power of the blood curse, but it felt weak anyway compared to other curses.
Blood curse of exposure: This is perhaps more an issue I have with this feature itself, but I think the amplify version of this blood curse not helping with resistances is an oversight. I’d have this work for both resistances and invulnerabilities when amplified.
Blood curse of the eyeless: Many features now allow you to only expend them when you know the outcome of a result. This feels like one of those where expending the blood curse without knowing whether you should would be frustrating. I’d alter this so it can be activated on a hit.

Order of the ghostslayer

Aether walk: This feature works fine as intended, but would benefit from some clarity. I’d allow for you to end the effects on your turn (no action required). I’d also specify that attacks and other creatures can interact with you as usual while in this form, but as you can move through objects and creatures, that you can simply move out of a restraint or a grapple. I’d also specify that you remain visible to creatures on the material plane.
Rite revival: One of the issues highlighted with features that stop someone dropping to 0HP, is they too easily become vulnerable to really minor damage when down to 1HP. This isn’t such an issue at low levels, but is for high level features and several of these were buffed in D&D 2024 for this reason, providing extra HP while protecting the character. For this feature, I’d suggest recovering a number of hit points equal to 4 rolls of your hemocraft die (which is roughly in line with the HP recovered for a zealot barbarian’s rage of the gods feature, but lower than the epic boon of recovery).

Order of the lycan

Hybrid transformation (resilience): There isn’t really a distinction between magical and non-magical bludgeoning, piercing or slashing damage in D&D 2024. If the damage is magical, it’ll use a different damage type. I’d update this feature to remove the non-magical element of the resistance allowing lycans to be resistant to all bludgeoning, piercing and slashing damage unless it’s from a silvered weapon.
Hybrid transformation (predatory strikes): As with a monk’s martial arts, I’d also add in here that grapple and shove DCs can be set using a lycan’s dexterity modifier. Similar to the monk, I’d also remove the stipulation that an unarmed strike must be made with the attack action to get a bonus action attack. Instead, I’d just allow a bonus action to be used to make an unarmed strike, regardless of what’s been done with their action.

Order of the mutant

Mutagencraft and formulas: The 2024 rules are more about flexibility, and no other blood hunter subclass is supposed to embody this more than the mutant. They also fail on this front because their mutagens lack the flexibility to adapt. I’d suggest altering the way they work slightly so that any formula you know always has a mutagen prepared. But the limit on mutagens concocted is instead a limit on how many mutagens you can have in your body at any one time. In this way, you can use the mutagen that is most appropriate in the moment while still being prevented from having too many mutagens granting benefits at a time.
Mutagens (aether): Flight abilities typically use your move speed to determine their speed in the 2024 rules and I’d like to see this do the same. There are races with this kind of thing as a 1st level trait and I see no reason why this shouldn’t have that too.

Order of the profane soul

Rite focus (the celestial): Healing spells were all improved in D&D 2024, becoming more powerful. To bring this in line, I’d suggest increasing the healing so that it’s now 2 rolls of your hemocraft die + your hemocraft modifier (minimum of 1).
Rite focus (the undying): The new rules tend to steer away from features that leave interpretation up to the DM. The current wording is clearly to avoid a bag of rats situation, but I’d suggest instead having it work when knocking a creature of CR 1+ to 0HP. Otherwise there could be nitpicking over whether certain things are considered threatening. There is a provision in the DM’s guide for abuses like the bag of rats anyway that gives DMs licence to overrule such scenarios.
Revealed arcana (the hexblade): Branding smite was changed to be called shining smite in the new rules. It’s also a better spell, giving advantage on attack rolls against the target.

So this is what I’d change to update the blood hunter for D&D 2024. What do you think of my changes? Is there anything else you’d change? Let me know in the comments below.