Curses

• Defiling a sealed tomb
• Desecrating a temple
• Slaying a villain who is backed by a powerful entity such as a demon lord or a deity
• Murdering or grievously harming an innocent
• Stealing a treasure that is meaningful to an entire culture

The first component of a curse is the pronouncement, which amounts to a threat. It promises suffering to those who dare to perform or have already performed a specific offensive act. The pronouncement can be a standing warning against taking some action, or it could be a declaration in the moment. The following examples suggest just a few possible pronouncements:

• A widely spread story explaining that a particular action tempts terrible punishment
• A warning spoken on the cusp of a deadly battle, assuring dire consequences for the victorious
• A poem, rhyme, or song foretelling doom
• A carved epitaph on a gravestone discouraging robbers
• The last words of a dying person—either a powerful villain or a wrongly slain innocent
• Swearing a vow to refrain from or undertake some action on pain of great suffering

A curse’s burden is the effect that causes hardship and suffering to the curse’s victim. A burden is often reflective of what caused the curse in the first place, twisting the transgressor’s action against them. The burden takes effect immediately, along with a vague sense of foreboding—such as a chill down the spine or a wave of nausea. The victim might not notice the curse’s effect until a situation arises to make it obvious. For example, a character cursed with clumsiness that manifests as disadvantage on Dexterity checks might not notice anything until they make such a check. Burdens can take many forms, such as the following:

• The victim has disadvantage on attack rolls, ability checks, saving throws, or some combination of the three. This can be tied to a single ability score or applied generally.
• The victim can’t communicate using language, whether through speaking, sign language, writing, telepathy, or any other means.
• The victim gains 3 levels of exhaustion that can’t be removed while the curse endures.
• When the victim finishes a long rest, they must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw, or their hit point maximum is reduced by 1d10. If this reduces their hit point maximum to 0, the victim dies, and their body crumbles to dust.
• When the victim takes damage, they take an extra 1d10 necrotic damage. This effect can’t happen again until the start of the victim’s next turn.
• The victim gains a Dark Gift (see chapter 1) appropriate to the circumstances surrounding the curse.
• The victim gains vulnerability to one damage type.
• The victim’s Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution score is reduced to 3, and the victim can’t be raised from the dead while the curse lasts.
• A monster hunts the victim relentlessly. Even if the monster dies, it rises again or a new one takes its place 24 hours later.

Sometimes a curse can be ended by making restitution to a wronged party (or their closest kin in the case of a death) or reparation if something was stolen or destroyed. The resolution might be declared as part of the pronouncement, or it may be left to those who suffer the curse to make amends on their own. Research and divination can offer clues or even reveal the exact steps needed to resolve the curse.

While more general curses can lifted by a remove curse spell, more specific or dramatic curses can’t be permanently lifted through spells. Magic can offer temporary respite, though. A remove curse spell cast on the victim of such a curse suppresses the burden for 1 hour. A greater restoration spell suppresses the burden until the victim finishes a long rest. Death usually ends a curse, but the curse returns in full force if the cursed character returns to life without resolving the curse.

Persistent Curses. When a curse is resolved, its effects usually end immediately. Some more insidious curses might linger beyond the resolution but can then be removed by a remove curse spell or similar magic if the victim succeeds on a DC 15 Charisma saving throw when the spell is cast. If the save fails, it can be repeated after a specific interval passes, usually 1 month, with the curse ending on a successful save. Adjust the DC of a particularly weak curse to 10 or that of a stronger one to 20.

Here are some examples of curse resolutions:

• Protecting a loved one dear to the person who laid the curse from some dire threat
• Returning every piece of a stolen treasure hoard, down to the last copper coin, to the place where it once rested
• Slaying the head of a dynasty that has long held power in the region
• Accomplishing a seemingly impossible task, such as raising a castle above the clouds or making the sun cross the sky in a different direction