HIVECALLER
Spawn parasitic drones and control the swarm
One of the most disturbing mutant lines is the Hivecaller—beings who cultivate parasites in their own bodies, then inject them into others. These parasites grow over time, feeding off their hosts until triggered. Some explode. Some enslave. Some mutate the host into a new vessel.
Hivecallers can see through their infected. Hear them. Feel them.
Entire slums have fallen under Hivecaller control, unknowingly walking with alien minds whispering beneath their skin.
Hivecallers are biological symbionts, twisted Voidborn or gene-melders who seed their enemies and allies with living parasites. These aren’t mindless insects. They are engineered organisms, birthed through blood, bone, and intention, crafted to infest, infiltrate, and evolve.
Each parasite is a whisper of will, an extension of the Hivecaller's mind or hunger. They burrow into flesh, nest beneath armour, and alter their hosts from within, some to weaken, some to torment, some to twist loyalty itself.
While feared for their grotesque methods, Hivecallers are more than plague-bringers. In certain circles, they are revered as bio-shamans, using parasites to fortify hosts, share knowledge across allies, or even resurrect the dead as hive-bound puppets.
To cross a Hivecaller is to risk becoming part of something a greater intelligence. One pulse, many mouths. And yours? Might be next.
LEVEL 1
Hivemind
Quick Action"They blink, I see. They scream, I hear. They die… and I choose who feels it."
— Loris the Brood-Sighted
To a Hivecaller, the world is not viewed from a single skull — but through a network of living eyes. Parasites are more than weapons; they are antennae, connected by instinct, pain, and psionic pulse. The Hivecaller does not walk alone — they walk in many skins, and every shadow might carry their gaze.
You can see and hear through the senses of any creature currently infected with one of your Parasites.
This functions at any distance as long as the Parasite remains active.
Switching focus to a different infected host costs a Quick Action.
You retain full awareness of your own body unless otherwise impaired.
If the parasite is removed, killed, or expires, that sensory link is severed immediately.
Parasitic Hive
Action"Flesh is nothing but soil. And I plant well."
— Nyx the Birther, Hivecaller of the Outer Hollow
To a Hivecaller, the body is not sacred — it is soil, and parasites are seeds of purpose. With every injection, they spread their will. Some burrow to weaken. Others grow eyes, track movement, or twist thoughts. Over time, the battlefield shifts — not from tactics alone, but from internal betrayal.
Inject one Parasite into a target within Melee range.
Targets may be enemies, allies, or dead bodies, depending on the parasite type.
If you exceed your active parasite limit, the oldest active parasite expires immediately.
See Parasite for the full parasite index and rules.
Reconstitute
Action"My children bring pain, but they bring it home. In flesh, I plant. In blood, I bloom."
— Vytha the Hollow Womb
To the Hivecaller, a parasite is never wasted. Each one carries part of them — grown from bone, bile, and will. When the time is right, they reclaim it. With each worm reabsorbed, wounds seal and the Hive thickens once more.
Reabsorb one of your Parasites from the host.
You regain Health equal to that parasite's current Gestation Period.
The Parasite is removed from the target, ending all of its active effects immediately.
LEVEL 2
Blood Burster
Quick Action"One signal. One eruption. One less problem."
You can violently end your parasites' lifespan to inflict immediate pain.
Detonate any of your active Parasites. The host takes 2 damage + 1 damage per Gestation Point that parasite had accumulated.
This ends the parasite immediately, regardless of its current Gestation Period.
You may use this even if the parasite has not yet reached its normal minimum Gestation threshold.
Hive Sense
"The Hive sees all, even through stone."
You develop sensory links with your parasitic creations.
You can sense all creatures infected with one of your Parasites within 60ft, even through walls or obstacles.
If an infected creature is hidden, you gain Advantage on Tracking checks against them.
Spawn Hive
Action"It writhes with loyalty, and dies with purpose."
You can produce biological spawn directly from your own vitality.
Cost: 7 Health
Create one friendly Hive Spawn. This counts as one active Parasite against your limit.
The Hive Spawn persists for a number of rounds equal to your Physique Modifier, then collapses.
LEVEL 3
Desperate Bloom
Quick Action"Cornered, the hive chooses vengeance."
Your parasitic network reacts violently in moments of desperation.
Detonate any number of your currently active Parasites simultaneously.
Each parasite detonates at its current Gestation count, applying its full detonation effect — even if it has not yet met its normal minimum Gestation Period threshold.
Forced Bloom
Quick Action"Natural rhythm is a suggestion. I decide when they bloom."
— Brood-Speaker Ossian
The Hivecaller learns that patience, while valuable, is a luxury. Through sheer metabolic will, they can pour bioenergy directly into a gestating parasite — forcing weeks of growth into seconds. The effort is felt: a cold drain through the flesh, a moment of hollow hunger as the body pays the price.
Choose one of your active Parasites.
It immediately gains 2 Gestation Points.
You take 2 damage from the metabolic strain of forcing rapid growth.
Invasive Terror
"Knowing what's inside them is worse than the pain itself."
Enemies suffer a psychological break the moment they become aware something living is burrowing inside them.
Whenever an enemy knowingly becomes infected with one of your Parasites, they must immediately pass a Mental Defence(tn10) check.
Failure: they take 2 damage and become Distracted until the start of their next turn.
A target becomes aware of an injection if they witness it, or if they pass the Perception(tn14) check prompted by the injection.
If Parasite Cloak is active, you decide whether the target is made aware.
Spawn Bloom
The Spawn Bloom is a parasite unlocked at Level 3. Its full mechanics — Gestation scaling, Hive Spawn stats, and detonation rules — are defined in Parasite.
LEVEL 4
Hive Resurgence
"They burst with purpose. Too alive to die quietly."
— Jyllith, Thorn-Mother of the Breach
As your link deepens, your spawn emerge swollen and surging with biomass. The Hive amplifies the gestation cycle at the moment of birth.
At the start of their second turn (once they have accumulated 1 Gestation Point), any Hive Spawn or Mutant Hive Spawn you control surges with excess biomass — their current Health is temporarily doubled.
This temporary health can exceed their normal maximum.
Any excess health is lost at the start of their following turn.
Parasitic Latch
Quick Action"All it takes is a nick. Then it's theirs."
— Overseer-Marrow, 2nd Incubation Fleet
Your strike opens more than wounds — it opens doors for the Hive.
Whenever you hit a target with a Melee attack, you may attempt to inject a Parasite.
The target must pass Resilience(tn12) or become infected with that Parasite.
Spit Injector
Action"No more hands. Only glands."
— The Chimeric Archivist
A bile-coated launch mechanism forms along your jawline or spine, allowing ranged parasite delivery.
You may inject a Parasite into a target up to 20ft away without requiring direct Melee contact.
The injection otherwise follows all normal rules — Gestation Period begins immediately.
Abilities that reference injection range (e.g. Living Relay) apply from this new base range.
LEVEL 5
Hive Instinct
"They move like my fingers now. I feel their deaths like paper cuts."
— Queen Host-Aspen
As your bond strengthens, the Hive no longer needs commands—it obeys your intent.
You regenerate 1 Health at the start of your turn for each active Parasite.
You gain complete control over your Hive Spawns, allowing you to telepathically command them within 100ft.
Hive Pulse
Action"Every host twitches at once. I do it to remind them they belong to me."
— Queen Host-Aspen
As the Hivecaller's network grows, they learn to speak to it all at once. A single focused pulse — outward through every embedded parasite simultaneously — jolts the hive forward and sends a psychic shudder through every host. They feel it. They know something just changed inside them.
All of your currently active parasites simultaneously gain 1 Gestation Point.
Every host of an active parasite must pass Mental Defence(tn10 + your Foresight) or become Distracted until the end of their next turn.
Tactical note: Hive Pulse rewards breadth — the more parasites active, the more gestation advanced and the more tests forced at once. Time it when several key parasites are one threshold from their next effect. At Level 6 it pairs naturally with Infected Terror, which already punishes aware hosts each round — Hive Pulse stacks Distracted on top of that pressure.
Improved Statistic
"With every inch the Hive grows, so do I."
— Dren, Vile Ascendant
Increase one of your Statistics by 1.
LEVEL 6
Broodburst
The Broodburst is a parasite unlocked at Level 6. Its full mechanics — Slowed at Gestation 2, AoE detonation damage, and scaling — are defined in Parasite.
Infected Terror
"They feel it. They know it. And still it grows."
— Whisper-Seer Tyran
Some parasites break bodies. Others break the mind. The knowledge of infestation coils through the host's thoughts like a fever dream, dissolving clarity into fear.
Whenever a target is aware they are infected with a Parasite, they must pass a:
Mental Defence(tn10 + your Foresight) at the Start of Turn
On a failure, they become Distracted until the start of their next turn.
Living Relay
Action"They ran. The parasite ran with them — just to a different body."
— Archivist Vey, Spiral of Silk
The Hivecaller's command over their network deepens to the point where a parasite is no longer locked to the body it first entered. Called back through the hive signal and redirected mid-gestation, the living organism carries everything it grew into — every Gestation Point, every dormant threshold — and roots itself in fresh flesh without missing a beat.
Choose one of your active parasites. Remove it from its current host — without detonating it. The parasite retains its full Gestation count.
The original host takes 1 damage from the extraction.
Inject the parasite into a new target in Melee range. If you have Spit Injector unlocked, you may instead inject it within Spit Injector range.
The new host does not trigger the parasite's immediate injection effect again.
Tactical note: Living Relay turns the Host Limit from a ceiling into a tool. Move a high-Gestation Dreamleech from a nearly-dead target to a fresh priority threat. Salvage a Gestation 4 Broodburst from a host surrounded by no allies and redirect it to one standing in a cluster. The once-per-combat limit means the decision matters — save it for when the investment is worth protecting.
Parasite Cloak
Action"Sometimes the best infection is the one they don’t even know they have."
— Archivist Vey, Spiral of Silk
The Hive twists itself inward, masking your signals and cloaking its presence within others. At the same time, you recycle biomass from your own swarm to heal your failing frame.
Absorb a Hive Spawn or Mutant Hive Spawn within 5ft to regain HP equal to its current life.
When injecting a parasite, you may choose whether the target is aware of it.
A target becomes aware only if they pass a Perception(tn14) check.
LEVEL 7
Corpse Detonation
Quick Action"Death is just another doorway — one we rig with teeth."
— Seer-Rot, Larval Cultist
The Hivecaller turns a host's demise into a final gift of destruction.
When a creature infected with one of your Parasites dies, you may detonate their corpse as a Quick Action.
You may also trigger this when a Hive Spawn or Mutant Hive Spawn under your control dies — their accumulated Gestation Period counts as the parasite's Gestation for the damage calculation.
All creatures within 5ft take damage equal to your Physique + the parasite's Gestation Period.
This detonation destroys the body beyond resurrection without advanced means.
Hive Evolution
"The Hive adapts. What dies is reborn sharper."
— Virex the Nestmind
Every kill fertilizes the next. Hive Spawn grow deadlier through combat and instinct alone, reshaping into Mutant Hive Spawn in moments of triumph.
When a Hive Spawn kills a creature, flip a card.
On a Red card, it immediately evolves into a Mutant Hive Spawn. This evolution costs no Action and occurs instantly.
If the killing spawn is already a Mutant Hive Spawn, it cannot evolve further — instead, all of your currently active Parasites immediately gain 1 Gestation Point.
Telepathic Communication
"Even the silence has a voice now. And it answers to me."
— Xethra the Whispering Bloom
You forge a constant psychic tether to anything that bears your parasite. These links cannot be intercepted, allowing you to whisper instructions, listen, or simply remind them they are never alone.
You may telepathically communicate with any creature that is currently infected with one of your active parasites.
Communication is two-way but limited by the host’s cognitive ability.
Range is unlimited as long as the parasite remains alive.
LEVEL 8
Buried in the Flesh
"They'll wear it, eat it, clutch it close — and never know what writhes inside."
— Ilex the Quiet Maw
You can hide your parasites in corpses or objects. The Hive grows in silence, waiting for a moment of touch.
You may embed a Parasite into a corpse or object (weapon, food, armour, etc.).
When a creature interacts with the object or corpse, they are infected immediately.
The infection is not detectable without a medical scan, psychic senses, or a Perception(tn14) check.
Plaguebearer
Action"I walk in clouds, and they bloom in me."
— The Hollow-Blooded
You exhale spores carrying dormant parasites, infecting victims in a wide arc.
Exhale a 15ft cone of infectious spores.
All creatures in the cone must pass Resilience(tn13) or become infected with Burrowbloom.
This infection behaves identically to a manual injection via Parasitic Hive.
Spawn Detonation
Quick Action"Every hatchling dies a weapon. That is their gift."
— Broodseer Xalka
You overload the Hive Spawn's unstable biology, causing them to erupt in a devastating blast of gore and parasitic energy.
Detonate a Hive Spawn or Mutant Hive Spawn.
All enemies within 10ft of the spawn take damage equal to half that spawn's current Health, rounded up.
Trigger this on your turn as a Quick Action, or as a free Reaction the moment the spawn dies.
LEVEL 9
Hive Overlord
Action"I do not need to be near. I only need them to bleed."
— Wyrmarch Nhyla
Distance and time are no longer barriers to your will. Your parasites obey even from afar, and each detonation becomes an opening for the next infection.
Accelerated Growth — Action:
Pay 5 Health. One of your active Parasites immediately gains 1 Gestation Point.
Remote Injection — Quick Action:
Use a parasite already active inside a host as a biological relay.
Inject a new Parasite into a target within half your normal injection range of that host — without moving yourself.
The carrier parasite loses 1 Gestation Point to power the transfer.
You must be able to perceive the new target (via Hivemind or line of sight).
Chain Infection — Passive:
When you detonate a parasite, you may immediately inject a new Parasite into the same target as a free action. Usable once per turn.
Mind Puppeteer
"They move because I will it. They scream because I do not."
— Hive-Warden Solrith
You reach into their motor functions with coiling tendrils of thought, turning the infected into living puppets.
Once any Parasite inside a target reaches Gestation 3, you may attempt to seize control of that target.
At the start of that target's turn, they must pass Resilience(tn14).
Failure: You control one of their Actions that turn — you choose what they do with it.
Success: They resist, but are Distracted for that turn.
This attempt may be made once per turn per infected target.
Parasite Capacity
"I am a kingdom of worms. I overflow."
— – Vox the Vermin Saint
Your body adapts to handle a massively increased parasitic load.
You may now host double your usual number of active Parasite.
This increase affects total Parasite capacity, not types individually.
LEVEL 10
I Am Inside You
Action"Their thoughts are drowning. I breathe through them."
— The Nest Within
You take complete control of minds crawling with your parasites, twisting them into cruel vessels of your will.
Choose up to 3 infected creatures within 30ft.
To attempt control, choose one of the following:
Spend 3 Gestation Points distributed across the parasites infecting those targets (deducted from their current Gestation counts), or
Force each target to pass Mental Defence(tn10 + the number of active Parasites currently infecting that target).
On failure (or if you paid the Gestation cost):
That target attacks the nearest ally, moves erratically, or self-harms — your choice.
On success (Mental Defence test only):
They resist control, but take 3 Psychic Damage per active Parasite currently infecting them as they fight the intrusion.
On death while controlled:
The body explodes. All creatures within 10ft take damage equal to your Physique + that target's highest Gestation Period. Each creature hit is infected with the same Parasite that was active in the controlled host.
Improved Statistics
"The flesh remembers. The Hive becomes."
— – Larvae of Vuril
The Hive shifts your frame and form, refining its host.
Increase two statistics by 1.
Parasitic Death Effects
"Even in death, they serve. Their corpses become the Hive's final sermon."
— Gravemind Zelir
Every infected death now seeds terror. What remains behind may rise, burst, or bloom anew.
When a creature hosting one of your Parasites dies, flip a card to determine the death effect:
5 or below — The body erupts into a swarm — all creatures within 10ft are infected with the same Parasite (you choose which creature gets which infection).
6–9 — A Hive Spawn tears free from the corpse and acts immediately on your turn.
10 or above — The corpse becomes a parasite bomb — detonate it as a Quick Action at any time, dealing damage equal to your Physique + the parasite's Gestation Period to all creatures within 10ft.
If the dying creature was a significant enemy (GM discretion), treat the result as 10 or above, and the Hive Spawn that tears free is instead a permanent Mutant Hive Spawn under your control.