Vile Scholar

"I do not fear the darkness. I study it, even as it studies me."

Certain things mortals were not meant to know. These ideas are so foul and so obscene that to understand them is never to be clean again. The gods and devils recoil from such vile darkness. Even demons pause before its wicked majesty.
    Such considerations do not dissuade the vile scholar. He or she is not put off by disturbing concepts and horrid revelations. In fact, the vile scholar craves them, chases after them, and devours them.
    The vile scholar is often an intellectual drawn to dark study. Some seek out the forbidden to unlock the darkest and most dangerous secrets the world has ever known. Others accumulate vile knowledge from profane texts to transform themselves into liches, to destroy a god, or to locate some powerful artifact. Whatever the reason, the darkness they explore aff licts them in body and mind, twisting them to evil. They become strangers to virtue and decency, slaves to their own corruption.

    Vile Scholar Starting Feature (1st level): You are fluent in Abyssal.
    In addition, you gain a +2 bonus to Bluff checks, Diplomacy checks, and Intimidate checks when interacting with evil creatures. You also gain the dark speech power.
    Vile Scholar Level 5 Feature (5th level): You gain a +2 power bonus to knowledge checks, including monster knowledge checks made with Arcana, Dungeoneering, History, or Religion.
    Vile Scholar Level 10 Feature (10th level): Whenever you use a close or an area attack power and attack one or more allies with that power, you gain a +2 power bonus to the attack rolls for that power.

Dark SpeechVile Scholar Attack

Your Abyssal curse assaults a victim, rending body and mind with its profanity.

Encounter ✦ Fear, Implement, Shadow
Standard Action Ranged 5

Target: One creature that can hear you

Attack: Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma vs. Fortitude, Reflex, and Will. You make a single attack roll and use it against each defense.

Hit (Fortitude): The target falls prone.

Hit (Reflex): The target grants combat advantage until the end of your next turn.

Hit (Will): You push the target up to its speed.

Corrupt the FleshVile Scholar Utility 2

At your insistence, an ally screams in agony, then twists into the perfect killing machine.

Daily ✦ Shadow, Stance
Minor Action Ranged 10

Target: One ally

Effect: The target assumes the flesh warp stance. Until the stance ends, the target gains a +2 power bonus to attack rolls and a +4 power bonus to damage rolls, but is slowed and grants combat advantage.

Shadow of the AbyssVile Scholar Utility 6

Your swift and subtle gesture calls a fiend from the Abyss to infest an ally, lending its protection against elemental energy.

Encounter ✦ Shadow
Immediate Interrupt Close burst 5

Trigger: An ally within 5 squares of you takes acid, cold, fire, lightning, or thunder damage.

Target: The triggering ally in the burst

Effect: The target gains resist 10 to the triggering damage type (or types) until the end of your next turn. Each creature adjacent to the target takes 5 damage of the same type.

Vile UndoingVile Scholar Utility 10

Your wicked curse turns a foe's reliable defense into its greatest weakness.

Daily ✦ Shadow
No Action Special

Trigger: You hit an enemy that has resistance to your attack's damage type.

Effect: The enemy loses the resistance and gains vulnerability in its place (save ends both). The vulnerability equals the lost resistance.

Published in The Book of Vile Darkness, page(s) 1-19.