Dariastren's Shadow Blight

This spell is a variation of energy drain, created by Dariastren while researching the transition from human to shade. Upon casting this spell, the caster points a finger at an opponent, releasing a ray of darting shadows. The victim must make a successful saving throw vs. spell or permanently lose 1 level or Hit Die. If the victim has only 1 level or Hit Die, the victim transforms and disappears, as detailed below.

Those who fail the saving throw and survive the transformation effect of the spell lose another level or Hit Die for each week that passes. As this process proceeds, victims gradually weaken and pale. They are unable to do anything except rest during the final week of the blight,

A victim whose levels or Hit Dice reach zero is transformed into a creature of the Demiplane of Shadow and immediately transported to that dreary place.

Victims remember the time before their transformation with puzzlement and desire only to live out their lives in the shadow realm. They fight to the death if any attempt is made to take them from their new home.

The transformation can be halted by few methods, A wish spell can save a victim, as can a remove curse spell cast by a good-aligned priest of 12th level or greater who worships a god of light. Other options, at the DM's discretion, are possible. Levels, except for the one lost initially, can be regained at the rate of one per week once the spell's effects are countered, provided that the character has total bed rest. Undead and natives of the Demiplane of Shadow are not affected by this spell.

The material components of this spell are a leech, living or dead, and a handful of earth from the Demiplane of Shadow, All spell components are consumed in the casting.