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turtlessuggest · 7 years ago

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Beastfolk: Ophidian

Inspired by the snake class list, here’s my take on a D&D race inspired by these animals.

Snake - Ophidian

“The sun above warms all that lies beneath it's gaze. So too must you be a light for those around you, warming the kind, the noble, and the just. Light the way for others, and your path shall become as clear as day.”

The elf Silverstem had to admit, he’d never known the Yuan Ti to fight amongst themselves. They were an evil on the world, yes, but a united evil. Yet here before him, in the middle of the steaming jungle, seemed to be a fight to the death between two of them. One was the viper who had injured him, a sickly green serpent wielding a pair of black blades, each dripping with the poison that was now beginning to sear the elf’s veins.

The other… well the other didn’t look like any Yuan Ti Silverstem had seen. Its scales gleamed with the warm colors of the rising sun, from the tip of its tail to the head atop its surprisingly long neck. Its armor, its sword, and its shield glowed even brighter, shining as the midday sun above them. It almost reminded Silverstem of a paladin from his own lands.

As their blades clashed, the two hissed at each other in harsh Draconic. Silverstem couldn’t make out their words, but even as sharp as a normal Draconic conversation was, it was clear they were not trading friendly banter.

In a flash of movement, it was over, The sun colored snake person feigned enough to gain an opening in the green one’s defenses, slammed its shield into the maw of the other Yuan Ti, and while it was dazed drove its blade through the green serpent’s chest. With one final yelp, the green Yuan Ti collapsed to the ground, its chest wound sizzling from the heat of the blade.

The sun colored Yuan Ti then turned to face Silverstem. He couldn’t help but recoil, despite it intervening to slay the Yuan Ti that had poisoned him. Perhaps it simply wished to have the honor of slaying him for itself, or perhaps to drag him off to some eldritch ritual site. Many were the grim tales that made their way out of the Yuan Ti’s jungles.

But neither blade nor foul magics came. Instead, Silverstem felt a gentle warmth around his poisoned wound, the burning in his veins easing. He looked beyond his upflung hands to see the snake person bent over him, its three fingers hands alight with healing energy.

“I am Ssetherion, Sun Blade of Kha, Whose Eye Is The Sun,” the snake person said in what seemed to be heavily accented Common, its unblinking eye briefly meeting Silverstem’s gaze before returning to the poisoned wound. “I am an Ophidian. You are safe now.”

Often mistaken for the cruel former humans known as the Yuan Ti, the Ophidians are a world apart from the evil snake people they resemble. For one, they were never human. Their true origins are unclear, as their legends point to a creation event by their primary god Kha, the eldest, kindest, and wisest serpent who shaped them from flowing streams of water infused with sunlight, while other scholars point to the possibility of them evolving from Awakened snakes. In any case, it is clear that they and the Yuan Ti only resemble each other superficially.

Most of the Ophidian body is made up of long, winding coils, serving as their locomotion with either horizontal slithering or undulations of their underscales. The part of their body that is most often raised up above the ground houses a torso, two long arms, and a long neck ending in a snake-like head. Ophidians possess impressive sets of inward facing teeth, some even possessing venomous fangs. They possess two fingers and an opposing thumb, each tipped with short, stubby claws, more useful for gripping than for use as weapons. Their bodies are covered in scales, varying wildly in color and pattern, but generally giving them some natural protection against the elements and enemies. Like snakes, they do not blink, having their eyes covered by a clear scale that allows them to sleep with their eyes open and protect them against potentially blinding elements. They also possess a special organ in their mouths which allows them to effectively “taste the air” with their forked tongues in a manner more accurate than smelling.

Ophidian territories stretch across the equatorial regions of the world, from dense jungles to open savannahs to harsh deserts. What holdings they have in more temperate areas tend to be centered around places with volcanic activity or hot springs. As a naturally cold-blooded species they make use of such locations to help regulate their body temperature. Those who travel alone to colder climes often have their clothing enchanted to emit and retain heat. If robbed of this in sufficiently cold environments, an Ophidian might go into involuntary hibernation. The settlements themselves are often bright, beautiful places, full of white marble and warm colored mosaics framed with hanging gardens.

The culture of these reptilian beings, while perhaps not quite as alien as one might expect, does come with some odd caveats. Meal times, for instance, are rarely an occasion for prolonged conversation. Since Ophidians swallow most of their food whole by way of unhinging their jaws, dinners are often relatively swift and silent, a brief pause before returning to a parlor or sun room to further discuss things. These meals also tend to be infrequent: an Ophidian can last quite a while on a single large meal, sometimes a whole week. This, understandably, caused some culture shock for the first few mammalian ambassadors to Ophidian lands, who often had to badger the cooks for more than a single turkey every week. This was compounded by the fact that their provided birds still had feathers.

A quick side note: despite some dark rumors, the food the Ophidians consume is not still alive when it is on their plate. Such a meal might cause internal damage should it squirm or claw too much in their digestive tract. They don’t often outright cook their food, however, preferring to coat their morsels in spices and oils before consumption. Rodents and fowl are frequently consumed both at home and abroad, and large eggs are highly prized delicacies.

Much of Ophidian culture is centered around conversation and friendly debate. While mealtimes are brief, the time afterwards for letting the food settle is often lengthy and reserved for lounging and talking, as is the time waiting for the food to be prepared. Families will often gather at home to talk at length of their day at the setting of the sun. Nobles will often gather in glittering mansions for days to discuss the plights of their subjects and how to better govern their holdings. Even their clergy, the sun priests, are not above such talks, debating the meaning of omens and the will of their gods late into the night.

Because of this innate need to learn and talk, Ophidians are naturally curious creatures. Though many are fairly ignorant of the customs of mammalian species, they do do their best to abide by them to the best of their ability. Most often a faux pax isn’t necessarily a disgrace, but merely an opportunity to refine one’s knowledge of another culture. For more lawfully aligned, prideful, and/or rule-centric peoples, this attitude may occasionally be frustrating.

Of course, there are some rules that tend to be viewed rather seriously among Ophidians. It may seem odd to other peoples, but touching of an Ophidian’s upper jaw muscles, often referred to as the Soft Parts by their own kind, is an intense taboo reserved only for those the Ophidian in question is either nest-mates with or knows extremely well. Unwarranted touching of this part of their heads is often met with revulsion, heavy embarrassment, sometimes even brief violence. Due to this sensitivity and they're squishyness, some humans have taken to calling them “headboobs".

The faith of the Ophidians is centered around the god they believe to be their creator. Kha, often referred to reverently as Kha, Whose Eye Is The Sun, is believed to have provided the light of day by sacrificing his own eye so the world may not live in the chill of night. He is said to have made the Ophidians themselves, and as such the most glorious temples in their lands are dedicated to him. He taught them to be a guiding light for others, to make the world a greater, brighter place with the light he gave them. Glowing crystals and polished mirrors bathe his places of worship in light and warmth. Next to him is often seated Nagal, Whose Mind Ever Flourishes, serpent goddess of wisdom and curiosity. It was in her that Ophidians found a thirst for knowledge about the world and people around them, and as such her temples often near the glory of Kha’s. Opposing these two pillars of Ophidian society is Mierfrost, Whose Breath Is Winter, a demonic snake of unfathomable length who, as his name suggests, exudes cold and darkness wherever he goes. The dark serpent’s name is uttered only as an implied curse upon him, usually followed by spitting on the ground to rid the Ophidian of the taste of his foul name.

Ophidian courtship is largely unknown, though whispers seem to indicate the involvement of intricate dances and intertwining when relationships get more serious. Marriages are often grand affairs, initiated by a cleric or paladin beneath a sacred carved crystal referred to as an “Eye of Kha”. Due to their long lives reproduction tends to be infrequent, but when it happens, 3-6 eggs are usually laid per clutch. These eggs are kept within a soft nest within the home, tended to by both parents, till the baby Ophidians hatch after about 2-3 months.

Ability Score Increase: +1 Strength, +1 Wisdom, +1 Intellect

Alignment: On lawfulness, Ophidians tend to be more neutral, as they see no rule as unworthy of debate or further investigation. They tend to be good in accordance with the teachings of Kha.

Age: Ophidians are very long lived, reaching maturity at around 30-40 years of age and living well into their 300s.

Speed: Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Size: In total, adult Ophidians tend to be 25 feet or more in length, though the roughly front quarter tends to be held upright for a height of 5 to 6 feet, leaving the remainder to trail behind to use as locomotion. Their long neck tends to be coiled back at rest at this height or held ahead of the body and can be raised for an additional few feet of height. For all intents and purposes, your size is Medium.

Languages: Ophidians are able to read and write in Common, Draconic, and Nagalese, their native language named after the Ophidian wisdom goddess. Nagalese is a flowing, surprisingly elegant language.

Eye of Kha: The Ophidian eye is covered by a clear scale, preventing them from blinking but protecting them from blinding elements. They’re also used to beholding bright light from the temples dedicated to Kha. Ophidian are immune to being blinded by anything that doesn’t either directly block light from coming into the eye, something that pierces the protective scale, or something that changes the nature of the eye itself.

Climbing Coils: You gain a +1 to climbing rolls due to your unique body and method of locomotion.

Taste The Air: Due to a specialized organ in your mouth, you are able to taste the air, sharply increasing your ability to locate and track various scents. You gain +1 perception as well as +2 on tracking rolls where scent is the determining factor.

Bite: You may lash out with your teeth at an unarmored target with your fangs for 1d6 +5 piercing damage. Doing this to an armored target will permanently damage your teeth, rendering you unable to use this ability again until healed.

Scale Armor: You gain +1 natural armor due to your coating of scales.

Cold Vulnerability: As they are exothermic, Ophidian bodies slow down and become less effective in cold temperatures. Physical rolls are done at a disadvantage unless the Ophidian has a way to warm themselves. Single target frost spells are too limited to achieve this effect, but larger scale spells like Sleet or Ice Storm may trigger this effect unless the Ophidian is wearing something that gives off heat.

Aside from these abilities, you may replace any of them, save Cold Vulnerability and Eye of Kha, with one of the following:

Venomous Fangs: Your fangs are not only sharp, they’re venomous. Successful bites can inflict the Poisoned condition on your opponent. You can also coat your weapons in this venom for the same effect. This can only replace the Bite ability

Venom Spit: Your fangs are venomous, but not for biting. You may spray you venom at one target or two targets that are close to each other. The target or targets must succeed at a dexterity saving throw, or they are blinded 1d6 hours. You may cast this only once per long or short rest. This can only replace the Bite ability

Kha’s Light: You are able to cast the Light cantrip at will

Serpent Body Fighting: Your mastery over your long body allows you to lunge further in combat. Your natural reach is that of the next highest size class.

Constriction: When grappling, your target is Restrained. You can only target one enemy in this way.

#long post #animal class lists #fun fact part way through doing this I accidentally started writing Ophiucan instead of Ophidian #d&d

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