Homebrew Zelvae Species Details

Physical Description

In physical appearance, Zelvae are extremely simple-looking creatures. They have three limbs in total: A single pair of legs ending in two-toed feet which are quite well-padded, and a prehensile tentacle-like arm on the backs of their heads which end in a crablike claw. The Zelvae have large compound eyes, and have a long proboscis for a mouth which is used to suck the blood of their prey as well as suck juice from fruits. The word Zelvae is both singular and plural like “sheep.”

MYSTERIOUS ORIGINS

The Zelvae are aberrant creatures supposedly from beyond the stars whose ancestors crashed on Mokaku during prehistoric times, and who quickly grew to dominate the southern parts of Mokaku. To hear them comment on their own origins, there are three schools of thought among the Zelvae themselves regarding their origins. The first and most well-known school of thought is that they came here following an invasion from other Aberrant creatures and took to defending this world from much worse creatures such as Beholders, Illithids, and Star Spawn. They eventually drove out these threats for the most part, but a breeding population remained on the planet, swearing to protect it forevermore.

The second school of thought is that, like the Moxaal, The Zelvae come from another plane of existence (Or possibly demiplane) outside of the prime that was mostly fairly barren and empty, and when they arrived on Nafine, they simply decided the stay because it was nicer. They also helped to fight off an invasion of much worse aberrations, and so were allowed by the peoples of Mokaku to stay on Nafine, keeping to their own territories.

The third and final school of thought is that the Zelvae were created by Cambrui Gask to protect Nafine against invasions from extra-planar and far realm invasions, and are actually sapient Monstrosities rather than true Aberrations.

BLOOD RITUALS

In addition to being primarily haemovores, Zelvae also have religious rituals involving blood in many ways. As a tribute to their gods, they will completely drain an animal of blood and then each member who is full vomits half of their drained blood into a huge brazier to burn the blood as offering to one of their gods. Many of them are also very aware of blood’s innate magical properties, and will learn to use blood magic. They also drain blood from their dead, aside from those who died of illness or who were major criminals.

Despite being blood drinkers and blood having religious significance, it is a strong taboo among the Zelvae to drink the blood of a sapient creature without consent, and even more of a taboo to drain them to death. It is also forbidden to drink from other living Zelvae, and those that break this rule are put to death and cremated. There are other major taboos as well, such as **** and pedophilia that result in cremation.

The primary gods of the Zelvae are: Zush, a god of nature and the hunt, Kuish, a god of the arts, and Plishku, a god of law and rulership. Some also worship Cambrui Gask, though they refer to him as “Gazash.” Each of these gods has a festival day, and they all get blood sacrifices.

THE NATIONS OF THE ZELVAE

There are three main Zelvic Nations in Southern Mokaku: Azush, Lusk, and Muskzah. Azush is the primary nation of the cult of Zush, and its people lead fairly druidic lifestyles, building megalithic structures, standing stones, and cultivating groves of magnificent trees. Druids, Rangers, Blood Hunters, and Sorcerers are common in this land. The military of this nation mostly consists of rangers and barbarians, and its citizens typically live in treehouses or in tents made of bones and animal hides. While considered Barbaric by most, The People of Azush are typically hospitable to outsiders, and will not usually attack unprovoked.

Lusk is primarily controlled by the cult of Kuish, and are primarily builders and artisans looking to make great works of art and music. They make bizarre and intricate pottery, provocative statues, surreal frescoes and mosaics, and unique architectural structures which occasionally take inspiration from the Megaliths of Azush. Their cities are always very interesting in design, often with several towers built for the sake of viewing. These towers also make great defensive positions. The army of Lusk mainly consists of wizards, bards, and fighters with artfully crafted weapons and armor which aren’t always practical.

Muskzah is primarily controlled by the cult of Plishku, and is a very regimented and militarized nation which often sees conflict with the Koboldish Meronkor to its north, driving away the followers of Tyrfol where they may arise. The Zelvae of Muskzah are almost all trained in at least one martial weapon from a young age, and follow strict codes of law. Some of these laws include: “Never strike first,” “Never kill a surrendering opponent unless they have a known history of feigning surrender,” “Never feign surrender,” “Uphold peace treaties to the letter,” and many non-combat laws such as laws against stealing, murder, and defacing holy sites. Unlike Lusk, almost all buildings, armor, and weapons are made to be practical. Their army mostly consists of battlemasters, war wizards, war clerics, and battle bards.

Zelvae Traits

Aberrant intelligence, aberrant senses, compound eyes, and draining blood! Oh my!

Ability Score Increase

A Zelvae gains +2 INT and +1 to an ability score of their choice.

Creature Type

You are an Aberration.

Compound Eyes

You ignore ¼ and ½ cover when attacking a creature.

Aberration Sense

You can sense the presence of Aberrations (Except other Zelvae) within 120 ft of you.

Drain Blood (dex)

You have a bite attack that you are proficient with. This attack uses STR or DEX (whichever is higher) and deals 1d6 Piercing damage. It also deals 1d6 Necrotic damage. You regain HP equal to half the necrotic damage taken by the target. The Necrotic damage done by this attack increases by an additional 1d6 at 5th, 9th, and 13th level. You may use this ability a number of times equal to your Proficiency Bonus per Short Rest.

Drain Blood (str)

You have a bite attack that you are proficient with. This attack uses STR or DEX (whichever is higher) and deals 1d6 Piercing damage. It also deals 1d6 Necrotic damage. You regain HP equal to half the necrotic damage taken by the target. The Necrotic damage done by this attack increases by an additional 1d6 at 5th, 9th, and 13th level. You may use this ability a number of times equal to your Proficiency Bonus per Short Rest.

One Hand

You cannot wield two-handed weapons unless you summon a mage hand to use as a secondary hand or have telekinetic abilities due to your class or because of a spell.

Languages

Zelvae can speak, read, and write Zelvin. They can also read and write common, but cannot speak it