Homebrew Awakened Undead Species Details

You are the skeletal remains of what was once a living creature; you are both the power that animates the remains and are bound to the remains themselves. The source of your second life varies - perhaps risen as a mindless undead by a necromancer you eventually gained awakened sentience, perhaps you are a fey spirit that inhabited the bones and got stuck, or perhaps you are a fiendish creature bound to this form to walk the material plane - there are many options for how you ended up in this predicament, but beware, your new life is as fragile as any mortal, and you can die as they do.

This is a unique and flexible race where your exact nature depends on several factors of your circumstances and it presents unique traits and challenges, including some large conveniences and inconveniences that can lead to nonstandard, particularly around healing.

Awakened Undead Traits

Ability Score Increase. As an undead, you have increased resilience. Your Constitution score and one other ability score of your choice increases by 1. You gain one additional ability score increase from the type of Remains selected in your subrace choice.

Age. Awakened Undead are effectively ageless. Their age can be measured from when they have awakened, but they do change with age beyond their lived experience from that point.

Alignment. While typical undead are nearly universally evil due to the negative energy that animates them, there are other sources of undead animation that run a broader range of possibilities. Regardless of your animating choice, what differentiates an Awakened Undead is awareness and control, as such they can freely choose their alignment. Some will still choose to be evil, but others find a new path upon awakening.

Size. Undead are typically animated from medium sized humanoid corpses, and have sizes based on the creature they once were. Your size is medium unless otherwise specified by your Remains type

Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Darkvision. Due to the unique nature of your sight, you can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray. 

Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common.

Undead Nature. Your creature type is undead, rather than humanoid. As a result of being undead, you have the following benefits:

-You don't need to drink, eat, or breathe.

-You are immune to disease.

-You are immune to poison damage and the poisoned condition.

Divine Healing. Note that being of creature type Undead precludes the vast majority of divine healing affects. This can prove a challenge, but is somewhat mitigated by Magical Vitality below.

Magical Vitality. As you are powered by necromantic energies, your vitality can be restored by magical power. Any creature (including you) with access to spell slots can expend a spell slot to with range of touch as an action to restore 1d4 + their spellcasting modifier hit points, increasing the amount of d4s healed for by one per level of spell slot expended, donating their magical power to your vitality. Whenever you are healed in this fashion, you can expend hit dice (rolling them as normal) equal to the spell slot level used to regain additional hit points.

Additionally, you can be returned to life with the animate dead spell, which has the effects of revivify when cast targeting only you.

Reassembly. Your body can be assembled if pieces are broken off. A lost limb can be reattached over a short rest while spending one or more hit dice as long as the limb is in your possession, and you corpse counts as intact if all pieces of it can be found and assembled for resurrection spells.

Turn Resistance. Due to your awakened nature, you have advantage on saving throws against effects that turns undead.

Subrace. Awakened Undead are extremely varied by their nature, and consequently create their subrace in a unique way by selecting two values: their remains and their animating force. Their remains indicate what sort of corpse you are animating, and your animating force dictates what sort of force is driving the animation.

Your selection of remains gives you an ability score (listed in the table below) which is increased by one, and a feature that is defined below. Your animating force language known as well as a feature (also defined below). If the language is listed as "matching remains" it means the language of the type of corpse you are animating spoke in life (for example, for an elf corpse, Elvish.)

Remains

Bestial Configuration. Increase the Strength or Constitution ability score by one

Inconveniently you do not have hands. You cannot do anything that requires hands (such as holding weapons or casting spells that require somatic components, however you can grapple a single target with your mouth.

Your movement speed becomes 35 feet, and you gain natural weapons of a bite that deals 1d10 + your Strength modifier piercing damage, and claws that deal 1d6 + your Strength modifier slashing damage. Your claws are have the light property, you are considered to be holding them for the purposes of using them as weapons.

Bone Shell. Increase your Constitution ability score by one.

Your remains have a sturdy bone shell which can be used to deflect attacks. When you aren't wearing armor, your AC is 17. You can use your natural armor to determine your AC if the armor you wear would leave you with a lower AC. A shield's benefits still apply as normal while you are wearing your natural armor.

Climbing Configured. Increase your Dexterity ability score by one.

Your remains are well configured for climbing, being light and with built in claws. You gain a climbing speed of 30 feet.

Galloping Frame. Increase your Strength ability score by one.

Your movement speed becomes 35 feet, but any climb that requires hands and feet is especially difficult for you because of your equine legs. When you make such a climb, each foot of movement costs you four extra feet of movement, instead of the normal one extra foot of movement.

Mystic Bones. Increase your Dexterity ability score by one.

You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed and cannot be put to sleep.

Ramming Horns. Increase your Strength ability score by one.

Your horns are natural melee weapons, which you can use to make unarmed strikes. If you hit with them, you deal piercing damage equal to 1d6 + your Strength modifier, instead of the bludgeoning damage normal for an unarmed strike.

Relic Bones. Increase your Charisma ability score by one.

Your bones have a lingering holy aura. You are immune to effects that turn undead and have resistance to radiant damage.

Scurrying Frame. Increase your Dexterity ability score by one.

Your size becomes Small, and you can move through other creatures' spaces as if you were one size smaller (Tiny) but cannot end your turn inside their space unless you otherwise could.

Sturdy Bones. Increase your Constitution ability score by one.

Your bones are particularly sturdy. Your speed becomes 25 feet. You hit point maximum increases by 1, and it increases by every time you gain a level.

Universal Parts. Increase any ability score by one.

You can often find useful spare parts laying about, and your parts are easier to repair in general. When you complete a short rest, you regain hit die equal to your proficiency bonus.

Animating Forces

Emotional Void. You can choose any language of your choice, you gain the ability to speak, read and write the chosen language.

You are animated by a thread of negative energy that has somehow gained greater awareness. You still feel the innate urge to destroy all life, and can control as well as channel that urge. As a bonus action, you can unleash your undead nature for 1 minute. You become immune to the charmed and frightened conditions, but lose your turn resistance feature. 

Once you use this feature, you cannot use it again until you complete a long rest.

Fey Spirit. You can speak, read, and write Sylvan.

Sometimes a fey spirit finds itself inhabiting a pile of bones, often not entirely aware of who, what or why, as is their way. Your creature type is both Fey and Undead. You have access to additional fey magic, and can cast Faerie Fire as well as Speak with Animals each once without expending a spell slot, regaining the ability to do so when you finish a long rest. Your spellcasting modifier for these spells is your Wisdom, Charisma, or Intelligence.

Flaming Skeleton. You can speak, read, and write Abyssal or Infernal.

You glow with an inner demonic flame. As a bonus action, you can burst alight, becoming a flaming skeleton for 1 minute. For the duration, you have resistance to fire damage and creature that starts their turn within 5 feet of you takes 1d4 fire damage. While this effect is active, once per turn when you hit a creature within 5 feet of you or deal fire damage, you can add bonus fire damage equal to your proficiency bonus.

Once you use this feature, you cannot use it again until you complete a long rest. 

Remembrance. You can choose any language of your choice, you gain the ability to speak, read and write the chosen language.

You've come back for your own bones . . . or at least you think you have. You retain some of the skills you had in life.

You gain proficiency in two skills of your choice.

You additionally gain proficiency in one Artisan Tool or Language of your choice.

Spirit Soaring. You can choose any language of your choice, you gain the ability to speak, read and write the chosen language.

You're loosely bound to this shell capable of soaring free of it. As an action, you can cast Gaseous Form, but rather than transforming you leave your body behind, incapacitated, and when the spell ends you return to your body's location.

Once you use this feature, you cannot use it again until you complete a long rest.

Blightborn. Uniquely your animating force is a physical (though still magical) phenomena, twisting vines growing through your remains. Your creature type is both Plant and Undead, and you can leverage your vines to constrict your enemies. You can grapple a number of creatures equal to your proficiency bonus without free hands. 

Awakened Undead Traits

Your awakened undead has the following racial traits

Ability Score Increase

As an undead, you have increased resilience. Your Constitution score and one other ability score of your choice increases by 1. You gain one additional ability score increase from the type of Remains selected in your subrace choice.

Age

Awakened Undead are effectively ageless. Their age can be measured from when they have awakened, but they do change with age beyond their lived experience from that point.

Alignment

While typical undead are nearly universally evil due to the negative energy that animates them, there are other sources of undead animation that run a broader range of possibilities. Regardless of your animating choice, what differentiates an Awakened Undead is awareness and control, as such they can freely choose their alignment. Some will still choose to be evil, but others find a new path upon awakening.

Size

Undead are typically animated from medium sized humanoid corpses, and have sizes based on the creature they once were. Your size is medium unless otherwise specified by your Remains type

 

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

 

Darkvision

Due to the unique nature of your sight, you can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray. 

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common.

 

Undead Nature

Your creature type is undead, rather than humanoid. As a result of being undead, you have the following benefits:

-You don't need to drink, eat, or breathe.

-You are immune to disease.

-You are immune to poison damage and the poisoned condition.

Divine Healing

Note that being of creature type Undead precludes the vast majority of divine healing affects. This can prove a challenge, but is somewhat mitigated by Magical Vitality below.

 

Necromantic Vitality

As you are powered by necromantic energies, your vitality can be restored by magical power. Any creature (including you) with access to spell slots can expend a spell slot to with range of touch as an action to restore 1d4 + their spellcasting modifier hit points, increasing the amount of d4s healed for by one per level of spell slot expended, donating their magical power to your vitality. Whenever you are healed in this fashion, you can expend hit dice (rolling them as normal) equal to the spell slot level used to regain additional hit points.

Additionally, you can be returned to life with the animate dead spell, which has the effects of revivify when cast targeting only you.

 

Reassembly

Your body can be assembled if pieces are broken off. A lost limb can be reattached over a short rest while spending one or more hit dice as long as the limb is in your possession, and you corpse counts as intact if all pieces of it can be found and assembled for resurrection spells.

 

Turn Resistance

Due to your awakened nature, you have advantage on saving throws against effects that turns undead.