Homebrew Almost Immortal Species Details

“I have never imagined such beauty existed,” Silversky said softly. The day’s march had been difficult, but the reward at the end was beyond their dreams. The companions stood on a high cliff over the fabled city.

Four slender spires rose from the city’s corners like glistening spindles, their brilliant white stone marbled with shining silver. Graceful arches, swooping from spire to spire, soared through the air. Crafted by ancient dwarven metalsmiths, they were strong enough to hold the weight of an army, yet they appeared so delicate that a bird lighting on them might overthrow the balance. These glistening arches were the city’s only boundaries; there was no wall around the city.

— Magrat Weizzen & Tracey Trickman, Draconids of Twilight

Almost Immortals are a magical people of otherworldly grace, living in the world but not entirely part of it. They live in places of ethereal beauty, in the midst of ancient forests or in silvery spires glittering with faerie light, where soft music drifts through the air and gentle fragrances waft on the breeze. Almost Immortals love nature and magic, art and artistry, music and poetry, and the good things of the world.

Slender and Graceful

With their unearthly grace and fine features, Almost Immortals appear hauntingly beautiful to humans and members of many other races. They are slightly shorter than humans on average, ranging from well under 5 feet tall to just over 6 feet. They are more slender than humans, weighing only 100 to 145 pounds.

Almost Immortals’ coloration encompasses the normal human range and also includes skin in shades of copper, bronze, and almost bluish-white, hair of green or blue, and eyes like pools of liquid gold or silver. Almost Immortals have no facial and little body hair. They favour elegant clothing in bright colours, and they enjoy simple yet lovely jewellery.

A Timeless Perspective

Almost Immortals can live well over 700 years, giving them a broad perspective on events that might trouble the shorter-lived races more deeply. They are more often amused than excited, and more likely to be curious than greedy. They tend to remain aloof and unfazed by petty happenstance. When pursuing a goal, however, whether adventuring on a mission or learning a new skill or art, Almost Immortals can be focused and relentless. They are slow to make friends and enemies, and even slower to forget them. They reply to petty insults with disdain and to serious insults with vengeance.

Like the branches of a young tree, Almost Immortals are flexible in the face of danger. They trust in diplomacy and compromise to resolve differences before they escalate to violence. They have been known to retreat from intrusions into their woodland homes, confident that they can simply wait the invaders out. But when the need arises, Almost Immortals reveal a stern martial side, demonstrating skill with sword, bow, and strategy.

Hidden Woodland Realms

Most Almost Immortals dwell in small forest villages hidden among the trees. Almost Immortals hunt game, gather food, and grow vegetables, and their skill and magic allow them to support themselves without the need for clearing and ploughing land. They are talented artisans, crafting finely worked clothes and art objects. Their contact with outsiders is usually limited, though a few Almost Immortals make a good living by trading crafted items for metals (which they have no interest in mining).

Almost Immortals encountered outside their own lands are commonly travelling minstrels, artists, or sages. Human nobles compete for the services of Almost Immortal instructors to teach swordplay or magic to their children.

Exploration and Adventure

Almost Immortals take up adventuring out of wanderlust. Since they are so long-lived, they can enjoy centuries of exploration and discovery. They dislike the pace of human society, which is regimented from day to day but constantly changing over decades, so they find careers that let them travel freely and set their own pace. Almost Immortals also enjoy exercising their martial prowess or gaining greater magical power, and adventuring allows them to do so. Some might join with rebels fighting against oppression, and others might become champions of moral causes.

HAUGHTY BUT GRACIOUS

Although they can be haughty, Almost Immortals are generally gracious even to those who fall short of their high expectations—which is most non-Almost Immortals. Still, they can find good in just about anyone.

Dwarves. “Dwarves are dull, clumsy oafs. But what they lack in humour, sophistication, and manners, they make up in valour. And I must admit, their best smiths produce art that approaches elven quality.”

Halflings. “Halflings are people of simple pleasures, and that is not a quality to scorn. They’re good folk, they care for each other and tend their gardens, and they have proven themselves tougher than they seem when the need arises.”

Humans. “All that haste, their ambition and drive to accomplish something before their brief lives pass away—human endeavours seem so futile sometimes. But then you look at what they have accomplished, and you have to appreciate their achievements. If only they could slow down and learn some refinement.”

Almost Immortal Names

Almost Immortals use names from other cultures.

 

Almost Immortal Traits

Your Almost Immortal character has a variety of natural abilities, the result of thousands of years of refinement.

Almost immortality

You have multiple features to reduce the risk of your death.

Age

Although Almost Immortals reach physical maturity at about the same age as humans, the Almost Immortals' understanding of adulthood goes beyond physical growth to encompass worldly experience. An Almost Immortal typically claims adulthood around the age of 100 and can live to be 10000 years old.

Size

Almost Immortals range from under 5 to over 6 feet tall and have slender builds. Your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Darkvision

Accustomed to twilit forests and the night sky, you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. 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.

Keen Senses

You have proficiency in the Perception skill.

Trance

Almost Immortals don’t need to sleep. Instead, they meditate deeply, remaining semiconscious, for 4 hours a day. (The Common word for such meditation is “trance.”) While meditating, you can dream after a fashion; such dreams are actually mental exercises that have become reflexive through years of practice. After resting in this way, you gain the same benefit that a human does from 8 hours of sleep.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common.