Homebrew Clay Servant Species Details
A tool created to serve, and utterly lacking in culture or wit.
Clay Servants are magically created constructs that have a
will of their own. For the first 24 hours they are bound to
their creator and cannot disobey. The level of rights granted
to a Clay Servant depends on the region and in general trends based
on how common the race is.
Rare. Almost all people will be unfamiliar with them and
treat them as though they are normal constructs. Clay
Servants are not recognized as sentient, and as such any
crime committed would be blamed on the Master and
the Clay Servant is destroyed. Unaccompanied Clay
Servants will be killed if discovered, and the Master fined.
Uncommon. People are generally aware of Clay Servants
but they are still treated with severely worse rights. Since their
sentience is recognized the Master is only fined based on the
severity of the crime and the Clay Servant is destroyed.
Clay Servants can be Unaccompanied within a city.
Free Clay Servants are subject to discrimination and can be
rejected service or even entrance into a city.
Common. People are very familiar with Clay Servants.
Although they still tend to be stuck working menial tasks for
little pay, they have the same rights as people once their 24
hour control period is over. A creator of a Clay Servant has
no responsibility for the Clay Servant once the 24 hours are
up. Generally the only places that ban the controlled use of
Clay Servants are places made predominantly of Clay
Servants. Places that ban the use of controlled Clay
Servants generally refer to them instead as Clay People.
A Model Race
A Clay servant can be created with any Humanoid race as a template. They have a silhouette similar to the template
race but much smoother. All Clay servants appear androgynous and have no facial features.
They share the same height and triple the weight of an adult of the template race. They are created with an adult
sized body at the moment of creation, and never age.
Exaltation of the individual
Free Clay Servants have widely varying tastes, morals, and customs in the many different lands they try to establish communities. They rarely try to establish a uniform cultural tradition, and they see doing that as another form of servitude. While they do try to settle, they tend to built temporary structures such as tents so that they can leave quickly. They do not tend to be materialistic out of necessity. They tend to cover themselves in intricate body paint, as it is something that cannot be easily taken from them and further allows them to express their individuality.
A sign that a community of Clay Servants used to live in an area are large murals painted on boulders, cliff faces, and caves. A combination of fine artwork juxtaposed with crude finger painting are the call sign of a past vibrant community.
Universal ServantThey have been taken as servants by virtually every humanoid race at some point. Even those who become free tend to not hold them in high regard. Second generation Clay Servants who were born into freedom tend to view the other races with suspicion, but in general they tend to just want to live in peace with them.
Humans. “It is said that it was a human that created the spell to create us and without knowing it they had imparted on us free will. Personally I suspect it was not that they didn't know, they just didn't care."
Dwarves. “Most of them think we were carved from the ground by one of their artisans and silently admire our 'craftsmanship'. It is only a surface level appreciation and if anything it causes us to be watched with far more scrutiny."
Elves. “They spend so much time turning their noses up at other races that we generally fall beneath their notice. Perhaps it is the best we can hope for.”
Halflings. “They generally do not take us as servants. A person sized servant made out of solid clay is perhaps too intimidating for them.”
Created by Magic
Most Clay Servants have a love hate relationship with magic. They would never have existed without it, but it was at the same time the tool that made their servitude possible. Further they tend to view arcane casters, specifically Wizards with distrust if not hatred. At the same time though Stone servants who command the arcane arts are treated with immense respect, as they are responsible for the propagation of their race. In the early years they begrudgingly relied on the service of humanoid spell casters, but they stopped at the earliest opportunity to prevent the knowledge of their creation from being abused.
Since a Clay Servants creation requires only 1 copper coin, many Clay Servants go out of their way to add further meaning to it. This usually involves discovering a copper vein, mining, refining and shaping it into a something unique. Although due to their hatred of imposing a tradition, no one would force a stone servant to follow the custom.
Clay Servant Names and Ethnicities
Names tend to be words from whatever their primary language is. The names are very different between those that are Servants or Free.
Servant
In a sense they do not have names, generally being referred to by how they serve their master. More permanent names are occasionally given and are generally insulting, although more pleasant "pet names" are not unheard of.
Servant Names: Cleaner, Guard, Flea, Lice, Maid, Miner, Picker, Rat, Servant, Snake, Trash
Free
Once they are free, Clay servants tend to give themselves new names. These names are generally concepts that they believe describe themselves or are something they aspire to. They do not tend to make names of the culture that they served under as they were alienated by that same culture. Occasionally some keep with Servant names so that they never forget where they came from. When a Stone Servant is created free, they are likely given a temporary name such as "Child", with the idea that they will eventually choose a name for themselves like their predecessors.
Free Names: Adventure, Beauty, Detail, Free, Freedom, Indomitable, Learner, Liberty, Star, Teacher, Travel.
Clay Servant Traits
It’s hard to make generalizations about Clay Servants since they may be modeled after a variety of races. Although all have the following traits.Alignment
Stone Servants do not tend to innately tend toward any particular alignment. Ones that have escaped lives of mistreatment at the hands of their creators tend to have alignments that are non-neutral.
Age
Stone Servants are created at full size and never age.
Size
Same as the template except weighing 3 times the weight.
Speed
Same as the template race.
Darkvision
You lack eyes, but you see out of the area where the eyes would normally be. 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.
Damage Immunities
Poison, psychic.
Condition Immunities
Charmed, exhaustion, frightened, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned.
Construct Body
You do not breathe and cannot be suffocated. You cannot eat or drink, and only have to pay the “Inn stay” portion of your lifestyle expenses.
Tireless
You can't sleep, and magic can't
put you to sleep. You can finish a Long
Rest in 8 hours if you spend those hours in a
doing light activity, such as reading, talking,
and standing watch.
Clay Regeneration
Due to being a construct, most of the usual
healing methods do not work.
Instead of moving during a turn, you
can heal a hit die of hit points a number
of times equal to your Proficiency Bonus.
You regain all expended uses when
you finish a Long Rest.
You can also restore a lost limb within
reach using a bonus action. Destroyed
limbs are restored on long rest.
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