Homebrew BeholderBorn Species Details

Beholderborn

Beholder-Born are created from years and years of magical distortion in the realms aberrations spawn from. It is said that the first spawned from wandering into one of the many portals to the aberrations home realm. The original creation is unknown but the result has certainly followed. The Beholderborn are a new arrival in the planes of existence and are often seen as a scourge. Similar to Teiflings, the origin of the Beholderborn shine through greatly in their appearance. They have naturally menacing appearances and otherworldly protrusions from their bodies. They take after Beholders in voice pitch and otherworldly presence. Their eye always has intimidating stares and their sharp teeth are shown when talking. Their skin tone often ranges from fleshy browns and greens to reds and pinks.

While they vary just as much as the Beholders they had mixed with centuries ago. Most of them have a wide mouth filled with sharp teeth, bulging lips and a tongue that reaches over a foot at times. In the upper centre of their noseless face, there is one big hairless eyebrow and a single large eye. As said they have no nose and therefore have neither a sense nor a concept of smell. Instead of hair, they have multiple thick fleshy braids that if willed or startled turn active and reveal themselves to be the Beholder typical eyestalks. The stalks stop growing after reaching neck length and if cut off or damaged severely fall off and regrow after a tenday if provided with sufficient nutrition and rest. The main eye varies just as the flesh does purple, green, pink, a deep blue in hue, even gold ones are not unheard of. Some have circular pupils and others have a cat-like vertical slit. There have been sightings of even more exotic forms. Depending on the colour, they emanate a similar faint light. They have a slim, and very frail build due to their high aptitude for magic. The head is seemingly large in proportion to the rest of the body. along their bloodline; they do share facets of the humanity they once had as well.

Isolationists

Whether by choice or by racism due to their relation to Beholders, Beholderborn are usually forced into small groups of open-minded people who see them as normal people despite their appearance, into isolation or the underground, political or geographical. They are often found in places like the Underdark or beneath large settlements. They manage to still develop their skills and live despite not being as powerful as their predecessors. Often hoarding what they can and hiding their appearance whenever they approach society to get goods. They hide and try to stay out of the limelight out of fear of persecution. They are used to doing everything themselves and will thrive in areas with a low populace. Those few in contact with a lot of people work as enchanters or magic casters due to the natural connection to the magic that they possess. Though most of them are scattered throughout the world. A few take on the more tyrannical tendencies or paranoid delusions of the ones who came before them. They are powerful but often have a hair trigger when it comes to society and how socially intelligent they can be. In extreme cases they always require proof you won't betray them, hurt them, or use them for your own gain before they can consider anyone a friend. 

Life Span

As an aberration physiology, you are capable of living for an obscene amount of time. The normal life span of a Beholderborn ranges from 1 to 500 years of age, reaching Teenage at 50 years and maturity at 100 years.

Alignment

Taking from the Beholders does not mean you are restricted to their way of thinking, they do share facets of the humanity they once had as well. That said Beholderborn do have a tendency towards chaotic behaviour or at least self-centred thinking. Most of them fall into neutral or lawful evil, some chaotic neutral.

Roleplaying

For additional information on playing a Beholder / Beholderborn, I advise taking a look at Volos Guide to Monsters chapter 1. There you will find tables for physical appearance, personality traits of a Beholder, example names etc. Note that all of that is for Beholders, not Beholderborn as this is Homebrew so keep that in mind.

BeholderBorn Traits

As a Beholderborn, you have the following traits.

Ability Score Increases

When determining your character’s ability scores, increase one score by 2 and increase a different score by 1. Due to your physical weak body, you get a decrease of 1 in your strength, dexterity and constitution scores.

Languages

Your character can speak, read, and write Common, Abyssal and Undercommon.

Creature Type

You are a Humanoid.  And an Abberation.

Size

You are Medium or Small. You choose the size when you select this race.

Speed

Your walking speed is 25 feet.

Darkvision

Thanks to your Beholder-bound lineage you have amazing eyesight in dark places and similar conditions. This focus on your lineage makes you capable to see through darkness around you at a 100ft range. You can distinguish colours in both instances.

Always Watching

Because of their multitude of eyes, Beholderborn have the capacity to see in all directions at once, making it nearly impossible to ambush them while also giving them an unusually high degree of perceptive ability. You gain proficiency with perception and investigation skills.

Eye Beams

Under stress or by your command, as a bonus action, an eyestalk shoots out a 60-foot beam of energy at a target that you can see. Roll a d10 and get a random effect. You can do this a number of times equal to 2 + your Intelligence modifier. Starting at level 10 you can add your proficiency bonus to the number of uses. Your spell save DC for this is 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier. (Outside of combat just like their ancestors, Beholderborn can use their eyestalks at will. The randomness described above is more like an instinct to stay unpredictable in battle. Consult with your DM as this part maybe be deemed op.)

1. Charm Ray / Golden Eye. The targeted creature must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or be charmed by the Beholderborn for 1 minute, or until the creature takes any damage.

2. Paralyzing Ray / Grey Eye. The targeted creature must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or be paralyzed until the end of the target's next turn.

3. Fear Ray / Amber Eye. The targeted creature must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or be frightened by the Beholderborn for 1 minute, or until the creature takes any damage.

4. Slowing Ray / Brown Eye. The targeted creature must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, the target's speed is halved for 1 minute. In addition, the creature can't take reactions, and it can take either an action or a bonus action on its turn, not both. The creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.

5. Enervation Ray / Purple Eye. The targeted creature must make a Constitution saving throw, taking 2d8 necrotic damage on a failed save, or half as much on a successful one

6. Telekinetic Ray / Silver Eye. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a Strength saving throw or be moved up to 30 ft. in any chosen direction. It is restrained by the ray's telekinetic grip until the start of the Beholderborns next turn or until you are incapacitated. If the target is an object weighing 300 pounds or less that isn't being worn or carried, it is moved up to 30 ft. in any direction. You can also exert fine control on objects with this ray, such as manipulating a simple tool or opening a door or a container.

7. Sleep Ray / Pink Eye. The targeted creature must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or fall asleep and remain unconscious for 1 minute. The target awakens if it takes damage or another creature takes an action to wake it. The effect of this ray neither works on constructs nor undead.

8. Petrification Ray / White Eye. The targeted creature must make a Dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, the creature begins to turn to stone and is restrained. It must repeat the saving throw at the end of its next 2 turns. On a success, the effect ends. If the creature fails all 3 saving throws it is petrified until freed by greater restoration or other similar magic.

9. Disintegration Ray / Green Eye. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or take 2d10 force damage. If this damage reduces the creature to 0 hit points, its body becomes a pile of fine grey dust. If the target is a Large or smaller nonmagical object or creation of magical force, it is disintegrated without a saving throw. If the target is a Huge or larger object or a creation of magical force, this ray disintegrates a 10-foot cube of it.

10. Death Ray / Black Eye. The targeted creature must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or take 2d12 necrotic damage. The target dies instantly if the ray reduces it to 0 hit points.