Homebrew Firebrand Species Details

The Firebrand, or Branded for plural or shortening, are a race of fire elementals descended from the deity they call the Forgefather, or the Soulflame, depending on who you ask, whom they all seek to impress through great feats, whether it be creating a mastersmith work or performing death-defying accomplishments in battle. What they lack in literal flesh or body they more than make up for with literal soul and martial prowess, combined with terrifying arcana capabilities and their passionate use of truly apoplectic levels of fire and flame. They are doggedly loyal companions and vicious fighters. 

The Firebrand lack physical forms of flesh and thus manifest themselves as beings of pure elemental fire, but make no mistake, they are far, far from immortal. Ice magic is particularly devastating towards them, and their form destabilizes with the damage it takes. They require constant fuel in the form of food and sleep, or else they suffer the dreaded fate of Extinguishing, even worse than outright dying. Extinguishing a torturous process wherein the Branded's soul is slowly broken down over time as it eats itself as fuel to keep itself alive. It is painful, arduous, and something no Branded can ever come back from. They're as mortal as anything else, even with their extended lifetimes, most not even living long enough to see it. 

Being unfocused forms of an element, the Firebrand require a vessel to shape themselves in. Armor is the vessel of choice for most Firebrand, but some even mold themselves into constructs. Their armor acts as their skin, their soul flame suffused into the very metal, so any damage done to it is damage done to them. If enough damage is done to them, the armor will shudder and fall apart, the soul holding it together burning out and collapsing into cinders inside the armor, leaving it as a husk. 

While they lack sensory organs of any sort, they can still hear, smell, talk and see just as well as anything else, their soul flame and magic acting as their senses. However, they can't safely touch anything, due to them being made of pure elemental flame, and what limited things they do feel is always through their second skin, second hand feelings and impressions. Many Firebrand yearn for what normal beings have, but none have ever attained it.

By nature, they are fierce and passionate beings, and when they dedicate themselves to a task they won't rest until it is accomplished in the most efficient and timely manner. Most would rather eat their own armor than admit they were wrong, and anything that earns a Firebrand's passing fixation will be relentlessly pursued until they are satisfied. 

The Firebrand live within cavernous mountain fortresses that double as sprawling cities, carved by hundreds of thousands of hands over millennia, every inch its own work art, wrought by expert skill and tempered mastery over generations. These "Fortress-Cities" or "Flamekeeps" as they call them, are built into the rock itself, stretching inwards and downwards for miles on end. Every Flamekeep is unique, with varied differences in preferred smithing techniques, fighting styles, etc, etc.

 The Firebrand believe that they never truly stop learning. There is always another craft, always another discipline, always something to learn of the world around them. They are inquisitive, always asking questions. They are sharp, intelligent and hungry for any form of knowledge that they can acquire, and, eventually, master. From the eldest flame to the youngest cinder, all retain the same drive for constant progression and advancement. 

The Firebrand burn bright fast and go dim faster, but should they manage it, they may seek out adventure and attain knowledge and a craft no-one has practiced before to bring back to their Flamekeeps and be entombed within the Great Ashen Halls for their feat.

Firebrand Traits

The Firebrand are hardy and with a deep cultural connection to all their crafts, especially blacksmithing and the art of all things war, but also to things such as woodcarving and stonework. Any trade you could think of, the Firebrand have some obscure section of their Flamekeeps dedicated to it.

Forge-glow

Due to your nature as a Firebrand, a being made entirely out of magical fire, you emit a constant source of low light in a 5x5 square around yourself. This has a negative effect on your sneaking, but is useful in dungeon delving.

Ability Score Increase

Increase both your Strength and Intelligence score by +1, and add an extra +1 to any state of your choosing.

Age

The Firebrand can, in theory, live longer than most with lifespans reaching 200, but most simply do not live to, either burning themselves out before they can reach that point or perishing. The few that do are often regarded as sources of powerful wisdom, and they spend the last of their years passing down the immense library of knowledge they have surely collected by the end of their flame.

Language

The Firebrand have been trading with other races for as long as they have lived, as their fortresses double as immense systems of commerce, and as such can learn any number of languages. However, most Firebrand outside of the merchant caste, the Scaldcoin, only ever learn in snippets. Still, all Firebrand can reliably read and write in common.

The Firebrand once had a universal language, but that has been lost to the depths of one of their many fortress cities, down, down and down into the dark depths of ancient labyrinthian cities.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 35.

The Firebrand's steps leave behind lightly charred footsteps as they are hastened by their inner flame, but only slightly. 

Size

You are a medium sized being. The Firebrand are humanoid, of standard human height, build, etc, etc. They come in any of the same shapes and sizes one could expect humans to.