Homebrew Adlet Species Details

Niviarsiang stared lovingly at her sleeping husband, ruffling his silky white fur flecked with red between her hands. Ijirqang did not stir as she did so, his sides remaining occupied in a slow, steady breathing rhythm. Tucked beneath the folds of his fur was their ten children, five white and red pups like Ijirqang, and the others who looked almost like human children, save for the white fur that coated their legs. Savirqong was stretching in the morning sun, his dark locks tousled and filled with sea salt. The air was chilly and frigid, as it had been all night, and even the furs surrounding Niviarsiang could not ward off the cold.
Ijirqang's eyelids opened to reveal a pair of brilliant blue oculi. His tail thumped against the wooden boards as he looked at her, her tan face surrounded by a mask of furs reflected in his eyes. Savirqong turned towards Ijirqang, the faint sunlight reflecting on the tan of his face.
"Swim ashore and bring us back meat, and we shall have enough food for us all," Savirqong told Ijirqang.
So Niviarsiang tied a rope of boots around Ijirqang's waist, and he swam away, paddling the murky blue water under his swift paws.
Late in the afternoon, Ijirqang returned with the meat, and Savirqong took that meat. Niviarsiang called to her beloved Ijirqang and the two returned to enjoying each other's company. Savirqong, instead of preparing the meat, fished up stones from the ocean’s frigid depths. The increased weight caused the boat to rock and sink, lowering its position until the water could assault the boat. The freezing blue liquid swarming into the boat’s bowels, flooding it and dragging it deeper into the water. Ijirqang slipped from his wife's lap, struggling to dig his claws into the water coated wood. The boat gave a sharp jerk, and Ijirqang lost balance. He howled as he tried to stay aloft in the whirling water, casting Niviarsiang his final glance, filled with love, sorrow and terror, before the water cut off his voice and engulfed him. Niviarsiang screamed with mindless sorrow and tried to dive into the water, but Savirqong held her back. She lashed out at him and screamed to her children "Gnaw off the hands and feet of the murderer of your father!" and her children, crouching on drier side of the boat, leapt upon Savirqong and mauled him. In retaliation, Savirqong kicked his daughter into the waters, jarring her spine as it slammed against the wood and rolled over the edge of the boat. Niviarsiang grasped to the slick wood of the boat and snarled at her father, struggling to climb back up, but Savirqong drew his curved iron knife. In a swift motion, he cleaved off Niviarsiang’s fingers, and Niviarsiang alongside her severed fingers fell into the same waters that had devoured Ijirqang.

— Grual Iee, Adlet Storyteller

Adlet are the ferocious offspring of human and dog, blessed with the speed and agility of the canines. Most Adlet live in pack-like communities, hunting and sometimes raiding nearby communities in times of need. Adlet are treated with distrust and fearful incomprehension, in the rare cases the Adlet is encountered in peaceful circumstances, and with raw fear when they are not. Adlet adventurers are not common, as Adlet have little use of wealth, but more fables are not to be turned down by an Adlet storyteller, and Adlet trying to survive in a foreign and hostile community may lean into an adventuring life to support their insecure finances. 

Canine Heritage

Adlet appear mostly human, but with thick white fur coating their legs and razor claws on their feet. In addition to their appearance, they gained other traits from their canine parents - ferocity, loyalty and cunning. They typically appear similar to their human ancestors, with short black hair, tan skin and dark eyes. They wear clothing and armour made of hide, which serves as a protection, both from the cold and from the blades of their enemies. Adlet are known to be territorial and will attack anyone who enters their territory.

Adlet's agility and strength, combined with their ferocity and loyalty, makes them excellent warriors and adventurers. Adlet bond strongly with their packs and communities, meaning that most Adlet adventurers' packs perished, or they are on a commission by their pack. 

Legacy of Two Ancestors

The Adlet's origins trace back to Niviarsiang and Ijirqang, where dog and girl had children together. Half of those children looked like full-blooded dogs, while the other half were half man and half dog, with the legs and torso of a canine and head and arms of an ordinary human.

Some Adlet consume the flesh of humans, as the act is not usually considered any different from consuming a caribou. This is not due to a lack of recognition for the intelligence of either creature, but as they do not view intelligence as any more important than strength, or any more of a reason not to kill something, and even less of a reason not to eat it. Not consuming a corpse is considered disrespectful to the animal for wasting its body.
   Certain packs wear the knuckle bones of humans around their throats and hunt humans for vengeance alongside for survival. These communities bought Adlet a bad name, and most people that know of the Adlet fear them. However, many Adlet communities never went down this path, and follow the traditions of the hunt, protecting their territories and tracking elk. The origin of the other variation of communities sourced from a war between the native human tribes and the Adlet, resulting in monstrosities later regretted. However, not all Adlet were involved in this war, and thus many do not record its history or harbor hatred for the humans that once slew them.

Alike wolves, Adlet live in close-knit packs founded by the Alpha Male and Female. The Alphas are the parents of everyone in the pack, and if they perish, their children mourn for a month before they disperse to found packs of their own. During the mourning period, none of the pack eat, and only drink scarcely. Before the death of the Alphas, few Adlet willingly leave their pack.
Adlet hunt together as an entire pack and mark their territory as they do so by rubbing themselves against trees. They typically fast for a week and eat well when they do so, and Adlet can go for up to two months without eating, though they are very unlikely to survive the recovery period. Adlet towns are usually built in sheltered areas with a suitable den for rearing in the premise, and while most lived in houses akin to human-made ones, the resource-poor communities sleep outside and use each other for body warmth. Some Adlet have stronger, more dominant personalities then others, and thus get first pick when it comes to food, but otherwise there is no ranking and all Adlet share and live together. 

The Areu Pack (pronounced uh-r-oo) was founded by two of the original Adlet and is one of the two original packs. They settled in a snow-covered grove across the river of a human settlement, where they gave birth to their first litter. Later on, prey became so scarce that both humans and Adlet were starving, forcing both sides to raid the other. Originally, it was a minor strife of hunger, but as the lack of food increased, so did the two side’s desperation. After the first children were killed, hate festered and resulted in full out war.
In the end, the Areu Adlet were forced to near extermination. They relented, allowed the humans to take all their food, put them in shackles and abuse them. The next generation of Adlet sparked a rebellion, and eventually managed to escape. Later on, they destroyed the human settlement.
Since then, their hatred of humans has led to them eradicating entire settlements. It is traditional for Areu descendants to wear painted human knuckle bones and human tongues around their throat, and Areu Adlet impress potential mates with these displays. Additionally, it is considered a ward against ill fortune and human spirits to hang a totem of carved human bones above the entry of buildings, dens and groves. Humans are considered to be evil creatures, and though descendants of a common ancestor, they believe that humans were corrupted and lost the light of the canines. Anger is valued, though not when used unduly, for its providence of passion, perseverance and determination.
Most Areu descendants view humans similarly to demons or evil spirits, despising and fearing them. It is considered a justice to slay one, akin to how most humans be pleased by the death of a devil or chromatic dragon. They are not considered capable of feeling empathy, and humans that portray such emotions are considered deceitful and they assume that they are resorting to trickery.

The Arcc (pronounced ar-k) was founded by two of the original Adlet and is one of the two original packs. They settled under a rocky outcrop that was guarded by a jutting stone piece. Their den was secluded, but also in a fairly deserted area. Hunts were long and far between, as Adlet would have to travel to the nearby mountains in order to find substantial food. This unified them, increasing their bonds. In Arcc culture, traitors were viewed as the greatest taboo of all, and if they were caught, were ripped apart.
They shared everything they had, including food and shelter. Adlet that did not honour this trust were rejected from Arcc (and in general Adlet) culture. While all Adlet follow this culture, the Arcc do even more so than the Areu descendants. Arcc believe that wearing a special type of seal-skin knee-high boots brings good fortune on hunts and raids. Fashion changes in Arcc culture, but shark teeth necklaces are generally considered a sign of power (whether in strength, cunning or agility) and courage. While there are several major events in Arcc history, including a massive famine which almost wiped them out, none are as important as the war between the native humans and Areu.

Adlet Names

Adlet names vary from deep growl-like names to whining longwinded ones. There is no variation between female or male names. Names are very difficult to say for people not born accustomed to the tongue, and even harder to transfer to written language. Therefore, many Adlet adventurers choose to make an easier variation of their name or choose a different name entirely.

Themed Names: Swift, Talon, Razor, Flame, Jagged, Ice, Crystal, Falcon, Growl, Sky, Fang

Shifted Adlet Names: Gruul, Ieoo, Impa, Ack, Arkarow, Orow, Garal, Daraum.

Adlet Traits

Your Adlet character gains certain bestial traits from their canine ancestry.

Frozen Adaption

You have resistance to cold damage. Additionally, you ignore difficult terrain caused by snow or ice.

Creature Type

You are a Humanoid. You are also considered a Monstrosity by any prerequisite that requires you to be one.

Alignment Tendencies

Adlet tend towards True or Chaotic Neutral, and some (mostly ones from the Areu culture) are considered Neutral or Chaotic Evil due to their violent traditions, or end up there because of them.

Pack Tactics

You have advantage on attack rolls against creatures if at least one of your allies is within 5 feet of the creature and isn’t incapacitated.

Ability Score Increase

Your Dexterity score increases by 2, and a different Ability Score increases by 1.

(the choice ability score increase currently doesn’t work and has to be added manually)

Age

Adlet mature a little faster than humans, reaching adulthood around 15-16. They generally succumb to old age around 80.

Size

Adlet are slightly taller than humans and with a wiry build. Most Adlet are between 5-6 feet tall. Your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 40 feet.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common and Adlet. Adlet is a harsh, erratic language consisting of deep growls, whines and sharp barks.

(for some reason you can’t make homebrew languages so Adlet won’t be added to your character sheet automatically)