Homebrew Dullahan Species Details

Among the Fae, Dullahans are viewed as dark creatures. However, they fulfill an important purpose in both Fae and mortal culture. The role of the reaper, the harbingers of death, they are guides for lost and wayward souls. The souls consumed by a Dullahan are sent off from the material plane.

 

Reaper of Souls

A Dullahan's sole purpose in this realm is cleanse it of lost and restless souls. This prompts many of them to wander, looking for the undead and those that create them. Once they reach adulthood, they rarely wander back to their home village, only visiting it once every few years until they are ready to retire there permanently, be it from infirmity or age.

Being a reaper of souls, most other creatures fear the site of Dullahan. Due to this, a Dullahan is typically alone when away from their village except for their faithful Phantom Steed. This makes them very hesitant to make connections, but they are steadfast with the connections that they do form. Dullahan are known to occasionally form connections with other ostracized and fearless creatures, such as Tieflings, fey, and halflings.

 

Lifespan of the Departed

Cleansing the realm of lost and restless souls also provides Dullahans a form of longevity. While they have been known to help many souls to seek peace, they also will consume souls that are too far gone from sanity, or those that would spoil the life stream, and if such a corrupt soul is still living, especially if it is enslaving other souls, a Dullahan will pursue its death through whatever means it can.

When a Dullahan consumes a soul, it gains some of the essence of this soul, providing the Dullahan both health and longevity, but as they age they tend to wander less and eventually settle in a village of other Dullahan. Dullahan villages find the older generation, typically over a century, raising and educating the young. Dullahan elders are typically revered as founts of wisdom, and many younger Dullahan will show respect to any creature that has live a long life.

The Head rules the Heart

While a Dullahan may appear as a fearful visage, they are generally well reasoned and will not attack without provocation. The one exception to this rule is if one's head is stolen. Without their head, a Dullahan's body enters a one-minded state, where it loses almost all reason and will pursue its head to the end of the earth. this one-minded state does not end until the Dullahan's body is reunited with its head.

Dullahan Names

Dullahan take on the naming conventions of whatever culture they are around, which are typically human names, although villages have been found that have naming conventions of dwarves and giants.

Male Names: Anghus, Baern, Cedric, Douglas...

Female Names: Arela, Brigid, Celty, Deirdre...

Dullahan Appearance

A Dullahan's body looks like a large human that is missing their head. Males are generally muscular, while females are more lithe. Both males and females tent to be very tall, with heights ranging from 5 foot 5 inches to 6 foot 7 inches not counting their heads. A Dullahan will never let their head out of reach. While on their phantom steed, a Dullahan's head is typically mounted in a special place on their saddle, but when off their mount, the head will typically be carried, either in a mesh sack or by it's hair. For this reason many Dullahan, both male and female keep their hair long, just in case something happens to the mesh sack. They will typically have their hair in a braid that can be looped into a handle or onto a belt.

A Dullahan's skin tone is generally extremely pale, almost to the point of albinism. Their hair come in as many colors as that of a human. Their eyes have black sclera and slightly glowing iris that can be of any color. When they breath and speak, their mouth lets out streams of a fog-like smoke. This leads many Dullahan to speak little outside of company that they are familiar with.

Dullahan’s usually have mouths that are very wide that they can open to the sides of their face but lose this “ability” slowly after aging past forty, for after age forty, Dullahan tend to evolve into more human-like beings then monster, sadly this is one of the only known main traits a Dullahan loses after aging, but still useful for scaring less people and not attracting unwanted/unneeded attention.

While a Dullahan’s head is separated from its body a non-lethal, ethereal flame (that can be of any color) forms on their wounded neck and on the bottom of the head that serves as a sort of “string” that shows that the head and body are connected and acts as a means for the body to hear and see as well as for the head to speak. When the flame is looked upon or perceived by any magical means then one would see a light, floating, ethereal string coming out of the flame, connecting the head and body. This string is inseverable by any means and only ever snaps when the Dullahan is killed or dies. The flame extinguishes once the Dullahan dies. When the Dullahan “wears” its head a thin “indent” that goes all the way around the throat shows that the head is “disconnected” from the body and out from this “indent” seeps ethereal smoke same in color to the fire a Dullahan possesses.

Two Parts make one Whole

because of Dullahan's unique physique (head and body divided into two), they have a innate ability to focus on two different actions at a time. as for example, its head could have a long philosophical conversation with the thief who had stolen it, while its body chased the thief. Because of this ability, some Dullahans develop a strange form of personality disorder in which the body has one kind of personality while its head of a completely different personality.

Fey Experiments

A Dullahan is a type of fey creature born of the unseelie court. many think Dullahan resemble the undead due to their headless nature but really both head and body are kept completely alive by an incurable curse brought unto them by an ancient forbidden dark Fey ritual. The Dullahan are created when a unseelie takes a humanoid race, disembowels it, and commits itself to a dark ritual in which the being is brought back to life as a Dullahan, a headless being. Due to this cruel experimental ritual the unseelie test on people, the Dullahan suffer from memory loss of their past former selves and can only remember bits and pieces and sometimes dream of their past lives, however they can always recall their true name, or the name they had before. For the most part the Dullahan retain their past personalities and flaws they had before the transformation. Only a few rare Dullahan possess and remember more of their past life than others due to a trigger of lasting impression that can not be forgotten. Dullahan are also completely capable of producing offspring, however, like the Tiefling, the offspring will be a Dullahan.

Dullahan society

Since they so closely resemble humanoids, Dullahan tend to be able to enter other societies with relative ease compared to Tieflings, half-orcs, or other hated monster races. However Dullahan are still very feared and viewed negatively by other races and societies because of their unnatural skin color and their unintentional trait of being headless and are described as being evil incarnate, creepy, sickening, and often compared to monsters. Dullahan tend to keep their appearance hidden in order to save themselves some unwanted attention and discrimination from civilians and merchants when not around their kind or close friends. Dullahan have been known to set up society's comprised of only them and select others who are peaceful towards them, or their spouses, Most of these societies being located out of the way of other societies or people. Oddly enough some elven and gnomish societies are welcoming and friendly to the Dullahan while others view them rather sympathetically. All things considered however, Dullahan are still extremely rare to encounter in large cities, preferring to reside in the town or village they think they had lived in from their memories if they can recall it, like to live a nomadic life, or just prefer to remain in the fey wild if that is where they underwent the ritual.

Don't Lose Your Head

A Dullahan always carries their head with them although it isn't necessary to keep it on their person. When entering a fierce battle, a Dullahan may hand their head over to a trusted ally or subordinate on their hunt or, a favored trick is to hide it in a saddle bag.

An important lesson to remember when playing a Dullahan is to always know where you are - both parts. If you are separated from yourself, both halves will have an extremely difficult time reuniting without help. Avoid this at all costs.

Don't lose your head. You only have the one.

Magical Connection

A Dullahan's head and body are magically connected, even when detached from each other. Dullahan can eat and breathe even when their head is detached. The break acts almost like a portal, allowing ingested objects to travel freely through.

Dullahan Traits

Being of fey ancestry, Dullahan have a variety of inborn traits .

Ability Score Increase

Your Constitution score increases by 2 and your Strength and Wisdom scores each increase by 1.

Age

A typical Dullahan is between two hundred and thirty thousand years old. The maximum Dullahan lifespan remains a mystery; so far, Dullahan have shown no signs of deterioration due to age. You are immune to magical aging effects.

Alignment

Most Dullahan take comfort in order and discipline, tending toward law and neutrality. But some have absorbed the morality, or lack thereof, of the beings with which they escord to the land of the dead.

Size

Both males and females tent to be very tall, with heights ranging from 5 foot 5 inches to 6 foot 7 inches not counting their heads. Your size is Medium.

To set your height and weight randomly, start with rolling a size modifier:

Size modifier = 2d6

Height = 5 feet + 10 inches + your size modifier in inches

Weight in pounds = 159 + (4 × your size modifier)

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Undead Fey Resilience

You were reborn to have remarkable fortitude, represented by the following benefits:

• You have advantage on saving throws against being poisoned, and you have resistance to poison damage.
• You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed.
• Magic can’t put you to sleep.

Integrated Protection

Your body has withered with ages past so it bonds magically to what you wear, which can be enhanced with armor:

• You gain a +1 bonus to Armor Class.
• You can don only armor with which you have proficiency. To don armor other than a shield, you must incorporate it into your body over the course of 1 hour, during which you remain in contact with the armor. To doff armor, you must spend 1 hour removing it. You can rest while donning or doffing armor in this way.
• While you live, the armor incorporated into your body can’t be removed against your will.

Headless

Your body and head (while separate from each other) are connected via a (color of your choice) flame or mist that seeps from the stump of your neck and can expand outward to feel the environment (The color is your choice, the flames do not produce much light but rather cast unnatural shadows that make you look more frightening). You can set your head on your neck (though it’s not as solidly attached as regular humans’ head is) or you can hold it in your hand/arms. There is no limit to how far your head can be away from your body, but your head needs to be able to eat, drink, sleep, and breathe as normal to sustain your body. While not on your neck:

• Your head’s AC is equal to your body’s AC while within 5 feet of each other. Otherwise it is your AC -5 if you’re not wearing a helmet. Hit points are shared via your magical connection.
• Your body can extent its flame/mist to feel the environment around it, giving you blindsight up to but not exceeding 15 feet, this only applies to your body not your head.
• You gain advantage on Charisma (Intimidation) checks.
• You can't die by decapitation.
• You always know the exact location and direction to your head unless its on another plane in which when you set foot upon said plane you then instantly receive the information, on less there is an effect that prevents divination magic blocks it.
• Unless your head is being carried by you or another creature, it can be targeted. You can not suffer damage twice from an area of effect spell because of this. your head instantly fails all Strength and Dexterity throws. 
• Your body can't speak or hear, but it can consume food and drink and even cast spells with verbal components as long as the head isn't silenced or gagged.
• The non-lethal, ethereal flame that leaks from your throat and the bottom of your head sheds bright light in a 6 inches radius and dim light for an additional 6 inches.
• When you cast spells, all components except verbal originate from your body. If you cast a spell that requires material or somatic components, the effect originates from your body, otherwise you may choose if it originates from your body or your head. If you cast a spell originating from your body, you cannot target creatures or objects that are physically obstructed from it, even if your head can still see them.

Darkvision

Your head 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. this only applies to your head not your body.

Eternal experience

You are proficient in certain set of skills that you trained in for years.

Phantom Steed

When a dullahan reaches adulthood, they permanently bond to a Phantom Steed. This steed appears when they are most in need or at dusk on the night of their 19th birthday, and will be the dullahan's constant companion from that point forward.

 You can summon your Phantom Steed at any time using an action as long as there is enough open space for it. You can also dismiss your Phantom Steed at any time as an action, causing it to disappear back to the fey wilds.

When its hit points are reduced to zero, it disappears to the fey wilds to heal and you are unable to summon it for the next 7 days.

until you reach level 5, the Phantom Steed will disappear immediately to the fey wilds if it takes any damage and you are unable to summon it for the next 24 hours.

your Phantom Steed will not let anyone other than you ride it, unless you also are riding it at the same time.

Notes for DMS 

If you players do not treat their Phantom Steed well (for example, make them run through a minefield alone), Please! take it from them until they have learned their lesson and apologized to their Phantom Steed.

 

once in your lifetime

Dullahans Normally only bond with one Phantom Steed in their lifetime, so once it's dead, you do not automatically get a new bond with a new Phantom Steed. to make a new bond with a new Phantom Steed you will need to go on a Quest to find a new Phantom Steed and bond with it. this Quest can take op to weeks even years to complete. so Please! treat your Phantom Steed with respect.

 

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common, Sylvan and one other language of your choice.