Homebrew Arkos Merfolk Species Details

"There was nothing as beautiful in this world as the Merfolk and their Sea Dragons. They sparkled with all the colors known and unknown, gleamed in the sunlight and shimmered in the moonlight. And in the darkest depths they made light of their own, pulsing and glowing with each their own unique color. 

Even now, so long since it happened, it still makes my stomach twist to think of the loss of such beauty in the world."

— The Great Chronicler 

 

Allusive and Alluded 

Just as Aqua intended the Merfolk are embodiments of the all the beauty of the ocean and all of its dangers too. Merfolk come in all sorts of shapes and sizes but typically they are close to humans in stature. What sets them apart is their finned limbs, disproportionate eyes (large or small), needle sharp teeth, bioluminescent stripes, and scaled bodies, though they may have blubber or sharkskin instead. Some would call them beautiful while some would call them disturbing and just like the wild seas they once inhabited, they are both sides of this coin. 

For most of history they went undiscovered by nonhuman races as oftentimes those who witnessed them did not live to tell the tale. Most merfolk preferred saltwater as well so for a long time they were completely separated from the other sinescale. There were more solitary merfolk who swam up rivers and made homes in lakes, but they were exactly that: solitary. Freshwater merfolk typically preferred living alone and if they were seen by sinescale it was often because that unfortunate victim was their target. 

 

Palaces of the Past and Placement of the Present

Before the Ascension merfolk had cities of coral and bone deep beneath the waves. Here they lived with much fewer restrictions than the other races. Their hierarchies formed naturally from age and/or power but those who held positions above others did not use them to place laws nor command people but simply were expected to be treated with respect. Typically, family units lived together, with matriarchs or patriarchs who would guide the family in times of need but step back in times of peace to let the younger ones live their lives as they pleased. Even when young merfolk decided to start families of their own, they would often simply build expansions onto the homes of their parents, creating these sprawling palaces of coral, bone, and plant life. Cities could stretch for miles along the sea floor and were always full of teeming life, from the colorful and diverse merfolk themselves to the many types of plants they raised to the underwater fauna that made homes within their structures. Not many outsiders ever beheld these cities but all who did told of a beauty unlike anything they had seen before. 

Now however it is believed that all these cities were destroyed when the earth cracked open, and all the seas vanished into the deep wounds left on the ocean floor. Now the remaining merfolk are a poor echo of what they once were. Most of their kind live in Konnen where their human cousins have offered them acceptance and understanding but there are also Merfolk who live on the surface lake or the deep aquifer of Mt. Gagaroth. 

 

Wild Natures and Wicked Urges

The myths of merfolk were oftentimes not far from the truth. Merfolk often used song to draw prey in before pouncing with their venomous needle-sharp teeth. This typically was used on fish, but merfolk had no qualms eating other nonhumanoid races. Now, since they are forced to live amongst other races, this habit has fallen out of favor unsurprisingly. Still even though they walk and talk like everyone else, gossip of mystical and horrific natures often follow them. Awe or horror is often the choices they have in the faces of others, which has led to a lot of resentment from their kind and made the loss of their people all the worse for them. 

Many merfolk miss the times when they roamed the oceans freely with their mighty Sea Dragons, without worry of watchful eyes. When they hunted by instinct and bent to the wildness in their souls. A time when things were simple and primal. Now instead they live as humans do mostly and while some have taken well enough to it, others have driven to madness. Many early murders in the cities were linked back to feral merfolk who never stopped seeing their fellows as prey and that stereotype has haunted their kind to this day regardless of their behavior.

 

Songs of Light and Secret Language

Merfolk have bioluminescent markings on their bodies that are nearly undetectable on their skin unless said merfolk chooses to make them glow. They have immense control over these markings, adults are able to exert complete mastery over the intensity of their color and strength of the light given off. A merfolk typically however only has one color to their bioluminescence, though it has been shown that their base coloration can have an effect on this causing it to appear as though they might have two colors to their patterns. This is but a trick of light, something that many merfolk also master. 

Long ago underwater merfolk did not communicate through speech but through hand signals and rhythmical pulses of light following certain patterns along their bodies. Gola is the name of said language and translates loosely to "the voice of light". This is thought to be one of the oldest languages to exist as it developed naturally from body language when merfolk first came into being. Before the Ascension rarely did the Merfolk use a method of speech beside vocalizations to speak across great distances or to entice unwitting prey. Now however living above water with those around them who are unable to communicate in the Gola language they have instead taken up the Gadwyr language of their Human siblings. 

 

Merfolk Names

These humanoids are typically named after water phenomenon, sea creatures, or features of theirs. Merfolk are born without gender and can develop as they wish depending on their preferences. Some merfolk may never decide to develop into a male or female as they reach adulthood and choose to remain genderless instead. These merfolk are called Di-ryw (Tear-ru) and their names end in one of those five letters to mark them as such. All merfolk have the ability to change gender though it is a slow process. Gadwyr is loosely based on the Welsh language. Oftentimes Merfolk also have a Gola name or a "name of light".

 

Names: Awelon (Current), Caniti (Shiny Scales), Morfil (Friend of Whales), Llyn (Lake)

 

Arkos Merfolk Traits

Your merfolk has a variety of abilities pulled from their predatory instincts and untamed souls.

Ability Score Increase

Your Dexterity rises by 2 and your Charisma rises by 1 (You may place these points however you like but this is a typical Merfolk bonus)

Age

Merfolk typically live around 80 years.

Size

Merfolk have the widest range in height of any sinescale species from under 5 to over 7 feet tall. They typically have lithe but strong swimmer builds similar to their human brethren however they tend to have frills and fins that can give them both a taller and wider appearance. 

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet and you have a swim speed of 30 feet as well. 

Water in the Blood

Merfolk are resistant to poison. 

Voice of the Sea

You have proficiency in performance.

Beguiling Music

Once per long rest, as a reaction, you may hum or sing to impose disadvantage on a listening target who is making a save against a charm affect. 

Memory of Water

Once per long rest you may give yourself advantage on a skill check of which you are already proficient.

Venomous Fangs

As a bonus action once per short rest, you may choose to try and bite your enemy. If successful you deal 1d4 of piercing damage plus your proficiency bonus. When bitten the victim must make a con save of DC 12, should they fail they gain the poisoned condition till the end of their next turn. 

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Gadwyr and one other language. Gadwyr is a melodic, bubbling sounding language that almost seems to trick the ear with the way it ebbs and flows with gaps between sounds that feel somehow still connected.  You can also "speak" Gola, a language which utilizes the bioluminescence of a Merfolk's body paired with hand signals.