Homebrew Awakened Skeleton Species Details

Once nothing but the frame to which organs and flesh clung, by fell chance or fickle magic, an awakened skeleton walks among the living once more.

Living Skeleton

Awakened skeletons vary in appearance, as do the living, lending credence to speculation that they are indeed the reanimated corses of the ancient dead. Comprised fully of bones from head to toe, it's difficult to distinguish an awakened skeleton from a normal one - so much so that, should the need arise, they have little difficulty masquerading as a pile of bones.

Awakened skeletons are often easily distinguished from other undead by their decorated bones, be that through etching, painting, or other means. Such measures are a useful precaution against oblivious clerics, paladins, or those who look down on upon the undead.

Decaying Body

The maximum age of an awakened skeleton is a mystery, leading scholars to hold that they are immortal as long as their skull endures.

However, their other bones decay with time, depending on how they were awakened - by the blessing of a god, curse of a witch, or even a necromancer's forgotten minion gaining sentience.

To hold off the ravages of time, awakened skeletons replace their decaying bones with compatible ones from corpses they come across on their travels. One can gain a rough measure of the age of an awakened skeleton by the number of different colorations among their bones.

Lonely Wanderers

Awakened skeletons are rare, and rarer yet is one with a place to call home. Doomed to wander, an awakened skeleton seldom encounters their kin. Many an awakened skeleton is mistaken for a brainless undead and shunned or hunted, but a lucky few are seen as a wonder of the world - a miracle, even - with worship and praise heaped upon them. The less fortunate may end up at a freak show, showcasing their ability to move their bones freely.

For these reasons, and many others, awakened skeletons tend to keep to themselves, hiding in secluded woods, the depths of dungeons and abandoned buildings, or other locales fit for the undead. Despite this, some few will seek purpose or fulfilment in their new unlife, venturing out into the world.

 

Awakened Skeleton Traits

Your awakened skeleton character has certain innate abilities, born of their new unlife

Ability Score Increase

Your Constitution score increases by 2, and one ability score of your choice that isn't Constitution increases by 1.

Age

Awakened skeleton can live as long as they can find replacement bones for their decaying body.

Size

Awakened skeleton heights are different with each other. Your size is Small or Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Darkvision

Your sight has been restored by necromancy, giving you unnaturally sharp vision. You 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 grey.

Undead Nature

You are a walking skeleton without flesh. Your creature type is undead instead of humanoid. As such, spells like cure wounds don't affect you, and you are immune to spells like crown of madness or dominate person because they specifically target humanoids. As a reaction you can harvest the necrotic damage inflicted upon you from leveled spells to instead heal you up to your character level + constitution modifier(minimum of 0).

You are immune to poison damage, being poisoned, and diseases. You also have advantage on death saving throws. You do not need to eat or breathe, and any food you do attempt to eat falls through your jaw and into your rib cage. Rather than sleeping, you enter an inactive state for 6 hours each day. You do not dream in this state; you are fully aware of your surroundings and notice approaching enemies and other events as normal.

False Appearance

You may, as an action, collapse your form into a pile of bones. While you remain motionless, you are indistinguishable from a normal pile of bones. In this state, you are prone and your speed is 0.

Restoring Limbs

You can restore any limb after it being detached or destroyed by simply finding a suitable replacement, then using your action to attach it.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common, and one language of your choice, the language you once spoken when you were alive.