Homebrew Selkie Species Details

Selkies are fae creatures native to the ocean, and other salt water areas. They are comfortable in the deep sea and on land. While not necessarily beautiful, they are charismatic, clever, and agile, and are able to shift into their seal form with the use of their sealskin.

Physical Description: Selkies are seal-people; they resemble humans when not in their sealskin. They always have hair and eye colors that correspond with their seal form. For example, a Harbor Seal selkie would have tan to dark brown skin, darker brown or grey hair, and many freckles or beauty marks on their body. Most, if not all Selkies have dark eyes, which again corresponds to their Seal form. Since selkies do mate with humans, however, there can be hints of the human parentage or ancestry in their physical appearance, like red hair or lighter-colored eyes. Male and female selkies alike are usually lean, as it is hard for this race to put on a lot of muscle mass.

Personality: Selkies are usually calm, unless they are required to fight. Female selkies are often more capable of controlling their emotions, making them natural leaders of the tribes. Male selkies are able to channel their rage in battle, making them great fighters and the like. Selkie men and women are free-spirited and open minded, but they value honor and “pod” greatly. (Pod can usually be translated as pack or family. Selkies do not see a lot of difference between male and female, aside from physical.

Habitat: Selkies are mostly present on the shore of tropical islands and coastal regions. Many of them can be found underwater as well. They are almost always nomadic and thus have very little tie to the land in the way that other species might.

Society: Selkies are welcomed by most other water creatures, and maintain friendly relation with them. They have deep caution towards Cyclops, Goliath Pandas, Gnolls, Minotaurs, Tigerfolks and Wolffolks, as these are the natural predators of selkies in their seal form. They get along in the wild and most often wild-oriented races. They treat humans with caution as well, for the fact that humans often stole sealskins from unsuspecting selkies, making them unable to go back into the ocean.

Names: Wild Selkies often give their child a short, simple name, if they give them a name at all. Selkies raised on the land usually have names that deal with water, or aquatic life in general.

Wild: Sey, Sho, Illi, Mae, Koo; Land: Storm, River, Coral, Seafoam

Equipment: Selkies always have their sealskin, unless it is taken from them. Selkies have a proficiency in light armor, but can also be found wearing medium armor. Most selkies don’t like heavy armor, as it constricts their movement far more than they are comfortable with.

Selkie Traits

Selkie

Ability Score Increase

Your wisdom score increases by 1 and your charisma score increases by 2.

Aquatic Species

You have advantage on athletics and acrobatics checks made in water.

Swim-Dash

You can take the dash action as a bonus action while swimming.

Seal Anatomy

You are vulnerable to hot climates and become thirsty twice as fast, you have disadvantage on constitution saves in hot climates, and you become thirsty in half the required time for an human. However you gain advantage on constitution saves to resist cold environment.

Seal Lungs

You can hold your breath for a number of minutes equal to 4 times your constitution score.

Darkvision

You have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 60 feet around 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.

Selkie Druid

Selkie druids can wild shape one extra time per day.

Sealskin

Selkies are able to use an action to shift into their seal form with the use of their sealskin once per short or long rest. If their sealskin is lost, stolen, or destroyed, they can no longer use this ability until their sealskin is restored to them.

Languages

Common, Aquan, plus one other bonus language based on non-selkie parent (if any), or on the community where the selkie lived during their childhood.