Homebrew Immortal Species Details

 

"From the dawn of time we came; moving silently down through the centuries, living many secret lives, struggling to reach the time of the Gathering; when the few who remain will battle to the last. No one has ever known we were among you… until now." -Ramirez

A Broad Spectrum

Immortals are as diverse as the human stock from which they arise and are physically indistinguishable if one doesn't actually witness their unique abilities.  An individual can stand from 5 feet to a little over 6 feet tall and weigh from 125 to 250 pounds. Their skin like that of humans ranges from nearly black to very pale, and hair colors from black to blond (curly, kinky, or straight); males might sport facial hair that is sparse or thick. Immortals are physically static at the age they were when they first died and afterwards do not age.

Variety in All Things

Immortals are as adaptable and ambitious as the human cultures from which they are drawn. They have widely varying tastes, morals, and customs in the many different lands where they have settled. They tend not to settle to long in any one place though, often moving on after a decade or two before the humans around them become suspicious of their lack of aging.   An individual immortal might have a strong attachment to the nation or culture they were born into and make an effort to preserve the  traditions and customs of that group long after the nation or culture itself has changed or fallen to the march of time far beyond the reach of any single human’s memory. 

The Rules

The Immortals do not live as a united people on a territory of their own, but are scattered around the world and across history. The only bond between them are oral traditions called the Rules transmitted from teacher to student.  The creator of the Rules is unknown. The Rules are never enumerated, like a body of laws, but they are quoted according to the circumstances. They are taught to newborn Immortals by their first Immortal mentors. The main Rules are:

• No Immortal may fight on Holy Ground, no matter which faith or god regards it as Holy
• Immortal combat is meant to be one on one only — no outside interference
• Mortals must not learn about Immortals — if you are killed or discovered, you move on
• When only a few are left, all remaining Immortals will feel drawn to a particular land, to fight for the Prize — this is the time of the Gathering
• In the end, there can be only one — the last one will receive all the power of all the Immortals who ever lived

The Rules are more of a code of ethics and conduct, as violating them never results in any sort of official penalty.  Rather honorable immortals will have no dealings with violators and dishonorable immortals will mark them as easy prey with no one to turn to for aide.  They give reliable structure to interactions between immortals.

The Game

The Rules dictate that all Immortals are to fight and behead each other until only one of them remains. This concept of Immortals beheading each other to be the "last man standing" is referred to as "the Game" and is summarized in their signature motto, "In the End, there can be only one."  As a result, Immortals who live long enough develop strong fighting skills, usually transmitted from teacher to student.  Most Immortals can fight with several kinds of weapons, but the most common is the sword. Consequently, Immortals are usually very fond of their weapons, and almost always have them handy. 

The Rules also dictate that when one challenges another to combat, the two Immortals are supposed to duel one-on-one. This does not always happen in practice and battles may be unfair, cheating is usually a sign of an evil Immortal. Examples of cheating include the groups of younger Immortals who serving under an older Immortal to weaken or subdue an Immortal they are hunting, or the use of ranged or "trick" weapons.  If the Rules are interpreted strictly, once two Immortals begin dueling, no outside interference is permitted, even to save a friend or innocent.  The Quickening that the winning Immortal receives at the end of a successful fight is extremely draining, and leaves the recipient unable to protect themselves effectively.  This would potentially allow another Immortal an easy kill. Therefore, some Immortals will travel in pairs or groups to discourage challenges, or will attack an opponent in pairs; while one fights, the other will await the outcome to take revenge if necessary. 

The Immortals play the Game in accordance with their personalities. Some go head hunting full-time while some others, only fight when they are challenged, or to defend their head (which seems to be more common with extremely old Immortals). Immortals are free to play the Game or not and some chose to "retire" for various reasons. Some Immortals even attempt to retire from the game completely.  Some of these retired Immortals chose to get on with their life without even carrying a sword, but they are in particular danger of losing their heads. A safer option for Immortals who wish to retire from the Game is to live on Holy Ground where other immortals will not engage them.  They will feel free to tempt them out by attacking persons and things that they hold dear to them though.

Holy Ground

The Rules forbid the Immortals to fight on Holy Ground. Holy Ground is defined as any land or building held consecrated by any faith.  Examples of Holy Ground include cathedrals, churches, druid groves, monasteries, and consecrated burial sites. According to legend, this rule was broken only once and it resulted in the eruption of a nearby volcano and the destruction of the nearby city.  Mortals are not bound by the Rules and may behead Immortals on Holy Ground with no known special consequences.  A practical result of this rule is that Immortals use Holy Ground as a sort of neutral territory on which they can meet each other without risking losing their heads.  Immortals wishing to retire from the Game often chose to live on Holy Ground.

The Quickening

When Immortals are beheaded, there is a powerful energy released from their bodies which is called The Quickening.  In a describing it to a new immortal he was mentoring one elder put it thus:  "The Quickening is the receiving of all the power and knowledge another immortal has obtained throughout his or her life. It is like the receiving of a sacrament or a massive orgasm."  Visually to a non immortal The power of the Quickening appears like major electrical storm hitting, almost as if the victorious Immortal is in the center of a lightning storm.

This energy is absorbed by the Immortal who did the beheading.  If an Immortal is beheaded and there is no Immortal nearby to receive the Quickening, for example if they are beheaded by a mortal, then the Quickening dissipates into the sky.

An Immortal can sense the presence of The Quickening nearby both when it is contained in another immortal at a greater distance when it is released by the beheading of an Immortal.  This means that Immortals can recognize each other by sight and proximity.  It also means that no Immortal can catch another completely unaware.

 

 

Immortal Traits

It’s hard to make generalizations about Immortals they are as diverse as humanity but commonly share these traits.

Ability Score Increase

 Immortals are very hardy recovering quickly from injury and being all but immune to normal disease.  You gain a +2 bonus to your Constittution score and a +1 bonus to any one other ability score reflecting the diversity of their human ancestry.

Age

Immortals crop up from human stock in no obvious pattern with no known rhyme or reason.  When a human dies, generally a traumatic death due to combat or accident, sometimes they return from death as an Immortal.  As an Immortal, you do not age but you retain the appearance of the age that you had when you first died. You suffer no ill effects from having been in your old age when you first died if applicable.

Alignment

Immortals come from various backgrounds and their alignments are widely varied. Their adherence to the Rules of the Game tends to make them lean slightly more towards Lawful alignments.

Size

Immortals vary as widely as humans in height and build, from barely 5 feet to well over 6 feet tall. Regardless of your position in that range, your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common and two extra languages of your choice. Over their long lives Immortals typically learn the languages of both their parent society and of other peoples they deal with, including obscure dialects. 

Time Worn Existence

You have proficiency with the History skill.

Immune to Disease

Thanks to their undying nature and the power of The Quickening renewing their physical health Immortals are immune to all normal diseases.

Immortality

You are functionally immortal but that does not mean you are immune to death. When you would normally die, you return to life after 2d4 hours with 1 hit point and you suffer three levels of exhaustion. You cannot die from exhaustion in this way. If your death comes by way of decapitation, you are permanently dead. You also cannot fully recover from any injuries you sustain to your neck, they leave lasting scars. Any other wounds to the rest of your body will however be made stable and will heal.  This will also end the following conditions: blinded, deafened, paralyzed, petrified, and poisoned  In addition, you are unaffected by spells that would return your character to life. This includes the Reincarnation and Clone spells.

Sense Other Immortals

You possess the ability to sense other nearby Immortals. When you come within 120 feet of another Immortal you are immediately aware of their presence. Your DM decides precisely how accurate this awareness is but the more powerful you are and the Immortal you are sensing is, the stronger the accuracy. If you have met this particular Immortal before, you are aware that the sensation is caused by them specifically.