Homebrew Italian Species Details
The Italians are the glittering heirs of Rome’s marble bones and the Renaissance’s golden dawn. From the canal-laced merchant republics of Venice to the frescoed courts of Florence and the papal palaces of Rome, they weave commerce, art, scholarship, and ruthless politics into a single tapestry. In a world where dragons perch on cathedral spires and demons whisper in senate halls, the Italians answer with ink, steel, and cunning.
History and Culture
Italy is not a nation but a constellation of city-states, each a world unto itself. Venice rules the seas with galleys and gold; Florence mints ducats and masterpieces; Milan forges plate that turns dragonfire; Rome crowns popes and curses heretics. Condottieri sell swords to the highest bidder, bankers fund crusades against both infidels and rivals, and humanists unearth forbidden grimoires beneath ruined forums.
In a world of magic and monsters, Italians weaponize beauty and betrayal. Painters trap illusions in frescoes; sculptors animate marble guardians; assassins deliver basilisk venom in crystal phials. Every contract is sealed with a smile and a stiletto up the sleeve.
Roleplaying an Italian Character
You are a creature of the city-state, where every interaction is a transaction and every smile could hide a dagger. You might be a Florentine courtier composing sonnets to secure an alliance, a Venetian spy trading secrets in a shadowy canal-side tavern, or a Sienese condottiero whose loyalty is for sale to the highest bidder. You could be a Roman antiquarian plundering ancient tombs for arcane knowledge, a Genoese cartographer mapping dragon-haunted coasts, or a Neapolitan assassin for whom poison is a form of art.
Your intelligence and charisma are your primary weapons, sharper than any blade. You value wit, beauty, and ambition above brute force. You are likely pragmatic to a fault, believing that a signed contract is more binding than an oath and that a well-placed bribe is more effective than a siege. Your Machiavellian insight allows you to see the hidden strings that move the puppets of court, and your Condottieri cunning ensures you are never another's pawn.
Italian Traits
Creature Type: Humanoid
Size: Medium (about 4–7 feet tall)
Speed: 30 feet
Renaissance Polymath:
You gain proficiency in one artisan’s tool of your choice (painter’s supplies, calligrapher’s supplies, alchemist’s supplies, etc.).
Machiavellian Insight
“It is better to be feared than loved, if one cannot be both.” When you make an Intelligence (Investigation) or Wisdom (Insight) check to discern a creature’s motives, alignment, or hidden agenda, you have advantage.
Condottieri Cunning
Once per Long Rest, when you are targeted by a spell that requires you to make an Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma saving throw, you can use your reaction to impose disadvantage on the spellcaster's attack roll or grant yourself advantage on the saving throw (your choice).
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