Homebrew Alternian Troll Species Details

Warning: This player race is NOT BALANCED! It was designed to be as accurate to the Alternian Troll race as presented in the Homestuck web series, and the spin-off Hiveswap games, as possible. As a result, certain sub-races may be over or under powered, even against other Alternian Troll sub-races. Please consult your DM for permission to use this race, and, if necessary, adjust the functionality of the various abilities. DMs are advised to thoroughly play-test this race before allowing it in campaigns.

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Not Your Average Internet Trolls
From the moment Alternian Trolls hatch, their lives are marked by struggle and death, be it their own, or the struggling and death they inflict on others. The planet of Alternia that the Alternian Trolls call home is also home to the brutal and rigid caste system that serves to perpetuate this violence. Nearly every aspect of an Alternian Troll's life, from their societal standing and rights, to the jobs they can get and the speed their mail is delivered at, is determined by the blood color they are born with. Rust, Bronze, Gold, Lime, Olive, Jade, Teal, Cerulean, Indigo, Purple, Violet, and Fuchsia; From lowest rank to highest, those are the twelve blood colors that make up the Alternian caste system known as the hemospectrum. While Trolls that sit leisurely at the high end up the hemospectrum enjoy seemingly endless luxuries, those who dwell near the bottom rungs are slaughtered without mercy, often for the amusement of the higher blooded trolls. Life fast, die young. That is the role Alternian society carves out for its' lower class. However, the fuchsias that enjoy the highest rung of the social system aren't immune to cruel fates. Forced into fights to the death for the throne once they come of age, fuchsias are among the rarest blood color on the hemospectrum, the only blood color rarer being the extinct lime colored blood. So brutal is the Alternian way of life, that many believe the reason for the lime blood extinction was a systematic massacre of all newly hatched lime bloods. Many trolls, especially those near the bottom of the hemospectrum, are known to develop various psychic powers, and it is a widely accepted theory that the lime blooded trolls possessed a power that somehow threatened the hierarchy of Alternia's caste system. Regardless of a troll's place on the hemospectrum, one rule that lords over all of them is the decree by her imperious Condescension, Empress of troll kind, stating that when a troll comes of age, they must be removed from the home planet and join the Alternian military in its mission for intergalactic conquest.

Survival of the Fortunate
Spawned in large clutches in the brooding caverns of the mother grub, not all troll eggs get the opportunity to hatch. Be it by accident or boredom, imperial drones that monitor the brooding caverns will often crush unhatched troll eggs. Perhaps even more brutal, newly hatched wrigglers will often be killed if they become sick or injured. Alternian society has little tolerance for any form of weakness, and these deaths are often justified as a method of weeding out the weak. If a wriggler can survive the drones long enough to hatch, they will then seek out a suitable stalactite upon which to form a cocoon, within which they undergo a drastic metamorphosis. When the young troll emerges in their more humanoid form, they begin undergoing a series of dangerous trials. Those that survive will be selected by a member of the widely varying race of creatures known as lusii. Lusii are strange creatures that usually resemble animals, or a combination of animals, with the notable difference of reflective white coats. A troll's lusus acts as their caretaker, giving them a name and helping them build their hive once they reach Alternia's surface. In return, trolls must learn to act as a form of zookeeper, taking care of their lusus much like it takes care of them.

Color Driven Culture
Color plays a number of important roles in Alternian culture outside of just the obvious influence of the hemospectrum, the most prominent examples being signs and hemotyping. Signs are marks unique to individual trolls, and they are worn at all times (albeit in various forms) to display their blood color. Similar to signs in functionality, when using text based communication, trolls partake in a part of Alternian culture known as hemotyping. Hemotyping is the act of typing one’s messages in the same color as one’s blood. For example, a rust blooded troll would communicate using red text, while an olive blooded troll would type using a dark green color. In addition to hemotyping, all trolls possess a more personalized aspect to their communication method known as a typing quirk. Typing quirks are a series of alterations to the way trolls type or write their messages, and these quirks vary from each individual to the next. As an example, one troll might type EXCLUSIVELY IN ALL CAPITAL LETTERS, while another might r3plac3 th3ir ‘e’s with ‘3’s. While it is seemingly quite rare, some trolls will renounce the use of hemotyping, and displaying their blood color with their sign, in favor of what’s known as hemoanonymity; the act of keeping one’s blood color a secret, typically by replacing their blood color with a neutral color such as grey. While not technically illegal in Alternian culture, hemoanonymity is heavily frowned upon, often being considered immature.

Quadrants: Concupiscent and Conciliatory
There is one final way color plays a role in the life of Alternian trolls, and that is in regards to the four types of troll romance known as the quadrants. When a troll enters a quadrant with another troll, it’s a common practice for them to wear the blood color of their quad-mate in addition to their own. Some trolls may do this in a subtle way, such as painting their toenails, while others may wear very obvious clothing articles such as hats or scarves. The four quadrants trolls can experience are known as Matespritship, Moirallegiance, Auspisticism, and Kismesissitude. The former two are referred two as “red romances”, while the latter two are called “black romances”, likely due to their association with traditional playing card suits; Matespritships are represented by a heart symbol, Moirallegiances are represented by a diamond, Auspisticisms are represented by a club symbol, and Kismesissitudes are represented by a spade. Additionally, each quadrant has a more simplified name. Matespritship is also known as the flushed quadrant, Moirallegiance is known as the pale quadrant, Auspisticism is known as the ashen quadrant, and  Kismesissitude is known as the pitch quadrant. Matespritship is the form of romance that most closely resembles the human concept of love, having minimal cultural differences. Moirallegiances are possibly best described as platonic soul mates; two trolls that protect each other emotionally, and balance each other out. To a human, a Moirallegiance could easily be mistaken for a particularly powerful friendship. Kismesisstude is often the form of troll romance humans have the most trouble understanding, as it is a form of romantic attraction fueled by hate. Kismesisstude is often described as a very potent arch rivalry wherein both trolls must possess an equal level of genuine hatred for one another. Defeating or killing your kismesis is not seen as a healthy form of the relationship, as it puts a definitive end on the relationship, and while such intense hatred can seem like a stressful thing to perpetuate, trolls involved in such relationships do have the benefit of feeling pushed to better themselves as a result of the inherent rivalry. However, in a culture as hostile as Alternia’s, feelings of hatred have a tendency to become abundant. In such cases, Auspisticism relationships become a necessity to prevent otherwise platonic hatreds from boiling over into pitch feelings. The point of an Auspisticism relationship is to have a third party troll keep the feelings of hatred between two other trolls in check. It is a romantic role that is often considered quite difficult to fill, as it can be a time consuming task that is often thankless. Nonetheless, Alternian trolls feel compelled to find partners in each of these quadrants the same way humans often feel compelled to find their form of love.

Candy Corn Horns and Blood Tinged Tears
Alternian trolls have a number of very distinct features. While they are very similar proportionally to humans, they grow to be much taller. Their skin is grey in coloration, and their hair is always black. Their eyes feature yellow sclera, with dark grey irises that fill in with their blood color as they age. Their nails are a shade of yellow not far off from the sclera of their eyes, and their tears are tinted with the color of their blood. Many of them possess pointed teeth, with some even possessing fangs, but their most distinctive trait by far is the horns that grow from their heads. These horns grow in a wide variety of sizes, shapes and numbers, and they are often compared to candy corn due to being a dark red-orange near the base, a medium orange in the middle, and yellow at the ends. Some blood colors have patterns among the trolls that make up its ranks. For example gold blooded trolls usually have two sets of horns, while cerulean blooded trolls tend to have some form of hook shape on their horns, and the horns of indigo bloods tends to feature some form of vague arrow shape.

Alternian Troll Names
Much like the lusii that name them, Alternian trolls have a very wide and very strange variety of names, with very little in the way of patterns. Strangely, the only rule that applies to all troll names is that both the first and last name ALWAYS consists of exactly six letters each.

Alternian Troll Traits

While blood color causes a great deal of variation between Alternian Trolls, there are a few traits that all members of the race have in common.

Ability Score Increase

Alternian Trolls are an incredibly hardy and resilient race. Your Constitution Score increases by 2.

Age

The lifespan of a troll can vary wildly based off their specific blood color, with the lowest ranking members of the caste system not even living a full human lifespan, and the highest members being functionally immortal. Check your subrace traits to determine your Alternian Troll character's lifespan.

Alignment

Much like with age, alignment for Alternian Trolls can vary wildly, with blood color often having an impact. Evil alignments are more common at the higher rungs of the caste system, while Neutral and Good alignments make up the bulk of the lower and middle castes. Chaotic and Neutral are by far the most dominant alignments, with the one exception to this being that Teal and Fuchsia bloods are almost exclusively Lawful due to their societal roles in Alternian culture.

Size

Not counting their horns, child Alternian Trolls tend to stand at about the same height as humans, yet quickly outgrow them, reaching between 6 and 7 feet tall on average by adulthood. There are some outliers that stand taller or shorter, being around 5 or 8 feet tall. The highly militarized society that Alternia indoctrinates all of its citizens into results in nearly all Trolls that make it to adulthood possessing fit and muscular builds, resulting in higher weights due to muscle mass. The average adult Alternian Troll weighs between 280 and 340 pounds. Your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Superior Darkvision

Due to the dangerous nature of the Alternian sun, Alternian Trolls are exclusively nocturnal, and as a result, have developed eyesight that allows them to see almost completely unrestricted in dark environments. You can see in dim light within 120 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 gray.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common and Alternian. The Alternian language is primarily a written form of communication, as most Alternian Trolls communicate verbally using Common. The Alternian Alphabet is almost runic in appearance, featuring harsh angles and sweeping curves.