Homebrew Ghost Species Details

 

 

Lore

A ghost is a soul that has died, yet refused to pass on.

Ghosts can arise from any race, and no single god or force claims ownership over their existence. What binds a ghost to the mortal realm is not magic alone, but unfinished truth—a powerful emotional anchor that death could not sever.

That anchor may be:

• revenge left unfulfilled
• love that refuses to fade
• guilt too heavy to release
• greed that still clutches the world

Death frees the body, but not always the soul.

When the bond is strong enough, the soul lingers, shedding flesh but retaining memory, identity, and will. The result is a ghost—neither living nor truly gone.

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Anchors of the Dead

Every ghost is bound to at least one anchor, which tethers them to the realm of the living. This anchor may be:

• a location (a battlefield, home, prison, or road)
• a person (a loved one, enemy, or betrayer)
• an event (a murder, oath, or final moment)
• or some combination of the three

As long as the anchor remains unresolved, the ghost endures.

Destroying the anchor does not always banish a ghost—sometimes it strengthens them instead.

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Temperament

Ghosts vary wildly in disposition.

Death does not erase personality—it distills it.

Some ghosts are:

• gloomy and withdrawn
• bitter and vengeful
• calm and contemplative
• joyful, nostalgic, or eerily peaceful

Time affects ghosts unevenly. Some remain frozen in the moment of death. Others adapt, learning patience and restraint that only eternity can teach.

What all ghosts share is detachment. The living world feels distant, muffled, and fragile—like glass that might shatter at a touch.

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Aptitude

Ghosts excel in roles that reward subtlety, persistence, and supernatural mobility.

Their incorporeal nature makes them ideal for infiltration, scouting, and survival in hostile environments. Many ghosts become observers, watchers, or unseen guardians, while others turn to manipulation or quiet vengeance.

Ghosts often thrive as:

• Scouts or spies, moving unseen and unheard
• Scholars or watchers, bound to places of knowledge
• Avengers, pursuing long-delayed justice
• Occultists or investigators, bridging life and death

Ghosts are ideal for players who enjoy:

• slow-burn narratives
• themes of loss and unfinished business
• eerie presence rather than brute force
• characters defined by memory

A ghost does not live for the future.

They exist for what was left undone.

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Manifestation

Ghosts do not interact with the world normally. Their presence subtly alters their surroundings, especially when they linger.

If a ghost remains in one location for more than three hours:

• the temperature drops
• windows fog
• drinks cool unnaturally
• breath becomes visible in the air

These signs intensify with emotional distress.

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Names

Most ghosts retain the name they bore in life. Memory is one of the few things death does not fully strip away.

Some ghosts, especially those who no longer remember who they were, adopt new names tied to their anchor, manner of death, or reputation among the living.

To a ghost, a name is not just identity.

It is proof they once mattered.

 

Ghost Traits

The following traits apply to all ghosts.

Ability Score Increase

Two different ability scores of your choice increase by 1.

Darkvision

You can see in dim light within 60 feet as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You see only shades of gray in darkness.

Incorporeal

You no longer require food, drink, air, or sleep.

• You must still rest. (Short and long rests take half the normal time.)
• You may move through solid objects at half your movement speed. (you take (1d10) force damage if you end your turn inside an object.)
• You phase through water as if it does not exist.
• You have disadvantage on Strength saving throws.

untethered form

Once per long rest, you can innately cast Invisibility. targeting only yourself.

Once per long rest, you can innately cast Levitate, targeting only yourself.

Languages

you know the languages you knew in life