Homebrew Peridot Species Details

Physical Description

Gems are inherently sexless but have appearances and pronouns consistent with humanoid females. Between Gem types, “default” forms vary widely in height, musculature, strength, and color. Gems are often defined by the type of gemstone they carry, though details such as cut and placement vary within and between Gem types.

History

Gems are not born, like most other races; instead they are created in specialized mineral-rich areas called “Kindergartens.” Injectors insert a specialized paste into the side of a canyon, which incubates for unknown period of time before emerging as a fully-formed Gem. They do not grow or develop physically past this initial state, and they know themselves and society fluently enough to immediately integrate into it. The process of creating Gems from a Kindergarten saps organic life from the area around it, and as such can be devastating if set up near population centers or in large numbers.

Gems hail from a planet known only as "Homeworld," a highly urbanized world light-years from Earth. Led by the Diamond Authority, they have colonized dozens of planets and moons, terraforming all of them and using their resources for Gemkind. Gems from this first era of Gem history describe a time of plentiful resources and eternal expansion.

Several millennia before current times, Gemkind found Earth and began to colonize the planet, only to face a long, brutal rebellion of individualistic Gems. In the end, one of the Diamonds fell to the rebels, and Homeworld-aligned Gems retreated and attempted to scorch every Gem off the surface of the planet. Those that survived remained in isolation on Earth, and those that left faced low resources that have taken a toll on Gem quality in this second era of Gemkind. Much of the evidence of this war over Earth has been lost to the annals of history, worn over the millennia that have since passed, but there are still scars of the battles if one knows where to look.

Due to individual Gems’ longevity, Gem history is often be passed orally between individuals instead of passed through written medium. However, some records and memoirs of major events affecting Gemkind have been found.

Society

There are two major sects of Gem society: Homeworld and the Crystal Gems.

Most Gems represent Homeworld society and serve the Great Diamond Authority. Here there is a rigid caste system, where Gems are born for specific roles and fulfill that role for the entirety of their lives. In Homeworld society, every Gem is a cog in the machine, one part of a massive system running efficiently to sustain Gemkind. Gems that are created with minor defects are given help to fill their roles; gems with major defects or that reject the caste system are shattered. To most, Earth is a lost cause, and as such few Homeworld Gems visit the world.

On Earth, the few rebels that survived the Gem War developed a small society known as the Crystal Gems. They are often the kinds of Gems that Homeworld’s caste system would exclude, and emphasize personal accomplishment and development. While they are as ageless as any Gem, they promote ideals of individual change and the protection of the lifeforms with such shorter lifespans than their own. Most Gems encountered are Crystal Gems.

Gems on Earth often prefer keeping to themselves, living in homes with handfuls of individuals. Their separation from most other races lead to anecdotal stories of sightings and actions, as varied and mysterious as the Gems themselves. Some believe they are humans that have rediscovered ancient magics binding them to stone; others say they are the cursed remnants of an ancient power that bled into the world from another plane; still others seek Gems for the wealth owning a large jewel such as theirs promises. Few of this world know the history of Gemkind and Earth.

Gem Names

In Homeworld societies, Gems are known by their gem type, Kindergarten of origin (known as “Facet”), and Cut or Cabochon (Cut for gems with flat surfaces on the gemstone, and Cabochon for those with rounded surfaces).

Homeworld Names: Peridot Facet-2F5L Cut-5XG, Nephrite Facet-413 Cabochon-12

Crystal Gems, due to their smaller numbers, are known simply as their gem type. Should two Gems be of the same type, they are often given nicknames to distinguish between them.

Crystal Gem Names: Rose Quartz, "Leggy" Ruby, Blue Pearl

Gem Traits

An intergalactic race of sentient gemstones.
Ability Score Increase. Gems vary widely in their innate capabilities. Your ability score changes vary by Gem type.
Age. Gems are typically several millennia old, though they may be only a few hundred years old when they explore the world.
Alignment. Gems may be of any alignment, though Homeworld Gems tend to be lawful.
Size. Gems come in a wide variety of builds. Your default height, weight, and size vary by Gem type.
Speed. Your base walking speed varies by Gem type.
Gem Physiology. Though you are a construct, you are a living creature. You are is immune to poison, diseases, and the effects of aging. You are do not need to eat, breathe, or sleep, though you may choose to ingest food and drink if you wish.
The Gemstone. A Gem's gemstone functions as the core of the Gem's being and the focus for their magical traits. Your gemstone is large enough to fill an average humanoid’s palm and protrudes from one specific section of your body, such as your shoulder or forehead. It is of middling-to-high quality, comparable to gems worth between 50 and 100gp, but it cannot be used as a spell component. Which gemstone you have is determined by your subrace.
Gem Poofing. When your HP reaches 0 and you fall unconscious, you become “poofed.” Rather than falling limp to the ground, your body retreats into the gemstone and you drop all your items onto the ground. You still make death saves and can be healed back to consciousness as normal. However, healing potions and medical kits do not affect you, and you may be stabilized with a Medicine check, a Arcana check, or the spell 5e with a DC 10. You reform from your gemstone with 1hp a few minutes after you stabilize, or if you roll a natural 20 on a death save, so long as you have room to do so.
Antimagic Susceptibility. You are stunned while in the area of an antimagic field. If targeted by dispel magic, you must succeed on a Constitution saving throw against the caster’s spell save DC or be stunned for 1 minute.
Gem Glow. Your gemstone can produce a dim light to illuminate dark places. As an action, your gemstone can shine bright light in a 20ft radius and dim light for another 20ft.
Gem Weapon. All gems have a Gem Weapon stored within their gemstone that may be summoned in the same way that other races may draw regular weapons.

A gem may choose any suitable common weapon to be their starting Gem Weapon. The Gem Weapon can be replaced by any other suitable weapon during a Long Rest. When this is done, the Gem Weapon being replaced is destroyed and cannot be recovered. The new gem weapon will keep any properties it may have. Gem weapons that require attunement are automatically attuned to their owner and take up an attunement slot. All gem weapons count as Magical weapons.

Ranged Gem weapons do not require ammunition to fire, and gem weapons that are no longer being held by their owner, such as ones that have been dropped or thrown, will disappear at the end of each turn ready to be summoned again from their gemstone.
Languages. You understand and can speak Common, Gem, and Terran. Gem is a written language with a script that at a casual glance appears as scribbles, which translates directly to Common.
Subrace. You can choose Sapphire, Quartz, Ruby, Peridot, Lapis Lazuli, Pearl, Bismuth, or Half-Gem as your subrace. this one is peridot

Peridot Traits

durable form and ferrokinesis

Ability Score Increase

 Your Charisma and Intelligence scores increase by 1.

Gem Physiology

Gem Physiology. Though you are a construct, you are a living creature. You are is immune to poison, diseases, and the effects of aging. You are do not need to eat, breathe, or sleep, though you may choose to ingest food and drink if you wish.

The Gemstone

The Gemstone. A Gem's gemstone functions as the core of the Gem's being and the focus for their magical traits. Your gemstone is large enough to fill an average humanoid’s palm and protrudes from one specific section of your body, such as your shoulder or forehead. It is of middling-to-high quality, comparable to gems worth between 50 and 100gp, but it cannot be used as a spell component. Which gemstone you have is determined by your subrace.

gem poofing

Gem Poofing. When your HP reaches 0 and you fall unconscious, you become “poofed.” Rather than falling limp to the ground, your body retreats into the gemstone and you drop all your items onto the ground. You still make death saves and can be healed back to consciousness as normal. However, healing potions and medical kits do not affect you, and you may be stabilized with a Medicine check, a Arcana check, or the spell 5e with a DC 10. You reform from your gemstone with 1hp a few minutes after you stabilize, or if you roll a natural 20 on a death save, so long as you have room to do so.

antimagic susceptibility

Antimagic Susceptibility. You are stunned while in the area of an antimagic field. If targeted by dispel magic, you must succeed on a Constitution saving throw against the caster’s spell save DC or be stunned for 1 minute.

gem glow

Gem Glow. Your gemstone can produce a dim light to illuminate dark places. As an action, your gemstone can shine bright light in a 20ft radius and dim light for another 20ft.

gem weapon

Gem Weapon. All gems have a Gem Weapon stored within their gemstone that may be summoned in the same way that other races may draw regular weapons.

A gem may choose any suitable common weapon to be their starting Gem Weapon. The Gem Weapon can be replaced by any other suitable weapon during a Long Rest. When this is done, the Gem Weapon being replaced is destroyed and cannot be recovered. The new gem weapon will keep any properties it may have. Gem weapons that require attunement are automatically attuned to their owner and take up an attunement slot. All gem weapons count as Magical weapons.

Ranged Gem weapons do not require ammunition to fire, and gem weapons that are no longer being held by their owner, such as ones that have been dropped or thrown, will disappear at the end of each turn ready to be summoned again from their gemstone.

languages

You understand and can speak Common, Gem, and Terran. Gem is a written language with a script that at a casual glance appears as scribbles, which translates directly to Common.

Durable Form.

Durable Form. You have resistance to bludgeoning damage while you are not poofed.

ferrokinesis

Ferrokinesis. You can lift metallic objects off the ground and move them as you wish. Beginning at 1st level, you may use your action and concentration to lift 2 lb of metal or objects made primarily of metal that you can see. At 5th level, the max weight increases to 20lbs, and you may lift up to 2 lbs without concentration. At 10th level, the max weight increases to 200 lbs, and you may lift up to 20 lbs without concentration.