Homebrew Brownie Species Details

Brownies, sometimes called house-faeries or dobbies, are a tiny race descended from fey. Long ago, a tribe of fey travelers took a liking to the material plane and it's peoples with an unrivaled passion. They slowly ingrained themselves into the communities and lives of the myriad humanoid races all over the land, ever curious about seemingly everything. The brownie people decided to leave behind their old home in the feywild, never once looking back.

Brownies mature quickly, being considered grown adults at 15 and live between 1 or 2 centuries. They generally grow to about 1 foot in height, but can swell to 3 feet tall when goaded into their surlier Boggert form. They resemble miniature humans with sharp, mouse-like features. Brownies make powerful connections to places and people easily, often hiding in the walls and rafters of a single home for it's entire lifetime. Others see the companionship of a family or community of other humanoids more important than a physical dwelling. Brownies are friendly and helpful by nature, and enjoy feeling like they are useful to others. Despite this, when a brownie is feels slighted, afraid, or unappreciated, they temporarily grow three times in size, their skin flushing green or red, and their teeth extend into points. In this form, they are known as Boggerts, and are more able and and willing to handle conflict. While Brownies have powerful inborn magical abilities, they lose the ability to use them while their mind is clouded in the adrenaline-filled body of a Boggert.

It can be very difficult on a brownie when they lose the home they have chosen for themselves, which can trigger a desire within them to explore the world in hopes of finding a new place to belong. Their fierce loyalty to friends and family, adopted and otherwise, can also push them to adventure if their loved ones are in need or facing peril that could be averted through the brownie's unique talents and boundless resourcefulness.

Brownie Traits

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Attribute adjustment

You gain +2 to dexterity, and -4 to strength.  You have a 20 ft walk speed.

Industrious little folk

you gain 2 artisan tool proficiencies of your choice, or 1 artisan tool and thieves tool proficiency.  While you are in brownie form you are also proficient in stealth. If you are already proficient in stealth, you gain expertise. (Double your proficiency modifier.)

Practical Magic

You know the prestidigitation and mending cantrips. At level 3, You can choose one level 2 or lower spell with the ritual tag, and can cast this spell with this trait twice per long rest. (Not as a ritual, the spell chosen just has to have the ritual tag.) At level 5, you can cast the fabricate spell at a range of 5 feet with this trait once per long rest.

Boggert Form

You can cause your body to swell and inflate into your boggert form as a bonus action. As a boggert, your base walk speed becomes 30, and your size becomes small. You also lose your -4 penalty to strength, and your practical magic trait. You revert back to your normal brownie form if you are unconscious or incapacitated. Brownies may transform into boggert form involuntarily if they are particularly upset. (I know Boggert is spelled with an A, but DnD beyond flags it as a real non-english word.)

Tiny Folk

While in brownie form, you can use a more comprehensive set of variant rules for tiny creatures on the dnd wiki, or use these simplified ones: Tiny creatures cannot wield heavy weapons, and one-handed weapons without the light property must be wielded in two hands. You can occupy the same space as another creature. You can also more easily hide and take cover behind smaller objects.