Homebrew Awakened Skeleton Species Details

Typically having no lands to call their own, undead with an awakened sense of self are typically perpetual foreigners, wanders in a land often a time not their own. Compounding matters, most mortal cultures carry within them an instinctual fear of death and the dead, and many associate necromancy specifically with dark tidings. This forms a wall of (often well-earned) prejudice and hatred that sentient undead find themselves up against, and many undead choose to hide their necrotic natures behind clothes, masks, and unguent perfumes when journeying into civilization. 

Undeath is effectively immortality, a strong reason why many spellcasters of a certain moral bent consider it a viable alternative to actually dying. Still, it is not immortality without a price; senses and emotions dull, food and drink no longer have taste, and often an undead state comes with subservience of will and un-thinking to a master who likely does not have the world's best intentions at heart. Some undead are born into freedom, while others earn it or have it thrust upon them. Regardless, all undead that have freedom greatly cherish it, as the reminders of what could easily happen were they not fortunate enough to possess free will abound throughout history. Many consider it their duty to free other mindless undead, or simply to dispatch them with mercy wherever they may be found. The reasoning is straightforward enough: a final rest awarded to all mortals is greatly preferential to eternal slavery to likes of a short-sighted, megalomaniac wizard.

An animated figure made of dry bones devoid of flesh and muscle, you were likely raised by necromantic caster or dark, supernatural curse as a simple minion, completely without will and self knowledge. However, something changed. Perhaps your master was slain, the land cleansed, or you merely awoke one day to fragmented memories of your previous life. Whatever the case, with a new sense of self and newfound purpose, you set out into the world to find a new destiny. 

Awakened Skeleton Traits

Freed of control, your initial creation has left you with a series of racial traits, detailed below.

Ability Score Increase

Your constitution increased by 1 and two different ability scores of your choice increase by 1.

Age

Skeletons can live eternally and show next to no deterioration due to age.

Alignment

Skeletons typically favor lawful alignments, due to being raised for a specific purpose. However, skeletons that reject that lifestyle completely may turn neutral or chaotic as they they seek to find their own path.

Size

Skeletons are typically made from the bones of humanoids, making your size medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Darkvision

Through the energies animating you, you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 60 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.

Skeletal Resilience

Undead have incredible fortitude, represented by the following benefits:

• You have advantage on saving throws against being positioned, and you have resistance to poison damage.
• You're immune to disease.
• You don't need to eat, drink, or breathe.
• You don't need to sleep and don't suffer the effects of exhaustion due to lack of rest, and magic can't put you to sleep

Undead Nature

• Due to your unique creation as an entity of magic and undeath, you are considered both a Humanoid and an Undead.
• You have advantage on the wisdom saving throw against Turn Undead and Control Undead. Skeletons affected by Destroy Undead are not destroyed. Instead, they can not receive advantage on any rolls for the duration of Turn Undead.

Dead Resemblance

When you take a long rest, you must spend at least six hours of it in a inactive, motinonless state, rather than sleeping. In this state, you appear as a humanoid corpse, but it doesn't render you unconscious, and you can see and hear as normal.

Bone To Pick

Whenever both of your hands are free (not including equipped shields), you may choose to remove one hand or one arm as a bonus action. If you remove an arm, it counts as a weapon that deals 1d8 bludgeoning damage and you have proficiency with your arm while you wield it. If you remove a hand, it counts as thieves' tools or a similar set of simple tools while you hold it. Removed hands and arms may be re-attached by using another bonus action.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common and one language you knew in life.