Homebrew Shadowhunter Species Details

“We are sometimes called the Nephilim. In the Bible they were the offspring of humans and angels.”

 –Hodge Starkweather, City of Bones

Shadowhunters, also known as Nephilim, are a secretive race of beings who are humans born with angel blood. Despite their ancestry, Shadowhunters are mortal and therefore vulnerable to old age and death; however, their angelic blood endows them with special abilities that allow them to achieve feats beyond what's humanly possible.

Creation

“The legend of the origin of Shadowhunters is that they were created more than a thousand years ago, when humans were being overrun by demon invasions from the other worlds. A warlock summoned the Angel Raziel, who mixed some of his own blood with the blood of men in a cup, and gave it to those men to drink. Those who drank the Angel's blood became Shadowhunters, as did their children and their children's children.”

–Hodge Starkweather, City of Bones

A thousand years ago, shortly after 1000 AD, the Earth was invaded by hordes of demons. During the times when the Crusades first began, particularly believed to be some time in the winter months, a crusader named Jonathan called on Raziel. Jonathan begged Raziel to help save humanity. Seeing the honesty and nobility of his wish, the angel obliged and mixed his blood with that of Jonathan in the Mortal Cup, a mixture he let Jonathan drink. Raziel then gave Jonathan the other two Mortal Instruments, the Gray Book, and the fitting name of Shadowhunter as a symbol of his transformation.

Soon, more men and women drank from the cup and became Nephilim warriors themselves. They soon became known as Shadowhunters, after Jonathan, the first of their kind. Their children, and their children's children, inherited their parents' angelic blood and became Nephilim themselves.

Idris

Idris is the homeland of the Shadowhunters and is protected by the demon towers, forcing demons out and protecting the city, the only way to bring them down is to wipe demon blood on them from the inside—an almost impossible feat.

Idris is in Central Europe. It is a small country between Germany and France, with protective spells and wardings all around, all over the borders, preventing mundanes from entering. When they attempt to cross the border into Idris, they are simply transported into the next border without noticing.

Idris is mostly forest, littered with vampire nests and werewolf packs. There are mountains that can only be crossed in high summer without freezing to death. There is a small system of towns throughout Idris. These towns are not very big and are all sort of oriented around one city, Alicante, which is also known as the Glass City.

Alicante

Alicante is the only city and the capital of Idris. It is often called the Glass City because of the presence of the Demon Towers that guard the city against demon attacks, reflecting light and looking like glass. The entire city itself is lit and powered by witchlight. The houses throughout the city are built from all eras. The Gard, the meeting place for the Clave, sits atop a hill at the edge of the city. All around are residences of several Shadowhunter families and the Council. There are stores throughout the entire city that display and sell a wide array of objects from weapons to clothes.

Shadowhunter Names

Shadowhunters commonly follow standard human first names that you can find around the world. However their unique family names is where they stand out. Traditionally, most Shadowhunter family names (particularly the English ones) are compound, reflecting something about the family, or the first of the family who chose the name, but this is not always the case.

• Family Names: Acosta, Aldertree, Ashdown, Balogh, Baybrook, Beausejours, Beauvale, Bellefleur, Blackthorn, Blackwell, Branwell, Breakspear, Bridgestock, Carstairs, Cartwright, Carvalho, Casales, Castel, Chaudhury, Coldridge, Crosskill, Dearborn, Delgado, Dieudonné, Fairchild, Featherstone, Freeman, Gladstone, Gonzales, Graymark, Grunwald, Hayward, Herondale, Highsmith, Hightower, Joshi, Kaidou, Kanuni, Ke, Keo, Kingsmill, Kriegsmesser, Larkspear, Lightwood, Lindquist, Longford, Lovelace, Maduabuchi, von Mainzv, Makepeace, Malatesta, Malhotra, Mayhew, Mendoza, Merryweather, Midwinter, Montclaire, Monteverde, Morgenstern, Nightshade, Nightwine, Overbeck, Pangborn, Pedroso, Penhallow, Pontmercy, Pounceby, Ravenscar, Rocio, Rockford, Romero, Rosales, Rosewain, Safar, Scarsbury, Sedgewick, Shimizu, Silverhood, Solcedo, Starkweather, Tefereel, Thrushcross, Tokugawa, Townsend, Trueblood, Turan, Velez, Verlac, Villalobos, Wang, Wayland, Wentworth, Whitelaw, Wrayburn, Youngblood

Shadowhunter Traits

As a Shadowhunter you have certain traits you share with other Shadowhunters.

Ability Score Increase

Your Intelligence score is increase by 2, and your Strength or Dexterity score is increased by 1.

Age

Shadowhunters age at the same rate as humans, and are considered adults at the age of 15.

Alignment

Shadowhunters tend toward no particular alignment. The best and the worst are found among them.

Size

Shadowhunters are about the same size as humans, ranging from 5 to 6 feet tall. Your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Angelic Lineage

Your angelic blood protects you. You have resistance to Radiant Damage.

Combat Training

All Nephilim are trained from a young age. You gain proficiency with Light Armor and two Martial Weapons of your choice.

Glamour

Shadowhunters are trained to move while being unseen. You gain advantage on Stealth checks. Additionally, when you reach 3rd level, you can cast the spell Invisibility at 2nd-level spell level once with this trait and regain the ability to do so when you finish a long rest. Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for this spell.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common, Celestial and one extra language of your choice.