Homebrew Batfolk Species Details

Snout and Fur

From below, batfolk look much like large bats. Only when they descend to roost on a branch or walk across the ground does their humanoid appearance reveal itself. Standing upright, aarakocra might reach 4 feet tall, and they have long, narrow legs that taper to long feet. 

Fur covers their bodies. Their clothing typically denotes membership in a tribe. All genders look similar. Their heads complete the avian appearance. Their facial structure is specific to distinct tribal variations.

Sky Explorers

Nowhere are the batfolk more comfortable than in the sky or forests. They can spend hours in the air, and some go as long as days, locking their wings in place and letting the thermals hold them aloft. In battle, they prove dynamic and acrobatic fliers, moving with remarkable speed and grace, diving to lash opponents with weapons or talons before turning and flying away.

Once airborne, a bat leaves the sky with reluctance. They sometimes forget or ignore vertical distances, and they have pity for those earthbound people forced to live and toil on the ground.

Avian Mannerisms

The resemblance of batfolk to bats isn’t limited to physical features. Batfolk display many of the same mannerisms as ordinary bats. They can be fastidious about their fur, frequently combing it. When they do descend from the sky, they often catch birds and bathe themselves.

Many bats punctuate their speech with chirps, sounds they use to convey emphasis and to shade meaning, much as a human might through facial expressions and gestures. A bat might become frustrated with people who fail to pick up on the nuances; a bat's threat might be taken as a jest and vice versa.

The idea of ownership baffles most bats. After all, who owns the sky? Even when explained to them, they initially find the notion of ownership mystifying. As a result, bats who have little interaction with other people might be a nuisance as they drop from the sky to plunder harvests for fruits and grains.

They find it hard not to pluck flowers and decorations and bring them back to their settlement to beautify it. A bat who spends years among other races can learn to inhibit these impulses.

Confinement terrifies the batfolk. To be grounded, trapped underground, or imprisoned by the cold, unyielding earth is a torment few bats can withstand. Even when perched on a high branch or at rest in their mountaintop homes, they appear alert, with eyes moving and bodies ready to take flight.

Homelands

Most bats live in a land far distant. They have established homes in high mountains or in the canopies of old forests.

Once tribes of batfolk settle in an area, they share a ranging territory that extends across an area up to 90 miles on a side, with each tribe exploring in the lands nearest to their colony, ranging farther should food or materials become scarce.

A typical colony consists of one large, open-roofed nest made of woven vines and wood. The eldest acts as leader with the support of a shaman.

Batfolk in the Forgotten Realms

Never well established in Faerûn, batfolk have many colonies: in the Bug Nest within the Shallow Forest, in the Rainy Leaves in Cormyr, in the Cavernous Moutains on the Vilhon Reach, and in the Mistcliffs in Chult.

Those colonies established in the Bug Nest, closest to the Soggy Valley, were ever a secretive and exuberant people, only spotted during their flights over the High Forest. A cruel and rapacious squirrel god nearly wiped out the population and scattered the survivors. These batfolk and their descendants have sworn vengeance against this "Girl Squirrel" and may be seen scouring the lands of the North and Cormyr for signs of their foe.

Their only remaining settlement lies on the slopes of the Bug Nest’s southernmost mountains. At the headwaters of the Unicorn Run, the Last Aerie is home to several dozen batfolk. Recently, batfolk elders detected changes in the prevailing winds that they regarded as a bad omen.

Great Purpose

Batfolk enjoy peace and, conversely, excitement. Most of them have an interest in dealing with other peoples and less interest in spending time on the ground. For this reason, batfolk frequently leave his, her, or their tribe and undertake the adventurer’s life. Neither treasure nor glory is enough to lure them from their tribes; a dire threat to their people, a drive to explore, a mission of vengeance, or a catastrophe typically lies at the heart of the batfolk adventurer’s chosen path.

Batfolk are sworn foes of insects and arachanids, in particular the Goliath birdeaters that serve Plagoj, the Prince of Small Crawly Things. The Batfolk word for these spiders is loosely translated as “hungry maw,” and battles between batfolk and Goliaths have raged across the lands.

Bat Names

As with much of their speech, bat names include clicks, trills, and whistles to the point that other peoples have a difficult time pronouncing them. Typically, a name has two to four syllables with the sounds acting as connectors. When interacting with other races, batfolk may use nicknames gained from people they meet or shortened forms of their full names.

A bat of any gender may have one of these short names: Aera, Aial, Aur, Deekek, Errk, Heehk, Ikki, Kleeck, Oorr, Ouss, Quaf, Quierk, Salleek, Urreek, or Zeed. 

Batfolk Backgrounds

Backgrounds that are most appropriate for batfolk include the outlander, the hermit, and the sage.

The small colonies of bats are insular and remote, and many bats live away from their roosts. In the Bug Nest of the Shallow Forest in the Forgotten Realms, many batfolk live away from the nests of their families. Those that do not are usually rangers or fighters, constantly patrolling for outside threats.

Batfolk Traits

As a Bat, you have certain traits in common with your people. Being able to fly at high speed starting at 1st level is exceptionally effective in certain circumstances and exceedingly dangerous in others. As a result, playing as a bat requires special consideration by your DM.

Ability Score Increase

Your Dexterity score increases by 2, and your Wisdom score increases by 1.

Age

Batfolk reach maturity by age 3. Compared to humans, bats don’t usually live longer than 30 years.

Alignment

Most bats are good and rarely choose sides when it comes to law and chaos. Tribal leaders and warriors might be lawful, while explorers and adventurers might tend toward chaotic.

Size

Batfolk are about 4 feet tall. They have thin, lightweight bodies that weigh between 40 and 70 pounds. Your size is Small.

Speed and Flight

Your base walking speed is 25 feet. You have a flying speed of 40 feet. To use this speed, you can’t be wearing medium or heavy armor.

Nails

You are proficient with your unarmed strikes, which deal 1d4 slashing damage on a hit.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common, Bat, and Auran.

Keen Hearing

Batfolk have advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing.  Your keen hearing gives you vulnerability to thunder damage.

Echolocation

You have blindsight out to a range of 30ft. You cannot use your blindsight while deafened.

Darkvision

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.