Homebrew Beaver Folk Species Details

The Beaver Folk are typically peaceful, now-a-days.  They make their dam, they clear cut any tree get their hands on and they make their home.  They are peaceful and friendly people who just want to make their way in the world.  But beware their red coated, brown hatted cavalry despite their adorable appearance upon those tiny horses.  They always get their man.

—Llort the Jack

 

The Beaver folk populate the rivers of the north.  They make sturdy dams to hold their small villages.  If a forest displays signs of clear cutting near a river, a village of Beaver Folk may be nearby.

Small and Sturdy

The Beaver Folk greatly resemble their much smaller, more primal cousins.  Thick  hide and fur protect them from the sub-artic waters of their homeland.  They are share the webbed feet, buck teeth, paddle tail as well as their habits with their quadrupedal cousins, but have combined it with almost Dwarven levels of ingenuity.   Their tough exterior and pension for building and crafting have earned them the moniker of "River Dwarves" in certain regions.   Some even believe the mating of a beaver and a dwarf to be the origin of the species.  Although this is unlikely.  We hope.

Scarce and Neutral

The Beaver Folks villages tend be small, though they are getting bigger.  Some are even favoring log cabins near the river instead of their traditional dam-houses.  This mostly a resulted of frequent conflicts with peoples down stream who object to their damn dam building.   A beaver Folk village will consist  a few multi-generational families and will, with the exception of the largest dams have populations under 50 in number and averaging about 20 in number.  Young adults will often leave to find love in other villages and sometimes will travel long distances toward that end.  Because of their small numbers they almost always owe fealty to a larger nation.  This doesn't typically bother the Beaver Folk as long as they keep their way of life.  They often favor neutral alignments unless they feel personally threatened.  

The Beaver Folk will scarcely go to far from a river and the advantages it grants them and they are even less likely to leave forested areas.  This is because the Beaver Folk must keep their teeth to a healthy length by chewing on trees.  Those that do leave the forest will of carry small logs with them to fulfill their need to chew on something.  

The Beaver Folk and War

The Beaver Folk speak proudly of the few wars they do appear in and will not join a war if it does not conform to their tradition of just war.  Although the ancient Beaver Folk do have evil in their history.  Odd for a river dwelling folk, Beaver Folk have a pension for cavalry and rodeo.  The Beaver folk took up the ridding of small horses and boar with great enthusiasm and those proud mount owners have taken to dressing in red riding coats and brown hats as sign of status.   This "cavalry" is more of police force and villages along the same river will often co-ordinate patrols to keep their homelands safe.   

Co-operative and Friendly

Beaver Folk try to get along with everyone else and are loath to make sweeping generalizations—especially negative ones.

Dwarves. “Dwarves are kindred spirits, as great with stone as we are with wood.”

Elves. “The wood elves are our oldest allies, we cannot count how often they've come to our aid.”

Humans. “They're reliable trading partners until they aren't.”

Exploring Opportunities

The most common reasons for a Beaver Folk to their homes to explore are; exploration in and of itself and to find love in another river.   The bravest or most patriotic among them will sometimes leave to seek just war fare as well.  

Beaver Folk Names

A Beaver Folk will given name and surname that announces it linage.  

Male Names:   Norbert, Dagget, Jon, Foster, Castor, Wilfrid, Urthur, Cnut, Arik, Chuck, Louis, Lyon, Lester, Borden, Abbot, Laurent, Hatfeld

Female Names: Winnona, Bell, Liz, Bertha, Doris, Emily,  Earley,  Marcelle, Laura, Jane, Anne, Anita,  Victoria, Margret

Family Names:  Typically a Beaver Folk's oldest living direct ancestor's name at the time of birth will be the root of a Beaver Folk family name and have a Mc, Mac, son or daughter added to it depending on the region.  Ex. McArik, MacDoris, Cnutson or Belldaughter 

Beaver Folk Traits

Beaver Folk will typically have these traits.

Tail Weapon

You can attack enemies with your tail.  If you hit an enemy with it you deal damage equal to 1d4 plus your strength modifier.  

River Dweller

Your biology is tempered to handle the ice cold rivers of the north lands.  You have resistance to cold damage and ignore the negative effects of swimming in even the coldest water.

Beaver Teeth

A Bear Folk can chew through wood.  A branch 4 inches in diameter can be chewed through in an hour.  A Beaver Folk must periodically chew on wood in order to keep their teeth from growing to an inconvenient length.  

Hold Breath

Beaver Folk can hold their breath for 15 minutes

Ability Score Increase

Your constitution score increases by 2.

Age

Beaver Folk reach maturity at the age of 10.  They tend to live well into 50s.

Alignment

Beaver Folk are usually Neutral Good and sometimes True Neutral.   When they fight, they fight for the good of peace and not for any single being or state.  Their culture revolves around building a stable environment for them to live in peace. 

Size

Beaver folk stand between 2 and half feet and three and a half feet, and average at around 70 pounds. Your size is Small.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 25 feet.  Your swimming speed is 30 feet.  Your walking speed is not reduced by wearing heavy armour.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common.  Additionally since Beaver Folk live within larger nations run by other races they will usually speak the larger nation's language, typically Elvish but sometimes Dwarven or even Halfling.