Homebrew Half Tiefling Species Details

A loud chortle cut through the bar from the direction of a random, human drunkard, stumbling down the staircase, a half-empty bottle still in his hand. Tierney failed to suppress a grimace as he barreled into her, pushing her inadvertently back into the wall.

He glanced back at her as he continued on, as if deciding whether to apologize or dismiss her entirely. Rather than doing either, however, his steps ground to a halt, simply turning to stare at her.

Tierney brushed herself off quickly, trying to suppress a shudder. She did not quite succeed, and her hands failed to still their tremors. "C-Can I help you?" she stuttered.

The man's eyes narrowed, and he took one step closer to her. Though human, his height was impressive, and she suddenly found herself feeling both very small and much younger than her eighteen years. His breath reeked of alcohol, but it was the jet-colored cape that trapped her years before, in a dark forest, familiar green blotted out by ink. 

"We don't serve your kind here," the man spat, spraying her with mead-tinted saliva. 

Tierney's eyes scrunched closed, blocking the uninvited shower, before her eyebrows shot into her hairline. "My--my kind?"

"Tieflings," the man scoffed. "Devil's children. We ain't serving no devil-worshippers here!" He leaned closer, and Tierney pressed her back further into the wall. "...You's a tiefling... ain't you?"

Tierney pressed her shaking hands into her cloak, but forced herself to make eye contact with the man. "...No." Then, as if realizing her own hesitation, she continued, "I have human eyes, don't I?"

She silently prayed to Tefet and any other god that may have been listening he wouldn't question the paleness of their hue, how one of her eyes was clouded over, though she could still see, why the once-emerald green now seemed to have faded into a color closer to milk. A color closer to her white sclera and clouded pupil, almost a monochrome, like the Tiefling she had almost become. She prayed he wouldn't question the way her hair fell, the way the hood stood slightly too tall over her head, hiding curled horns, too small to be accepted by any Tiefling and too... existent to be accepted by anyone else. She prayed he wouldn't notice anything spectacular about her in general, though, of course, what really was there to notice about her but her oddities?

Slowly, the man nodded, and Tierney felt herself release a breath she hadn't known she was holding. “Good thing you ain't," he laughed. He drank deeply from the bottle once more, and when the bottle came away from his mouth, a trail linked the bottleneck to him. He wiped a rough hand over his mouth once, then let the bottle slip through his fingers, shattering on the floor. Tierney took a few quick steps back, avoiding the shards.

"Tieflings don't belong here," the drunk scoffed. "Demons and devils, the lot of 'em!" He chortled one more time, and Tierney felt herself hunch in, crossing her arms tightly over her chest. 

The man let his eyes linger one more moment, then shook his head, clearing away a mead-induced haze. "You get some sleep, kid. You're jumpy for a brat." With that, he turned, walking away towards an empty table, surely to order more of the mead that now trickled through Tierney's boots, sliding in around her feet, staining them brown and red. 

Tierney pulled her hood further over her head.

-Kenzie Scott 

 

Seen as the children and servants of Sheol in one universe and the corrupted creation of Asmodeus in another, tieflings have forever seen as demons, signs of darkness. Though many who exist now are simply long-suffering descendants in self-contained tiefling cities, there are cults who view them as divine. Half tieflings are the results of failed practices by these cults. Similar to changelings, children are taken from their homes and used in rituals to bring to the surface worlds legendary tiefling servants. If an interruption happens in the course of the ritual, or if the tiefling demon and the sacrificed child manage to find a balance or forge their own deal, the ritual fails, resulting in a half tiefling, given a chance to continue living, but doomed to hang between two worlds forever.

Infernal, Yet Human

Half tieflings, in general, strike a gentle balance between tiefling and any other race, most commonly human. This means their features may be drastically different from one another, some nearly fully tiefling, some nearly their species of birth, and some in the grey area between. Commonly, half tieflings have pale, milky eyes, almost similar to the eyes of a blind human, though they are still perfectly functional. They generally have horns, though smaller than those of a tiefling, and, when they have a tail, it is often skinny and small, easily concealed. Their colorations generally mirror their original coloration, though, as with all of the above traits, this may vary with each individual half tiefling. However, just as there is no typical human, there is also no typical half tiefling; any variation of physical traits between the two parent races is possible.

Tiefling Appearances

Tieflings are derived from human bloodlines, and in the broadest possible sense, they still look human. However, their infernal heritage has left a clear imprint on their appearance. Tieflings have large horns that take any of a variety of shapes: some have curling horns like a ram, others have straight and tall horns like a gazelle’s, and some spiral upward like an antelopes’ horns. They have thick tails, four to five feet long, which lash or coil around their legs when they get upset or nervous. Their canine teeth are sharply pointed, and their eyes are solid colors—black, red, white, silver, or gold—with no visible sclera or pupil. Their skin tones cover the full range of human coloration, but also include various shades of red. Their hair, cascading down from behind their horns, is usually dark, from black or brown to dark red, blue, or purple.

Variations of tieflings can be found in any number of official WOTC publications. It is also quite possible that these variations of tiefling included the being that was raised; as such, your half tiefling may also use these traits for their physical appearances. Generally, any racial feature that is identical to a tiefling feature in this race may be subbed out for the appropriate alternate; if the class feature is not tiefling, however, the feature is lost.

Trauma and the Half Tiefling Mind

To become a half tiefling, a child had to have been ripped from their home and tortured in a dark sacrifice, only for it to go, rather painfully, very wrong. No matter what their personality may be otherwise, this leaves a rather large mark on their minds. Some half tieflings may react to it by becoming closed off and cold; others by becoming fragile or latching onto their perceived "saviors"; still others may become vindictive and cruel. Though everyone reacts to this trauma differently, the process of becoming a half tiefling still leaves a mark too large to be properly hidden, and that mark can make itself known at very inopportune times. 

Isolated Among Friends

Children of two drastically different, isolated worlds, the half tiefling has no true home anywhere. While they may find acceptance in groups of humans, tieflings, or any mix of races, they will likely never met another of their kind in their lifetime. Some react to this violently, deciding, if none will accept them, to raze the ground beneath their feet. However, many others work hard to become active in their community, working to gain trust and acceptance, simply ignoring the void left where there once was the knowledge that they belonged somewhere.

Half Tiefling Names

Half tieflings usually maintain their original names, pre-ritual, allowing for much variation; however, some half tieflings may choose to take on another name to reflect their new heritage, either a bastardized form of a human or tiefling name, following either major tradition of virtue or infernal. In addition to simply names they call themselves, however, family names are variable post-ritual, as well; many cults kill the families and neighbors of their selected sacrifices in the process of apprehending them, leaving the now half tiefling as an orphan, either resigned to life on the streets or adopted into the home of a kindly citizen, in which case their family names may be changed to match their new parentage.

Tiefling-Like Mistrust

People tend to be suspicious of tieflings, assuming that their infernal heritage has left its mark on their personality and morality, not just their appearance. Shopkeepers keep a close eye on their goods when tieflings enter their stores, the town watch might follow a tiefling around for a while, and demagogues blame tieflings for strange happenings. The reality, though, is that as much as a tiefling’s bloodline doesn’t affect his or her personality, nor does it when the half tiefling's new changes are introduced. However, that doesn't mean the half tieflings themselves are aware of their own lack of change or are free of the prejudice that comes with tieflings. Instead, their transformation can induce a keen sense of self-hatred or self-distrust, believing themselves to now be corrupted. Some treat their self-hatred by hiding their tiefling features, others by flaunting it brazenly. Others who were aware and/or fortunate enough not to have this prejudice ingrained in them since birth, however, may simply continue to think of themselves in the same way as before, though they still must adapt to the prejudice of the people around them.

Half Tiefling Traits

Half Tieflings share certain racial traits as a result of their infernal descent, but, like humans, they are more susceptible to certain variances than others.

Ability Score Increase

Your Charisma score increases by 1, as does any other score.

Age

Half tieflings generally reach adulthood when their parent race does; however, depending on the volatility of the mesh of human and tiefling, they may live anywhere from an average lifespan of their native race to an average tiefling lifespan to even only a few years post-ritual.

Alignment

Like humans, half tieflings have no particular tendency towards an alignment, but each alignment is generally seen as the result of how the person handles their past. 

Size

Your height and build stay the same as your race of origin. As such, many half-tieflings can vary drastically in size.

Speed

Your base walking speed is the same as your species of origin; for most humanoid species, this is 30 ft.

Darkvision

Thanks to your infernal heritage, 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.

Hellish Resistance

You have resistance to fire damage.

Infernal Legacy

You know the thaumaturgy cantrip. When you reach 3rd level, you can cast the hellish rebuke spell as a 2nd-level spell once with this trait and regain the ability to do so when you finish a long rest. When you reach 5th level, you can cast the darkness spell once with this trait and regain the ability to do so when you finish a long rest. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for these spells.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common and one extra language of your choice, though, in many cases, a preference should be given towards Infernal.