Homebrew Elan Species Details

"How, then, do you think I came to be?"

Raelyn looked at her companion from across the campfire that their party shared, waiting for their supper to finish and trying to answer her friend's question. He was not tall, not short. His ears were rounded, his jaw softer than some but harder than others. One would never know the kind of power he wielded, given his looks. How fire failed to catch him, frost to slow him, and lightning to linger. He could take an axe to the unarmored chest or an avalanche's fall and be only mildly inconvenienced: she had seen such herself just this past day.

This, of course, lead to her questioning about his origins only to be vexed and perplexed by his cryptic statements and apparent amusement. He laughed as he served the others their portions, taking none for himself, his eyes seeming to glow with an inner light.

 

Elan is the term used to describe a being which has been remade as an immortal by a council of existing elans, and walks amongst mortals to protect, teach, and learn from them. They are nomads with a very long cycle of movement and settling, choosing only to change homes when their own unchanging nature begins to become apparent. An elan often genuinely enjoys the company of others, and will fall in with any crowd that seems open enough to accept a newcomer in order to gain more insight and knowledge, though they tend toward pursuits that lead to the least harm amongst their host communities. Above almost all else an elan seeks to preserve the secrecy of the existence of their kind.

Built for Perfection

Each elan is patterned after what their particular Council believe to be an ideal form: the result being equally informed by necessity and personal aesthetics. As such, elans can range widely in height, skin tone, hair, and eye color. They wear clothing as a functional unit, and as such they tend to adopt the fashions of their host culture while trying to not appear too outlandish. Whatever their chosen base pattern, two things are always apparent when presented with an elan: none would be considered ugly, and all of them seem to be just a bit more than they appear.

Once an elan has been given a physical form, that form is usually theirs for all time. If the occasion ever arises where the body needs to be permanently altered, or replaced, a return to their respective Council is generally needed as the bodies in question represent a significant investment of energy and skill.

Wanderers Among Worlds

A given Council of Elans will sometimes entrench itself in a prime material plane but, given their aptitude with psionic power, most will create a demiplane for themselves and travel with their cohort from Plane to Plane; sometimes traversing to alternate Prime Material Planes when the need or interest arises. Reflecting these traits, many elans become wanderers in their host world and travel to pursue their interests and duties before returning to their given council to pass on their experience.

As they are effectively immortal an elan will sometimes live in the lower echelon of society for years, unremarked and unnoticed, before stepping into a role that they see needs filling. Once they become at all known an elan will generally only stay in a location for less than a decade before moving on in order to prevent their nature from being discovered.

Wardens Against Madness

As elans all have some aptitude with psionic power they are naturally sensitive to similar energies being used in their host realms. Each Council and its constituents find themselves, without fail, repelling the encroachment of the Far Realm wherever and whenever it manifests. When a mind flayer seeks to dominate a township, or where an aboleth begins to take root, it is safe to assume that at least one elan is monitoring the situation if not actively opposing the aberration's designs whenever practical.

While some seek to harness the power or knowledge of the Far Realm, certain Warlock sects leap to mind, elans categorically refuse to parley with anything from those mad worlds without extreme extenuating circumstances. These skirmishes with such entities can range from a small scuffle with an illithid, to a raid on a beholder's lair, up to a full-scale war against such beings as the star-eaters or other Deep Ones. The outcomes of these battles sometimes make the elans' cross-planar migrations sadly necessary.

Elan Names

Elan Traits

The Council that remade you spared no effort in the endeavor. Your body is their complement to your already exceptional mind. Re-forged by their design, fortified by psionic energies, and driven by your will, you are an exemplar of intent given form. You share these traits with all Elan.

Ability Score Increases

Your Intelligence score increases by 2, and your Constitution score increases by 1.

Age

Elans do not age after they are made.

Alignment

Elans are chosen to be remade from many races, but all are chosen for their exceptional abilities and strong character. Most lean toward good, and their need to preserve the secrecy of their kind tend to drive them toward lawful, unobtrusive behavior.

Size

Elan range from just under 5 to a bit over 6 feet tall and tend to weigh 140-190 pounds. Your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Endemic Power

The process of remaking your body and ensconcing your mind within it has resulted in a small well of power.