Homebrew Gator-Folk Species Details

Secluded deep in the swamps away from prying eyes, the Gator-Folk are as mysterious as they are deadly. Gator-Folk aren’t even native to the Material Plane. They hail from another world — one that even the most dedicated historian would not have heard of, and the Gator-Folk will not tell.

They are immigrants, fighters, scouts, tribesmen, and nomads, their tribes functioning as footholds in a world both unknown and alien.

Scale and Claw

From a distance, Gator-Folk look much like crocodiles. Only when close, crawling out of the swamps, or when exposed in front of someone, does their humanoid appearance reveal itself. Standing upright, Gator-Folk might reach 7 to 8 feet tall, and they have long, thick tails, which are crocodilian and help them swim.

Scales cover their bodies. The color of their scale distinguishes members from different tribes. Their scales are dimly colored, with scales of black, dark green, or brown. Their heads complete the crocodilian appearance, being something like a crocodile with distinct variations from tribe to tribe.

Swamp People

There is nowhere more comfortable to Gator-Folk than the swamp. They can spend hours in the submerged, and some go as long as days, motionlessly in the depths until they spot prey. In battle they are fierce and cunning, moving with remarkable speed and hidden from the enemy, surprising the enemy and using their weapons, teeth, or claws to subdue their opponents and quickly hide back for others.

In the swamps, Gator-Folk leave the swamps with reluctance. On their native world, they could swim for days or months, emerging only to lay their eggs and feed their young before launching submerging back into the swamp. Those that make it to a world in the Material Plane find it a strange place. They sometimes forget or ignore vertical distances, and hide themselves in any nearby swamps, preferably with the lizard folk, who are there stern allies.

Crocodilian Mannerisms

The resemblance of Gator-Folk to crocodilians aren’t limited to physical features. Gator-Folk display many of the same mannerisms as ordinary crocodiles. They like to spend much time in the swamp, frequently going back to a swamp to rest, or to feed, removing any passengers they might have picked up. When they submerge from the swamps, they often do so when spotting prey near  pools where they can subdue them and stay on land for awhile to eat their prey.

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

The idea of ownership baffles most Gator-Folk. After all, no one owns the swamps. When explained to them, they initially find the notion of ownership alien. As a result, Gator-Folk who have little interaction with other people might be a nuisance as they emerge from the swamps to seize livestock and/or plunder harvests for fruits and grains. Shiny, glittering objects catch their eyes.

They find it hard not to take the treasure and bring it back to their tribe to sacrifice it to their gods. Gator-Folk who spend years among other races can learn to inhibit these impulses.

Confinement angers the Gator-Folk. To be stuck on land, trapped underground, or imprisoned by the cold, unyielding earth is a torment few Gator-Folk can withstand. Even when submerged in their swamps, or at rest in their tribal homes, they are always alert, with eyes moving and bodies ready to attack or to flee.

Homelands

Most Gator-Folk live in the Elemental Plane of Water or the Plane of Mud. Even though it is not their ancestral home, it is close enough for them. Gatorfolk can be drawn into the Material Plane, sometimes to pursue enemies or capture their prey. Accident might also send a tribe of Gator-Folk submerge into a swamp on another plane. A few find their way to such a world through portals on their own plane and establish tribes deep within the swamps or with lizard folk tribes.

Once tribes of Gator-Folk settle in an area, they share a hunting territory that extends across an area up to 100 miles on a side, with each tribe hunting in the lands nearest to their colony, ranging farther should game become scarce.

A tribe consists of many wooden, and sometimes stone, structures in a swamp, with many defenses. The strongest is the leader with the support of a shaman. 

GATOR-FOLK  IN THE FORGOTTEN REALMS

Never well established in Faerûn, Gator-Folk have only nine major tribes, all of which are hidden in great swamps and boggy lands.

Tribes in the east were ever a secretive and guarded people, only spotted when leaving the swamps to find prey. A mistaken Solar thought they were demons and nearly wiped out the population and scattered the survivors. These Gator-Folk and their descendants have sworn vengeance against the Solar and may be seen scouring the lands of the South and South-West for signs of their foe.

Their only remaining settlement lies deep within a large swamp close to the southernmost mountains. At the headwaters of the Black Marsh, the Last Refuge is home to several dozen aarakocra. Recently, Gator-Folk shamans detected changes in the prevailing weather that they regarded as a bad omen.

Unlike the Gator-Folk of other worlds on the Material Plane, the Gator-Folk of the Realms rarely travel to the Elemental Plane of Water.

Solitary Hunters

Gator-Folk enjoy hunting and solitude. Most of them have little interest in dealing with other peoples and less interest in spending time out of the swamps. For this reason, it takes an exceptional circumstance for a Gator-Folk to leave his or her 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 mission of vengeance, or a catastrophe typically lies at the heart of the Gator-Folks adventurer’s chosen.

Gator-Folk Names

Gator-Folk names sound reptilian and alien, but may also use other racial names.

A Gator-Folk of either gender may have one of these names: Caligz’k, Reenan, Ajum-El, Geel-El, Vuli’gz, Jarak, Millezsh, Miknah, Milnah

Gator-Folk Traits

Gatorfolk are easily able to swim at any distance within 50ft, which can be useful in certain scenarios. Ask your DM if you wish to play this race.

Ability Score Increase

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

Age

Gatorfolk reach maturity by age 15. Gatorfolk live to be 350 years old.

Alignment

Gatorfolk lean to the more chaotic edges of neutral, but some tend to bend to evil or good, but more likely of the former than the latter. 

Size

Gatorfolk can reach heights to up to 7 to 8 feet tall. They are heavy and muscular, often weighing between 200 to 280 pounds. Your size is medium. 

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet and your swimming speed is 50 feet.

Inate Swimming

You have a swimming speed of 50 feet. To use this speed, you can’t be wearing heavy armor

Claws

Your claws are natural weapons, which you can use to make unarmed strikes. If you hit with them, you deal slashing damage equal to 1d4 + your Strength modifier, instead of the bludgeoning damage normal for an unarmed strike.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common and Aquan.