Homebrew Ghaele (Bright Elf) Species Details

"Kneel, Ara and be no more. For you, who aspires to the value of selflessness, I bestow upon you this title: Benevolence. Stand again as Ara the Benevolent and bring your selfless action to the people of Eberron."

—  Excerpt from the naming ritual of the Ghaele

 

Ghaeles are the celestial cousins of the eladrin and native to the planes of Arborea and Ysgard. They are more subtle than their cousins, often working behind the scenes to help defeat evil forces. Of all the celestials, ghaeles best understand the plight of mortals and often serve as advisors to other, higher order celestial creatures. 

Humans often refer to these creatures as "Bright Elves," for their elven appearance and celestial presence and abilities.

Inspiring and Resolved

With their divine appearance and confident personality, ghales appear beacons of hope and resolve to members of many other races. They are slightly taller and heavier than humans, averaging from 5 to 7 feet in height and 140-210 pounds depending on size. Females are somewhat smaller than males and tend to weigh less as a result. 

Ghaeles’ coloration encompasses the normal human range and also includes skin in shades of grey, yellow, and bluish-white; hair of silver, blue, yellow, and orange; and opalescent eyes that reflect a variety of colors. Ghaeles have no facial and little body hair. They favor elegant clothing in whites, blues, yellows and reds, and they enjoy jewelry that catches, reflects, or scatters light. 

Watchful Advisors

Ghaeles typically live 400-800 years, spending their time observing the mortal realms and helping other celestials to make sense of their strange ways. They are compassionate and full of kindness, but because they spend their time observing and interacting with mortals in the prime material world, they are also extremely serious and even humorless, their hearts often heavy at the plight of the innocents that they observe. Despite inhabiting beautiful, divine realms, they love the material plane and grow anxious about its happenings, even growing depressed if not able to visit and offer guidance to its inhabitants. Ghaele who act unbecomingly on a mission are recalled by their higher powers.  

Ghaeles do not work for glory, thanks, or reward. Success at stopping evil is always enough. In doing so, their methods may seem strange, even chaotic to other races, as they rarely reveal the full scope of their plans.

Ghaeles are mostly chaotic good in nature. While ghaeles from Arborea are mostly chaotic and those from Ysgard may trend more neutral, they both are overwhelmingly good. They make intelligent and charismatic leaders or advisors and may serve the same mortal family for generations. However, when working openly with mortals, they may be seen as meddling. 

Home Away from Home

Ghaeles are native to the giant forests of Arborea and river lands of Ysgard, but frequently depart for the prime material world and seek out lands that remind them of home. They are often dispatched to mortal cities and settlements, dwelling among their inhabitants, but are rarely afforded that freedom to choose where they live while on their missions. On their native planes, ghaeles hunt game, gather food, and grow vegetables, and their skill and magic allow them to support themselves without the need for clearing and plowing land. They are talented musicians and artists, crafting pieces that are strikingly beautiful to both hear and see.

In both celestial planes and the prime material, ghaeles often serve as advisors and councilors to other leaders.

Adventuring and Service

Ghaeles take up adventuring out of curiosity and intrigue, often volunteering for missions to the prime material world to sate their interest in the mortals and their desire to right the wrongs they observe. Since they are long-lived, they may advise and observe for centuries. They revel in the different pace of human society, constantly changing over decades, and seek out opportunity to interact with both the most and least privileged, righting wrongs directly or through influence. Ghaeles may also adventure in service to a mortal lord, protecting their lands or searching for greater evils. 

STOIC, YET COMPASSIONATE

Although they can be haughty, elves are generally gracious even to those who fall short of their high expectations—which is most non-elves. Still, they can find good in just about anyone.

Dwarves. “Dwarves are stubborn creatures, rigid like the stone they carve around them. But what they lack flexibility, they make up in strength of character. When they set their minds to something, nothing will change their course... be that good or evil.”

Elves. “Elves are beautiful, intelligent, and incredibly arrogant. They’re good people, but their pride may cloud their judgement and requires the tempered hand of an advisor.”

Humans. “Their ambition and drive to accomplish something before their brief lives pass away is remarkable and admirable — but may be equally futile. Their efforts are often supported by generations of the same family and their culture allows for the greatest chance to change. They are hopeful, but also terrifying.”

Many Names

Ghaeles are considered children and are unable to enter the prime material world until they pass a right of passage in which they vow to serve and protect. In this ritual, they are bestowed a second name, a title, by a higher order celestial and dispatched to the prime material world for their first mission, where they take yet another name from whatever culture they assimilate. These titles are unique to the individual ghaele and represent a value or talent that the ghaele possesses or aspires to. When translated from celestial, these names range from lofty and idealistic to plane and descriptive.

It is not uncommon for Ghaeles to take on many names, adding a new one onto their full name each time they are dispatched to a culture. Whenever a ghaele recites their full name, their bestowed name or title is always placed at the end. Eldelry ghaeles are known to have as many as 15 different names. The more names a ghaele possesses, the higher their status becomes. If a ghaele is recalled from a mission, they forfeit the name they use and may no longer count that among their full name.

Ghaele use their childhood name until their right of passage, after which they may alternate between using their full name or assigned title. Ghaele adults never call each other by their childhood names unless they are extremely close, as such an action is seen as intimate. 

Ghaele names follow elven naming conventions, and as such, little distinction exists between male names and female names. When gaining a new name, they take a name from the culture to which they are assigned. 

Child Names: Ara, Bryn, Del, Eryn, Faen, Innil, Lael, Mella, Naill, Naeris, Phann, Rael, Rinn, Sai, Syllin, Thia, Vall

Ghaele (Bright Elf) Traits

Your ghaele character has a variety of natural and magical abilities, the result of working behind the scenes to help defeat evil forces.

Ability Score Increase

Your Charisma score increases by 2.

Age

Although ghaeles reach physical maturity at about the same age as humans, their understanding of adulthood is in relation to their service to the mortal realms. A gheale typically is granted adulthood in a rite of passage and bestowed a name or title around the age of 100. The oldest ghaele have lived to be 800 years old.

Alignment

Ghaeles do not work for glory, thanks, or reward. Success at stopping evil is always enough. In doing so, their methods may seem strange, even chaotic to other races, as they rarely reveal the full scope of their plans. Ghaeles given to wanderlust, and frequently yearn to travel from and return to their celestial homes.

While ghaeles from Arborea are mostly chaotic and those from Ysgard may trend more neutral, they both are overwhelmingly good. They make intelligent and charismatic leaders or advisors and may serve the same mortal family for generations. However, when working openly with mortals, they may be seen as meddling. 

 

Size

Ghaeles range from under 5 to 7 feet tall, depending on gender, and have slender builds. Your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Advanced Darkvision

Your opalescent eyes have developed to see a large spectrum of colors and wavelengths in your celestial home, granting you 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. Your prismatic eyes allow you to see colors in dim light and darkness.

Celestial Resistance

As a being native to the celestial planes, you are resistant to radiant damage.

Transcendent Form

You can use your action to transcend your physical form and transform. Your body glows with celestial energy and when you move, you become a globe of scintillating light 2 ft. in diameter, returning to your normal form when you stop moving or take an action. While transformed, you gain a flight speed of 50 ft. and your movement does not provoke opportunity attacks against you. If you stop moving while in the air, you appear to levitate.

Your transformation lasts for 1 minute or until you end it as a bonus action. 

Once you use this trait, you can't use it again until the next dawn. 

Celestial Spellcasting

You know the dancing lights cantrip. When you reach 3rd level, you can cast the protection from evil and good spell once with this trait and regain the ability to do so at dawn. When you reach 5th level, you can cast the see invisibility spell once with this trait and regain the ability to do so at dawn. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for these spells.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common, Elvish. and Celestial. Elvish is fluid, with subtle intonations and intricate grammar. Elven literature is rich and varied, and their songs and poems are famous among other races. Many bards learn their language so they can add Elvish ballads to their repertoires. Celestial is melodic when spoken with complicated grammar akin to writing music. Many Clerics and Paladins learn Celestial as part of their divine training.