Homebrew Aeterni Species Details

The corpses in each of the vessels had been dessicated, blackened and withered husks of once proud beings that called themselves gods - forever gone from this world now. Their shattered splintered vestiges giving no isnight into the what visage the Aeterni may have resembled. And yet the group of adventurers opened her vessel; and there she was, still in her Dark and Dreaming Sleep. She looked no more than fourteen summers old, peaceful, still... beautiful.

They could all sense the innate magical ability incarnate within the being that slept before them, respendent in the deep honey yellow skin and array of red, blue and green colours feathering from her like a regal crown of hair and cloak. While she did not look physically strong she had lingered untouched and unweathered for eons it seemed. Her body was of slight, delicate physique - her small frame suddenly drawing a breath, and two large bright eyes fluttered open.

The Aeterni had awoken once more.

 

The Aeterni have long vanished from this world, leaving behind their legacy of powerful magical relics, ruins of marvelling architecture and mysteries to their nature, society and abscence. Theories are abound as to if they were real or just mystified elves, or if they were a race of fey that were the first spirits to manifest physically, or even if they were the first divine beings that devolved into the concaphony of peoples that now walk the earth. Wether any thoery is true or not, they were certainly once powerful beings that dominated their domain and shaped it for those that came after.

 

The First Beings

The Aeterni were the first beings to make their home on the prime material plane and raise their civilisation, the ruins of which remain to this day. They are depicted in their surviving artwork and murals as humanoids that roughly resemble the lithe and delicate body structure of elves or certain fey creatures in respendent colours of golden yellows, turqiouse blues and deep vibrant reds and oranges. They seemed to lack ears or hair which many scholars take as evidence against them being elven ancestors; they instead had feather like layers over their heads and shoulders forming a likeness of hair, crowns, cloaks or even manes. Most curious of all is in the vast majority of depictions they lack definitive facial features, often being left blank.

Divinity Incarnate

The Aeterni were said to have their society structured into domains dedicated to their gods who would be among their kind and number. This panthenon of diety kings and queens would each rule over a domain with specific responsibilies, to which their subjects would contribute and attend to. These incarnate gods would be said to constantly strive for the progress of their peoples and power, but maintain certain boundries between their civilisations, nature and each other.

Dark and Dreaming Sleep

 All Aeterni were immortal if translations of their records are correct; when one of their people felt the twilight of their form encroaching they would let themselves fall into a magical slumber where their spirits or soul would leave their body for the Wellspring. There they would find themselves remade anew before returning to the world, and some of their most powerful relics left behind were centered around managing this process from prepartion for the Dark and Dreaming Sleep, interring their sleeping and renewing forms to restoring their memories when ready.

Aeterni Traits

Aeterni have traits that give them familiarity with both mer and fey creatures.

Ability Score Increase

Your Charisma score increases by 2, and one other ability score of your choice increase by 1.

Age

The aging process of the Aeterni in detail is unkown, but records sugges theirbodies do age - they reach maturity after at least three or four decades and can live up to five centuries before needing to renew them. Their spirit or souls are said to be immortal and go into a reincarnation process after their form withers, so a Aeterni individual could be ages old. However it seems their memories do not get passed between their bodies until a process unique to them is completed when they are ready.

Size

Aeterni have slim and lithe builds ranging from 4-6 feet in height, and are medium in size class.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet, and your swimming speed is 20 feet.

Fey Ancestry

You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed, and magic can’t put you to sleep.

Soul Insight

You gain proficiency with two of the following skills of your choice: Deception, Insight, Arcana, and Persuasion.