Homebrew Aldani Species Details

Many Chultan natives can recall childhood fables of the aldani, the eerie lobsterfolk that lived in the rivers and lakes of their homeland. As there have been no sightings of the aldani in years, it is widely believed that they were wiped out. In truth, many aldani survived and retreated to the lakes of the Aldani Basin in the heart of Chult.

An aldani looks like a giant lobster that walks upright. Its face is mostly encased in armor, looking almost humanoid except for its long eyestalks. Despite their frightful appearance, aldani avoid conflict. Reclusive and xenophobic, they hide in their lakes and rivers.

Aldani Bribes. If disturbed, aldani try to frighten intruders away without killing them. When confronted by creatures who aren’t easily startled, they offer bribes in exchange for being left alone. These bribes take the form of treasures that the aldani collect from the bottoms of rivers and lakes.

Cursed by Ubtao. The aldani are the monstrous descendants of Chultan humans belonging to the Aldani tribe. The fishers of the tribe trapped the lobsters of the rivers by the thousands, until no lobsters remained. Their greed made Ubtao angry, and he cursed the fishers by transforming them into lobsterfolk. The fishers accepted their punishment and embraced their new existence. However, they were scorned by other members of their tribe and forced to take refuge in the rivers they had once plundered. Although the Aldani tribe went extinct, the lobsterfolk remain to this day.

Aldani Traits

Your aldani character gains traits that enable it to cope with the perils of a savage world.

Darkvision

You have darkvision to a range of 60 feet.

Ability Score Increase

Your Strength and Constitution scores increase by 1, and your Wisdom score increases by 2. 

Age

Young Aldani crawl for a few weeks after birth before learning to walk on two legs. They reach adulthood by the age of 15 and live an average of 50 years.

Alignment

Most are lawful neutral. A few can be selfish and greedy, tending more toward evil.

Size

Aldani adults stand 5 to 6 feet tall and average 300 pounds. Their shells account for roughly one-third of their weight. Your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 25 feet.

Claws

Your claws are natural weapons, which you can use to make unarmed strikes. If you hit with them, you deal piercing damage equal to 1d8 + your Strength modifier, instead of the bludgeoning damage normal for an unarmed strike. You have advantage on grappling checks made with your claws. Due to the shape of your claws, weapon attacks are made with disadvantage. 

Amphibious

The aldani can breathe air and water.

Natural Armor

Due to your shell and the shape of your body, you are ill-suited to wearing armor. Your shell provides ample protection, however; it gives you a base AC of 14. You gain no benefit from wearing armor, but if you are using a shield, you can apply the shield’s bonus as normal.

Survival Instinct

You gain proficiency in the Perception and Survival skills. Aldani eye stalks allow them to see 360-degrees.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common and any local Chultan Languages.