Homebrew Dreamlands Cat Species Details

Dreamlands Cat

Everyone knows about cats. They're Small, sometimes obnoxious predators that people often keep as pets or exterminators. Cats are not a sentient species. Like humanoids, they have a dream life, but unlike most people, cats are aware of this dream life. Furthermore while in their dreams, cats are intelligent as people, sometimes more so. Of course, they are still cats, with cat personalities and traits. 

HISTORY

Cats traveling the Dreamlands run the full gamut from feral to domestic. However wild they might be, almost all player character cats have lived in and among humanoid communities because such cats are likeliest to get along with other species and be willing to adventure with them.

Unlike other companion animals, cats almost certainly took the first step toward domestication, so it is arguable that cats actually mastered humanoids, rather than the other way around. It has certainly been a successful partnership. In return for protection, shelter, and food, cats keep down the population of rodents and other pest animals in humanoid areas, which helps ward off both disease and famine. In addition cats provide affection, companionship, elegance, and beauty to their humanoid families - at least on their own terms. And during their languorous periods of rest, they can walk the dreamlands with enhanced mental acuity and reason.  

Occasionally, a cat decides that it wants to spend its waking hours as a fully sentient being, as well as when it sleeps. When this happens, it becomes known as a dreamlands cat, and is, in effect, a player character. Any cat may decide it wishes to be a dreamlands cat and then take on that role for a period of time: sometimes just a few days, sometimes the rest of its life. Likewise, a Dreamlands cat may decide to return to its normal status of being just a cat. For those who know cats well, it will come as no surprise that such decisions seem to be made capriciously. Humanoids cannot tell whether a particular cat is a dreamlands cat based purely upon outward appearances. Typically, either the cat has to inform them somehow, or the humanoid has to figure it out by watching the cat take on tasks that would normally be impossible for a normal cat of intellect and awareness. 

Playing a Cat

Cats are pretty much a "love 'em or hate 'em" type of creature. While some people can't stand them, others can't live without them, but few are neutral on the subject. Some people are even ailurophobes, making them neurotically afraid of cats. Even those who dislike or fear felines are willing to admit that cats are graceful, nimble, and often adorable.  

If you are a Dreamlands cat, you likely:

• Are busy, active, and aloof. 
• are energetic when interesting things are going on, but sleep soundly for hours when no action is afoot. 
• occasionally force other party members to carry you. They may or may not mind, and you may but probably don't care.
• are quiet, curious, and interested in new things. 
• hate cats' natural enemies (dogs, mice, birds, whirring machines, ect). 
• are easily distracted. 
• are highly athletic and can move fast when you want to. 

Others probably

• are not always sure if you are sentient or not. ("is it a normal cat? Can I talk to it?") 
• think you are cute, but probably useless. 
• try to pet or otherwise annoy you when you are busy. 
• do not understand you or your though processes, such as they are.

 

 

 Physiology

Unlike many other predators, cats are exclusively carnivorous. Their teeth are designed only for cutting and devouring flesh, so while they can clumsily chew up bread or vegetables, these are poor sources of nutrition. Their digestive tracts are not adapted to process such food either, and a cat deprived of meat will quickly suffer significant heath issues. 

Cats have extraordinarily keen senses. Their one defect in this regard is an inability to taste sweetness. When a cat eats cantaloupe or other sweet items it does not taste the sugar, and instead is reacting to whatever savory elements are present. Cats see in complete darkness, but they can rely on their sense of touch which is amplified by heir whiskers, to feel their way around an area. 

They do not have rigid collarbones, so they can squeeze through any space through which their heads will fit. Because they are as long as the cat's shoulders are wide their whiskers also serve and additional purpose in indicating weather the cat can fit through a a particular opening. 

Cats are highly vocal when needed. Normal cats have more then 100 different vocalizations for various purposes. Of course, dreamlands cats have the same vocal apparatus, but with their greater intellect, they can't string different sounds together to make other meanings. 

It is said that cats have nine lives, which is due to having a dreamlands self. When a cat is killed, its dream self is still alive and can return to the walking world, restoring that cat to life. For a cat to die or be destroyed in a single event, both its dream and waking would self must die at the same moment. 

When a dreamlands cat is killed, its normal non-sentient self returns form the dream world, where it has been relaxing. This typically takes 4d6 hours, and the result is a normal cat. Of course that cat may then decide (once more) to become a Dreamlands cat, resulting the in effective resurrection of the character, Cats can only do this self-resurrection eight times (hence 9-lifes). Players should keep track of this on their character sheets. 

Note: that when a cat is resurrected by a spell or an item, this does not use up one of its lives. Only purposeful self reresection increases the count. 

Otherworld Cats

Many other worlds have cat-like organisms of their own. This is so common that many researchers theorize that somewhere there exists a sort of ur-cat, the basic cat upon which all other cats are based. Cats from different worlds are often unfriendly with one another. In fact, it is quite common for them to live in a state of low-level warfare. 

Faith

Cats have a spiritual nature, and often seem to commune with the beyond. They have gods, of course, but instead of worshiping them, they try to live in harmony with them. Usually, these gods hare known to and sometimes worshiped by the local humanoids, particularly if they value cats for religious reasons. For particularly if they value cats for religious reasons. For example, Baset is a will-known goddess of cats, but other worlds (and other cultures) have these as well. 

Cats sometimes feel a pull toward spiritual life, and are known to serve alongside priests of compatible gods for their purposes. Many worship sites have a cat that keeps out vermin and accompanies the priests on their rounds. These cats, when they choose to be Dreamlands cats, often become clerics. 

Culture

Cats don't have a true culture in the sense that humanoids do. Instead, cat's live for the now and participate in the culture of their owners. Even the intelligent Dreamlands cats use their greater brain power to simply adapt to their environment to be better enjoy their lives as cats. 

Cats are unable to create material objects since they lack prehensile hands or any real means of manipulating objects. They can only carry small objects for shorty distances in their mouths. Cats who do not live with people may have a den, but even this is not constructed by the cats itself: it is merely a hole or hollow tree in which the cat finds shelter from the elements. 

Material culture and Artifacts 

Dreamlands cats are perfectly capable of understanding the uses and purposes behind magical items, and sometimes find these to be practical adjuncts to their adventuring. In the Dreamlands, there are smiths and magicians who specialize in transforming magic items into forms usable by cats. 

Here is how it is done the cat takes the item desired, which must be small enough to be carried in its moth, to the dreamlands on one of it's forays. The cat then visits one of these enchanters, who works the magic. For full rules, see the Feline Item Focus feat.

Realations

Fundamentally, cats are friendly to humanoids - or at least those who keep cats as companion animals. Of course, even within these societies, there are those who dislike cats, and cats usually keenly aware of who likes them and who does not. 

Adventures

Cats like body heat and cuddling and are easy to take care of when on an adventure, They cost nothing when staying at an inn and can often feed themselves, catching small rodents, bats, insects, or birds. They are clean and neat and take up little space. When traveling in areas where cats find it hard to go )such as sup sheer cliffs), the cat can be easily carried in a pouch or on a shoulder. They are incredibly convenient as companions, and of course , a cat that can cast spells or scout and communicate has obvious value. 

Credit To:

Sabrina.Liselle on tubmlr, for the art of the cat in the Avatar ~ sabrinaliselle.tumblr.com

Sandy Petersen's CTHULHU MYTHOS for the Pathfinder Rollplaying game, I copied most of this race from this book, with some modifications for 5e dungeons and dragons. 

I DO NOT CLAIM ANY OF THE MATERIAL IN THIS HOMEBREW, I am not making any profit off this and do not intend to and do not present this as my own intellectual property, I am simply transcribing this for use in my DND games. If any of the artists or creators wish me to remove this please reach out and I will do so. 

Thank you

~H3phaestus  

 

Dreamlands Cat Traits

As a Dreamlands cat you are a tiny creature without thumbs of incredible intelligence, due to this however you are often at a disadvantage when trying to manipulate intricate objects or move heavy things. Along with this as a dreamlands cat you have the ability to travel to the dreamlands as you sleep, coming with its own advantages. The Dreamlands cat is one of the more unique races available and does not always fit a campaigns theme, thus should be taken into careful consideration by your DM before they let you play one.

Ability Score Increase

You gain -6 Strength, +4 Dexterity, and either +2 Intelligence or +2 Charisma, depending on your Dreamland Cat's personality. 

Fast

Dreamlands cats are fast for their size and have a base speed of 30 feet. 

Senses

As a cat you have evolved to have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 30 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern color in darkness, only shades of gray. in addition Dreamlands cats have a keen sense of smell. 

Land on Your Feet

Dreamlands cats treat any fall as if it where 20ft less then the actual distance of the fall. For example, a cat that falls 30 feet takes only 1d6 points of damage (treating it as a 10 foot fall). A fall of 20 feet or less does not harm a Dreamlands cat. A Dreamlands cat that takes no damage from a fall always lands on his feet. A dreamlands cat that takes damage from a fall lands on their feet if it makes a successful Reflex save (DC = the damage taken by the fall). 

Dreamlands Travel

A Dreamlands cat can physically travel to the Astral plane, via one of the many hidden gates of slumber. These gates shift and change their locations over time, and may only exist in one space for a few seconds. A Dreamlands cat can attempt to sense a nearby gate of slumber at will; weather or not a Gate of slumber is present is subject to the GM's discretion (typically, there's a 20% chance of a gate of slumber being in a 1 mile radius). If a gate of slumber exists, the Dreamlands cat knows instinctively where it is. Only a Dreamlands cat can traverse a Gate of Slumber. Gates of slumber only appear in hidden, obscure areas, and are almost never in a convenient place when a cat needs to travel the Dreamlands, such as when trapped or in sudden danger. Except in the usual cases, the Dream-traveling cat cannot generally return top the physical world farther than 1 mile from where it left. Whenever the cat returns from the dreamlands, it can choose to return with intelligence 2 (perhaps to protect itself from disturbing discoveries or to thwart detect thoughts) or with its full Dreamlands intellect intact.  

Nine Lives

When Killed, a Dreamlands Cat's mind and consciousness shifts reflexively back into a dream form, creating a new dream body if necessary. The Dreamlands cat must rest for 1d3 days in the Dreamlands, After which point the Dreamlands cat may return to the waking world. A dreamlands cat may "resurrect" itself in this manner up to eight times, giving it nine lives in all. Resurrections from other methods (such as via raise dead or other powerful magic) do not count against this limit. 

Equipment

Dreamlands cats are very limited in the type of magic equipment they can use. As they have no hands, Dreamlands cats cannot use items that require hands (such as wielding a manufactured weapon or shield). A cat can wear armor if the armor is tailored to fit its feline body. Cats can wear and benefit from magic rings (up to two, worn on the tail as bracelets) and neck slot magic items. Specially tailored belt, body, shoulder, and wrist slot items can be used if they are created specifically for the Dreamland cats physiology. 

Lastly, Dreamlands cats are known for wearing magical earrings. A single earring or a set typically takes up one magical ring slot. However, at the GM's discretion, a set of earrings could hold the magical power of items that would take the eyes, feet, or hand slots. Under no circumstances can a Dreamlands cat wear more then two sets of magical earrings, regardless of where they where worn. Of course, a cat may wear as many tail rings as it feels are fashionable. 

Spellcasting

A Dreamlands cat can make verbal spell components by yowling and meowing. It can make somatic components by flicking its whiskers and tail and moving its paws. If a spell requires a material component or spell focus the material component or focus must be adjacent to the cat (see the Faithful Feline Feat, to "carry" a divine focus on its body as a pattern). A cat must concentrate as a move action to cast spells with a somatic component. If the cat does not, the spell is lost unless the cat succeeds a concentration check against 15+twice the spells level.  

Languages

Dreamland cats speak cat, but cannot speak other languages. Dreamlands Cats always know the native language of the Humanoid culture they live in (this is most frequently Common). Dreamlands cats with high intelligence scores can choose any non-secret language as a bonus language if raised in a humanoid society. If raised in a non humanoid society (such as elf, halfling, ect.) then they can choose from the bonus languages available to that race. The cats understand these languages and can also read them but cannot speak them. Cats can be understood by anyone who speaks cat, or can be interpreted by people who spend a lot of time with the cat.

NOTE: There are magic items that allow Dreamland cats to speak out loud or telepathically with their companions, but without the assistance of said item, the cat is unable to clearly share its thoughts with the party. If the Dreamland cat chooses to return to its cat intelligence this item no longer works as the cat does not have the intelligence to attune to it.  

Tiny

Dreamlands cats are Tiny creatures, and gain a +2 size bonus to Dexterity and a -2 penalty to Strength (these bonuses are included in the ability adjustments)as well as a +2 size bonus to their AC. Due to their size they also have advantage on stealth checks and checks to escape grapples.

In addition to this they have a reach of zero, and must be in the opponents square to attack them in Melee, which provokes an attack of opportunity. Since Dreamlands cat have no natural reach they do not threaten the squares around them, Other creatures may walk through these squares without provoking an attack of opportunity. Dreamlands Cat's can not flank an Enemy.