Homebrew Kipir Species Details

Physical Description

An evolved form of a winged owlbear variant known as a Kipine. Having shed their 'monstrosity' rating for a smaller form and a more civilized lifestyle. Pronunciation: Kih-PEER

Kipir stand about 6.5-7 feet tall, and lithe like the elves. They are just as happy walking on their talons as they are flying. They can not hover. Their tough hides are covered in thick fur, black or brown. On their faces, they have feathers instead of fur, generally white. They have mouths, not beaks. Their eyes are almond shaped, with a black iris. The pupils glow faintly in the dark. They have dark grey wings, resembling those of a wyvern. When crossing their arms, the wings cover their bodies like a cloak. They have small horns, about 2 inches long, sticking out on the top of their heads. Their triangular ears come out next to the horns. They can, and generally, do, dye their fur and wings various colors, just for fun.

Society

Tribe Life They live in tribes, either in a tree house village, interconnected with walkways, or mountainside nests (like giant swallow nests) made of wood, also interconnected with walkways. Kipir who no longer have a twin or their twin’s egg never hatched, tend to be groomed for leadership roles. Three of them are elected to be the tribe’s rulers, and lead until they die or choose to retire. The rest make up the “Council of Ones”, to aid the rulers.

All of them wear a necklace. They make and decorate their own as part of a right of passage. They tend to make it to fit their chosen occupation. For example, the warriors have a thick heavy necklace which holds their shield. The leaders each wear one of "opulence” that gets handed down from leader to leader. Some like to decorate their necklaces with shiny trinkets they have found here and there.

Offspring and Community Females go into heat 3 times in their lives and lay 2 eggs each time. No more, no less. There is a deep fondness between mates, but mates for life is rare. In families where the father is not constant, he is still a part of their lives. Children are tribe- and mother-raised. Fathers take on a kindly grandfather, or uncle role, sometimes taking his children for a couple times a month to spend quality time. All kipir are twins, until death. There is a strong sense of community.

Twins have a slight empathetic bond with each other. They can sense strong emotions with each other. They know if one was injured. And they definitely know when their twin dies. But they are *NOT* telepathic.

Armor and Weaponry Kipir warriors tend to use weaponry like polearms, spears, javelins and barbed nets. When flying, they use their talons. When on the ground, they fight with their claws. They can grip the weapons with either, with ease. They lose an attack when switching from flying to ground attack and vice versa. The foe would also have advantage of attack. Kipir get to choose an open field terrain of their choice for advantage (mountain, hill, grassland, etc), but also have a disadvantage fighting in an enclosed area (narrow town, dungeon, etc).

The Outside World They are adept with their claws and talons. They make pottery and weave baskets, colored dyes and brushes, which they trade with other races nearby. They go to towns and cities two times a month for trade. While uncommon, kipir are not unknown in the Realm. They tend to stay to themselves otherwise. They have a rich oral tradition, but no written language. Their language is a series of growls and chirps, tweets and coos. But many of them do tend to learn Common

They don’t care much about money, they think humanoid races are silly for being so materialistic. They trade their wares for food and other materials. But they are like magpies in their fascination and love of shiny things.

Eating Habits They are mostly carnivores but can subside for a time on berries and nuts. A kipir’s favorite treat is the rare bit of honey.

Views On Other Races Most kipir only interact with other races during bi-monthly ‘Trade days’ where they go to the nearest village (often human or elven) to trade goods. Kipir like to live separate from other civilizations but most (not all) are also welcoming and friendly toward other peaceful races.

Kipir Names

Kipir names cannot be pronounced in other languages but a kipir who chooses to leave his or her tribe may often take a name they have heard, seen, or read and think common to other races. They cannot tell the difference between male names and female names unless they have studied other races somewhat.

Kipir Traits

Ability Score Increase.

Your Strength, Constitution and Charisma score each increase by 1.

Age.

Kipir first take flight at the age of 3 and are fully mature by the age of 10. Kirpir are be expected to live anywhere from 50-60 years.

Alignment.

The majority of kipir are lawfully neutral.

Size.

Kirpir are on average around 6 to 7 feet tall and average over 200 pounds. Your size is Medium.

Speed.

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Darkvision.

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. You can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.

Flight.

You have a flying speed of 50 feet. To use this flying speed, you cannot be wearing medium or heavy armor. You also cannot hover and must expand your entire flying speed on your turn or at the end of their turn, they fall to the ground.

Natural Armor.

Your bear-like hide and fur provide you some semblance of protection. When you aren't wearing armor, your AC is 12 + your Dexterity modifier. You can use your natural armor to determine your AC if the armor you wear would leave you with a lower AC. A shield's benefits apply as normal while you use your natural armor.

True North.

You always know which way is north, and approximately what time it is.

Languages.

You can speak, read, and write Common and speak Kipir, a dialect of Sylvan unique to kipir. Kipir isn't written.

Blindsight.

"Blindsight" was a general term for the natural ability of certain creatures to perceive their surroundings as well as a sighted creature yet without using visual senses. ... Because the sense of sight was not involved, a creature with blindsight was not hindered by such spell effects as invisibility or darkness. Sight 120ft.