Homebrew Courtling Species Details
"Faeries are twilight creatures, and I have become one, too. We rise when the shadows grow long and head to our beds when the sun rises."
-Holly Black, the Cruel Prince
The Feywild is home to many wondrous creatures, most of which mortals never even catch a glimpse of. Some are beautiful and benevolent, but others are frightening, cruel, and nearly indistinguishable from beings of the shadowfell, the Feywild's negative counterpart. While some Faerie creatures are tainted with human blood, and therefore forbidden from re-entering the Feywild upon death, but Courtlings are Faerie Folk with a direct lineage to one of the Fae Courts.
Born From Nature
Courtlings are born from the wish of a nature spirit, or a bargain with a powerful archfey. Most Courtlings choose to spend their lives in palaces in the realm of the fae, where they are considered nobility, but some of the more adventurous Courtlings leave in search of something else. Those who leave for the realms of mortals willingly are considered strange, as it means forfeiting a significant amount of power. For most, a Courtling only arrives in the Material Plane as exile for some crime.
Death: A Second Journey
For a Courtling, dying is not the end of life. A dead Courtling returns to the Feywild within 24 hours of their destruction on the Material Plane. A Courtling who has died once on the Material Plane cannot return any more easily than another creature who has died (any resurrection spell is still sufficient), but can still exist perfectly easily in the Feywild. Some Courtlings who have been exiled to the Material Plane's sentences are lifted when they return to the Material plane upon death, while others are hurled into some eternal prison plane. A Courtling who left willingly or escaped the Feywild can resume their status as it was before they left.
Courtling Names
Although a Faerie's true name is one of their most closely guarded secrets, Fae see the importance of names given to the public as a strictly humanoid tradition. Courtlings who do choose to adopt a name typically use names from the Elven or Human dialects.
Courtling Traits
Your courtling character has a variety of natural abilities in common with other Courtlings.
Ability Score Increase. Your Wisdom score increases by 2.
Age. Courtlings mature at the same rate as humans, but live significantly longer, living anywhere from 750-1000 years old.
Alignment. Courtlings are members of the upper Faerie Courts, meaning they value their own safety and enjoyment above all other things. Many Courtlings are chaotic neutral, although some tend more towards chaotic good.
Size. Courtlings are usually taller, tending to be around 6-7 feet tall.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet. Some Courtlings also have a flying speed of 50 feet (your choice).
Darkvision. Some corners of the Feywild are shrouded in shadow. You have darkvision with a radius of 60 feet.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and Sylvan.
Noble Ancestry. You have proficiency in one of the following skills: Deception, Intimidation, or Persuasion.
Shadow Step. While in dim light or darkness, you can cast the misty step spell as a bonus action. Once you have used this feature once, you cannot do so again until you've finished a Long Rest.
Subrace. Two courts divide the Fae Courts into groups that split the Feywild in a constant state of conflict: the Seelie and the Unseelie. The Seelie Court is a mirthful affair, filled with constant revelry and hilarity. The grim Unseelie Court is tied to the Shadowfell, and shrouded in mystery.
Seelie Fae
As a Seelie Fae, you were raised in an environment of fun and revelry, constant celebrations dominating your daily life. Entering a realm filled with difficulty and serious problems may be a bit of a culture shock to you, as your realm of existence was wildly different.
Ability Score Increase. Your Constitution score increases by 1.
Charming. You can wield the power of the Feywild to enchant those who you speak with. Once you have spoken with a creature for at least one minute, as long as the creature isn't hostile to you, you can choose to make a Charisma (Persuasion) check, contested by the creature's Wisdom (Insight) check. If you succeed, the creature is considered to be charmed. This effect lasts for 24 hours, or until you harm the charmed creature or any of its allies. You can do this an amount of times equal to your Charisma modifier. Once you have done this, you can't do it again until you've finished a Short or Long Rest.
Tireless Revelry. You don't suffer any ill effects from the exhausted condition, and don't require any sleep.
Trusting. You have disadvantage on saving throws against being charmed.
Unseelie Fae
The Unseelie Fae are a dark and mysterious group, often brooding for centuries on conflicts that have been long resolved. Nobody knows the exact origin of the Unseelie Court. Maybe a leak from the Shadowfell tainted the minds of a small group of Seelie Fae, causing them to fall from their formerly noble status. Maybe some Fae creatures fell out of favor with a powerful archfey, losing their light in place of something darker. Whatever the cause, the Unseelie Fae are very different from their Seelie cousins, abandoning the light in favor of something else.
Ability Score Increase. Your Charisma score increases by 1.
Damage Resistance. You have resistance to psychic damage.
Improved Darkvision. Your darkision increases to 120 feet.
Fear Aura. As an action, you can activate an aura of terror that fills a 15-foot radius centered on you. Each creature in that area must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw. The DC for the saving throw is equal to 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier. A creature that fails the saving throw is frightened of you for 1 minute. Once you have used this feature, you can't do it again until you finish a Long Rest.
Sunlight Sensitivity. You have disadvantage on attack rolls and on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight when you, the target of your attack, or whatever you are trying to perceive is in direct sunlight.
Courtling Traits
Your courtling character has a variety of natural abilities in common with other Courtlings.Darkvision.
Some corners of the Feywild are shrouded in shadow. You have darkvision with a radius of 60 feet.
Languages.
You can speak, read, and write Common and Sylvan.
Noble Ancestry.
You have proficiency in one of the following skills: Deception, Intimidation, or Persuasion.
Shadow Step.
While in dim light or darkness, you can cast the misty step spell as a bonus action. Once you have used this feature once, you cannot do so again until you've finished a Long Rest.
Ability Score Improvement.
Your Wisdom score increases by 2.
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