Homebrew Cervitaur Species Details

More so than their cousins, the centaur race, cervitaurs tend to reside in the Feywild. These forest dwelling fey are generally considered noble creatures, ofttimes thought to be divine messengers by many cultures throughout the world. They have the appearance of a humanoid with the lower half of a deer, elk or moose; the humanoid half usually share some cervine traits such as antlers, droopy ears, spots or even fur.

Nature’s Cavalry

Cervitaurs have the upper bodies, down to the waist, of humanoids, displaying all the humanoid variety of skin tones and racial features. Their ears are slightly pointed and droopy, but their faces are wider and rounder than those of elves. Below the waist, they have the bodies of deer, elk, or moose, with a similar range of coloration and patterns.

The upper bodies of cervitaurs are comparable to human torsos in size, and their lower cervine bodies average about 3-4 feet tall at the withers. Though they are usually smaller than a human rider mounted on a horse, they fill similar roles as cavalry warriors, messengers, outriders, and scouts.

Affinity for Nature

Cervitaurs have an affinity for the natural world, they celebrate life and growth, and the birth of a faun is always cause for festivities. At the same time, they revere the traditions of the past, they are voices of memory and history, preserving old ways and keeping alive the legends of ancestral heroes. They feel a close kinship with wild animals, perhaps because of their own deer-like bodies, and delight in the feeling of running alongside herds and packs of other beasts.

Clans and Community

Cervitaurs sense the interconnectedness of the natural world. Thus, they celebrate family and community as microcosms of that greater connection. Cervitaurs are fiercely loyal to their individual communities as well as the clan as a whole.

Cervitaur Names

Cervitaurs’ given names are passed down through family lines. The name bestowed on a new faun is typically the name of the most recently deceased family member of the same gender, keeping alive the memory — and, the cervitaurs believe, some shard of the spirit — of the departed. Cervitaurs don’t use family names, but they often wear symbols that represent their family membership. These symbols might include graphical representations of plants or animals, printed mottoes, braids and beads worn in the hair and tail, or even specific patterns of woven fabric.

Male Names: Artemis, Blitzen, Bramble, Buck, Comet, Cupid, Dasher, Donner, Harry, Hart, Ronno, Rudolf, Prince, Prongs, Sven, Yakul

 

Female Names: Dancer, Doe, Dot, Ena, Faline, Fauna, Flora, Grace, Holly, Jane, Kaliska, Mena, Nara, Nea, Ofra, Olive, Peace, Prancer, Rose, Shika, Snow, Velvet, Vixen, Willow

Cervitaur Traits

Your cervitaur character has the following racial traits. These traits are also suitable for the cervitaurs of other worlds where there are cervitaurs of fey origin. These cervitaurs are smaller than the non-fey cervitaurs that roam in some realms.

Ability Score Increase

Your Dexterity score increases by 2, and your Wisdom score increases by 1.

Age

Cervitaurs mature and age at about the same rate as humans.

Alignment

Cervitaurs are inclined toward good.

Size

Cervitaurs stand between 5 and 7 feet tall, with their cervine bodies reaching about 3-4 feet at the withers. Your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 40 feet.

Fey

Your creature type is fey, rather than humanoid.

Charge

If you move at least 30 feet straight toward a target and then hit it with a melee weapon attack on the same turn, you can immediately follow that attack with a bonus action, making one attack against the target with your antlers or hooves.

Antlers and Hooves

Your antlers and your hooves are natural melee weapons, which you can use to make unarmed strikes. If you hit with your hooves, you deal bludgeoning damage equal to 1d4 + your Strength modifier, instead of the bludgeoning damage normal for an unarmed strike. If you hit with your antlers, you deal piercing damage equal to 1d4 + your Dexterity modifier.

Cervine Build

You count as one size larger when determining your carrying capacity and the weight you can push or drag.

In addition, any climb that requires hands and feet is especially difficult for you because of your cervine legs. When you make such a climb, each foot of movement costs you 4 extra feet, instead of the normal 1 extra foot.

Survivor

You have proficiency in one of the following skills of your choice: Animal Handling, Medicine, Nature, or Survival.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common and Sylvan.