Homebrew Kuo-Toa Species Details

“They create their own gods, the very definition of insanity.”—Saral Mizzrym of Menzoberranzan

Physical Description

A kuo-toa superficially resembles a grotesque cross between a fish and a humanoid. Their stout, stocky bodies are covered in slippery blue or purple scales, with clawed, webbed feet and black nails. Their hands are much more human-like, ending in the blunt nails typical of most humanoid races. Where one would normally expect the neck of a humanoid to be, there is instead the head of a fish, placed as if it had been grafted on. Some kuo-toa will display whiskers similar to those of a catfish, others have fins at the sides or tops of their heads, and a few have a mixture of both. Their bulging eyes are always a sickly yellow color, with a massive black pupil in the center.

History

In days long past, kuo-toa once dwelled on the shores and islands of the surface world. The kuo-toa were driven deep underground by the humans and their ilk, dooming them to spend eternity in darkness. In their prison of the Underdark, the kuo-toa came into contact with the illithid, and found themselves a new set of oppressors. The illithid subjected the kuo-toa to slavery, condemning thousands to lives as chattel. The kuo-toa were a simple race and were never intended to bear through the mental strain the illithids' psychic energy placed upon them. Nearly every kuo-toa was driven hopelessly mad and paranoid, and they retain their madness, even long after the mind flayers abandoned them. They invent their own gods in their madness, in a vain effort to protect themselves from the threats they face in their dangerous home.

Society

Kuo-toa revered deities of their own design. Though their gods are not real, if enough kuo-toa fervently believe in a deity, their subconscious minds have a strange way of combining their power and manifesting that deity as a physical entity. Among the most revered kuo-toa gods are Blibdoolpoolp the Sea Mother, a female human with a crayfish head, claws, and shell covering her shoulders.
Archpriests hold among the highest positions in kuo-toa society, being surrounded by fanatical devotees of their faith. Archpriests' devotion to their deities is so fervent that they manifest divine powers similar to a cleric. Archpriests also have the power to bestow a fraction of their mystical powers to particularly loyal underlings known as whips, who fight to the death to become the archpriest's heir when the archpriest succumbs. A disloyal whip may be stripped of its powers, if not its life.
Most other humanoid societies view the kuo-toas' strange ways with disdain, chief among them being the Drow, who have slain the kuo-toa on sight as long as the two races have known each other.

Kuo-Toa Names

Kuo-toa names are either stolen from other cultures or pulled from the dark depths of their insane minds, providing little deep meaning.

Male: Flip, Trent, Trajor, JolJom, Shuushar, Ploopploopeen, Glooglugogg

Female: Sally, Feminis, Sardini, Bloppblippodd

 

Kuo-Toa Traits

A repugnant race of slimy fish-like humanoids.

Ability Score Increase

Your strength score increases by 2 and your Constitution score increases by 1. 

Age

Kua Toa age much faster than humans, reaching maturity at 7 and seldom living over 60 years of age.

Alignment

Kuo-toa generally tend towards chaotic neutral and evil, their insane minds feeding their primal selfishness.

Size

Kuo-toa range from a little over 4 and a half to just barely over 7 feet tall, and weigh on average 150 pounds. Your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet, and you have a swimming speed of 30 feet.

Amphibious

You can breathe in both air and water.

Darkvision

You are accustomed to the darkness of the Underdark, where daylight has no power. You can see in dim light within 120 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.

Slippery

 You have advantage on ability checks and saving throws made to escape a grapple or avoid being grappled.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Kuo-Toan (A broken mix of ceremonial Aquan and Undercommon that is spoken by your native peoples), Undercommon, and Aquan.