Homebrew Damphyre Species Details

Damphyres are the twisted spawn of mating between Mortals and Vampires. While uncommon the existence of Dampyres has represented something of an enigma in wider Vampiric society, with their place among their ranks being hotly disputed within and even between the various large faction of Vampires. The best a Damphyre can generally hope from Vampiric society is to become a thankless "Daylight Agent"  for the Vladak or the Tumultari, carrying out the work of their chosen faction under the sun while their more valuable members sleep, the worst of course is execution. Occupying a strange place between life and death, Damphyres are able to operate in both Mortal and Undead society with surprising surface level ease however are never able to truly feel a part of either.

Child of Light and Dark

Damphyres cannot be created by any means and can only be born from the mating of a Vampire and a Mortal. The mother, even if they are the Vampiric component in this relationship, generally dies in childbirth and the surviving parent has to face numerous complications themselves. If the Father is a Vampire they generally become outlaws from Vampiric society and are hunted tirelessly, and if they are Mortals their child, unable to control their Vampiric urges, generally kills them at some point around their adolescence. Because of this Damphyres rarely survive into adulthood and without guidance generally become feral, starve or are discovered and killed by either Vampires or Mortals. Those who survive find themselves in a two worlds simultaneously, neither of which truly values them or respects their existence. They have very few of the weaknesses of their Vampiric kin, being able to survive in Sunlight and being unharmed by Silver, however they also do not have most of the powers and Bloodline nuance that make true Vampires what they really are.

A Taste of Vampirism

Damphyres are almost ageless, taking influence from their Mortal parent's average lifespan as well as the agelessness of their Vampiric parent. As such, while Damphyres can live for exceptionally long times (such as those with an Elven or Dwarven parent) they are not immortal like their Vampiric parent and do age, however slowly, and can one day succumb to Mortality. While they are able to operate in the Sunlight they do suffer from a sunlight sensitivity comparable to Dark Elves and Duergar, but are not harmed or indeed killed horribly by it as their Vampiric parents would be. They cannot use the secret magics of their Vampiric family's bloodline nor can they pass through the tribulations to gain more powers as they can, however they do retain their unnerving ability to climb spider-like on most surfaces and even upside down. Damphyres still need to feed on the blood of Humanoids to stay alive and sadly must do so just as often as their Vampiric parent, that being at least drinking enough to drain one Human every week to stave off their more bestial side. Unlike full Vampires however they do not suffer from a monstrous craving for blood and are far more able to resist their urges so long as they remain well-fed and do not attempt to abstain from feeding but can still become completely feral if they do not feed for more than a week, only stopping once their hunger has been sated.

Subtle Nature

Damphyres are fortunate in their appearance, oftentimes simply looking like pale, gaunt versions of what they would have looked like as Mortals. They are known to have pale, sometimes even golden eyes and while they do have fangs they are not as noticeable as the fangs on full Vampires and would only be noticed should a Damphyre commit to some kind of dental examination. There is a stereotype of hamphyres (and Vampires in general) to be of an evident, brooding gothic style in their appearance however this is simply untrue and is a simply a trait invented by Bards and playwrights, the truth is that Damphyres are among the most subtle Undead in the known world and can very easily assimilate into Mortal society with very little risk of ever being discovered so long as they are able to keep their urges under lock and key. Some Damphyres display mutations similar to full Vampires, particularly those whose Vampiric parent was of the Turpis Bloodline, however even then the odds of a Damphyre appearing remarkably different from a standard Mortal is low and as a rule the parent's bloodline has little to no real effect on how the Damphyre eventually develops.

Variety is the Spice of Death

Damphyres can come from any Mortal Humanoid race that can mate with a True Vampire. Unfortunately as half-breeds they do not develop fully as their Mortal parent or their Vampiric one and have none of the traits of either, instead operating in a strange middle-ground between the two. As a result Damphyres from Mortal stock such as Lizardfolk and Tritonian tend not to survive very long as many of their Mortal parent's racial traits are intrinsic to their survival and they simply do not have them. While most Damphyres are Human or Elven they can come from any Mortal race and as such can have any Mortal name and more importantly can assimilate into any Mortal society. Unlike other Undead they do not need magic or complicated disguises to do this and simply exist within these societies for as long as they desire, attempting to keep their urges in check and only feeding when necessary. 

Damphyre Traits

Your Damphyre has the following traits which are common to all Damphyres

Ability Score Increase

Your Dexterity score increases by 2 and your Charisma score increases by 1

Age

Damphyres can live for immensely long times, however this longevity is influenced by their Mortal parent. Human Damphyres can expect to live for around two to three hundred years, where Elven and Dwarven Damphyres can expect to live for closer to one thousand years, sometimes even more.

Alignment

Damphyres do not tend greatly towards any alignment besides neutrality, often becoming indifferent towards the plight of Mortals and Vampires alike. They are marked as Evil by their Mortal detractors due to the necessity of feeding however.

Size

Most Damphyres come from Human, Dwarven and Elven stock and as such are likely to be Medium. While small size category Damphyres do exist they are immensely rare and therefore not playable (so I don't have to make subraces)

Speed

You have a base walking and climbing speed of 35 feet.

Languages

You can speak Common and one more language of your choice. This language is generally a language popular among your Mortal parent's race however can be from any source.

Advanced Dark Vision

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.

Sunlight Sensitivity

You have disadvantage on attack rolls and on Perception checks that rely on sight when you, your target, or whatever you are trying to perceive is in direct sunlight.

Undead Resilience

Your creature type is Undead
You are Immune to being Poisoned and most Diseases
You are Resistant to Poison Damage
You do not need to eat, drink or breathe to survive and only need to rest for six hours a day in a semi-unconscious state to get a long rest You only need to drink enough blood to drain an adult Human once per week to sate your hunger.
Healing magics of all kinds are only half as effective on you.

Spider Climb

Damphyres can climb as quickly as they can walk. At level 3 a Damphyre can climb on all surfaces and even upside down as if effected by the Spider Climb spell

Vampiric Bite

Your fanged bite is a natural weapon, which counts as a simple melee weapon with which you are proficient. You add your Constitution modifier, instead of your Strength modifier, to the attack and damage rolls when you attack with this bite. It deals 1d4 piercing damage on a hit. While you are missing half or more of your hit points, you have advantage on attack rolls you make with this bite. You regain hitpoints equal to the damage done by this bite and can use this feature as many times as your proficiency bonus and regain all uses of it on a long rest.