Homebrew Mudborn Species Details

Physical Description

Mudborn are humanoid axolotls, a salamander stuck in their nymph phase. They have stubby legs and hands, their tails making up half of their body length and providing support for when they need waddle their way onto land. Six feathery gills protrude from the back of their head, three on each side, and look similar to horns from a distance. Usually seen with an adorable face that makes them look a bit derpy, however, some claim that they are more adorable when mad for their habit to try to appear scary.

There are five different subtypes of Mudborn, the most common being Mossys. Their namesake comes from the shades of green, brown, and black pigments in their skin that makes it look like they’re covered in moss, flecks of shiny gold making their way into the mix, their gills a dark purple-grey color. Dalmatians are the second most common Mudborn, incredibly pale in comparison to Mossys. They tend to be white to a very pale pink and their back and head are typically covered in black speckles and their gills are a bright blood red due to having no pigment between skin and the blood vessels. Roses are very similar to Dalmatians in appearance, their skin a bit more rosy and lacking the black speckles alone their spine. Their eyes are pink or red instead of the black of Mossys and Dalmatians. The rarest of the Mudborns, Imperials, are golden in color with clear eyes and peachy gills and are the most similar to Roses. The last Mudborn, ranking as the second rarest, are Nightmares. These are quite possibly the kindest Mudborns out their despite these appearance and name. They are usually black or dark blue-grey in color with black eyes and dark blue/dark red gills.

All Mudborn have slimy skin coated in mucus to protect them from the salty waters of their home as well as to grant them certain resistances, based on their subtype. Mudborn, unlike normal axolotls, can climb out of the water, as long as they keep their skin and gills wet.

A Mudborn’s native languages is called Bubbles, similar to that of morse code. It’s most effective underwater, for it requires bubbles, but they also know Aquan and Sylvan to speak on land. Bubbles has no written components.

History

If History must be honest, Mudborns started out as a fae’s experiment gone wrong. A fairy noble was wanting to create some servants and intended to create humanoid fairy dragons. However, the dragons tricked the noble and the fairy got Mudborn instead. Upset that they were tricked, the fairy kicked the first Mudborns out of the First World and into a lake, where they grew in population and spread out, migrating towards oceans for safety. They now live in underwater caverns to hide from bird monsters and sea beasts, a labyrinth in front of the entrance to their village to confuse predators, the predators usually dying in the dead ends because they can’t turn around. Because of being a experiment with fae magic, they have some magical abilities relating to water.

The first Mudborns were Mossys, but as their numbers began to rise, mutations started to occur. At first, the mutated Mudborns were not accepted into society and outcasted, but they have since learned how to be more open-minded towards their brethren.

Mudborns, despite many misconceptions, are a carnivorous race of fierce hunters, feasting on mollusks, crustaceans, and small fish. Some are known to catch crabs, shrimp, lobster, and fish to sell in port markets, as well as treasures they discover and drag to the surface while scavenging ships. While their adorable faces make it hard for people to say no to their offers, Mudborn are too kind to swindle people out of their money. Except for the very few evil Mudborn.

Society

One of the lesser fears of Mudborn were other humanoids such as elves, humans, half-orcs, mainly for their sheer size compared to Mudborn, but they have decided to look past the size difference to see their true selves. They admire an elf’s grace, a half-orcs ferocity, and the human diversity. They bond closely with gnomes and are good friends to halflings, finding it easier to be around these small folk. They are wary of dwarves, however, finding these mountin dwellers rather intimidating, especially with their booming voices.

Mudborns cannot wear metal armor, it suffocates them for they do breathe through their skin. They, however, can find armor made of more natural materials such as wood and clam shells which don’t impede on bonuses or stealth disadvantages. Typical Mudborn armor looks like scale mail made of shells and clams, as well as two bucklers that look like fish eyes, usually used to make them look like large fish.

Mudborn create villages in their underwater caverns and tend to have a very structured society. Villages are lead by a council, usually consisting of at least one of each subrace of Mudborn so each gets a say, and of varying classes. During the coming of age ceremony on the year of the Mudling’s 15th birthday, all the mudlings who had birthdays that year are gathered up on the last day. They spend the day competing in games and sport (these depend on the village), then are sent out to spend the night outside the safety of the village and aren’t allowed even into the labyrinth. Those who survive the night (which most do, villages tend to be near bronze dragon lairs to keep the sharks away from their homes, which are the main predators in the oceans) have a big feast of shrimp and fish to celebrate they’re coming of age. Mudborn have different roles in society, mostly dependent on their racial strengths. Nightmares tend to hunt, Dalmations explore alongside Roses, who are intent on finding new things to research. Imperials are commonly diplomats and ambassadors, while Mossys tend to lead their villages through their wisdom.

Mudborn Names

They get birth names, like every other race, but during the feast day of the coming-of-age ceremony, each mudling gets a name based on their accomplishments or their personality. They claim that their birth names are based off fruits and vegetables, but sometimes it’s hard to see why. Mudborns go by both names, but some prefer one name to the other.

Birth Names: Neocan, Otil, Phikin, Wrirang, Viantine, Flitain, Occeatain, Fecrirean, Uzucine, Brobbomousse.

Given Names: Fast One, Shark Confuser, Fire Coral, Bubblelove, Wavesinger, Mersaver.

 

Mudborn Traits

A cute, little salamander with the most precious face in the world, a loyal friend to those they trust.

Ability Score Increase

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

Age

Axolotls reach adulthood at age 10 and can live up to 80 years.

Alignment

Axolotls are usually friendly and tend to be good hearted, sometimes to the point of innocence, so most of them tend towards good alignments.

Size

Axolotls, on average, are about 3 feet tall and weigh about 40 pounds. Your size is Small.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 25 feet. You also have a swim speed of 35 feet.

Aquasense

While underwater, you have blindsight in a 30 foot radius.

Precious Face

Your face is simple and cute, making it difficult to instill fear in others. You have disadvantage on Charisma (Intimidate) checks, however you have advantage on Charisma (Persuasion) checks.

Slippery Skin

Your slippery skin makes you hard to grasp. Enemies who try to grapple you have disadvantage on their roll.

Water Dependency

If you fail to immerse yourself in water for at least 1 hour during a day, you suffer 1 level of exhaustion at the end of that day. You can recover from this exhaustion only through magic or by immersing yourself in water for at least 1 hour.

Languages

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