Homebrew Coralite Species Details

"Life like a coral must be fascinating, living in the waters and growing beside aquatic life." Kelly said in a gleeful manner. The adventures in the depths of water were sure fascinating, but alas, they had come to an end.

Accompanied by their new, coral companion, they watched as the sun set, getting engulfed by the very waters from which their new friend had risen. The orange hues sprinkled the waters with a glimmer, lighting everything in a fiery orange. Rock pillars rose from the waters and added to the beauty, similar coral folk gazing back on top of the cliff to their family, now an adventurer who wished to see past the waters.

The coral now stands beside their new companions, looking over their new life. They sigh, happy to learn more past the waters but naturally a little sad to leave their family behind. If only there was a way to do both..

Coralites — living hunks of organic matter, these creatures are the incarnation of the reefs of many little creatures, come to life with the magic of nature. Often a surprise to underwater adventurers, Coralites love to spook divers and jump at them as the divers swim around them. They inhabit a symbiotic relation with all the fishes they share their waters with, giving the fishes a place to live in them and in turn getting food from the fishes, either by sharing food with the fishes if they wish to be peaceful or wreaking havoc and eating the fishes whole.

Calm and Natural

Rare to adventure, Coralites are folk who like to stay in one place for majority of their lives, living off of the organic matter in the ocean. Coralites are of calm nature, usually involving themselves in catering of and cultivation of various different kinds of aquatic plant life and fishes, loving to take care of the little things. Gardeners of the ocean, Coralites are known to be ocean dwellers that rarely leave the floor, eating residue and great scavengers of the nature. They are taller and bulkier than average humans, usually capping out their height at about 6 to 7 feet, and weighing around 250 to 300 pounds.

Coralites don't have a specific coloration and can be found in a lot of colors, ranging from bright hues to dull and gloomy grays. Usually in warm and saturated colors, the Coralites can get duller in color as they age, most going gray after a certain point in their lives.

One with the Ocean

Having a sentient but dependent body, Coralites live for centuries, rarely even reaching a millennium, depending on where they inhabit themselves and their birth reef. Usual lifespans of Coralites easily range from 500 to 600 years, almost living a timeless life in the depths of the ocean. The Coralites that decide to venture above and beyond, and leave their oceanic life are hindered in their lifespan, chopping off a few hundred years of life as they spend their lives on land and only sometimes submerge themselves in water instead. Some choose to have an eventful, short life than a calm and peaceful but long one, and each lifestyle is seen equally by the Coralite societies, it's only the matter of preference.

Growths in the ocean, Coralites usually stray away from violence. Preferring to choose a peaceful way to sort things more often than not, Coralites are not heavy fighters, but when needed, mostly in the case of adventuring Coralites, they can learn how to use a weapon to their advantage. Though, Coralites are typically not the best with delicate weapons, preferring bulky ones like big axes and heavy hammers to compliment their own bulkiness.

World in the Shallow

Unless adventuring, Coralites often choose to hide from other adventurers, except the few mischievous ones, who like to spook the divers. Coralites often go still and motionless when they wish to not be seen,  easily being passed as hunks of corals in shapes that vaguely resemble humanoids. Most Coralites don't choose to go very deep into the waters, staying higher up on the ocean floor and not going to the deep dark depths. They prefer to stay in clear, warm waters and eat the seaweed they cultivate on the surface, along with the fishes.

Coralites who are encountered on land are always adventurers who wish to learn more about the land and the curious kind, as their kind doesn't leave water unless it's absolutely necessary to.

Curious Giants

Coralites take up adventuring out of wanderlust and the curiosity to learn more about land and the people of land. Many choose this path, because of their long lived kind having enough of the cultivating lifestyle after an extended amount of time. Though some choose to stay back, the ones that wander beyond the waves don't regret their decisions as long as they keep themselves close to water or a shore at all times. Coralites need water for their sustenance so they can never truly leave it behind, but most don't wish to anyway.

Coralite Names

Coralites usually name themselves at some point in their large lifetimes, usually just going by nicknames until they choose to give themselves a title. The names of Coralites are often from their parents, usually just grunts or noises made by them as a child which stuck to them as names, to the point they choose to give themselves a more well structured and defined name. Some Coralites who are adventurers choose to give themselves names that are something they have accomplished, or wish to be. Their names can be anything.

The names that resemble grunts and noises are usually only for younger Coralites who don't have much of a want to be called something else.

Coralite Traits

A coralite grows and is nourished in the water and when it wishes to leave the waters, the world meets the coralite's natural beauty.

Ability Score Increase

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

Age

The living reefs take long times to grow to their maximum sizes, often taking up to a hundred years to grow up to their complete size, they are slow growers. Even after they have grown to their complete sizes and mature at around the same age, Coralites are considered young till they reach their 300th year, when they are officially considered an adult in the Coralite societies. A Coralite typically lives for about 600 to 700 years, some even rarely reaching the thousand year mark, if they choose to live solely in the waters.

Alignment

Coralites believe in freedom and letting their kind do whatever they so wish, and hence their kind does tend to gravitate to gentle chaotic natures, some often staying neutral. Humble and kind, these giants generally don't wish any foul on any other living beings and are more often good than not.

Size

Coralites range from 6 to 7 feet tall and usually weigh about 250 to 300 pounds. Your size is medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Darkvision

Accustomed to the depths of the ocean and the darkness in the waters at nights, you have superior vision and can see clearer in darkness than most. You can see in dim light within 60 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.

Limited Amphibiousness

You can breathe air and water, but you need to be submerged at least once every 4 hours to avoid coral decay.

One with the Ocean

You gain proficiency in the Nature and Animal Handling skills. You also have a great connection to the aquatic life and have learnt the ways of the fishes, and are able to communicate in a limited manner with aquatic animals and plants. They can understand the meaning of your words, though you have no special ability to understand them in return. You have advantage on all Charisma checks you make to influence them.

Draining Punches

Little life grows in the Coralite reef, and their symbiotic ways have not left them. Coralites have retained their properties, and as such, a Coralite can drain a little life from another creature. Once per short rest, you can make an unarmed strike as a bonus action and heal 1d6 hitpoints alongside it, dealing additional necrotic damage equal to the number rolled, draining their health as you attack them.

Hivemind

Due to not being a singular creature in or yourself and rather a colony of little ones, you refer to yourself as 'we' or 'us' as it feels right. You gain a resistance to psychic damage as your hivemind is hard to damage.

Languages

You can speak, read and write Common and Aquan.