Homebrew Ceri Species Details
Ceri are a large race of beastkin that bear an uncanny resemblance rhinoceroses. They have humanoid torsos, arms and hands, but the head of a rhinoceros, and muscular digitigrade legs that terminate in round three-toed feet. They bear an intimidating facial horn that grow to be as long as 4 feet which they use as a natural weapon, and are covered head to toe in thick grey skin that is even tougher than leather armor. They are much larger than most races, standing anywhere from 7 to 8 feet tall (not including the length of their horns). Most people refer to them as "rhinofolk," since the race tends to keep largely to itself and their true names aren't widely known. They are a very family-oriented people, and their tribal culture is steeped in tradition, storytelling, and mysticism.
Naive and Reclusive
Ceri once called the Elemental Plane of Earth their home until the Spellplague caused it to collapse into the Elemental Chaos. Before the Spellplague, ceri tribes would occasionally travel to the Prime Material Plane and make it their permanent home. Humanoids who had any knowledge of the planes might assume that the harsh environment of the Elemental Plane of Earth drove certain tribes away due to food shortages. Ceri haven't confirmed or denied their exact reasons for being there, instead choosing to keep their reasons to themselves. In fact, ceri prefer to keep much of the information about their people private, quietly dismissing any questions posed about a tribe or individual. This leads most people to view the rhinofolk with a measure of suspicion. Their imposing physiques do them no favors in that regard either, and some people fear them the same way they would a troll or an ogre.
Despite their bestial forms and reclusive nature, they are not an unkind people. It is not terribly uncommon to hear tales about weary and wounded adventurers being allowed safe haven for a few nights in a ceri village to share a meal or two and rest up for their journey. The primary reason why most ceri keep to themselves is simply because they are cautious, and naive to the nature of the Prime Material Plane. They see and hear of evil acts being performed by monsters and members of all races, those acts sometimes being committed against other members of the same race. These acts confound the ceri, and most believe that if they interact with the beings of the prime material plane, they might become corrupted.
Racial Bond
The thing that confounds ceri the most about the people of the Prime Material Plane is how an individual can commit crimes both petty and violent against members of its own race. To the ceri, every member of their race is no different than a member of their own family, and should be treated with love and respect. This belief is deep-seated in ceri, and the principal that their very society is built off of. There are few crimes so grave that it would cause a ceri to turn its back on a member of its own race. Violence against another ceri would be one, at least, but the idea of committing such a heinous act against a member of their own kind is cause for confusion and distress, and to even accuse a ceri of harming a member of its own race is a serious crime in an of itself if found to be false.
Occasionally, tribes of ceri that are dangerously low on supplies will hire themselves out in their entirety to small towns or cities and act as an outer patrol in exchange for resources, or they may send their finest warriors to join the ranks of an army for a limited time to secure a season's worth of food for their tribe. On even rarer occasions, two tribes of ceri will have the same idea and appear in opposition of each other on the battlefield. In these infrequent scenarios, ceri will still refuse to fight each other, even when the side they are fighting for is being routed by the ceri hired by their opposition. Even if their entire tribe suffers because their employers lost the battle, ceri will quietly endure it, taking solace in the fact that they did not sacrifice the life of a ceri that didn't deserve to die so that they could survive.
Mystic Horns
Unlike their rhinoceros relatives, ceri horns are true horns, in that they are made of bone and coated with a sheet of keratin. They are far stronger than regular rhinoceros horns, and while ceri do employ normal weaponry in combat scenarios, they regard their horns as the only weapon they can truly rely on.
A ceri's horn is its part of its identity, and very important to who they are. When a ceri comes of age, they undergo a spiritual trial in which they imbibe a special liquid concocted by the tribe's elder. This liquid is said to take a ceri to the astral plane, where they must confront themselves in battle to overcome their inner darkness. The trial often takes three days to conclude, and when a ceri has returned from his spiritual journey, he is considered an adult, and he is marked with the paint of his first story. As ceri get older, their horn grows, and the significant events of their life are painted onto the horn as a way to identify them. When a ceri dies, its horn is not buried with it. Instead, the horns of fallen ceri are closely guarded by the ceri elder, as each horn tells the life story of every member. In this way, they can honor the fallen always by reading their stories and remembering their lives.
Losing their horn through battle or injury is a ceri's worst nightmare. To them, it is quite literally like being erased from history. If it cannot be repaired, their story will be lost, and nothing they do from then on will be recorded, meaning nothing they do from that point forward will matter. It is a soul-crushing thought for all ceri, and tribes will go to extreme lengths to facilitate the mending of a broken horn. In the rare event that a ceri's horn is damaged beyond repair, and its story has been lost, it is regarded as a race-wide tragedy. These ceri are wept for and mourned over as if they had actually died, as they cannot undergo a proper burial when they pass if they have no story. To offer some measure of solace to these unfortunate individuals, ceri have spent generations perfecting a special rite that involves the ritual suicide of the hornless ceri. After the hornless has taken its own life, its soul is drawn into a fired clay ceri statuette that acts as a vessel, and placed within ceri burial mounds so that their spirits can protect the horns of their ancestors. Ceri have the utmost respect for these idols, since the nameless spirits within them protect the stories in death that they themselves were robbed of in life.
Some individuals find these horns to be incredibly valuable, even priceless, and will go to absurd lengths to acquire even one ceri horn. Needless to say, to poach or otherwise steal a ceri's horn is an offense they would never forgive, not to mention a colossal mistake. The theft or poaching of a ceri horn is such a dire act that were such a thing ever to occur, it would almost certainly rouse their entire race to war with every living thing in the land. Ceri don't like making waves, and they prefer to simply be left to themselves in peace, but the wrath of a ceri is not to be taken lightly, as they can easily tear swathes through armies of men when provoked to action.
Ceri Traits
Your ceri character has a number of traits in common with all other ceri.Ability Score Increase
Your Strength score increases by 2 and your Constitution score increases by 1.
Age
Ceri reach maturity at the age of 16, and usually live to be 200 years old.
Alignment
Ceri are quiet, reserved, and prefer to be left alone. They will go to great lengths not to attract attention to themselves. They tend to be lawful neutral.
Size
Ceri tower above most humanoids, standing between 7 and 8 feet tall. Their powerful, muscular bodies support a dense skeleton and a large, heavy skull. They weigh anywhere from 600 to 800 pounds. Your size is Medium.
Speed
Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Goring Horn
All ceri sport a large, curved horn protruding from just above their nostrils, and they have no qualms about using their horn to violently gore their foes and send them flying. If you hit with your horn, you deal piercing damage equal to 1d8 + your Strength modifier.
Natural Armor
A ceri's tough skin protects it from incoming attacks. When you aren't wearing armor, your AC is equal to 13 + your Dexterity modifier.
Trampling Charge
Whenever you move in a straight line while taking the Dash action, you can choose to move through the squares of Medium or smaller creatures without provoking attacks of opportunity from them. Whenever you move through a creature's square, that creature must make a Dexterity saving throw (DC 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Strength Modifier). On a failed save, creatures take bludgeoning damage equal to your Strength modifier, and are knocked prone. You still provoke attacks of opportunity from creatures larger than you while using this ability, and after you use this ability, you can't take reactions until the beginning of your next turn. You can't end your turn in a square occupied by a creature, even if you successfully trample it.
Lorekeeper
You gain proficiency in the History skill.
Languages
You can read, write and speak Common and Cerian.
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