Homebrew Krogan Species Details

The krogan are a race of battle-hardened reptilians who excel in front-line engagements. They are aggressive, determined, and extremely formidable in combat. Their legendary combat prowess is partially due to their resilience to survive combined with their robust physiology, which had evolved for the express purpose of making krogans near-impossible to put down in a straight fight. The krogans' homeland of Tuchanka is an unforgiving, brutal wasteland that had hardly shown any mercy for its inhabitants, which had caused the krogan to become even more unforgiving and twice as brutal. They were seen as an unstoppable force by the other races... until their aggressive pushes for new territory had gotten the better of them.

Juggernaut Physiology

Krogan biology reflects the hostile conditions of their homeland. The krogan are heavily armored nearly head to toe in thick, chitinous plates which had protected the krogan from the hazards of their homeland- mostly dangerous predators, hostile weather conditions, or other krogan. They had adapted a large, distinctive hump which has the ability to store water to adapt for Tuchanka's long drought periods and brutal desert climate. Finally, all krogan have a secondary set of major organs in the event of catastrophic damage to the first set, which allows them to shrug off major injuries when a second heart or pair of lungs are involved. This causes krogan to have exceptionally long lifespans, but the krogans' self-destructive tendencies often mean that no krogan dies of old age. Their terrifying endurance is partially what makes a krogan so dangerous, as well as a krogan's innate psychological response upon seeing blood become spilled.

The particular psychological phenomena of a krogan witnessing blood becoming spilled is referred to by modern biologists as a krogan's "Blood Rage", and it is also why many krogans find tranquility in the middle of battle. Krogans are inherently able to enter a zen-like trance while participating in major acts of violence; allowing a krogan to shrug off fatal injuries and face off against enemies who are several times over their weight class. This is believed to be the work of the krogans' primary and secondary organ systems providing them with 200% of the normal amount of adrenaline instead of a typical fear response. Whatever the case may be, a krogan who suddenly stops feeling pain is a very dangerous foe indeed. This is why many criminal communities seek out krogans for mercenary work, as a krogan's battlefield presence is undeniable.

Culture of Dominance

Krogans value one thing above all else: strength. Krogan society is built upon this hierarchy, where the strong thrive and the weak die. They live in clans lead by a Warlord, and those clans constantly war with each other for resources and for power. Even within these clans, treachery and distrust run rampant. Krogan often fight for dominance within these clans, and will sacrifice their clan for personal gain without a second thought. Females are considered prizes and trophies and live in clans separate from the males, except for the unlucky who become property of the male clans. Clans are little more than means of survival for a krogan, but exceptions have been known to exist from time to time. In exchange, many krogans who do not choose to live in solitude instead declare a "krantt"- an individual chosen to bear the krogan's emotional weights. A krantt is seen as a noble title, as they are a single krogan's most trusted confidant and champion.

The krogan culture is steeped in rituals. When a krogan is born, he suffers the Rite of Life. When they wish to join their first clan, they undergo the Rite of Passage. If they wish to be considered for breeding, they must take the Rite of Honor. When facing a new enemy, the Rite of Firsts is invoked. Those who survive these often-deadly rites become respected among their clan and are seen as members of the community, as they are then and only then allowed to converse with the opposite sex after their rites had been completed. A Krogan clan also has a shaman, who has endured the Rite of Insight. The shaman is a clan's spiritual leader and is believed to see into the spirit world itself. The rituals endured by a shaman who wishes to conduct these rites are lengthy and torturous, as most krogan who attempt the rite perish. Therefore, shamans among the krogan are rare and regarded as extremely respected among krogan communities, as they are expected to guide new members of the krogan community into rites themselves.

Failure among the Krogan

Krogan who leave Tuchanka cannot quench their lust for violence among the krogan. Either the krogan is too weak to compete with his peers, or reaches the top of the hierarchical ladder and becomes bored. These krogan depart in search of new enemies to kill, to find a being worthy of their power, and then to subsequently conquer them. Though it is rare for female krogan to leave the safety of their clans, some seek to prove their worth as krogan, and not simply breeding stock. This has also led to the belief that not only is a female krogan exceedingly dangerous, but they are also motivated by having something to prove to the traditionally male power structure of the krogan... causing them to be considered even more dangerous.

Territorial Imperatives

The krogans weren't always stuck in a recursive loop of fighting each other. For example, the krogans were first given the chance by major powers to help in a war against an outside force, to which the krogans had gladly accepted for the chance to dominate something new. Pleased by their performance, the krogan were given new territory as a peace offering so that they could live somewhere that wasn't considered a barren wasteland. However, since the krogans had no word for the concept of charity, they had used this new territory as a staging ground so that they could gain even more territory. Many lives were lost in the process, but the krogan's explosive reproductive rates meant that the other races would soon be overwhelmed by a tide of battle-crazed krogan who wanted nothing more than their heads. It was then that the other races had signed a compact to neutralize the krogan by creating a weapon that would help turn the tide of the krogan insurrections by targeting the krogan at the dead center of their culture- their fertility.

After the weapon, most modern krogan are only fertile enough to keep their race alive... but barely. Only one in one-thousand krogan are able to successfully carry an infant to term. This is why a majority of krogan simply choose to use their talents for more infighting or mercenary work, as it serves as a reminder for them to stay with what they were made for. Maybe someday, if they're lucky enough, they'll be able to crawl past the razor's edge and find a sanctuary after all.

Krogan Traits

Your Krogan character has the following racial traits.

Ability Score Increase

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

Age

Krogans reach adulthood at age 14 and live up to 1,000 years. However, due to a krogan's self-destructive lifestyle, this may become shorter than expected.

Alignment

Krogan are highly predisposed towards chaos, as their culture is violent, selfish, and brutal. While evil is more common among krogan, those of good and neutral alignments do exist among them. Good krogan find it especially difficult to thrive in Tuchanka and krogan society.

Size

Krogans are usually over 7 feet tall and weigh between 450 to 800 pounds. Your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet. Your speed is not slowed by heavy armor.

Blood Rage

Whenever you kill an enemy with a melee weapon attack, you can use a reaction to enter a mindless blood rage. Blood Rage lasts for 1 minute or until you end it as a bonus action. For the duration, you must move towards and attack an enemy on your turn and you cannot concentrate on spells. Additionally, you are immune to being charmed or frightened and you can spend one hit die to recover health at the start of each of your turns while blood rage is active. When blood rage ends, you have Vulnerability to all damage for the next six seconds. You must finish a long rest before you can enter blood rage again.

Aggressive

As a bonus action, you can move up to your speed toward an enemy of your choice that you can see or hear. You must end this move closer to the enemy than you started.

Krogan Endurance

Your body is naturally acclimated to live in the harshest environments. You have advantage on Constitution saving throws to resist exhaustion due to environmental hazards such as extreme heat or cold. Additionally, you can go twice as long without food or water before you suffer from the effects of exhaustion.

Powerful Build

You count as one size larger when determining your carrying capacity and the weight you can push, drag, or lift.

Languages

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