Homebrew Feallmharfoir Species Details
"The nobles are starting to get scared, but they don't want people to know," Jarl said as he leaned on the window frame and looked up towards the high towers of the Noble's quarter. "First Lord Rumis loosing his footing on the parapet, then General Belkis going in his sleep like that...and now Chancellor Laithen? The man was barely 30 winters, far too young for a heart attack. They're saying the palace is cursed."
The old man sitting in the well worn chair by the fire laughed softly under his breath. "They ain't cursed. They's on someun's bad side is what they are."
"What's that suppose ta mean," Jarl said as he turned around to face the old man. "You sayin' someun had'em offed?
The old man laughed again and shook his head. "Naw. You can cast a line out and reel in someun to kill a man fer ya. Send a message, get'um outta the way, or spark a bloody war. I can spit in a tavern and find a dozen men for that."Jarl straightened up and crossed his arms over his chest as he looked down at the old man. "So jus what are ya on about then?"
"Feallmharfoir," the old man almost whispered.
"Felmha...whasnow," Jarl stumbled over his tongue trying to repeat what he thought the old man said.
"Feallmharfoir," he said again, this time more firmly. "Once you give them a name and pay their price, you've just hired a ghost."
To be invisible when the time calls for it, to be nothing more than a shadow or a flutter in the corner of an eye is the way of the feallmharfoir. Often mistaken for their cruder, often larger lizardfolk cousins, the feallmharfoir are more supple and slight of frame. People encountering them often find themselves suspicious of them or their motives despite not knowing specifically why. The feallmharfoir are native to more humid, swamp-like lands, but the sprawling urban jungles of cities can be equally as inviting. Feallmharfoir are hunters of stealth and surprise. The mark of a feallmharfoir is never seeing them to begin with.
Invisible Predators
The feallmharfoir share the reptilian nature of their lizardfolk cousins, but embrace avoiding confrontations openly moreso. While lizardfolk might engage in combat openly, it is rare to find a feallmharfoir taking such an approach. They do share the dispassionate perspective of the lizardfolk and evaluate encounters in pragmatic terms of cost to benefit ratio. Feallmharfoir are both physical and social chameleons, shifting to blend in and adapt to their environment.
Lacking emotions as most other humanoids understand them, feallmharfoir can emulate those emotions, but it is difficult, at best, for them show anything bordering on the passions common among the typically warm-blooded races. When a feallmharfoir does develop a bond, it is to the death. To count a feallmharfoir an ally is a lifelong relationship. Those who find themselves on the wrong side of a feallmharfoir is to live the rest of your days wondering which moment will be your last. Feallmharfoir do not harbor hatred or anger as many of their enemies see it. They are cold, calculating, and lethally single minded in their pursuits.
They were as varied in size and shape as humans, but unlike their lizardfolk cousins, feallmharfoir bore a much closer resemblance to snakes and chameleons than to the iguanas or dragons associated with the lizardfolk. . Feallmharfoir bear claws on their hands and lizard-like feet as well as an adornment of scales. Their teeth come to pointed fangs which can add an insinuated threat to even the slightest smile. Like tieflings, feallmharfoir possess thick, prehensile tails, four to five feet long which they use to hold rudimentary items or distract a target or victim. Their eyes are those of a snake's--a vibrant green with flecks of silver--the pupil a narrow slit. Their skin tones range from ruddy browns to pale greens, with some seeming to shift their skin color when seen at different angles.
Chameleons
Unlike their lizardfolk cousins, feallmharfoir are not readily seen as cold or distant. Despite sharing the same reptilian perspectives, feallmharfoir are adept at emulating those emotions for social interactions. To most, they would never know how quickly the feallmharfoir laughing with them over a sordid joke could be dispassionately thinking about murder as nothing more than a business transaction. Assuming a feallmharfoir is your ally is a true folly few live to make twice.
Feallmharfoir Names
Feallmharfoir names are often not pronounceable by humanoid tongues, but approximations are similar to yuan-ti names.
Male Feallmharfoir Names: Mihleel, Ssholushlul, Thutothul, Zuksotuh, Heszeshah, Eksash, Tilkahsill, Ssolkis, Etshuil, Aklil
Female Feallmharfoir Names: Neska, Szultla, Zselkeha, Nestis, Utuhsui, Ulshi, Sshuhtlass, Zselka, Zalah, Ahla, Omei, Akhui
MET WITH IGNORANCE
Most people approach feallmharfoir as if they were lizardfolk, or, falling for their charismatic social act, drop their guard and are entirely ignorant of just how dangerous feallmharfoir truly are. For their part, the feallmharfoir foster such impressions knowing that being invisible doesn't always mean remaining unseen. Those falling victim to the feallmharfoir rarely see them coming.
Feallmharfoir Traits
Through magic, selective breeding, and evolution, all feallmharfoir share certain traits setting them apart from their lizardfolk cousins.Ability Score Increase
Your Charisma score increases by 1, and your Dexterity score increases by 2.
Age
Feallmharfoir reach maturity in their late teens and can live for just over a century.
Size
Feallmharfoir are about the same size and build as humans. Your size is Medium.
Speed
Your base walking speed is 30 feet and a base swim speed of 20 feet. When climbing a surface with no available handholds per the Don't Look Up racial ability, your climbing speed is 30 feet. When scaling normal surfaces, your climbing speed is 60 feet.
Darkvision
Thanks to your reptilian heritage, you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. 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.
Venomous Resistance
You have resistance to poison damage.
Survival Instinct
Like their lizardfolk cousins, a feallmharfoir's maw is a natural weapon and can make unarmed strikes. A successful bite deals piercing damage equal to 1d6 + your Strength modifier rather than the typical bludgeoning damage from unarmed strikes.
Their clawed hands are also natural weapons able to deal slashing damage equal to 2d4 + your strength modifier when not wearing gloves of any kind.
Hold Breath
You can hold your breath for up to 15 minutes at a time.
Nothing to See Here
You gain proficiency in Stealth and Deception.
Hide in Plain Sight
You know the thaumaturgy cantrip. When you reach 3rd level, you can cast the disguise self spell without components once with this trait and regain the ability to do so when you finish a long rest. When you reach 5th level, you can cast the invisibility spell without components once with this trait and regain the ability to do so when you finish a long rest. When you reach 12th level, you can cast the greater invisibility on yourself only. You can use this ability once, without components, and it refreshes after a long rest. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for these spells.
Prehensile Tail
A feallmharfoir has a long, flexible tail that can be used to pick up or carry objects. It cannot wield weapons, but it allows them to pick up a small, unattended object or retrieve a stowed object carried on her person as a bonus action. This item cannot weigh more than 10lbs. (4.5kg), and it is incapable of fine manipulation needed for tasks such as writing, picking a lock, or performing somatic actions needed to cast spells. Additionally, while this tail can hold a spellcasting focus, it cannot use that focus, nor can it use magic items such as wands. This tail cannot used ranged weapons such as daggers.
Don't Look Up
Like geckos, the feallmharfoir possess the ability to cling to surfaces and climb on them even when there is nothing to hold on to. They are able to scale sheer walls and across ceilings as easily as they walk. To do this however, they cannot wear anything that would cover, or otherwise encumber, their hands and feet. They need at least three limbs to be touching any surface they are climbing or they will lose their grip and fall. This also gives them advantage on saving throws to maintain upright or balanced on a surface if they are actively trying not to fall. This ability cannot be used to catch a surface during a fall to slow them or prevent falling damage as normal. While they can leap from once surface to another, this surface can be no more than 10 feet away or their weight and momentum will leave them falling.
Chameleon Skin
While not wearing armor, robes, or other similar coverings, the feallmaharfoir skin color adapts to match the natural environment, granting advantage on all Dexterity (Stealth) checks.
Coldblooded
Unlike the warmblooded, the feallmharfoir are ill suited to cold environments and suffer more significantly from attacks with cold properties. If you spend more than one hour in temperatures below 50 degrees F (10 degrees C) without protection from the temperature, you must make a Constitution check of DC 15 or suffer disadvantage on all attack and Dexterity throws. Additionally you are only able to move at half speed. If you spend more than one hour in temperatures below 32 degrees F (0 degrees C) without protection against the temperature, you automatically make all attack and Dexterity rolls at disadvantage and move at half speed. If you spend more than 24 hours in this environment you begin to succumb to the cold, with all attack rolls, saving rolls, and ability checks taken at a disadvantage and you must make a Constitution Check of DC 15 every hour. On a failed save you lose 1d4 health. For each additional 24 hours spent in these climate conditions the DC for the Constitution check increases by 3.
This susceptibility extends into combat as well. You are vulnerable to cold attacks. When any attack causes more than 15 cold damage on a single strike, you must make a Constitution save equal to 10 + the spell level for magic attacks and 10 + the Wisdom modifier of any creature wielding enchanted weapons. On a failed save, all Dexterity and attack rolls are made at a disadvantage until the beginning of the attacker's next turn.
Languages
You can speak, read, and write Common and Draconic.
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