Awakened (5e Race)

Awakened

Many undead are naught more then mindless automatons that serve the lords and liches that held onto themselves after the rituals completion. Even the destruction of ones body is meaningless, as the dredges of their souls remain trapped and bound to forever serve them. Those that fall will simply have their souls placed inside a new mummified husk to serve again and again, each time chipping further at who they once were. Those who do retain themselves seek to further their own goals, as well as seeking the true revival of their once glorious empire, starting with the awakening of all their undead legions.

Physical Description

Awakened to take on the features and traits of the race the were in their previous life. An Awakened's body has deteriorated somewhat depending on how long they've been undead. Their skin tends to be dry and flaky, and their eyes start to lose color. Some of the ones that have been around much longer may even have bone and gore showing. They tend to cover these disfigures with clothing and armor. To conceal ones face they often wear thin veils can attach to a headdress or helmet that rest tightly against ones face, giving the illusion of definition beneath. Their voices are often cracked and as dry and the desert wind.

History

Long ago a necromantic ritual tore through an ancient empire that reduced its people to naught but withered husks of themselves, Nor did their minds survived unscathed, most were reduced empty, hollow vessels that now serve as soldiers and servants to those whose personalities and egos survived the onslaught of necromantic energy. All were alive once, now naught but ashes of their humanity remain. Even the destruction of their new undead forms proved for not as they would just be raised again to serve their necromatic masters, that sought to expand their rule, emboldened by their immortality granted to them by their new form. Some, once mindless undead because of their masters, have broken free of their bonds and regained some intelligence.

Society

Awakened usually don't form or join societies. They often have an intense distaste or even outright hatred for the living, whether that is a result of jealously towards their mortality is unclear, but some rare Awakened have been documented to put aside their prejudices, as far as to travel with adventuring groups of other creatures and races of all kinds, but never any further then that, for they hate all life equally. Many however see the sense in having powerful allies or at the very least pawns in their plans, allowing them to continue living for as long as they are useful to some end.

Awakened Names

Awakened often bear similar names to people of the region they hail from, that is of course assuming that the Awakened can even remember its name.

Awakened Traits

All awakened share some similar base traits due to the fact that they are sentient undead.
Ability Score Increase. Your ability scores each decrease by 1.
Age. Awakened can not age.
Alignment. Years of torment and undeath have twisted and distorted much of what little good remained in their people, as a result most undead bare an evil alignment, but have also been seen to learn towards a more neutral stance. Most if not all lean towards a lawful spectrum.
Size. Small or Medium. This is dependent on your secondary race.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Undead Nature. Your undead body comes with its own perks and disadvantages.

You no longer need to eat, sleep, or breath, However you still require rest to reduce levels of exhaustion and still benefit from short and long rests. You are also immune to disease and poison, both the damage and the condition.

Instead of sleeping, you enter a dormant state for 4 hours. You do not dream in this state; you are fully aware of your surroundings and notice approaching dangers and other events as normal.

However certain spells have no effect on you, namely healing spells like cure wounds or healing word, as well as other spells that specify that they have no effect on Constructs or Undead.
Undead Fortitude. Your undead body makes you much harder to fell in combat.

If damage would reduces you to zero hitpoints but does not kill you outright you can instead choose to make a constitution saving throw with a DC of 5 + the damage taken, unless the damage is radiant or from a critical hit. On a sucess, you drop to 1 hit point instead. You may use this once per short or long rest. Additionally at 9th level, you can add half your proficiency bonus (rounded down) to death saving throws when you are forced to make one.
Languages. This is dependent on your secondary race.

Secondary Races

Dwarf

Ability Score Increase.Your Constitution score increases by 2.

Size.Dwarves stand between 4 and 5 feet tall and average about 150 pounds. Your size is Medium.

Speed.Your base walking speed is 25 feet.

Languages.You can speak, read, and write Common and Dwarvish. Dwarvish is full of hard consonants and guttural sounds, and those characteristics spill over into whatever other language a dwarf might speak.

Elf

Ability Score Increase.Your Dexterity score increases by 2.

Size.Elves range from under 5 to over 6 feet tall and have slender builds. Your size is Medium.

Speed.Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Languages.You can speak, read, and write Common and Elvish. Elvish is fluid, with subtle intonations and intricate grammar. Elven literature is rich and varied, and their songs and poems are famous among other races. Many bards learn their language so they can add Elvish ballads to their repertoires.

Gnome

Ability Score Increase.Your Intelligence score increases by 2.

Size.Gnomes are between 3 and 4 feet tall and average about 40 pounds. Your size is Small.

Speed.Your base walking speed is 25 feet.

Languages.You can speak, read, and write Common and Gnomish. The Gnomish language, which uses the Dwarvish script, is renowned for its technical treatises and its catalogs of knowledge about the natural world.

Half-Elf

Ability Score Increase.Your Charisma score increases by 2, and two other ability scores of your choice increase by 1.

Size.Half-elves are about the same size as humans, ranging from 5 to 6 feet tall. Your size is Medium.

Speed.Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Languages.You can speak, read, and write Common, Elvish, and one extra language of your choice.

Half-Orc

Ability Score Increase.Your Strength score increases by 2, and your Constitution score increases by 1.

Size.Half-orcs are somewhat larger and bulkier than humans, and they range from 5 to well over 6 feet tall. Your size is Medium.

Speed.Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Languages.You can speak, read, and write Common and Orc. Orc is a harsh, grating language with hard consonants. It has no script of its own but is written in the Dwarvish script.

Halfling

Ability Score Increase.Your Dexterity score increases by 2.

Size.Halflings average about 3 feet tall and weigh about 40 pounds. Your size is Small.

Speed.Your base walking speed is 25 feet.

Languages.You can speak, read, and write Common and Halfling. The Halfling language isn't secret, but halflings are loath to share it with others. They write very little, so they don't have a rich body of literature. Their oral tradition, however, is very strong. Almost all halflings speak Common to converse with the people in whose lands they dwell or through which they are traveling.

Human

Ability Score Increase.Your ability scores each increase by 1.

Size.Humans vary widely in height and build, from barely 5 feet to well over 6 feet tall. Regardless of your position in that range, your size is Medium.

Speed.Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Languages.You can speak, read, and write Common and one extra language of your choice. Humans typically learn the languages of other peoples they deal with, including obscure dialects. They are fond of sprinkling their speech with words borrowed from other tongues: Orc curses, Elvish musical expressions, Dwarvish military phrases, and so on.

Random Height and Weight

	Base Height		Height Mod		Base Weight		Weight Mod
	2nd Race Height		Minus 2"		2nd Race Weight		Minus 20%

Suggested Characteristics

BoneCarver by Red Pencil Art

d8	Personality Trait
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

d6	Ideal
1
2
3
4
5
6

d6	Bond
1
2
3
4
5
6

d6	Flaw
1
2
3
4
5
6

0.00

(0 votes)

---

Back to Main Page → 5e Homebrew → Races