Mermaid Cetacean (5e Race)

Mermaid Cetacean

"The sound of the sea is the chain of life Resonating with life, hailing the earth The liberty of life, the harmony of the sun It is the song that connects us all

This voice of the sea is the melody of life The tune of life, the beat of the earth The breath of life, the harmony of the sun It is the song that we all sing"

Physical Description

Although the name is rather vague, this creature itself is wrapped in mysterious origins. Resembling a Large mermaid in some ways, though the "Cetacean" part of their name not only comes from their size, but also their physical characteristics including their generally body builds being somewhat hefty, and their lower half's being very large and longer than a normal mermaid's tail. The lower half commonly referred to as the "fish half" by most sailors, is quite different from a normal mermaid or merman tail, The scales are quite dense, being more akin to dragon scales than fish scales, the upper half also has a Carapace protecting a large portion of the tail. The tail ends in a trident shaped fluke, having a u-shaped part, and another fin sticking out underneath. On the upper portion of the body, following the arch of the back there is a short lining of carapace starting from the back of the skull down to the tail bone area, presumably to prevent damage to the spinal column. Another interesting biological adaptation is that their hands have the shape of mittens, meaning complex action that require multiple fingers is beyond them, they only have the 4 fingers linked together and a thumb, so holding stuff like staffs and handles is fair game, but something like firing a rifle is impossible without modifications. Adorning their head are massive horns that continuously grow throughout their unknown duration of their lifespan. These horns are based around their temples but continuously grow in length and diameter bearing resemblance to longhorn cattle's horns, though fairly thicker, sometimes one horn can be larger than the other. Though accounts are few, the few individuals that have the topic brought up to them mention their horns are a sign of age and respect among their kind, as well as their hair. Likewise, this species has an incredible amount of hair on their head, owing to age and preference, Male having very long beards with somewhat shorter locks, females having extremely long flowing hair behind them. The only other physical features that don't make themself apparent upon first glance are their teeth and organs. Hidden behind a very humanlike face is 2 sets of teeth that puts most species to shame, First a set of teeth made from nigh indestructable dense bone that could crush most types of metal, and a second set of razor sharp teeth behind the first set closer to the tongue used for grappling larger objects so that the first set can deliver a presice and brutal bite. Lastly, the organs commonly referred to as "Luminous Organs" are patches of skin that eminate a glow to them, changing in color depending on emotion and mood such as blue when calm, red when angry, green when happy etc etc. The patches of skin commonly found on both genders include, but is not limited to; a large section of the lower belly on the mermaid half, parts of their stomach, chest area, parts of the arms, The upper gums in their mouth(or even the tongue), and sometimes even their eyes though this trait is rare. One other notable physical trait that should be mentioned seperately, is their slippery algae and slime that coats their body. The substance is non-sticky as otherwise they would collect dirt and other particles off the ground as they moved, and that is correct, the ground. Largerly thanks to their increased tail length, the slime coating, and possibly some other biological adaptation in their inside(or magic), This race can Move about freely on land unlike a normal mermaid or siren. Moving more akin to a lamia they can move about surprisingly well and dont flop around like a mermaid, that being said dont expect this species to win many racing competitions on land. Underwater they are also fairly fast but not as fast as you might think due to their bulk.

History

Only recently discovered, this species is an extremely rare and ancient race of mermaid-like humanoid type monsters. Discovered by a human fishermen as they something swim by the ship one night, he looked off the boat to see a line of glimmering lights floating by. The next day he came to the same location, and again the same shape came by more than once. It wasnt until the 3rd night that as he was about the look overboard a creature breached the water spraying water everywhere. He looked to his right to see a voluptious mermaid-like creature taking deep breathes only a few feet from his boat. The man called out to her and asked her what she was, Supposedly she said she didnt know as she never found anybody like her often. She asked him what he was doing, he replied fishing, so she swam down and came back with a small shark she tossed aboard his boat making it rock side to side for a moment. These meetings happened for a wfew months, but all of his buddies at the local tavern didnt believe him. So the next day he asked her out on a date and asked if she could walk on land, and sure enough the entire tavern went silent when he walked inside with large creature ebhind him. A side from the origin story of the first of this species being found, only a handful of others have been recorded. The species as previously mentioned is extremely rare, odds of seeing one are one in a lifetime, and the species itself has never been involved in many notable things a side from sea shanties and folk stories.

Society

As most of this race live their lives solo, only briefly being taken care of by their mother after birth to adolescence, this race rly has no societal norms. The few it does have, mostly have to do with attracting another of their species attention to mate, which is simple Having a large set of antler, impressively long hair, and bright Luminous organs. When it comes to their owns beliefs, most tend to believe in a higher order, some even consider themselfs gods among mortals. Most of them however, have very mellow personalities and lifestyles and tend to be very agreeable and suggestable, though with their own exceptions if their personal experience justifies. Just dont make one angry. As for their attitudes on others, they rly dont have any, they judge a persons own personality through careful analysis before coming to a decision. This may have some obvious differences, especially if they are put on point in a dire situation, they may judge a character dangerous upon sight or from personal experience with that species, but this species is hard to come across for opinions so our researches only have a couple of Cetaceans they can ask for questions. Other races seem to react to them in awe generally, especially if they are currently displaying their lights, with mild exceptions. Races such as minotaurs dont care for this light show or looks, and pay no heed. A very important note, however, is that Locathah despise these creatures, for the simple reason that Mermaid Cetaceans prey upon many locathah and their offspring underwater, and given the opportunity would do so on land too.

Mermaid Cetacean Names

This races naming schemes are gender neutral, and thus work for all genders. Common naming schemes are based off species, ocean terms, and mythological terms or gods.

Male and female Poseidon, Oceanus, Whirl, Current, Tide, Shell, Brine, Sea, Yemoja, Chaac, Coral, He bo, Tidal, Shore.

Mermaid Cetacean Traits

Fairly large individuals resembling mermaids, with more whale-like and Draconic traits and ancestry.
Ability Score Increase. Your Constitution score increases by 2 and your Dexterity score increases by 1.
Age. The age of sexual maturity is 30 among this species, however, from the few individuals interviewed lifespan is a blur. The oldest individual interviewed said he was well over 1,000 years old.
Alignment. This race can be any alignment, except evil ones, as their own beliefs see pure evil as a major taboo.
Size. This race tend to have a standing position on land of over 6 foot, and can go up to 9 foot in larger individuals. Your size is medium.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 20 feet. This is in part due to your lower half not being perfectly evolved for land travel, however, your base swim speed is 50 feet to make up for this.
Darkvision. 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.
Blubber buddy. Although this race lacks in land movement, it makes up for it in the bulk of their body, gaining +1 hp per level as well as a resistance to Cold damage.
Vortex Cannon. This creature can store water in its body for later use, and also absorbs humidity in the air thanks to its Luminous organs. This water can be released at high pressures as a form of Breath attack that reaches up to 20 feet by 5 feet line. The target must make a constitution saving throw, The DC for this saving throw equals 8 + your Constitution modifier + your Proficiency bonus. A creature takes 2d4 damage on a failed save, and half as much damage on a successful one. The damage increases to 3d4 at 6th Level, 4d4 at 11th level, and 5d4 at 16th level. Additionally, this attack knocks enemies back that fail the save up to 20 feet. For every character the first target hit gets knocked back into they receive half the dmg of the attack as well and are knocked back along with them. This attack can only be used again after a long rest OR after drinking 25 gallons of water(Scanning nearby water sources and asking your dm may be an option for this.)
Enamored Vision. Putting on a light show using its Lumionous organs, this creature can cast charm person once per long rest at 1st level.
Primitive engagement. This creature has a large set of horns and a Set of teeth perfect for gnashing prey items. When making an unarmed strike this race may choose to either bite dealing 1d4 + dexterity modifier piercing OR sweep its large blunt horns dealing 1d4 + strength modifer bludgeoning damage.
Aquatic ancestry. Besides allowing you to more easily move around on land, your slime coating allows you to have advantage on grapple saving throws, both when someone is attempting to grapple you, and when escaping. Additionally, though this may surprise others... you are not actually a fish underwater, you are a mammal with draconic features like scales, but more importantly... you can go for an entire month without needing air. This is in part due to the algae and Luminous organs which suck in H2O and oxygen from both air and water around you. In a dark environment you can only hold your breath for about a week.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and one other language of your choice.

Random Height and Weight

Base Height	Height Modifier*	Base Weight	Weight Modifier**
5′ 10''	+2d6	220 lb.	× (2d8) lb.
*Height = base height + height modifier **Weight = base weight + (height modifier × weight modifier)

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