Nephilim (5e Race)

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Nephilim

The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown. —Genesis 6:4 Nephilim. An abomination spawned of the unholy union between a celestial and a humanoid. To conceive such a creature is to spit in the eyes of the greater deities themselves. —High Priest of Light

Physical Description

Micheal slays the Nephilim by Han AhReum

Nephilim take on the physical characteristics of their parents - appearing as beautiful humanoids with fine features. Their complexity is often a few shades paler than that of their mortal parent’s, their skin unblemished by birthmarks or imperfections. Fine faces are adorned by eyes that resemble pools of liquid gold ichor.

They are slightly taller than humans, standing at around 6 feet tall on average. They are, however, far more muscular than humans, weighing in at around 140 to 180 pounds. Males and females reach the same height, with males being only marginally heavier than females. They lack any and all bodily hair, taking after the perfectly sculpted bodies of the celestial they were born from.

History

Nephilim is a term for a hybrid conceived from a humanoid and a celestial creature. This offspring inherits a humanoid soul from one and the celestial grace and creature type from the other parent. Nephilim are considered unholy beings and abominations of the multiverse. A mother pregnant with a nephilim sets consecrated ground they walk on alight and sears the ground of desecrated sites.

Whether the mother is celestial or humanoid, carrying a nephilim will always be fatal to them. Conceiving such a being is strictly forbidden by the laws of upper planes and the punishment is death for the celestial parent and the child. The moment of conception is felt by all celestials as a surge of energy, causing otherwise unknown feelings of spitting pain and nausea throughout their being.

A group of up to ten angels lead by an archangel will be tasked to smite the nephilim by a Dominion or an angel of the first sphere.

Few things get the positive plane in such a fiery state and the sudden scrambling of such celestial powers is hard to miss. Powerful beings like archdevils, eldritch entities or fallen celestials may seek out a nephilim, perhaps for their infamous strength and out of the nephilim’s need for protection or to hold them as a trophy, to be coveted and swayed in front of those of the upper plane.

A nephilim, when procreating, will never produce another nephilim. Instead, they produce a normal if not an ideal version of the species it mated with.

Outnumbered and Alone

Due to the celestial laws surrounding the conceiving of a nephilim thousands of of years may pass between the conception of one.

Contrary to popular belief being born a nephilim is nothing like being an aasimar, whose births are celebrated and they each have a connection with a divine being to guide them through the harshness of the world. A nephilim, on the other hand, if it doesn't feel the holy blade of an angel tear through it before it can grow up, experiences life on the run, not only from the evil of the world but the good as well. Hunting parties of aasimar, celestials hiding in plain sight, religious factions and states are all additions to a long list of creatures and beings that would like nothing more than to either possess or kill them. It is because of this they are a slow to trust, careful and evasive people.

Few are capable of understanding how they may feel. Nephilim may find solace with other fallen celestials and fallen aasimar. Nephilim may find adventurers good company in an adventuring party, the constant traveling and odd job type of life fits into their runaway lifestyle and their aversion to garnering fame or renown is only to their allies benefit.

Nephilim will often attempt to conceal their true identities at all costs and may go years without using their powers even in the most dangerous situations, often hesitating out of a personal fear of what could come of it if they were discovered.

Creating a Nephilim

When creating a nephilim, consider who your parents are, both angelic and mortal? How did they meet? What kind of relationship did they have? Is your father still alive? If not how or when did they die? Where you there when it happened or had you been sent far away? When creating a nephilim the circumstances of their birth will always play a key role in shaping their fundamental views, beliefs and ideals.

Note to the DM: As the DM you take on the role of a celestial or a group of celestials tasked with hunting down and slaying the nephilim player character or NPC. Consider the personality of the leading celestial, how does their maybe bookish and lecturing personality be communicated with their method of hunting and how do they react when angered. Is this their chance for them to prove themselves and raise in celestial rank? Or maybe the angel that spawned the nephilim was a close friend or superior, to them and now this hunt has become personal with their feelings of betrayal. From a meta point of view, the threat of being discovered should be a driving motivator for not just the character but for the plot itself, a good Dungeon Master will use techniques such as foreshadowing, clue dropping and appropriate pacing for the best results. Having a planar and 10 devas turn up when the party is level 2 is asking for trouble but a few aasimar scouts that witnessed the characters power in action is far better. As the party levels and moves through the world, odd things happen where ever they go. Minor events may include: A familiar in celestial form hisses at the character on sight but otherwise does nothing or an imp flees when the character emanates a divine but otherwise harmless light. To more notable: The local priest had a vision and starts handing out posters in the likeliness of the character or a group of well-armed paladins are looking for a group of the parties description. To more major events: A man stands to block the parties path, he draws a sword made of pure light as he grows in size and white feathered wings spring forward for his back or the character sword radiates power and might and in a single blow they fell a great threat, the characters turns to the people they had just barely saved only to see them draw their weapons. Celestial Damnation: A celestial knowns the moment it sees a nephilim what it is and while it isn't forced to kill it, all but fallen celestials feels a sense of duty to smite what the view as a horrific abomination on the spot.

Nephilim Names

Nephilim are known to have been given Celestial names but will often take on a different name to blend in. The names of angels and other celestials are listed below.

Angels: Afriel, Ariel, Azrael, Barachiel, Cassiel, Gabriel, Gavreel, Forfax, Jegudiel, Manakel, Michael, Nathaniel, Ramiel, Sariel, Sachael, Selaphiel, Tabbris, Xapham, Raphael, Raziel, Paschar, Uriel, Zuriel, Zuphlas, Zadkiel, Abdiel, Amitiel, Charmeine, Dina, Micah, Hadraniel, Jphiel, Lailah.

Other Celestial Names: Andromeda, Aries, Atlas, Tria, Bellatrix, Callisto, Calypso, Cassipeia, Celestia, Comet, Cressida, Esther, Galatea, Io, Jupiter, Leo, Libra, Luna, Mars, Mercury, Nova, Orion, Selena, Sirius, Stella, Vega, Venus.

Nephilim Traits

Those who were cast out. The spawn of a celestial and a humanoid. A Nephilim.
Ability Score Increase. Your Charisma score increases by 2 and one other ability score of your choice increases by 1.
Age. While a nephilim grows within their mother they take in sensory information about their surroundings and when born are imparted with knowledge from both their parents. Often a nephilim will feel the worry their parents do for themselves and the nephilim and while their birth always leads to their death of the mother, they age rapidly in response to this worry once born and be physically mature over the course of an hour. There is a sense of unfamiliarity and oddness as they learn what it means to be alive. Nephilim don't visibly age and have never lived long enough for their lifespan to be categorized. The oldest known nephilim managed to survive 173 years before he was slain.
Alignment. Nephilim share the good tendency of their celestial heritage. They value both personal freedom and privacy, demonstrating neither love of leaders nor desire for followers. They resent others' demands, but follow their own set of guidelines to a T. While they lead towards good the circumstances of their births, the lives they are forced to live out, will often lead them down a neutral if not a darker path.
Size. They are slightly taller and more muscular than humans on average at about 6 feet tall, weighing around 140 to 180 pounds. Your size is Medium.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Celestial. Your creature type is both humanoid and celestial. You have advantage on saving throws against effects affect creatures with the celestial creature type but not the humanoid creature type.
Celestial Wings. You have a pair of ethereal wings in the likeliness of your parents. When you are falling you can glide as if under the effect of the feather fall spell the wings become physical. Any creature with truesight or that can see into the ethereal plane can see these wings.
Darkvision. While you do not possess the ability to see the truth in all things your divinity grant you 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 grey.
Ichor. The blood that runs through your veins is a golden ichor. You are resistant to radiant damage.
Passing Flame. You have a particular ability depending on what kind of celestial your parent was. See the Celestial Heritage Table, your Dungeon Master may pick an option or roll a d20 to determine the result.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and Celestial. Part of the knowledge imparted onto a nephilim is knowledge of the Celestial language. As a language, it sounds like a heavenly choir when spoken, and is written with a grace and fluidity that no mortal language has replicated.

Celestial Heritage Table

d20	Rank	Stats	General Information	Passing Flame Trait
1	Fallen Celestial	Deva	Your parent was a fallen angel before they conceived you with singed and blackened wings of darkness. Consider how your parent took their fall from grace and how that is reflected on you as their half-celestial child.	Inflict Injury. When you make a successful attack roll against a creature you can suffuse your strike with negative energy dealing 2d6 necrotic damage. The necrotic damage increases to 3d6 at 6th level, 4d6 at 11th level, and 5d6 at 16th level. After you use this trait, you can’t use it again until you complete a short or long rest.
2-4	Empyrean	Empyrean	You parent was a child of the gods of the upper plane, an immortal titan of great power. Roll a d4, on a 4 your empyrean parent was neutral evil instead of chaotic good.	Celestial Might. When you strike a creature you can force them to make a Constitution saving throw, or be knocked back 20 feet and become stunned until the end of their next turn or they take damage. The DC for this saving throw is equal to 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier. After you use your Celestial Might, you can’t use it again until you complete a short or long rest.
5-15	Angel	Deva	Your parent was a regular angel with no special duty or purpose. Did they fall in love with a mortal while on a routine mission? Or did a trip to the lower planes create more nefarious intent within them as they watched over the material plane?	Angelic Endurance. Your parent knows it is not the strongest and dreaded facing down their kin, so to make sure you are never caught they gave you a tireless body. You are immune to the exhaustion condition.
16	Archangel	Deva	Your parent was a ruling angel that commanded a group of lesser angels (Deva), and whose goal was the safeguarding and protection of human life.	Angelic Healing. You can touch a creature and they recover hit points equal to 2d6 + your Charisma modifier. The healing increases to 3d6 at 6th level, 4d6 at 11th level, and 5d6 at 16th level. After you heal a creature this way, you can’t do so again until you complete a short or long rest.
17	Principality	Deva	Your parent was a celestial of time and blessings, a granter of boons, an educator and a guardian of civilizations.	Angelic Guardian. When an ally you can see within 30 feet fails a saving throw you can force them to reroll the result of that saving throw potentially causing them to succeed. After you grant a creature this benefit, you can’t do so again until you complete a short or long rest.
18	Power	Planetar	Your parent was an angel of power and strength, who fought the battle against evil and preserves the history of the world.	Angelic Strike. When you make a successful attack roll against a creature you can empower your strike with positive energy dealing an additional 2d6 radiant damage. The damage increases to 3d6 at 6th level, 4d6 at 11th level, and 5d6 at 16th level. After you use your angelic strike, you can’t use it again until you complete a short or long rest.
19	Virtue	Planetar	Your parent was a provider of enlightenment, a being of choice and motion.	Angelic Enlightenment. You are proficient in one Wisdom based skill and one artsian tool of your choice. In addition, you can speak, read and write extra one language of your choice.
20	Dominion	Planetar	The highest level of angel ever known to spawn a Nephilim, they are angels of intuition and leadership providing guidance to lower level angels.	Angelic Guidance. As an action, you can grant up to three creatures within 10 feet of you temporary hitpoints equal to your level. You may do this once, and regain the use after finishing a long rest.

No angel in the first sphere of angels has ever stirred a nephilim. They are too detached from the world and their resolve unbreakable, to the point where mortal emotions are a totally alien concept, they are the solars, godlike in their glory and power. In order of rank, Seraphim, six-winged angels of love, light and fire, Cherubim, multi-headed angels of harmony and wisdom, and Thrones, angel of will and justice.

Random Height and Weight

Base Height	Height Modifier*	Base Weight	Weight Modifier**
5′ 6''	+2d4	130 lb.	× (2d4) lb.
*Height = base height + height modifier **Weight = base weight + (height modifier × weight modifier)

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