Phoenix (5e Race)

Phoenial

“	It is said that no being as majestic as the phoenix would give mere mortals the chance to get a blessing from them. I agree with that. They won't cause anything except destruction and chaos by their own will and anger. That is why some mortals dare to disrupt said will. And the results are destructive like the father and intrepid as the mother	”
—Fragment of "Brief Manual for the explorers of the Plane of fire" by Selenthora, the Genasi. Page 485

Of all magical beings in the multiverse, few are as revered and feared as the phoenix. Ancient and incredibly powerful, these beings of pure fire and capabilities way beyond comprehension can't be subdued by anything short of a being with the same willingness and desire as them. If a creature earns the trust and love of the phoenix, they may aid them in creating a child. Those children are called Phoenials.

Physical Description

Phoenials are difficult to distinguish from the race the humanoid parent is, but some characteristics give the edge of their origin. First of all, even among the races that are considered beautiful they are specially graced: They tend to be on the tall side of the size spectrum and they are always lighter than the weight they appear to have.

Their skin seems to reflect light just like feathers but it is specially hot and feels rough at contact. They have all the variety of skin color of their humanoid parent's race, but some of them have had skin the color of their phoenix ancestor: White, black, yellow, purple, green or red, even if the humanoid parent's race does not have those tones, although it is extremely rare, even for a race as rare as this. Even more rare are some other skin tones like orange, gray or blue. On the other hand, they usually have unnatural hair colors like violet, white, purple, green, red or orange, which is usually combined with eyes of the same color palette.

Their main characteristic is the heat. They emit heat at unnatural rates, heat that usually increases if the phoenial is under distress and goes down as it relaxes. This heat can go up enough to be a danger for their careers, as they can easily cause burns or even ignite certain materials. When they are young they are usually considered to be sick and always having a fever. It is not uncommon that their baby beds might be made of materials like metal or treated wood, so it doesn't catch fire.

Source: https://crisortega.com/ Property of Cris Ortega

History

As they are very scarce, they don't have a kingdom or a history of their own. Most historical documents about one of them tend to read more like legends than actual history: They tend to be refered as daughters of adventurous women, some of them already legendary like Alczar Wintercloack or Damene Argentella, the Mighty. They are always praised for their beautiful physique or the cunning behaviour. Other characteristic in common in this writings is their affinity to magic, as they are usually described as incredible magic users and even creators of magic. There is one legend that affirms that Power word spells were created by this race, although most historians seem to agree this is just an embellishment to their legend.

Some more realistic takes on this race refers to them as adventurers with hunger and thirst for knowledge and adventure. Some kids' tales like "Red Riding Ranger" or "The fire catcher", traditionally considered to be referring at women dealing with dragons, seem to have originated from tales about women and phoenixes that were modified by the transcourse of time.

With historical evidence, some of the oldest remains are from 2000 years ago. It is affirmed that some of the most powerful war mages, sword bards and even eldritch knights have been phoenials. Serta Bardeltar, Krysrell "The feather" and Ellowas Zwyllen are a few of the examples that have been written and corroborated extensible.

Society

As they are raised only by their humanoid parent, depending on the society they grow they can be outcast from birth on or be helped by the rest of the community. This race tends to learn and follow rules easily, but they might bend them a little if it fits what they need. They are rarely selfish, but they also not give their trust easily. Most societies appreciate their natural beauty and their agility, so they tend to be hunters, gatherers or diplomats. They tend to have an easy time with fire magic, but their affinity to fire makes difficult for them to handle other types of it. Their ancestry also gives them an exceptional vision to see what others can't see. As they grow up, some of them are able to even channel the spirit of their fathers and create wings for themselves, although temporarily.

Phoenial Names

They usually follow the naming convention of the non-phoenix parent's race. As they grow older, they make themselves a second name. This one is the one they usually use outside of their closest circle. They sometimes adopt a new last name or use a nickname as such.

General: Ashner, Bulliren, Cinda, Estegre, Olimpia, Villor

Phoenial Traits

The children of communion with a phoenix
Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score increases by 2, while your Charisma score increases by 1
Age. They tend to develop like most human races, but they age slower and live a lot longer. You are considered an adult at 20 years old, and you can live up to 500 years before they run out of lives but old age is not a problem as they are immortal in the sense they do not die of old age staying young and beautiful.
Alignment. Phoenials tend to be neutral or lawful. They are rarely evil.
Size. Phoenials tend to be tall, from 5 feet to almost 8 feet tall, depending on the race of the non-phoenix parent. Your size is Medium.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Superior Darkvision. You can see in dim light within 120 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 the color of your eyes.
Affinity to Fire. If you get hit by an attack that causes fire damage, you can use your reaction to gain immunity to it. Afterwards you gain temporary hit points equal to half the nullified damage. You can't use this trait again until you finish a long rest.
Spirit of the Phoenix. As an action, you can grow a pair of ethereal wings for one minute. You gain a flying speed equal to your base walking speed. They can be dismissed as a free action or they are dismissed if you get incapacitated. You can use this trait a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus and regain all uses after finishing a long rest.
Finite Regeneration. Phenials can live up to 12 lives/rebirths. When creating your Phoenial character, you start in your first life. (the user chooses the age at which he returns to life and has all the experience gained in the past life)
Languages. You can speak Common and one language from the mother's background.

Random Height and Weight

Base Height	Height Modifier*	Base Weight	Weight Modifier**
4′ 9''	+3d12	80 lb.	× (1d3) lb.
*Height = base height + height modifier **Weight = base weight + (height modifier × weight modifier)

4.50

(4 votes)

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