Stick, Variant (5e Race)

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Stick

“	They are simple creatures, yes, but do not mistake simplicity for unimportance. Sticks are capable of terrifying things.	”

Sticks are a naturally violent race on the individual level and a naturally peaceful one on the societal level. While they do get into fights--quite often, in fact--they rarely hold grudges; the concept of large-scale warfare is almost alien to them, since most conflicts are resolved long before they can reach that large a level. Still, the urge to fight leads many to become adventurers and, even with their unique quirks, they can quite often be helpful to those who they team up with.

Physical Description

A group of four Sticks posing at each other.

Sticks are biologically simple creatures, with a headlike bud that contains a sensory apicary and a food-processing petiole, and flexible stems around structure-giving nodes that form the rest of the body. Each stick is uniformly a single shade, but the shades can range across the entire color spectrum; sticks are highly sensitive to color differences because of this. Due to a unique quirk of their skin, they can look two-dimensional from any angle, but they are in fact three-dimensional creatures. It's not clear how they grip objects, but they can, and while they tend away from raw magic they are as capable of using it, despite lacking a voice.

History

The world where Sticks come from is a barren place, with scrublike plants and violent creatures roving the landscape. Nevertheless, Sticks rose to the occasion, fighting nature and carving out a place for themselves. It took a few tries, as some of the larger societies were broken down by their natural battlelust, but as time went on methods were put into place to check that, and their civilization flourished. Exactly how they made it to the material plane is unclear, primarily because Common doesn't have the words for it yet, but what is known is that the colonizers lost contact with their home--somehow--and they are the most adventurous of the lot.

Society

Sticks have constantly struggled with their lust for battle, and thus most of their societies have either inbuilt systems to direct that violence or are designed to be quickly mendable after any sort of brawl. Despite this, they have a casual consideration to combat--it happens, the same as any other public display of emotion, and while being skilled is laudable it's not unexpected. They tend to be baffled by other races' seemingly obsessive views on violence; those that avoid it as much as possible are seen as extremely strange, those who praise it as a virtue are considered with the same wariness as an overly-obsessive fan, and those that develop entire systems of honor and warfare are generally believed to be overcomplicating something that doesn't need to be complicated.

Apart from their unique take on violence, however, Sticks are a generally friendly people with great artistic and technological skills. They will eagerly adapt to any new thing, including new friends, and creation is just as praised as destruction. Sticktowns tend to be rather basic in fundemental structure, but decorated by wall paintings and tapestries and with ornate furniture, all usually locally crafted. There is also a tendency for new and exciting technology to be made by or find their way into the nublike appendages of the sticks.

Stick Names

Sticks don't have spoken names, due to not having voices, but they do have written names. Because of the limitations of their communication, these names tend to be short, rarely more than six or eight letters long. Most sticks have a family name and a descriptive title, but interacting with other races has given them the idea of personal names as well. These are usually arranged in the pattern 'Title/Personal Name Family Name', although any arrangment is suitable.

Example Titles: Blue, Red, Green, Yellow, Chosen One, Chaos, Breaker

Example Family Names: Stickler, Stikmin, Toppat, Gangles, Pawnch

Example Personal names: Generally, any english or otherwise common name will do.

Stick Traits

Sticks tend toward interpersonal physical action, communicating through poses and quick, dramatic fights.
Ability Score Increase. Sticks are both very flexible and full of personality. Your Dexterity score increases by 2 and your Charisma score increases by 1.
Age. Sticks are usually considered mature at ten and generally live sixty years. They don't visibly age once they reach adulthood, and--should they die by natural causes-they usually simply keel over dramatically.
Alignment. Because of their tendency to get into fights, sticks have a slight leaning toward chaotic alignments.
Size. Sticks can range from 4 to 8 feet tall, but by their very nature are rarely over 100 pounds. Your size is medium.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
RADIAL VISION. You have radial vision to 60 feet away. You have +2 to all perception checks, and cannot be sneak-attacked unless flanked or flatfooted.
NATURAL FEROCITY. You have proficiency with simple weapons. In addition, you choose one of the following at character creation:

• Proficient with Martial weapons.
• Proficient with Firearms.
• You have the Tavern Brawler feat automatically.
• Select one cantrip from Conjuration, Divination, Evocation, or Necromancy schools. That cantrip is an Extraordinary Ability for you, with Charisma as the related ability.
  
  SHIELD. Extraordinary ability. You can take a special reaction in response to being hit by an attack roll; when you take this reaction, until the start of your next turn, you have an additional +5 bonus to armor class. You can do this a number of times equal to your Constitution modifier, and regain all uses of this ability after a short rest.
  POCKET DIMENSION. Unless you are wearing or holding an item, you are unaffected by encumbrance. You can still only carry as much weight as your strength allows.
  FLEXIBLE REFLEXES. You have 11+your Dexterity modifier AC while not wearing armor.
  SAVAGE ATTACK. When you score a critical hit with a melee weapon, you can roll one of the weapon's damage dice one additional time and add it to the extra damage of the critical hit.
  BATTLELUST. You have disadvantage against any spell or effect that would encourage you to engage in combat. In addition, if you go 12 hours without sparring or engaging in combat, you must make a will save; on a failure, you will attack the nearest creature to you.
  Languages. Sticks are mute, though they can generate small pictographs in the air. You can read and write Common, and know the gestural language of Stick. You also know the Message Cantrip as an extraordinary ability.
  

Random Height and Weight

Base Height	Height Modifier*	Base Weight	Weight Modifier**
4′ ''	+1d8x6+1d4 inches	100 lb.	× (1d6) lb.
*Height = base height + height modifier **Weight = base weight + (height modifier × weight modifier)

5.00

(one vote)

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