Tonberry (5e Race)

Tonberry

“	O' brothersss of rancor, take up thy lanternsss The truth we shall illuminate. O' sistersss of rancor, take up thy knives, To cleave our foesss with barren hate.	”
—Tonberry battle chant

Physical Description

By Stefan Ribera Olsen

Tonberries are largely reptilian looking creatures. They are characteristically short and green. They have small, beady orange eyes set atop a round head that slopes down their thick neck. Their mouth is on the underside of the head and very hard to see. Their body is covered in scaly, leathery green skin that provides great protection. Their hands usually have four or three fingers, one being a thumb. No one has ever seen their feet but their tail is thick and ends with a fin.

They always have a brown piece of clothing covering their body. And they almost always carry a lantern and a knife. Some do not have the lantern and just the knife. Some tonberries wear shoes like loafers while others hide their feet in their clothing.

History

Tonberry as a whole have no singular history. They are anomalous creatures which simply spring up in places where great loss of life or tragedy has left an area otherwise desolate, most commonly underground or in large, ruined buildings that the earth has reclaimed. They are almost always associated with the darker elements and are said to be attracted to misery and misfortune. It is said that all tonberry are the result of a singular curse left behind by a spiteful god, but this is completely unverifiable and only a handful of the most ancient members of the race have any idea where they came from or why they exist. These few indeed speak of an ancient goddess who was herself twisted into a foul perversion by a vengeful enemy, and supposedly this twisting passed forth into whatever ancient race the first tonberry were mutated from.

The most popular theory is they form out of the negative feelings from the places with they are known to infest. As sadness, rage and venomous hatred fester, the thing develops like a grudge. Eventually, this grudge takes form. This is considered to be why tonberries are such spiteful creatures. If ever wronged, they never forget. They retain their desire for vengeance even as they meander, possibly what makes them most disturbing. In some cultures, tonberries are the creature symbolic of wrath and revenge, as well as karma.

Society

Tonberry society is a loose affiliation of twisted souls who come together in places where tragedy has occurred. They have no particular hierarchy, but are like minded enough on most issues that a chain of command isn't particularly necessary. Ironically, small numbers of tonberries can sometimes seem almost human, developing hobbies and personalities, often related to ascetics or, bizarrely, cooking. Large concentrations however become exponentially feral in their wild hatred, until any concept of society breaks down and the area is little more than a deathtrap of deranged lizards eager for the next kill. Some tonberries form spontaneously from concentrations of vengeful spirits and misery, while others are members of another race which have been mutated by the same conditions. Tonberries themselves make no distinction between these two origins, and a newly mutated one tragically loses all concept of its former self. On obscuring nights, they like to wander alone and hunt. But for what is unclear. Perhaps they go to cause the strife which they feed on.

Tonberry Names

Tonberry amongst themselves have simple names, usually a single syllable of their native tongue followed by 'berry'. Those who find themselves among humans will adopt a human sounding name, but have a tendency to misspell them. It is uncertain if this is on purpose or not.

Native: Bigberry, Hilberry, Calberry, Vulberry

Humanized: Rohbert, Toemas, Byll, Anthiny

Tonberry Traits

Vengeful demihumans lurking in the dark
Ability Score Increase. Your Wisdom score increases by 2, and your Constitution score increases by 1.
Age. Tonberries are born fully formed and have no known maximum lifespan.
Alignment. Tonberries are creatures born of rage, constantly tormented by the whispers of the vengeful damned. It can be difficult for them to pull away from the spiral of evil inclinations this brings them, but they also lean toward venting this evil in a lawful manner.
Size. Tonberries rarely grow beyond four feet in height, aside from a few freakish specimens that grow much larger than a human. Your size is Small.
Speed. With relatively short legs and a methodical demeanor, tonberries move very slowly even for their small size. Your base walking speed is 20 feet.
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.
Toughness. Your hit point maximum increases by 1, and it increases by 1 every time you gain a level.
Knife Affinity. Tonberries are amazing with knives. You are proficient with daggers.
Truck Strength. Tonberries are surprisingly small creatures with the strength of a truck. You count as Large size when determining your carrying capacity and the weight you can push, drag, or lift.
Burning Grudge. Any light source, in the hands of a tonberry, resonates with their deep-seated rancor, using it as fuel to burn with uncanny brightness. You may use your bonus action to double the range of light of a torch, candle, or lantern by feeding it your anger and wrathful spite. While you do this, it is as if you are concentrating on a spell. You may dispel this effect and return the light to its normal range with a bonus action.
Spiteful Attack. The thirst for revenge against those who wrong them makes a tonberry's attacks stronger. As a bonus action you can make a special weapon attack. If the attack hits, it deals its normal weapon damage die. If the target creature is a creature that has dealt damage to you before, this attack deals additional force damage equal to your Wisdom modifier. You can use this trait a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus and you regain all uses after you finish a long rest.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and one language from Deep Speech, Undercommon, Infernal, or Abyssal. Tonberries speak Common with a bit of a lisp.

Random Height and Weight

Base Height	Height Modifier*	Base Weight	Weight Modifier**
3′ 2''	+2d6	90 lb.	× (1d4) lb.
*Height = base height + height modifier **Weight = base weight + (height modifier × weight modifier)

Suggested Characteristics

When creating a Tonberry character, you can use the following table of traits, ideals, bonds and flaws to help flesh out your character. Use these tables in addition to or in place of your background's characteristics.

d8	Personality Trait
1	Honestly I just want to cook.
2	When I'm not culling unworthy lives, I enjoy spelunking in the caverns surrounding my home.
3	I've never been able to go back to my old burlap robes since I learned about human clothing.
4	I spend far more time than is average maintaining my knife and lantern.
5	I stab first and ask questions later.
6	There is something wrong with me, and I feel only sorrow for those who have died tragic and meaningless deaths.
7	I truly believe that when all the guilty have been punished, my kind will be released from these horrid forms.
8	I don't really care about punishing anyone in particular. I just like killing and revenge is as good a reason as any.

d6	Ideal
1	Revenge. I must avenge those who have died unjust deaths. (Good)
2	Revenge. I must avenge those put to the sword by the so called 'law'. (Chaotic)
3	Revenge. I must avenge those murdered in pursuit of so called 'justice'. (Evil)
4	Revenge. I must avenge those lives snuffed out by the chaos of this world. (Law)
5	Revenge. I must avenge the humans my kind has persecuted unfairly.
6	Revenge. I must avenge my fellow tonberries slain by heartless adventurers.

d6	Bond
1	I was raised by humans who taught me to ignore the voices.
2	Another member of the party is truly innocent, and this both fascinates and perplexes me.
3	I am haunted by a single, particularly willful ghost instead of many weak ones.
4	I killed a member of the party's father/mother in error, and have since dedicated my life to watching over them.
5	I was created artificially in an arcane laboratory and know nothing of my race.
6	Only the friendship of a particular party member prevents me from becoming like the rest of my kin.

d6	Flaw
1	I am funny looking even by Tonberry standards.
2	I never make sure my victim is completely dead before moving on.
3	I vaguely hear the cries of the damned, but can't actually tell what they're saying.
4	Any meal I try to prepare comes out warped beyond recognition.
5	I get cold very easily.
6	I often leave my lantern laying around and forget where it is.

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