Wither Skeleton (5e Race)

Wither Skeleton

Physical Description

A greatsword weilding Wither Skeleton, by u/xianarts_14,Source

A wither skeleton has one easily identified trait, that being their charcoal black bones. Past that, a few more unique physical aspects emerge.

First is their size, even while skeletal they tower almost a foot over the humans which they share a general anatomy with. Second and lastly are the strange bone growths which appear on their bodies, like spikes or horns, tending to share zero anatomical similarities with any race of people.

History

The history of wither skeletons is almost as long and rooted in assumption as the great forts they reside in, both seeming to pop into reality near the same time. Since they appeared, they have done nothing of note except guard the aforementioned forts, although to what end is unknown.

Society

Society is practically non-existent among the wither skeletons, likely only due to the general lack of bodies. Those that do occur are closer to a regiment of a military group, with no clear command, if one at all. In these groups, they practice with the martial skills they seem to all be born with, if they were ever born at all, and not much else. They have no scholars, or politicians, or anything else of the sort.

Wither Skeleton Names

As they rarely talk, or interact with anyone for that matter, most seem to not have names. While those that manage to enter more talkative places outside of the massive hell dimension they tend to find themselves in tend to pick up a name or nickname, they are the outliers.

Wither Skeleton Traits

Skeletal warriors who live deep within secluded forts.
Ability Score Increase. Your Strength score increases by 2 and your Constitution score increases by 1.
Age. You were born mature in hell, and do not age, and won't die of old age until your bones give away.
Alignment. For unknown reasons, they tend towards lawful alignments due to "traditions", although evil bends are quite common too.
Size. Being a human-like skeleton makes you vary widely in height and build, from barely 6 feet to well over 7 feet tall. Your size is Medium.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet. Your swimming speed is 10 feet.
Darkvision. Being born in Dark fortress made it so that you are quite adept at seeing in the dark. 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.
Martial Undead. You are proficient with Longswords, Broadswords, Greatswords, and Slabswords.
Withering Touch. When you hit a creature with a Melee Attack you can use your reaction to channel the necromantic energy stored within you to assail their physical form. They take 1d4 necrotic damage, and at the start of their next turn, must make a Constitution saving throw equal to 8 + your Proficiency bonus + your Strength modifier, or take an additional 1d4 necrotic damage. On a failure, they must make the save again on their next turn, up to three times. You can do this an amount of times equal to your Strength modifier, regaining all uses on a long rest.
Hell's Skeleton. You are an undead born out of one of the worst places in existence. Your creature type is undead instead of humanoid. You are immune to poison damage, being poisoned, and diseases. You are also resistant to both necrotic and fire damage, and vulnerable to radiant. You are acclimated to hot and dry environments, and you do not need to eat or breathe, nor can you. Healing other than that gained by rests which does not specifically target undead instead deals an amount of damage equal to what it would've healed. Finally, rather than sleeping, you enter an inactive state for 6 hours each day. You do not dream in this state, you are fully aware of your surroundings and notice approaching enemies and other events as normal.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common And both Infernal and Abyssal.

Racial Feats

You have some racial feats to help you fully unlock your Wither Skeleton Powers.

Stronger Withering

Prerequisite: Wither Skeleton
You gain more control over your Withering Touch empowering it greatly

• Your touches damage increases with your level now. The damage increases to 1d6 when you reach 5th level, 1d8 when you reach 11th level, and 1d10 when you reach 17th level.
• The target no longer immediately needs to roll saves on the start of their turns, instead, every turn they must take a bonus action to make a saving throw.
• Withering only ends on the target if they fail the saving throw up to (half your level, rounded down) times, or they succeed.

Wither Jockey

Prerequisite: Wither Skeleton
You can form a symbiotic relationship with Large Spiders to help both them and you.

• You gain advantage on all animal handing checks involving Spiders

By spending 8 hours meditating with a Large Spider, you form a bond with it. Your Spider is bonded to you on a deeper level than most animals- it is almost like an extension of yourself. This bond is broken if you intentionally abuse the Spider or part ways with it, and can never be regained once broken. So long as you maintain your bond with your Spider Companion, you gain the following benefits:

• The Spider will do anything you command, no matter how suicidal, without complaint or fear.
• While you are riding your Spider Companion, any spells, attacks, or effects targeting it will instead target you.
• Mounting or dismounting your spider costs you only 5 feet of movement, rather than half your speed.
• On your turn, you may use one of The Spider's attacks in the place of one of your own attack actions. You have proficiency with these attacks.
• Your Spider Companion recognizes and obeys only you. It cannot be stolen by simply riding off with the Spider. If it senses that it is being taken against your will, it will fight as if you are riding it, (Using your attacks, proficiency bonus, hit points, etc.) in an effort to free itself. (Note that this means spells and effects targeting it ultimately target to you, regardless of where you are.)
• Other riders may be granted permission to ride by whispering a secret password, of your choosing, to the Spider, but even then it will only obey them in the capacity of a standard mount.
• Your Spider Companion is welcome in places where they are not normally allowed, such as the grand hall of a palace, though it is still barred from more intimate areas, such as someone's home.
• If your Spider Companion is somehow killed in combat, you are filled with a vengeful rage. You have advantage on all attack rolls, checks, and saves until the end of combat, at which point you collapse unconscious for 1 hour.

This feat is heavily inspired by the Knight classes Favored Mount 1 If you like this feat I would recommend checking it out

Random Height and Weight

Base Height	Height Modifier*	Base Weight	Weight Modifier**
6′ 0''	+2d12	90 lb.	× (1.5) lb.
*Height = base height + height modifier **Weight = base weight + (height modifier × weight modifier)

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