Cervid

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Cervid

"In all my years of travel, I've never seen a more noble, beautiful and elegant folk; they hold their heads up high, wide sprawling antlers on display for all to marvel and enjoy. The beauty of a cervid is truly awe inspiring almost as if their presence, their essence, their being alone was magical somehow. Their culture and personalities certainly reflect that as well; they're kindhearted, caring and almost too nurturing for their own good. One time, I had gotten myself lost within a thick forest whose canopy engulfed all light; I found myself starving and alone and passed out from my injuries. When I came to, the first thing I saw was the soft, warm, concerned face of a doe over my being; she had wrapped me in the softest hide blankets imaginable and fed me the sweetest, most earthy tasting soup imaginable. I offered her compensation once I was able to stand on my own two feet but she smiled and shook her head saying that the companionship alone was compensation enough. I've met many Cervids since then and I would wager my own life on their kindness and generosity; each and every one of them treated me like a member of their own herd."   -Excerpt from Pure Heart's "Aygromian Sentient Ecological Survey," a collection of research papers, books, journals and dossiers on sentient/sapient life within the planet of Aygromia.

Physical Description

Modern day Cervids are the descendants of feral cervid-like species such as deer, elk, moose, etc... given anthropomorphic shape. Just like their feral counterparts, Cervids possess many different builds be it a small, athletic and petite build similar to that of a typical deer or a large, muscular and bulky physique typical to that of a large moose; this makes it difficult to make generalizations of their appearances and physiques. However, most if not all Cervids have lean athletic bodies and large, widespread, majestic antlers or thick and bony horns. Females, while typically foregoing horns, may grow them in rare occasions wherein the horns are much smaller than a typical males antlers and may even be somewhat malformed. Whether male or female, a Cervids antlers are capable of being completely shed in a rather bloody and gory display, especially for moose Cervids wherein their unique, fur covered antlers shed their skin in place for new skin for the winter. In these cases, the antlers begin to grow back somewhat immediately, however this process is excruciatingly slow, oftentimes taking well over a year to develop a single spike.   Due to their ancestors position within the food chain, Cervids have developed somewhat excellent senses, their most effective sense being their sense of smell. While a Cervids sight and hearing may be about as good as a humans, their sense of smell is about 1,000 times better. Alongside this, they are capable of processing multiple smells at once allowing. Whilst their hearing may be somewhat average, they compensate with adjustable ears which an be individually moved to better pinpoint the origin of a sound. This causes Cervids to be somewhat flighty when anxious.  

Culture

Ancient Cervid culture often revolved around the worshiping of a nameless, benevolent nature deity who would shower it's worshipers with bountiful, natural gifts such as plentiful harvest and sanctuary within thick forests. Modern-day Cervids still hold some of this belief to heart despite not necessarily worshiping a deity; their homes tend to be built almost exclusively from organic materials such as woods or grasses and tend to be very ornately decorated with various forms of flora and sometimes even fauna causing their homes to oftentimes reek of sweet nature which could be overpowering to some. However, due to modern infrastructure, these types of homes are oftentimes replaced with concrete apartments or simple typical houses; in these cases, Cervids opt for light, naturalistic decoration seasoned with the burning of pleasant smelling incenses. Irregardless of their current living situation, Cervids always hold nature near and dear to their hearts. Cervids also tend to be extremely friendly, kind, and nurturing often to their own detriment. They tend to make a visitor's stay rather warm and snug, accommodating for their every whim.  

Cervid Traits

  Ability Score Increase: Due to their nature, Cervids tend to be very sociable but still somewhat flighty when anxious. +2 to Charisma, +1 to Dexterity   Age: Thanks to their athletic nature, Cervids tend to live relatively healthy and long lives often living around 100 years to 120 years of age but some have been known to live well beyond that range.   Alignment: These creatures are free spirited and tend to think for themselves when it comes to personal goals and philosophies. They are somewhat loyal, overly caring, nurturing and kind and therefore tend to align themselves with neutral or good personality types.   Size: A Cervids bodily structure tends to vary with their subspecies but generally, the smallest Cervids stand at an average of 4 feet and 80 to 100 pounds while the tallest stand on average at 7 feet and 200 to 300 pounds. Smaller Cervids tend to be very lean, fit and athletic while larger Cervids tend to be fit, muscular and bulky. Your size is Medium.   Speed: As previously stated, a Cervids flighty nature causes them to be somewhat speedy on their hooves. Your base speed is 35 feet. As you age, your base movement speed increases to simulate your agility and increased capabilities. At 10th level, your base movement speed increases by 5 for a total of 40 feet and at 20th level, your base movement speed increases by an additional 5 for a total of 45 feet.  

Cervid Features

  Vision: Despite being a diurnal race, your ancestors used to be vigilant throughout the night. You have Darkvision of 30 feet, within this range you perceive objects as if they were within bright light; beyond this range, for another 30 feet, you perceive objects as if they were within dim light and anything beyond this range is indistinguishable from darkness to you.   Keen Senses: Your sense of smell is excellent and your sense of hearing is somewhat sensitive as well; whenever you roll a smell or hearing based perception check, you may do so with advantage. However, loud noises and strong smells often upset you; whenever you receive damage from smell-based spells such as "Cloud Kill" you take an additional 0.5x's damage from the spell. Whenever you are deafened, you are deafened for twice as much time.   Fight or Flight: Your flighty nature allows your body to subconsciously pump adrenaline into your bloodstream in moments of extreme stress, anxiety or danger. Once per short rest, whenever you would be the target of an attack, you may, as a reaction, attempt to dodge that attack. In order to dodge the attack, you must roll a Dexterity Save whose DC equals the attack's roll. Upon succeeding on the roll, you completely avoid the attack's damage and move to a space within 10 feet of your current position so long as it does not trigger any attacks of opportunity or put you in the way of direct harm. You start your following turn with 10 less base movement speed; after this turn, your movement speed returns to normal.   Antlers: Your large antlers work as a natural, organic weapon. In order to have this ability, your character must either be a male or a female with abnormal antler growth. As an attack action, you may attack a target within melee range of yourself with your antlers, dealing 1d6 bludgeoning damage. Your attack modifier for this weapon is your Strength Modifier plus your Proficiency Modifier. If you do not possess antlers, you may headbutt a target instead, dealing 1d4 bludgeoning damage in place of an antler's 1d6 bludgeoning damage.   Skull Bash: Your antlers, despite their large, cumbersome size, are perfect concussive, bludgeoning weapons. Whenever you make an Antler attack, once per short rest, you may choose to declare a Skull Bash. Upon declaring a Skull Bash, you attack the head of your target rather than another part of their body, attempting to concuss them. Your target must make a Constitution Saving Throw whose DC is your Strength Score. Upon failing, your target is stunned until the end of their following turn alongside taking damage from your Antler attack. If your target succeeds, they take damage as usual but do not become stunned.

Languages. You know Common and Cervid. If you are playing with core languages, you know Sylvan in place of Cervid. Additionally, if your DM allows you, you may take both Cervid and Sylvan.