Tiefling

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Orphans of the stars; Tieflings are descended from ancient humans who, in their profane curiosity, managed to communicate with the stars themselves and somehow managed to copulate with the obscure beings who came after.   Tieflings are derived from human bloodlines, and in the broadest possible sense, they still look human. However, their profane heritage has left a clear imprint on their appearance. Tieflings have large horns that take any of a variety of shapes: some have curling horns like a ram, others have straight and tall horns like a gazelle’s, and some spiral upward like an antelopes’ horns. They have thick tails, four to five feet long, which lash or coil around their legs when they get upset or nervous. Their canine teeth are sharply pointed, and their eyes are solid colours—black, red, white, silver, or gold—with no visible sclera or pupil. Their skin tones cover the full range of human coloration, but also include various shades of red or purple. Their hair, cascading down from behind their horns, is usually dark, from black or brown to dark red, blue, or purple.   Lacking a homeland, and considered demons by most of the Waning Land’s races, tieflings know that they have to make their own way in the world and that they have to be strong to survive. They are not quick to trust anyone who claims to be a friend, but when a tiefling’s companions demonstrate that they trust him or her, the tiefling learns to extend the same trust to them. There is no way of knowing what exactly happened all those aeons ago when Tieflings were first birthed into the world, those few scattered records and verbal accounts which speak of it come tainted by the ravages of time upon the collected memory since, all were certainly derived millennia—at the very least—after the events first took place. There was, perhaps, a clan, or an empire, or a kingdom of humans who worshipped, studied or basked in the celestial light, and managed in their prayer, art or sorcery to gain to attention of something which should never have been able to see them. The truth of the matter, I am afraid to say, seems as if it will forever be lost to us, as so much is in this age of decay; however what can be said is each Tiefling is an orphan in their own right, shunned by humanity and abandoned by the stars. All Tiefling are alone in a way the other races fail to understand, and all feel an implacable, essential yearning when the gaze up at the night sky and see the oddly familiar patterns of the cosmos sprawled across the heavens.  

Traits:

  Age. Tieflings mature at the same rate as humans but live a few years longer.   Size. Tieflings are about the same size and build as humans. Your size is Medium.   Darkvision. Thanks to your celestial heritage, you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. 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 colour in darkness, only shades of grey.   Fire Resistance. You have resistance to fire damage.   Profane Legacy. You know the thaumaturgy cantrip. Once you reach 3rd level, you can cast the hellish rebuke spell once per day as a 2nd-level spell. Once you reach 5th level, you can also cast the darkness spell once per day. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for these spells.   Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common.