Merfolk
Also known as tritons, most merfolk dwell throughout the Sanguine Sea and Kynance Bay, exploring a world of coral forests and secret mountains the "dryfolk" of the surface world will never know. While most live their entire lives beneath the sea, often guarding several portals to the Elemental Plane of Water, they're not bound to the deep. Following their inherent curiosity, some merfolk venture beyond the waves, seeking to explore a whole world of wonders beyond their own.
Deepsight. You have Darkvision with a range of 60 feet. While you're completely submerged in water, the range of your Darkvision is doubled, though it does not extend outside of the water. Amphibious. You can breathe air and water. Aquatic Adaptation. As an Action, you can magically alter your body’s physiology to adapt better to your natural underwater environment. This can be something like expanding gills, to something like changing your legs into a large tail. While transformed in this way, your land Speed decreases by 20 feet, and your Swim Speed increases by 30 feet (from base 30 to 60). This transformation lasts until you end it as an Action. Emissary of the Sea. You can communicate simple ideas to any Beast, Elemental, or Monstrosity that has a Swim Speed. It can understand your words, though you have no special ability to understand it in return. You have Advantage on all Charisma checks you make to influence them. Guardians of the Depths. Adapted to even the most extreme ocean depths, you have Resistance to Cold Damage, and you ignore any of the drawbacks caused by a deep, underwater environment. Control Air and Water. A child of the sea, you can call on the magic of elemental air and water. You can cast the Fog Cloud spell with this trait. Starting at 3rd level, you can also cast the Gust of Wind spell with this trait, without requiring a material component. Once you cast either of these spells with this trait, you can’t cast that spell with it again until you finish a Long Rest; however, you can cast the spell using any Spell Slots you have of the appropriate level.
Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma is your Spellcasting Ability for these spells when you cast them with this trait (choose when you select this ancestry).
Born of the Sea
Merfolk are an amphibious people, at home in the water but able to be mobile on dry land. Their bodies are covered in fine scales that range from yellowish-green through shades of blue to deep purple. Their heads are often crowned with prominent crests, and fins sprout from their forearms, calves, and shoulders. Their digits are webbed, allowing them to swim as quickly as they can run. Many have tails in place of legs. Well suited to life in the deep, merfolk wear little clothing unless armored for battle. They fashion most of their clothes and other items from materials found in the ocean: coral, seaweed, shells, bone, sea urchin spines, the shells of monstrous crustaceans, and so on. Having an old, well-developed civilization, merfolk know much of how to refine these materials into garb as rich and weapons as sturdy as any found on land.Land and Sea
For centuries, dryfolk have fished the seas of Brinversia and have used the sea's surface as a means of travel. Many merfolk interpret this as an intrusion into their domains. As a result, some warlike merfolk communities respond with periodic strikes against sailors and fishing vessels. Others believe that turnabout is fair play and so venture onto land to hunt for meat, steal supplies from coastal travelers, or raid dryfolk settlements for riches. Despite the tensions between merfolk and the peoples of the surface, some merfolk make their lives on land. Enchanted by the feeling of the winds, the rustle of leaves, the ingenuity of land-dwelling inventors, or any of countless other surface-world charms, every merfolk living beyond the waves does so for their own reasons. In some places, like the coast off Kerrios and Xendar, whole merfolk communities flourish among dryfolk neighbors.Hand of Theralia
While merfolk pay respects to many deities, they tend to revere Theralia, god of the sea, above all other deities. Her devotees see her as the primary god of the Green Pantheon and often of the world, believing she will bring their people to ascendancy over the monsters of the sea and the people of the land.Depths of Curiosity
Many merfolk are intrigued by surface culture. The curious among them venture into sunken ruins and shipwrecks, sifting through the debris for whatever grabs their attention. Often these merfolk develop collections of a specific kind of object or lore, trading with one another as they develop a sort of expertise in their field. Some merfolk approach investigations of the dryfolk with scientific rigor. Such scholars often hold theories to go along with their collections, hypotheses many are eager to test upon meeting new dryfolk.Merfolk Names
A merfolk's name is a symbol of choice, often having two or three syllables. Upon reaching adulthood, a merfolk might shed the name they were given by their parents for one of their own choosing. Some opt to keep their name, but the majority select one that represents the adult they've become. Merfolk might even go on to choose yet other names, as they shift from one phase of life to another, or after significant life events. Leaving a home community or transitioning to live among dryfolk might constitute such life changes. Merfolk also have a fluid concept of gender and might switch names freely as they shift gender identities. Masculine Names: Bysseus, Cetos, Corus, Delnis, Galaukus, Galiton, Kenessos, Odexes, Palamon, Pontreus, Rheteus, Thrasios, Vodos, Zunis Feminine Names: Amathe, Aryn, Duthyn, Feloren, Gnorcys, Leurybia, Margomestra, Nereones, Oleia, Samathe, Saphiro, Tethene, Theaneia, ThectraMerfolk Traits
Your character has the following traits.Merfolk
Ability Score Increase Str +1; Con +1; Cha +1
Size Medium
Speed 30 ft., Swim 30 ft.
Alignment. Choose one of the alignments approved by your GM. Typical Merfolk tend towards Neutral alignments. Creature Type. You are a Humanoid. Size. You are Medium (about 5-6 feet tall), and weigh about 130-240 pounds. Speed. Your land Speed is 30 feet, and you have a Swim Speed equal to your land Speed. Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and Aquan. Life Span. Merfolk mature around the age of 15, and live on average about 200 years.
Deepsight. You have Darkvision with a range of 60 feet. While you're completely submerged in water, the range of your Darkvision is doubled, though it does not extend outside of the water. Amphibious. You can breathe air and water. Aquatic Adaptation. As an Action, you can magically alter your body’s physiology to adapt better to your natural underwater environment. This can be something like expanding gills, to something like changing your legs into a large tail. While transformed in this way, your land Speed decreases by 20 feet, and your Swim Speed increases by 30 feet (from base 30 to 60). This transformation lasts until you end it as an Action. Emissary of the Sea. You can communicate simple ideas to any Beast, Elemental, or Monstrosity that has a Swim Speed. It can understand your words, though you have no special ability to understand it in return. You have Advantage on all Charisma checks you make to influence them. Guardians of the Depths. Adapted to even the most extreme ocean depths, you have Resistance to Cold Damage, and you ignore any of the drawbacks caused by a deep, underwater environment. Control Air and Water. A child of the sea, you can call on the magic of elemental air and water. You can cast the Fog Cloud spell with this trait. Starting at 3rd level, you can also cast the Gust of Wind spell with this trait, without requiring a material component. Once you cast either of these spells with this trait, you can’t cast that spell with it again until you finish a Long Rest; however, you can cast the spell using any Spell Slots you have of the appropriate level.
Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma is your Spellcasting Ability for these spells when you cast them with this trait (choose when you select this ancestry).
