Minotaur

The minotaurs of Midgard are a proud people pushed to the brink. Driven from their ancestral homelands of Kadralhu and Roshgazi by the ever-expanding Dragon Empire, the bull-folk home is now the Serene Isle of Kyprion across the sea. Minotaurs are imposing and powerful, with a reputation for ferocity that borders on monstrous. That reputation is well-earned. Minotaurs display their achievements proudly by decorating their horns with engraved sigils and designs. If one is versed in minotaur custom, one can tell at a glance the achievements and prowess of a minotaur by examining the decoration on her horns. A minotaur who loses part or all of a horn suffers considerable stigma and must strive to prove his worth. Sometimes a “brokehorn” (a fighting insult to any minotaur) who manages to achieve great deeds earns the gift of having the missing horn magically restored by a temple. Beware any minotaur that willingly gives up or chooses not to restore a lost horn, for this is one of Midgard’s most driven and dangerous creatures.

Minotaur Traits

Your minotaur character has certain characteristics in common with all other minotaurs. 

• Ability Score Increase. Your Strength score increases by 2, and your Constitution score increases by 1.
• Age. Minotaurs age at roughly the same rate as humans but mature 3 years earlier. Childhood ends around the age of 10 and adulthood is celebrated at 15.
• Alignment. Minotaurs possess a wide range of alignments, just as humans do. Mixing a love for personal freedom and respect for history and tradition, the majority of minotaurs fall into neutral alignments.
• Size. Adult males can reach a height of 7 feet, with females averaging 3 inches shorter. Your size is Medium.
• Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 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 cannot discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.
• Natural Attacks. Your horns are natural weapons, which you can use to make unarmed strikes. If you hit with them, they deal 1d6 + your Strength modifier piercing damage.
• Charge. If you move at least 10 feet toward a target and hit it with a horn attack in the same turn, you deal an extra 1d6 piercing damage and you can shove the target 5 feet as a bonus action. You can apply this extra damage once per turn. At 11th level, when you shove a creature with Charge, you can push it 10 feet instead of 5. You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to your Constitution modifier, and you regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.
• Labyrinth Sense. You can retrace without error any path you have previously taken, with no ability check.
• Languages. You can speak, read, and write Minotaur and Common, as well as one other language of your choice (typically the Northern or Southern languages).

Terror on the High Seas

The minotaurs of Kyprion are a force to be reckoned with in a stand-up fight. Perhaps somewhat against type for their bulk, they are an absolute terror on the sea. The corsairs of Kyprion have carved a tale of bloody blades and shattered hulls on the water, and even the mighty Dragon Empire has learned to respect them. The minotaur’s natural sense of direction makes them ideal navigators on sea as well as land. Cover of night, fog thick enough to carve, and unfamiliar coastlines don’t phase the bull-folk.

Twisting Paths

Minotaur architecture and city planning always incorporate a particular design: labyrinths. Every settlement and structure of any size created by the bull-folk sports a twisting labyrinth of switchbacks and dead ends. None is more famous than the Great Labyrinth in the city of Vespras, the capital of Kyprion. In the center of this maze is the Palace of the Bull, another labyrinth in its own right. At night, the clash of arms and screams of the dying find their way out of the maze. It is said that the queen invites both friends and enemies to enjoy the hospitality of the palace, but only her friends survive the stay