Character Crunch. Otterlings.

OTTERLINGS: RIVER-RUNNIN’ SWAMPFOLK

Otterlings are found mostly in the northern swamps of Thule, living in small family clans called “lodges, and make their home in submarine dwellings that they dig out by the riverbank. They make a living by avoiding swamp predators and fishing through cooperation. They often get additional pay as swamp guides and working on riverboats doing any number of tasks that require their size and expertise. They are diminuitive folk, standing two to three feet tall, and resemble the critters that they are descended from except for some more humanoid shape, expressive faces and intelligent eyes. Their eyes are said to be exceptionally human-like.

Despite being native to the cold and unforgiving country of Zholtovka, a place where the local humans have cast out or executed all non-humans, otterlings are exempt from their inquisition due to an otterling helping one of their prophets. They say it a sin to harm such helpful creatures and the otterlings are all too happy to live up to that expectation if it means freedom from being hunted for their pelts. They mostly avoid any unwanted human contact and are exceptionally good at not being found when they don’t want but their curiosity and energetic nature often see them feeling compelled to interact with any passersby. It is not unheard of for a hero traveling through the swamp to wind up with a permanent traveling companion. And, despite their size, their ferocity is legendary. They are predators, after all.

There are also sea-otterlings who are smaller, cuter and more specialized for the sea. They tend to be excellent with tools and are welcome on many ships but they are known to have “sticky paws”.They often trade in trinkets, especially those that have a puzzle element, and are excellent at identifying and discussing curious objects.

Both subspecies share the same unique language that is made up of high pitched squeaks and whistles and low growls that carry over long distances. Despite their bestial language, they are quite adept at speech and are quick learners. 

OTTERLING TRAITS
Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score increases by 2.
Age. Otterlings mature quickly to adulthood at 12 years of age and live to about 50 years.
Alignment.  Oterrlings are notorious curious and affectionate creatures who love to make friends but are fierce in the face of threats. They are most commonly chaotic good.
Size. River otterlings stand between three to four feet tall and sea otterlings are usually smaller and pudgier between two and three feet. Your size is Small.
Speed. Otterlings are fast on land and water. You have a walking speed of 30 feet and a swim speed of 30 feet. They are even faster when prone and can move at 35 feet when they are prone.
Slip & Slide. Your bone structure is impressively flexible and you're used to moving through cramped spaces. You are considered one size smaller when attempting to move through tight spaces and take no movement penalty when doing so.
Nimbleness: You can move through the space of any creature that is of a size larger than yours.
Hold Breath. You can hold your breath for up to 15 minutes.
Travel Guide. Sea otterlings are expert navigators and survivalists. You have proficiency with navigation tool.

RIVER OTTERLING SUBRACE TRAITS
Ability Score Increase. River otterlings are adapt hunters with sharp senses and wits. Your Wisdom score increases by 1.
Swamp Warrior. You are adept at hiding from larger predators and catching prey unaware. You have proficiency in the Stealth skill.
Bite. Your jaw is a strong natural weapon, which can be used to make unarmed strikes. If you hit with it, you deal piercing damage equal to 1d4 + your Strength modifier, instead of the bludgeoning damage normal for an unarmed strike.


SEA OTTERLINGS SUBRACE TRAITS
Ability Score Increase. Sea otterlings are clever sailors. Your Intelligence score increases by 1.
Sticky Paws. Sea otterlings have a bad habit of putting anything that catches their eye into their pocket. You have proficiency in Sleight of Hand.
Curious Critters. Sea otters love toys and trinkets. Whenever you make an Intelligence (History) check related to magic items, alchemical objects, or technological devices, you can add twice your proficiency bonus, instead of any proficiency bonus you normally apply.

Goblins & Orcs: Strength in Weakness & Weakness in Strength

To the peoples of Sublanarya, there is little difference in the orcish and goblinoid invasions from across the waters between the Dead and Dragon Seas. They are merciless conquerors, like locusts, who devour their crops, demolish their townships and enslave their peoples. They have sharp teeth, red, green or grey skin, pointed ears, speak strange tongues and worship strange gods. And yet, these two different groups fight each other as often as they fight the native population. They are, despite the surface similarities, psychologically opposed.

Goblins find strength in weakness and orcish weakness comes from their strength.

Goblinoids are a race that dates back to the Wyrd Wars. They were created by Gob the Horned Master, a diabolical duke associated with conquest and slavery, to serve him as his soldiers in his conquest of the material plane. Their legends say that he first tried to conquer a dwarven hold with his diabolical minions until both forces were decimated and brought to a standstill. The dwarven leaders offered a parley for peace. Gob was so disgusted that he hocked a mouthful of mucus onto the blood soaked mud at his feet. An army of diminuitive humanoids, green of hue as his mucus, rose up and finished off the dwarves. These were the first goblins and Gob imbued them with his ambition and cruelty.

Gob was slain by Urd the Forgefather, the patron god of the dwarves, and left the goblins without a master to guide them and a millenia long hatred for dwarves. The goblins were scattered across the world without leadership.

Goblins are a diminutive race, standing between 3 and 4 feet tall, with a dexterous frame with yellow to green colored skin (with some variance). They have sharp teeth, long & pointed ears, broad and pointed noses, beady yellow or red eyes, and with black hair-- males are prone to varying signs of baldness. They make up for their size and weakness with ferocity and numbers. Goblins breed and mature quickly, reaching adult age within 10 years, and often having broods of two to six per short pregnancy. This feature allows them to quickly fill the numbers for any horde.

Goblins live in familial tribes, usually building their lairs in caves far from other humanoids, and have a hunter-gatherer lifestyle. From a young age, goblins are taught that nothing is fair, that you have to fight for your own survival and that ruthless aggression is rewarded. Male goblins spend a lot of time gathering resources, usually through theft and banditry, and making short-term alliances with other tribes and monsters to raid villages. Goblins know they value of strength in numbers because it is their biggest strength. Female goblins usually rear the young and maintain their lair but, just as often, join the males in their raids.

Bugbears are the outliers of goblinoid society. With yellow skin, furry bodies, sharp claws, short-carnivore snouts and a hulking muscular form, bugbears are easily the most physically intimidating of the goblinoids.

They were created by Gob's son, Zorguhl the Brute, who valued strength above all else. Zorguhl is a cruel god who demands sacrifices from his priests who, unfortunately for Zorguhl, are few because of the inherent laziness of his creations. Bugbear are predators who live in small family units, but just as often prefer to live on their own or seek out a tribe of goblins to bully into servitude. Bugbears, like their god, are afflicted by laziness. Bugbears are opportunistic and cruel but lack the ambition or intelligence to lead like their hobgoblin counterparts. In goblin hordes, they most often serves as scouts, hunters and as brutal bodyguards for hobgoblin warlords.

Zorguhl was no replacement for his father Gob and he was leading the goblins with disastrous results of the goblins and bugbears fighting each other and making reckless decisions. Mal-Dorig the Dread Conqueror subdued Zorguhl and took the reins. Under Mal-Dorig, the goblinoids reached the zenith of their civilization. His biggest contribution was the creation of hobgoblins, from cross-breeding humans and goblins, to create a race of medium sized soldiers that are stronger and more menacing than their diminutive goblinkin and smarter than the brutish bugbears. They are leaders of goblinkind and the driving force behind any goblin horde.

Hobgoblins have shorter noses and ears than goblins, with orange to reddish hued skin, dark hair, often with facial hair, and stand between 5'6'' and 6'6''. Some hobgoblins have unique features with "blue-noses" being common among famous warlords. And there are plenty of famous hobgoblin warlords.

They are far more disciplined than their lesser kin, being born and raised as part of a warband mercenary group or an army. By nature, they are more "civilized" than goblins and bugbears, living in tents and forts, making their own weapons and armor, and making powerful alliances to form armies capable of conquering wide swaths of territory. They also are notoriously proud and haughty, feeding into the already caustic temper goblinoids are infamous for, and fly into violent rages when challenged or humiliated. Their reputation is more important than their own children.

Rank and position is the measure of that reputation. Unlike lesser goblinoids, open revolt is frowned upon. Instead, hobgoblins are expected to rely on earning their rank, challenging their superior to a duel, or, valuing subtlety, successfully assassinating a superior. Hobgoblins that are caught using subterfuge to get rid of a superior are admonished but are often let off easy if the performance of that superior had been lacking. Hobgoblins live for the glory of battle.

On a side note, hobgoblins are also famous for employing warmages in combat. Goblins are also attracted to the potential uses of magic but hobgoblins, who desire respect from their adversaries, have actually established scholarly keeps dedicated to learning and teaching magic to the most talented of their kind.

Ironically, the biggest survival trait of goblins is their weakness. They often survive situations that would otherwise decimate them by hiding, running or begging for their lives. The competitive and violent nature of goblinoids puts the smartest, cruelest and strongest on top. The problem is that while goblins are loyal to the tribe, leaderships is constantly challenged by rivalry and mutinies are a weakly threat. The best way for a goblin leader to survive is to make sure their rivals are occupied and nothing occupies goblins like making war. This all feeds into the ruinous cycle of goblin conquest, inevitably ending in their decimation.

The best way for a goblin to survive and thrive? To be weak, pathetic and cowardly. If other goblins don't see you as a threat, they won't see you as a rival, and they won't take you out. The most successful goblin tribes are those that are the most cowardly.

Some goblins have even escaped the cycle of violence and cruelty by taking on a new philosophy: profit! Goblin miners, merchants and bankers have built a new identity for goblins who leave their kin behind in the city of Mithrak. These entrepreneurs worship at the altar of gold and follow the teachings of Zreebo the Goldgoblin.

Orcs are strong. Orcs stand between 6 and 7 feet tall, powerfully built with grey to green skin, dark eyes, long hair, snort and flat noses, and pointed ears. Their most iconic aspect is their tusks which protrude from their lower jaw. They mature at a similar rate to humans, perhaps a little earlier, and breed often. Twins are extremely common among orcs.

Orcs live in small tribal groups, building tents and hunts or living in cave systems, led by a chieftain and a shaman. The chieftain is a position passed from father to son and they serve as the martial leader of the clan. The shaman is the spiritual leader who provides medicine and religious guidance to the tribe. Shamans communicate with spirits of the dead and share the teachings of Namu the Cave Mother. Orcs have no strict line of leadership outside of these roles, positions being based on meritocracy with the strongest being warriors, fastest being scouts, stealthiest being hunters and everyone else serving the tribe as caretakers of the young and elderly.

Unlike goblinoids, orcs are inherently neutral.

Orcs, ideally and by default, prefer to live unmolested, hunting and gathering, in their ancestral territory. When they need more resources or feel threatened by outsiders, they seek to expand their territory, often resorting to a psuedo nomadic lifestyle, and to expel outsides with extreme prejudice. They treat orcish and non-orcish outsiders alike and rely on their own strength and tenacity to overcome them. When their strength fails, orcs turn to drastic measures and seek power from a willing shaman's contact with a darker force. This is the source of all corruption of orcish society and leads them to a path of violence, conquest and savagery.

The orcish distrust of other races can be traced back to the primordial age when Namu the Cave Mother awoke after her brothers, the patron gods of elves, gnomes, and dwarves, and found herself alone. Namu was a capable huntress, strong and beautiful, but without her family-- her tribe-- she was lost. Orcs resent the other races for leaving her behind in the World Below. Namu wandered for some time before she was found by a handsome demon prince, Nago the Furor in the Dark. He deceived her, knowing of her importance, and used magic to enchant her to fall in love with him. When she gave birth to twins, Brother Rom and Sister Rem, he tried to steal the godlings away to corrupt them. Namu took the form of a great wolf, repelling Nago in his true form, a great demonic boar, but he left his mark on orc kind.

Their tusks are symbols of his influence and the fury of orc kind is his curse. Rom and Rem also bore the curse. They fight constantly. This symbolism is often represented in orcish heraldry with the symbol of two wolves chasing each other to represent inner struggle, growth and balance. Namu guides her children as a symbol of elders, wisdom and tradition. But some orcish tribes turn to Nago and other demonic forces for power. This leads them down a darker path.

Orcs that allow demonic influence to overtake their tribe become the cruel and violent brutes that other cultures think of. They destroy everything in their path, aligning with other evil forces, and make hordes that threaten to destroy civilizations.  They become stronger, their territories expand beyond their ancestor's greatest expectations and they destroy the very thing they were trying to protect by losing their sense of family to become power hungry beasts.

The temptation of power that is bred by this curse has defined orcish history but it doesn't have to be that way in the future. Half-orcs are often the end result of this cruel conquest but they can also be a bridge to their people to peaceful coexistence with their neighbors. This means throwing off the shackles of demonic influence and learning to trust the other races.

But this is only possible if the other races give them a chance.

Faiths of Sublanarya: The Mother Plenty (Aphizia) & Honey-Blessed

Queen Aphizia is one of the nobility of the Court of Dawn but her origins are stranger than fey. She is an alien goddess, like Grimnir, who comes from beyond the stars. She made her home in Narya, long ago, and made herself a kingdom that would make anyone jealous. Her fey kingdom is a gorgeous and endless valley of wildflowers and fruit trees, the air humming with the busy work of fey bees and the singing of her children the kleodora, and in the middle of it all her massive golden castle. Inside, she sits upon her throne, attended and attending to her children.

She has had at least a short relationship with Aurellion that often leads their priests to be at odds.

Aphiza is a goddess whose cults find their way into desolate lands. Her daughters, the kleodora, are beautiful, alien and secretive missionaries who work to spread her influence into these lands by offering gifts of fresh produce and honey. While perhaps put-off by the strange appearance of the kleodora, desperate communities welcome them. It does not take long for the kleodora to offer to give the gift of apiaries, bee hives, and, in exchange for a small temple being built, teaching acolytes how to raise and care for the bees. Within a year, they can turn a famine into a bounty, but in following years, the queen gets her payment.

In order to appease her and the bees, Aphizia demands a yearly human sacrifice. The more elaborate and joyous the festival, despite the gruesome execution of the sacrifice, the better the following season's harvest. Such is the wicked pleasure of a goddess both alien and fey.

Those who fail to appease the queen are punished swiftly either by a plague of flying insects or worse. She is known to make deals, especially from women, for anything from a good harvest or a cured illness. But there is always a price and she is an easily offended goddess.

Particularly pleasing communities are even known to be "pollinated" by the kleodora and these children are called the "honey-blessed". Honey-blessed are often priests and agents of the goddess. Honey-Blessed are notoriously gifted with the beauty and wisdom of their forebearers. The features that stand out are their antennae, which they usually disguise by laying them down in their hair, a thin-layer of fine hair across their body and their eyes which have a composite pattern. While most honey-blessed serve the Mother Plenty, others escape their cult life and attempt a free-life. But the mother does not forget her children.

Ability Score Increase. Your Wisdom increases by 2 and your Charisma increases by 1.
Age. Honey-Blessed have lifespans equivalent to humans.
Alignment. Most honey-blessed are lawful sense the represent the authority of the cult and enforce it with a smile, so they tend towards lawful alignments. Those that break free from the cult might rebel and embrace freedom.
Size. A half-kleodora has the build of a human woman. Your size if medium.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Fey Ancestry. You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed and magic can't put you to sleep.
Mother's Blessing. You have advantage on saving throws against poison, and you have resistance against poison damage.
Insect Empathy. You have an innate ability to communicate with insects. You have the ability to communicate simple ideas through sounds and gestures with insect-like creatures.
Sting. You know the Infestation cantrip. Your infestation cantrip's spell manifests as a swarm of fey bees. Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for this spell.
Honeyed Words. Your bodily fluids have hypnotic qualities that allow you a limited version of the hivemind-like effect used by kleeodora. When your magic saliva, sweat or tears is consumed, via skin contact or ingestion, the creature must make a Wisdom saving throw. If it fails it is charmed by you until the effect ends, after 1 hour, or until you or your companions do something harmful to it. The charmed creature regards you as a friendly acquaintance. You can only affect a number of creatures with this spell equal to your level. If you attempt to use it on an additional creature, the effect must end on affected creature of your choice. If a creature succeeds, nothing happens and they are immune to this ability for 24 hours. Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for this effect.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and Sylvan.

APHIZIA THE MOTHER PLENTY
Title(s)

The Giver, The Golden Queen, The Queen Bee, The Hivemind

Pantheon(s)

Naryan

Power Level

Lesser Deity

Alignment

Lawful Evil

Symbol

A golden hexagon with black stripes

Portfolio

Bees, insects, harvests, fertility, beauty

Domains

Nature

Worshipers

Farmers, bee-keepers, druids, witches, midwives

Favored Weapon

Spears

Character Crunch: The Onijin, The Civil Servants of the Mugen Empire

Onijin are the descendants of an oni warlord that was married by alliance into their family at the behest of the Jade Empress. They are often employed as body guards and advisors to important nobles, due to their innate abilities, and almost all onijin receive some education in the arcane either by tutor or the Imperial Mage Academy. While they are respected by the Mugen nobility, they are often feared and even persecuted by the common folk.

Ability Score Increase. Your Charisma score increases by 2 and your Strength score increases by 1.
Age. Onijin reach maturity at the same rate as humanoids until their prime and can live for up to 500 years.
Alignment. Onijin are almost always nobility and have a tendency towards lawful alignments.
Size. Onijin have builds similar to most humans and are medium sized.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Dark Vision. You have the fierce eyes of an oni, especially 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 grey.
Elemental Resistance. You have a oni ancestor. Choose one type of oni demon (Acid, Cold, Fire, Lightning or Poison). You have resistance to the elemental damage associated with that oni ancestor and you gain a cantrip. If you choose acid, you have resistance to acid and you know the acid splash cantrip spell. If you choose lightning, you have resistance to lightning damage and you known the shocking grasp cantrip spell. If you choose poison, you have resistance to poison and you know the poison spray cantrip spell. If you choose fire, you have resistance to fire and you know the firebolt cantrip spell. If you choose cold, you have resistance to cold and you know the chilling ray cantrip spell. You use Charisma as the spellcasting ability for this cantrip.
Enlarge. For 1 minute, the onijin magically increases in size, along with anything it is wearing or carrying. While enlarged, the onijin is Large, doubles its damage dice on Strength-based weapon attacks (included in the attacks), and makes Strength Checks and Strength saving throws with advantage. If the onijin lacks the room to become Large, it attains the maximum size possible in the space available.

You regain this ability after taking a long rest.
Student of the Arcane. Onijin are almost all educated in the ways of the arcane. You gain proficiency in the Arcana skill.
Extra Languages. You can speak, read and write in common and giant.

Character Crunch: Merfolk

In every port tavern in Sublanarya, there is a salty sailor who will tell anyone willing to listen about their encounter with the mysterious, secretive and almost legendary merfolk. They talk of humanoids with skin, hair and eyes as colorful as the tropical fish of the sea. They are humanoid from the pelvis up and usually have a fish's tail, pointed fin-like ears, webbed fingers, and gills. Some tell stories of being rescued from shipwrecks by sympathetic maids with glimmering tails and others claim to have been held prisoner in underwater dungeons for days. There are stories of domed underwater cities and mobile fortresses built on the backs of great sea leviathans. These would all seem to be tall tales but, every now and then, evidence points to the contrary.

The truth is that merfolk prefer to keep to themselves. Land dwellers have their problems and sea dwellers have their own problems. In the opinion of the merfolk, it is better this way. Too often has the greed and ambition of land dwellers threatened their civilizations and so, they remain elusive, enigmatic and ever just out of sight. If the mortals could see the wonders that the merfolk have built, they would be enchanted.

Merfolk build great cities at the bottom of the sea, often magically sealed like great bubbles of glass, as far and secure from threats from above as possible, and built to defend themselves against their enemies such as the sahaguin. They also guard themselves and the rest of the world against ancient horrors that, if they weren't kept at bay, could destroy the world. This is why they are cautious to allow strangers into their cities. They fear subterfuge, whether intentional or accidental, from those who wouldn't understand the costs of their actions.

As individuals, merfolk are curious about the world above, even if they're generally forbidden to interact with it. Those that do are often reprimanded or even punished by being exiled from the great cities. Still, some merfolk can't help but want to know more. The sea floor is littered with the shipwrecks. The merfolk salvage these ships for valuables, especially coveting magical items and machinery, but also cultural items like clothing, which is odd as most merfolk wear little clothing except as accessories, and books, which contain the knowledge that many merfolk crave as entertainment, are particularly popular on the "treasure market".

As for merfolk adventurers, they tend to be chosen by the gods of the sea, especially Delfina, to receive the gift to transform between their flippered and bipedal forms. These chosen emissaries are seen as blessed by some merfolk civilizations and cursed by others. Those are the merfolks that players can choose to play in Sublanarya. They tend to be spellcasters, from druids and clerics to witches and wizards, as well as martial classes like rogues and rangers.

Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity, Intelligence and Wisdom scores each increase by 1.
Age. Merfolk reach maturity by age 20 and can live up to 200 years.
Alignment. A merfolk's alignment, like the sea, tends to be not governed by the tides. They tend towards neutrality but merfolk nobility tends toward lawful alignments and merfolk that live apart from their underwater city tend towards chaotic alignments.
Size. Merfolk are medium sized humanoids.
Speed. Merfolk have a base walking speed of 30 feet in their land form and have a swim speed that is 2/3 of your base walking speed (min. 20 feet).
Amphibious. Merfolk can breathe air and water.
Dark Vision. 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 grey.
Sea-Borne. You have a deep understanding of sea-life. You can communicate simple ideas with beasts that live in the sea or breathe water. They can understand the meaning of your words, though you have no special ability to understand them in return. You also have advantage on identifying sea-life with Intelligence (Nature) checks and dealing with sea-life with Wisdom (Animal Handling) checks).
Of the Depths. You have a resistance to cold damage and you ignore any of the drawbacks caused by a deep, underwater environment.

Emissary of the Sea. You have the ability to polymorph between a land form and an aquatic form as a bonus action. When you shift into the aquatic form, you can only move yourself on land while prone and your walking speed becomes 1/3 of your base walking speed in your land form. Your swim speed becomes 10 feet faster than your base walking speed in your land form.

The gear on your lower body magically melds or changes to fit your aquatic or land forms. 

Bounty of the Sea. Merfolk have learned many skills by observing human civilization and studying their shipwrecks. You gain proficiency in two skills and/or sets of tool proficiencies of your choice.

Extra Languages. In addition to common, you can also speak, understand, write, read in Aquan and one additional language.

Naryan Player Homebrew Index

 By excessive demand...

CLASS & SUBCLASS OPTIONS

The Witch (5e) Current Version

RACES OF NARYA

Tirikujin: The Bright Elves of Kaguya

Catfolk, Dogfolk, Ratfolk, Frogfolk, Fairy Cats/Dogs (Bonus:Foxfolk)

Hulderfolk, Guivre, and the One-in-a-Million Kobold (Bonus: Dragonborn Errata)

Treefolk: Gardeners of the Empire?

Vanara: The Monkey-Folk

Tuathans: Fey Shapeshifters

Character Crunch: Tirikujin, the Bright Elves

And just like that, after something of a hiatus, I want to make my racial options from my setting open to you guys! Rather than hitting up all the classics, we're skipping to the latest addition to the roster, let's talk about tirikujin or, more palatabley, "bright elves".

Bright Elves (Tirikujin)

Thousands of years ago, during the waning of the Titanic Age, the moon goddess Tsukihime left the mortal world behind to broker a peace between the warring factions of the moon. But she did not leave the world without leaving an impact. Her many children, fathered by a human noble, Prince Mikado, conquered, united and created a new empire around Kaguya mountains. Their descendants became known as the tirikujin or "bright elves" as the common folk call them.

Bright elves resemble their elven counterparts with their fair features, pointed ears, long lived lives, living for three centuries, and even share a similar language, though the tirikugo dialect has distinctively Kaguyan flavor but many believe the likenesses are superficial. They lack any known fey ancestry, as opposed to the elves, instead inheriting their longevity and supernatural qualities from the Lunari or "moon people". Whether or not the Lunari are a long-lost fey people or even an elf tribe is also of debate, so, at the very least, the bright elves are not lacking in the mysterious nature of the fey folk.

Culturally, they are distinct and have set the standards for cultures around Kaguya: bright elves, with the inherited gifts of Tsuki-hime, from their beauty-- with extremely fair features and hair and eyes in a variety of bright colors from silvery white to pale blues to mint greens to vibrant reds and so on-- to their natural affinity for magic, believed they are uniquely blessed. Descended from a goddess and a prince who would become the first emperor of Kaguya, they are a proud race, earning them a reputation of arrogant self-importance from their enemies, and further the ire of their rivals due to their believe that they are duty-bound to rule and maintain order in the land of Mugen. They are a honor-bound culture and bright elves are taught a strict adherence to laws, traditions and duty from birth. There are three types of elves in tirikujin society:

Every bright elf is born with tattoo like markings on their body, some less or more than others, but all tirikujin have the "mark of the moon" on their brow. This moon-mark is passed from parents to child and is a symbol of their role in society. It separates tirikujin into three classes.

Jade elves, the noble class, are born with a full circle, representing the moon, on their brow. Males have a single circle and females have two circles. The "jade" of their name refers to their special status: they are born to the aristocratic families and inherit titles, lands, and duties that are tied to these families. Either being directly related to the imperial family or serving them, jade elves are the major land owners and feudal lords ("daimyo") of Kaguya. They are oligarchs who hold economic, political and even military power over their provinces.

From birth jade elves are educated to administrate their holdings, serve in the court of the emperor if called to do-so, and to manage contracts and alliances the samurai warrior clans that are bound their families. With immense wealth, education and more diplomatic interest than their "lessers", jade elves are also educated in history and the fine arts. The closest thing to hard work that a jade elf of good standing experiences is through the careful study and practice of magic: most jade elf families practice some forms of magic and talented magicians from these families often are called to serve in the court of the emperor of themselves as advisors and tutors. A powerful jade elf mage may also sell their talents to the highest military builder.

Ultimately, jade elves rule Kaguya with a divine manifest but, due to separating themselves from the masses, often lose sight of the bigger picture.]

Steel elves, the warrior class, are born with a half-circle, representing the half-moon on their brow. Females usually have a marking cut horizontally and males have a marking cut vertically. The "steel" of their name refers to their rights-- in most provinces, only steel elves are allowed to carry bladed weapons. Steel elves often own small holdings of land within the provinces of their daimyo lord and serve under the jade class as both a police force locally & military asset abroad.

As a police and administrative force, their primary goals are to collect taxes from the rice class, uphold traditions by serving as paragons of cultural value, deal with minor disputes among farmers, labrorers and merchants, enforce the imperial and provincial law within their borders and to hunt down threats from bandits to monsters. While many carry out their duties in an official and respectable manner, by right, many administer justice as judge, jury and executioner.

After their public duty, comes the military duty of the steel elves: while jade elves are educated in subjects diplomacy and economics, steel elves are taught the way of the blade or "bushido". This is an unwritten code of the warrior that advocates for loyalty, courage, determination, compassion and honor above all else. A true samurai trains his body and mind in the ways of war, focusing on the swordsmanship, archery and horse-riding, while also instilling discipline through meditation, poetry, flower arrangement and other hobbies meant to instill inner-peace. These skills come in handy during times of war.

Civil war is common between the feudal lords, who constantly jockey about for control of profitable regions, respond to personal insults to honor with oaths of war, and seek better standing within the empire. As such, samurai are expected to be ready for war at a moment's notice as a single feudal lord's dispute with another can result in a bloody feud between dozens of provinces. Often, these petty wars are often politically motivated and, ultimately, most wars are resolved from intervention by the emperor. After all, the emperor is considered a divine power and, even against their own families and lords, samurai are honor bound to protect the emperor. Several attempted coup de tats by powerful feudal lords and upstart shogun (samurai lords) have been foiled by an alliance of samurai who put the empire above their own differences.

While jade elves are the ultimate rulers of Kaguya, the steel elves are the ones responsible for maintaining order and protect the realm from threats inside and out.

Rice elves, are the lowest and numerous caste of tirikujin society, consisting of commoners from the poorest farm laborer to the wealthiest merchant in Kaguya. While in Kaguya, steel elves and jade elves are held in higher regard than any human, and in fact hold many more rights such as to own land, rice elves hold no more special privileges or rights than their human neighbors.

Rice elves are born with crescent moon symbols on their brows: females usually have a moon facing horizontally and males have a moon facing vertically. From birth, they are vassals or subjects of daimyo lord or servants of a samurai family. Traditionally, they have no family names, instead introducing themselves as "servant of [insert daimyo, samurai or important family". The lowliest rice elves are sharecroppers, from which they earn their name, but also take on other unseemly and common jobs. They are the laborers, craftsman and merchants of Kaguyan society and do so with a steady good humor and pride. Their low quality of life has made them especially hardy after their ancestors toiled in the toxic volcanic mines of the empire. And yet, today, some achieve important status or wealth, but ultimately are at the whims of their samurai and daimyo betters. A steel elf can cut down a rice elf in the streets for any offense and a rice elf that insults the dignity of a jade elf will quickly find themselves in irons.

The cheapness of rice elf life means they also have a knack for criminality, such as lowly organized crime-work for the yakuza, but especially for work as assassins, specifically as ninja. The existence of ninja lies somewhere between confirmed fact and myth, and the ninja clans prefer it that way, since being unseen, unheard and unknown by all but potential clients is preferable. Specialized rice elf families jealously guard the secrets of the ninja, from the location of their strongholds to secret techniques, but it is well known that if you have the coin and make your request known, ninja will come to visit you. They specialize in reconnaissance, theft and, of course, assassination.

In the end, the tirikujin are a class society in which a person is born with special rights and privileges but that doesn't mean there is no mobility up or down. Criminal or unseemly behavior is punished from above, families losing their titles and land through dishonorable acts, and having to work to maintain their place. Furthermore, individuals can increase their family standing through impressing superiors and marrying up. A rice elf who marries a steel elf, after earning the right to do so through noble and impressive feats, will have steel elf children and their descendants will be steel elves, and a steel elf and jade elf have jade elf children. Only through years of breeding lower will a family lose their birthright. When a child with less than the moon-mark of their forefathers is born, it is said to be an ill omen of tidings come.

Ability Score Increase.  Your Dexterity score increases by 2.
Age. Although tirikujin reach physical maturity at about the same age as humans, the understanding of adulthood is related to familial duty. A bright elf typically takes on adult responsibilities and titles in their family when they reach 50 and 150 years of age, based on the needs of the family, and can live to be 300 years old.
Alignment. Tirikujin value personal and family honor above all else and therefore tend to focus on following societal expectation such as: upholding their clan's standing and improving their personal reputation of courage and discipline. Bright elves tend to be lawful, since they value tradition, and/or tend towards neutrality since they seek a balance between their own ambitions and their rivals.
Size. Tirikujin range from under 5 to over 6 feet tall and have slender builds. Your size is Medium.
Speed. Your walking speed is 30 feet.
Darkvision. Home to the tall pines of Kaguya under the night sky, 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 color in darkness, only shades of gray.
Kaguya's Eyes You have proficiency in the perception skill.
Moon Blessing. You have advantage on saving throws against spells and other magic effects.
Languages. You can speak, read and write Tirikugo, Elven, Kaguyan and Common. Tirikugo is a distinct dialect of Elven in which the syllables collide rapidly like wind against the upper branches of a sea of trees in an exacting way that might seem harsh in business. Despite the speed and monotone associated with Tirukugo, the language has a certain frankness that lends itself to poetry and Tirikujin folk and theater songs are popular cultural exports.
Subrace. Every bright elf is born with distinct facial markings of various colors that are passed down from parent to child that separate the race into three castes: one full moon in the center of the forehead for males and two for females in the noble or "jade" class, consisting of the imperial family and the aristocratic families, a half moon oriented vertically for males and horizontally for females of the warrior or "steel" class, consisting of the warlord factions, and a crescent moon oriented vertically for males and horizontally for males of the commoner or "rice" class, consisting of peasants, laborers and merchants. Each caste has some unique traits.

Bright Elf of Jade
Ability Score Increase.  Your Intelligence or Charisma score increases by 2.
Educated. You gain proficiency with two of the following skills of your choice: Arcana, History, Nature, Religion, Persuasion or Performance.
Extra Language.You can speak, read, and write one extra language of your choice.

Bright Elf of Steel
Ability Score Increase.  Your Strength scores increases by 1.
Like the Wind. You add your proficiency bonus to your initiative. Your base movement speed increases to 35 feet.
Disciplined. You gain proficiency with the athletics skill.
Martial Training. You gain proficiency in two martial weapons of your choice and light armor.

Bright Elf of Rice
Ability Score Increase.  Your Constitution scores increases by 1.
Unseen, Unheard. Your base movement speed increases to 35 feet. You also gain proficiency with the stealth skill.
Persistent Fortitude: You have advantage on saving throws against poison, and you have resistance against poison damage. You also gain proficiency with the survival skill.
 
Like their elf counterparts, bright-elves can breed with humans and produce viable offspring:

 Half Bright-Elf
Ability Score Increase.  Your Charisma score increases by 2, and two other Ability scores of your choice increase by 1.
Age. Half-brights mature at the same rate as their human parent, but age more graciously and often live much longer.
Alignment. While half-brights often feel the need to prove themselves to one or both of their parental races, often making them seek to become the ideal version of the lawful and traditional nature of their tirikujin heritage or follow in the footsteps of their human parentage, many half-brights reject the expectations of society. Their charming but sincere nature, while sometimes call "childish" by tirikujin or "extreme" by humans, often pushed them toward chaotic alignments just as easily as lawful. Regardless of their ideals, half-brights are not known for subtlety.
Size. Half-brights share the fair features of their tirikujin heritage and range from under 5 to over 6 feet tall. Your size is Medium.
Speed. Your walking speed is 30 feet
Darkvision. Half-brights inherit the intense eyes of their tirikujin ancestors. 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.
Moon Blessing. You have advantage on saving throws against spells and other magic effects.
Skill Versatility.  You gain proficiency in two skills of your choice.
Languages. You can speak, read and write Tirikugo, Elven, Kaguyan and Common.
Thanks for reading. Please give some input on balancing and suggestions for flavor.