Featherfolk (WIP)

Parrotfolk

Ability Score Increase. When determining your character’s ability scores, increase one score by 2 and increase a different score by 1, or increase three different scores by 1. You can't raise any of your scores above 20.

Creature Type. You are a Humanoid.

Size. Your size is Medium.

Speed. Your walking speed is 30 feet.

Flight. Because of your wings, you have a flying speed equal to your walking speed. You can’t use this flying speed if you’re wearing medium or heavy armor.

Kenku Recall. Thanks to your supernaturally good memory, you have proficiency in two skills of your choice.

Moreover, when you make an ability check using any skill in which you have proficiency, you can give yourself advantage on the check before rolling the d20. You can give yourself an advantage in this way a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, and you regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.

Mimicry. You can accurately mimic sounds you have heard, including voices. A creature that hears the sounds you make can tell they are imitations only with a successful Wisdom (Insight) check against a DC of 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier.

Languages. Your character can speak, read, and write Common and one other language that you and your DM agree is appropriate for the character. 

Featherfolk can be found anywhere, but they naturally prefer warm climates and regions with open water. This instinct comes from their ancestors, who relied on water as a refuge from land-dwelling predators. In the current times, water is a place to drink, bathe, hunt, and rest.

These watering spots also act as communal hubs where they can gather to share safety and information. Here they exchange news readily, so much so that many of them seem oddly well-informed.

Despite their preferences, Featherfolk are remarkably adaptable and thrive in almost any environment. Their bodies reflect this:

• Beaks vary by species—hooked for tearing prey, coned for cracking seeds, long for sipping nectar, and chisel-like beaks for digging or carving.

• Feet differ as well, from webbed swimmers to sharp-clawed talons.

• Feathers come in endless varieties: bright colors for display or camouflage, waxy plumage that repels water, or soft, quiet wings suited for silent flight.

Their cultural adaptability is just as strong. Featherfolk blend easily into the customs of whatever people they live among, coexisting comfortably with nearly anyone.

Most Featherfolk eat insects, seeds, fruits, and nuts. Fish are common in many regions as well, though heavier meats don’t sit well with most of them. Despite this light diet, their cuisine is anything but bland. Featherfolk season their meals with rich spices, and when they eat they pick out many pieces of different flavored foods and eat them together for sharp, surprising combinations.

Certain species—like Eaglefolk and Hawkfolk—are carnivorous by nature. They prefer fresh meat, often raw, believing the flavor is strongest when the kill is recent.

Featherfolk are deeply instinct-driven. Where other people might question their gut reaction, Featherfolk trust theirs deeply. This can make them seem abrupt or unpredictable, but their instincts are a deeply honed survival tool. At their best, instincts save lives; at their worst, they lead to impulsive choices like snatching shiny trinkets or fleeing danger the moment it appears.

Family is central to their identity. They call their family “the flock,” but a flock can be biological relatives or a communal group. Featherfolk make choices with the good of the flock in mind and are quick to sacrifice for one another.

Many species are natural musicians, blending the clatter of beaks and talons, the swoosh of wings, and the whistles of their voices into rhythmic, percussive music.

Material fascination is common among them. Featherfolk often decorate their homes with numerous objects (useful or not) and tend to carry assorted trinkets at all times. Metal and shiny items especially hold an allure.

They take great pride in their plumage. Featherfolk spend time preening with their beaks to maintain their feathers, using them to signal social rank or intimidate enemies.

Travel comes naturally to them. There are large groups of Featherfolk that don’t like staying in one place, and travel is large groups, living like nomads. Even those who settle in towns retain a keen sense of direction, instinctual in nature.

Featherfolk have very clicky clattery names due to the nature of their speech and the shape of their beaks. They consist of rapid, sharp, heavy consonants. Typically, their names are chosen from a sound or rhythm rather than a meaning.

Some names of a Featherfolk might be:

• Skeek

• Scloc

• Kreeh

• Rakka

• Ctik

• Tlak

• Kraah

• Skiro

• Chree

• Clok

• Kalc

• Craav

• Rski

• Nrak

• Vrokk