Zeth's Homebrew: Dryad Player Race
Dryad
There is a strange feminine form flitting through the trees. I can hear her laughter, enchanting and alluring. The woods call to me, pulling me in further. I know I shouldn't, but I can't resist. I must go deeper into the emerald shadows.
---Theranin, Journal of a Sage
Powerful fey will sometimes bind lesser fey spirits to trees, transforming them into dryads. This is sometimes done as a punishment when the fey spirit falls in love with a mortal and that love is forbidden.
Treebound
All dryad are magically bound to their own tree. These trees serve as the dryad’s life force. A dryad can emerge from the tree and travel the lands around it, but the tree remains their home and roots them to the world. They will fight to the death to protect their bonded tree, as, should the tree be cut down or destroyed, the dryad will die soon afterward. Also, they cannot stray too far from their bonded tree, for if they are too far from the tree's vicinity, for too long, they will die from this as well.
Reclusive Fey
Dryads prefer to live away from civilization, delighting in the savage wilderness away from those that would seek to cut their trees. They live with respect to nature and will accept the company of those that do so as well.
A dryad struck by the beauty of a stranger might investigate more closely, perhaps even try to lure the individual away to charm them.
Acting as guardians of their woodland demesnes. Shy and reclusive, they watch interlopers from the trees, They work with other sylvan creatures to defend their forests. Unicorns, treants, and satyrs live alongside them, in addition to druids that share the dryads devotion to the woods they call home.
Woodland Magic
Dryads can speak with plants and animals. They are also natural born spell casters. Almost all dryad become druids or at least learn druid magic at some point in their long lives. Those that live in forests near common threats often become rangers to help defend and protect their homes. Less commonly you may find a dryad devote themselves to a god of nature and become clerics. On rare occasions a dryad may make a pact with more powerful fey in hopes of gaining power or being freed from their tree "prisons" as a warlock.
Curious Adventurers
It is a very rare occurrence for a dryad to leave their home forest. With their bound trees being the link that keeps them alive and well, they don't often travel far enough for them not to be able to defend it. There are times however, that dryad to venture out into the world.
In order for a dryad to leave, they may have to get permission from the druid or fey counsel they reside under. The reason for this, is that it requires a very powerful druid or fey to rebind their spirit to a new tree for them to move to another location. Often the only reasons this is granted are in times of great need for the dryad to relocate and help out another forest that is in grave danger, if their forest is over populated, or if they are exiled from their home forest.
The only other way a dryad may leave is if a dryad spellcaster casts acorn of far travel on an acorn harvested from their bonded oak tree, they are considered to be in contact with their tree at all times, regardless of the actual distance between them, thus being able to travel great distances without growing sick.
Reasons a dryad may choose to leave their home usually involve extreme levels of curiosity and a thirst for knowledge. Some may want to go help the people of the world find their way back to nature or teach them they ways of the wild, while others may go out to improve their skills to be able to better protect and defend their homes. There are a few outliers that fall for an attractive nature loving traveler and be drawn out of the forest to pursue them if they show no desire to stay there in the forest.
Dryad Adventurers
| d6 | Reasons for Adventuring |
|---|---|
| 1 | Outcast for a crime against the counsel |
| 2 | Following a love interest |
| 3 | Embarked on a personal quest |
| 4 | Sent out on a mission by the counsel |
| 5 | Fled your home due to impending demise |
| 6 | Teach the outsiders about the natural world |
Dryad Names
Dryad names originate from the Sylvan language, and closely resemble female elven names. They are usually soft and ethereal sounding. Most dryads only possess one name, although if pressed may refer to their last name as that of the forest they come from.
Names: Aloria, Casaraine, Ethissia, Lathesae, Nadasei,
Satharia, Theralin, Yalasee
Dryad Traits
Your Dryad character has the following racial traits.
Ability Score Increase. Your Wisdom score increases by 2 and your Dexterity increases by 1.
Age. As long as the tree you are bound to remains healthy and unharmed, you stay forever youthful and alluring. If the tree is harmed, you suffer. If the tree is ever destroyed, you descend into madness.
Alignment. Dryads tend to be lawful and are rarely evil, following and protecting the "law" of the forest.
Size. Growing much like trees, in various shapes and sizes, a Dryad can be anywhere between 4 and 8 feet tall and weigh between 90 and 300 pounds. Your size is Medium.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30ft.
Oaken Step. You are so attuned to nature that you can use it as a way of passage. As a bonus action, you can magically step into one living tree within 5 feet of you and emerge from a second living tree within 30 feet of the first, appearing in an unoccupied space within 5 feet of the second tree. Both trees must be Large or larger.
Dryad Magic. You know the druidcraft cantrip. You can also cast find familiar once per day at 1st level using this trait. When you use this version of find familiar, you can choose any animal size small or tiny with a challenge rating of 1/8 or lower.
Fey Ancestry. You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed, and magic can't put you to sleep.
Natural Armor. You have thick, bark like skin that covers you from head to toe. When you aren't wearing armor, your AC is 14. You can use your natural armor to determine your AC if the armor you wear would leave you with a lower AC. A shield's benefits apply as normal while you use your natural armor.
Speech of The Wild. You have the ability to communicate with beasts and plants through words, gestures, and sounds as though you shared a language. Their ability to understand your meaning is limited to the creatures intelligence. They most commonly communicate simple ideas based on instinct and short term memory.
Language. You can speak, read, and write Common and Elvish.
