# Minotaur Race ## Arrogant Conquerors Minotaurs embrace the notion that the weak should perish and that the strong must rule— and that they themselves are the strongest and most powerful race on Krynn. They believe their destiny is to rule the world, and that their dominion will be one of conquest and military might. To that end, all minotaurs are trained in weapons, armor, and tactics from a young age. The minotaurs’ arrogance stems from a combination of strength, cunning, and intellect— three virtues they hold dear, and which they deem the foundation of their greatness. They believe that this combination of traits is what sets them apart from their rivals. ## Trial by Combat Minotaur society is built on the principle that might makes right, and that considerations of justice are unnecessary. The minotaurs are led by an emperor served by a council of eight minotaurs called the Supreme Circle. All posts within the government, including the emperor’s, are won by the strongest and cleverest minotaurs, as proved by combat in the Circus. The Circus is the only means by which a minotaur can rise in society. It is a grand, annual display of single combat in which minotaurs battle each other for supremacy. Minotaur youths must prove themselves in the Circus to earn their passage to adulthood. Participation in the Circus is yet another reason why minotaurs look down on other folk. To the minotaurs, death and glory in battle are a natural process. Combat is the key to ensuring that the strong survive, and that the weak are set aside before they can undermine their superiors’ grand schemes of conquest. ## Honor above All For all their cruelty, minotaurs are bound by a powerful sense of honor. Each victory brings greater honor to both individual minotaurs and their families. Defeat invokes a stain that only death can fully wash away. Honor demands that minotaurs keep their word once it is offered, and each minotaur remains faithful to friends and clan above all else. Minotaurs rarely befriend folk of other races, as they all too often encounter them only in battle. If a minotaur does strike up a friendship, it is typically with other creatures that display the minotaurs’ virtues and love of battle. To such friends, a minotaur becomes an ally whose support will never waver. \columnbreak ## Minotaur Traits ***Ability Score Increase:*** Your Strength score increases by 1. ***Conquerors Virtue:*** From a young age, you focused on one of the three virtues of strength, cunning, or wisdom. Your choice of Strength, Intelligence, or Wisdom score by one. ***Age:*** Minotaurs enter adulthood at around age 17 and can live up to 150 years. ***Alignment:*** Minotaurs believe in a strict code of honor, and therefore lean towards Lawful alignments. Their brutal culture and disdain weakness can push them towards evil. ***Size:*** Minotaur stand between 6 and 7 feet tall, with weight averaging about 300 pounds. Your size is Medium. ***Speed:*** Your base walking speed is 30 feet. ***Horns:*** You are never unarmed. You are proficient with your horns, which are a melee weapon that deal 1d8 Piercing damage. Your Horns grant you Advantage on all checks made to shove a creature, but not to avoid being shoved yourself. ***Head to head:*** When you take the Attack action on your turn, and only use your horns, you can use a bonus action to shove a creature within 5ft, but you can't use it to shove a creature prone. ***Goring Rush:*** When you use the Dash action during your turn, you can make a melee attack with your horns using a bonus action. ***Powerful Build:*** You count as one size larger when determining your carrying capacity and the weight you can push, drag, or lift. ***Languages:*** You can speak, read, and write Common. ## Minotaur Bonds You can use the following table of bonds in addition to or in place of your background's bond or a bond of your creation. | d6 | Bond | |:---:|:-----------:| | 1 | My opponent in the circus for my trial of adulthood was chosen years ago. Though we sparred only once, I fell deeply in love. Rather than fight my beloved to the death, I fled from home and have bee branded a coward | | 2 | I'm the last of my clan. If I die without achieving great deeds, the hero who is my clans patron will be forgotten.| | 3 | I was part of a raiding party that was defeated and enslaved. I've escaped and sworn revenge.| | 4 | I never shared my people's love of violence. I'm part of a conspiracy to topple the emperor's violent regime. | | 5 | I claim that I am an exile from my people, but in truth I have been sent to serve as a spy. I'm expected to leave secret messages telling my people of villages and towns that are ripe targets for conquest. | | 6 | I'm the last survivor of a ship wrecked in a storm. Occasionally, the spirits of my shipmates appear in my dreams and ask me to complete tasks they left unfinished in life.| \pagebreak ## Minotaur Subraces These are the 4 most prevalent cultural subraces of Minotaur. Krynn are Coastal and Seafaring; Cretan are based of the Minotaurs of mazes, Labrynthes, and also caves. Longhorn Minotaurs are prevalent on great plains and grasslands. Burnthairs represent the more monstrous or demonic origin. ## Krynn In the world of Krynn, the setting of the Dragonlance saga, Minotaurs live in an honor-based society where strength determines power in both the gladiatorial arenas and in daily life. At home in both land and sea, the minotaurs of Krynn are ferocious sea raiders who rang as the ablest and most dangerous sailors in the world. ### Sea Reavers In the world of Krynn, the minotaurs rule a chain of islands dominated by the isles of Mithas and Kothas. Bound by the sea on all sides, the minotaurs focus their tenacity, strength, and cunning to become some of the most skilled and ferocious mariners in the world. They range across t he water in their ships, raiding and pillaging as they wish. Minotaurs sometimes engage in trade, but they much prefer to take what they want by force. After all, as the strongest of all folk, they deserve the treasures and goods that lesser creatures have gathered. ### Minotaur Names Minotaur clan names originate with a great hero whose descendants take on that name as their own, doing their best to live uup to the ideals of their ancestor. On Krynn, clan ames are always preceded by the prefix "es--" for minotaurs from Lands controlled by the island of Mithas, or "de--" for minotaurs from areas under the sway of Kothas. ### Krynn Traits ***Ability Score Increase:*** Increase your Dexterity score by 1. ***Sea Reaver:*** You gain proficiency with navigator’s tools and vehicles (water) ***Ocean Warriors:*** You gain proficiency with the Spears, Tridents, Nets, Light Crossbows, and Heavy Crossbows. ***Aquatic Adaptation:*** You increase your Swim Speed by 20 feet, and can hold your breath for 20 minutes. ## Cretan The Cretans are descended from the Minotaurs of old, who were tasked with guarding Labyrinths and treasure, usually for their entire lives. As such they have unique traits suited for these subterranean conditions. While still young, they learn to memorize the layout and layout of their lairs. They are left alone further and further, until they either find their way back or die trying. ### Mazes and Labyrinths Being born in Labyrinths has unique effects on the Minotaurs physiology. Most are at least partially subterranean, and as such given them increased senses. They have a decent amount of Darkvision, enabling to find intruders or dodge traps even without the benefit of light. They gain a bonus to Perception to avoid traps as well, having grown up in such perilous environments. This ability to detect traps also figures into their keen memory for the layout of such mazes as well. ### Subterranean Survivors More so than any other subrace, Cretans are the embodiment of brutality. They hone their Survival skills to scavenge the most they can of whoever wanders in, or whatever else that can survive in their mazes. This is also reflected in their horns, which are even sharper and tougher due to their intense lifestyle. Cretans don't have big families, as too many mouths to feed is a very dire concern, 300 pounds being the average weight means letting younglings grow to adults isn't always an option. Those who make it out of their mazes usually stay solitary, preferring to live in isolated caves that they can map out and defend using their innate strengths. ### Cretan Traits ***Ability Score Improvement:*** Cretan's add 1 to their Wisdom score. ***Labyrinthian Mind:*** Cretans can always remember any path they have traveled, and are immune to *maze* spells and any spells that attempt to make them lost. ***Master of the Maze:*** YOu gain proficiency in the Survival skill, and gain Advantage on Perception checks made to find traps. ***Brutal Horns:*** Your *Horns* damage die becomes a d10 instead of a d8. ***Darkvision:*** Cretans gain Darkvision out to 30 feet. ## Longhorn The wide open plains are home to the Longhorn Subrace of Minotaur. These unique breed have had an almost opposite upbringing to the Cretan, with a greater source of food and freedom to grow, Longhorns are the largest (at least by weight) and the most numerous, settling in herd-like communities scattered across the plains. This is just one of the differences that make them appear the most bovine subrace as well, though saying that to their face would be a dire insult. ### Plains and grasslands Longhorns share very little with their enslaved ancestors, and their culture shows it. They are both the most civilized and the most warlike, having the largest settlements of any other minotaurs, and having more organized combat as well. Having more static cities means greater number of smiths as well, and they have adapted to using the heaviest of armors to increase their military prowess as well. \pagebreak ### Thick skinned but Quick Tempered Having access to more room to grow and greater resources hasn't stamped out the brutal upbringing common to all the subraces. While not having to worry about starving to death, the are trained as soldiers from a young age. Longhorn offspring quickly learn that following orders is the way of life, the only way to leadership is to outfight your own siblings and cousins, often to the death. As such, it's rare to see Longhorn warriors roaming the lands of other races, unless they also bare marks of shame. Minotaurs are known for their loyalty, but having such a high amount of them in one city means that temper flare frequently, and it doesn't take much to make enemies for life. Ironically enough, though they are the largest they are also the thinnest skinned, and fighting among Longhorn clans is the main reason they rarely take to waging war against other races. ### Longhorn Traits ***Ability Score Improvement:*** Longhorns add 1 to their Constitution Score. ***Juggernauts:*** Gain Proficiency in Heavy Armor, base movement speed becomes 25 feet. ***Long Horns:*** When using your *Head to Head* Racial ability, you can also try and shove the enemy prone. ***Leathered Hide:*** You can add your Constitution Modifier and Dexterity Modifier to your AC when unarmored, or use your Constitution Modifier in place of Dexterity when wearing armor. ***Hot Tempered:*** Gain proficiency in Intimidation ## Burnthair This subrace differs from the others, mainly by embracing their occult origins. They are easier to discern mainly by their darker and shorter coarse fur, usually black and grey. Their other obvious feature is their curved horns, while still sharp at the ends, they usually use them to butt each other with the center of their heads. While the most intelligent on average, they choose to stay in small mountain tribes, sometimes to keep their demonic rituals to themselves. ### Dark Peaks In the highest hills and mountain peaks, Burnthairs hooves can be heard echoing of the stone. They adapt to the high altitudes and sparse climate of various mountains, especially ones with ties to Demons or other occult phenomenon. Even if not necessarily evil minded, they embrace their darker origins, even eating raw corpses and other ill foods. They have adapted to this by building a resistance to many common poison and diseases found in them. ### Headstrong and Sure footed Using their intellect to hide their villages away, the are more even minded towards each other, trading in arcane lore and manipulation instead of directly attacking each other. Cruel to outsiders, they'll sometimes headbutt them off even the edges of cliffs to prove their dominance in their respective strongholds. ### Burnthair Traits ***Hammering Horns:*** Your horns deal Bludgeoning damage instead of Piercing. ***Sure Footed:*** You gain Advantage on all climb checks. ***Fel Hunger:*** Burnthairs add their proficiency bonus to History and Arcana checks about demons and demonic sources. You can also eat carrion and spoiled food with no ill effects, and gain advantage on saves vspoison and disease that come from eating or drinking. ### Sources [Wizards UA Waterborne Adventures](http://media.wizards.com/2015/downloads/dnd/UA_Waterborne_v3.pdf)