Oogoo
A people of ancient heritage and archaic mysteries, the Oogoo are unique in many ways. From the tribes living in isolation deep in the wilderness to the groups living in cities among other peoples, the Oogoo are known for their creativity, eclecticism, and deep connections to the root of magic itself.
Oogoo have three opaque eyes that are embedded within their gelatinous bodies, which come in a wide variety of colors ranging from bright blues to deep mauves. The malleability of their bodies allows them to reshape their physical form at will. Though they tend to take on a humanoid form around other peoples, their native appearances are much more amorphous. When Oogoo move, they take the form of a thin, running stream that allows them to seep through tight cracks and crevices. As such, they can make their homes in places inaccessible to most other societies, such as worm-like tunnels underground and narrow cavities in trees.
When two Oogoo experience a deep enough bond, they undergo a ritual involving the fusion of their bodies into one individual, whereupon their colors, memories, and skills blend. Oogoo also undergo the reverse process, where an internal conflict within an individual results in a permanent fission into two distinct Oogoo. As such, Oogoo do not have a concrete sense of self in the way that most other humanoids do - rather, their minds are a patchwork of uncountably many individuals whose experiences span thousands of years. Despite their characteristic lack of individualism, Oogoo are beings which feel very deeply - in fact, they are said to experience a much wider range of emotions than any other people.
Though Oogoo are capable of speech, traditional Oogoo clans will communicate solely through Splosh, the written Oogoo language. Oogoo will shape the contours of their gelatinous form with such precision as to display distinct Splosh characters directly on their bodies. Just like the Oogoo people themselves, Splosh is said to hold an endless depth of secrets, many of which are lost to time. The Splosh script can be found in engravings and etchings in nearly every corner of the world, often taking the form of cryptic ciphers of unknown origin.
Oogoo Traits
Creature Type: Ooze
Size: Medium (about 4–6 feet tall) or Small (about 2–4 feet tall), chosen when you select this species
Speed: 30 feet
As an Oogoo, you have these special traits.
Caustic Resilience. You have Resistance to Acid damage.
Fluid Form. You can fit through any opening large enough for a Tiny creature to pass through, although any equipment you are wearing or carrying must also fit through the opening to be taken with you. Furthermore, moving through a space sized for a creature smaller than you doesn’t count as Difficult Terrain for you unless other features of the space make it so.
Somatic Fission. As a Bonus Action, you can divide your gelatinous body to reduce your size by one category (unless you are already Tiny) and create a duplicate of yourself of the same size in an unoccupied space within 5 feet of you. The duplicate lasts for 10 minutes or until you reabsorb it as a Bonus Action while it is within 5 feet of you. If you reabsorb the duplicate, you immediately acquire any equipment it was wearing or carrying and you also gain a number of Temporary Hit Points equal to your level. Otherwise, the duplicate simply loses its fidelity and harmlessly dissolves into vapors, leaving behind any equipment it was wearing or carrying in its space. Whether a duplicate has been reabsorbed or evaporates, you return to your original size afterward. Once you create a duplicate, you can't do so again until you finish a Long Rest.
When you create a duplicate, you decide whether equipment you are wearing or carrying remains with you, transfers to your duplicate, or falls to the ground. Your duplicate counts as the same creature as you, except that both you and your duplicate have a separate carrying capacity and benefit only from the respective equipment they are wearing or carrying.
You can perceive normally with your senses from your own space and the space of your duplicate simultaneously. In combat, both you and your duplicate can move up to your Speed independently on your turn, and whenever you take the Dash, Disengage, or Dodge action, both you and your duplicate benefit simultaneously. Otherwise, whenever you take an action, such as the Attack, Magic, or Utilize action, or a Reaction, you decide whether you or your duplicate, rather than both, performs that action or Reaction. However, if you are able to make multiple attacks as part of the Attack action on your turn, you can choose whether you or your duplicate makes each individual attack.
If you, but not your duplicate, are subjected to the Prone, Grappled, or Restrained conditions or forced to move, your duplicate remains unaffected, and vice versa. Otherwise, any condition, spell, or other effect that targets either you or your duplicate affects both of you simultaneously. If both you and your duplicate are simultaneously subjected to an area of effect, you are only subjected to that effect once.
Oogoo Morphology. The gel-like substance that comprises your body can exhibit one of several different physical properties – such as being particularly flexible or viscous – that are represented by different Oogoo morphologies. Choose a morphology from the Oogoo morphology table. You gain the feature associated with that morphology.
Oogoo Morphologies
| Morphology | Feature |
|---|---|
| Elastid | Elastic Body. When you are hit by a ranged weapon attack, you can use your reaction to roll a d6. On a roll of 4 or higher, the projectile bounces harmlessly off you and the attack instead misses you. |
| Myriad | Multiplicity: When you use your Somatic Fission feature, you create two duplicates rather than one. You can reabsorb only one duplicate at a time, but you gain Temporary Hit Points each time you do so, independently. You only return to your original size once both duplicates either have been reabsorbed or have evaporated. |
| Viscid | Gel Matrix: While you aren’t wearing armor, you can mount another willing, unarmored creature of your size or larger by forming a gelatinous veil around them using your body. While you mount a creature in this way, you count as Light armor for them, their AC equals 10 plus their Dexterity and your Strength modifiers, and they share any damage resistances and immunities you have. |
Racial Feats
If your DM allows you to choose from Racial Feats at character levels where you gain an Ability Score Improvement or another feat, you can choose to take one of the following Oogoo Racial Feats. Note that some feats listed below have a specific Oogoo Morphology prerequisite.
Adhesive
Racial Feat (Prerequisite: Level 4+, Oogoo)
Your body is composed of a material that can stick to almost any substance. You gain the following benefits.
Ability Score Increase. Increase your Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution score by 1, to a maximum of 20.
Climb Speed. You gain a Climb Speed equal to half of your Speed. You can use your Climb Speed to move up, down, and across vertical surfaces and upside down along ceilings, while leaving your hands free.
Sticky. When a creature hits you with a Melee attack, you can make an Unarmed Strike as a Reaction to grapple the attacker, provided the attacker is within range of your Unarmed Strike.
Rigid
Racial Feat (Prerequisite: Level 4+, Viscid Oogoo)
Your body is composed of a material that is resistant to physical stress. You gain the following benefits.
Ability Score Increase. Increase your Strength or Constitution score by 1, to a maximum of 20.
Antitoxic Skin. You have Resistance to Poison damage.
Nullify Damage. When you take damage, you can use your Reaction to reduce that damage to 1. Once you use this feature, you can't do so again until you finish a Long Rest.
Slippery
Racial Feat (Prerequisite: Level 4+, Myriad Oogoo)
Your body is composed of a material that is remarkably thin. You gain the following benefits.
Ability Score Increase. Increase your Dexterity or Constitution score by 1, to a maximum of 20.
Shifty. You are immune to the Grappled condition.
Slick Slide. If you move at least 15 feet in a straight line, you can immediately take the Dash action (no action required). You can only gain this benefit if you are on a flat surface for the entirety of your movement.
Tensile
Racial Feat (Prerequisite: Level 4+, Elastid Oogoo)
Your body is composed of a material that can stretch and relax with ease. You gain the following benefits.
Ability Score Increase. Increase your Strength or Dexterity score by 1, to a maximum of 20.
Elastic Limbs. You can reach and interact with objects up to 15 feet away from you, and when you make an attack with a Melee weapon, your Reach with that weapon increases by 10 feet. Similarly, when you make an Unarmed Strike or cast a spell with a range of Touch, you can instead target a creature up to 15 feet away from you. Additionally, when a creature becomes Grappled by you, you can also pull that creature up to 10 feet closer to you (no action required)
Snap Back. Immediately after finishing your movement during your turn in combat, you can use your Reaction to move back to the space you started your movement using the shortest possible path. If the space is occupied, you instead move to the nearest unoccupied space within 5 feet of that space.
Credits
Cover art by u/Legacykon, all other art by u/Ogskive - please follow his work on Reddit!
Special thanks to 4evercelebi, Mbumbee, Ogskive, and others for balancing, proofreading, and playtesting the Oogoo - I could not have done this without all of you!