Darkling

Ancient legends speak of a seelie fey who betrayed Titania, Summer Queen of the Seelie Court. In the Summer Queen's wrath, she cursed every member of his house. The seelie fey's true name has been stricken from history, but the stories call him Dubh Catha ("Dark Crow" in Common), and other Fey refer to the house's descendants as dubh sith-"darklings." Darklings dwell in secluded caverns and chambers beneath the towns of other species. From such enclaves, they quietly ply their trade as thieves and assassins.

From the moment of their cursing onward, the house of Dubh Catha have worked tirelessly to mitigate and undo their affliction. The greatest of their discoveries are known as the Crow’s Effigy, and the Unsealing.

Darkling Traits

As a darkling, you have the following racial traits.

Creature Type. You are a Fey.

Size. You are Small.

Speed. Your walking speed is 30 feet.

Sight of the Crow. You can see in dim light within 120 feet of you as if it were bright light and in darkness as if it were dim light. You discern colors in that darkness only as shades of grey. In addition you can perceive your surroundings without relying on sight out to a range of 30 feet.

Fey Magic Resistance. You have advantage on Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma saving throws against spells.

Cursed to Shadows. You are proficient in the Stealth skill.

Death Flash. When you die, nonmagical light flashes out from you in a 10-foot radius as your body and possessions, other than metal or magic objects, burn to ash. Any creature in that area must succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving throw or be blinded until its next turn.

Light Sensitivity. While in bright light, you have disadvantage on attack rolls, as well as on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight.

Crow’s Effigy. A Crow’s Effigy is a small metal vial, which must be made of silver or iron, often shaped in the image of a crow. The effigy, by way of an ancient and highly guarded ritual, is fully imbued with the essence of the Darkling who made it, and because of such it can be used as a surrogate body for the purpose of spells such as Raise Dead and Revivify.

When a Darkling is resurrected with the use of their effigy, and the resurrection is successful, the effigy is destroyed. If you select this race you start with an effigy in your possession. To make another effigy you must spend 10gp to have the vial made, and to purchase the materials needed for the ritual. You must spend 1 hour performing the ritual, some or all of this time can be spent during a short or long rest. You can only have one effigy active at a time. If you finish the ritual to imbue a new effigy, any effigies you already own lose their magic and you must perform the ritual again for those effigies.

The Unsealing. The Unsealing is a ritual transformation a Darkling undergoes when they have reached some measure of experience and respect from their fellow Darklings. The Unsealing ritual releases some of the light trapped in a Darkling’s body by way of glowing tattoos, and simultaneously reshapes the Darkling’s body to be closer to the form their kind had before being cursed.

When you reach 5th level you may undergo the Unsealing ritual, which requires 100gp to purchase the materials and special inks. You must spend 8 hours performing the ritual, some or all of this time can be spent during a short or long rest. Upon completion of the ritual your race changes to Darkling Elder. Your size becomes Medium, you lose the Death Flash and Light Sensitivity traits, and gain the Death Burn and Legacy of Dubh Catha traits explained below.

Death Burn. When you die, magical light flashes out from you in a 10-foot radius as your body and possessions, other than metal or magic objects, burn to ash. Any creature in that area must make a DC 11 Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, the creature takes 2d6 radiant damage and is blinded until the end of its next turn. On a successful save, the creature takes half as much damage and isn’t blinded.

Legacy of Dubh Catha. You can cast the Zephyr Strike and Darkness spells with this trait, without requiring material components. Once you cast either of these spells with this trait, you can’t cast that spell with it again until you finish a long rest. You can also cast these spells using spell slots you have of the appropriate level.

Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma is your spellcasting ability for these spells when you cast them with this trait (choose when you select this race).