3rd Party/Homebrew

Living in voluntary isolation from the rest of the world are the raskir, a race of people who resemble humanoid mice or rats. Aside from their feet, hands, and tails, they are covered in fur that is typically gray, black, brown or white. Less common fur colors include oranges, ruddy brownish-reds, gray-blues and spotted patterns. Their skin colors are varied shades of tan and brown ranging from porcelain white to pitch black. Most surface dwellers will never see a raskir, or even learn of their existence. These resourceful ratfolk tend to make their homes in the nooks and crannies of sewers far beneath the larger civilizations of Sharran.

The raskir have learned to fear the surface based on tales of the people there mistaking them for monsters. To avoid detection and escape threats, they have evolved to be small and nimble, so the ones that do venture to the surface are almost never seen, even as they traverse busy streets and sneak into heavily trafficked areas. Raskir frequent the underbellies of Shaderil, but there are few hiding in the sewers of Aetheril.

Cozy Dwellings

Their resourcefulness lends itself to the creation of their shelters. But to assume these are simple, shoddy shelters created by burrowing beneath heaping piles of trash would be a mistake. A raskir home is a place of delight and comfort. Each one is constructed by the raskir that live there with the materials available, becoming works of art unique to each resident.

Inside, they have much of the same comforts you would expect to find in a surface home: a hearth for heat and cooking, delicious food and drink, comfortable beds to nest in, and ample seating to relax in.

The raskir tend to settle in groups, creating small subterranean towns that pepper the unseen places of the world. Sometimes, these settlements will reach as deep as the Underdark, though even there they tend to go unseen by the other denizens.

Raskir Names

A raskir has a given name and a family name.

Given names tend to be short and rhythmic – between one and three syllables – and are often invented when a child is named, with given names rarely being intentionally reused. There is no distinction between male and female names.

Family names are passed on to children, but one does not gain the honor of formally using their family name until they have taken a journey as a Gatherer. Family names originate as a commemoration of an impressive task they complete on a Gatherer journey – for example, a raskir that defends its fellow travelers from a kobold raiding party might be given the name Kobolbiter. It is common to add or remove letters and alter the base word’s pronunciation to make a family name more appealing. Someone who cleaned and mended a wound received by one of their companions might acquire the name Cuthealer, pronounced Cuh-theeler. Or someone who defeated a goblin horde in combat may be named Gobliender, pronounced Gob-lee-en-der.

Those who perform exceptional undertakings on their quests, but have already earned the right to use their family name, could be given a second name. These raskir often adopt both names.

Given Names: Fili, Tolo, Ka, Pana, Yalo, Fe, Mola, Mili, Kopi, Jalala, Kepe, Koko, Lokano, Guli, Chachan, Ji, Trapo, Tipo, Beyao, Copolo, Jaojao, Vivi, Kli, Bune. Family/Gatherer Names: Cuthealer, Gobliender, Blademender, Ropebiter, Truspeak, Fangkeeper, Shadoblend, Walbreaker, Gnomefrind, Kindword, Froggutter, Giantsbane, Talclimb, Fishbringer, Holmaker, Panfighter.

Raskir Traits

As a raskir, you have the following racial traits.

• Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score increases by 2, and your Wisdom score score increases by 1.

• Age. Raskir reach adulthood around the age of 13 and typically live less than a century

• Alignment. Raskir tend to be chaotic neutral. The scavenger lifestyle they lead is unpredictable, and the ability to thrive in chaos is a favorable trait. They make no major distinction between good and evil, and often hold the belief that looking out for yourself is the first step in looking out for your community.

• Size.  Raskir typically stand between 3 and 4 feet tall and weigh roughly 30 to 40 pounds. Your size is small.

• Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

• Darkvision. Accustomed to life in the sewers, you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of yourself as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern color in darkness, only shades of gray

• Quadruped. Raskir are more comfortable running on all fours. When prone, your movement speed increases by 20 feet. You do not suffer the standard penalty to movement speed for crawling. Standing up costs 20 feet.

• Prehensile Tail. You can use your tail to grab light items, pull levers, press switches and other reasonable acts as a free action once per round of combat. Alternatively, you can spend a bonus action to attack an enemy using a light weapon you wield with your tail. This counts as an offhand weapon. You may also use a bonus action to grapple an enemy with your tail. You cannot take a free action and an offensive bonus action using your tail in the same round.

Your proficiency bonus is added to grapple attempts made with your tail.

• Quick-Witted. You gain a +2 to initiative and perception checks.

• Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and Raskir. The raskir language consists of squeaks and chirps in addition to soft, rhythmic, vocalized syllables. The written language is rather artistic and interpretive, relying heavily on non-standardized pictographs.