Aethus
Singular; Aethi. Plural: Aethus.
Javran, in his hundred or so years as a tavern keeper, swore he had seen every kind of folk the world could offer, and yet before him stood a humanoid creature he had never witnessed before. They had no face atop their golden orange body, yet the dwarf could feel they were staring back at him. Physical, glowing melodies circled the individual, tinkling for the eyes and ears of the rest of the silent tavern.
"So... friend." Javran muttered, passing a freshly filled mug to his newcomer and gazing as the booze left in what the dwarf could only assume was the fellow's mouth. "What brings you into my humble tavern?"
"Good question, friend." mused the figure, swiping the froth off its face before tapping one of its floating tunes. "I'm just a person trying to find what made me... me."
Seen as myths and living manifestations of magic, hunted down by archmages and magic-craving individuals, all without knowing how they came to be in this reality: This is a life of an aethi. Born from the vast magic that governs Galdera, these individuals have no history to contemplate onto, only knowing that their births are the tales of legends and prophecies. That spark of magic in an aethi, molded to become a semblance of life itself, is the very essence of their being; without it, they are nothing more than primordial magic.
Art by Necromoss!
Magic Incarnate
Be it the child of a sorcerer, a god's gift to its cleric, a paladin's oath given life, a wizard's project manifested, nature's primal gift to a druid, or a dead barbarian's rage reborn, the end result of such a miracle is an aethi. A humanoid being composed entirely out of magical energy, these folks are a mystery of life and magic. With no community, no history, and very little known about them, it is up to you to show the world the marvels of aethus.
Each aethi is created in a humanoid shape, but their appearance vary widely beyond that. Those created through divine magic may be of a golden color or be showered with light and halos, while those born from fey magic may have parts of their body continually change color and shape. An aethi woven from the primordial arcane of otherworldly planes may simply be mistaken as one of their residents, while another forged through arcana or illusory magic may visually appear as nothing more than an average fellow with faint magical sparks and glint.
Mages who have witnessed an aethi have recorded sensing the very fabrics of magic made manifest in their bodies, theorizing that the school of magic creating them may also affect their personality. It is also unknown if an aethi can reproduce, but if it is the case, such a spawn will no doubt be a potent sorcerer.
An aethi's connection to magic is both a blessing and a curse; while they gain an innate connection to the magic that created them, forms of magic deterrence and dispersal are unbearable to them, compared to having your body being torn apart by its very cells. Their magical essence also attracts the attention of other spellcasting individuals, some of which see them no more than magical wells of expendable power. An archmage may seek one out as a living battery for their works, while agents of gods may hunt them down as a manifestation of their deity or hated divinity.
A Soul of Power
With no culture of their own, many aethus either take on a life in the art of magic, or as a manifestation of the culture they found themselves at birth. An aethi born from the sheer devotion of a paladin towards their oath may push this devotion towards expanding the possibilities of magic, while an aethi formed from the undying essence of a powerful sorcerer may reject their lineage and live by the sword alongside the family of mercenaries that adopted them.
The magical reason behind an aethi's creation may often define their future, but this magic is under their control now, and it is up for them to decide how it will be wielded.
Aethi Names
As an aethi may be created in an infant form or as an adult with a general knowledge granted by their magic, the circumstances of their names depends on their environment. The legendary few that find themselves raising an aethi are often likely to name them after figures of legend, while aethi born fully grown may take on the name of whatever word they hear the most describe them. Such precedents exist historically, where of the three instances of aethus encountering one another, one encounter had two named Merlin and Sun-Touched.
Aethi Traits
- Ability Score Increase. An ability score of your choice is increased by 2, and your Constitution score is increased by 1.
- Age. Once an aethi is manifested into the world, it returns to a primordial magical essence after around 120 years.
- Creature Type. You are Humanoid, but count as Elemental for the purposes of being detected.
- Rarity. Extraordinary. Only a couple dozen or so are known to currently exist across Galdera, with their estimated count across Galdera's extensive history to be less than a few hundred.
- Size. Aethus vary from three to six feet tall, weighing around 80 to 300 pounds upon creation and losing this magical weight with age. You are Medium or Small (your choice when selecting this race).
- Speed. Your walking speed is 30 feet.
- Aspect of Magic. The fact you are composed entirely of magic provides you the following demerits:
- You possess an aura when seen through a *Detect Magic* spell, unless hidden through magical means or full cover.
- Whenever you are the target of a *Dispel Magic* spell, you take 1d4 necrotic damage for each level of the spell.
- Whenever you are within a *Antimagic Field* spell or similar effect, you have disadvantage on any ability checks and saving throws you make.
- Focus For Magic. You can use your body as a spellcasting focus for spells. Friendly creatures within 5 feet of you can also use you as a spellcasting focus if they have one hand free and you are willing. Doing so causes their spell to manifest as if cast in your space.
- Innate Caster. Choose a playable class that can cast spells. You know one cantrip from that class.
- At 3rd level, you know two 1st-level spells of your choice from that class. Once you cast either 1st level spells, you can't cast it again with this trait until you finish a long rest.
- You use this class's spellcasting ability as your spellcasting ability for these spells.
- Magic Resilience. When you are forced to make a saving throw against a spell or magical effect, you can use your reaction to grant yourself advantage against it. You can also use this reaction to instead take half damage from one source of damage that isn't bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing damage when you are hit.
- Once you have used either of these abilities, you can't use this trait again until you finish a short or long rest.
- Substained on Magic. You don't need to eat, drink, nor breathe, but you can still ingest and digest food and liquids.
| d6 | Aethi Characteristics |
|---|---|
| 1 | I am a sorcerer's magical essence, born upon their death. Now I wander to find who, or what, killed them and brought me into this world. |
| 2 | An extraplanar being of great magical power created me to be its eyes on this world. I may or may not know of this, but I always feel as if I have something watching through me. |
| 3 | I do not know what magic made me, but whatever it is, it has made me endlessly crave more. Magic has become a banquet to my eyes. |
| 4 | My parent created me through harvesting magic from creatures, locking me and my siblings away from the world while they see how strong they can make us. I have escaped, and wish to save my siblings. |
| 5 | I arose in this world alone, but I sense there is another, born from the same magic as I, somewhere out there. I wander to find them and fill that aching hole in me. |
| 6 | I am allergic to certain types of magic, making me feel ill or nauseous when targeted by it. |
