Spartoi
Singular; Sparti. Plural: Spartoi.
"You and I, we all bleed into the same earth. From its bounty we feed, and through our body and work we sustain it. We are all connected to the gift our world provided us. My body of stone and veins of water may make it seem I am one with nature, but we are ALL brothers and sisters, children of the earth! Let my name travel the winds as your guardian, eons after we become one with our ancestors." - Kardaeus, sparti titled "The Undying Shield"
Resembling animated statues, spartoi spend the majority of their life adventuring or within an armed force, only returning home once they've earned a worthy Call or live for a century. Sharing an innate connection to nature and combat, many folks know not to encounter a sparti by the end of their spear, but rather alongside a field of wheat.
Living Statues
Art by Lanie_kun!
Spartoi, or singularly sparti, are generally half a foot taller than humans, but can weigh up to twice as much due to their unique physiology. They appear as if made by an sculptor, their skin similar in appearance and texture to various types of rocks. Their lifestyle of adventuring and farming allows them to boast of their sculpted physique, something many other races envy.
A spartoi's body ranges in color and textures; smooth, rough or porous, their rocky skin in shades of ivory, obsidian, limestone, rock salt, or even bronze. While stone-like in appearance, they are still made of flesh like most other humanoid races.
This stone-skin composition seems to have also came with a primal connection to nature with each sparti, making them exemplary hunter-gatherers. Magic flows through their clear-blooded skin, granting them a close touch with nature and the plants around them, while their hands seem always at ease with a weapon at hand.
Unknown Past
In truth, no one, not even the sparti, no how they originated into Galdera. Many creation theories are shared amongst them, as it is common for spartoi to not really care on where they came from; what matters is what they themselves will do in their life.
Some speculate spartoi were the result of an arcane sculptor giving life to their statues as a final gift, while others think they originate from the love of a powerful warrior and a medusa queen. Perhaps they were created from the primordial earth from the bones of giants and dragons, a fusion of flesh and earth. Some even speculate spartoi originate from petrified people, their stone bodies reanimating with new life after being frozen for a century.
A Sparti's Call
While spartoi originate in the fertile fields to the west, it is common to see one nearly anywhere in Galdera. A sparti's Call is what drives them to travel all over the world. a Call is the crowning achievement of a sparti's life, which measures their worthiness after death. The grander the Call, the more respect a sparti receives both in life and beyond.
As a result, spartoi form parties or enter mercenary groups in order to ease their search for their Call. Their determination and desire for a proper Call is often mistaking for a desire for fame, but a sparti would dismiss any fame they have, so long as it does not fit with the Call they have earned.
Sparti Names
A sparti's name is decided by both parents, adopting their parents name as their family name. A sparti's call is what truly defines them, a culmination of their most grand deed. Only by departing into the world can a sparti attempt to earn their call.
- Male Names. Troplocus, Asenios, Oenomos, Fridiples, Macar, Ideaus, Kamellis, Teracles, Berpheus.
- Female Names. Kaenis, Hyre, Belliphona, Aera, Arya, Rhene, Thetis, Callianessa.
- Sparti Calls. He who slew an army with a single spear, They who surpassed a giants appetite, She who outstared a gorgon, Destroyer of Femith, The Mountain Splitter, Butcher of Demons.
Sparti Traits
Art by Maxkayart!
- Ability Score Increase. Your Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution score increases by 1.
- Age. A sparti reaches adulthood at around the age of 16, and can live for up to 140 years.
- Creature Type. You are a Humanoid.
- Rarity. Uncommon. While they tend to settle where other spartoi live, young and adventuring spartoi are not rare sights across Galdera, as they try to make a name and reputation for themselves.
- Size. You are Medium or Small (your choice when selecting this race).
- Speed. Your walking speed is 30 feet.
- Flesh of the Earth. You know the Druidcraft cantrip. When you reach 3rd level, you can cast the Ensnaring Strike once with this trait and regain the ability to do so when you finish a long rest. When you reach 5th level, you can cast the Plant Growth spell once with this trait and regain the ability to do so when you finish a long rest. Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma is your spellcasting ability for these spells (choose upon making your character).
- Honed to Nature. You gain proficiency in Nature and one of the following skills: Athletics, Acrobatics, Medicine, Perception, and Animal Handling.
- Natural Armor. Your skin is hard as stone. When you aren't wearing armor, your AC is 12 + your Constitution modifier. You can use your natural armor to determine your AC if the armor you wear would result in you having lower AC. A shield's benefits apply as normal while you use your natural armor.
- Soul of a Warrior. Whenever you finish a long rest, choose one type of weapon on your person, or yourself. You gain proficiency in that weapon until you use this trait to gain proficiency in a different weapon. If you were already proficient with that weapon, its damage dice increases to 1d6 if it was lower. Choosing yourself instead increases your unarmed strikes damage dice to 1d6.
| d6 | Spartoi Characteristics |
|---|---|
| 1 | I use pigments and oils to make my skin look like more than just stone. |
| 2 | While some folks may not find them edible, I enjoy cooked rocks. |
| 3 | A medusa petrified my hometown to mock my family. I will stop at nothing to hunt them down. |
| 4 | I am deadly afraid of open waters, worried I will sink and never resurface. |
| 5 | I have been told comets are simply space rocks; perhaps I can become like them? |
| 6 | Statues always remind me of corpses. My skin always crawls each time I see one. |
