Homebrew:Ratperson

(OOC: This is an implementation of the ratperson race from Tasha's Crucible of Everything Else volume 2)

Ratpeople are furry, anthropomorphic rodents. Many unfamiliar with the species confuse them for wererats. While both can be furry and are often found in urban environments, they are distinctly different races and societies. Wererats can shapeshift between a ratty humanoid shape, a giant rat shape, or an anthropomorphic hybrid form. Ratpeople cannot normally shapeshift and do not tend towards a lawful evil alignment. They have a rich, unique culture, as described below.

Homeland

Ratpeople congregate in urban centers, such as Waterdeep in the Forgotten Realms or Sharn in Eberron. While a sizable minority of ratpeople live outside of major cities or find other occupations, most work as city sanitation staff. The ratpeople colonies of the Rat Hills south of Waterdeep are the #1 recruitment source for the city's sewer, well, and waterworks inspectors. If you've drunk clean water today, you may have a ratperson to thank.

Family Centric

Ratpeople value close family bonds. They work together to keep their nests clean and put food on the table. Extended families often live together; it isn't uncommon for one family to have two grandparents, several aunts and uncles, and tens of grandchildren all living in a small area. As such, ratpeople tend to be very good at sharing.

Affectionate

While ratpeople are often hesitant to get to know new people, they make loving and loyal friends. Ratpeople love to socialize and frequently help groom each other. If a ratperson tries to comb your hair, don't be offended. That means they consider you a close friend. Most adult ratpeople understand that not all other peoples and cultures express friendship in the same way and will listen if you ask them not to.

Safety First

Ratpeople fairy tales prominently feature careful protagonists who use good judgment to avoid dangers and solve problems before they happen. This reflects a deeply rooted part of ratpeople culture: the importance of safety. Unique quirks of many ratpeople may be misinterpreted as being shy, antisocial, or xenophobic, but are actually a highly developed sense of precaution.

Waste Not, Want Not

Ratpeople are often stereotyped as sewer dwellers and garbage eaters. While many ratpeople certainly do live in sewers or landfills, they do so because they value frugality and efficiency. Ratpeople are ingenious inventors and resourceful scavengers, and seem to be able to repurpose any object other intelligent creatures would deem trash or unusable.

Ratperson Traits

Ability Score Increase

Your Dexterity score increases by 2 and your Intelligence score increases by 1.

Age

Ratpeople reach adulthood at age 3 and can live up to 30 years.

Size

Ratpeople are between 5' and 5'6" feet tall and weigh between 80 and 120 lbs. Your size is Medium.

You can roll to randomly determine your character's height and weight.

Size Modifier = 1d6

Height = 4 feet + 11 inches + your size modifier in inches

Weight in Pounds = 75 + (1d8 × your size modifier)

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common.

Ratty Biology

You have advantage on saving throws against disease and the poisoned condition, you have disadvantage on saving throws against being frightened, and you have darkvision for a radius of 60 feet.

Olfactorlocation

Your powerful sense of smell allows you to sense things that most others would miss. You have advantage on Wisdom (PerceptionWisdom (Perception)skillYour Wisdom (Perception) check lets you spot, hear, or otherwise detect the presence of something. It measures your general awareness of your surroundings and the keenness of your senses. For example, you might try to hear a conversation through a closed door, eavesdrop under an open window, or hear monsters moving stealthily in the forest. Or you might try to spot things that are obscured or easy to miss, whether they are orcs lying in ambush on a road, thugs hiding in the shadows of an alley, or candlelight under a closed secret door.) checks that require smell.

As an action, you can focus your sense of smell and gain blindsight within 30 feet. This benefit lasts until the start of your next turn.

Fastidious

You can spend 1 minute to clean a Medium or smaller creature or object of all dirt, grime, unpleasant stench, stains, and other filth. This involves an intricate system of brushing, scraping, and licking objects and creatures into pristine condition.

Claustrophilia

Your people are naturally inclined to defend yourselves in small spaces. When you have walls on two or more sides of you, such as when you are in a corner or narrow hallway, you have advantage on melee attack rolls and Dexterity saving throws.

Squeakspeak

You can talk with rats, mice, and other rodents. This communication is high-pitched and out of the hearing range for most humanoids.