Bat Folk

Bat folk are humanoids with a chiropteran ancestry, complete with large ears, fur, and leathery wings.

Bat folk are humanoid, with black and leathery skin, though they also have short brown fur covering much of their body, except their hands, feet, and face. They have large, batlike ears, black eyes, and leathery wings that stretch under their arms to their torso, from their wrists to their waist.

Ancestral Traits

Your bat folk character has certain distinctive characteristics.

Age. Bat folk mature more quickly than humans, reaching adulthood at 16, and living roughly 60 years.

Size. Bat folk are shorter than humans, standing 3-4 feet tall, and usually slimmer as well. Your size is Small.

Speed. Your base walking and flying speeds are 25 feet.

Flight. You have a flying speed equal to your current speed. You may remain aloft for up to 2 hours per day, all at once or in several shorter flights. You regain one hour of flying time when you complete a long rest. Bat folk cannot wear medium or heavy armor when flying, however.

Echolocation. You have Blindsight of 30 ft., though you lose this trait when you are Deafened.

Due to your heightened sense of hearing, you are vulnerable to thunder damage. You can also issue an ultrasonic screeching sound that only those of bat folk ancestry can hear.

Cultural Traits

Characters who grow up among the bat folk adopt certain behaviors and attitudes of their communities.

Bat folk communities tend to form inside caves near surface access. These matriarchal collectives practice communal living, with a complex network of overlapping social relations among them. Indeed, bat folk are able to form relationships and communities with virtually anyone, and in huge numbers, yet often keep track of every detail of their social interactions and standing. Bat folk cultures often practice a religion of cyclical life and death worship, celebrating the passing of day into night and life into death.

Ability Score Increase. Your Charisma score increases by 2 and your Dexterity by 1.

Alignment. Bat folk cultures are accepting and tolerant, appreciating and accepting each-other’s differences. That said, they also value cooperation and community. These are sometimes in tension, which results in a balance between law and chaos and a fairly strong tendency toward goodness.

Good Listeners. Bat folk value listening. You have advantage has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing.

Social Awareness. Those who grow up in bat folk culture tend to develop a fine-tuned sense of social relations. You have proficiency in the Insight skill.

Magic of Night and Death. As a part of the religious practices of reverence for the cycles of life and death found in many bat folk communities, youth of those communities learn some simple magics. You know the spare the dying cantrip. When you reach 3rd level, you can cast the gentle repose spell once with this trait. When you reach 5th level, you can cast the darkness spell once with this trait, requiring no material components. You regain the ability to cast these spells with this trait when you finish a long rest. Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for these spells.

Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and Bat Folk, a language of screeching and clicks. Those of bat folk ancestry augment the language with ultrasonic sounds that only other people of bat folk ancestry can hear.