Manikin

"I've faced Manikin in two separate skirmishes. Once, I found several free-willed Manikin in the employ of a hedge witch, and that encounter will give me nightmares for years yet. The second time was a sanctioned Brass Tower assault. I can't prove it, but those Manikin weren't like the free-willed ones. They were just... things, doing the bidding of a wizard that I'm certain was still attached to the Tower. My Witchfinders were very nearly overwhelmed by the reckless attack, and I lost almost half of our dozen just to the shams."
~Witchfinder General Kill-Sin, of The College of Questions

Basic Information

Anatomy

Manikin are symbolically biological. They have organs that do not beat, they 'eat' food but there is no nutritional requirement, they 'sleep' but they do not actually dream or become unaware in any way. Their flesh is formed and shaped by a craftsman from various polymers, usually two-ingredient materials with a special alchemical reagent that brings the creature to life. Their faces and exact detail are shaped by the craftsman, or by themselves if they attain the power of choice some time after their creation.

Genetics and Reproduction

The creation process for manikins is a secret closely held by the Brass Tower, though a few independent craftsmen know and use the secret on a much smaller, more personal scale.

Growth Rate & Stages

When manikin are created, they are initially mindless. They follow orders, and only slowly pick up how to act like a true being. Oddly, they aren't automatons in this stage, they have a screaming maelstrom of emotions but no way to express or process them and no context to conceptualize them, so they come across as wooden or cold. As they age over the next ten years or so, this maelstrom comes slowly to order and their personality begins to coagulate. After around ten years, they are able to interact with people but they are in sort of a highly suggestible, almost hypnotic state. Six years of this state and the majority of them simply die after this. Those that live attain true consciousness, however, and the Brass Tower simply allows them to enter into adulthood like any other being.

Ecology and Habitats

Manikins are primarily found in urban environments, experiencing the crush of humanity with relish. Some take the opposite route, living on their own in hermitage and communing with a nature that doesn't really include them.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Manikins "eat", but the effort and resources that go into the food are what's required to feed the magic that powers them rather than the actual act of eating, though the act itself is what's required to culminate. Functionally, this means that they eat, though the cost and skill of the food directly effects the gain they get from it more than the actual nutritional value of it.

Biological Cycle

Manikin live around one hundred to one hundred and fifty years, after which they experience a sharp decline in physical and mental function until they cease to function.

Additional Information

Uses, Products & Exploitation

The Brass Tower uses young manikin for labor and levies.

Facial characteristics

Manikin faces range from blank plates with painted-on features to highly detailed and hand-crafted photorealistic sculptures.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Manikin are most commonly encountered around Lake Uirebael

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Manikin need symbolic organs for sensation. These organs need not be more than rough estimations: painted on eyes or carved slits work just as well as the real thing would on a human, ears can be held on by pegs, noses require little in the way of depth to experience smell. Some manikin take advantage of this by erasing some of these organs to avoid unpleasantness if they find themselves on cistern duty, for example.

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

Manikin are given a basic name by their creator. Often, this is just a number in the Old Tongue (Tcheri, Tchero, Tcheru, Tchera, Tcherik, Tcherici, Tcheraka, Tcherami, Tcherez, or Tcherago) or some basic profession that they were built to fulfill (Smith, Carpenter, Levy, Labor, Carter, etc.)

Major Organizations

Manikin are primarily connected to the Brass Tower.

History

Manikin were introduced into the world around 850, when they were used by the The Brass Tower as levies against the College of Questions. Since then, they are an uncommon but not unique sight around Seaudyr. The Brass Tower seemingly makes little effort to round up escapees, and they treat their creations with indifference. Strangely, there are a few manikin actually serving in the ranks as warmages and arcane warriors.

Origin/Ancestry

Galalith, Hemacite, Concrete, Woodice, Shellac, Rubber

Lifespan

100-150 years

Average Height

4'11 to 7'0

Average Weight

150-300 lbs

Manikin

Ability Score Increase +2 Con

Size Medium

Speed 30 ft

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Skills and Proficiencies

Choose one of the following: Arcana, Athletics, Intimidation, Investigation, or Acrobatics. Additionally, choose one tool proficiency.

Amalgamated Soul

When a manikin is killed, their soul does not depart their body. For 15 GP per level, they can be repaired good as new by a skilled craftsman. Fire or enough damage to destroy the body nullifies this ability. This also means that they are unaffected by 

Recharge

Like their organs, manikins' sleep is more symbolic than real. They rest six to eight hours, appearing to be asleep but fully alert. They are aware of their surroundings.

Unnatural Mind

You have advantage on saves against being charmed, and magic can't put you to sleep.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common.

Subrace

Choose one subrace: Galalith, Hemacite, Concrete, Woodice, Shellac, or Rubber based on the polymers that make up their bodies.

Galalith

Galalith Manikin are made from milk and vinegar. Their flesh ranges from ghost pale to ivory, and usually gleams with a polished sheen. They are known for their kindness, and tend towards Neutral Good.
• Ability Score Increase: Your Wisdom score increases by 1.
• Nurturing: You have proficiency with your choice of either an herbalism kit or a cook’s kit.
• Cantrip: You know one Cantrip of your choice from the Cleric spell list. Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for it.
• Extra Language: You can speak, read, and write one extra language of your choice.

Hemacite

Hemacite Manikin are made from pressed sawdust and blood. Their flesh ranges from light, arterial red to clotted black. Some are polished for parade-readiness but most are matte-dull. They are the manikin most often used as soldiers, and they tend towards Lawful Neutral.
• Ability Score Increase: Your Strength score increases by 1.
• Bloody Weapon Training: You have proficiency with the longsword, shortsword, spear, and shield.
• Battlefield Repair: You can spend Hit Die as if during a Short Rest by spending a full round in physical contact with a recently fallen body. This only works for bodies that have blood, and only if that body is bleeding from their wounds. You receive no additional benefits of a Short Rest.
• Discipline by Design: You have advantage on all saves against fear.

Concrete

Concrete Manikin are crafted from a mixture of powdered limestone and alcohol. Depending on their exact composition, their flesh can be any color on the spectrum of gray, from near-white to charcoal. They are usually crafted in such a way that they nearly resemble marble, with a polished sheen. They are known for being stubborn and willful. They tend towards True Neutral.
• Ability Score Increase: Your Constitution score increases by 1.
• AC Improvement: Your AC is 15+Dexterity when unarmored.
• Patience: When you are making a conscious effort to not move, or when you are in your Recharge state, an observer requires a Perception roll of 16 to distinguish you from normal statuary.
• Plodding: Your base walking speed is 25 feet.
• Stonesense: Choose one of the following kit proficiencies: Stonecutting, gemcutting, or hammer and chisel. You have expertise in the use of this kit.

Woodice

Woodice is made from mechanically pressed parchment and saltwater which is magically chilled. Their skin ranges from pale yellow to brown, and wizards often incorporate spell scrolls among the parchment. They are known to be generally dispassionate and calculating, with analytical minds and a near manic curiosity. They tend towards Lawful Neutral.
• Ability Score Increase: Your Intelligence score increases by 1.
• Volatile Spellcraft: You know one 1st level Wizard spell of your choice. You can cast this spell once, and your spellcasting modifier for this spell is Intelligence. You regain the use of this ability when you finish a long rest. By concentrating for 12 hours, you can change this spell to another 1st level Wizard spell of your choice.
• Cold Flesh: You have resistance to cold and vulnerability to fire damage. You are never hindered by natural cold weather conditions, and in fact heal and extra +1d6 per HD on a short or long rest in such conditions. Conversely, you heal 1d6 fewer HP on a short or long rest in warm natural climates such as deserts or tropics, and suffer exhaustion twice as quickly in such conditions.
• Buoyancy: You have a Swim Speed of 30 ft and can breathe underwater.

Shellac

The flesh of Shellac Manikin is made from a combination of silk pressed and heated into the secreted resin of the lac beetle. Their skin ranges usually from amber to dark brown, and is always at least slightly warm. Their personalities are usually friendly and excitable, bordering on hyperactive and inquisitive, and they are almost always fiercely independent. They tend towards Chaotic Good.
• Ability Score Increase: Your Charisma score increases by 1.
• Fire Affinity: You have fire resistance, and all fire damage done to any creature other than you within 5 feet of you is increased by 1d4.
• Fire Runs: Your base walking speed increases to 35 feet.
• Warm Blooded: Through the crafted veins of the Shellac Manikin runs a faintly glowing orange fluid rather than the usual ichor. This fluid, when drunk, heals 1d8+your Charisma Modifier in HP per round, and donating each dose deals 1d4 damage to you. You cannot benefit from this ability yourself. The fluid reportedly tastes like “overcooked dung beetle.”

Rubber

Rubber Manikin are made from wood resin and aqua regia. Some are made instead with eggwhites, though the process for this is less reliable and the amount of eggs required is logistically difficult. Their skin ranges from offwhite to brown, with a few made from dragonblood elm sap that sport a cherry red carapace. They are witty and clever, and move with a fluid grace that can be slightly unsettling to see. Unlike other Manikins, they don’t have designated joints, instead they sport an unnerving flexibility.
• Ability Score Increase: Your Dexterity score increases by 1.
• I Am Rubber: You can deflect attacks and redirect them. When an opponent attacks you with a nonmagical attack, you can use your reaction to attempt to bounce the attack. Roll a d20 and add your proficiency bonus vs. the opponent’s attack roll. If you succeed, you can choose the new target, which must also be within range of the original attack.
• You Are Glue: If you succeed at an unarmed attack, you can immediately use a bonus action to begin a grapple. If an opponent is grappled, you can roll another grapple to restrain them without being restrained yourself.
• Bounce: You can make a standing jump as if taking a running leap, and your jump height is doubled. You also take half damage from falls.

Languages. Common