Gnoll
Gnolls are hulking hyenafolk, being 7 feet tall, hunch backed, and fast. Gnolls have reflective eyes that are typically bright green or yellow. They also have a thick coat of fur, which is generally light brown or dark brown. Certain clans may possess a single-colored coat or a spotted or striped coat. Some gnolls possess crests like manes of hair going from their head down their spine which rise up when they become frightened or angry. Gnolls are infamous among races such as humans and elves for their brutality and monstrous behavior. For the most part, they aren't wrong. Many gnoll packs are indeed aggressive and have a monstrous side to their affairs. They tend to be rather hostile and are still mistrusted and avoided. To them though, the pack is more important than anything else. Gnolls keep groups of hyenas in their clan, they will often use them in combat like dogs, but gnolls are also born from dying hyenas. Through dark rituals a gnoll can “impregnate” a hyena, and when the hyena starts to die a full grown gnoll will burst from its body. Gnolls are most commonly just barely intelligent enough to speak languages and form clans. Though it is true the majority of gnoll clans aren’t just animalistic but plain barbaric and even considered evil, there are many other clans that are just basic hunter/gatherer communities and the gnolls are more natural, druidic, and shamanistic than they are cruel or evil. A gnoll’s overall sense of community and loyalty to its pack can make them excellent companions to have and invaluable allies in a fight. The history of gnolls is a gruesome one, many years ago when races were still new to the material plane, a demon lord named Yeenoghu broke free from the abyss and went on a rampage. Yeenoghu marched across the land killing and eating everything. Yeenoghu is a massive demon all about savagery and hunger. Behind Yeenoghu trailed hundreds of hyenas, scavenging off of the trail Yeenoghu left. Typhona, the Goddess of monsters, saw this creature of pure chaos and savagery, and she loved it. She then inflicted many of the hyenas following Yeenoghu with pregnancy, and not long later, from the bodies of those hyenas she infected as they laid on the ground dying, the first ever gnolls were born. Many of the evil gnolls today still worship their demon lord and Typhona, even after Yeenoghu was banished back to the Abyss, still following his savage ways.
Most Common Classes: Barbarian, Ranger, Rogue, Shaman, Monstrous Bloodline Sorcerer
Ability Score Increase. When determining your character’s ability scores, increase one score by 2 and increase a different score by 1, or increase three different scores by 1. You can't raise any of your scores above 20.
Creature Type. You are a Humanoid and Monstrosity at the same time.
Size. You are Medium. (6-7 feet)
Age. Gnolls are born already fully mature, and generally live 30-50 years.
Darkvision. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.
Ferocious Bite. You can make unarmed strikes using your bite as a natural melee weapon. You are proficient with your bite attack, which deals piercing damage equal to 1d6 plus your Strength modifier.
Rampage. When you reduce a creature to 0 hit points with a melee attack on your turn, you may use a bonus action to move up to half your speed and make a bite attack.
Frightful Appearance. You gain proficiency in the Intimidation skill.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and Gnoll. You can also choose to be able to understand spoken Abyssal, but not speak, read, or write it unless learned through other features.
Bonus Race Specific Feat
Bone Lord:
Prerequisites : Gnoll race
You can see the inherent beauty, power, entertainment and symbolism in bones (like all gnolls), but unlike your peers, you can truly express their power.
When wielding an improvised weapon that is the bone of another creature, you are automatically considered proficient in the bone, and the bone becomes a magical +1 weapon while you hold it. The DM determines the bone's damage dice, based on how it is shaped (a blunt bone could be a club, while a broken and sharp one could be a dagger, eg.).
Furthermore, you can use any bone as a universal spellcasting focus.
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