Barkling

Sprouted from the ancient, wild soil of a forest or a jungle, you are a barkling. As a barkling, you tower over the other Harvestborn and most other races and live indefinitely, becoming a first-hand witness of what most learn through ancient tomes in du sty libraries. Barklings do not die, but their later stages of life look very different from those of other long-lived races. As centuries wash over a barkling, their limbs keep growing and their speech and movements keep slowing down until one day they stop moving entirely. Their bodies go through an incredibly slow transformation, at the end of which they lose their humanoid characteristics, becoming indistinguishable from normal trees. in barkling tradition, this transformation represents attaining enlightenment.

These trees are living libraries in barkling communities, storing the history of the world within their branches and roots, and teaching it to younger barklings through the natural telepathic communication all Harvestborn possess. Barklings are protective of the forest, as many nature-inclined races are, but they do not do so out of a vague moral sense about "the importance of nature". When barklings protect the forest, they protect their people and, more importantly, their history .

Some barklings believe that the more a barkling experiences in their life, the faster the transformation comes to them. Many leave the forest and embark on adventured-filled journeys, making memories to pass to those back home who still dwell among the trees. Other barklings see the transformation as a cruel curse and believe that this change is triggered by staying for years in a forest surrounded by corpses of their family. They too leave the forest but in hopes of escaping their eventual fate.

Barkling Traits

Ability Score Increase. Your Strength or Constitution increase by 1.

Age. Barklings have the longest lifespan out of all the Harvestborn, maturing at around 20 and living indefinitely, slowly turning into normal trees.

Size. Barklings stand between 6 and 8 feet tall and average about 260 pounds. Some have been known to grow to over 10 feet tall. Your size is Medium to Large.

Speed. Your body is built for strength and longevity, not for nimbleness. Your base walking speed is 25 feet.

Steadfast Guardian. Attacks and spells that push you or knock you prone have no effect on you. An attack or spell that, for instance, deals damage and knocks you prone or pushes you back a number of feet will only deal damage to you. You can still be forced to move or lie down if under a charm.

Natural Armor. Your tough, bark-like skin adds a layer of protection from upcoming blows. You gain a +1 bonus to Armor Class. If you are wearing heavy armor, this bonus is negated.

Barkling Variant: Cactus

You sprouted from the soil of a vibrant oasis. Your skin is as hard as bark but smoother, greener, and covered in needle-like spikes. Cactus barklings come from desert climates and are generally smaller and more slender than their tree-like cousins. Cactus barklings tend to live a less communal lifestyle than other barklings, many of them becoming adventurers and wanderers. Their transformation is said to come quicker too. Which coupled with their wandering nature, means that it's not unheard of for cactus barklings to transform somewhere they didn't plan to transform. A lonely cactus standing completely alone in desolate deserts, miles away from any other signs of life, could be a cactusling who was caught by their change by surprise.