The Disembodied

To cast one’s mind out amongst the outer planes was the dream of many an arcane spellcaster in the worlds that existed before the Cataclysm. Among those ancient memories, none came closer to that lofty goal than the lost city of Ashast. Founded by a group of ambitious wizards who chafed under the limitations imposed upon them by government bureaucracy and religious oversight, Ashast boasted free study for all mages who sought sanctuary within its walls. The Great College quickly became a lodestone for mages of every stripe from across many worlds, and for a brief moment there existed a golden age of magic.
That dream came crashing down during the Cataclysm when the founding mages of Ashast attempted a massive conjuration ritual intended to part the veil and create a permanent portal to the Ethereal Plane - trying to save their city. It didn’t work. Instead their magic caused a massive rift in the very fabric of reality, and in an instant the entire city tipped into the void between worlds. The entire city was presumed dead, only the barest memory of their fate surviving on to the new world. Life moved on with only the stories of the lost city as proof it ever existed.
Centuries later, tellings surfaced of strange people being sighted on beaches and on ships. These people seemed oddly blurred or indistinct, and some reports said they vanished right in front of witnesses’ eyes. Gradually it became clear that these poor souls were the survivors of the Ethereal Rift, now trapped between worlds and trying to retain their tenuous grasp on the new Material Plane.
They are still mostly misunderstood and feared, as they seem to be in-between life and death - a kind of undeath, and therefore frowned upon by all who heed the Grey Mariner. Though many have found their places in Varada, among cities and places of magic mostly, as they try to understand what has happened to them - it is an irony that many Disembodied find themselves in places like Ashast, that now exist freely in Varada without any of the prejudices they faced aeons ago. Still many others simply wander, trying to uncover the true fate of their lost city or simply searching for any trace of the world they once knew.

Disembodied Traits

Ability Scores: Choose one of: (a) Choose any +2; choose any other +1 (b) Choose any +1; choose any other +1; choose any other +1
Size: Small/Medium
Speed: 30 ft.

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Size. You are Medium or Small. You choose the size when you select this race.
Fade Away. On your turn, as an action, you can fade from the world and disappear into an ethereal realm. While you remain faded away, you cannot interact with the world, and effects in the world cannot interact with you, including spells and creatures. However, you can move and hear as normal, and see everything in shades of grey. This effect lasts for 1 minute, or until you use a bonus action to end it. When the effect ends, you reappear in the Material Plane, in the closest unoccupied space you disappeared from. Once you use this feature, you cannot use it again until you complete a long rest.
Planar Outcast. You may cast the feather fall spell once per day, targeting yourself only. When you reach 3rd level, you may cast the blur spell once per day. When you reach 5th level, you may cast the blink spell once per day. Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for these spells.
Arcane Origins. You have proficiency in the Arcana skill.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and one other language that you and your DM agree is appropriate for your character.