Fairy, Variant (5e Race)

This material makes a character capable of mostly unrestricted flight before level 5, so DMs should take note of that fact. Obstacles and traps reliant on falling/gravity/height may not be significant challenges to a character using this material. Obstacles of these sorts are, however, an excellent tool to highlight the character's advantage. If you are using obstacles of these sorts to restrain the players to the intended play area, it will likely be ineffectual at containing such a character. Additionally, throwing in ranged or flying opponents with most of your encounters is advisable, but not to the extent that it would punish the player for their character's ability to fly, so much as to give them something meaningful to compete against. Be careful about who is allowed to use this material, as immature players will likely abuse flight to derail the campaign. As should be standard, such players should be dealt with outside-of-game through open communication, but it is often best to avoid the situation in the first place. New players often have difficulties visualizing themselves as another person, let alone another creature capable of moving in ways that they themselves will never experience. As such, if a new player is allowed to use this material, they may need some degree of guidance to remember that their character can fly indefinitely without limitations, though it should only take a few sessions to really drive the point home.

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Fairy

Physical Description

A typical fairy, sitting in a field doing some cloud watching. Source

Fairies are small fey creatures that look surprisingly human, though they sport medium-sized wings on their backs, and completely unrestricted hair and eye colors, which can range to be any color imaginable. Though fairies can actually vary drastically in stature, with some of the smallest capable of fitting in the palm of a human's hand, and some of the largest resembling a human child in size, their size is actually directly dependent on how powerful they are, so the smaller the fairy, the weaker they are.

History

Fairies originate from nature itself, literally spawning into existence when large amounts of spiritual, elemental, and natural energies accumulate in an area. They are a literal manifestation of nature's essence, and so their population rises or falls as the prominence of nature increases or decreases respectively. As such, though there is no documentation, it can easily be assumed that fairies date back as far as nature itself does.

Society

Fairies don't typically possess any sort of complex society, as they live out in nature, the place of their birth and origin. However, when groups of fairies live in the same general area, they will form a circle of "friends" and play games together like children. Additionally, because of their fey nature, they have a tendency to pull pranks on other races for amusement; humans are their most frequent targets, as humans are not only the most plentiful in the fairies' eyes, but also seem to be the most vulnerable to their pranks, and offer the most amusing reactions with the least risk of extremely violent retaliation.

Fairy Names

Fairies will often use Sylvan and fey names, but they've also been known to frequently use names that are natural phenomenon, aspects of nature, or otherwise just natural objects, such as plants. Examples of the latter include, but are not limited to:

Male: Dew, Ash, Birch, Gale

Female: Misty, Sunny, Rose, Lily

Fairy Traits

A fire fairy showing off her control over flame. Source

A flower fairy tossing petals in the spring without a care in the world. Source

An ice fairy, joyfully sitting in a meadow as she plays with the flowers. Source

A light fairy sitting happily in a tree, holding a pinwheel to the sky on a windy day. Source

Puny manifestations of nature, these eternally young-hearted fey spend their days playing games and pulling pranks.
Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity and Charisma scores each increase by 1.
Age. Fairies spawn at maturity, and exist for as long as their source of nature remains prominent in the world.
Alignment. Fairies are fun-loving beings, so they are almost always chaotic. However, despite their tendency to pull pranks, they are also extremely protective and supportive of those they call their friends, tending most towards good, though they will sometimes be neutral instead; though evil fairies are possible, it is very uncommon for one to be so.
Size. Fairies, though they vary extremely wildly in stature, lack significant power when they are too small. Fairies with enough power to stand alongside other races will usually be between 2 and 4 feet in height. Your size is Small.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 25 feet, and you have a flying speed of 30 feet. You are capable of hovering while flying, but you will still fall to the ground if you are restrained, incapacitated, or knocked prone.
Natural Energy Formation. Your creature type is simultaneously humanoid, fey, and elemental all at once.
Fey Ancestry. You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed, and magic can't put you to sleep.
Nature Incarnate. You are proficient in the Nature skill.
Persistence. Once, when you fail a death saving throw, you can choose to treat it as a success instead. After using this trait, you must finish a long rest before you can use it again.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common, Sylvan, and one other language granted to you by your subrace.
Subrace. You must choose a subrace, selecting from fire fairy, flower fairy, ice fairy, and light fairy.

Fire Fairy

Fire fairies possess hair and eye colors as bold and passionate as the flames they rise forth from; rich shades of red, orange and yellow are most common for these fairies to display, but deep, rich colors of blue are possible, if unbelievably rare. In addition, similar to ice fairies, fire fairies sport more unique-looking wings; their wings often match their hair and eyes in color, and are more opaque than other fairies' wings, taking on shapes that resemble licks of flame. On rare occasions their wings can appear to be literal wisps of flame rather than shaped imitations. The fact that they seem to radiate heat, and their bold way of holding themselves that almost borders on brash makes it difficult to miss their presence in a room, and their attitude combined with their passion-filled gestures make it extremely easy for others to get swept up in the excitement and riled into a fervor.

Fire fairies spawn in locations of extreme heat, such as volcanoes, and less commonly deserts, or in much rarer cases, other places where large amounts of open flame happen to frequently be present. They are extremely hot-headed, bold, passionate, and gung-ho. These fairies often rush headlong into problems or situations without so much as a second thought, neglecting to even think about whether they can handle it to begin with. They can sometimes even be narcissistic or brash, thinking themselves to be better than they actually are. Contrary to expectation, fire fairies are most fond of their opposite in temperature, ice fairies.

Ability Score Increase. Your Constitution score increases by 1.
Extra Language. You can speak, read, and write Ignan.
Fiery. Creatures have disadvantage on grapple checks when trying to grapple you, and you have resistance to fire damage, but vulnerability to cold damage.
Burning Passion. You know the control flames cantrip. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
Hot-Headed. When you hit with a melee attack, as a bonus action, you can cause the attack to deal 1d4 extra fire damage. After you have used this trait, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.

Flower Fairy

Flower fairies, like the flowers they come from, have the least restricted variety of hair and eye colors. Just as there can be flowers of nearly any color, flower fairies can sport nearly any hair and eye color under the sun. Curiously, flower fairies seem to be the only variety of fairy whose population is almost entirely female, with males being rare. Theories suggest this might be due to the fact that flowers are much more commonly associated with women than men, but research has so far been inconclusive. These fairies seem to be exceptionally in-tune with emotions, as their expressions can have some shockingly drastic effects on the mood of a room: their sweet smiles are uplifting, practically evicting foul moods; in the wake of their fluttery laughter, a conversation can quickly dissolve into a chorus of chuckles, giggles, and guffaws; atmospheres become dampened by their tears, reflective of rain causing soaked petals to droop pitifully.

Flower fairies spawn in areas abundant with plants and especially flowers. They seem to be the most empathetic and understanding of the fairies, sympathizing frequently with others, and have a habit of eavesdropping on conversations. Though they aren't any less of pranksters than other fairies, flower fairies are much more ready to rush in and apologize if one of their pranks accidentally causes injury to someone. Despite their personality having a strong contrast to the personality of light fairies, flower fairies are still drawn most towards their bright brethren.

Ability Score Increase. Your Wisdom score increases by 1.
Extra Language. You can speak, read, and write Terran.
Natural. You have advantage on saving throws against being poisoned and resistance to poison damage, but vulnerability to acid damage.
Bountiful Spirit. You know the druidcraft cantrip. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
Good-Natured. As an action on your turn, you can cause yourself or a creature you touch to regain 1d4 hit points. Starting at 6th level, you add your Wisdom modifier to this effect. This trait has no effect on undead or constructs.

Ice Fairy

Ice fairies are most easily identified by their wings, which look like arrays of ice crystals either protruding from their back, or simply floating behind them. They tend to have hair and eye colors ranging in the cold end of the spectrum; from violet through to blue, in varying shades, though they can rarely seep into some greenish colors as well, especially with their eyes. Their presence can easily drop the temperature around them by as much as 1, or even 2, degrees.

Ice fairies usually spawn in arctic regions, or in other regions frequently bathed in extreme cold and snowy landscapes. These fairies tend to be hardy, but thick-headed compared to other fairies, often having narrow views and difficulty understanding concepts. Ironically, they seem to get along well the best with fire fairies, despite how the two are of opposing temperatures.

Ability Score Increase. Your Constitution score increases by 1.
Extra Language. You can speak, read, and write Aquan.
Icy. You have advantage on saving throws against being petrified and resistance to cold damage, but vulnerability to fire damage.
Perfect Freeze. You know the frostbite cantrip. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
Cold-Hearted. You are used to frigid temperatures. As such, you are acclimated to extreme cold, as described in chapter 5 of the Dungeon Master's Guide, and you ignore the effects of difficult terrain caused by ice and snow.

Light Fairy

Light fairies' hair and eye colors are rarely, if ever, dull or pale, instead sporting brilliant, cheery, vivid colors. Their smiles are like rays of sunshine, having a strangely contagious effect, capable of lighting up even the darkest of moods. Just by being present, a light fairy can make a room, space, or area seem just that little bit brighter.

Light fairies usually spawn in large, open areas where light is free and mostly uninhibited, though they can rarely spawn in enclosed spaces if they're exceptionally well-lit. Interestingly, light fairies seem to be the most mischievous of the fairies, in contradiction to their bright and cheery origins. They like flower fairies more than other kinds of fairies, which is likely due to the relation plants and sunlight have, despite the fact that their mischievous nature contrasts with the empathetic and helpful tendencies of flower fairies.

Ability Score Increase. Your Charisma score further increases by 1.
Extra Language. You can speak, read, and write Auran.
Brilliant. You have advantage on saving throws against being blinded and resistance to radiant damage, but vulnerability to necrotic damage.
Shining Radiance. You know the light cantrip. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
Bright-Eyed. 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.

Optional: Rare Subraces

An arcane fairy fires off a volley of magic, enjoying a theatrical bout. Source

A death fairy, standing alone in serene silence. (No viable source link exists. It is being assumed the original source page or site no longer exists.)

A rare mind fairy, having been interrupted from trying to read a book. Source

A storm fairy mid-rampage during a lightning storm. Source

Below are some optional subrace options which are deemed to be considerably more rare than the four listed above.

Arcane Fairy

Arcane fairies, though still overall somewhat rare, are relatively common compared to other rarer types of fairies. They tend to sport many unusual and bright hair and eye colors, such as bubblegum pink, rich violet, neon green, lemon yellow, and other such odd colors, but they can also very easily have hair and eye colors common to humans, such as brown, black, and hazel. Their wings are fairly bland, being the typical, translucent and thin wings one might expect of a standard fairy. An arcane fairy's presence can elicit a mild mood of wonderment and curiosity.

Despite what some may believe, arcane fairies are just as natural as any other fairy. Just as death, the mind, and flame are natural to the world around you, magic is in fact also naturally-occurring within the world. Great examples include dragons, who are magical creatures in their own right, especially faerie dragons. Though researchers have yet to witness it first hand, it has been confirmed by a handful of cooperative dragons that arcane fairies will sometimes spawn in their dens, often requiring the resident dragon to shoo them out. Other extremely rare cases have seen an arcane fairy spawning in the midst of a long, invested conflict between powerful casters, such as wizards and sorcerers.

Arcane fairies are usually attracted to places with concentrated magic, even if it's residual. They will often be found near persisting magical effects, such as the invisible "eye" made by the arcane eye spell, or the circle left by the teleportation circle spell. These fairies are easily the most fun-loving variety, and though they are prone to being tricksters, they also enjoy playing games, participating in public events, and even adventuring much more than any other fairy. They are extremely social, and associate with anyone they can, not just other fairies, though they have a bit of difficulty understanding when to be serious. They appreciate the company of light fairies the most, with death fairies shockingly being their second-favorite variety to associate with, despite the complete contrast between the death fairies' serious attitude and their own lack of seriousness.

Ability Score Increase. Your Charisma score further increases by 1.
Magical. When you are subjected to a spell or magical effect that requires a saving throw, you may choose to make the saving throw with advantage. Once you use this trait, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Arcane Talent. You know the prestidigitation cantrip. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
Magically-Inclined. As an action on your turn, you may launch projectiles made from condensed magic. Make a ranged spell attack against a creature within 60 feet of you, using Charisma as your spellcasting ability for the attack. On a hit, the target takes 1d4 force damage. Starting at 6th level, you add your Charisma modifier to the damage of this attack.

Death Fairy

Death fairies are among one of the rarer types of fairies in the world. Their hair and wings are almost always black or dark silver, though some rare occasions give them grey wings or hair, or brown hair; their eyes are usually dark, cold colors as well, such as black, dark purple, red, sapphire blue, silver, or grey. Their wings tend to look feathery, like a bird's, and when black can have a striking resemblance to crow's wings. A death fairy gives off a somber air, dampening the mood around them easily.

Death fairies only spawn in areas where death is in abundance, such as inside large graveyards, or in areas where plant life has rotted in large quantities, such as areas that suffer from the blight spell. They can very rarely also spawn on battlefields of long and large wars, nearer to the end of the conflict when the area has been littered with the corpses of fallen warriors.

Death fairies often find themselves attracted to not only death, but surprisingly areas of abundant life as well. They seem to hold a fascination for energetic individuals brimming with life, and are drawn towards them in their curiosity. This variety of fairy is not as upbeat as other fairies, and in fact appear to hold some level of increased maturity over other types. They tend to be more serious and somber than most, and sometimes even depressing or pessimistic. Though they don't play around or pull pranks nearly as much as other fairies do, they are still capable of understanding humor, and have been known to crack their own jokes at times, though this is sometimes merely dry humor. Curiously, they seem to be much more social with other fairies than one might expect of such a somber group. However, though they don't prefer to associate with any particular variety of fairy more than others, they seem to harbor a dislike for light fairies. Ironically, contrary to what many people believe, flower fairies do not dislike death fairies at all; flower fairies rather appear to enjoy the company of death fairies more than they do the company of most other types of fairies besides light fairies.

Ability Score Increase. Your Intelligence score increases by 1.
Extra Language. You can speak, read, and write Terran.
Deathly. You have advantage on saving throws against being frightened and resistance to necrotic damage, but vulnerability to radiant damage.
Death's Mercy. You know the spare the dying cantrip. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
Bone-Chilling. As an action on your turn, you may reach out to try and impose the sensation of death upon another creature. Make a melee spell attack against a creature you can touch, using Intelligence as your spellcasting ability for the attack. On a hit, the target takes 1d6 necrotic damage, and it can't regain hit points until the start of your next turn. Starting at 6th level, you add your Intelligence modifier to the damage of this attack.

Mind Fairy

Mind fairies are by far the rarest type of fairy known to exist. Due to their rarity, there is no known pattern to their hair and eye colors, though those that have been documented have displayed hair colors such as silver, white, violet, pink, or blue, and eye colors of pink, violet, blue, grey, and black. Though some mind fairies seem to possess visible wings, others appear to lack wings but are capable of flight just the same as any other fairy regardless; it is unknown why this is, though some researchers theorize that the wingless individuals fly through some sort of self-telekinesis. A mind fairy brings an oddly calming atmosphere that seems to promote contemplation to those around it.

Though not many have ever witnessed a mind fairy spawning, and eyewitness accounts on the matter can be dubious at best, hypotheses have been created based on the spawning habits of other fairies, and it can be assumed that mind fairies only spawn in areas saturated with animals, or possibly only near or within large congregations of intelligent creatures; it's generally expected for a mind fairy to spawn in an area abundant with the essence of the mind and intellect.

Mind fairies appear to be fond of intellectuals, such as wizards, professors, and teachers to name a few examples. Interestingly, they also seem to be much more receptive of information than other fairies, making them shockingly fast learners. They tend to be calm and collected, though not without emotion; they simply seem to lack extreme amounts of enthusiasm compared to the likes of fire fairies or storm fairies. They have a tendency to think a great deal about any given situation, and some have displayed tendencies to overthink things. Mind fairies also show a high affinity for psionics. Despite their rarity, social tendencies have still been documented for these fairies; they appear fond of storm fairies, oddly enough, though they seem to greatly dislike death fairies.

Ability Score Increase. Your Intelligence score increases by 1.
Extra Language. You can speak and understand Deep Speech.
Telekinesis Hovering. You remain flying if you are restrained or knocked prone, though you still fall if you are incapacitated.
Cerebral. You have advantage on saving throws against being stunned and resistance to psychic damage, but vulnerability to poison damage.
Inner Focus. You know the mage hand cantrip. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
Strong-Minded. You are capable of communicating telepathically with other creatures out to a range of 60 feet. You may only form a telepathic link with one creature at a time; if you attempt to telepathically communicate with a creature while already communicating with a different creature, the old link is severed in place of the new one. To be able to communicate telepathically with a creature, it must understand at least one language, and must have an Intelligence score of 4 or higher. If the creature you are communicating with telepathically ever moves more than 60 feet away from you, the telepathic link is forcefully severed.

Storm Fairy

Storm fairies are another one of the rarest variety of fairy to exist. Their hair, eye, and wing colors are almost always exclusively shades of yellow or, less commonly, brown, but can rarely also be shades of white, red, green, blue, or violet. Regardless of the color, their hair and eyes are always extremely rich, giving an electric feel to them. Their wings are made from short bolts of lightning coming from their back, and are always extremely bright, approaching white in color, regardless of what tinge they happen to possess. Just by being in a room, a storm fairy's presence causes others to experience more difficulty in relaxing, as the tension never seems to go away near a storm fairy.

A storm fairy's rarity can be attributed to the fact that they only ever spawn within the core of storm clouds, and only at the height of an exceptionally violent lightning storm. It's possible, if extremely rare, for two storm fairies to spawn within a single storm, and though it has yet to be documented, it is also theorized possible - albeit at a rarity that can only be defined as miraculous - for a maximum of three to spawn simultaneously, but only within a truly massive super-storm.

Storm fairies often find themselves gravitating towards areas of high voltage, though this doesn't seem to be exclusive to an area where a storm is present; large amounts of emotional and social tension appear to be sufficient enough to draw in a storm fairy. These rare fairies display large amounts of zeal, and can't seem to sit still for very long, always fidgeting, pacing, or otherwise moving their body in some way. They become agitated and more aggressive when a large and powerful storm begins to form, making them more dangerous than usual in stormy weather. Because of their rarity, storm fairies are rarely seen at all, let alone associating with other fairies. Regardless, they appear to enjoy the company of mind fairies, though they don't actively seek out said company; more often than other varieties of fairies, they seem to usually be found not associating with any of their kin.

Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score further increases by 1.
Stormy. You have advantage on saving throws against being paralyzed and resistance to lightning damage, but vulnerability to force damage.
Shocking Zeal. You know the shocking grasp cantrip. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
Lightning-Fast. When you take the dash action on your turn, you can move an additional 10 feet.
Electric Core. You can innately cast the absorb elements spell as a 1st level spell once without spending a spell slot, after which you must finish a short or long rest before you can cast it again. This instance of the spell can only be triggered by lightning damage. The resistance granted to you by the spell when you cast it does not stack with your Stormy trait; you do not take one-quarter lightning damage. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for this spell.

Variant Rule: Different Vulnerabilities

If your GM is using the wind damage variant rule, then the storm fairy's Stormy trait is replaced with the following:

Stormy. You have advantage on saving throws against being paralyzed and resistance to lightning damage, but vulnerability to wind damage.

Additionally, if your GM is using the water damage variant rule, then the fire fairy's Fiery trait is replaced with the following:

Fiery. Creatures have disadvantage on grapple checks when trying to grapple you, and you have resistance to fire damage, but vulnerability to water damage.

Random Height and Weight

Base Height	Height Modifier*	Base Weight	Weight Modifier**
2′ 1″	+2d10	43 lb.	× (1d4) lb.
*Height = base height + height modifier **Weight = base weight + (height modifier × weight modifier)

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