Badgian I lay there in the dirt road half adaze watching the stout silhouette of some wandering warrior fight off the roaming band of Aarakocra and Yuan-ti that ambushed our caravan. At a distance and eyes blurry I was confident I was watching a dwarven battlemaster at work but as the feathers flew and the rest slithered away I began to see our savior was hairier than even the hairiest dwarf I had ever seen. No. With the large round ears, narrow snout filled with razor teeth, and the distinct black and white fur, this was a Badgian. Never did I expect to see one, even in my extensive travels. Fierce and wise people of the distant grasslands of Acasoun, their incredible ability to endure days of battle without tiring as spread through the kingdoms, but the clans did make a habit of dealing with outsiders unless they trespassed in their territory. The question fearful dawned on me suddenly: had this badgian come to our aid or have we become trespassers? -Laudin The Archivist, The Tome of All Truth Territorial Clans Badgians's settlements are made up of a number of huts scattered around around a central longhouse that dominates the area and surrounded by a log wall. But what you see is less than half the picture. Badgian clans make their homes primarily in burrows connected by a network of tunnels. These tunnels extwen well past the town walls which is key to Badgian defense. These tunnels have well hidden entrances that Badgian warrior will use to pin invaders between the wall and themselves, cutting of any chance of escape While Badgian clans tend to have well defined territories that are not violated, Badgians have been known to war with one another when food becomes scarce or their own territory is lost. These wars often lead to the victors absorbing the other clan and taking control of the land. Though there may be some grudges from these battles, they are part of the spiritual practices of the Badgians. When this battle is done, they turn their collective attention to the invaders wo displaced their kin. Warm Hosts and Healers Despite their feeling about trespassers, those that enter their lands welcomed will find a very different side to Badgians. They quickly assess friend and foe and until given reason to change their opinion will treat friends as family. It is not easy to get such invitations but it is said that if you get one you should take it or else risk offense and their opinion of you quickly changing. As part of their traditions Root Badgians become incredibly well versed in natural magics and healing plant. One of the few relationship they have outside the clans is trading their tinctures, salves, and ointments in Acasoun border towns. They are not typically skilled in smithing and value Acacounian steel weapons enough to step out of their territory and enter the cities where they are met with a mixture of reverent awe and suspicion. Most don’t trust “beast men” because of the history of Yuan-ti selling medicines and oils that were nothing more than sugar water.

Vo Mirfae The Far Sighted At the heart of Badgian spirituality is Vo Mirfae, a three eyed badger deity that leads them through their trials for long term end results. Clerics of Vo Mirfae end to be Knowledge or War clerics while a central group of divination wizards, called Shadow Diggers, search for signs and meaning to the order of events to predict the path ahead. They enter into a trance using a combination of drumming, intense heat, psychoactive plants, fasting, and pushin their hardy bodies to their breaking point to enter The Shadow Realm, a place between life and death. Here Vo Mirfae is said to dwell and give cryptic guidance. When one clan attacks another they do not do so lightly. The attackers will send a messenger to the clan elders with a message. "Does Vo Mirfae grant favor for us all or for the few?" The question asks if there is enough resources in the clan to absorb the other. The eders consider a great many things, the season, supplies, other threats, and of course the Shadow Diggers. If they do not have the resources both clans seek volunteers to leave the territories forever, surrendering their rights to the tribe and to never make their home among the clan again. The volunteers become the most honored in the clans and a celebration is thrown in their honor. If there are enough volunteers then war is prevented. If there are not enough the remaining of both clans battle until their numbers are thinned. It is said that this blood ritual is ordained by Vo Mirfae and those who fall in this time are in the shadow lands continuing to defend the Badgians against other worldly threats. It is telling that Badgians are so reliant on divination to see considering their poor eyesight. Badgian Names Most Badgians have a four part name. Given names are the same regardless of gender. At some point upon entering their adulthood they are given an honorific. Their clan name has two parts: the prefix of either rt' if the descend from Root Badgians or hn' Honey Badgians (the prefixes pronounced the same as the subrace name) followed by their clan name. If their clan was absorbed by another clan they keep their old clan name for 3 generations. Sometime clans will combine elements of both clans to create a new clan name. The clan names derive from the markers of the founding ancestors or where the clan came from. Given Name: Ambervina, Aseye, Auma, Boar, Brang, Ceteruler, Gorath, Grawn, Hightor, Cregga, Merola, Rosalaun, Loambudd, Mandoral, Mara, Melanius, Memesme, Mutu, Mura, Russano, Sagaxus, Salixa, Gorse, Tabura, Urtclaw. Honorifics: The Rockflash, the Wild, Forgefire, the Just, the Flame,Rose Eyes,the Axe, the Wise, the Mace, the Strong, Stonepaw Clan Names: (all begin with rt' or hn') Barkstripe, Bluestripe, Brockhall, Brocktree, Broadstripe, Bowstripe, Darkmask, Dawnstripe, Duskstripe, Firemask, Goldback, Redstripe, Sablebrock, Silvermask, Snowstripe, Widestripe, Urthstripe, Wildstripe Badgian Traits Your badgian character has the following racial traits. Ability Score Increase. Your Constitution score increases by 2. Age: They reach adulthood around 13 and live to be about 125. Their hardy nature makes them a bit hard to kill even for natural causes. Alignment. Badgian tend to be a bit pragmatic and lean toward neutrality. Honey Badgians might tend more towards chaotic while Root Badgians tend towards good. Their tight nit clans make those that stray towards evil rare. Few tend to fall into a hard Lawful alignment though society and tradition are important Badgians have to open and willing to change. Size. Badgians raely hit over 5'6" and the shortest being about 4' at maturity and weight about 150-250. They are broad and stocky similar to dwarves but stand about a head taler. Thick Hide. Your hit point maximum increases by 1, and it increases by 1 every time you gain a level. Natural Weapon (Bite). Your fanged maw is a natural weapon, which you can use to make unarmed strikes. If you hit with it, you can deal piercing damage equal to 1d6 + your Strength modifier, instead of the bludgeoning damage normal for an unarmed strike. Territorial Snap. The first time a creature willingly enters a space within 5 feet of you on its turn you can use your reaction to make a Bite attack against him. If you hit they must make a Wisdom Saving Throw with a DC equal to 8 + You Proficiency Modifier + Strength Modifier. If they fail they must use any remaining movement to leave that space. You can choose to enter the space they left as part of this reaction. They cannot end their turn in any space within 5ft of you so long as they have remaining movement. You can use this once and regain the use on a short or long rest. Keen Smell. ou have advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on smell.