Tosculi (Hiveless)

Tosculi (Hiveless) Traits

Your tosculi character has several special traits.

Ability Score Increase. One of your physical ability scores (Strength, Dexterity, Constitution) increases by 2, and one of your mental ability scores (Intelligence, Wisdom, Charisma) increases by 2. You also take a –2 penalty to any one ability score. You may apply this penalty to the same ability score to which you gave a +2 bonus, granting you an overall +2 bonus to any one ability score.

Age. Tosculi reach maturity at around 13 years, but have shorter lifespans than most races with few living longer than 40 years.

Alignment. The tension between tosculi and other humanoids often makes it difficult for the Hiveless to develop any true sense of altruism toward others, and many are neutral in alignment, with good tosculi being rare, and evil ones more common. Hiveless tosculi are equally likely to be chaotic, lawful, or neutral.

Size. Hiveless tosculi are no more than 4 feet tall and typically weigh less than a humanoid of the same size. Your size is Small.

Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Natural Armor. Your Armor Class cannot be less than 11 + your Dexterity modifier no matter what armor you are wearing.

Natural Attacks. You have proficiency with your claws, which deal 1d4 slashing damage.

Gliding Wings. You take no damage from falls. You gain a fly speed of 40 feet but cannot hover. At the end of any round you fly, you must have descended at least one-quarter the distance you travelled or you fall.

Stalker. You have proficiency in the Perception skill and Stealth skill.

Languages. You can speak, read, and write Tosculi and one other language of your choice (typically Southern).

Alternate Racial Traits

Binding Spittle. As an Attack action, you may spit a ball of viscous fluid at a target within 60 feet that is Medium or smaller. Make a ranged attack against the target with proficiency. If successful, the fluid hardens upon impact and the target becomes restrained. As an action, the target can make a Strength check against a DC equal to 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Constitution modifier to remove the condition. Anyone adjacent to a creature restrained by binding spittle may use their action to free the target in the same way. Dealing an amount of bludgeoning damage equal to half your level plus your Constitution modifier (AC 10) to the spittle also frees the target. After you use binding spittle, you can’t use it again until you finish a short or long rest. This trait replaces the Stalker trait.

Bite. Some hiveless tosculi develop the fierce mandibles associated with the warriors that defend their hives. You can make a bite attack as an unarmed strike that deals 1d6 slashing damage. On a successful hit with a bite, you may attempt to grapple the target as a bonus action. At 11th level, your bite damage increases to 2d6. This trait replaces the Stalker trait.

Latent Hive Mind. You know the message cantrip. This cantrip is a psionic ability that does not require components. The cantrip also functions in a silence spell. At 3rd level you can cast the detect thoughts spell once, without the need for components, and you regain the ability to do so when you finish a long rest. This trait replaces the Gliding Wings trait.

Hardened Carapace. Some hiveless tosculi develop additional defenses at the cost of offensive ability. Your Armor Class cannot be less than 11 + your Constitution modifier + your Dexterity modifier no matter what armor you are wearing. This trait replaces the Gliding Wings and Natural Armor traits.

New Tosculi Class Archetypes

Tosculi are born with an unshakable sense of purpose and belonging because of the golden song of the hive queen. Those few, sad wretches who cannot hear the song must struggle to overcome the ever present void within themselves. To that end, hiveless tosculi have access to the following variant class paths for Druid and Ranger. Tosculi characters follow their class progressions normally, but replace several class features for the variants described below.

Variant Druid: Circle of the Hive (Circle of the Land)

Hiveless druids turn to their connection to nature to fill the void within themselves. This variant Circle of the Land druid creates an echo of the golden song by reaching out to the memory of the hive, and shaping magic with that memory. The so-called Circle of the Hive druids gain access to the Hive land for their Circle Spells class feature.

Hive

Druid Level Circle Spells
3rd spider climb, web
5th conjure animals, fly
7th freedom of movement, giant insect
9th contagion, insect plague

Vermin’s Ward

At 10th level, you become immune to poison and disease. In addition, you ignore movement restrictions caused by webbing and gain advantage on saving throws against being restrained. This ability replaces Nature’s Ward.

Variant Druid: Circle of the Swarm (Circle of the Moon)

Hiveless tosculi who join the Circle of the Moon have their own way of coping with their renegade status. Their shape-shifting powers create a false hive song within. This allows the Circle of the Swarm druid to access creature shapes unavailable to druids of other races.

Insectoid Forms

Your wild shape feature works as the Circle of the Moon’s Circle Forms with the following changes.

Your choice of forms is limited. You may use Wild Shape to change into any insectoid, arachnid, or similar beast (such as a crab), though you must still have seen the creature to do so. In addition, you gain access to the following list of non-standard forms (you must follow the same CR and ability restrictions as outlined in Circle Forms): ankheg, carrion crawler, death wasp (use wyvern stats), giant rhinoceros beetle (use triceratops stats), and swarm of insects (all variants). Other insectoid forms may be available at your DM’s discretion.

Monstrous Wild Shape

At 10th level, you can expend two uses of Wild Shape at the same time to transform into a bulette, chuul, phase spider, or umber hulk. This ability replaces Elemental Wild Shape.

Variant Ranger : Hivemaster (Beast Master)

Unable to form a connection with others of its kind, the hivemaster finds kinship with insects of the natural world, forming bonds with them and gaining the ability to rouse them against their enemies.

Hivemaster rangers parallel the Beast Master archetype, though they have a more specialized list of companions to choose from.

Insect Companion

When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you gain a trained beast companion that accompanies you on your adventures and fights alongside you. You must select your companion from the following list: blood hornet or wasp (use flying snake stats), giant crab, giant centipede, giant wolf spider, or swarm of insects. At the DM’s discretion other insectoid beasts may be suitable companions, but none should have a challenge rating higher than 1/4 (the swarm of insects is an exception to this restriction).

You form a limited hive-mind that allows you to communicate telepathically with your insect companion, as long as it is within 100 feet. You can issue commands to your companion verbally, or telepathically.

In all other ways this ability is identical to the Beast Master’s standard Beast Companion ability.

This wiki is not published, endorsed, or specifically approved by Kobold Press.
Content covered under the Open Game License 1.0a