A free-spirited and inquisitive lot, rover bands are ever on the move, and usually accompanied by their famously well-trained canine companions. Often mistaken for being feckless and flighty, the truth is merely that rovers instead value their freedom and a zest for life over great works and grinding industry. They do, however, value more transitory works, such as unique, sensory-based art. Individual bands are usually made up of multiple families, with a loose hierarchy and an inclination towards mutual cooperation.

Characters raised in the rover culture will usually share a variety of traits in common with one another.

Dog Lover. You have a pet mastiff (or similar big dog) that follows you and is loyal to you. The mastiff is capable of independent action and excellently trained. Using verbal and non-verbal cues you can make simple requests of your mastiff (such as delivering or retrieving small objects, opening doors, activating simple switches or buttons, or even administering an opened potion vial to an incapacitated creature) as a bonus action. In combat, the mastiff rolls its own initiative and acts on its own turn. The mastiff won’t attack except as a reaction to being attacked, but it can take other actions as normal, and makes death saving throws. Over the course of a long rest , you can train another mastiff to follow your commands, but you cannot keep more than one dog at such a high level of training. Additionally, people from outside your culture are incapable of keeping up with the constant training that such a dog needs and cannot command it as you do.

Dog Sled Riders. As a rover you are expected to be proficient in Animal Handling and are also proficient in the use of land vehicles.

Life’s a Game. You have proficiency with a gaming set of your choice.

Sharp Eyes, Sharp Ears. Rovers need to keep their wits about them and be aware of their surroundings. You are proficient in Survival and Perception.

Languages. You can speak, read, write, and sign Common and another language of your choice.

Madrai Traits

Characters with the mycelial heritage share a variety of traits in common with one another.

Age. When they mature, they can reach nearly 60 years old.

Size. A madrai can be anywhere from 3 to 6 feet high and weigh between 45 and 250 pounds. Your size can be either Small or Medium.

Speed. Your Speed is 30 feet.

Helpful. When using the Help action to aid an ally in combat, the range at which you can do so is 30 feet.

Sharp Scent. You are marvelously well-equipped to sniff out things around you. You gain an expertise die to Perception checks involving smell and other rolls where scent is important.

Wagging Tail. A madrai rarely wins at cards due to their obvious tell. You gain an expertise die on Persuasion checks, but a d4 is subtracted from the results of your Deception checks.

Madrai Gifts

While there are no clearly-defined lines, many madrai broadly resemble various categories of dogs. In addition to the traits found in your madrai heritage, select one of the following gifts.

Best Friend

Just as mundane dogs are known for following their master everywhere, so too does a madrai follow their allies. You have the following trait:

Doggedly Loyal. If your movement speed is not equal to zero and you would expect to be able to move normally, then whenever a creature you consider an ally moves out of your reach, you may use your reaction to follow them until they have finished their movement, where physically possible and up to your movement score. In addition, if you are within 5 feet of an ally who is incapacitated and an enemy would enter your reach, then you may use your reaction to make an opportunity attack against that enemy.

Pack Hunter

Even more than most madrai, you are able to work in sync with others. You have the following trait:

Teamwork. You may take the Help action as a bonus action during combat.

Shepherd Dog

Some madrai resemble those dog breeds meant to move or protect livestock, or at least share their inclination towards acute concentration. You have the following trait:

Herder’s Focus. As a bonus action you may focus totally upon the task at hand. So long as you do not move from the spot you are on and no enemies are within 5 feet of you, your movement score becomes zero and you gain an expertise die on the first D20 roll you make this turn. In addition, whilst you are focusing in this way, you gain an expertise die on concentration rolls caused by the object or creature you are focusing on.

Sight Hound

Like certain dog breeds, some madrai have wiry frames built for speed and jumping. You have the following trait:

Bounding Return. As a bonus action, you can take the Dash action but must be within 5 feet of an ally at some point during that movement whilst doing so. In addition, when jumping, you are not required to move 10 feet to gain your full jump distance or height.

Madrai Paragon

When you reach 10th level, you become a better madrai and gain one paragon gift from the following list.

Peerless Tracker

Your expertise die for scent-related rolls becomes a d6. Additionally, once you’ve caught a scent you can track it to a near-supernatural degree, such as following tracks over open water or through anything other than a surface impermeable to air. If you have an item personal to a creature you wish to track, for the next hour you have advantage on Perception or Survival checks made to find it.

Finally, you can also cast locate object a number of times a day equal to your proficiency bonus, recovering all uses on a long rest . Your spellcasting ability for this spell is your choice of Intelligence, Wisdom or Charisma.

Boon Companion

So long as you are with a creature you consider an ally, you gain advantage on initiative rolls. In addition, when a creature that is 10 feet or more away from an ally makes an attack roll against that ally, you may use your reaction to move up to half your Speed to interpose yourself between the ally and the creature. The attack is then considered to be targeting only you, even if that would not normally be possible, and proceeds as normal, which may cause the attack roll to miss. If half your Speed is not enough to interpose yourself, you cannot use this feature. Once you have used this feature a number of times equal to your proficiency modifier, you can’t use it again until you have finished a long rest .

Madrai Culture

Similarly to the canines they resemble, madrai are given to amiable, communal living, often happily taking up residence in cities predominately populated by other heritages. However, they are also a diverse lot, with some preferring to make permanent homes to pass down to their families and others preferring a life on the move. Regardless of where or how they live, madrai are often a joyous people eager to make friends. Once a madrai pack has chosen a place, people, or way of life, however, there are few more loyal and strident in their defense.

Suggested Cultures. While you can choose any culture for your madrai character, the following cultures are linked closely with this heritage: caravanner , circusfolk , godbound , itinerant , mischief maker , motley crew , nomad , rover , stoneworthy , wildling .

Bog Sled. This simple, high-sided wooden sled is the best way to evenly distribute the extra weight of goods and equipment on the wetlands, and keep them out of the muck. If empty they make for a helpful platform for a single Medium creature to lay a sleeping bag on, to prevent them from getting damp or sinking in the night. A bog sled can carry 50 pounds of goods, 15 Supply , and 2 bulky items.

Bog Stilts. While wearing this set of 5-foot stilts and using the accompanying staff for support, you have disadvantage on ability checks and attack rolls the Narrator deems appropriate. Additionally, you can make a DC 10 Acrobatics or Athletics check to increase your Speed by 10 feet for 1 hour (on a failure you fall prone and take 1 bludgeoning damage). Donning bog stilts takes 1 minute.

Geistblock.  This pungent salve smells like a mixture of citrus and clove, but it is made from local plants that have developed resistance to the spectral swarms. In addition to functioning like lavender paste this medicinal protects against spectral swarms.

Skull Goblet. When you use this spellcasting focus to consume Supply during a long rest , if you have the Evil trait you gain an expertise die on your next Arcana or Religion check.

Vehicles

Zustramet Longboat. The infernal dwarves travel across the Underland seas and the Sıfırda Rivers atop vessels of wicked construction, formed from the carcasses of long dead megafauna and powered by their bound souls. Creatures that are not Evil have disadvantage on checks made to pilot these unholy boats, and while in contact with it a Good creature is rattled (though anyone that is not Evil feels terrible discomfort while riding on it). Taking the boat onto the surface is a risky endeavor as well; on initiative count 20 each round it is in sunlight, the Zustramet logboat takes 25 radiant damage.

Despite its drawbacks however, creatures sailing the vessel through Underland have no random encounters against other creatures and if left to sail itself automatically heads towards the Kingdom of Zustramet. Furthermore the Zustramet logboat is able to utilize the Sıfırda Rivers, taking them when available and reducing the distance the party must travel to reach the Kingdom of Zustramet by half.

Weapons

Bolas.  On each end of this sturdy cord is a weighted metal ball. A creature hit by a ranged weapon attack using bolas takes damage and makes a Dexterity saving throw against maneuver DC or is grappled. On a critical hit, a creature that fails its save is both grappled and knocked prone .

Crossdagger. This weapon resembles a cross with four razor-sharp blades on each end. A creature not proficient with the crossdagger takes 1d4 slashing damage when it uses the weapon to make an attack and rolls a natural 1.

Quickbow. This gauntlet fits over the wrist, binding tightly with cords of leather, and one side of it is adorned with a winged silver contraption that has a taut wire connected on the ends and set perpendicular to the bracer. When you take the Attack action using this weapon, you may choose to attack with disadvantage until the start of your next turn to make two additional ranged weapon attacks .

Materials

Nalpine. Primarily used for shipbuilding because it naturally repels saltwater, the resilience of this type of wood (as hard as iron or steel) makes it difficult to treat but greatly valued.