Lobine (species)

The lobine are wolf-like people, an Aesir creation descended from the first Great Wolf, a god-like being. They are not werewolves: though savage, strong, fast, and ferocious in a fight, they have no blind rage. They are highly intelligent, and in general shun technology in favor of magic and nature.

The lobine hold themselves the ultimate guardians of justice within nature, and will take up life-quests to bring evil to account. A lobine who swears a moon oath against an evil will not rest until the oath is fulfilled. Justice, honor, loyalty, and courage matter above all to them; they know how to shapeshift, but hold that there is an honorable way to do it, and will not dishonor themselves or their pack with a dishonorable shift. They pride themselves on their education and seek fluency in many languages, especially scholarly ones. They count themselves the ancient enemy of chromatic dragons, and hold it a matter of clan pride to make leather armor from chromatic dragon skins.

Appearance

Lobine have handsome wolf-like heads, wolf-colored hair over their entire bodies, wolf tails, and claws on their fur-covered hands. They run on their hind legs, or on all fours for extra speed, and prefer their combat up close.

Playing a lobine

Rules for a lobine player character, as given by the Dungeon Master.

Creature type: Humanoid. Size: Medium (generally six to eight feet tall). Speed: 30 feet. Age: lobine age at about 75% the human rate. Alignment: lawful. Ability scores: increase one score by 2 and another by 1, or three different scores by 1 (max 20). Languages: Common, Celestial, Draconic, and one more.

Traits:

• Bestial Claws — sharp, retractable claws; your unarmed strikes deal 1d6 + your Strength modifier slashing damage instead of bludgeoning.
• Lobine Senses — keen smell and hearing; you gain proficiency in the Perception skill.
• Innate Magic Defense — advantage on saving throws against all spells and dragon-breath attacks. This applies only to spells cast by a character or to dragon (or dragon-related) breath, not to magic items or weapons, nor to weapon-effect spells such as booming blade.
• Lobine Shift — once per long rest you may change your appearance: voice, height, coloration, hair length, race, and sex. Your honor forbids taking the identity of anyone you have seen before, even in likeness. Equipment, statistics, skills, and feats are unchanged. You keep the new form until you revert as an action, die, or take your next long rest, and you cannot remain shifted while sleeping.

Honor and disgrace

A lobine may wear any armor and take any class, but holds it dishonorable to use a shield or to build a fighting style around ranged combat or ranged magic — thrown weapons excepted. A lobine who officially loses face is branded with a claw mark across the face, cast out, and must thereafter duel any lobine they meet. Only the Great Wolf may grant a dishonored lobine redemption, and it is said this has never been done.