Umoks

Creatures slither across the humid jungle while powerful jaws drip. A bamboo grove blocks the way: the creatures bite and tear apart trunks as if they were just sticks. Soon those mouths would split open the enemy's armor in the same way.

Mauleosteus, nicknamed "Maul". Exiled from his tribe, he chose the Northern Empire as his new one. His efforts in exploring the umok archipelago for the northern civilization granted him an imperial citizenship, the title of "dom" and his very own caravel. Maul is unique among his race for having some reptilian traits such as the type of scales. After speaking with a shaman, he says that he reincarnated with traits of his former life. Despite his appearance, he is quite friendly towards new people.

The umoks waited in the water. Being hooked by them was the end: no one returned from the dark and increasingly red waters. And despite the screams of pain, the rattling of swords and the rhythm of the waves, there wasn't a stronger sound than the bellowing of the gongs the umok war bards fastened to their arms like shields. That terrible rhythm was only broken when the gongs were actually used for defense, against brave northerners which learned the strength of the arms and clubs which hit the gongs. The songs in rough voices coming from bloody jaws foresaw the defeat that the empire would suffer that day.

-Lucan de Camina, author of Norteia, epic about the first northern expedition to the umok's home archipelago and the Battle of the Sharks.

Legends and Oral Traditions

The umoks believe that their chaotic character and physical traits come from their origin. Each tribe seems to have a different version, but the myth goes more or less like this: a group of dragons similar to sea serpents, the kupuas, were jealous of their draconic cousins of Drakhazin, for they had the obedience, fear, loyalty and even love of races like the zitai. Mo-o Inanea announced he knew Kane, a secret island where the clay was so full of life, it could be used to create their own race. The kupuas hurried in using it to sculpt the umoks. They started with a version based on a certain animal, but soon grew bored and tried other versions using new creatures:fishes, reptiles, amphibians and even mammals were copied. This cycle repeated many times until Kiha-wahine suggested that they picked up a trait of each version: After discussions and fights, they decided for the variations that the race has up to this day: a member of the race can be born with one of many types of heads, like eels, sharks, placodermi, piranhas and every type of carnivorous fish. The umoks believe that this chaotic process made them naturally adverse to boredom when compared with the other races. This trait also prevented them from completely serving the kupuas, although umoks regard the latter as sacred ancestors to which they offer tributes and sacrifices. These entities are said to live to this day in secret islands, tribal sanctuaries that only the shamans know.

Anarchic Heritage

The umoks are beings of rough constitution; bestial and hybrid appearance; savage, dynamic, chaotic and, often, inconsequential behavior. Natural amphibians, umoks make good pirates and quickly adapt to the intricate reefs and sea currents where their tribes raise their homes. They are creatures that feel compelled to let go of routines and hardly remain in a single place for long. Most umoks live in nomadic tribes dedicated to hunting, fishing, gathering and plundering, or offer their skills to people which might pay more or offer good life conditions. One in each ten umoks is an adventurer, explorer, merchant or hunter of sea beasts. While adventurers are marginalized in the imperial society, among umoks they are the center of attention. The objective is to gather fame, fortune and followers to create your own tribe and be immortalized in the latter's legends. A common way to do so is accumulate treasures in the tribal refuges where the ancestors' remains are laid down and/or lives one of the dragons which created the race. One never knows when a kupua might return and be impressed with the adventurer's dedication. The rewards vary: secret information; powerful blessings; the location of sunk treasure; or even the privilege of escorting the dragon on his next swim.

Great navigators, umoks value the building of vessels. The master artisans have each their own techniques, but they also incorporate foreign elements or renovate salvaged ships. The exclusively umok traits of a ship are: using bamboos of the umok archipelago; and mouth-like sails. Speed and agility are deemed more important than resistance or the volume of carriable cargo, resulting in many thin-hulled catamarans.

Places

• Hundreds of umok tribes live in Umokaong, an archipelago so vast and labyrinthine that no one has managed to completely map them. At some places the ocean seems more like many salty rivers divided by reefs, sand banks and islets. The Northern Empire currently dominates Ibalong, a triangle-shaped great island, with a volcano in each corner: Hantik, Kolasi and Isarong. The geography is diverse: plains suitable for water buffaloes with huge curved horns, plantations of the valuable sugar cane, umok coastal villages, floating markets and hundreds of canoes; entire lakes dedicated to raise armored catfishes which eat wood and cane berry, named "cascudos"; mangroves where everything tastes like salt; northerner communities with colonists of many races; bays which can house a whole fleet; two mountain chains with icy peaks and active volcanoes; jungles with not even the umoks fully explored.  
• Tavira Shore - This city is the greatest concentration of umoks in the whole empire; many of which were born here. The population is spread out along a rocky peninsula shaped like a horseshoe. Many sea currents meet nearby and islets appear at the low tides. Dozens of ships run aground along the years were turned upside down and raised over stilts to serve as houses. Fishing and aquaculture sustain over twenty thousand inhabitants. The community exists due to four treasures that only umoks can fully explore: pearl farms among the rocks, using secret techniques to produce pearls in many sizes, shapes and colors, including variations specific to sacrifice to Nyxcilla; whaling expeditions bring much meat, oil, ketin and bones to the city, at least the ones which return; seaweed orchards have many alchemical uses; the amphibian race also put many nets in certain places to catch drifting items, be them wood, wounded whales, empty boats, leather shoes, lobster or chests fallen off ships. The wealth accumulated by the local leader and merchant, Perolos de Ergas, was enough for him to buy the title of viscount and transform a galleon into a floating fortress. He also has the attention of rich and politically relevant clients. This exotic noble raised an amphibian militia which uses halberds and brass cuirasses decorated with black and red pearls. They have a lot of experience in fighting pirates, smugglers and giant crabs amidst the semi submersed caves, mangroves and a graveyard with anchor-shaped tombstones which contains as much ships as peoples.
  

Umok Traits

• Speed. Your base walking speed is 25 feet and your base swimming speed is 30 feet.
• Amphibious. Umoks can breathe underwater as well as out of it.
• Weapon Proficiency. You are proficient with acangapemas, nets and spears.
• Skill Proficiency. You are proficient in survival.
• Chaos Jaws. All umoks have powerful jaws which he can use to attack as a natural weapon which causes 1d8 points of piercing damage and uses strength for attack and damage.
• Each umok's mouth also gives him unique powers. Choose a characteristic among the ones below. Optionally, if the Master allows, you can choose one of the options at random. If you do so, you add to the result under parenthesis to your character's traits.
• 1. Big Teeth - Your bite attack deals 1d10 points of piercing damage (Sharp teeth - you can cause critical hits with your bite attack in a result of 19 or 20 in the d20).
• 2. Long Tongue - You gain an attack with your tongue. It is a natural weapon which deals 1d6 points of bludgeoning damage up to 20 feet away and has the Finesse propriety (Sticky Tongue - If the target is up to a size category bigger than you it is grappled. If you attack another target, the first one is freed).
• 3. Toxic Saliva - Choose if your bite attack causes poison or necrotic damage. The final choice remains the same for the rest of your life. (Virulent Saliva - the damage of your bite attack is dealt directly into the target's maximum life and persists until the latter has a long rest).
• 4. Mystic Voice - You can create an effect of ventriloquism, making so that the sound of your voice comes from somewhere else up to 60 feet away (Supernatural Voice - You can reproduce any sounds you have heard, including voices. A creature that hears you can say if they are imitations succeeding on a Wisdom [Insight] ability check. The DC is equal to 8 + proficiency + your Charisma modifier).
• Ability Score Increase. Your Constitution score increases by 2 and your Strength score increases by 1.
• 5. Hungry Throat - You can consume foodstuffs equal to, in terms of quantity, one day's worth of rations, in a single action. Every time you do so, you can immediately use one of your HP dice to heal the same amount of hit points equal to the dice's result + Constitution modifier (Abyssal Throat - If you hit a bite attack against a creature at least one size category smaller than yours, you can swallow the target. The swallowed creature becomes restrained and blind, has full cover against external attacks and other effects, and suffers 3 [1d6] points of acid damage in the beginning of each of your turns. You can only swallow one creature. If you are reduced to 0 hit points, the creature isn't restrained anymore and can escape by using 5 feet of its base speed, leaving prone).
• 6. Roaring Voice - You can vocalize an extremely loud scream in a 15-feet cone. Creatures in its area must pass a Constitution check. All creatures which fail it must become stunned until the beginning of your next turn. You must have a long rest before using this skill again (Thundering Voice - creatures suffer 2d6 points of thunder damage, or half if they are successful at their Con check. This damage increases to 3d6 at the 6º level, 4d6 at the 11º level and 5d6 at the 16 level).