Tortle

> "*Sea smashing on sand
> Tortles going to a new home
> Baby falls and dies*"
> ― Tortle Haiku
>
>

**Tortles**, who call themselves the **Tor-shar** in their own tongue, are intelligent humanoid tortoises. They live a nomadic lifestyle traveling across Sahul. Tortles are generally very peaceful and reclusive, and they like to interact with people who hold similar habits and personalities as themselves. Tortles rarely build anything that can't easily be assembled and disassembled within two hours when outside of the Wabu Islands.

## Description

An adult tortle stands just under 1.90 metres tall and weighs more than 200 Kilograms. Tortles are reptilian creatures with a leathery, diamond scaled skin. The skin of a tortle is mostly olive or blue-green, although many different muted colours like red clay and sunflower yellow can also be found. They have a enormous shells made out of fused ribs and spines that cover their entire middle body. These shells are capable of containing their limbs and heads, providing the entire body with ample protection against danger. Their back shells are usually glossier and darker than their skin, while their front shells tend to be of a more vivid colour.

Their bodies are stocky, but most of their weight comes from their shells, so they tend to remain at the same weight throughout their adult lives, never growing fat or thin. These stocky bodies provide them with a ponderous, rolling gait. Their arms and hands are shaped like those of an ape, but thicker and with sharp claws attached to them. Some tortles have mouths that are beak-like and toothless while others have mouths filled with razor sharp teeth.

Tortle children mature at a rate twice as long as that of a humans child. Not reaching adulthood until the age of 40, but they live almost four times longer, living from 150 to 180 years. They can mate well into their 140th year, without sign of encroaching infertility. Mating takes place every four years in Aesius and the lay their eggs during Plumber. Each female lays between four to twenty four eggs, which hatch in roughly 176 days. When their young (called younglings) hatch from their eggs they instinctively spent their time nearby elderly tortles, where they learn about the live experiences and the survival skills that allowed the elder to rich his wise old age. A youngling is expected to be able to fend for themselves in case they might fall behind the group. Those under the age of 8 who can't keep up are are left behind by their original group, but those that survive this abandonment and find their way to any other tortle group are accepted with open arms as one of their own.

## Abilities

Years of travelling and surviving in the wilds of Sahul has forced the survival of the fittest on the tortles, making the race surprisingly strong for a race so peaceful. These travels have also allowed tortles to learn about the world around them, and they eagerly share these facts with each other and anyone who lends them an their ears. Tortles have thick sharp claws that form an natural form of defence. The shells on their backs form their homes and tortles can retreat into them for protection if necessary.

A big problem for tortles when compared to other humanoids is that their bulky shells makes it almost impossible for them to wear any type of armour. Even costume made armour is often to heavy to be worn without falling over.

## Psychology

Most tortles believe that because they have their houses on their backs, there is no need to settle down. While this does mean that they rarely feel homesick it also means that they never stick with anything or anyone. Those tortles that posses large objects like furnaces or supply crates usually move them around in hand-drawn carts. Tortles hate to wear clothes unlike most humanoids, though some may wear cloaks, belts, or harnesses for carrying tools and supplies.

Tortles are adventurous by heart, always eager to learn about new cultures. They love to try out any new customs that they come across on their travels and find beauty in things that locals would see as ordinary. Despite spending much of their lives isolated, they do like to form strong friendships with those that they meet along the way, always expecting that they will meet their new friend again some other day or life.

All females who are ready to produce eggs gather in a specially prepared compound, which the males guard against all attacks. Because of the number of younglings born after mating season the tribe becomes a thousand times larger than before spanning miles upon miles of land, but a big part of these younglings will die off in the next 4 years. The younglings are taught and raised by their grandparents or surviving uncles and aunties, who can provide them with wisdom and knowledge far beyond the youngling's age.

## Names

**Male names**: Aranck, Beshil, Chimaca, Dustu, Eke, Gork, Haku, Itzel, Jalen, Kaimana, Lanu, Mahkah, Nastas, Panka, Ratan, Singh, Tahet, Ujarak, Wehi

**Female names**: Abetzi, Chetana, Doya, Ehawee, Gotama, Iwala, Kuwanya, Leimomi, Mituna, Nila, Oneida, Padma, Rayen, Talulah, Uma, Veda, Zanyu

**Unisex names**: Bawr, Bodhi, Enya, Holoki, Kail, Silex, Sokow, Terr, Xothil, Zeph

## Ingame-statistics

Your tortle character has a number of traits in common with all other tortles.
***Ability Score Increase.*** You can increase one of your ability scores by 2, and another one by 1. These increases can’t raise a score above 20.
***Claws.*** Your claws are natural weapons, which you can use to make unarmed strikes. If you hit with them, you deal slashing damage equal to 1d4 + your Strength modifier, instead of the bludgeoning damage normal for an unarmed strike.
***Hold Breath.*** You can hold your breath for up to 1 hour at a time. Tortles aren't natural swimmers, but they can remain underwater for some time before needing to come up for air.
***Natural Armour.*** Due to your shell and the shape of your body, you are ill-suited to wearing armour. Your shell provides ample protection however; it gives you a base of AC 17 (your Dexterity modifier doesn't affect this number). You gain no benefit from wearing armour, but if you are using a shield, you can apply the shield's bonus as normal.
***Shell Defence.*** You can withdraw into your shell as an action. Until you emerge, you gain a +4 bonus to AC, and you have advantage on Strength and Constitution saving throws, as well as disadvantage on Dexterity saving throws. While in your shell, you are prone, your speed is 0 and can't increase, you can't take reactions, and the only action you can take is a bonus action to emerge from your shell.
***Survival Instinct.*** You gain proficiency in the Survival skill.
***Languages.*** You can speak, read, and write Common and one additional language of Exotic rarity or bellow. Tortle's are nomadic by nature, spreading themselves far and wide across Sahul. As they went they adapted local languages and passed these on to their children. Only those tortles born and raised on the Wabu Islands are familiar with their own native language of Wabu-Wabu.