The classic races of Dungeons and Dragons are so iconic at this point that everyone knows them. Elves, dwarves, and halflings are as familiar as the dice themselves and they'll always be the ones many players – including me – will come back to. But there are more myths than just those, and when you dig deep into some culture's history, you find very interesting races. I'm Adam, and I'd like to tell you about selkies.

the selkie, changing her skin. Art by Natasa Illincic

“The people of Grandwater are some of the nicest and jovial people I have ever met. They understand any water better than anyone I know. Even the children. Do remember to never ask about those cloaks they wear, they're very touchy about that.”

- The Travel Diary of Sir Reginald Gearsworth III

Selkies are found in most worlds of Dungeons and Dragons, but their existence is so rare and so easy to hide, that they're often dismissed as myth. Selkies are aquatic people, but do not live deep under the sea as tritons or sea elves do. Selkies live in shallow waters. Their connection to the oceans of the world is old as the gods of the sea, and just as wild but beautiful as a great lake or immense bay. For the majority of their lives, they live in the oceans in the form of seals. Curiosity and the need to mate draws them to the surface. When walking the land, selkies shed their seal skin to take on a more humanoid visage. Their seal skin becomes a cloak, easy for them to put on to return to the ocean.

Skin Changers

All selkies are born as seals, sea lions or even manatees. When they reach walking age, they shed that seal skin and take on the human presenting shape most see. They keep this skin as a cloak that allows them to transform between the seal and the humanoid. Each selkie is magically bonded to their own skin, and cannot use each other's to change into a seal. Selkies normally appear very human, with pale skin tones, and hair ranging from deep black to vibrant red. Sometimes, selkies can have patches or dark areas of their skin which matches perfectly with their seal skins. They appear just like a seal while in these skins, but other selkie recognise the truth and communicate with each other, and other seals can feel the difference.

Mystics of the Water

The selkies are beings of the land and the sea. This connection has allowed them prophetic insights into the oceans movements, the movements of the clouds, and the humidity of the air. This connection makes them seem very wise, and very valuable to people of coastal communities and sailors on long-haul vessels. Their secretive, thoughtful nature has meant that their gifts have been exploited for other race's gains.

Powerful Coat

A sea lion - one of the most common selkie forms.

The selkie's cloak is a unique and personal item. The act of a selkie putting their cloak on and closing it up is what transforms them from humanoid to beast. It's more than a possession, it's a part of their body. A selkie knows the area around where their cloak is when it's not on their person, but can never stray far from it if it's not with them. In the past, many have coerced selkies into service or marriage by hiding their cloaks from them. In the event their cloak is destroyed, it's gone forever, leaving the selkie unable to transform – a fate they often consider worse than death.

Selkie Names

Selkies often adopt the names of the civilisations they're on the fringes of. Often they may adapt those names, or take names more derived from Aquan.

Selkie Traits

Selkies, beings of coastal waters, have a plethora of abilities.

Ability Score Improvement. Your Constitution Score increases by 2.

Age. Selkie mature at 20 years and live to be around 100.

Alignment. Your curiosity and wanderlust over land and water makes Selkie lean towards the chaotic. Their respect for nature encourages goodness, while their detachment from society suggests neutrality.

Size. Selkie, when in their humanoid form, stand well over five feet tall, and are more plump than most humanoids by comparison. Your size is Medium.

Speed. Your speed is 30 feet in your humanoid form. In your seal form, you have a walking speed of 10 feet and a swimming speed of 50 feet.

Skin Walker. You have a second skin, one of your seal form. In humanoid or seal form, you can use your bonus action to put on or remove this skin, changing between your humanoid and seal forms. If you lose this skin, or it is destroyed, you cannot get it back. When in your seal form, you have the following benefits:

You gain resistance to cold damage.
You’re also naturally adapted to cold climates, as described in chapter 5 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide.
You can hold your breath up to for two hours.

Waterways Augur. At the end of a long rest taken in or near running water, you may ask the Dungeon Master one question about your current situation that can be answered with yes or no. The Dungeon Master will decide how the water will give you this insight.

Languages. You can speak Common. You can also speak, read, and write Aquan.

Subrace. Much like the different breeds of seal, the shapes a Selkie can take are different too.

Sea Lion

The most common breed of Selkie and the most adept at scouting and moving through the water.

Ability Score Improvement. Your Wisdom Score increases by 1.

Aquatic Huntmaster. While underwater, your proficiency bonus is doubled when making a skill check you are already proficient with.

Walrus

The ferocity of the Selkies from the most extreme corners of the ocean show in kind through their immense tusks, present but smaller in their humanoid form.

Ability Score Improvement. Your Strength score increases by 1.

Tusks. You're proficient in unarmed strikes made with your tusks, which deal 1d4 slashing damage on a hit.

Wrapping Up

So that's what you'd need to get started playing as selkies. Kind and curious waterway adepts. With the classics always at our fingertips, we have to wonder if D&D has too many races. I'd say that almost defeats the purpose. D&D for me is always about telling an interactive story, anything that makes the story more interesting, like say, broadening the cast of characters, makes the story better for me. If you have suggestions for more selkie powers and subraces, or other unloved gems from myth and legend, do let me know and you may find them on a post near you soon.

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Selkies - New Player Race for Dungeons and Dragons