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A Star selkie is a creature native to wildspace in the Spelljammer campaign setting.[1]

Overview[]

Star selkies are an ethereal, almost-fey like humanoid race who can shape-change into large wildspace-adapted predators.[1]

Description[]

In their humanoid form, selkies resemble remarkably attractive humans, with striking green, blue, or black eyes, with irises that sparkle with an inner light. As a people, they are kind and gentle, and though they can be somewhat absentminded, they are highly intelligent and well-versed in the lore of wildspace.

In their predatory forms, they have long, bullet-shaped bodies with razor-sharp guide fins and a prow sheathed in natural armor.

Star selkies may retain their human form for up to two weeks at a time, and speak both their own language and the common trade tongue. In their predatory form, selkies understand spoken languages, but communicate amongst themselves in a manner that remains a mystery.[1]

Combat[]

A star selkie is a savage, deadly fighter in its predatory form, using its armored prow as a high-speed battering ram to impale its prey. The selkie then extrudes ten tentacles that it uses to attack its impaled victim. Each tentacles is tipped with a lamprey-like mouth which it uses to attach itself to the victim, draining their bodily fluids and vitality. A victim may rip off a tentacle through sheer brute strength.

Star selkies in their predatory form have the innate ability fly, and are able to achieve spelljamming speeds (SR 5).[1]

Society[]

Star selkie society is egalitarian, much like their terrestrial cousins. Both sexes hunt and gather food and share responsibilities for child-rearing. If anything, star selkies are more gregarious than their sea-going kin, occasionally even including human-style habitations in their enclaves. Selkies almost always build their enclaves in huge air-filled caverns since young selkies must be raised in an air-filled environment until their third year. Mature star selkies have a special gland that produces oxygen, allowing them to travel through space indefinitely, as long as they have food to eat.

Star selkies occasionally attract human mates, and their offspring always breed true as selkies. Such mixed colonies are easy to spot, as their enclaves typically include intricate freeform surface dwellings to accommodate their human mates. These surface dwellings tend to be large Egyptian-style structures.

Selkies often find and explore wrecks drifting in space and often salvage items for their own use, while a number of selkie merchants deal in “reclaimed goods”.

Though primarily carnivorous, selkies consider eating humanoid flesh an act of cannibalism. They prefer to eat the wildlife found in wildspace, and will not normally attack spelljamming ships (except in self defense). On the contrary, star selkies sometimes help lost travelers, leading them to safe, well-charted areas. Selkies are sensitive about their environment and take care not to over-hunt a particular region, harvesting only what they need to survive. Star selkies have been known to trade with groundlings to supplement their diets.

Star selkie elders can use the following spell-like abilities once per day: create air, charm monster, cure critical wounds, and sunray. They also have an ability similar to a modified stone shape spell that allows them to construct their enclaves.[1]

Rumors[]

According to rumor, star selkies originated from a group of Ptah worshippers whose colony barge crashed on a barren asteroid. In answer to their prayers for salvation, Ptah turned them into the graceful, space-adapted selkies. However, there is only circumstantial evidence in support of this legend, including their predilection for Egyption-style architecture as seen in their surface dwellings. But of course this all pure conjecture.[1]

Appendix[]

External Links[]

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Newton Ewell, MC9 Monstrous Compendium Spelljammer Appendix II, 1991, (TSR Inc.), Selkie, Star entry
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