The World of Abadonya

When Magic Refuses to Stay Still

Fluxborn are most commonly born in Keynew families that have lived for generations near unstable magical sites, old ritual grounds, arcane catastrophes, or regions where the natural flow of magic behaves unpredictably.

The change does not always appear immediately. Some Fluxborn seem entirely ordinary through childhood before their heritage manifests suddenly during adolescence. Others are born with unmistakable signs from the beginning.

Unlike bloodlines that follow a single elemental or celestial pattern, Fluxborn are defined by variation. Their bodies and abilities are expressions of instability itself, making even close relatives look dramatically different from one another.

Chaos Written on the Body

Most Fluxborn resemble humans or the mortal people among whom they were raised, but unusual traits reveal the influence of unstable magic.

Hair and eye colors are often unnaturally vivid and may shift gradually over weeks or months. Some display moving birthmarks, bright scales, feathers, horns, tails, unusual teeth, asymmetrical features, or patches of skin that flicker with harmless magical energy.

A rare Fluxborn may have features arranged in unexpected ways or develop entirely new traits after a major magical event. Their appearance is unpredictable without being inherently harmful.

In Keynew, Fluxborn fashion tends toward personal expression. Bright colors, mismatched patterns, improvised jewelry, unusual hairstyles, and altered clothing are common among those who embrace the visible strangeness of their heritage.

A Region Already Familiar with the Impossible

Keynew is the principal homeland of the Fluxborn. The region contains enough old magic, ruined sites, strange relics, hidden rituals, and magical scars that unpredictable changes in mortal bloodlines are not unknown.

Fluxborn births are particularly associated with families living near places where magic has behaved incorrectly for generations: old battlefields, sealed chambers, failed rituals, forgotten arcane roads, or areas repeatedly exposed to powerful artifacts.

Most Fluxborn do not form separate settlements. They are scattered throughout Keynew and usually inherit the culture of the communities that raised them.

This makes a Fluxborn from Golandria culturally very different from one raised near Dragonsmane or along an isolated rural road, even though both share the same unpredictable heritage.

Difficult to Fit into a Pattern

Fluxborn often develop independent personalities simply because rigid expectations rarely fit them well. Their appearance, instincts, and unusual abilities encourage experimentation and self-definition.

Many are curious, artistic, restless, outspoken, or fascinated by things that challenge established rules. Others become quiet observers precisely because they have spent their lives attracting attention without trying.

They rarely create large cultural institutions of their own. Instead, Fluxborn tend to gather informally around artists, travelers, explorers, inventors, dissidents, adventurers, or anyone willing to question familiar assumptions.

Their heritage does not require chaotic behavior. A Fluxborn can value discipline and law just as strongly as anyone else, even if the magic in their blood seems determined to make life unpredictable.

Choice Amid Uncertainty

Fluxborn frequently wrestle with questions of whether unpredictable events have meaning or whether some things simply happen without purpose.

In Abadonya, Rashtala attracts Fluxborn who want to understand the magical forces behind their heritage, while Mandella appeals to those who seek truth beneath confusing appearances. Others reject formal explanations and build their beliefs from experience.

Fluxborn may follow any deity or alignment. Their unusual origin influences their abilities, not their morality.

Standard Pathfinder 1e Racial Traits

Ability Score Modifiers: Fluxborn gain +2 Constitution, +2 Charisma, and –2 Intelligence.

Type: Fluxborn are outsiders with the native subtype.

Size: Fluxborn are Medium creatures and have no bonuses or penalties due to size.

Base Speed: Fluxborn have a base speed of 30 feet.

Languages: Fluxborn begin play speaking Common and one of the following: Abyssal, Celestial, or Protean. Fluxborn with high Intelligence scores can select any of those as bonus languages, along with Aklo, Aquan, Auran, Ignan, Sylvan, or Terran.

Darkvision: Fluxborn have darkvision 60 feet.

Chaos Resistance: Fluxborn have acid resistance 5, electricity resistance 5, and sonic resistance 5. They also gain a +2 racial bonus on saving throws against spells of the polymorph subschool.

Skilled: Fluxborn gain a +2 racial bonus on Sense Motive and Survival checks.

Flux Oddity: Every Fluxborn possesses one unusual manifestation of chaotic magic. Choose one of the abilities listed below.

These are the Pathfinder 1e racial mechanics used for Fluxborn characters in Abadonya. The individual Oddity options below are part of the standard racial package.

Flux Oddities

Chaos Champion (Su): Once per day as a swift action, smite a lawful foe. Add Charisma modifier to attack rolls against that target and add Hit Dice to damage. The effect lasts until the target dies or the Fluxborn rests.

Entropic Flesh (Ex): Gain +2 on Escape Artist checks and CMD against grapple attempts. When affected by a hostile transmutation effect, attempt a second saving throw at the start of the next turn with a +4 bonus to end the effect.

Prehensile Tail (Ex): Gain a long tail capable of carrying objects and retrieving a small stowed object carried on the body as a swift action. The tail cannot wield weapons.

Quibble (Su): Once per day as an immediate action, force one creature within 20 feet to reroll a d20 roll it has just made and use the second result. This must be used before success or failure is declared. An unwilling target can resist with a Will save, DC 10 + half the Fluxborn's level + Charisma modifier. This is a curse effect.

Spell-Like Ability (Sp): Choose one of the following once-per-day spell-like abilities: alter self, blur, detect thoughts, hideous laughter, minor image, shatter, or spider climb. Caster level equals Hit Dice.

Weaponplay (Ex): Gain proficiency with all simple and martial weapons and qualify for feats normally available only to fighters, such as Weapon Specialization, even without fighter levels.

The GM may choose an Oddity, allow the player to select one, or determine it randomly using the normal Pathfinder 1e rules.

Expanded Oddities

Amorphous Limbs (Su): Every 1d4 rounds as a swift action, transform one limb into a natural melee weapon dealing 1d6 damage. Choose bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing damage and lethal or nonlethal damage. The transformation lasts until the beginning of the next turn.

Ink (Ex): Spit opaque black ink as a standard action once per day, plus one additional use per day for every 4 Hit Dice. It can blind a creature temporarily or make a ground square slippery.

Racing Mind (Ex): Gain a +2 bonus on Will saves against mind-affecting effects.

Expanded Spell-Like Ability (Sp): Choose one of the following once-per-day abilities: acid arrow, gust of wind, mirror image, resist energy, scorching ray, see invisibility, or warp wood. Caster level equals Hit Dice.

Uncanny Aura (Su): Once per day, create an unsettling aura affecting enemies within 30 feet. Creatures that fail a Will save become frightened until the beginning of the Fluxborn's next turn. The aura lasts a number of rounds equal to Charisma modifier, minimum 1.

Vestigial Wings (Ex): Gain small wings that do not provide flight but grant +1 on Reflex saves and +2 on Acrobatics checks to balance.

Void Touch (Su): Three times per day after hitting with a melee attack, force the target to make a Will save or become confused for 1 round.

These additional Oddities use their normal Pathfinder 1e rules and can be selected when the GM permits the expanded options.

Wanderers by Instinct or Necessity

Fluxborn frequently become adventurers because they are curious, restless, drawn toward unstable magic, or simply uncomfortable remaining where everyone expects them to behave predictably.

Bards, alchemists, sorcerers, oracles, rogues, investigators, arcanists, and other creative or flexible classes are common, though Fluxborn can pursue any class.

A Keynew Fluxborn might investigate a magical scar that resembles the one in their bloodline, follow rumors of an impossible ruin, flee an institution that tried to study them, or simply decide that the strangest road is probably the most interesting one.

Return to the Races of Abadonya index to browse other ancestries.