Unfortunately, it is difficult to say what aspects of
ASH’RAK
What would you do if you could not die? Is that not freedom?
Is that not what we gift to you?
—Qel’Thuul the Mind Flayer to the ancestors of the
Ash’Rak
Long ago, a dying hive of mind flayers discovered a
prosperous nomadic clan of strong warriors. At first the
desperate Illithid simply fed on victims that had been
kidnapped in the night. But desperate for survival, the
elder brain hatched a hideous plot, and soon the most
promising members of the nomadic tribe were infected
with Illithid larvae, who used their parasitic control over
their host’s brain stem to slowly and subtly influence the
clan’s traditions, customs, and biology. After generations
of this debauched scheme, the mind flayers took complete
control of the nomads, and every young member of the
hivemind grew and thrived inside of a strong, able-bodied
host. The Ash’Rak are the result of this disgusting and
twisted arrangement.
ENGINEERED SLAVES
The Ash’Rak are proud, strong, and hearty. Perfect
incubators for adolescent mind flayers. And once the elder
brain completed its project, perfect slaves as well. To
ensure that the Ash’Rak would never rise up against their
masters, the Illithid engineered the Ash’Rak’s immune
system out of their genetic code. Instead, the parasite
acted as the host’s immune system; if the parasite was
removed, the host would die. But with this dark bargain
came benefits. The parasite, wishing to keep its host alive
for as long as possible (or perhaps to glean even more
labor from a slave), provided accelerated healing,
protection from disease, and a long lifespan.
Still, Illithids are violent beings, and in a war lost to
history, the colony was killed off. But the Ash’Rak
remained. They and the remaining symbiotes live on in a
perilous balance. The symbiote lacks a hivemind to give it
direction while the Ash’Rak requires the symbiote in order
to live. The details of reproduction in this relationship are
kept secret from outsiders.
Because the Illithid have erased most of the traumatic
history from the communal conscious of the Ash’Rak,
many Ash’Rak believe of their symbiotes to be benevolent
gods who have saved their race from certain death. Some
even worship their snake-like parasites as such. However,
others know the dark truth: this agreement is only
temporary. For when the symbiote reaches maturity, it can
suddenly seize total control over the Ash’Rak’s mind and
body, turning its former host into an adult Mind Flayer. It
is no wonder that many Ash’Rak dream of a day when they
can be free of this “symbiosis”.
LOK’TAR
The Ash’Rak language is very contextual, and there is one
word that is used in many contexts. “Lok’Tar” roughly
translates to “honor”. But “Lok’Tar” is more than just a
word, it is a code that every Ash’Rak lives by. As a result of
“Lok’Tar”, Ash’Rak are skilled warriors, put the needs of
the clan before their own, and place honor above all else.
1
Ash’Rak culture are truly their own, as countless
generations of influence by the Illithid to mold the
Ash’Rak for their own evil ends has created a foggy history.
Indeed, it is possible that the very concept of Lok’Tar was
implanted by the Illithid to further exploit the Ash’Rak
into better slaves.
STRONG RELATIONSHIPS
The Ash’Rak place great value on all of their relationships,
no matter how minor. From simple commercial
transactions to familial blood bonds, Ash’Rak treat
everyone they come across with respect and dignity unless
given a reason to do otherwise. As such, other races find
that an Ash’Rak’s word is good as a contract signed in
blood. In fact, the Ash’Rak language does not have a word
for “lying”. Instead, they use a phrase that roughly means
“to disown one’s ancestors”.
OF TWO MINDS
During their enslavement by the mind flayers, the Ash’Rak
were brainwashed into believing their Illithid hosts were
deities that protected them from certain death. Most
Ash’Rak still hold onto that belief today, although many
are beginning to understand the true nature of the
symbiosis. Still, those who want to rid themselves of their
symbiotes are sometimes seen as extremists at best, and
traitors at worst.
Further confusing the situation, it is unclear how an
Ash’Rak is even able to hold the desire to rid themselves of
the symbiote. The Illithid symbiote, though it is still an
adolescent, should be able to prevent the Ash’Rak from
thinking such “impure” thoughts. Many Ash’Rak believe
that the symbiotes today are weaker due to the lack of a
nearby elder brain. This may seem like a case for
optimism, but in reality it poses two dangerous
possibilities. The first is that an Ash’Rak could wander too
close to an elder brain and suddenly find themselves being
transformed into a mind flayer. The second possibility is
somehow even more terrifying. It is that one day the
symbiotes may die altogether, taking with them the
entirety of the Ash’Rak people.
ASH’RAK NAMES
Ash’Rak names are almost always symbolic. Many of the
names roughly translate into ideas such as “sacrifice”,
“glory”, and “bravery”.
Male Names: Agram, Bartok, Craykor, Dra’Lok, Dryak,
Kef’k, Kylor, Lo’Tar, Qol’t, Ty’ak
Female Names: Anak, Feltim, Kor’Lel, Li’Ana, Polkesh,
Siltek, Tealn’a, Yshrem
Surnames: Balrik, El’Tor, Karnok, Maltor, Raytak,
Tel’Bek, Zef’Tar
ASH’RAK TRAITS
Your Ash’Rak character has several traits as a result of
their long relationship with their Illithid symbiotes. These
traits include accelerated healing and fighting capabilities
as well as a ritualistic meditation instead of sleep.
Ability Score Increase. Your Constitution score increases
by 2, and your Strength score increases by 1.
Age. Ash’Rak reach maturity at the same age as humans,
but remain in peak physical condition for longer due to
their symbiote. They often live to be over 200 years old.
However, each Ash’Rak symbiote can suddenly seize
control over the Ash’Rak’s mind and body. This is usually
prevented due to the fact that the symbiote lacks a nearby
hivemind, but if a connection to one is made, the Ash’Rak
host is at incredible risk.
Alignment. Ash’Rak come from a warrior society that
places a high value on tradition and honor. These customs
can seem strange to outsiders. As such, they tend to be
neutral.
Size. From a distance the Ash’Rak look like physically
imposing humans. They average well over 6 feet tall and
are quite muscular. Your size is medium.
Speed. You base walking speed is 30 feet.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common, but
in a very formal manner, as if from a textbook. You also
speak Ash’Rak, the language of your race. Ash’Rak sounds
monosyllabic and is very contextual, with the same word
having multiple meanings depending on the situation.
Symbiotic Constitution. Ash’Rak symbiotes have an
incentive to keep their hosts alive and so provide
significant boosts to their hosts’ health. You have a pool
of magical healing that you can use to restore a total
number of hit points equal to your character level × 3. As
an action, you can regain a number of hit points up to
the amount remaining in your pool. The pool
replenishes by a number of points equal to your
character level when you complete Jafma-Tel (see
below).
Additionally, you are immune to disease.
Lok’Tar. Every Ash’Rak undergoes years of training for
war. Choose one maneuver from the Fighter’s Battle
Master archtype list of maneuvers (Player’s Handbook p.g.
74). You can perform the chosen maneuver even if you
have no levels in the Fighter class and have not taken the
Battle Master archetype. In this case, you have one d6
superiority die that replenishes upon completion of Jafma-
Tel (see below). If you are a Battle Master, treat this
maneuver as a bonus maneuver that you know in addition
to the maneuvers that you know under the Battle Master
archetype and follow the normal rules for superiority die.
You can change your chosen maneuver every time you gain
a character level.
Jafma-Tel. You do not require sleep. Instead of a long
rest, you enter a state of meditation called Jafma-Tel that
lasts for two hours. During this meditation, you develop a
weak telepathic connection with your symbiote, allowing
you to access to some of its abilities. When you complete
Jafma-Tel, choose one ability from the Jafma-Tel table
below. When you use the chosen ability you cannot use it
again until you have completed another Jafma-Tel.
If you do not complete Jafma-Tel during a span of 24
hours, you suffer 1 point of exhaustion. You can remove all
exhaustion gained in this manner through a single
uninterrupted session of Jafma-Tel. As with a long rest,
you cannot receive the benefits of Jafma-Tel more than
once in a span of 24 hours.
2
J AFMA -T EL T ABLE
Ability Effect (once per Jafma-Tel)
Synaptic You gain advantage on one Wisdom (Insight)
Instinct check.
Hunger for As an action, you tap into your symbiote’s appetite
Intellect for minds and are able to know the Intelligence
and Charisma saving throw modifiers for one
target within 60 feet.
Accelerated When you take a short rest you can choose to
Metabolism recover hit points equal to your character level.
Psionic Link You can cast the cantrip message one time.
Hivemind Tapping into your symbiote’s desire to reconnect
to an elder brain, as an action you can detect the
presence of any Illithid (including an elder brain)
within 100 miles. You do not know the direction or
distance of the Illithid, only that it is within 100
miles of you.
ROLEPLAYING AN ASH’RAK
Below are tables to help you build the personality of your
Ash’Rak character.
d6 Personality Trait
1 I have a morning/nightly routine that I do not like
to have interrupted.
2 I never lie, and hold others to the same standard.
3 My grasp of Common is still maturing. I have
difficulty understanding sarcasm and humor.
4 I am calm to a degree that unnerves my
companions.
5 I despise those who are a drag on their societies.
Criminals, moochers, and deadbeats get no
sympathy from me.
6 I am constantly anxious that my symbiote will turn
on me, but I refuse to let it show
d6 Ideal
1 Altruism. I always put the good of my clan before
myself. (Good)
2 Lok’Tar. I must always act with honor, courage,
and strength in all things. (Law)
3 Liberation. The Ask’Rak people must be freed
from their symbiotes, no matter the cost.
4 Revenge. The Illithid will pay for what they did to
my people. And I will be the one collecting.
(Neutral)
5 Might. I will prove that the Ash’Rak are a strong
people. Our name will be heard across the lands.
(Neutral)
6 Acceptance. My symbiote is a part of me, and I
appreciate the benefits it provides.
 d6 Bond
1 I was cast out of my clan. I plan on proving myself
worthy of being accepted back.
2 I can hear the voice of my symbiote. I have never
told this to anyone.
3 I wish to discover the true history of my people.
From before the Illithid.
4 I once failed to adhere to Lok’Tar. I must atone for
this.
5 I heard that there is a way for Ash’Rak to live
without symbiotes. I want to find if this is true.
6 I wish to prove myself to someone in my clan that I
love.

d6 Flaw
1 I sometimes fail to consider non-violent options.
2 I have a hard time respecting those who are
physically weak.
3 I get frustrated when people do not communicate
clearly and concisely.
4 I have a difficult time empathizing. I frequently do
not recognize others’ emotions.
5 I sometimes fail to understand that other societies
have different forms of justice.
6 I am too quick to trust others. I do not understand
the concept of lying or exaggeration.

CREDITS
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