Tabaxi
General Appearance
Tabaxi’s appearance is as varied as their attitudes. Some tabaxi have features or patterning in their fur like tigers, jaguars, or other big cats, while others have appearances more like a house cat. Still others have unique patterns or might style their fur to their preferences — or might even be hairless!
Racial Attributes
Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score increases by 2, and your Charisma score increases by 1.
Age. Tabaxi have lifespans equivalent to humans.
Size. Tabaxi are of a slender build and between 3ft and 6ft in height. You are Medium or Small. You choose the size when you select this race.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet with an equivalent climbing speed.
Cat's Claws. You can use your claws to make unarmed strikes. When you hit with them, the strike deals 1d6 + your Strength modifier slashing damage, instead of the bludgeoning damage normal for an unarmed strike.
Cat's Talent. You have proficiency in the Perception and Stealth skills.
Darkvision. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You discern colors in that darkness only as shades of gray.
Feline Agility. Your reflexes and agility allow you to move with a burst of speed. When you move on your turn in combat, you can double your speed until the end of the turn. Once you use this trait, you can’t use it again until you move 0 feet on one of your turns.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Trade Basic, a regional language and one extra language of your choice.
Tabaxi Ethnic Groups
Perchers
Originating on Perch Home, Perchers are more at home on land than they are on water, making them unique amongst their Tabaxi brethren. You'll find Perchers in nearly every Tabaxi settlement these days, acting as dock masters, tavern owners, stay-on-land traders and governors. Despite being generally looked down upon by other Tabaxi for their unadventurous lifestyles, Perchers are the backbone of all Tabaxi lands. As such, as a group, they are generally more wealthy and have more political capital than other Tabaxi and are often at the centre of all sorts of intrigue. Perchers have the most diversity in their height, build and fur patterns of all Tabaxi
Adamants
If you're looking for the sailiest sailor who ever sailed a sailship, an Adamant will probably tell you that they are it. If there are two Adamants there, it's going to be a fight over it. Adamants are the pre-eminent sailors in Tabaxi society, on any ship, regardless of it's originating port the crew will be mostly Adamants. Adamants hail from the largest island in the archipelago but of all Tabaxi were imbued with the greatest desire to escape it. So much so that the hero of the Adamants, Kinsey Snaggletooth was the very first Tabaxi to build a sea going vessel and it is the dream of every Adamant to find the wreck of the Horizon Seeker and claim it's legacy for themselves. Adamants are more often solid colours of fur, though the occasional two colour or calico does appear. Not as large as Flickers, Adamants are firmly middle of the pack in size.
Flickers
The largest of all Tabaxi, Flickers hail from Flickerspyl originally. Flickers are the most aggressive of the Tabaxi, using their size to bully any they see as weaker and as such, a good portion of Tabaxi pirates have been Flickers. Even so, you'll always find a few Flickers on any Tabaxi ship, usually to keep the others in line as a Quartermaster. This hasn't always worked out so well, as no Tabaxi is to be trusted with a position of power, especially when they can use might to abuse that position to their own advantage.
Pointers
Pointers are small by Tabaxi standards, never reaching more than 4ft in height and typically of darker fur with very subtle spot patterns. Pointers originate from Cloud Bank though they have never created a large settlement there, preferring to live in smaller family units. When shipping came to Cloud Bank Pointers took no time at all to spread to every other island they could. Pointers inhabit a particular niche in Tabaxi society, if you need a job done and it needs to be done quietly, discretely and maybe need to be seen as an accident, Pointers are there to offer their services.
Tabaxi Society
Broad Overview
Tabaxi society is a brutal place, the vast majority of Tabaxi only work together long enough to get something out of it for themselves. It's largely based on interisland trade, where items not available on some islands are traded between them. Tabaxi towns are barely coherent masses of buildings, with the richer Tabaxi living in extravagant island mansions and the poorest Tabaxi living in barely stable wooden shacks. Nearly every Tabaxi seems to dream about making it big either as a trader, pirate or as part of some scheme.
You Want It, You Can Get It
Tabaxi society is predicated on the premise that life is for the taking and if you are strong or smart enough you can earn, take or steal what you want. As such there is a market for anything, any service or anyone and not so much is worried about the legal side of things. While there might be local navies and some sort of local enforcement, these things are generally ignored. In Tabaxi society it's considered just part of the price of getting what you want to be avoiding or removing "the law" from the equation.
Water is Life, Sailing is Love
Tabaxi are the pre-eminent sailors of the world, nobody does it better or faster. If you're looking to get somewhere and you have to cross water to get there, you cannot find anyone better than a Tabaxi ship. Seemingly part of their very makeup, Tabaxi love the ocean and some live their entire lives without ever leaving it. Galleons built as mini floating cities with gardens and taverns, shops and the like have existed for quite some time in Tabaxi society and these ships rarely if ever dock in any known part of the Tabaxi world.
The Effects of The Return
The Return was absolutely catastrophic for the Tabaxi people. Their structures were not built to last, whole lives were lived upon ships out in the open water and Azak didn't care to move their ships with them when placing the Tabaxi in stasis so when they were all put back in exactly the same place they were taken some were hundreds of miles from land and this led to a terrible end. Untold death and destruction was wrought upon the Tabaxi but it didn't take long for them to bounce back, they are nothing if not resilient and it wasn't long before jungles were pushed back, settlements rebuilt and their precious ships once again set sail upon the open waters.
The discovery of the Tortles on Shellholme, an island once known for it's giant turtles (which were delicious if you asked any Tabaxi), threw the Tabaxi aback a bit, as they truly believed they were the only inhabitants of the world and it was all for their taking. Tortles for their part seem to be completely unfazed by the Tabaxi and while they defend themselves if attacked have only worked to cohabit the lands with them, helping them rebuild and even improve their vessels.
With the drop of the illusions and Cleansing Mist, the Tabaxi are now free to roam the wider world and they will make it their oyster, Tabaxi as such can be found anywhere in the world, their relentless adventuring spirit has made them immune to the anxiety of meeting new peoples and they relish the idea of new people, places and wealth to make their own.