A Playable Species by Kay Marlow Allen
If you look very closely and stand quite still, sometimes, in the perpetual twilight of the Feywild, you can see the faint twinkle of distant stars. And if you travel very widely and always speak politely to the strangest-looking person at the tavern, you might get to meet one of those stars.
Asterin are faerie stars that can take humanoid forms. As stars, they’re content to sing their ancient and ethereal traditional songs and bask in their own light. As humanoids, they thrive on the energy of wonder and amazement, and often travel outside the Feywild to see as many places and meet as many people as possible.
When you create an asterin character, you can use this information to inform your character’s appearance and experiences.
When asterin change from their star forms to their humanoid forms, they choose what they look like. But even as humanoids, asterin could never been mistaken for humans: they have sharply pointed ears, and two arms extending from each shoulder.
Asterin often choose their coloring in shades of blue; blue helps them recognize each other, and inspires a sense of wonder in others. Their skin tones tend to fall into a range from sky blue to midnight, and their hair is usually lighter, in shades of white, silver, and light blue.
Asterin also have features that hint at their otherworldly origins. You can roll on the Celestial Features ****table to receive a feature, or choose or create one of your own.
Celestial Features (d6)
| 1 | Constellations of metallic freckles |
|---|---|
| 2 | Opalescent skin |
| 3 | Glowing, solid-colored eyes, with no visible pupils |
| 4 | A pair of ghostly, incorporeal wings |
| 5 | Metallic tattoos that move around your body |
| 6 | A pair of glittering horns |
Asterin tend to fall on the more feminine side of the gender presentation spectrum, with curvy bodies, flowing hair, and a love of bodily adornment. However, an asterin’s presentation doesn’t necessarily tell you their sex or gender—and there are many different types of femininity for them to explore.
Asterin are often curious about the local norms around gender and sex—and enjoy breaking the rules as soon as they learn them.
Because of the extreme change in physical forms, it can take a full month for an asterin to transform from a star to a humanoid, and vice versa. In the Feywild, you might see a large glowing spot with no discernable source of light; that’s an asterin, slowly shifting.
If an asterin’s humanoid form dies while they’re in the Feywild, they will immediately begin the month-long process of shifting back to their starry form. If their human form dies outside the Feywild, they will die like any other mortal.
Despite the risk, asterin love to travel. Their own sense of wonder can be just as vital for them as the wonder of those around them, and they often seek out fantastical views, engaging experiences, and heart-pounding adventures.
Sometimes, entire constellations of asterin will decide to walk in their humanoid forms together. It’s common for one asterin to act as the initial ambassador, and then invite the rest of their constellation to join them.