Changelings

Changelings are the living legacy of the Feywild’s forgotten edges — shaped not by lineage, but by potential. Their ancestors once served among the Courtless Fey, where identity was fluid, masks were truths, and form bent to emotion. Though generations removed, changelings still carry that gift: the ability to reshape their face and body through will alone.

They are not illusions. They do not wear disguises. Each form a changeling adopts is a reflection — of need, of feeling, of self. Some develop elaborate personas with names and histories of their own. Others shift as instinct demands, changing faces as often as clothing. And in a world that fears the unseen, this gift is as much curse as it is power.

Changelings live scattered across Eldareth, often hidden among other peoples, where they blend in for safety or for survival. But some communities, particularly in Celaine, Calvessa, and the trade cities of Vel’Nathar, welcome them openly—as diplomats, actors, couriers, and quiet advisors. Others trust them only when they remain unseen.

Identity and Culture

“Every face is true when worn with purpose.”

In their natural form, changelings are smooth-featured and fey-touched, with skin like porcelain, pale grey, or moonlit blue, and eyes of silver, white, or lavender without visible pupils. Androgynous and unassuming, they seem more like a memory of a person than a fixed one. But few ever show this true form. Most adopt a visage — a carefully constructed persona used to move safely through the world. Some visages last years; others shift from day to day. In places of safety or confidence, a changeling might cycle between faces as easily as moods.

Each changeling’s shapechanging is deeply personal. Some craft complex personas with their own names, mannerisms, and even relationships. Others keep a single persona and treat it as sacred. For most, identity is not fixed but lived — changing with need, experience, and emotion. In some communities, such as Celaine, Vel’Nathar, and the courts of Tessarion, changelings are respected for their adaptability and insight. Elsewhere, they are distrusted or outlawed, seen as masks hiding lies rather than truths.

Among themselves, changelings mark milestones not through age, but through change. Rites like the Cycle of Faces celebrate the retirement of old personas and the assumption of new ones, while private rituals like the Mirror Rite help reaffirm who they are beneath their shifts. Many carry a tell — a detail that stays the same across all forms, like a birthmark, gesture, or inflection. Strong emotion may cause flickers of their true form to surface, a shimmer of skin or flash of eye that betrays what lies beneath.

They are not shapeshifters by necessity. They are shapeshifters by philosophy. A changeling does not lie when they change. They express. Their truth is in how they walk the world — not in how they are born.

Legacy in Eldareth

Changelings have never ruled empires, but they have shaped them. They whisper behind thrones, walk beside rebels, and slip between stories like ink through parchment. Some have served as divine messengers in disguise. Others have ended wars with a single whispered word.

Their greatest strength is not the power to deceive — but the power to understand. For no one understands you better than someone who knows how to become you.

Changeling Traits

Ability Score Increase. When determining your character’s ability scores, increase one score by 2 and increase a different score by 1, or increase three different scores by 1. You can't raise any of your scores above 20.

Creature Type. You are a Fey.

Size. You are Medium.

Speed. Your walking speed is 30 feet.

Changeling Instincts. Thanks to your connection to the fey realm, you gain proficiency with two of the following skills of your choice: Deception, Insight, Intimidation, Performance, or Persuasion.

Slippery Persona. When you make a Charisma (Deception) check, you can reroll the d20 and must use the new result. You can use this trait once per short or long rest.

Shapechanger. As an action, you can change your appearance and your voice. You determine the specifics of the changes, including your coloration, hair length, and sex. You can also adjust your height and weight and can change your size between Medium and Small. You can make yourself appear as a member of another race, though none of your game statistics change. You can’t duplicate the appearance of an individual you’ve never seen, and you must adopt a form that has the same basic arrangement of limbs that you have. Your clothing and equipment aren’t changed by this trait. You can also perfectly mimic the voice of any individual you’ve heard speak for at least 1 minute. You stay in the new form until you use an action to revert to your true form or until you die.

Languages. Your character can speak, read, and write Common and one other language that you and your DM agree is appropriate for the character. The Player’s Handbook offers a list of languages to choose from. The DM is free to modify that list for a campaign.