Serak — ONAN: Shatterds Sourcebook

Before gods breathed, we built the lungs of the world.

Serak — Shatterds Sourcebook

Appearance

Serak are tall, elegant reptilians whose bodies blend biological sinew and scale with faint bio-synthetic plating. Their polished scales run in obsidian, bronze, pale gold, sapphire, or iridescent teal, overlaid with luminous sigil-lines that pulse slowly with Essa energy. Their eyes are vertical-pupiled silver or amber, tracking with the precision of something not merely observing but cataloguing. Their voices carry a double layer — a low tone beneath a whispered overtone — that takes most species several conversations to stop finding unsettling.

Origin & Lore

The Serak did not evolve. They were designed by a prior civilization of cosmic reptilians who arrived on Onan before anything currently alive had ancestors. The ley line network was not natural — it was infrastructure, a planetary-scale Essa distribution system. The Pulse Wars' systematic destruction of ley line nodes was, from the Serak perspective, watching someone use a load-bearing wall as ammunition. Their Vault complexes are self-sustaining. They monitored the surface during the Long Night, catalogued the damage, and calculated a 200–400 year recovery timeline. The current age is AI 67.

Serak — Shatterds Sourcebook

Baseline Traits

All Serak receive these traits at character creation at no cost.

Baseline Trait

Bio-Synthetic Resilience

Resistance to psychic damage and advantage on saving throws against being charmed, frightened, or possessed.

Baseline Trait

Ancient Knowledge

Proficiency in Arcana and History. Double proficiency when making History checks related to pre-Pulse civilizations, Essa engine architecture, or ancient ruins.

Baseline Trait

Serak Endurance

Hold your breath for up to 30 minutes. Go twice as long without food or water before suffering exhaustion.

Baseline Trait

Vault Memory

As an Action, project a brief psionic impression from the Progenitor archive visible to creatures within 30 ft. Once per Long Rest, use this to gain advantage on an Investigation or Persuasion check.

Baseline Trait

Vault Recall

Once per Long Rest, access a deeper layer of the archive — receive precise information about one topic (pre-Pulse ruin, Essa engine design, ancient species, ley line configuration).

Species Advancement Tree

You earn Species Points at levels 1, 3, 5, 7, and 10. Tier 2 requires at least 1 Tier 1 purchase. Tier 3 requires at least 1 Tier 2 purchase.

Tier 1 Available at levels 1 and 3

Architect's Command 1 SP

As an Action, issue a one-word telepathic directive to a creature within 30 ft (Wisdom save): Halt, Kneel, Retreat, or Yield. Uses per proficiency bonus per Long Rest.

Caste Lineage 1 SP

Choose Vault Serak (tremorsense 10 ft on stone, identify structures), Val'ith Serak (Persuasion proficiency, 30 ft telepathy), or Thassari Serak (breathe water, darkvision 120 ft, cold resistance).

Serak Regeneration 1 SP

When finishing a Short Rest, regain additional HP equal to proficiency bonus + Constitution modifier.

Geometric Awareness 1 SP

Always know the exact layout of any space you have spent 10 minutes in. Advantage on Intelligence (Investigation) checks to identify structural weaknesses or hidden passages.

Tier 2 Available at levels 5 and 7

Prime Equation 1 SP

Once per Long Rest, apply the Progenitor algorithm — for 1 minute, all allies within 30 ft add your Intelligence modifier to their saving throws.

Vault Interface 1 SP

Your Vault Recall can now be used twice per Long Rest. Additionally, when touching any pre-Pulse artifact or structure, you understand its function and any Essa configurations within it.

Design Override 1 SP

Once per Short Rest, when a creature within 30 ft makes an attack roll or saving throw, use Reaction to apply your Architect's Command — overriding their action with one of the four commands as a free interrupt.

Tier 3 Available at level 10

The Living Archive 1 SP

Your Vault Memory becomes constant — you always have access to the Progenitor archive at surface level. Once per Long Rest, broadcast the full archive signal in a 60-ft radius — all creatures must save (Intelligence) or be stunned as the depth of pre-Pulse knowledge overwhelms them.

Prime Constructor 1 SP

Once per Long Rest, over 10 minutes, reshape a stone or metal structure of up to 20 cubic feet — the Progenitor engineering knowledge flows through you.

Roleplaying a Serak

The Serak called the Pulse Wars the Design Collapse. This is not metaphor. They watched it happen, knew what it was going to do, and could not stop it. That inability has been the defining wound of the species ever since.

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