While most of the focus on the Critical Role-inspired sourcebook Explorer’s Guide to Wildemount is Dunmancy magic, the book has really fleshed out several subraces as well. In my opinion, the additions to the Dragonborn are ideal. One of those variants is the Ravenite. See our whole review of these freed slaves with our Ravenite Dragonborn 5E guide.
Table of Contents
Ravenite Dragonborn 5E Guide
I have always wanted to make Dragonborn work. Obviously, the race is viable in certain ways. However, I have always felt there was very little flexibility. The addition of the Ravenite Dragonborn and their kin the Draconblood Dragonborn have done a lot to flesh out this race.
Lore
The Dragonborn are not as rare in Wildemount as they are in other parts of the D&D Universe. That said, most of these creatures trace their routes from the now-demolished city-state of Draconia. Draconia came about when foreign Dragonborn fleeing their homeland relocated to the Dreemoth Ravine. These foreigners, now known as Draconblood, worked together with the native Dragonborn known as Ravenite to build Draconia. Once the city was finished, the Draconblood betrayed their kin and enslaved them.
In recent years, Draconia was destroyed. After this destruction, the Ravenite Dragonborn broke their bonds and chased the Draconblood Dragonborn from the area. Now, they are rebuilding their civilization and slowly spreading through the world.
Ravenite Dragonborn 5E Traits
While Ravenite Dragonborn largely mirror the physical traits described in the PHB, they are typically on the larger side of Medium creatures. Physically imposing, the Ravenites are distinct for their lack of a tail. Creating these characters is essentially the same, as each takes a Draconic Ancestry to determine the type of breath weapon. That said, they are no longer resistant to the type of breath damage they deal.
In addition to the loss of the damage resistance, Ravenite Dragonborn also trade a Charisma point for a Constitution point and add two important traits: Darkvision and Vengeful Assault.
Ability Score Increase
Compared to standard Dragonborn, the ability score increase is a straight trade from Charisma to Constitution. The increases are as follows:
- +2 Strength
- +1 Constitution
Darkvision
Darkvision gives the Ravenite the power to see in the dark. This trait allows your Dragonborn to see within 60 feet in any direction no matter the lack of light. Dimly-lit areas are as bright as day, while pitch black looks more like dim lighting. Darkvision does not allow you to see colors, only varying shades of gray.
Vengeful Assault
Vengeful Assault allows you to attack back against a character that damages you while in range of whatever weapon you hold. You are able to make this attack as a reaction. This attack is treated just like any other melee attack. You can only use it once without taking a short rest, however.
Unfortunately, this trait is limited to a weapon you are holding at the time damage occurs. As a reader points out, this could include either a melee or ranged weapon as long as the enemy is within the weapon’s range. This does mean you cannot use your breath weapon, however. Likewise, this does not work when your enemy attacks you but fails to deal any damage.
Differences from Standard Dragonborn
So the TL:DR is pretty straightforward. Given their tough upbringing, it should come as no suprise that Ravenites are not focused on social graces. The trade of Charisma for Constitution makes sense given their hardy demeanor.
Giving up a single resistance also seems like a small price to pay to gain a useful trait in Darkvision and a potentially tide-turning option like Vengeful Assault. If combat is what you want, I think the Ravenite Dragonborn is far superior to the vanilla version.
Wrapping up our Ravenite Dragonborn 5E Guide
And that’s it for our Ravenite Dragonborn 5E guide. Was this helpful? We’d love to hear from you in the comment section.
I believe there’s an error here. The Ravenites’ Vengeful Assault description says: “When you take damage from a creature in range of a weapon you are wielding, you can use your reaction to make an attack with the weapon against that creature.” This is not limited to a melee weapon as is stated in the article, nor is it limited to a melee attack as is implied. For example, you could respond with an arrow if you were wielding a bow when damaged, or with a thrown handaxe if wielding that. (The article’s assertion that you can’t use your breath weapon remains true because that’s classified as an Action, not an Attack.)
Good catch, I will update the piece.
While true, you may simply want to have something with reach so that your boost on strength isn’t wasted. On a side note, vengeful assault really is super good, mimicking one of the greatest reactions in my opinion (retaliation) making this race that much more appealing.