Mireborn Tieflings

Children of the Jade God

She wore no cloak — her back bloomed with a colony of glowing mushrooms. Her voice was wind and water, and her eyes had no whites, only shifting rings of mossy amber. "We are the bloom between decay and dominion. We are the breath the swamp still holds. We are the reach of the Jade, and our reach is long.”
—Virka the Mawless Seer

Introduction:

Mireborn Tieflings are not born in the traditional infernal sense, but are warped by divine overgrowth, mutated by the heart-polluted waters of the Jade Quagmire or similar areas where the Jade God holds dominion. Their infernal heritage has been overwritten or intertwined with something else — something older, rooted, and hungrier.
They are often born to parents who have spent too long near the Mire, or arise as twisted rebirths of those who died in its depths. Some worship the Jade God. Others struggle to resist its whisper.  

Physical Appearance:

Mireborn Tieflings are humanoid, but their forms have been radically altered by prolonged exposure to the magical ecosystem of the Jade Quagmire, or similar locales controlled by the Jade God. Their infernal ancestry has been overwritten, corrupted, or rewritten with swamp-magic and divine mutation. They appear half-flesh, half-growth — as if nature itself has decided to reshape them, forcibly entwining life and rot. Their skin is often green-tinged, ranging from deep swamp green to mottled chartreuse, pale bark, or even fungal gray. Some have patches of bark-like skin with jagged textures or living moss growing from their shoulders or back. Veins may glow faintly with bioluminescent green or amber light in dim areas, especially when emotions are high.  

A Cultural Breakdown:

The Mireborn are not one unified people — they are a cursed mosaic, a people born (or reborn) through exposure to the divine contagion of the Jade God. Most live within or near the Jade Quagmire or similar moorlands where the Jade God has control or influence, but others are found on the fringes of society, trying to either reject or master what they’ve become. Generally, there are three recognized "paths" for the Mireborn Teiflings (Though there are always exceptions):
  1. The Vined: These Mireborn see their condition as a blessing — a divine evolution. They entwine themselves deeper with the rot and bloom of the Quagmire, cultivating mutated growths on their bodies. Some join the Verdant Reclaimers, others become solitary prophets or warriors.
  2. The Bound: These Mireborn walk a thin line — neither fully rejecting nor surrendering to their mutations. Often wanderers, scholars, or druids, they seek balance, turning their gifts into tools while warding against divine erosion. They often act as messengers or liaisons between surface folk and the swamp.
  3. Flee the Bloom: The Ashen are refugees, those who escaped the Quagmire or were cast out of their communities. Many deny their lineage, binding their horns, using magic or chemicals to hide their features. Their stories are tragic, their presence often met with fear or scorn.
 

Racial Traits:

Your tiefling character can choose the Mireborn Lineage instead of the standard Infernal Legacy. These traits replace the Ability Score Increase, Infernal Legacy, and Hellish Resistance traits of the base Tiefling.
  Ability Score Improvement: Your Wisdom increases by 2, and your Constitution increases by 1.
  Mire Adaptation: You can breathe underwater and move through nonmagical difficult terrain made of mud, swamp, or undergrowth without penalty. In addition, whenever moving through mud, swamp, or undergrowth, you can choose to leave no tracks
  Swampkin Legacy: Starting at 1st level, you know the Druidcraft Cantrip. Starting at 3rd level, you can cast the Caustic Bloom spell (see below) once per long rest. Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for this spell.
  Graft-Symbiosis You have bound yourself to a swamp-born organism that lives within or upon you. Choose one of the following grafts:
  Glowshroom Symbiote: You can shed dim light in a 10 ft radius. You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed or frightened. You can suppress or resume the glow as a bonus action.
  Leechvine Coil: Once per long rest when you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack, you can force them to succeed on a Strength save or become grappled (DC = 8 + prof + Str mod). While grappled in this way, you regain HP equal to half the damage dealt.
  Memory Moss Parasite: You can cast Detect Thoughts once per long rest. When you do, you must succeed a DC 12 Wisdom saving throw or take 1 level of exhaustion — the moss devours a memory you did not intend to lose.
  Spell: Caustic Bloom
2nd-level transmutation
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: 30 feet
Components: V
Duration: Instantaneous
You force a sickly green bloom to erupt at a point within range. Choose a creature in that space to make a Dexterity saving throw . On a failed save, they take 3d8 poison damage and are partially entangled in rotting vines until the start of your next turn, reducing their movement by 20 feet. On a success, they take half damage and are not entangled.
At Higher Levels. When cast with a spell slot of 3rd level or higher, the damage increases by 1d8 per slot level beyond 2nd.