Gerudo (species)

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Tall, beautiful, powerful, and brutal; the desert-dwelling race of almost entirely women is both coveted and feared. Gerudo (“ghə-ROO-doh”) hail from a legacy of war, ruthless thievery, and strife, but most modern gerudo are widely revered for their strength—both physical and spiritual.

Gerudo are physically very similar to the more abundant and widespread hylian people, but have several distinct characteristics. Virtually all gerudo stand over 6 feet in height, typically with sandy-brown skin darker than that of most hylians and gorons. Most have flowing hair of a vibrant red, though a few brunettes count among them, and like hylians the color of their hair saturates with age. A gerudo's eyes can come in any number of bright hues, from gold to purple, though green is most common. Some gerudo have pointed ears, while others have rounded ears.

The most well-trained of gerudo have enviable muscle yet still move with elegant grace and precision, honoring a tradition of well-trained warriors and acrobatic skirmishers.

Mothers and Daughters

Seemingly all gerudo are born as women, but unlike gorons or deku scrubs they aren't a mono-sexed species. Gerudo have a peculiar inability to reproduce with their own people, it seems, and instead borrow the services of male hylians to create gerudo children. The child is completely gerudo herself, but occasionally takes after the hylian father in a few ways, such as having a hair or skin color closer to his.

Some reproductive unions between gerudo and hylian are romantic, while others are completely business-like. Regardless, the father is often not invited to help raise the child, or not kept directly involved for a large portion of her upbringing. Among gerudo, they say a village raises a daughter.

A History of Strife

This reliance on hylians has strained the gerudo population, at least in modern times. Among most gerudo, becoming a mother usually means leaving home to find a temporary mate far away—in addition to all the struggles a single mother would otherwise face. Few folks other than gerudo could hope to carry on generations through such burdens.

Some believe gerudo were once a people as widespread and prosperous as hylians, if not more so. Ruins of their kingdom are spread widely throughout the Gerudo Desert, named after them. More such ruins can be found across the sea in other lands.

All that remains today are a few small outposts of gerudo, most of whom live traditional gerudo lives in the shadows of their ancestors. Many such outposts survive as thieves or pirates, which other gerudo see as dishonorable. A sparse few gerudo interwove themselves in the societies of other folk. Gerudo Town, a village built on an oasis in the depths of the Gerudo Desert itself, where males are forbidden to enter, is perhaps the greatest remaining bastion of traditional gerudo culture.

Warriors and Nomads

Whether honorable warriors or barbarous pirates, it seems almost universal that canny skill and strength are highly valued among virtually all gerudo. In Hyrule, scimitars in particular are often seen as a distinctly gerudo weapon, though their traditional arms spread to scimitars and shortbow. Survival skills and shrewd cunning are just as valued as athleticism, especially in modern peaceful societies like Gerudo Town itself.

Ancestral Faith

Rather than worship deities, traditionally gerudo pay respect to ancestors. Whether or not the bloodline is direct, any gerudo of old is still generally considered an ancestor. Giant stone statues like the Desert Colossus and Seven Heroines have stood in Gerudo Desert since time immemorial, and are still honored with pilgrimages or other spiritual homages by the most devout of gerudo. Many believe some of these Heroines still provide protection.

The Infamous King of Evil

According to one legend, a male gerudo is born once every century and upheld as a monarch. According to another, a male is born only through evil magic, and seen as an omen. And yet one more rumor says gerudo men are simply no different than gerudo women. In virtually all cases these are stories told by hylians who don't understand gerudo.

Still, one of these stories just might be true; such could be what gave rise to the infamous evil-doer Ganondorf, who claimed to be a gerudo king. Whereas many moblins praise what little connection to Ganondorf they have, this attitude is rare among gerudo. For them, the monster's wanton evil and spreading of chaos is usually seen as shameful. Most modern gerudo prefer to distance themselves from such a beast.

Gerudo Language

See Languages.

Due in part to their traditional isolation from other people, gerudo are one of the few peoples in Hyrule to have a language unique to their race . It is written with a script that oddly has the same letters as the Hylian language, but uses different symbols from Hylian for each letter.

Even when speaking other languages, gerudo often use some gerudo words such as greetings, “voe” for man, “vai” for woman, and “sarqso” for thank you.

Lineage details

Alignment. Gerudo culture emphasizes honor and traditions, and many gerudo are expected to obey their leaders without question. Some gerudo societies normalize the acts of alienating, manipulating, robbing, ravishing, or even murdering outsiders. Overall, gerudo have a strong tendency towards law, and a slight leaning towards evil.
Age. Gerudo reach adulthood in their mid-teens, and rarely can live over a century.
Diet. As a Medium humanoid, each day you require at least 1 pound of food and 1 gallon of water to avoid exhaustion.
Names. Examples include Ardin, Aveil, Barta, Dalia, Danda, Deltan, Dorrah, Essa, Fegran, Frelly, Furosa, Isha, Kalani, Lashley, Lorn, Malena, Merina, Nabooru, Nali, Olu, Pearle, Pokki, Risa, Riju, Ripp, Rotana, Saula, Spera, and Urbosa.

Random Height and Weight

Base Height	Height Modifier	Base Weight	Weight Modifier
5′ 2″	+3d10	120 lb.	× (2d4)

Character traits

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Tall, beautiful, powerful, and brutal, the race of almost nothing but women is both coveted and feared.

 Ability Score Increase. Choose either Strength or Dexterity. Your chosen score increases by 2.
 Size. The average height of a gerudo is about 6' 6". Your size is Medium.
 Speed. Your base walking speed is 35 feet.
 Strength of Spirit. Whenever you roll 1 for any ability check or saving throw using using Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution, you can re-roll the result. This trait has no effect on attack rolls.
 Languages. You can speak, read, and write both Gerudo and Hylian.
 Subrace. Gerudo have three aesthetically similar but culturally different subraces. Choose one from coastal, desert, outlander, or shadow.

Desert Gerudo

 Ability Score Increase. Your Charisma score increases by 1.
 Desert Dweller. You can endure unusually dry climates, extreme heat, and extreme cold without saving throws. You you have advantage on Wisdom (Survival) checks made in desert terrain.
 Warrior Culture. You are proficient in one skill of your choice from Acrobatics, Athletics, and Intimidation.
 Ancestral Arms. You are proficient with the scimitar, the spear, and the shortbow. If you would otherwise gain proficiency with all martial weapons, you can use a d8 damage die for the shortbow, and for the spear while you wield it in one hand.

The most populous variety of gerudo, these traditional warriors are well-adapted to desert life. They have a reputation as being well-organized, proud, and skilled in the ways of both war and peace. The renowned desert strongholds of these gerudo are rarely challenged and often envied.

Coastal Gerudo

 Ability Score Increase. Your Charisma score increases by 1.
 Swimming. Your speed is not reduced while swimming.
 Coastal Heritage. You have advantage on Wisdom (Survival) checks made on oceans, seas, or their coasts.
 Pirate Legacy. You are proficient in one skill of your choice from Acrobatics, Deception, and Intimidation.
 Well-Versed. You are proficient in one of the following: navigator's tools, thieves' tools, water vehicles, any musical instrument, or the Zoran language.

Coastal gerudo are those who have historically settled along oceans. They are often considered to be a slew of seafaring pirates, thieves, and other such ne'er do wells. More than a few of them defy such stereotypes as honorable sailors, skilled fishers, and upholders of justice.

Outland Gerudo

 Ability Score Increase. Your Wisdom score increases by 1.
 Survivor. You are proficient in the Survival skill.
 Tenacity. When you are reduced to 0 heart points but not killed outright, you can drop to 1 heart point instead. You can't use this trait again until you finish a short or long rest.

These gerudo live far from what most others consider to be civilization, including remote spans of desert or even in dimly lit caves. Isolated alone or in small groups, some have chosen to be hermits, while others have been outcast outright by a strict and ruthless society.

Shadow Gerudo

Spell Slot Alternative

Some players may prefer traditional spell slot levels over Hyrulean magic points. If this is the case for you, consider using the following traits instead of the normal traits for shadow gerudo.      Ability Score Increase. Your Intelligence score increases by 1.      Cantrip. You know one cantrip of your choice from fire bolt, ray of frost, shocking grasp, thaumaturgy, and sage hand. Intelligence is your casting ability for this spell.      Dark Art. Choose one spell from beguile, death, flame choke, or Ganon's fist. You can cast your chosen spell as a 1st-level spell; you must finish a long rest to cast the spell again using this trait. Intelligence is your casting ability for this spell.      Extra Language. You can speak, read, and write your choice of either Blin or Twilight.

 Ability Score Increase. Your Intelligence score increases by 1.
 Magic Adept. Your people are uncannily skilled with magic. Your magic point maximum increases by 2.
 Cantrip. You know one cantrip of your choice from fire bolt, ray of frost, shocking grasp, thaumaturgy, and sage hand. Intelligence is your casting ability for this spell.
Dark Art. You know one spell from the following options: beguile, death, flame choke, or Ganon's fist. You can only overpower this spell if you otherwise gain a feature enabling such. You can cast this spell by expending magic points as normal. Intelligence is your casting ability for this spell.
 Extra Language. You can speak, read, and write your choice of either Blin or Twilight.

Although they are a small minority of a sparse race, a handful of gerudo belong to cults who practice dark magic introduced to the race by Ganon, and some may still praise him as their patron god. From one generation to the next, these gerudo pass along ancient secrets of magic and villainy. Compared to others of their race, shadow gerudo have a particularly strong tendency towards evil.

The material on this page is based on content found throughout the Legend of Zelda series, which is copyright Nintendo Co., Ltd.