The Complete Guide to Tritons in Theros | Triton 5E Guide

The most important politics of the Mythic Odysseys of Theros takes place on the surface, where fey and beast alike tread. However, one culture survives and thrives in the Siren Sea, exploring the gorgeous lands that dryfolk will never know. Let’s check out the Triton 5E guide to see how our favorite fishy friends transitioned into Theros.

Triton 5E Guide

Tritons are potent all-rounders first released in Volo’s Guide to Monsters. Their flavor changed massively during the transition to Magic the Gathering’s world, however.

Traits

Triton are fishfolk with a love of melee combat.

Ability Score Increases. +1 Strength, Constitution, and Charisma

Age. Mature at 15, can live 200 years.

Alignment. Neutrality, as they flow like the currents.

Size. Slightly shorter than humans. Bit skinnier, too!

Speed. 30 feet walk, 30 feet swim.

Amphibious. Can breathe air and water.

Control Air and Water. Can cast Fog Cloud. 3rd level, you can cast Gust of Wind. 5th level, you can cast Wall of Water. Once you cast any of these, you can’t cast with Control Air and Water for the rest of the day.

Darkvision. 60 ft of grayscale.

Emissary of the Sea. You can communicate simple ideas with water-breathing beasts. You don’t necessarily understand them in turn.

Guardians of the Depths. Resistance to cold.

Languages. Common and Primordial.

See our Mythic Odysseys of Theros Review

Homeland in Theros

Tritons call the Siren Sea their home while in Theros. They share it with deadly reefs and massive krakens, which makes it perfectly defensible from air-breathing creatures; these trespassers fish and travel across the Siren Sea, a damnable offense to most Triton. The surface has been raided more than once in response. Most Triton worship Thasa, the goddess of the seas, and her priests lead their people.

The only surface home for tritons are Meletis, whose harbors are considered home for a select group of communities. As time goes along, more and more tritons find work in restaurants, alchemical shops, and army careers on Meletis’s streets. 

Personality

Tritons are driven by an intense curiosity of the surface world. Perhaps your connection to the “dryfolk” was fostered by a youth spent digging through ship ruins, or digging in coral reefs. Maybe you had a collection of gorgeous jewelry that you traded in Meletis. Or somehow developed a love of a specific lore that you spent hours debating with a surface-dweller about. Select few triton approach the surface with scientific rigor, theorizing about the habits of the dryfolk and figuring out what the surface holds that keeps most other races out of the water.

You come from a land reverent to a god of the sea, from resourceful people capable of making armor from clams and bones. It’s likely that you left to pursue a life apart from the waters your people hold so dearly.

Triton Names

Triton are named as children. But, come 15, they tend to shed their name. Names are ends of eras for triton, as they reach life crossroads that change their perspective of the world; for example, a triton who leaves the Siren Sea for Meletis might see fit to change their title. Or perhaps, they might change their name as they shift gender identities, a somewhat common practice amongst a culture with a fluid concept of gender.

In terms of what your name might sound like, you might find some good examples below. Think somewhere between Greek and Roman, though typically shorter than names of legend.

Female Names: Amathe, Gnorcys, Leurybia, Margomestra, Nereones, Oleia, Samathe, Saphiro, Tethene, Theaneia, Thectra 

Male Names: Bysseus, Cetos, Galaukus, Galiton, Kenessos, Odexes, Palamon, Pontreus, Rheteus, Thrasios 

Suggested Classes

Triton are underwater marauders, which make ranged combat a bit of a drag for them. Instead, you’ll be wanting to focus on melee combat, so your trident can find a home in many an opponent.

Paladin

+1 Strength, +1 Constitution, +1 Charisma… Add them together, and you get a recipe for a melee-oriented zealot! The Paladin is the perfect template for a Triton, and with the release of the Oath of Glory, there’s quite a few reasons to try it out. Just remember to use your Control Air and Water as the versatile spell powerhouse it is.

Bard

While the +1 Strength is wasted on our favorite stage performer, the Triton still gains +1 Charisma and Constitution; the same stat gains a human would have. If you wish to lean into a Bard of Valor, then you can get Dexterity to a point where you have survivable HP and then rely on Medium armor post level 3. Alternatively, you can ignore Strength and simply increase your Dexterity. That would let you use the College of Eloquence and really convince fish to help your cause!

Fighter

Alternatively, you could ignore Charisma and become a Fighter. The Samurai or Cavalier can make use of Persuasion, so consider those options if you want your Charisma to matter. Your Strength and Charisma will come in handy, as will the vast versatility of your inherent spell list. As a frontliner, you probably won’t mind being resistant to cold, either! It’s a pretty solid setup for your new, fish-laden career.

Concluding our Triton 5E Guide

The Triton are a pretty fantastic Theros race for specifically Paladins, and a great race for most other roles. Not too much changed from the Volo’s Edition of the triton; if you’re familiar with that race, then it’d probably be easier for a GM to accept the default, rather than this Theros equivalent. But, if you’re planning on running a Theros campaign, and you’re looking for the most powerful Paladin choice – or wanting to take on the world from a perspective of the water-dwellors beneath it – the Triton are a great choice.