Designing a Devil Fruit Sheet with Steps
Upon consuming a Devil Fruit, one gains supernatural abilities almost immediately. However, this newfound power comes with a price: a profound vulnerability to sea water. While all Devil Fruit consumers share common weaknesses, some may also possess unique susceptibilities.
Typically, Paramecia users draw spells from any class, Zoan users undergo animal transformations reminiscent of druids, and Logias blend spellcasting with transformative capabilities. This design approach aligns closely with the creation of magic items in standard D&D 5e.
All custom fruits must be submitted to staff to await approval.
Step 1: Category & Appearance
First mark the name of the devil fruit, its rarity (uncommon, rare, very rare, and legendary), its type (paramecia, zoan, or logia), and subtype. The subtype of a devil fruit depends on its type. For example, a Hie Hie no Mi (Ice) logia devil fruit will have a "Solid" subtype of logia. Give a brief description of its abilities based on the type.
Additionally, the devil fruit will have a unique and peculiar shape, color, and pattern decorating it. Perhaps draw a sketch of it or describe its unique appearance to players.
The example below shows the process of designing the Bara Bara no Mi fruit using this template.
Example: Bara Bara no Mi (Dividing)
Devil Fruit, Uncommon
Type. Body Enhancer Paramecia
Description. Can split and divide parts of your body into pieces and can control said pieces telekinetically.
Fruit appearance Dark red berries decorated with spiral patterns.
Step #2: Strengths and Features A devil fruit user becomes almost immediately aware of which devil fruit power it has upon consuming it. The Strengths and Features of each type of devil fruit are further detailed in each respective section in later pages. Some of your devil fruit features require your target to make a saving throw to resist the feature's effects. Additionally, your devil fruit may require making a spell attack. If a devil fruit spell requires using an ability modifier to be used, instead use a number equal to every rarity category past common (minimum of 1). For example, a Rare devil fruit would have a value of 2 (two higher than common). The saving throw DC and Attack modifiers are calculated as follows: Devil Fruit save DC = 8 + your Proficiency Bonus + one point for every rarity category higher than common (min 1) Devil Fruit Attack modifier = your Proficiency Bonus + one point for every rarity category higher than common
Example: Bara Bara no Mi (Dividing)
Devil Fruit, Uncommon
Type. Body Enhancer Paramecia
Fruit appearance. Dark red berries decorated with spiral patterns.
Description. Can split and divide parts of your body into pieces and can control said pieces telekinetically.
Cut Immunity. You are immune to slashing and piercing damage, as your body can divide to avoid sharp objects.
Floating Limbs. You can use the Mage Hand cantrip. Additionally, when you make a melee attack on your turn, your reach for it is 30 feet greater than normal.
Optional Rule: Long Rest Recharge
Instead of Devil Fruits regaining charges at each dawn, your DM may allow you to regain all expended charges upon completing a long rest. This would replace the usual recharge of Devil Fruit abilities at the next dawn.
Step 3: Weaknesses
Devil fruit users are doomed to "become a hammer" for the rest of their lives, meaning they cannot swim. If their powers are particularly useful, that might be an acceptable tradeoff for many. Additionally, you can never eat another devil fruit or you will die.
Upon gaining devil fruit powers, you are permanently weak to sea water, sea stone, and similar bodies of liquid. This can make a seafaring adventure fairly difficult, even if your devil fruit power is particularly strong. Marines and other powerful pirates may also have access to various seastone weapons that will immediately weaken you and nullify your powers. Being a strong devil fruit user can often make its user feel like they have become gods, giving them a great advantage over most foes. However, it can be considered a great burden over time, and requires great care and caution to avoid drowning or being captured because of the weaknesses that come with it.
Universal Weakness: Becoming a Hammer
When you gain the powers of a devil fruit, your swimming speed becomes 0 forever. Additionally, if you are more than half submerged in any body of water or similar liquid, you become incapacitated until you are no longer submerged. While incapacitated this way, you cannot use any devil fruit features and any devil fruit abilities you have activated will end. If you become fully submerged, you begin to sink and you may hold your breath for a number of minutes equal to 1 + Constitution Modifier (minimum 30 seconds) before you drown. Once you begin drowning, you drop to 0 HP, and you can survive a number of rounds equal to your Constitution Modifier (minimum 1). Only when you are able to breathe again will you become stabilized.
The speed at which you sink depends on how much armor you are wearing. If you unarmored or wearing light armor, you sink at a rate of 5ft/round. If you are wearing medium armor, you sink at a rate of 10ft/round. And if you are wearing heavy armor, you sink at a rate of 15ft/round.
Universal Weakness: One Devil Per Body
When a devil fruit enters your body, you will never be able to eat another devil fruit for the rest of your life. Some may not be aware of this fact, and will be doomed to meet a horrible fate when trying to do so. If a character eats more than one devil fruit, they immediately drop to 0 HP and explode, dying instantaneously. If they are somehow brought back to life by a specific spell or ability, such as wish or true resurrection, they will no longer have devil fruit powers.
Universal Weakness: Seastone
Seastone, similar to sea water, can completely incapacitate any devil fruit user that comes into contact with it. If a devil fruit user ever comes into direct contact with seastone, they must succeed on a DC 20 Constitution Save, or become incapacitated until the start of their next turn or so long as they are in contact with the seastone. This save must be repeated at the start of each turn so long as the creature is in contact with seastone. While in contact with seastone, you cannot use any devil fruit features and any devil fruit abilities you have activated will end.
A devil fruit may come with a vulnerability or weakness depending on the nature of its power. More powerful devil fruits, such as legendary devil fruits, might not have any exploitable weakness aside from sea water and seastone. However, less powerful devil fruits may have explotable weaknesses. For example, a devil fruit that allows its user to create a flammable material will be vulnerable to fire and will begin to burn each round when catching on fire. Or a logia devil fruit power that makes its user into lightning might be immune to non-magical physical damage except for attacks made from insulating materials such as rubber.
Example: Bara Bara no Mi (Dividing)
Devil Fruit, Uncommon
Type. Body Enhancer Paramecia
Fruit appearance. Dark red berries decorated with spiral patterns.
Description. Can split and divide parts of your body into pieces and can control said pieces telekinetically. However, the user's feet cannot float and must be on the ground.
Sea Weakness. You are weak to water and seastone.
Cut Immunity. You are immune to slashing and piercing damage, as your body can divide to avoid sharp objects.
Floating Limbs. You can use the Mage Hand cantrip. Additionally, when you make a melee attack on your turn, your reach for it is 30 feet greater than normal.
A devil fruit may have unusual weaknesses, such as requiring the user to be sitting or prone to use their abilities. This can make seemingly overpowered devil fruits more balanced in the long run.
Devil Fruit users start with a set number of devil fruit charges they can use to use spells or special abilities. Expended charges are regained daily at dawn. The number of charges a devil fruit user has, as well as the highest level of spell it can cast using these charges, is determined by the rarity of the fruit shown on the table below. A spell being cast using a devil fruit usually requires spending a number of charges equal to its spell level. Zoan devil fruits do not use charges or spells.
Rarity Highest Spell Level Charges
Uncommon 3rd 5
Rare 5th 9
Very Rare 7th 13
Legendary 9th 17
Example: Bara Bara no Mi (Dividing)
Devil Fruit, Uncommon
Type. Body Enhancer Paramecia
Fruit appearance. Dark red berries decorated with spiral patterns.
Description. Can split and divide parts of your body into pieces and can control said pieces telekinetically.
Sea Weakness. You are weak to water and seastone.
Slice Immunity. You are immune to slashing and piercing damage, as your body can divide to avoid sharp objects.
Floating Limbs. You can use the Mage Hand cantrip. Additionally, when you make a melee attack on your turn, your reach for it is 30 feet greater than normal.
Spells (Chop-Chop Carnival). This devil fruit power has 5 charges. You can expend 1 or more of its charges to cast one of the following spells from it without needing to expend material components:: longstrider (self; 1 charge), blur (2 charges), kinetic jaunt (2 charges). The devil fruit regains expended charges daily at dawn.
A devil fruit user can advance their powers over time and even eventually "Awaken" their devil fruit. Devil Fruit Awakenings are usually unlocked at later levels, granting a powerful awakening ability that depends on the devil fruit type, and it will often break the rules the devil fruit normally follows (such as highest spell level allowed). See "Devil Fruit Advancement and Awakening" for more. The example awakening below is an extension of the above devil fruit sheet for the Bara Bara no Mi.
Awakening (Telekinetic Carnival). You can use an action to cast the Telekinesis spell. You can’t use this action again for another 24 hours.