[RPG] Can the Giant Owl language be learned with the Linguist feat

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The Giant Owl can speak the language Giant Owl:

Languages Giant Owl, […]

Notably, this language does not appear on any of the tables of languages in any sourcebook (e.g. the Languages tables in the PHB/basic rules), but it does appear on the statblock of the Giant Owl and the Skeletal Giant Owl (a variant of the Giant Owl statblock that's described in Infernal Machine Rebuild, p. 33).

The second point of the Linguist feat says (PHB, p. 167):

You learn three languages of your choice.

Is Giant Owl an eligible language that can be learned with the Linguist feat? Or does the feat only allow choosing a language from one of the "Languages" tables?

Best Answer

Not by default

In general, you choose your known languages from the table on page 123 of the Player's Handbook. Specifically, the section on Languages (in Chapter 4: Personality and Background > Character Details) includes:

Choose your languages from the Standard Languages table, or choose one that is common in your campaign. With your DM's permission, you can instead choose a language from the Exotic Languages table or a secret language, such as thieves' cant or the tongue of druids.

The Giant Owl language is not on either list,† and so can't be chosen unless your DM has made it common for your campaign (in which case you would hopefully know) or their permission. I recommend coming up with a really hooting backstory reason for knowing it.

†: Neither are the other monster-specific languages like Giant Elk, Giant Eagle, Hook Horror, etc.

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