Post/Author/DateTime	Post
darksyngr 12-17-06, 05:04 PM	I am trying to flesh out a new race for my campaign and would like some help/feedback. Wasn't sure which forum this would fit in so thought it safest to post in general. :P Before I describe the race let me explain how and why I came up with this idea. I am doing something I think we have all tried before: Taking ourselves (Myself and friends) and throwing us into the world of Toril. Ooohhh, how cliche.... yeah yeah I know, lol. However, I would like to have fun with this game and give my players the opportunity to do something different. I didn't want to confine them to the race of human. The main argument of my players was mostly about their appearance. Humans too mundane, elves too delicate, Orcs too brutish, dwarves too cliche, demons too evil, celestials too good... blah blah blah. Races that were picked ranged from +1 lvl adj to +4, or "can I play a red dragon?" ( eh?) Imagine my headache. After much arguing back and forth about what race they could or could not play I came up with an idea. Create one. It wasn't about the power of the charcter my party were after they just wanted something that LOOKED cool. Thus was born the "Etherians"... not even sure if that is what I want to call it. Suggestions welcomed if you can come up with something better. The idea is that each universe is governed by seperate laws and each is a "bubble" that floats in the "timeless nothing". Since the Timeless Nothing was to be prior to the creation of the goddesses Shar and Selune it is something of anti-matter/time. Thus should an entity pass through it from one universe to the next they are become pure "thought". Once passed through and re-formed the entity is remade into whatever they see themselves as. This will allow my players to take on an unlimited range of physical appearances (within reason-no 12 foot giants or full sized dragons) without having to take a massively powerful template. I do not mind the level adjustment just want it to be across the table so they can lvl relatively at the same time. Unique traits to the Etherians is that because not only do they hail from another Universe they are also imbued with the essence of the Timeless Nothing thus making them rather creepy. A disconcerning aura, and this aura also allows other Etherians to sense each other. They are considered Outsiders. Also I gave them unlimited feat selection. Not saying they can take as many feats as they want whenever they want. I mean as far as not being limited by the racial feats. IE= Highborn Drow feat can be taken by an Etherian. Beyond that I haven't figured out the rest.
Omnirahk, half-Rahkshi 12-17-06, 07:49 PM	You know, I do like it. Being eligible for any racial feat. Just one question. If you qualify for a racial feat that works off of a racial ability (like many shifter feats), what happens if you take the feat? I'd be inclined to say that once you do get the racial feat, you get the racial feature that uses it. So: - take certain shifter feats, gain a shifter trait - take certain warforged feats, gain warforged armor - etc. Since they recreate themselves as they invision themselves, I'd give them a +2 racial bonus to one skill check of choice. Creepy seems to imply -2 CHA. I'd think it's close to balanced just at that point. Or alter the Elan. Elans revise themselves in a similar way. So just take the Elan, make them outsiders rather than abberations, and bingo (NOTE: don't give all the benefits outsiders normally get - elans don't have all abberation benefits). If you don't use psionics, give them x points to use for any racial abilities. Since Etherians won't have a way to get more points, you could give them a couple of benefits of being outsiders. Just my thoughts.
darksyngr 12-18-06, 12:47 AM	You know, I do like it. Being eligible for any racial feat. Just one question. If you qualify for a racial feat that works off of a racial ability (like many shifter feats), what happens if you take the feat? I'd be inclined to say that once you do get the racial feat, you get the racial feature that uses it. So: - take certain shifter feats, gain a shifter trait - take certain warforged feats, gain warforged armor - etc. Since they recreate themselves as they invision themselves, I'd give them a +2 racial bonus to one skill check of choice. Creepy seems to imply -2 CHA. I'd think it's close to balanced just at that point. Your thoughts were helpful. I particularly like your idea on the feats. I plan to include that. As well as the skill bonus and negative to CHA. I may decide to give them points in STR or INT depending on the idea of the player's character. As for the Elan's I need to read up more on that before I decide.
Blackheart 12-18-06, 01:10 AM	This may seem cheesy, but in the Dark Sun setting, there actually are beings called the New Race, which are formed from magical radiation, basically. Anyway, in one 3.5 conversion of the New Races (which are pre-existing characters with pick-and-choose or random abilities), there was a list with a breakdown of different abilities along with their individual level adjustments. They're fairly well balanced, though a few of the abilities are slightly off, by my reckoning. Can't really recall where I found it, but it would let your players customize their characters and the LAs allow for balancing for levelling. I'll look for the link and post it if you're interested.
darksyngr 12-18-06, 01:27 AM	I would love the link if you find it :) It sounds like it simplifies things a bit.
Aratharn 12-18-06, 01:38 PM	maybe you can give them a bonus on any knowledge checks (except local) due to their permenant recreation they have accumulated a great lot of knowledge the ability to change back to their spirit form and take a new form with your choice of % experience after acheiving a certain level, which is again your choice as DM to choose their abilities you can could use 4d6 (all added), so they would all be highly talented about LA i don't know
Blackheart 12-20-06, 03:21 AM	Took some searching, but I uncovered the pdf. You can acquire it through the direct link here (http://www.angelfire.com/rpg/crimsonshadows/NewRaces.pdf). Remember that the LAs might be slightly off to you (as they were to me). You might want to use the guidelines presented in Savage Species, if you have access to it, to help with any LA you might call into question.
MarkusTay63 12-21-06, 03:13 AM	Have you ever read Jack Chalker's Midnight at the Well of Souls? It's a great book, but basically it boils down to the entire universe is actually a big computer. People can travel to the computer's 'homeworld' via random gates spread out throughout the universe. However, the computer's programming uses some sort of 'evaluation' of your personality as you pass through the gate, so when you come out the other side you appear as a member of a race IT thinks you belong too. The whole story revolves around the crew of a spaceship who accidentily pass through one, and wind up spread all over this Jupiter sized world trying to find each other. Not easy, considering some of them weren't even carbo-based anymore. Maybe not helpful, but just some food for thought.
darksyngr 12-21-06, 03:14 AM	Sounds like an interesting book. Alas, I want to keep my game fantasy based. May read the book though. Thanks :)