Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Aleolus 03-18-08, 03:36 AM	This was an idea that came to me from what a player was wanting to do. What do you all think? Lupinali +2 Dex, -2 Int, -2 Cha. Lupinali are extremely agile and quick, but their animalistic heritage makes it difficult to understand some concepts, and have difficulty interacting with other races. Medium, and associated traits Lupinali are Humanoids with the Lupine subtype. Lupinali base land speed is 30 feet Lupinali, due to their Lupine traits, have exceptionally strong senses of sight and hearing. All Lupinali have a +4 bonus on Listen and Spot checks. Alternate Form (Su): All Lupinali have bloodline from the most noble and ancient wolfs in them. At will, they may enter into the form of a Wolf, with HD equal to their normal HD. While in wolf form, they receive an additional +2 to Str, and +1 Natural Armor, as well as the Scent Extraordinary quality. Low-Light Vision (Ex): All Lupinali can see twice as far as normal in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, or other poor lighting conditions. No one is certain as to the origins of the Lupinali, but there are two prevalent theories, currently. One, that the Lupinali were the result of some sort of magical crossbreeding between wolves and humans, perhaps an early type of lycanthrope. The other theory is that they were originally lycanthropes who were created by the most noble and kindest of wolves. Either way, the Lupinali are treated as royalty by most lycanthropes, though they are not always well accepted among the other races, for their strange appearance. The Lupinali look like humans, with the difference that they have two obviously lupine traits, ears, and a tail, typically. They also frequently have a slightly longer face than usual, and their canines are somewhat more pronounced than most peoples.
ArochanoX 03-18-08, 04:15 AM	This was an idea that came to me from what a player was wanting to do. What do you all think? Lupinali +4 Dex, -2 Wis, -2 Cha. Lupinali are extremely agile and quick, but they lack foresight, and have difficulty interacting with other races. Medium, and associated traits Lupinali are Humanoids with the Lupine subtype. Lupinali base land speed is 30 feet Lupinali, due to their Lupine traits, have exceptionally strong senses of smell and hearing. All Lupinali have a +4 bonus on Listen checks, as well as the Scent Extraordinary quality. Alternate Form (Su): All Lupinali have bloodline from the most noble and ancient wolfs in them. At will, they may enter an animal-like form in the same way a Lycanthrope can, though they never risk loosing control from doing so, nor are they forcibly changed at any particular time. Low-Light Vision (Ex): All Shifters can see twice as far as normal in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, or other poor lighting conditions. +4 Listen. All Lupinali have exceptionally keen ears Whoah! I really hope that you're not looking for LA +0, are you? Because this would be immensely too powerful for that. Take a look at the shifter (from MM3 or ECS). It has some alternate form like abilities, but they are far more balanced than this. 1) The ability modifiers are hugely unbalanced. +4 Dex is nowhere near covered by -2 wis and -2 cha. Also the -2 wis won't fit the creature as most animals have a wisdom bonus (or atleast not a penalty). Intelligence penalty would fit thematically, but nevertheless it wouldn't balance the +4 Dex. 2) Scent is a very powerful ability. There are very few LA +0 creatures that have it. Most creatures with scent have LA +1 or more. 3) Alternate form. This is the worst thing regarding power of the race. It's just too good. By the rules written in MM1 of lycanthrope, your lupinali would gain 2 extra HD, +2 Str, +4 Dex, +4 Con, +4 NA and so on. It's almost as good (or even better) than a werewolf. All in all, you want a race that is a werewolf but it's own race rather than a template slacked on a human. And you possibly want lower LA and some more royal aspects to the Lupinali. Suggestion: Make the Alternate form 1/day ability (that can be more frequent with feats) and make it last only one encounter (or 3 rounds +1 per modified constitution modifier). During the Wolf form, all equipment melds to you etc etc and you gain +4 Dex and +2 Con (recalculate hit points). You also gain scent, bite attack and ability to trip with your bite attack (as per wolf). After the wolf shape the lupinali is winded (as after a rage). Lupinali's wolf form stacks with barbarian rage. Make the ability score adjustments to -2 Cha. No other bonuses or penalties. Remove scent ability and make it available only in wolf form (but let it gain it with a feat permanently).
Aleolus 03-18-08, 10:52 AM	Modified somewhat, how's it look now? Shifter ability scores, and a few changes to their abilities like Alternate Form and special qualities.
ArochanoX 03-18-08, 12:44 PM	Now it does look good, but I want to be sure that you know that: Any gear worn or carried by the creature that can’t be worn or carried in its new form instead falls to the ground in its space. If the creature changes size, any gear it wears or carries that can be worn or carried in its new form changes size to match the new size. (Nonhumanoid-shaped creatures can’t wear armor designed for humanoid-shaped creatures, and viceversa.) Gear returns to normal size if dropped. Also, the "Lupine" subtype seems a little off. Not every creature needs its own subtype. They should be typed as Humanoid (Shapechanger).
Neutronium_Dragon 03-18-08, 11:54 PM	The shapeshifting is going to be problematic as it stands. You'd probably do better to look at the Shifter race from the Eberron setting; their 'shifting' ability is much easier to cope with from both a rules and gameplay standpoint. As an alternative, I have something similar which I've used in my games (and I've played a couple of these in PBWeb/PBEmail). This may or may not fit what you're looking for, but it's probably easier to work with. It also uses the idea of feats to build upon basic racial abilities and/or add things which shouldn't really appear until higher level. (The feats follow the racial stat block.) ----- Feralan are the result of a madman's experiments into tainting humans with lycanthropic essence to create a new race of servitor creatures. Though he was ultimately destroyed by his own creations, they have bred true in the years since. They do not possess the full strength or shapeshifting powers of the lycanthropic half of their bloodline, but no longer do they resemble the humans they once were. A feralan looks like a werewolf in its hybrid form, and is typically the same size and weight as its human ancestors. Their eyes tend towards hues of yellow or amber, but some possess green, brown, or even blue eyes. Feralan display a wide range of fur coloration, much like natural wolves. Snowy white, silver-gray, dark gray, and reddish-brown are all quite common hues. They reach adulthood at the same age as humans and have a comparable natural lifespan. The savage instincts of their lycanthropic heritage drives most of them to life in the wilds, though most of them retain enough of their former humanity that they do not seek conflict with civilized folk. Some even transcend this feral background and seek to find a place in society at large; many of the latter group take to adventuring as a natural way to reconcile the two aspects of their heritage. - Medium Monstrous Humanoid +2 Constitution, -2 Intelligence: A feralan's lycanthropic heritage grants it exceptional hardiness and vigor, but the feral instincts which accompany this make it difficult to focus on abstract thought. Feralan base land speed is 30'. Low Light Vision: A feralan can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. It retains the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions. +2 Racial bonus to Listen and Spot checks. Feralan have keen senses and are always alert. +2 Racial bonus to Survival checks for the purpose of tracking: Feralan are gifted trackers thanks to their keen senses and lycanthropic instincts. +2 Racial bonus to Handle Animal and Wild Empathy checks with wolves: Feralan have an affinity for wolves, though not as strongly as that of a true werewolf. Immune to Lycanthropy: Since they are already touched by lycanthropy in their natural state, feralan are immune to lycanthropy and may not be or become either true or afflicted lycanthropes of any sort. Predatory Instinct: A freshly-wounded adversary brings a feralan's predatory instincts to the fore. A feralan gains a +1 bonus to melee attack rolls against any enemy which it damaged during the previous round. Savage Strike: A feralan gains Improved Unarmed Strike as a bonus feat and may inflict lethal slashing/piercing damage with its unarmed strikes at no penalty. Quardrupedal Movement: A feralan with both hands free may drop to all fours when moving, increasing its base land speed by 5'. Automatic Languages: Common, plus a regional language if applicable. Bonus Languages: Elven, Gnoll, Gnome, Goblin, Sylvan, plus regional languages if applicable. Favored Class: Ranger. Level Adjustment: +0 ----- Feralan Bite: You are able to make bite attacks. Prerequisites: Feralan, Base Attack Bonus +6. Benefit: You are able to make a bite attack (1d6) as a secondary natural attack. - Feralan Claws: You are able to make claw attacks. Prerequisites: Feralan, Base Attack Bonus +1. You gain two claw attacks (1d4) as primary natural attacks. - Feralan Instincts: Your instincts are stronger than most. Prerequisites: Feralan, Wisdom 11+ Your bonuses to Survival checks made for the purpose of tracking and to Handle Animal and Wild Empathy checks involving wolves improve to +4. Additionally, you gain a +1 bonus to melee damage rolls against the subjects of your Predatory Instinct ability. - Feralan Resilience: Your lycanthropic heritage has allowed you to develop a resistance to non-silvered weaponry. Prerequisites: Feralan, Base Fortitude Save +3. Benefit: You gain DR 2/Silver. - Feralan Scent: Your sense of smell is stronger than most. Prerequisites: Feralan, Base Fortitude Save +3. Benefit: You gain the Lesser Scent (Ex) quality. If your Base Fortitude Save is or becomes +6 or higher then this becomes the Scent (Ex) quality instead. - Feralan Toughness Your hide is tough enough to offer some protection from attacks. Prerequisites: Feralan, Base Fortitude Save +2. Benefit: You gain a +1 Natural Armor bonus to Armor Class. This bonus can be improved by any normal means (such as the Improved Natural Armor feat). -