Post/Author/DateTime	Post
JarionSilverblades 02-12-07, 08:50 PM	This is a New race I’ve been working on for my Home-brewed world. I’m pretty happy with it so far, but have been having trouble finishing. I’m looking for any Ideas and Suggestions anyone may have. NJÁLSBRANDUR Njálsbrandur can really be summed up with their favorite saying, “ Death is but a chapter’s end in the eternal story of are lives”. As soon as a njálsbrandur dies their soul is reincarnated as a yet to be born njálsbrandur. To the njálsbrandurs death is just another chapter in an unending story of life. When it comes to the dead the Njálsbrandurs treat each as with the utmost honor, njálsbrandurs have lavished ceremonies and celebrations. Njálsbrandurs have complex rituals for preparing the dead. Many people see this as a waste, because if the Njálsbrandur’s soul has already been reborn, them they are paying tribute to an empty husk. For the Njálsbrandur, funerals are not about mourning the soul but about remembering of the person. Personality: To a Njálsbrandur every thing is about death, their whole existence is owed to death. Most believe that the Njálsbrandur are brooding, grim and morbid race, because of there obsession and fascination with death. That could not be farther from the truth, Njálsbrandur’s are extremely outgoing, and friendly, almost to a point were they could be considered flamboyant. Njálsbrandur’s have a fantastic sense of humor, they always seem to have a witty come back or a offhanded comment for every situation. They are a brave and honorable people, they care little about their own safety when it comes to aiding or protecting friends. To most the ideals of chivalry are a way of life. They are renowned for their flirtatious nature, towards the opposite sex of any race that catches their eye. It is often said (mostly by Njálsbrandurs), that few can resist a Njálsbrandur’s charm, and they love testing that charm every chance they get. Njálsbrandurs prefer colorful, stylish clothing usually colored with greens and blues, with lots of buttons and buckles. They wear little jewelry, if a Njálsbrandur is wearing a piece of jewelry it is most likely magical or very valuable. Physical Description: Njálsbrandurs stand between 3'0" to around 4'0", and typical weigh between 30 to 45 lbs. They most often have thick curly black or dark brown hair, rarely a njálsbrandur is born with red hair, their hair is often worn long, about shoulder length for males, and almost to the ground for females. Facial hair is common among njálsbrandur males, usually only a mustache or a goatee, rarely one may have a full beard. Njálsbrandur’s eyes are one color, the average njálsbrandur has reddish brown eyes, but eye color can range from brown, hazel, deep green and in rare instances blue. Njálsbrandur’s skin tone ranges from light to dark tan, and their bodies are near hairless. The males have square jaws, and long pronounced noses, while the females have angular faces, thin upturned noses, and full lips that are a natural red hue. Relations:Njálsbrandurs always get along with gnomes and halfilings, this is impart to the fact they share so many of the same traits. Njálsbrandurs adore elves, and half-elves finding them the most free-spirited and comely race. Njálsbrandurs think of dwarves as grumpy, with no real sense of humor, they do however admire their honor, and loyalty to clan and friends. Panynx are seen as beautifully savage, they are feared for their ferocity and admired for their grace.. Half-orcs and Orc-elves are looked down on, njálsbrandurs see them as crude and vile. Njálsbrandurs are most often found in human lands for a reason, they find humans the most varied, often possessing the traits they admire the most. Human’s can be fun, beautiful, loyal, and honorable all at once. NJÁLSBRANDUR NJÁLSBRANDUR RACIAL TRAITS ● -2 Strength, +2 Dexterity: Njálsbrandur are agile, but because of their small size a njálsbrandur is not as strong as medium humanoids. ● Small: As a Small creature, a Njálsbrandur gains a +1 size bonus to armor class, a +1 bonus on attack rolls, and a +4 size bonus on Hide checks, but she uses smaller weapons then humans use, and her lifting and carrying limits are three-quarters of those of a Medium character. ● Njálsbrandur’s base land speed is 20 feet. ● Low-Light Vision: An Njálsbrandur can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. She retain the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions. ● +1 racial bonus on all saving throws: Njálsbrandur’s have an inherited ability to avoid mishaps. ● +2 racial bonus on Bluff and Diplomacy checks: Njálsbrandurs are quite eloquent. ● The Spirit Cycle. ● Spell-Like Ability: A Njálsbrandur with a charisma score of at least 10 has the following spell-like ability: 1/day charm person, Caster level equal to character level; save DC 10 + Njálsbrandur’s Charisma modifier + spell level. See spell description on PH page 209. ● Automatic Languages: Common and Njálsbrandur. Bonus Languages: All, Njálsbrandurs are skilled linguistics. ● Favored Class: Swashbuckler. A multiclass Njálsbrandur’s Swashbuckler class does not count when determining whether he takes an experience point penalty for multiclassing. The Spirit Cycle: The cycle of life for njálsbrandurs is more complicated them most. When a njálsbrandur breathes his last, wether this is caused by age, illness, mortal wounds or other cause, the njálsbrandur’s soul is reincarnated as a yet to be born njálsbrandur. Njálsbrandurs have no conscious memory of any past lives they may have had, but some times a njálsbrandur may recall something that they knew in their past life, these rare memories are called “Ghost moments. A “Ghost moment” is (but not limited to) when meeting someone they once knew, while being in a place they once stayed, or hearing a song they once enjoyed, a njálsbrandur has a 5% chance of recalling an event, name, or location, from their spirit’s past life, (a njálsbrandur only has ghost moments from there last life, no others). Njálsbrandurs are not affected by, any spell, spell-like ability, or effects that restores the dead to life (this includes, but is not limited to, Miracle, Raise dead, Reincarnate, Resurrection, or Wish spells). Njálsbrandurs are still effected by spells, spell-like effects and special attacks that create undead, the only difference is that undead njálsbrandurs have no soul, they instead have what is called a Necro-imprint. A Necro-imprint is a soul like entity created of negative energy, this imprint possesses all of the njálsbrandur’s memories, skills and abilities. :duel:
jaw4ever 02-12-07, 09:00 PM	Pretty cool. A swashbuckler race. Neat.
Ventilatory_Threshold 02-12-07, 09:13 PM	Likin' the race. I might use it at some point with your permission, of course. Fun fact: In Icelandic this is a misspelling of the word "njálsbrandur", which means "sword of a warrior". Note the 'u', denoting the modern form of it; drop the 'u' and you get the archaic one. The s denotes the genitive case. But screw Icelandic grammar! The race is impressive. Nice fluff and everything.
JarionSilverblades 02-13-07, 08:08 AM	Likin' the race. I might use it at some point with your permission, of course. Fun fact: In Icelandic this is a misspelling of the word "njálsbrandur", which means "sword of a warrior". Note the 'u', denoting the modern form of it; drop the 'u' and you get the archaic one. The s denotes the genitive case. But screw Icelandic grammar! The race is impressive. Nice fluff and everything. You can use the race if you want, thats a big honor to have someone wants to use a race I created. Ant thank you for the correction of the spelling I'll change it. :duel:
Thalspar 02-13-07, 09:18 AM	Likin' the race. I might use it at some point with your permission, of course. Fun fact: In Icelandic this is a misspelling of the word "njálsbrandur", which means "sword of a warrior". Note the 'u', denoting the modern form of it; drop the 'u' and you get the archaic one. The s denotes the genitive case. But screw Icelandic grammar! The race is impressive. Nice fluff and everything. iceland rules and by the way nice work. this is the best swashbuckler class i have seen if you overlook the landspeed but hey doesn't matter
JarionSilverblades 02-13-07, 05:04 PM	I'm glad you like the race, if you have any ideas or thoughts on any changes you think it needs I'd like to hear them. Here are a few more of my Home-brewed races. Wildmane Panynx Orc-elves Snarf
Regular_K 02-13-07, 05:12 PM	When I first started reading this I expected the favored class to be necromancer, but it surprised me. They would make better swashbucklers though. Other then that, I like it.
Chrono Nexus 02-13-07, 05:24 PM	The Cathari. The disconcerting eyes of the person in front of you carry the indefinable aura of eternity. There is an ancient race that exists on the Wheel of Life in a way unique from all others. They are the race to whom death is a mere nuisance. When they die, they are affected by something very similar to the Reincarnate spell. They are the Cathari and few apart from the Cathari themselves know the truth of their existence. For all Cathari, death is simply another step on the Wheel of Life. As far as any can tell, within seven days of the death of their current body, they are born again, either as a child or a young adult, depending on each individual’s choice and prior preparations. Many scholars believe that the Reincarnate spell was a magical attempt to duplicate the Cathari’s incredible abilities. The Cathari speak of The First Shedding in tones of awe. The First Shedding is the event that gave them their unique abilities, but also robbed them of the chance to be reborn as a True Cathari. Since the time of The First Shedding, the original bodies of the Cathari have not existed as a biological species. Thus, in a way, the Cathari became extinct at the moment The First Shedding was complete. Many of the Cathari had sired children, all of whom were mortal. These mortal children were mourned deeply for of the brevity of their lives. Many initiated studies whose purpose was to make it possible for them to sire children that they would not outlive. Centuries after the First Shedding, many Cathari also began to seek a reprieve from their memories. They longed for new experiences and, having lived for centuries, new experiences were rare. The Cathari were becoming bored. One of the Cathari behind the First Shedding was ancient even by the new standards of the Cathari. She famously stated, “My skin feels full to bursting and I yearn to be empty. I need to forget, if only for a lifetime.” The solution was found by one of the youngest Cathari, one who was just a child himself when the First Shedding occurred. The Ritual of the Empty Skin (so named because of the previous statement) granted the Cathari who had learned it the ability to be born once more as a child, with no memory of their century’s long existence. The first Empty-skin Cathari (or more simply ‘Empty Cathari’) was watched over by many Cathari. They rejoiced at his simple life; his delight in things that they themselves considered mundane, his adoration of his mother, his devotion to his mortal wife, his love of his children. The first Empty Cathari lived a life to be envied. And so, many Cathari performed the Ritual of the Empty Skin to allow themselves a lifetime’s enjoyment of simplicity. When the Cathari who was the first Empty Cathari returned to being Full Cathari, he retained most of the memories of his Empty life and he continued to watch his children. He watched them begin families of their own. He watched them grow old. With sorrow, he watched them die. And to his amazement, he watched them be reborn. The Ritual of the Empty Skin had solved both of the Cathari’s problems. Unfortunately, it also has been the cause of much animosity towards the Cathari, since it is their mind born into a child who would otherwise have been simply a child. The Cathari laugh at this and state that, since the child has no memory of being Cathari, it is still just a child. Today there are still very few Cathari ‘children’, since only a child sired by an Empty Cathari even has the potential to become a Cathari. And then, only if the child lives until it reaches a venerable age. It has to be said however, the Cathari are much more at peace with themselves since they have been able to sire Cathari once again. Personality: The Cathari tend to enjoy life more actively than other races. Since many of the Cathari that exist today have been alive for millennia they have a wisdom that can only be gained with such age. But, conversely, they will take great risks with their safety unthinkable to other races simply because they know that their Skin is temporary and that they will be born again. Among the Cathari there are no gender specific roles as every Cathari has been both male and female many times in the past. Appearance: There are no specific physical traits that the Cathari have in common, except perhaps the look of ancient wisdom within the eyes of one much too young to possess it. Some Full Cathari tend to prefer styles of clothing and modes of speech that have become unfashionable. Some of these styles may even have been unfashionable for centuries. Relations: Some of the more superstitious races view the Cathari as a threat to their God’s eternal plans. In general, the Cathari are welcome in most places. Many Full Cathari count the older dragons among their friends. Alignment: The Cathari have a mental stability that only comes from age; because of this they are usually have a lawful tendency, although they often remain neutral until they are ready to act. Empty Cathari seem to have a predilection towards neutrality. Cathari Lands: The Cathari do not often have any interest in conquest, although such ambition is not unknown. Often a Full Cathari will have a house or two in any given major city. Religion: The Gods disapprove of the Cathari’s movement through the Wheel of Life and do not grant them any Divine magic. Most Full Cathari disapprove of the Gods because of their unique perspective on the Wheel of Life and do not worship them. Empty Cathari, because of the effects of the Ritual of the Empty Skin, can worship freely. Language: The almost universal language known as Common is the ancestor of the ancient Cathari language and so it is known by all Full Cathari. Most Full Cathari also know many languages including Draconic, Celestial, Infernal, Sylvan, and the languages of many humanoid races. Empty Cathari have the same languages as normal for their Skin’s race. Names: Since most of the Cathari have been both male and female an uncountable number of times, there is no real difference between the names they give to their boys or girls. The naming conventions of the local area occasionally play a part in what name a child is given, although some Cathari use the original form of the name, not the more common derivative. Other Cathari give their children the names of heroes or heroines, of places, or even of emotions. Empty Cathari are named according to their Skin’s race’s conventions. Adventurers: A Full Cathari adventures as the mood comes upon them. They often prefer to visit sites of historical importance, or at least places that they have pleasant memories of. Most Cathari adventure simply as a way of relieving the monotony. Empty Cathari have some of the Full Cathari’s daredevil nature, but coupled with a mortal’s healthy fear of injury and death, most Empty Cathari remain close to home. CATHARI RACIAL TRAITS These abilities are common to both Full Cathari and Empty Cathari. • Life after Life: With this ability, a Cathari will be reborn in another body within seven days of the death of its previous body. The Cathari’s new young adult body is determined using the table used by the Reincarnate spell on page 270 of the Player’s Handbook (3.5). Each time this ability is used the Cathari loses one character level. The effects of Level Loss are detailed on page 296 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide (3.5). This loss of level is an unavoidable part of the Life after Life ability and cannot be denied. The only way that a Cathari can die forever is to die at 1st level. • Sealed Life: A Cathari cannot lose levels permanently due to energy draining effects. Neither can a Cathari become undead or be brought back to life by any means other than their Life after Life ability. FULL CATHARI • +3 Intelligence, +3 Wisdom, +3 Charisma: A Full Cathari is always of venerable age, and therefore gains the mental bonuses of that age bracket. • Aberration: Full Cathari are not subject to spells or effects that affect humanoids only, such as charm person or dominate person. • Recognise Cathari: A Full Cathari can discern whether or not a person is a Cathari simply by looking at them. If the person in question is an Empty Cathari, it requires a DC 25 Sense Motive check to recognise them as such. • Spurn Madness: As an additional bonus to all saving throws against Mind-Affecting effects, a Full Cathari applies their Wisdom bonus (if positive). This means that Will saves gain double the normal Wisdom bonus. • +2 racial bonus on Bardic Knowledge and Knowledge (History) checks. A Full Cathari has lived through a great deal of history. • Automatic Languages: Common. Bonus Languages: Any (other than secret languages, such as Druidic). A Full Cathari has lived long enough to have had the opportunities to learn almost any language. • Prohibited Classes: Any class that grants access to divine magic is denied to a Full Cathari. The Gods do not approve of the Cathari. • Favoured Class: Bard. A multiclass Full Cathari’s bard class does not count when determining whether he takes an experience point penalty for multiclassing (see XP for Multiclass Characters, Player’s Handbook page 60). Seeing history first-hand gives a Full Cathari a unique advantage when telling stories about it. • Level Adjustment: +1. (Although most Full Cathari will have many character levels, and likely be epic level characters.) EMPTY CATHARI • An Empty Cathari is identical to the race chosen from the Reincarnate table, excepting the Life after Life and the Sealed Life racial traits. • By virtue of the Ritual of the Empty Skin an Empty Cathari is not considered to be an Aberration. • None but a Full Cathari can tell that an Empty Cathari is a Cathari. • Level Adjustment: +0. NEW FEAT Ritual of the Empty Skin [RACIAL] This feat allows a Cathari to start their next life as an Empty Cathari. Prerequisite: Cathari, character level 3rd. Benefit: At any time when not in danger, the Cathari with this feat can state that they are performing the Ritual of the Empty Skin. The ritual takes about an hour and requires no material components. The next time the Cathari dies, their Life after Life ability will take effect in a different way than usual. Within seven days the Cathari will be born as a baby to an appropriate woman of the same species. This child will have no memories of being a Cathari; thus he will be an Empty Cathari. The Skin after an Empty Cathari will always be a Full Cathari. Special: Half of the Empty Cathari’s experience points are added to the experience point total of the Full Cathari when they are next reborn. No matter what level or class features the Empty Cathari had gained, the Full Cathari gains only these experience points, no class features. GLOSSARY Empty Cathari: a Skin with a mother and no memory First Shedding, The: the event that gave the Cathari their unique abilities Full Cathari: a Cathari with their memories intact Ritual of the Empty Skin, the: a fairly simple ritual that allows a Cathari to live its next life as an Empty Cathari Second Skin: the second life lived by a Cathari (most Cathari are uncomfortable within their Second Skin) Shedding the Skin: the death of the Cathari’s current body Skin: the current body/life of a Cathari True Cathari: a being with the body of a Cathari and the mind of a Cathari Very strange that you came up with such a similar concept within 24 hours... but hey, it happens to all of us sometimes. I learned a few years after my realization of frictionless gravity-lift trains that someone had thought of it too and had patented it.:mad: ! I'll need to jump on my euclidian-time/space displacement drill quickly, before someone takes that idea too.:D Nice race, by the way. I like how they worship the realization of identity. Very philiosophic hehe.
gullas 02-13-07, 05:42 PM	well .....me likey.......umh....it kind of reminds me of gnomes but its propably me so :rolleyes:
JarionSilverblades 02-14-07, 08:06 AM	well .....me likey.......umh....it kind of reminds me of gnomes but its propably me so :rolleyes: This race started as a cross between a Gnome and a halfling, but when I found out someone else had already created such a race I started to change it.
JarionSilverblades 02-16-07, 01:21 PM	Still looking for critiques and comments from Players and DMs. :duel:
JarionSilverblades 03-05-07, 09:17 AM	BUMP! :bump: Again still looking for critiques and comments from Players and DMs.
JarionSilverblades 03-13-07, 07:37 PM	I want to give this race a racial feat, but I'm not sure if it's to powerful or not. ECHO FROM THE PAST (racial feat). In most cases a njálsbrandur remembers nothing of their life before their present one, but some times a small sliver of their past can slip to the present. Prerequisites: Njálsbrandur, must be taken at 1st level. Benefits: Choose any one Class. You gain the listed benefit, the benefit may be use to meet the prerequisites for Feats and Prestige Classes. Barbarian: Rage 1/day, Must be nonlawful. Bard: Bardic Knowledge, Must be nonlawful Cleric: Turn or Rebuke undead as a 1st level cleric. Druid: Wild Empathy, Must be a degree of neutral. Favored Soul: Choose any one 1st level Favored Soul spell, you gain it as a Spell-like ability 1/day caster level equal to ½ character level. Fighter: +1 to Base attack Bonus. Monk: Unarmed Strike, Must be lawful. Paladin: Smite Evil 1/day, Must be any good. Ranger: 1 Favored Enemy. Rogue: Sneak Attack +1d6. Scout: Skirmish (+1d6). Sorcerer: Choose any one 1st level Sorcerer spells, you gain this as a Spell-like ability 1/day caster level equal to ½ character level, Must have an Cha 14 or greater. Swashbuckler: Grace +1. Warmage: Armored mage (light). Wizard: Choose any one 1st level Wizard spell, you gain it as a Spell-like ability 1/day caster level equal to ½ character level, Must have an Int 14 or greater. Special: This feat may not be taken multiple times, once the “echo” is chosen it may not be changed.
JarionSilverblades 04-12-07, 12:29 PM	BUMP! :bump: Still looking for some feedback.
JarionSilverblades 05-29-07, 04:28 PM	OK this is an updated version of the Echo From The Past feat. ECHO FROM THE PAST (racial feat). In most cases a njálsbrandur remembers nothing of their life before their present one, but some times a small sliver of their past can slip to the present. Prerequisites: Njálsbrandur, must be taken at 1st level. Benefits: Choose any one Class. You gain the listed benefit, the benefit may be use to meet the prerequisites for Feats and Prestige Classes. Barbarian: Rage 1/day, Must be nonlawful. Bard: Bardic Knowledge, Must be nonlawful Cleric: Turn or Rebuke undead as a 1st level cleric. Druid: Wild Empathy, Must be a degree of neutral. Favored Soul: Choose any one 0 level Favored Soul spell, you gain it as a Spell-like ability 1/day caster level equal to ½ character level. Fighter: +1 attack Bonus. Monk: Unarmed Strike, Must be lawful. Paladin: Smite Evil 1/day, Must be any good. Ranger: 1 Favored Enemy. Rogue: Sneak Attack +1d6. Scout: Skirmish (+1d6). Sorcerer: Choose any one 0 level Sorcerer spells, you gain this as a Spell-like ability 1/day caster level equal to ½ character level, Must have an Cha 14 or greater. Swashbuckler: Grace +1. Warmage: Armored mage (light). Wizard: Gain familer, Must have an Int 14 or greater. Special: This feat may not be taken multiple times, once the “echo” is chosen it may not be changed.