Post/Author/DateTime	Post
baby_kamikaize_kobold 07-24-07, 01:16 PM	Salthar A desert dwelling race of snake people that has spilt away from the yaun-ti long ago and has become a race in its own right similar to the split between the githyanki and the githzeri. Physical Description Salthar are similar to Yaun-Ti abominations on smaller. They are a total length of about 12ft to14ft but only about 6ft is kept off the ground. They weigh 220 to 300 pounds. Their heads can be hooded or not. Their scales range in color from a dull brown with diamond patterns to a very dull dark green with stripes. Salthar have white vestigial eyes which are blind and useless. There are few distinctive traits between the sexes except that the females are slightly heavier and bigger. They reach maturity around 20 years and live to about 400 years. Personality Salthar are a very guarded race but can’t resist the urge to help others that are in danger, especially if it involves a chance to settle the ancient score with the Yaun-Ti. They are loyal but reserved and speak only when necessary. They are also very tribal and have great respect for their leaders. But despite these traits they seem to have a great personal magnetism and can make very fair respectable leaders as well. Salthar Lands Salthar inhabit deserts and other dry arid lands. Religion Where as the yuan-ti are a favored people the salthar are a race that is under the protection of Yaltar a deity forgotten by other races as a god of the desert. After he was abandoned by the other races the salthar were the only ones that stayed loyal to him so he became the personal defender of the salthar. Almost all salthar worship Yalthar as they know of no other gods. Those that adventure are likely to worship deities of nature. Relations They general get along well with dwarves due to their rigid social structure, while halfings identify with their nomadic lifestyle. As mentioned above they despise yuan-ti above all and will attack them on sight or do anything possible to foil them in some way. Most races have not met a salthar and depending on the region in which they are traveling they might be mistaken for yuan-ti if the observer has not ever seen a yuan-ti before. Alignment Salthar are usually neutral because the environment they lie in requires balance in all things. However many will tend towards law also due to the structure of their clan. Social Structure Salthar live in small clans numbering from 5-35 with one child for every three adults. The group is led by a chieftain that is elected by the tribe and the tribe follows this leader absolutely. The chieftain takes advice from a tribal mystic who is the most powerful spell-caster in the tribe. This position changes once a year when other casters are allowed to challenge the old mystic to a non-lethal duel of magic. The rest of the tribe does duties required such as finding water to hunting game to scavenging for food. Stats • +2 cha +2 con -2 dex -2 int salthar have a personal allure and a hardy constitution due to their enviornment but their isolation has stunte their mental growth and their blindness has slowed their reflexes. • Speed 20ft as well as a 20ft burrowing speed • Size: medium salthar suffer no penalties for size or bonuses • +4 fortitude saves versus ingested poisons and conditions of harsh heat. While salthar have lost the ability to produce poisons they have developed a significant resistance to them and their home enviornment. • No feet: salthar have no boot slot because they lack feet or legs. • Blindsense 40ft see monster manual. Salthar senses have heightened senses to compensate for losing their eyesight. • Blindsight 10ft See monster manual for details. While they have good hearing due to their blindness at close ranges they are perfectly aware of their surroundings • Blind: Salthar are unable to see and can only use blind sense to see. • Reptilian metabolism: Because they are snakelike they have a very efficient metabolism as such a salthar can go up to a week before needing to eat and the same goes for water. • Primitive masters: due to their isolation from civilization for so long they have mastered the art of using weapons made from subpar materials. As such salthar take no penalty to attack of damage from using stone, bronze, and bone weapons. • Natural armor bonus +1 • Reptilian metabolism: Because they are snakelike they have a very efficient metabolism as such a salthar can go up to a week before needing to eat and the same goes for water. • Favored Class: sorcerer a multi-classing salthar does not count its sorcerer levels when multiclassing salthar have a natural affinity for magic that comes from the blessings of Yalthar
Lawlicron 07-24-07, 02:10 PM	Stats • +2 cha -2 int salthar have a personal allure but their isolation has stunted their mental growth. • Speed 20ft salthar also have a climb speed of 15ft as well as a 15ft swim speed. This is due to their tail and lack of legs. • Size: medium salthar suffer no penalties for size or bonuses • +4 fortitude saves versus ingested poisons. While salthar have lost the ability to produce poisons they have developed a significant resistance. • No feet: salthar have no boot slot because they lack feet or legs. • Blind sense 40ft see monster manual. Salthar senses have heightened senses to compensate for losing their eyesight • Blind: Salthar are unable to see and can only use blind sense to see. • Tunnel squeezing: salthar have the ability to squeeze through spaces one size category smaller than themselves with no penalty to movement and only movement. • Primitive masters: due to their isolation from civilization for so long they have mastered the art of creating weapons of superior quality from subpar materials. As such salthar take no penalty to attack of damage from using stone, bronze, and bone weapons. • Favored Class: sorcerer a multi-classing salthar does not count its sorcerer levels when multiclassing salthar have a natural affinity for magic that comes from the blessings of Yalthar I like the flavor of this race. I like the abilities it has. But your missing something in your rules entries. Having a swim speed gives a +8 bonus to swim checks and allows you to always take 10, even when rushed or threatened. Having a climb speed gives a +8 bonus to climb checks and allows you to always take 10, even when rushed or threatened. Those things make the race an LA+1 on their own. But I don't really see a race of desert dwellers to have a climb speed (When I picture desert I see large rolling sand dunes, although this is not the only type of desert). Nor do I see a race of desert dwellers having swim speeds (In a desert, any desert, there is little to no rainfall). But I think they would be perfect with a burrow speed of 20ft, I also think a burrow speed would better represent the tunnel squeezing ability and replace it. The loss of the boots slot is also, in my opinion, pretty major. I'd like to hear your feedback and everyone else's on that. Maybe a +1 bonus to natural armor would make up for lost boots. I also think another small boon could be cool too, something like +4 fort bonuses to resist heat exhaustion or needing half or a fourth the amount of water other races need. And finally, most desert dwelling races and snake-like races have a bonus to con. Maybe it could be -2 Dex, +2 Con, -2 Int, +2 Cha. The negative to dex could represent their blindsense being inferior to blindsight and making them lag in swiftness. But as is, or with a bonus to some kind of fort save or maybe just the Great Fortitude feat for free, they are awesome. I really like the flavor of this race and where its going. Edit: Is there a pants slot? After playing WoW, I keep thinking there is a magical pants slot. If there is a pants slot, these guys should also not get that either.
baby_kamikaize_kobold 07-24-07, 02:18 PM	Well they are a race of snakes, but your right the climb speed and the swim speed should go. Would a consrict attack be worth an LA?
Lawlicron 07-24-07, 02:24 PM	Well they are a race of snakes, but your right the climb speed and the swim speed should go. Would a consrict attack be worth an LA? Probably, a constrict is kind of like auto-damage on a grapple. I'm not sure on it though. But I think they should stay more upfront predator like snakes instead of constrictor snakes. Because the Yuan-Ti aren't very constrictor like.
baby_kamikaize_kobold 07-24-07, 03:38 PM	I have added the corrections prposed as many of them made sense. To my knowledge there is no pants slot
Lawlicron 07-24-07, 03:42 PM	To my knowledge there is no pants slot Darn!
riftdragon 07-25-07, 11:29 PM	Well it seems fine I might try this out some time in the future if that is ok with you?
baby_kamikaize_kobold 07-25-07, 11:40 PM	It would be an honor to have someone I know playtest one of my races.
riftdragon 07-26-07, 12:00 AM	should they get a bonus to listen checks for not being able to make spots
baby_kamikaize_kobold 07-26-07, 12:04 AM	I believe blind sight takes care of that
riftdragon 07-26-07, 12:08 AM	Ok but can they make spots at all? and what languages do they speak?
BloodSpill 07-26-07, 12:19 AM	You should really give them Blindsight instead of Blindsense. All other creatures that are totally blind get Blindsight. It's a superior ability. And if I were you I'd drop 'Primitive Masters' and instead invent somesort of Saltharcraft items in a similar vein to Dwarvencraft (Races of Stone), Masterwork (Player's Handbook), Elvencraft (Races of the Wild) and Feycraft (Dungeon Master's Guide II). As to why, the reason is: The flavour text doesn't match the benefit.
baby_kamikaize_kobold 07-26-07, 12:58 AM	And if I were you I'd drop 'Primitive Masters' and instead invent somesort of Saltharcraft items in a similar vein to Dwarvencraft (Races of Stone), Masterwork (Player's Handbook), Elvencraft (Races of the Wild) and Feycraft (Dungeon Master's Guide II). Well I think the flavor matches quite well but that could just be because I made the race. I'll try to explain how it fits into the flavor. 1 they are a race that has chosen to not associate with other races so they don't have access to ores for trading 2they are a nomadic race and live in the desert and can't really have mining operations for precious metals, so they should be a little better at using inferior materials to make certain materials useful ie bronze, stone, and bone. 3I'm to lazy to come up with a whole new way to make weapons made by a certain race better than normal so I thought this was the next best thing Blind sense is already in the stats sectionso i don't think it needs changing
riftdragon 07-26-07, 01:12 AM	How about adding a bite attack?
BloodSpill 07-26-07, 01:13 AM	Blindsight is not Blindsense, exactly. If you only give them blindsense, then they still have a 50% miss chance versus every opponent. Anyway, just a suggestion. Blindsight And Blindsense Some creatures have blindsight, the extraordinary ability to use a nonvisual sense (or a combination of such senses) to operate effectively without vision. Such sense may include sensitivity to vibrations, acute scent, keen hearing, or echolocation. This ability makes invisibility and concealment (even magical darkness) irrelevant to the creature (though it still can’t see ethereal creatures and must have line of effect to a creature or object to discern that creature or object). This ability operates out to a range specified in the creature description. The creature usually does not need to make Spot or Listen checks to notice creatures within range of its blindsight ability. Unless noted otherwise, blindsight is continuous, and the creature need do nothing to use it. Some forms of blindsight, however, must be triggered as a free action. If so, this is noted in the creature’s description. If a creature must trigger its blindsight ability, the creature gains the benefits of blindsight only during its turn. Blindsight never allows a creature to distinguish color or visual contrast. A creature cannot read with blindsight. Blindsight does not subject a creature to gaze attacks (even though darkvision does). Blinding attacks do not penalize creatures using blindsight. Deafening attacks thwart blindsight if it relies on hearing. Blindsight works underwater but not in a vacuum. Blindsight negates displacement and blur effects. Blindsense Other creatures have blindsense, a lesser ability that lets the creature notice things it cannot see, but without the precision of blindsight. The creature with blindsense usually does not need to make Spot or Listen checks to notice and locate creatures within range of its blindsense ability, provided that it has line of effect to that creature. Any opponent the creature cannot see has total concealment (50% miss chance) against the creature with blindsense, and the blindsensing creature still has the normal miss chance when attacking foes that have concealment. Visibility still affects the movement of a creature with blindsense. A creature with blindsense is still denied its Dexterity bonus to Armor Class against attacks from creatures it cannot see. The primitive masters thing is about crafting, but it gives a bonus to using the weapon, but it doesn't say that the weapon should have been crafted by the race. The ability would match the flavour text if it said something like due to their isolation from civilization for so long they have mastered the art of creating weapons of superior qualityusing weapons made from subpar materials
Lawlicron 07-26-07, 01:35 AM	Blindsight is not Blindsense, exactly. If you only give them blindsense, then they still have a 50% miss chance versus every opponent. Anyway, just a suggestion. Blindsense works more like normal sight. Blindsight woul basically give them free darkvision and the ability to always ignore concealment and things like that. Blindsight is worth an LA too, and it'd be better if the race stayed at LA+0. Its really cool that way, because they have a greater racial enemy but a PC could eventually end up fighting them but will have been playing the character from the start.
baby_kamikaize_kobold 07-28-07, 11:39 AM	Thanks bloodspill for the rewording of the primitive masters ability. Do you guys think that there would be a way to modify blindsight or blind sense like maybe making it unable to see invisible creatures or remove the 50% chance and still keeping it a +0 LA?
Tema69 07-28-07, 12:09 PM	Need a scaled down blindsight? How about this?: Some creatures have minor blindsight, the extraordinary ability to use a nonvisual sense (or a combination of such senses) to operate effectively without vision. Such sense may include sensitivity to vibrations, acute scent, or keen hearing. This ability does not make invisibility or concealment irrelevant to the creature and it still can’t see ethereal creatures. It must have line of effect to a creature or object to discern that creature or object. This ability operates out to a range specified in the creature description. That was easy, wasn't it? I'm pretty sure that this shouldn't give them an LA, since they are blind.
baby_kamikaize_kobold 07-28-07, 12:49 PM	Thanks terma69 what about this: what if I gave them blindsight out to 10ft and gave them blindsense out to 40ft would that give them an LA?
locustechpriest 07-28-07, 03:07 PM	These creatures should be larger rather than medium. They may stand 6 feet head to ground, but sized depends upon volume, not height. (I would cite that, but I don't remember where it is.)
Lawlicron 07-28-07, 03:15 PM	Thanks terma69 what about this: what if I gave them blindsight out to 10ft and gave them blindsense out to 40ft would that give them an LA? That sounds perfectly reasonable. @ locustechpriest, they shouldn't be large.
baby_kamikaize_kobold 07-28-07, 06:50 PM	I added the blind sight out to 10 feet.
Tema69 07-28-07, 08:08 PM	Your blindsight/sense sounds good.. I wouldn't set an LA for that..
baby_kamikaize_kobold 08-02-07, 12:45 PM	Thanks tem69 I didn't know if that would give it an LA or not
locustechpriest 08-03-07, 10:20 PM	@ locustechpriest, they shouldn't be large. Um, so your answer is "No"? Why isn't it large? I can hit it's tail that trails on the ground just as easily as it's torso. It takes up lots of space, according to the description I read; space that is comparable to any large creature. Think of the Yuan'Ti Abomination! Sorry for the rant, but it seemed like you cold-shoulder'd me.
baby_kamikaize_kobold 08-04-07, 09:24 PM	But wouldn't large add on an LA thats not what I want for this particular race.
locustechpriest 08-08-07, 10:56 PM	No, not necessarily. I think large is pretty much balanced: +2 str, -2 dex, and such. Anyway, you could just shorten the tail, or something, if you want it to be medium...
Lawlicron 08-09-07, 07:53 AM	No, not necessarily. I think large is pretty much balanced: +2 str, -2 dex, and such. Anyway, you could just shorten the tail, or something, if you want it to be medium... Large does not balance on its own. It gives reach and access to larger weapons. Don't forget huge size when you cast Enlarge person.
baby_kamikaize_kobold 08-09-07, 10:22 AM	@ locustechpriest: if only six feet of then stays off the ground and they are a total of twelve feet long then that means that only one foot of them is ever outside there five foot square. I don't think that they should be large for that reason. If I did give them large size I'd have to give them slight build for it to make sense.
locustechpriest 08-10-07, 10:36 PM	@BKK: Once again, large is judged by volume, not ability to stay within thier square. I am looking again at the description, though, and thier weight actually implies medium size. Apparently, despite thier length, they are quite spindly. I withdraw the large suggestion then. @Lawlicron: Actually, large size does not give enhanced reach. It is the exception that reach is equal to side length. Large weapons could be problematic, and enlarging would probably be somewhat rare, considering that they live in tunnels, but a definite possibility considering their tendency toward magic. I see your point. EDIT: For a race of snake-people, it would not enhance reach. For tall things, like giants, it certainly would. Sorry for the direct statement there.
baby_kamikaize_kobold 08-20-07, 02:30 PM	I should have been more clear that they were thin creatures and I looked up the abominations in the MM and you were right they are even the same length as this race so I'm sorry I didn't think the length description was that important.