Special Wolf as a playable race [Archive] - Wizards Community

Special Wolf as a playable race [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Traya
01-13-08, 03:41 AM Hello! I know it sounds like a really weird idea but I am enamored by the thought of role playing a type of wolf as a character. I have brainstormed ideas on how it would work and how I can keep it balanced and would like to hear what some other people say on the subject.

Basically I'm wanting to create a race that I call the "Spirit Wolf". It is a special wolf that has once been a human but do to any number of reasons they have become this race. This wolf gains levels and special abilities to keep it on par with other types of PCs.

The first thing I looked at was the wolf itself and when I saw it , it seemed to be pretty balanced with normal races if it were a base race. This is what I got from it (If there is something missing please let me know) :

-Scent
-Low-light vision
-Base speed 50 feet
-Natural Attacks: Bite 1D6 (claw attack for 1D4?)
-+2 natural armor
-Trip
-+4 to Survival when using tracking scent.

The last thing that isnt really a trait but should be mentioned is the fact that they are of course in a animal form and unable to perform tasks that most humanoids can.

Now the wolf would be able to use some class levels(as I plan it as a PC) but some I am not sure how (spell casting classes) but I do see using the classes of fighter , rogue , barbarian as classes it could naturally take.

The part most important to me is the way to keep a natural character balance with most PCs. A wolf cannot use weapons or armor (barding maybe) and they certainly cant wear rings. So I planned on giving it a spinoff of the exalted "Vow of Poverty" even though its not really a willing option since they have to take it. This is what I view gives the wolf the more spiritual aspect and makes it so it might be balanced with normal players (although I do hear alot of people saying that vow of poverty is "broken") This version is superseded by the actual vow of poverty and does not stack.

These are the changes of Vow of poverty to make it more natural and less good.

-Bonus Exalted feats become bonus Monstrous feats ( I am not sure of how powerful exalted feats are so please tell me if I just broke the idea)
-Exalted Strike renamed Spiritual strike (for fluff) and stays as a magical attack instead of turning to good.
-Sustenance becomes speak with animals (same) and greater sustenance becomes speak with animals (all)
-Damage reduction is /magic instead of /evil.

The Spirit wolf can also speak(its a magical animal so I thought that might be a good reason on how it can talk) and cannot use any sort of weapons or items. For role play reasons you can wear jewelry or such as necklaces but you cannot get the bonuses they give.

Think this might be a good idea and a feasible character to play?. If anyone has ideas to build on to the Spirit wolf( even a better name, lol ) or needs me to explain anything further please let me know.

Here are a couple of my own ideas to add to the Spirit wolf :

Give it a +2DEX -2CON racial adjustment
Since you normally must take a feat for "Vow of Poverty" possibly take away the spirit wolf's first level feat (Although this might be balanced by the fact that you are in a animal form)

Thanks!
Neutronium_Dragon
01-13-08, 04:08 AM > A wolf cannot use weapons or armor (barding maybe) and they certainly cant
> wear rings.

Error!

Apart from the fact that the Opposable property and some other methods exist to let them wield weapons, they can wear rings on their forepaws. Gloves go there too. (Though cosmetically it might be more suitable to make them look like mitts or such.)
lordofskulls
01-13-08, 04:18 AM Those racial traits are way above what a normal race gives, not to mention all the incredible benefits it will get from the vow of poverty. They have rules in the Savage Species book for playing an awakened wolf which would allow you to play an intelligent wolf easily my advice would be to use that.
Traya
01-13-08, 05:03 AM > A wolf cannot use weapons or armor (barding maybe) and they certainly cant
> wear rings.

Error!

Apart from the fact that the Opposable property and some other methods exist to let them wield weapons, they can wear rings on their forepaws. Gloves go there too. (Though cosmetically it might be more suitable to make them look like mitts or such.)
Well I guess you could do that , but it seems kind of crazy to me :P

Those racial traits are way above what a normal race gives, not to mention all the incredible benefits it will get from the vow of poverty. They have rules in the Savage Species book for playing an awakened wolf which would allow you to play an intelligent wolf easily my advice would be to use that.

Well if you take a gander at the dwarf, elf , and gnome traits they all have a vision trait like the wolf , a bonus to skills in certain circumstances , andproficiencies with weapons (which would be a wolves bite) . I think that scent and the base land speed might be balanced out by the simple fact that wolves cant do what most other races can. Things like , writing , picking locks/disarming traps , craft , forgery , heal , ride , use magic device , or use rope. Wolves would have a hard time picking a profession as well. (fishing? lol)
Mind you these are all skills , there are other things like opening doors which would be more difficult for them to do. However Trip seems like it could be replaced by a feat to me so that could be overruled.

The vow of party is balanced by the fact that you cannot use any equipments benefits right?(even more so that you cant own it)

I also can not find the "Awakened wolf" in the savage species handbook. Could you show me where it is at?
zeratulcraft
01-13-08, 06:45 AM Don't use the lack of reasonable choice in the "Profession" skill as a balancing factor. Seriously, you're an adventurer, thats your profession, you kill things and sell their possessions for money.
Wvrenwulf
01-14-08, 11:03 AM When I think of Wolves as a playable race, I think Wolfs Rain the anime. Maybe your wolf could have a psuedo form. For a wolf, a +2 Dex, +2 Con would work. Or Spirit Wolf might be +2 Dex, +2 Wis. Either way, the animal could be adapted. You'll need to have some intelligance, though. Beyond animal- to be a pc. A wolf could have a special barding. But you'd need a humanoid companion to put it on you.:)
Traya
01-14-08, 07:02 PM I was thinking on letting them role up stats like normal characters since they used to be one of the other base races(human,elf,dwarf, etc) just they do not get the racial adjustments of the original race.
Devigod
01-14-08, 08:29 PM Well actually, normal wolves get a +2 to strength, and a +4 to dexterity and constitution. They'd assume the physical form and therefore stat mods of a wolf. Don't forget the 2 animal hit dice. Wolves have to start with them, it's like a level adjustment, but not.
Wolves also don't have a claw... not 1d4. They do have somewhat sharp paws, but they lack the foreleg (forearm?) control neccessary to actually lash out with it or otherwise purposefully attack.

I have been working on a wolf-like fey race for a while. They have the ability to turn into wolves and back, you can find the link for it in my sig under Lumyr. I dunno if it's what you're looking for, but it might be kinda cool...

OR

You could just play a lycanthrope (were-animal). Check the monster manual for details on lycanthropes. It could be an adventure hook in itself.
baby_kamikaize_kobold
01-14-08, 09:20 PM You could have a standard wolf with just an awaken animal spell cast on it.

Also for spell casting they would have to take the still and silent spell if they wanted to cast spells with somatic or verbal components.(remember intelligence doesn't imply speech and speech doesn't imply intelligence)
Neutronium_Dragon
01-15-08, 01:44 AM Awaken specifically gives the creature language, so speech isn't a problem.

Creatures with nonhumanoid forms simply use their form's natural motions for spellcasting. (Otherwise all of the bizarrely-shaped creatures with spellcasting wouldn't actually be able to use it.) It's only when you've actually changed shape to something other than your own that you run into trouble that way.
calronmoonflower
01-15-08, 04:08 AM You could try the lupin from the Dragon Compendium.
Xenobody
01-15-08, 02:31 PM You could have a standard wolf with just an awaken animal spell cast on it.

Also for spell casting they would have to take the still and silent spell if they wanted to cast spells with somatic or verbal components.(remember intelligence doesn't imply speech and speech doesn't imply intelligence)

There is the Surrogate Spellcasting feat from Savage Species, enabling non-humanoids to cast spells by making sounds or movements appropriate to their form.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Traya 01-13-08, 03:41 AM	Hello! I know it sounds like a really weird idea but I am enamored by the thought of role playing a type of wolf as a character. I have brainstormed ideas on how it would work and how I can keep it balanced and would like to hear what some other people say on the subject. Basically I'm wanting to create a race that I call the "Spirit Wolf". It is a special wolf that has once been a human but do to any number of reasons they have become this race. This wolf gains levels and special abilities to keep it on par with other types of PCs. The first thing I looked at was the wolf itself and when I saw it , it seemed to be pretty balanced with normal races if it were a base race. This is what I got from it (If there is something missing please let me know) : -Scent -Low-light vision -Base speed 50 feet -Natural Attacks: Bite 1D6 (claw attack for 1D4?) -+2 natural armor -Trip -+4 to Survival when using tracking scent. The last thing that isnt really a trait but should be mentioned is the fact that they are of course in a animal form and unable to perform tasks that most humanoids can. Now the wolf would be able to use some class levels(as I plan it as a PC) but some I am not sure how (spell casting classes) but I do see using the classes of fighter , rogue , barbarian as classes it could naturally take. The part most important to me is the way to keep a natural character balance with most PCs. A wolf cannot use weapons or armor (barding maybe) and they certainly cant wear rings. So I planned on giving it a spinoff of the exalted "Vow of Poverty" even though its not really a willing option since they have to take it. This is what I view gives the wolf the more spiritual aspect and makes it so it might be balanced with normal players (although I do hear alot of people saying that vow of poverty is "broken") This version is superseded by the actual vow of poverty and does not stack. These are the changes of Vow of poverty to make it more natural and less good. -Bonus Exalted feats become bonus Monstrous feats ( I am not sure of how powerful exalted feats are so please tell me if I just broke the idea) -Exalted Strike renamed Spiritual strike (for fluff) and stays as a magical attack instead of turning to good. -Sustenance becomes speak with animals (same) and greater sustenance becomes speak with animals (all) -Damage reduction is /magic instead of /evil. The Spirit wolf can also speak(its a magical animal so I thought that might be a good reason on how it can talk) and cannot use any sort of weapons or items. For role play reasons you can wear jewelry or such as necklaces but you cannot get the bonuses they give. Think this might be a good idea and a feasible character to play?. If anyone has ideas to build on to the Spirit wolf( even a better name, lol ) or needs me to explain anything further please let me know. Here are a couple of my own ideas to add to the Spirit wolf : Give it a +2DEX -2CON racial adjustment Since you normally must take a feat for "Vow of Poverty" possibly take away the spirit wolf's first level feat (Although this might be balanced by the fact that you are in a animal form) Thanks!
Neutronium_Dragon 01-13-08, 04:08 AM	> A wolf cannot use weapons or armor (barding maybe) and they certainly cant > wear rings. Error! Apart from the fact that the Opposable property and some other methods exist to let them wield weapons, they can wear rings on their forepaws. Gloves go there too. (Though cosmetically it might be more suitable to make them look like mitts or such.)
lordofskulls 01-13-08, 04:18 AM	Those racial traits are way above what a normal race gives, not to mention all the incredible benefits it will get from the vow of poverty. They have rules in the Savage Species book for playing an awakened wolf which would allow you to play an intelligent wolf easily my advice would be to use that.
Traya 01-13-08, 05:03 AM	> A wolf cannot use weapons or armor (barding maybe) and they certainly cant > wear rings. Error! Apart from the fact that the Opposable property and some other methods exist to let them wield weapons, they can wear rings on their forepaws. Gloves go there too. (Though cosmetically it might be more suitable to make them look like mitts or such.) Well I guess you could do that , but it seems kind of crazy to me :P Those racial traits are way above what a normal race gives, not to mention all the incredible benefits it will get from the vow of poverty. They have rules in the Savage Species book for playing an awakened wolf which would allow you to play an intelligent wolf easily my advice would be to use that. Well if you take a gander at the dwarf, elf , and gnome traits they all have a vision trait like the wolf , a bonus to skills in certain circumstances , andproficiencies with weapons (which would be a wolves bite) . I think that scent and the base land speed might be balanced out by the simple fact that wolves cant do what most other races can. Things like , writing , picking locks/disarming traps , craft , forgery , heal , ride , use magic device , or use rope. Wolves would have a hard time picking a profession as well. (fishing? lol) Mind you these are all skills , there are other things like opening doors which would be more difficult for them to do. However Trip seems like it could be replaced by a feat to me so that could be overruled. The vow of party is balanced by the fact that you cannot use any equipments benefits right?(even more so that you cant own it) I also can not find the "Awakened wolf" in the savage species handbook. Could you show me where it is at?
zeratulcraft 01-13-08, 06:45 AM	Don't use the lack of reasonable choice in the "Profession" skill as a balancing factor. Seriously, you're an adventurer, thats your profession, you kill things and sell their possessions for money.
Wvrenwulf 01-14-08, 11:03 AM	When I think of Wolves as a playable race, I think Wolfs Rain the anime. Maybe your wolf could have a psuedo form. For a wolf, a +2 Dex, +2 Con would work. Or Spirit Wolf might be +2 Dex, +2 Wis. Either way, the animal could be adapted. You'll need to have some intelligance, though. Beyond animal- to be a pc. A wolf could have a special barding. But you'd need a humanoid companion to put it on you.:)
Traya 01-14-08, 07:02 PM	I was thinking on letting them role up stats like normal characters since they used to be one of the other base races(human,elf,dwarf, etc) just they do not get the racial adjustments of the original race.
Devigod 01-14-08, 08:29 PM	Well actually, normal wolves get a +2 to strength, and a +4 to dexterity and constitution. They'd assume the physical form and therefore stat mods of a wolf. Don't forget the 2 animal hit dice. Wolves have to start with them, it's like a level adjustment, but not. Wolves also don't have a claw... not 1d4. They do have somewhat sharp paws, but they lack the foreleg (forearm?) control neccessary to actually lash out with it or otherwise purposefully attack. I have been working on a wolf-like fey race for a while. They have the ability to turn into wolves and back, you can find the link for it in my sig under Lumyr. I dunno if it's what you're looking for, but it might be kinda cool... OR You could just play a lycanthrope (were-animal). Check the monster manual for details on lycanthropes. It could be an adventure hook in itself.
baby_kamikaize_kobold 01-14-08, 09:20 PM	You could have a standard wolf with just an awaken animal spell cast on it. Also for spell casting they would have to take the still and silent spell if they wanted to cast spells with somatic or verbal components.(remember intelligence doesn't imply speech and speech doesn't imply intelligence)
Neutronium_Dragon 01-15-08, 01:44 AM	Awaken specifically gives the creature language, so speech isn't a problem. Creatures with nonhumanoid forms simply use their form's natural motions for spellcasting. (Otherwise all of the bizarrely-shaped creatures with spellcasting wouldn't actually be able to use it.) It's only when you've actually changed shape to something other than your own that you run into trouble that way.
calronmoonflower 01-15-08, 04:08 AM	You could try the lupin from the Dragon Compendium.
Xenobody 01-15-08, 02:31 PM	You could have a standard wolf with just an awaken animal spell cast on it. Also for spell casting they would have to take the still and silent spell if they wanted to cast spells with somatic or verbal components.(remember intelligence doesn't imply speech and speech doesn't imply intelligence) There is the Surrogate Spellcasting feat from Savage Species, enabling non-humanoids to cast spells by making sounds or movements appropriate to their form.