Post/Author/DateTime	Post
ZexisStryfe 05-01-07, 04:56 PM	Hey guys, This is a race I have created for use with my homebrew world. Basically they are humanoids tainted by the presence of a God of Death. I am aiming for a 0 LA race which has many of the traits of undeath, without being crazy powerful. Forsaken Racial Traits Ability Adjustments: Strength +2, Charisma +2, Constitution -2, Wisdom -2. The Forsaken rely heavily upon their brute strength and beguiling ways to overcome their shortcomings. Preferred Alignments: Lawful Evil, Lawful Neutral Size: As medium sized creatures, the Forsaken have no bonuses or penalties due to their size. Base Speed: 30 feet Resistances: Immune to charm person or dominate person (Forsaken are monstrous humanoids) Spell-like Abilities: 1/day- spider climb. Vision: Darkvision 60 ft. The Forsaken are at home in the darkness, using this to their advantage to surprise their prey. Skill Bonus: +2 racial bonus on Bluff, Intimidate, and Move Silently checks. -2 penalty on Diplomacy checks with any other race. Bonus Feat: Tomb Tainted Soul Other: Forsaken can take Monstrous feats with the Undead prerequisite Automatic Languages: Necropolitan, Lotharian, Deathspeak Bonus Languages: Abyssal, Ashtar, Deepspeak, Draconic, Gnomish, Human (Regional), Ishtar Favored Class: Warlock (The warlock class is tied to being exposed to divine essence in my campaign, and not demons/devils) Hated the world over, the Forsaken were the warriors and warlocks of the first Unhallowed campaign to conquer the continent. Under the command of the god Kadum, these half-undead creatures wreaked havoc upon Valis, turning it into a burnt husk of its former glory. If it had not been for the death of Kadum at the hands of the human king of Greyfaulk, the Forsaken warriors would continue to plague Sytheria (the planet) today. This is not the case, however. Since the death of Kadum and subsequent rise to power of the new Warlord, Siegfried Haltharn, these corrupted creatures have left the ranks of the Unhallowed, replaced by the golem-like warriors know as the Mechanus (warforged). Now, free from the reign of the new Warlord, but not yet accepted by many of the other races of Sytheria, the Forsaken are alone in their quest to find a purpose in the post-Divine War era Sytheria. Founding the city of Nocturnus in an old Dwarven ruin deep beneath the Shattered Peaks, the Forsaken are striking out into the world. Preparing to build themselves a legacy and stop this new warlord from destroying the Empire that they helped to create, the Forsaken will stop at nothing to become the new rulers of Valis. PS- This race, although called the Forsaken, is in no way supposed to have anything to do with the undead race from WoW of the same name, and in fact predate Warcraft III by about 5 years.
Shedeo 05-01-07, 05:02 PM	Generally, you cannot have a creature type other than Humanoid without a Level Adjustment. Were I you, I would make them humanoid with whatever subtype you wanted to slap on them. Spiderclimb 2/day may be a bit much, I'd say 1/day and then a feat that allows them to use it an additional times per day equal to their charisma modifier. Otherwise... I'm tenuitively saying it looks pretty good.
ZexisStryfe 05-01-07, 05:09 PM	I have been going back and forth about spider climb... whether to allow it usable once or twice a day. Perhaps I will set it to one and allow the use of the regional feat Magic in the Blood from PGtF, since I give each of my players a bonus regional feat at lvl 1. As for the monstrous humanoid, i thought dragon did a few races with monstrous humanoid as the type without an LA, I would have to check though. Edit- They did, Lupin and Tibbits are both Monstrous humanoids in Dragon Compendium Vol. 1
Rerecros 05-01-07, 05:19 PM	Personly I would just give them LA+1, so they can have a permanent climb speed and don't need ability penalties for balance. For type, I'd call them Tomb Tainted humanoids, immune to spells that target humanoids and are treated as undead for the purpose of feats and magic items. If they need to be LA+0, give them +2 dex -2 con (dex is the most important thing for a warlock, and I personaly dislike too many ability adjustments), I'd give them spiderclimb 1/day Caster level egual to half character level provided they have at least 10 cha.
Return of the Flumph 05-01-07, 05:31 PM	Generally, you cannot have a creature type other than Humanoid without a Level Adjustment. Were I you, I would make them humanoid with whatever subtype you wanted to slap on them. Elans?
Shedeo 05-01-07, 05:34 PM	Mental bonuses aren't really a no-no for LA +0 races. "It benefits spellcasters" whoopty doo. A penalty hurts them. If a penalty is fair, I'd say so is a benefit. Some races are supposed to be better spellcasters than others. Anywho, I like the adjustments. I think they fit. Oddly enough, they're identical to the one I did for the Forsaken in the WoW game (I made my own racial traits) but the execution is totally different... Obviously, because this race has nothing to do with WoW. About Elans: Yeah, you got me there. Same as with Warforged, technically.
ZexisStryfe 05-01-07, 07:17 PM	Anywho, I like the adjustments. I think they fit. Oddly enough, they're identical to the one I did for the Forsaken in the WoW game (I made my own racial traits) but the execution is totally different... Obviously, because this race has nothing to do with WoW. Yeah, I get tired of people comparing these guys to the WoW undead. What makes it worse is the fact that in the original campaign, the Unhallowed were known as "The Undead Scourge". Ungh... my players never let me live that one down. I changed spider climb to once a day... To me that looks pretty good, but of course constructive criticism is always welcome.
Shedeo 05-01-07, 10:43 PM	Man, I can believe it. Its like in my sci-fi campaign... "Confederacy of Independant Systems..." I was not happy upon seeing Attack of the Clones. Anyways, back on topic. I think it looks pretty balanced. For me, I like to make a lot of racial-specific feats to really cap off a race, but that's just me.
adgramaine 05-02-07, 02:17 AM	I have to agree with the racial-specific feats as mentioned above... With the change to spider climb, they look downright decent to me. Here's a thought though. If you have put so much love into your design, think about creating racial paragon levels (see UA or the d20 SRD to catch my drift). Given the chance to design three levels for them, I bet you can chance off your WoW criers. I am a huge fan of racial paragon levels, and use them with most of my centrally themed home-brewed races. Heck, try your hand at a few racial substitution levels while your at it. Next thing you know, you've got the culture hard-wired into the game mechanics.
ZexisStryfe 05-02-07, 09:39 AM	And now some fluff to better flesh these guys out. Appearance: The Forsaken stand at approximately 6 feet tall and strongly resemble their vampire and wight progenitors. Physically they tend to resemble elves very closely, however their skin in a unnatural white or grayish color and cold to the touch. The eyes of the Forsaken glow with an unholy light, usually red, however yellow and white are not unknown. Forsaken always have black hair; however their hairstyles vary widely from the norm to the extravagant to the outright bizarre. They also possess fangs and claws, features which get them confused with vampires on many occasions. Power Groups: The Forsaken are a newly formed resistance group and therefore have few power groups among them. Society itself is run with a military model, with a strict ranking system in place. The leader of the Forsaken holds a position known as Lord Marshal, however due to the “you keep what you kill” philosophy prevalent in their society, the position of Lord Marshal changes hands rather often. The only other two major factions within the Forsaken are the Black Skulls and the Deathbringers (see the PrC in Champions of Ruin for more details). The Black Skulls are a group of Forsaken who believe that all "traditional" sentient life on Sytheria should be extinguished. To this end they take great pleasure in manipulating mortals into sealing not only their own doom, but the doom of entire cities. If the Black Skulls have their way, then the Forsaken shall inherit all of Sytheria. The Deathbringers take quite a different approach to things. The Forsaken involved with the Deathbringer Cult train and imbue mortals (particularly the Olith'Dar) with the powers of undeath, turning them into powerful agents of the undead (or so they believe). Beliefs: The Forsaken worship death and all the gods associated with the various aspects of it. In lieu of the death of Kadum, the primary god of the Forsaken has become The Reaper, Thanatos. Although the majority of the Forsaken still worship this dark god, interactions with the other races of Sytheria have exposed the Forsaken to other equally dark gods. Recently cults to gods such as Amath-Aran, Karas and Nazreth have all appeared within The Fallen Empire. Many Forsaken warlocks and wizards also owe their allegiance to the Umbral Goddess, Hecate, and worship her as the source of all magic. Deities: Thanatos*, Kadum, Amath-Aran, Karas, Nazreth Language: The Forsaken do not have a language of their own, but instead speak the Necropolitan language of their once home city of Moorlith. This language is shared with the Unhallowed, the Necropolitan residents of Moorlith and the Mechanus under the Warlord's control. It is said that this language was handed down to the Warlord and the Undead Empire via the now dead god Kadum, and as such is a sacred tradition amongst the Forsaken. Because of this, the Forsaken rarely speak the language (outside of a few guttural obscenities directed at others) in front of those they consider “non-believers”. Relations: The Forsaken are a study in opposites. Usually quite uncomfortable in social settings, the Forsaken see no point to the idle chit-chat most other races partake in. However, should the talk turn to battle, a Forsaken will often jump in with their comments and "expertise" in the subject. The Forsaken, after being stuck in a military environment for millennia, tend to only think in martial ways. They understand combat and procedure in and out, and are quite good at following and giving orders, however in a social context, most Forsaken are like a fish out of water. They see no need to discuss personal matters unless they will somehow affect any perceived combat at a later date. To say that the Forsaken do not get along with the rest of Sytheria is an understatement. The Unhallowed and the Illithids despise the Forsaken, viewing them as betrayers and traitors to the Chosen of Kadum. The members of the Tunarian Alliance (Humans, Rilis'Kesir, Khiasa'Kesir and the Olith'Dar) view them with disdain, not knowing whether they are legitimate in their dissension or are merely playing out an elaborate ruse on the part of Warlord Haltharn. Role-playing a Forsaken The Forsaken are a civilization hated by the world, but don’t let that get you down, because soon your military might with spread out across Valis and take back what is rightfully yours. You will do whatever you can to further the cause of the Forsaken, even if it means assisting the enemy. After all, the enemy of your enemy is your friend, at least for now. Order is everything and remember, you keep what you kill. You must follow the orders of your superiors; however the orders of your Forsaken leaders take precedence over all others. Those who do not follow orders are sure to die, and if by your hand, all the better. A little exposition: Olith'Dar= Shadow Elves (Drow) Khiasa'Kesir= Desert Elves (think Valenar with more of an Arabic twist) Rilis'Kesir= Wood Elves 10 points to the person who can tell me what race their military structure is based upon :P Now for some Racial feats... with these I am trying to bring out the the fact that these guys are decended from undead, and these feats give them undead abilities. All of these feats have the following: Prerequisites: Forsaken, Must be taken at level 1 Thirst for Blood Your vampiric heritage is evident by your pronounced fangs and your overwhelming thirst for blood. Benefit: You gain a bite attack that deals 1d4 damage. You can suck blood from a living victim (with blood) with your fangs by making a successful grapple check. If you pin your foe, you can drain blood, dealing 1d4 points of Constitution drain each round the pin is maintained. On each such successful attack, you gain 5 temporary hit points that last for 1 minute. Claws of the Wight You have the blood of ancient wights running through your veins, granting you the ability to drain the life from the living. Benefit: You gain a claw attack that deals 1d4 damage. Living creatures hit by your claw attack gain one negative level. The DC is 10 + 1/2 your level + CHA modifier for the Fortitude save to remove a negative level. For each such negative level bestowed, you gain 5 temporary hit points that last for 1 minute. Death Unwilling Due to your undead ancestors and closeness to the god of death, you find yourself especially resistant to Kadum's calling. Benefit: You are not at risk of death from massive damage, and gain a +2 on saves vs. death effects, negative levels and ability drain/damage. My gut says that these may be too powerful, so citicism is definately welcome.
Gorlick_Da_Consumer 05-02-07, 01:08 PM	I would give them the undead traits, those give them selves a bonus and penalties so it wouldn’t mess with the race to much, and it treats them as undead
ZexisStryfe 05-02-07, 03:37 PM	Undead Traits No Constitution score. I don't want to give the Forsaken undead traits because of this little gem. Without d12 HD I think this is just too much of a penalty and would make the race unappealing to play.
adgramaine 05-02-07, 03:38 PM	In response to your feats... they are a tad powerful... actually, that is me being nice. :D A Feat providing a bite attack is great, but allowing it to do Con drain with the only prereq is being a Level one character,lemme admit that I am fearful.... The ability to do negative level damage as well.... Conceptually, these are great feats. I can see where you are going with the design, but the crunch hit me just a bit too hard. If you are dead set on these Feats as written, give them both a Cha requirement (15 at the barest minimum) and possibly another required feat from the Tomb Tainted tree. I know that Tomb Tainted tree isn't exactly the largest tree to pick fruit from, but since your approach to these creatures deviates from more traditional undead, that Feat tree really is the best reference I can think of at this moment. The "Death Unwilling" feat is much more manageable. Remove the immunity to negative levels and ability drain, but provide immunity to ability damage (the temporary damage). This makes them immune to many diseases and poisons, but not the most deadly ones. Give this feat a Con requirement (I'm thinking 15 on this as well, but I might even increase that) and you can even keep the "massive damage" benefit. >>Chronicles of Riddic for teh win<< As a final comment, I personally would not change their type to undead. The hp gain, immunity gains - makes for very powerful, albeit fun, player characters. Besides, do you really want your protagonists vulnerable to a cleric's turning ability....? ;)
ZexisStryfe 05-02-07, 11:14 PM	A Feat providing a bite attack is great, but allowing it to do Con drain with the only prereq is being a Level one character,lemme admit that I am fearful.... The ability to do negative level damage as well.... Conceptually, these are great feats. I can see where you are going with the design, but the crunch hit me just a bit too hard. If you are dead set on these Feats as written, give them both a Cha requirement (15 at the barest minimum) and possibly another required feat from the Tomb Tainted tree. I know that Tomb Tainted tree isn't exactly the largest tree to pick fruit from, but since your approach to these creatures deviates from more traditional undead, that Feat tree really is the best reference I can think of at this moment. The "Death Unwilling" feat is much more manageable. Remove the immunity to negative levels and ability drain, but provide immunity to ability damage (the temporary damage). This makes them immune to many diseases and poisons, but not the most deadly ones. Give this feat a Con requirement (I'm thinking 15 on this as well, but I might even increase that) and you can even keep the "massive damage" benefit. I think I will remove the ability to CON drain from the bite attack (it will also lower the bookkeeping for the DM). I have also thought about going the other way with the Wight feat, and remove the slam attack, forcing the character to make an unarmed attack instead (provoking an AoO, and nonleathal damage without taking a -4 to attack). In addition I may add a Cha prerequisite to it, perhaps CHA 14. As for the "Death Unwilling"- this feat only gives immunity to massive damage death. It only grants +2 to saves against neg. levels, ability drain/damage and death effects, not immunity.
Shedeo 05-04-07, 12:52 AM	I'd just say have the feat, instead of dealing CON drain, deal HP damage... The Forsaken then just heals that much damage. Maybe it could grant them a minor amount of temporary hit points, perhaps equal to their character level multiplied by their charisma modifier... But still, it would be hard for anyone to really get that to a point where it'd be really huge.