Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Tasaleen 10-03-03, 08:47 PM	hey guys i'm running a game thats about to go into the dessert and looking for good races to throw out before my PCs go up against my home brew race. if anyone has any good ideas let me know. thanks in advance for your help!
krichaiushii 10-04-03, 11:28 AM	Perhaps borrowing ideas from the world of Athas may help. http://athas.org/ Or just use humans with a way different culture. http://www.arabianadventures.org/
Fixxxer 10-04-03, 12:08 PM	Undead, Sand Trolls (immune to fire, but water hurts them like acid), Ankhegs with the Half-Fiend template, Desert Raiders, etc.
Mister Mayhem 10-04-03, 01:08 PM	Heh whatever monsters you actually choose - leave a copy of "Dune" lying around where your players can see it. :devil:
Mike the DM 10-04-03, 01:13 PM	One word: GENIES! (One of my favorite monsters...)
Unholydragoon 10-04-03, 01:26 PM	Genesai work well too - especially Air and Earth. Bulletes would be good, as would Blue Dragons. Janni (genie type) work really well as an exotic race to encounter. Giant Scorpions are a must. :devil:
AncientHugeRedFacedDM 10-04-03, 02:59 PM	I like to use Gnolls in the desert. And I agree Giant Scorpions are a MUST! Good luck, -Hal
primemover003 10-04-03, 04:15 PM	Fire newts and giant Striders from the Monsters of Faerun would be good desert monsters. Digesters, yrthaks, dragonnes, manticores, rocs...
Dash Branaghan 10-04-03, 04:29 PM	Formians. Nothing like putting new meaning to "staking you out on the ant colony." Or would that be "steaking"?
Luminous Crayon 10-04-03, 04:56 PM	Originally posted by Fixxxer Sand Trolls (immune to fire, but water hurts them like acid) Ooooohhh...
Lsaer 10-04-03, 05:30 PM	Salamanders, Fire/Earth/Air Genasi, Ankhegs, but rename them Sandlions *Sorry, I'm a ff4/ff9 fanatic* maybe a modified purple worm/remorhaz for a sand worm, nomadic humans, like the Bedine of FR, Dragonne's, Lamia's so on and so forth.
Edymnion 10-04-03, 05:52 PM	Originally posted by Fixxxer Undead, Sand Trolls (immune to fire, but water hurts them like acid) Oh, thats just devious. Especially if the party doesn't have a cleric to Create Water, it would be downright insideous, make the party give up precious water rations to defeate the enemy. Definatly a monster you throw at the party in a game where you're keeping close track on water reserves in the desert.
PenderGrass 10-04-03, 05:58 PM	i'm running a game thats about to go into the dessert Use Cool Whip and don't forget to put the cherry on top!:D
Vaalingrade Ashland 10-04-03, 06:08 PM	Mirrored armor for your NPCs. Ancient Saudi tactic was to tie shiny bits to their clothes to blind and confuse the enemy.
Nifft 10-04-03, 06:13 PM	Halfling Cannibal Druids riding Giant Scorpions. I know it's cliche, but it works. Mummies (with the Shadow template if you're feeling evil, and Cleric levels if you're really feeling evil, and decent armor if you're a rat bastard like me). Half-Fiend Gnome Bards riding Manticores. "What, another illusory oasis?!" Half-Blue Dragon Gorgons, with Medusae handlers (who have Sorcerer levels) and a Blue Dragon master. Tauric Scorpion/Goblin monsters with Ranger levels. Evil Sand Pixies. Or worse, Scrigs (evil Grig/Scorpion hybrid). Demons locked away in secret tombs under forgotten cities in lost caves. Azer miners. -- N
Lsaer 10-04-03, 06:17 PM	*note to self, never game under Nifft*
Mike the DM 10-04-03, 06:33 PM	Originally posted by Nifft Halfling Cannibal Druids riding Giant Scorpions. I know it's cliche, but it works. Mummies (with the Shadow template if you're feeling evil, and Cleric levels if you're really feeling evil, and decent armor if you're a rat bastard like me). Half-Fiend Gnome Bards riding Manticores. "What, another illusory oasis?!" Half-Blue Dragon Gorgons, with Medusae handlers (who have Sorcerer levels) and a Blue Dragon master. Tauric Scorpion/Goblin monsters with Ranger levels. Evil Sand Pixies. Or worse, Scrigs (evil Grig/Scorpion hybrid). Demons locked away in secret tombs under forgotten cities in lost caves. Azer miners. -- N You're a sick :censored:. I admire that in a person.
Donnavin Snowolf 10-04-03, 06:37 PM	Here's a race if you need one. Already ran it through the grinder on the Races board. Burned (Fools of the Desert) . There once was a wiseman and a fool who were traveling in the desert together. On the second day the became parched and could not slate their thirst, for they had drunk all their water on the first day and the morning of the second. So in the dark of the evening of the second day the fool stabbed a hole in a catcus and drew water from its fleshy inside. The two drank and the fool turned to the wiseman and said "Now who is the fool and who is the wiseman." The wiseman turned to him and said, . "I am the wiseman, for I chose to take you into the desert, while you chose to travel with a fool." -Bloodstone, David Gemmel (tm) Background . The Burned consider themselves to be the children of the fool, and are sometimes called "Fools of the Desert." After having been bested by wiser men they decided to suffer alone. For two hundred years they stayed in the desert, learning is tricks and whimsy nature. They gleaned where the water came, and where it went when it was gone. But no man can be alone forever. Trade caravans crossed the desert now, the backs of camels laden with goods. The Burned found the goods of these caravans to be of great value, far better than their bone tools, no matter how decorated and appealing. The offers of steel and silk called to them and brought them into the world again. The Burned offered their skills as guides of the most inhospitable place in the world. Description . The Burned are called such for their skin, now a golden dark tan by nature. Their eyes are smaller but carry incredible depth perception. Their noses are smaller as well to provide greater exhale pressure, pushing sand and dust from the nose. Burned ears are of little use for if anything is to be heard in the desert it is the wind. The are also called Fools of the Desert for their flamboyant and bright colors which help them shed the heat and be seen at longer distances. They are friendly by nature and greatly desiring to help one another out, for there is no other way to survive the firey sand. They are favorites of the Djinni, who's antics along with animal tricksters form the vast majority of Burned lore. . The desert has taught them many harsh things however, they lack much regret or sympathy over death or human emotions as life in the desert ends with each evening and begins with each dawn. They are fierce barterers for there are few resources in the desert and each is precious. Fighting is life or death in everyway to them, because bleeding in the desert is the same as dying. They wear tough and thin leathers beneath long robes. Fights however do not simply start, contrary to the belief of many alien to the Burned way of life. Society . Life among the Burned is only partially strict. There is the Walker who commands the tribe, their word is absolute and they rule from both experience in command and knowledge of the desert. Whichever member has the superior understanding of both is the Walker. Below the Walker are the Watchers. There are rarely more than two Watchers. They run before the tribe and watch behind it. They are known for being fleet of foot and have the greatest ability at wethering the desert alone. They watch for threats, sandstorms, dragons, and undead. When these are spotted in sufficient danger they return to the Walker. Watchers never lie about such things, and their word is not doubted. . Beyond these positions of responsibility there is no rank or command. A man and his wife are loyal to each other in heart, but their body is their own to share. Children are the children of the tribe, but are strictly regimented so as to teach them the danger of waste before they can walk. . Between tribes water is currency. Bartering occurs but the end leverage is always water. Bartering is always friendly but fierce. Each person who trades with others brings small marbles of burned sand to the table and each weight counts for the water it weighs. This leads to many confrontations between foreign merchants who come to the table trading trinkets, but balk when water is demanded of them. . Fights in the Burned society are not rare, especially in foriegn places. But there is a strict order to them. The Burned who wish to fight make eye contact and hold each others gaze for a few minutes. If at the end both touch their weapons the fight begins, immediately. Thus it is simple to have a misunderstanding turn into a fight, catching a Burned's eyes while scratching your side could ingnite a fight should your hand tarry to low to your swords hilt. Once a Burned begins to fight it is only traditionally possible to stop him from attacking by offering a drink of water for your transgression right then and there. Burned Average Stats Str: 8 Dex: 10 Con: 13 Wis: 12 Int: 10 Cha: 7 Average Height: 5'6" Average Weight: 120 lbs Favored Class: Ranger Favored Deity: Missuf: Desert God of Survival: Water/Protection/Travel/Luck Burned Racial Features +2 Con, Wis -2 Str, Cha Medium sized Base Speed 30ft +4 Survival in desert enviroments +2 to Diplomacy and Appraise when bartering +2 to Spot -2 to Listen -2 to Craft Skills -2 to Swim +2 against heat effects and fire based attacks
Arilou_skiff 10-04-03, 08:11 PM	Can't go wrong with mummies. Also, how about Desert Zombies (dessiccated zombies that burrow under the sand only to appear and Evil Dead your ass)
Silverstone 10-06-03, 09:40 PM	There are also brown dragons found in the desert, and they have no wings. (good challenge for fighters)