The Changeling Lifecycle - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

The Changeling Lifecycle

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
Mist-Bound
Mar 07, 2011 0:29:25 I don't own my own copy of the 3.5 supplement "Races of Eberron", but I did once get a chance to read it. That was years ago, though, and now I'm struggling to remember something from the Changeling segment. Can anyone help me?

I believe that I read that Changeling babies are born in a genderless state, rather like ordinary doppelgangers, and that they remain like this for several years. When their shapeshifting powers first begin to develop, it's marked by their developing into the male or female gender; whichever gender they take is considered their "real" gender. Around early puberty, though, their shapeshifting powers fully mature, and this is signified by them gaining the ability to shift into a functional version of the other gender - female changelings can become males and impregnate women, male changelings can become females and get pregnant.

Are my recollections in any way related to the truths related in Races of Eberron as to how Changelings are born and mature?

If my memories are right, at what ages do Changelings develop their true gender and the ability to change genders, respectively? Also, are there any special names for these aspects of maturation?

On a vaguely related topic, what are the Changeling philosophies? I know one of them, which has been updated to 4e, is The Becomers, who believe in taking up one identity from another race and totally subliminating themselves in that identity, but I don't remember the others or what they believed.
#2
Alex_
Mar 07, 2011 0:37:27 I'd assume that gender differences and sexual maturity occur at the time they would usually occur if they were the same race as the host parent. So a Changeling born from a Human would likely begin displaying greater secondary sexual dimorphism a couple of years after birth and become sexually mature during puberty, like any other human child.

   The other philsophies (I forgot their names) believe...

   1) Remain true to yourself by never assuming another person/race's form. Always remain in your "default" changeling form.

   2) Shapechange as you see fit. Never become more attached to one form over another, since they're all tools to help you accomplish your goals.
#3
Siberys
Mar 07, 2011 9:24:21 The one you mentioned, Mist-Bound, is actually Passers, at least by RoE. 2 in Alex_'s list is the Becomers. I forget what 1 is called, and I'm away from my books. :/

As for your question, no, I don't think that's how it worked. Changelings were sexually dimorphic at birth, AFAIK. I don't remember if they developed shapechanging later in life or not, and as I said I'm away from my books.

I always found the ability to physically change into the opposite sex odd, considering they were differentiated at birth - in my games such a change is cosmetic only, none of the plumbing. And, really, what's the point of specifying a gender if you're functionally both? That's a long-dead horse, though.
#4
Mist-Bound
Mar 08, 2011 2:48:01 I'm certain that Races of Eberron describes Changelings as needing to "mature" into first one gender, and then the second. I just can't confirm it because by the time I had the funding to get into D&D at all, 4e had come out and replaced 3e.

Apparently the names changed, though I'm sure the article refers to all of the Philosophies from Races of Eberron; Dragon #386 describes the "Becomer" Changelings, which "so embrace a particular race that they often identify more as a member of that race then their own". I have to say that, personally, "Becomer" seems a bit more suitable a name for a philosophy exhorting Changelings to "become" other races.
#5
Hellcow
Mar 08, 2011 23:52:16
On a vaguely related topic, what are the Changeling philosophies? I know one of them, which has been updated to 4e, is The Becomers, who believe in taking up one identity from another race and totally subliminating themselves in that identity, but I don't remember the others or what they believed.

Personally, I've never particular cottoned to the Three Philosophies Of Changeling approach. I think it's a rather arbitrary thing to force on a race that is as flexible (literally and figuratively) as the changelings.

One of the original ideas behind the changeling was that changelings can be produced when changelings/doppelgangers mate with members of other species - it either produces a full-blooded changeling or member of the other parent's species. This was the original idea of the name "changeling" in the first place - that a mother who didn't know the true nature of her mate would be taken by surprise by the appearance of her child and thus assume it had been stolen away and swapped by fey.

With that in mind, to me the first question for a changeling is whether you were raised by changeling parents or members of another race - and if by another race, whether you were in a community in which changelings were feared or accepted. Did you have to hide your true nature, or were you allowed to be comfortable with it?

Looking to the changeling communities, they themselves are very different - major ones we've established being the Gray Tide in the Lhazaar Principalities, Lost in Droaam, and the changelings of Sharn. I see each of these as having a very different cultural flavor.

I'd really love to discuss my thoughts and suggestions in more detail, but I am terribly sick now and behind on a bunch of work, but I'll put it on my list of things to put up on my website once I'm all caught up.
#6
balard
Mar 10, 2011 10:59:43 My view on changelings:

There are two defined genders. The male changeling can get other races pregnant, and the female changeling can get pregnant from other races. They can mate normally.

All childes of changelings and another race have a chance to be from the same race of one of their parents, or a changeling. In case of a changeling, it has a chance to born in the shape of it's mother/father, but baby changelings can't really control his shapechanging ability, so even if he is born disguised, he can change back anytime.

Baby changelings tend to shapechange with it's moods. It's ability to control and refine the changes comes with the age and training. Even changeling kids tend to lose control of it's shape when they lose concentration or under stress.

The "natural form" of a changeling it's the form he is more comfortable with. For most changelings it's the gray hairless form they are born, but some infant prefer the disguised form they possessed when they are born. This, luck and a protective mother help a changeling to be rised in a community that is hostile to changelings, but such cases are rare.

During puberty the changeling learn(faster if he is in a changeling comunnity, slower if is on it's on) to control his shapechanging to book levels, and all assume some prefered form, that are mastered to the details.

A changeling can always recognizes another changeling he has already saw in the grey hairless form. This "id" is a form of telepathy natural to then. It can be faked, but it's very hard(gonna need specific feats/manifestation). In changeling communities, the presentation of a changeling baby to the community is a important ritual for the newborn. Revealing your natural changeling form for another changeling is an act of great trust, also to a non-changeling, but is a lesser degree.

In changeling communities, is very common to change shape many times a day, depending of the situation, mood or just for the kicks. There is a shape "fashion" that comes and goes. Normally, this kind of constant shapechanging is considered very rude in the presence of non-changelings, because outsiders can't really identify who is who. Of course that xenophobe changelings groups do this all the time.
#7
Hellcow
Mar 10, 2011 13:15:49
A changeling can always recognizes another changeling he has already saw in the grey hairless form.

While there's a certain logic to changelings being able to pierce one another's disguises from an evolutionary standpoint, it becomes weaker once one establishes that changelings can interbreed with other species... meaning that they don't actually need to be able to recognize one another in order to continue the species, at which point any form of auto-identification actually becomes a potential liability.

I'm not crazy about any form of auto-identification simply because it limits stories in some ways. If I have a changeling villain and at some point you can either force him into his natural form or there's reason for him to be in it, I don't want to have his value downgraded from that point forward. What I've suggested is that changeling families come up with various methods that identify themselves to their allies while still hiding them from those who don't know them. For example, a changling clan might come up with a specific language of tattoos or scars, which not only let a member of the same family know "I'm one of you" but can also convey situations - "Get help", "Don't contact me now", "Get out of here." Likewise, a family might actually create specific identities that are used by multiple members of the clan - traveling peddler Babo is always traveling for place to place, and can stop in the local tavern and say "Has anyone left anything for me?"

This creates auto-identification within a community, and is even something that can be taught to non-changeling allies... but it doesn't provide any advantage to or against changelings from another family or community. It's a social thing as opposed to a physiological one (and again, I'd be arguing for a physiological method if not for the fact that they don't need to find one another to propagate).

I do think that being born in the shape of the mother's species is a logical thing; from a survival aspect, one wants to trick the parent into caring for the infant even if the changeling parent has moved on. By the time the changeling begins to shift I'd expect it to be able to survive on its own if it had to - which also suggests to me that changelings mature at a faster rate than most other creatures.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Mist-Bound Mar 07, 2011 0:29:25	I don't own my own copy of the 3.5 supplement "Races of Eberron", but I did once get a chance to read it. That was years ago, though, and now I'm struggling to remember something from the Changeling segment. Can anyone help me? I believe that I read that Changeling babies are born in a genderless state, rather like ordinary doppelgangers, and that they remain like this for several years. When their shapeshifting powers first begin to develop, it's marked by their developing into the male or female gender; whichever gender they take is considered their "real" gender. Around early puberty, though, their shapeshifting powers fully mature, and this is signified by them gaining the ability to shift into a functional version of the other gender - female changelings can become males and impregnate women, male changelings can become females and get pregnant. Are my recollections in any way related to the truths related in Races of Eberron as to how Changelings are born and mature? If my memories are right, at what ages do Changelings develop their true gender and the ability to change genders, respectively? Also, are there any special names for these aspects of maturation? On a vaguely related topic, what are the Changeling philosophies? I know one of them, which has been updated to 4e, is The Becomers, who believe in taking up one identity from another race and totally subliminating themselves in that identity, but I don't remember the others or what they believed.
#2 Alex_ Mar 07, 2011 0:37:27	I'd assume that gender differences and sexual maturity occur at the time they would usually occur if they were the same race as the host parent. So a Changeling born from a Human would likely begin displaying greater secondary sexual dimorphism a couple of years after birth and become sexually mature during puberty, like any other human child. The other philsophies (I forgot their names) believe... 1) Remain true to yourself by never assuming another person/race's form. Always remain in your "default" changeling form. 2) Shapechange as you see fit. Never become more attached to one form over another, since they're all tools to help you accomplish your goals.
#3 Siberys Mar 07, 2011 9:24:21	The one you mentioned, Mist-Bound, is actually Passers, at least by RoE. 2 in Alex_'s list is the Becomers. I forget what 1 is called, and I'm away from my books. :/ As for your question, no, I don't think that's how it worked. Changelings were sexually dimorphic at birth, AFAIK. I don't remember if they developed shapechanging later in life or not, and as I said I'm away from my books. I always found the ability to physically change into the opposite sex odd, considering they were differentiated at birth - in my games such a change is cosmetic only, none of the plumbing. And, really, what's the point of specifying a gender if you're functionally both? That's a long-dead horse, though.
#4 Mist-Bound Mar 08, 2011 2:48:01	I'm certain that Races of Eberron describes Changelings as needing to "mature" into first one gender, and then the second. I just can't confirm it because by the time I had the funding to get into D&D at all, 4e had come out and replaced 3e. Apparently the names changed, though I'm sure the article refers to all of the Philosophies from Races of Eberron; Dragon #386 describes the "Becomer" Changelings, which "so embrace a particular race that they often identify more as a member of that race then their own". I have to say that, personally, "Becomer" seems a bit more suitable a name for a philosophy exhorting Changelings to "become" other races.
#5 Hellcow Mar 08, 2011 23:52:16	On a vaguely related topic, what are the Changeling philosophies? I know one of them, which has been updated to 4e, is The Becomers, who believe in taking up one identity from another race and totally subliminating themselves in that identity, but I don't remember the others or what they believed. Personally, I've never particular cottoned to the Three Philosophies Of Changeling approach. I think it's a rather arbitrary thing to force on a race that is as flexible (literally and figuratively) as the changelings. One of the original ideas behind the changeling was that changelings can be produced when changelings/doppelgangers mate with members of other species - it either produces a full-blooded changeling or member of the other parent's species. This was the original idea of the name "changeling" in the first place - that a mother who didn't know the true nature of her mate would be taken by surprise by the appearance of her child and thus assume it had been stolen away and swapped by fey. With that in mind, to me the first question for a changeling is whether you were raised by changeling parents or members of another race - and if by another race, whether you were in a community in which changelings were feared or accepted. Did you have to hide your true nature, or were you allowed to be comfortable with it? Looking to the changeling communities, they themselves are very different - major ones we've established being the Gray Tide in the Lhazaar Principalities, Lost in Droaam, and the changelings of Sharn. I see each of these as having a very different cultural flavor. I'd really love to discuss my thoughts and suggestions in more detail, but I am terribly sick now and behind on a bunch of work, but I'll put it on my list of things to put up on my website once I'm all caught up.
#6 balard Mar 10, 2011 10:59:43	My view on changelings: There are two defined genders. The male changeling can get other races pregnant, and the female changeling can get pregnant from other races. They can mate normally. All childes of changelings and another race have a chance to be from the same race of one of their parents, or a changeling. In case of a changeling, it has a chance to born in the shape of it's mother/father, but baby changelings can't really control his shapechanging ability, so even if he is born disguised, he can change back anytime. Baby changelings tend to shapechange with it's moods. It's ability to control and refine the changes comes with the age and training. Even changeling kids tend to lose control of it's shape when they lose concentration or under stress. The "natural form" of a changeling it's the form he is more comfortable with. For most changelings it's the gray hairless form they are born, but some infant prefer the disguised form they possessed when they are born. This, luck and a protective mother help a changeling to be rised in a community that is hostile to changelings, but such cases are rare. During puberty the changeling learn(faster if he is in a changeling comunnity, slower if is on it's on) to control his shapechanging to book levels, and all assume some prefered form, that are mastered to the details. A changeling can always recognizes another changeling he has already saw in the grey hairless form. This "id" is a form of telepathy natural to then. It can be faked, but it's very hard(gonna need specific feats/manifestation). In changeling communities, the presentation of a changeling baby to the community is a important ritual for the newborn. Revealing your natural changeling form for another changeling is an act of great trust, also to a non-changeling, but is a lesser degree. In changeling communities, is very common to change shape many times a day, depending of the situation, mood or just for the kicks. There is a shape "fashion" that comes and goes. Normally, this kind of constant shapechanging is considered very rude in the presence of non-changelings, because outsiders can't really identify who is who. Of course that xenophobe changelings groups do this all the time.
#7 Hellcow Mar 10, 2011 13:15:49	A changeling can always recognizes another changeling he has already saw in the grey hairless form. While there's a certain logic to changelings being able to pierce one another's disguises from an evolutionary standpoint, it becomes weaker once one establishes that changelings can interbreed with other species... meaning that they don't actually need to be able to recognize one another in order to continue the species, at which point any form of auto-identification actually becomes a potential liability. I'm not crazy about any form of auto-identification simply because it limits stories in some ways. If I have a changeling villain and at some point you can either force him into his natural form or there's reason for him to be in it, I don't want to have his value downgraded from that point forward. What I've suggested is that changeling families come up with various methods that identify themselves to their allies while still hiding them from those who don't know them. For example, a changling clan might come up with a specific language of tattoos or scars, which not only let a member of the same family know "I'm one of you" but can also convey situations - "Get help", "Don't contact me now", "Get out of here." Likewise, a family might actually create specific identities that are used by multiple members of the clan - traveling peddler Babo is always traveling for place to place, and can stop in the local tavern and say "Has anyone left anything for me?" This creates auto-identification within a community, and is even something that can be taught to non-changeling allies... but it doesn't provide any advantage to or against changelings from another family or community. It's a social thing as opposed to a physiological one (and again, I'd be arguing for a physiological method if not for the fact that they don't need to find one another to propagate). I do think that being born in the shape of the mother's species is a logical thing; from a survival aspect, one wants to trick the parent into caring for the infant even if the changeling parent has moved on. By the time the changeling begins to shift I'd expect it to be able to survive on its own if it had to - which also suggests to me that changelings mature at a faster rate than most other creatures.