| Not all characters are human. When creating a character, you may choose any of the races outlined below. Each race has it’s own bonuses and drawbacks, it’s own culture, it’s own background. If you want to play a race, read that race’s description very carefully. If you belong to a race that requires special makeup, you must wear that makeup. Otherwise, there is no way for people to identify you as a member of that race. If someone asks you, “What do I see?” You must tell them what race you are playing, or describe the racial makeup you are wearing. If someone asks an elf “What do I see?” The elf may either say, “An Elf”, or “You see a man with pointy ears”. If a person asks, “What do I see?” in a situation where he can’t tell anyway, such as a dark forest, he may only see “a shadowy form”, or “a humanoid figure in the distance”. Human The most common race, and perhaps the most balanced. Humans have no special perks or flaws, and do not have to wear any racial makeup. There are no role-playing guidelines to playing a human. Humans are the builders of empires; most governments are founded and lead by humans. Starting Hit Points: 20 Racial Makeup: None Bonus Perks Available: None Special Flaws: None Pros: Humans are good all around characters. Cons: Players will find that humans aren’t as specialized for certain tasks because of their lack of racial bonuses. High Elves High Elves are delicate and graceful creatures who have a love for the finer, more sophisticated things in life: politics, magic, reading and writing. High Elves often appear to be able to rise above the cruder, more barbaric things in the world. Some people see High Elves as aloof, distant, even snotty, but this is merely because they have a natural tendency to separate themselves from what they see to be negative. High Elves live side by side with humans, and share their culture. They enjoy contact with other ‘civilized’ races and try to learn what they can about themselves through observation of others. High Elves are naturally resistant to mind affecting spells such as charms and illusions, though they are somewhat weak in physical combat. Starting Hit Points: 15 Racial Makeup: Pointy Ears Bonus Perks Available: · Detect Magic Perk: (2 XP) High Elves are trained to see and sense magical auras. They can detect all magic on items, and identify what bestows effect a target. In the case of an item, have a host presence around. This is considered point cast, and can be done at will. · Resist Charm Skill: (2 XP) High Elves can naturally resist charm spells, because of their focused nature. Special Flaws: None Pros: Because of their sensitivity to magic, High Elves make good additions to a party. They even do well in magic combat, because of their ability to resist charm spells. Cons: Though they have no special flaws, having the lowest HP in the game is one of the hardest flaws. Low HP Totals make high elves usually the first to fall in front line combat. Sylvan Elves Sylvan Elves are creatures of the forest. Sylvan Elves, Wood Elves, or the “Tree” as they refer to themselves as sometimes, are characterized by barbarity and savageness. Their skin is thick, and has a natural selection of woodsy colors, providing the Sylvan Elves with a natural camouflage on their bodies. Sylvan Elves love the forests they come from, and have a natural distrust for anyone who separate themselves from nature. The Sylvan Elves have earned the insulting nickname “Savage Elves” from their more ‘civilized’ brethren, who frown upon their ‘primitive’ customs. Sylvan Elves believe very strongly in only using what nature has given them. They refuse to use any weapons or armor made of metal, unless the metal is special Elven steel called mithril. Sylvan Elves live in communities of 20-30 elves; each is a contributing part of the tribe. The tribes speak the common Sylvan language as well as the common tongue. Each tribe is lead by a Chief and a Shaman. The chief is no more than an overseer; the real decision maker is the shaman, who is said to be able to speak to the spirits, and to hear the voices of the ancestors. Sylvan Elves have a special connection to the spiritual world. Some have learned to identify a person by spirit. When a spirit passes, most people will only feel a chilling wind or a cool gust. A Sylvan Elf with “Spiritual Instinct” may see whom the passing spirit is, and may talk to them. Spirits usually only speak in a strange cryptic form, usually riddles. Sylvan Elves can also talk to ghosts, and other forms of spirits. Starting Hit Points: 18 Racial Makeup: Pointy Ears, Camouflaged Face Make-up Bonus Perks Available: · Resist Charm Skill: (2 XP) Sylvan Elves can naturally resist charm spells, because of their focused nature. · Sylvan Language Skill: (1 XP) Sylvan Elves can speak their own language. “Change Speak Sylvan” is required before every sentence spoken in Sylvan. · Spiritual Instinct Perk: (2 XP) A Sylvan Elf with this perk may speak to any type of spirit. Wraiths, Ghosts, and Characters in spirit form all fall under this category. Special Flaws: · Natural Weapons: Certain metals physically harm a sylvan. Sylvans cannot effectively use metal weapons (except for spears) or armor unless it is made out of mithril. · Primitive Mind: Read/Write costs 4 XP instead of 2 XP. Pros: Good HP Totals make this race good potential fighters. Resist charms allow them to fight in magic combat fairly well. Also, sometimes talking to a ghost is better then fighting it. Cons: Inability to use metals make weapon choices severely limited. Good non-metal items are hard to come across. Mithril can be expensive, and rare. Read/Write costs make it a bit harder for this race to go caster. Shadow Elves Shadow Elves are black-skinned natives of the Underworld, the network of caves and chambers beneath the surface of Anterris. Rarely, a community of Shadow Elves will emerge from the Underworld and make their way in the world of light, a strange and confusing place, often very violent and uncivilized. Shadow Elves have evolved to embrace the darkness they are perpetually surrounded by. Their race has grown accustomed to darkness and the night. Shadow Elves consider themselves above all other races. They have a matriarchal society, and therefore all females are held in higher regard then the males. Most Shadow Elves belong to a house or clan, in which the mother, or highest female of the house has complete command over her clan and every member in it. The Shadow Elven policy is “To those of higher status, show utmost respect, and loyalty. To those of equal and lower status, show no mercy.” Shadow Elves usually live short lives, dying due to “natural causes”. Then again, a poisoned dagger in the back is considered a “natural cause” to the shadow elves. After all, the dagger will naturally cause you to die. The Shadow Elven language is spoken throughout the Underworld. Shadow elves forbid anyone but a Shadow Elf or another resident of the Underworld to learn it. Starting Hit Points: 17 Racial Makeup: Pointed ears, black face makeup Bonus Perks Available: · Stealth: (Free) In the Underworld, a key to winning a good fight is a good hiding place. Shadow Elves have become accustomed to darkness and shadows, giving them a better sense of how to sneak up on someone. Shadow Elves need only spend 3 XP for a backstab instead of 5 XP. · The 'Whispered Riddle' Skill: (4 XP/ Prerequisite: Religion) The 'Whispered Riddle' is a secret art practiced by both Shadow Elven priests and assassins. In visions found through meditation, a Shadow Elf may learn The 'Whispered Riddle', which is only spoken in the secret language of the spirit. A Shadow Elf who whispers in an opponent's ear can cause him to stand still and confused as his very soul wrestles with the question posed to it. Out-of-game, The Shadow Elf will touch a spell packet to the targets back (similar to a backstab, or blackjack) and then whisper: "Physical Charm Confuse." Anyone who hears this will only hear the Shadow Elf whispering in a strange language. This is usable once per cycle for each time bought. · Shadow Elven Language Skill: (1 XP) Shadow Elves have their own language. “Change Speak Shadow Elven” must be spoken before every sentence spoken in shadow elven. Special Flaws: · Disease Sensitivity: Shadow Elves are frail to the diseases of the surface world. Many passages to the underworld are guarded viciously so that epidemics don’t break out. Shadow Elves are under the effects of disease calls for twice the duration. Pros: Shadow Elves are unsurpassed in power at night. They blend into night naturally. They make great thieves, and good all around fighters. Cons: Shadow Elves might be a liability when it comes to some disease-ridden adventures. Shadow elves also tend to not get along with most races as well. Most races find shadow elves intolerable, and therefore they do not stick with a party well. Dwarves Dwarves are a stockier race, easily identified by their beards. All dwarves, whether male or female, have facial hair. Dwarves tend to be dour, and generally have a gruff attitude. They appreciate hard work, and fine craftsmanship, whether it be a stonewall, or a mug of fine ale. Their true love though, is precious metals, particularly gold. They prize gems, especially diamonds, and opaque gems. Dwarves have a course sense of humor; they find much humor in the crushing of those smaller than them. Not overly fond of elves, Dwarves have a fierce hatred for orcs and goblins. They are a very physical race, and don’t have a great like for books and spell casting. Starting Hit Points: 22 Racial Makeup: Beard, Tan skin makeup (optional) Bonus Perks Available: · Resist Disease Skill: (2 XP) Dwarves have strong immune systems, which make them strong against all sorts of disease. · Resist Fear Skill: (1 XP) Dwarves are very good at holding their ground when other races run in fear, which is why most Dwarven cities are hard to invade. · Dwarven Language Skill: (1 XP) Dwarves have their own language. “Change Speak Dwarven” must be spoken before every sentence spoken in Dwarven. Special Flaws: · Magic Resistance: Dwarves have a hard time learning and manipulating magic, and as such the Spellcraft and Religion perks cost 8 XP instead of 4 XP. Pros: Very high HP totals, and special resistances make dwarves very good all around fighters. They are also quite good against alchemists, and undead with fear based attacks. Cons: Dwarves have a very hard time being casters. The initial expense to become a caster is almost not worth it. They also don’t get along with casters very well either, creating unrest in some parties. Tselk The Tselk, or Freyah as they are sometimes called, are a race of energetic beings with a passion for action. Tselk are very colorful- their hair often has streaks of bright colors. They have darker runic markings on their face, often blues and purples, running down the cheekbones, and along facial features. Tselk have a hard time being passive. They have an amazing amount of energy, which gives them a true intensity. Tselk are always asking questions, always questing, always building, seeking, and doing things. They have an exceptionally hard time watching time pass, or sitting quietly while they could be doing something to help. Most people find it very hard to keep up with a Tselk’s activity levels, in thought and in deed. The Tselk are a deeply spiritual race, often lead much more by impulse and emotion than intellect. Every so often, a Tselk has a dream, which he or she feels compelled to follow. This Dream Quest is believed to be a message from their ancestors, helping the Tselk along in his life. Furthermore, a Tselk must always defend his own name and family name. In this sense, Tselk are very egotistical- they refuse to have their family slandered. Tselk are gifted with the ability to manipulate the energy around them, and to convert it into a flare of energy. It is rumored that there are ways to increase the intensity of an energy flare, but if such a method exists, it is not known by the common Tselk. Starting Hit Points: 21 Racial Makeup: Streaks in hair (optional), face runes. Bonus Perks Available: · Energy Flare Skill: (1 XP) Each XP spent on this skill will add 2 points to the Tselk's 'energy pool'. The Tselk can throw damage out of this pool via packet. The Tselk must throw a packet with the incant: "<damage number> Magic!" The damage from the pool may be divided in any way, though no single charge can exceed 20 points. A 15 point pool may be divided into 3 packets of 5 damage each, or 1 packet of 15 damage, or any other combinations, as long as the damage did not exceed 20 points. The energy pool renews itself every hour. A Tselk may not expand this pool past 10 points without purchasing the Mental Focus perk. Special Flaws: · Hyper: Tselk have a hard time concentrating, and spending time thinking. The Mental Focus Perk costs 5 XP instead of 2 XP. Pros: Good HP Totals make Tselk pretty good fighters, and Energy Flares are cheap, and good magic attacks, especially in battles where monsters can only be hit by magical attacks. Cons: Tselk’s inability to focus hampers quite a few skills. Ranging from trap making, spell casting, and even some fighter skills. They seem to create their own class arch-type, a sort of Magic Fighter hybrid. They may be limited to be the most powerful in this area, and this area only. Goblins Goblins are a green skinned race that enjoy trickery and mischief. They have large noses and greenish skin that ranges anywhere from light green to a greenish brown. Though akin to their lower cousins, High Goblins are more civilized, though still somewhat barbaric, and are generally accepted. PCs that play Goblins are assumed to be High Goblins. Goblins see beauty in reverse. What normal people see as beautiful, most Goblins see as ugly. Conversely, Goblins tend appreciate mud, blood, dirt, and death much more than the other races. A “beautiful” Goblin maiden is the most warty, the most hairy, and the most smelly. They do, however, love a good rhythm. When a Goblin hears a drum beat, or a song, they will often be compelled to dance to it. Combat is also viewed as a dance, to goblins. As such, they tend to have very exotic fighting styles. Goblins are resistant to some forms of magics, specifically curses. Their minds are more susceptible to charms. Starting Hit Points: 17 Racial Makeup: Large nose, green skin, big ears (optional) Bonus Perks Available: · Combat Rhythms: (Free) Goblins tend to use music rhythm in combat, or were trained to fight through rhythms. This makes combat more of an art form, and makes goblins have an easier time using multiple weapons. For a Goblin, the Two Weapons Perk costs 7 instead of 10, and the prerequisite changes from “Any Weapon Skill +1” to “Use in any 1H Weapon.” Goblins must still follow the rules for two weapon fighting. See “Two Weapons” for more details. · Resist Curse Skill: (4 XP) Goblins have a natural resistance to curses… as they themselves were created through such a process. Special Flaws: · Weak Willed: Goblins are extremely susceptible to legends, and other dreamings. They believe so strongly in them, that they tend to easily fall to charms. Any goblin hit by a charm spell of any kind, stays in the spells enchantment for twice the normal duration of the spell. Pros: Goblins make pretty good all around characters. They enjoy a good resistance to curses, which is an asset to any class type. Two Weapon fighting is a fast way of doing damage, making fighter a good start for the goblin. Cons: Do not get a goblin in a magic war. The helplessness to charms make them a liability in some cases. Saloi The Saloi are a race of lizard people native to the desert island of Adarkar. They are covered with scales that range from a light green to a reddish brown Saloi are a cold-blooded race, and act slow and sluggish when cold. Cold-based attacks make it exceptionally difficult for them to function. When affected by flame, they enjoy a burst of adrenaline. A Saloi's scales are tough like armor, providing them with some limited armor. Adarkar, the Saloi homeland, is a huge desert island located one month's boat travel off the eastern coast of Entasia. Many Saloi do not survive this trip. Because Saloi are used to depending on each other within the tribe, they place a lot of value in their friends, and will defend their friends at all costs. That is to say, they are not entirely cold blooded. The Saloi have a deep sense of honor and hospitality. They are always polite to strangers, and insist on bowing to their opponents. Saloi tribes in Adarkar are nomadic, following the elusive desert water. They are used to walking for days and days without seeing any land marks. As such, they are often confused or bewildered by forests and foliage. Many Saloi come to Entasia to find better living conditions, to escape from slavery, or just to find fame and fortune. Starting Hit Points: 20 Racial Makeup: Green or red-brown skin, scale markings (optional) Bonus Perks Available: · Armor Scales Skill (2 XP) Saloi can grow hardened scales as armor. These scales will be cracked and broken, but can be regrown. Acting per standard armor rules, saloi scales can be refitted. A crush attack on the scales will result in them cracking and being unusable for the rest of the cycle. For each time this skill is bought, the character gains +1 Armor Points. This skill can be bought up to 8 times. · Saloi Language: (1 XP) Saloi have their own language. “Change Speak Saloi” must be spoken before every sentence spoken in Saloi. Special Flaws: · Cold Blood: Saloi are cold blooded creatures, and as such, are effected by the environments effects around them. Whenever a saloi is effected by an "Ice" attacks, it slows them down as per the "enfeeble" call. “Fire” calls give a boost of energy to the Saloi, though this is purely role-playing in nature; there are no additional rules for it. · Massive Scales: Saloi scales are so jagged, and unpredictable, that making armor for a Saloi is near impossible. Saloi cannot wear armor of any type. Pros: Saloi start off with a good amount of Hit Points. Therefore, they make any class type seem like a front line class. Plus, the armor max, makes their natural HP very good. Cons: The lack of armor prohibits Saloi from getting the strongest HP totals, and any form of magic armor. The “Broken” The “Broken” seems to be a general term to creatures that have been raised back from the dead based on a Benitian ritual gone wrong. Long ago, the Benitians thought they perfected a spell that would consecrate holy grounds from having their buried brought back through raise dead spells. The graveyard that the spell was employed on had a high concentration of magical energy and ether. After the casting of the spell, the graveyard inhabitants came to life shortly after. They had minds, though seemed rather confused about why they were still around. The Benitians were torn between hacking down the undead atrocities and keeping around their ancestors/masters. Since the Broken had minds and could reason, and most seemed to follow the code of Benitian chivalry, the Benitians decided that they be deemed magical beasts and kept around. The Broken seemed to be appearing in other places other then the original graveyard. Apparently when a broken is permanently killed, the magic placed in their bodies enters the area, making it filled with the proper components to make yet another “broken”. The Broken have a compulsion inside of them. A taint that pushes at their soul, begging them to follow their undead needs and destroy the living. However, most have wishes to keep their humanity, so they pray to the face of creation, begging to be saved from the damnation. A broken who has taken face to the light gains a golden ahnk on their forehead as a symbol of righteousness. A broken that has strayed from the light receives a burnt black ahnk in their forehead as a permanent reminder to all who see it. The Broken see themselves in a number of ways. Some see themselves as epic heroes who have been given another chance to eradicate evil from the world. Others see themselves as the outcasts and damned of the Benitian society, existing to subvert and destroy all which their ankhs stand for. In either case, Broken are tragic heroes, often viewed as ticking time-bombs that will eventually lose their sense of morality and stray to the dark side. Their internal struggle is epic, and does quite a number on the Broken psyche. Note that though Broken are like undead in many respects, they are not undead for logistical purposes. Starting Hit Points: 20 Racial Makeup: White face makeup, black under eyes (optional) black/gold ahnk depending on evil/good character. (Plot may change the color of the ankh based on your character’s actions) Bonus Perks Available: · Disease Resistance Skill: (1 XP) The Broken exist just outside the mortal coil, and therefore diseases have a hard time affecting them. · Curse Resistance Skill: (3 XP) The Broken are basically held together by curses and as such are more highly attuned to the patterns of curse magics. With training and concentration, curses will roll off them like water. Special Flaws: · Resistance to Healing Magic: The Broken, because of their undead nature, have little effect to healing magic. It does still affect them, as they teeter on the brink. All healing magic employed on them suffers a –1 penalty. · Good/Evil Compulsion: All Broken are given a choice to their humanity. Broken are compelled to choose a side: Good, or evil. All good Broken, must have the religion perk. They have a golden ahnk on their foreheads. All evil Broken, suffer an additional –1 to healing spells (-2 in total) and have a black ahnk burned into their foreheads. · Voice of the Gods: All Broken have a spoken voice in their heads. It’s the urging of the gods to bring them back to the dead. This voice makes it hard for the broken to concentrate. Mental Focus costs 5 instead of 2 for them. Pros: The cheap resists to disease makes a “Broken” a perfect friend to have, when traversing all the nasty places that adventurer’s find themselves in. Cons: The draw to buy the religion perk makes the Broken tend towards Clerical classes. The minuses to healing spells make it so they should not be put in situations where loss of health will be rampant. Lack of concentration make it more expensive to gain most fighter skills. |
| Races |