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View Full Version : I remade Satyrs. What do you think?



RobbieOC
2006-03-21, 01:33 AM
In a campaign setting I'm working on, I want to use the Satyrs as the token forest dwelling PC race. I've always liked them, but the problem with them was of course their ECL. It's like 7! So, in response to that I had to remake the species. Here's what I came up with.

Obviously, since they're satyrs, they're very inclined towards the bard class, and they make really good bards, but I tried to make them useable for pretty much any class someone really wants to use them for. Let me know what you guys think.

Satyrs

The Satyrs are an ancient and fun-loving race. Known for their hedonistic lifestyles and unabashed lechery, you either love them or you hate them, but almost no one is indifferent toward the gregarious satyrs.
For years the satyrs lived in the forests of the world, kidnapping helpless female travelers and raiding unsuspecting adventurers, and only in the last century have they started migrating towards the cities to live with the humans. They have quickly showed their adaptability and have become important members of society, most notably as musicians and entertainers. The satyrs seem almost natural bards.
Male satyrs are instantly recognized by their set of large, curving horns. The females have horns as well, but theirs are shorter and not curved, coming straight out of their foreheads. Satyrs have the upper body of a smaller than average human and the lower body of a ram, including cloven-hooves. Their fur is anywhere from brown to red to white and they keep it meticulously groomed at all times. Most satyrs wear minimal clothing. They are slightly smaller than an average human ranging from 1.4 meters to 1.6 meters.
Many satyrs have become adventurers, most gravitating towards bard, rogue and sorcerer. They are not particularly religious, though a rare few have taken up the calling of a cleric. Most are too chaotic in nature for the life of a paladin or a monk. Though typically seen as frail and cowardly, the satyrs are anything but and can become very loyal and trusted companions if given the chance to prove themselves.

Satyr Racial Traits:
• +2 Wisdom, -2 Constitution. Satyrs are an insightful group, but are fairly weak of body
• Medium: As Medium creatures, satyrs have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size
• Satyr base speed is 30 feet
• Low-light vision: Satyrs can see twice as far as humans in dim light (such as moonlight). They retain the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions
• +2 species bonus on perform checks, also satyrs receive perform as a class-skill regardless of class
• +2 racial bonus on saving throws made against enchantments
• Fey-blood: A satyr is classified as fey
• Natural weapons: Satyrs can use the horns on their heads to make a head-butt attack dealing 1d4 points of damage. If charging, they can use this attack to deal 1d6 points of damage
• Automatic languages: Common, sylvan. Bonus languages: Any
• Favored class: bard. A multi-class satyr’s bard class does not count when determining whether he takes an experience point penalty for multi-classing

Dhavaer
2006-03-21, 01:43 AM
It looks relatively balanced. The only thing that's iffy is the Fey type. Being nonhumanoid is fairly powerful.

CabbageTheif
2006-03-21, 04:44 AM
the only thing that cannot be seperated from the satyr is the fey. they are always fey, always will be.

that having been said, its true. non-humanoid can give some advantages, and so you balanced it with making the land speed average.

now, would there be items in the campaign that are useable only by fey? ooooo ::DM mind begins to spin::

Tynan
2006-03-21, 04:51 AM
Hmm... If you want to be accurate... There is no female Satyr. They're all male.

Nature makes up for it with Dryads and Nymphs, though.

endoperez
2006-03-21, 05:54 AM
I find it strange that satyrs would rather bash their enemies with their horns instead of kicking them. A minor point, though.

Gordon
2006-03-21, 10:35 AM
I find it strange that satyrs would rather bash their enemies with their horns instead of kicking them. A minor point, though.

Have you ever met a Ram? They'll put their heads in your gut as soon as look at you-- and as soon as you take your eyes off them.

Orion-the-G
2006-03-21, 10:49 AM
Thematically I don't know about the Con penalty, Satyrs are hard partiers after all. But I think the fact that they get a charisma bonus combined with a penalty to Con probably more than balances out their Fey subtype when combined with their other relatively weak racial abilities. So they seem reasonable compared to the base races.

Toliudar
2006-03-21, 11:54 AM
Seems a bit on the powerful side for a +0 LA race, but not hideously so. Clearly, they'll make great bards, and very good sorcerers, but it's not like everyone who wants to play this class will think "ah - must be a Satyr!"

I'd drop the racial bonus on perform to +2 - no need to overpump what is already clearly a bard-connected class.

stainboy
2006-03-21, 01:50 PM
I envision satyrs as pretty hardy. I'd change the Con penalty to a Wisdom penalty, personally.

You might also want to up the damage on their horn-charge, say to 2d6, and provide opportunities to get feats or magic items that improve it. If you want people to actually use that maneuver, it needs to be competitive with weapon attacks.

The race seems pretty well balanced overall. It does violate the WotC's rule of thumb on stat modifiers: any race with a mental stat bonus has at least +1 LA,
because of how much the game rewards casters for minmaxing on the mental stat tied to their spellcasting. It wouldn't be a problem for a satyr bard - bards can't afford to minmax on any one stat, even Charisma. But it might be a bit unbalancing for a satyr sorcerer.

Orion-the-G
2006-03-21, 01:52 PM
Actually that's not the case, in the 'making a new race' section of the DMG a character with a mental stat bonus is considered weaker than one with a physical stat.

InaVegt
2006-03-21, 02:00 PM
and they actually created one themselves: the gray elf.

Voyager_I
2006-03-21, 02:15 PM
That's a nice tweak, I wouldn't mind playing one of those.

However, that's essentially a free +5 to perform at first level, just for being a Satyr...I know that's what they do, but maybe it's a bit much?

Also, instead of the 1d6, how about just saying they benefit from the Spirited Charge feat when using their natural weapons, but only while on foot.

Orion-the-G
2006-03-21, 02:20 PM
I'd say keep the slam as it is, it matches it's size in terms of damage and most PC-playable races with natural attacks are pretty poor. There's really not a one I can think of that's weapon worthy compared to manufactured weapons of the character's size.

As for the perform I don't know that it's terribly unbalanced but it is true that you'd be making it even more bard-centric (bard being the only class where perform makes a difference at all, even if it only applies to fascination and countersong.)

Maybe +2 perform, switching to +4 for pan-pipes just to mix it up a bit.

RobbieOC
2006-03-21, 02:24 PM
I know satyrs are typically seen as rather hardy, but the satyrs I'm envisioning for this particular world actually aren't. I probably didn't say that anywhere, hence the confusion. Sorry.

The reason the head-butt damage is so low is mainly because of the low levels. I'm not seeing this headbutt as a main weapon, just something to give them an interesting option if they are ever disarmed or whatnot. Bumping it up to 2d6 would make them really strong at the low levels. And as a player who likes making fighter types, I can say how frustrating it is when a magic user does higher melee damage than you do, especially when you're at those low levels. I figure by the time the head-butt damage becomes completely useless, he'll have far more powerful weapons anyway. And there definitely will be some magic items that can increase the horns usefulness. That's a cool idea.

The pan-pipes idea is a good one, too. I like that.

MrNexx
2006-03-21, 05:16 PM
• +4 species bonus on perform checks, also satyrs receive perform as a class-skill regardless of class

As others have said, drop this to +2; having it always as a class skill is a nice bonus, as is.


• Favored class: bard. A multi-class satyr’s bard class does not count when determining whether he takes an experience point penalty for multi-classing


I would advise against giving them the current set-up... they're too specialized. They've got a Charisma bonus AND a Perform bonus AND a favored class of Bard. I would suggest swapping the Charisma bonus out for a Wisdom bonus (they have a degree of insight into people and the ways of the world, and good senses), downgrading the perform bonus (they all learn music, and it's an integral part of their culture), and keep the bard favored class. It makes them somewhat more spread out, without really vioalting their core concept.

Also, and Gamebird is going to crucify me here, I would suggest that this race have some very different stats for its males and females. Females are described as having very different horns, so I have to question if their horns will be as damaging as a male's (or will they do piercing, while males do bludgeoning?). Also, though, female satyrs don't really seem to be part of the society you describe.. "kidnapping helpless female travelers".

Maybe female satyrs have a favored class of druid or ranger, and live a pastoral existence, raising the children and caring for the elders? Or the "saytrs" that everyone are familiar with are males in the adolescent phase?

RobbieOC
2006-03-22, 04:52 PM
OK, I've fixed it a little at the top. I went ahead and switched it from a Cha bonus to a Wis bonus. It made a lot of sense, so I went with it. Thanks for the help.

As for making different stats for the males and the females... I actually have another race in the same setting that I have done that with. I didn't want to do that with every single race, so I just decided that all satyrs were the same. Just so you see what I mean, here's the other race, the Suladir:

Suladir

The Suladir are a nomadic desert people who have only been in contact with the humans and the satyrs for the last half-century. They are highly superstitious and loathe to trusting others without sufficient reason. They are devout worshippers of Al’alad, their “blind desert savior” who taught them the ancient rituals for finding water in the desert and have no qualms about going to their death for their deity.
The Suladir are a tall, dark-skinned people, standing between 1.8 and 2.2 meters tall. They are completely hairless and usually adorn their body with tribal tattoos which also serve as their identification and “name”. They do not have personal names and simply go by their family name, but their markings are used to distinguish each other.
All Suladir are blind. Legend says they gave up their sight to the desert savior in exchange for the secret of water, but the accuracy of this legend has never been verified. They are able to use a magical “sixth sense” to see, though anywhere magic does not function, neither does this “sixth sense.” Because they cannot see, they often keep a scarf wrapped around their head, as they have learned that it disturbs their new-found neighbors.
The Suladir have a distinct gender-based caste system. The women suladir make up the warrior caste and the men make up the worker caste, though the men are often trained in combat, due to the suladirs’ nomadic lifestyle. Men are always the diplomats and women handle most of the combat, typically using the falchion as their primary weapon.
Adventuring suladir can take many roles. Women suladir are often fighters or barbarians, though they have been known to take up other classes as well, such as monk or ranger. The men can take nearly any class, though they are less inclined to take the more combat oriented classes and tend to stick with rogue, wizard and sorcerer.

Suladir Racial Traits:

Male:
• +2 Dexterity, -2 Wisdom. Male suladir are extremely nimble and graceful, but their lack sight has caused them to lose their grasp on the world around them a little.
• Medium: As Medium creatures, suladir have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size
• Suladir base speed is 30 feet.
• Blind – All suladir have the blindsense special ability and the blind-fight feat. This blindsense is due to magical means, so whenever magic is effectively blocked, but not dispelled, a suladir loses these abilities. They are not subject to darkness, magical or otherwise, or poor lighting conditions.
• +2 species bonus on all survival checks made in a desert environment
• +2 species bonus on all diplomacy, bluff, and sense motive checks made in a desert environment
• Male suladir gain weapon proficiency with the scimitar regardless of class
• Automatic languages: Common, suladir. Bonus languages: Any.
• Favored Class: Any. When determining whether a multi-class male suladir takes an experience point penalty, his or her highest-level class does not count.

Female
• +2 Constitution, -2 Wisdom. Female suladir are in excellent physical condition from years of training, but their lack of sight has caused them to lose their grip on the world around them a little.
• Medium: As Medium creatures, suladir have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
• Suladir base speed is 30 feet.
• Blind – All suladir have the blindsense special ability and the blind-fight feat. This blindsense is due to magical means, so whenever magic is blocked, but not dispelled, a suladir loses these abilities. They are not subject to darkness, magical or otherwise, or poor lighting conditions.
• +2 Species bonus on all survival checks made in a desert environment
• Female suladir gain weapon proficiency with the falchion regardless of class
• Automatic languages: Common, suladir. Bonus languages: Any.
• Favored class: Fighter. A multi-class female suladir’s fighter class does not count when determining whether she takes an experience point penalty when multi-classing.

[hr]

I'm not real sure how balanced the blind sense and blind fighting is, but I thought it was a cool idea. This kind of gives an idea of what to compare the satyrs above with, as well as humans... and I was considering something else, but haven't really made up my mind. I considered the half-giants from the psionics book, but I wasn't sure if I needed another combat oriented PC race or if something else would be good... anyways. Thought you might like to see it.

pocketwatch
2006-03-23, 08:16 PM
Wait, what? Tattoos and blindness? Think this through a little: why would a blind race give a damn about skin decorations?

Premier
2006-07-29, 07:37 AM
Also, who would make the tattoo?