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Ryshan Ynrith
2006-03-09, 05:21 PM
So I decided to try my hand at a new race...


Indhaar

Warrior Circle:
+2 Dex, +2 Con, -2 Wis

Noble Circle
+2 Int, +2 Cha, -2 Wis

Aurora-Born: The Indhaar are fueled with magic that continuously revitalizes them. They will never die of old age, and need not eat or drink. However, this magic infusion also causes Indhaar to detect as faint transmutation magic to those using Detect Magic.

Soul of Ashke: Warrior circle Indhaar gain a +1 bonus on all attack rolls and saving throws, and a +2 bonus on all Survival, Spot, and Listen checks. Additionally, these skills are always considered class skills.

Soul of Moiar: Noble Circle Indhaar gain a +1 bonus to the save DC of all spells, and a +2 bonus on all Knowledge: Arcana, Spellcraft, and Concentration checks. Additionally, these skills are always considered class skills.

Waking Dream: The living dream woven by Kaior still lingers: Indhaar receive a -2 penalty to saves against Enchantment and Necromancy spells, and a -2 penalty on Spot, Listen, and Concentration checks.

Favored Class:

Noble Circle: Sorcerer or Wizard.
Warrior Circle: Fighter or Hexblade

Level Adjustment: +1


Born a crude, primitive race, with foxlike features, the Indhaar soon discovered magic, and all the banes and blessings it brought. As they mastered the arcane arts and grew wise in lore, the Indhaar spread, conquering and building. Unchallenged, they made their cities in remote areas of the world, content to stay and explore the mysteries of magic. Unconcerned with each other’s fate, the cities were isolated, and they began to fall, from invasion, treachery, or simple decay and underpopulation.

Finally, in the last three cities, the most learned and powerful mages of the Indhaar made a great working which channeled the powers of the voids beyond the atmosphere and the material plane; the Aurora and the Astral Plane. With this mighty energy, the Indhaar tore their cities from the earth and set them above the northern ice, where they would ever be shielded and strengthened by the Aurora. In their people, too, this working made a change: the Aurora surged through them, giving them unending days and freedom from the needs of the body. Physical alterations came as well: most of the vulpine features disappeared, leaving naught but the large, mobile ears. For a time, the cities of the Indhaar were a paradise and a place of great lore. However, as time went by, the queen, Kaior, began to lust for power and control beyond her station. Many spells were wrought by her circle of magi, and waves of the Aurora’s power washed through the floating islands, bringing a state beyond sleep and wakefulness; a living dream, woven of the sky’s magic. Under such a spell, all but the most willful Indhaar lived as if in a trance, not knowing if they were awake, asleep, or dead and in paradise, but perfectly contented. Their will gone, the Indhaar were easy prey for Queen Kaior, who drained their magic and sent them further and further into the dream. Passive and only loosely connected to reality, most of the Indhaar had no idea that their mental state was altered, until a pair, a cunning mage named Moiar and a skilled warrior called Ashke, Moiar’s beloved. They fought their way through dreaming guards and Kaior’s circle, and finally confronted the dread queen. Infused with the stolen power of her subjects, Queen Kaior fought back savagely. Though she was defeated, Kaior gravely wounded Moiar and Ashke, and the release of Aurora energy burned the remnants of the living dream into the entire population of the Indhaar. Moiar and Ashke nearly perished in Kaior’s throne room before enough of the population regained their faculties enough to give them aid. Hailed as heroes, once it was understood what happened, Moiar and Ashke made a working that granted their spirit to all Indhaar. Henceforth, they carried an echo of the soul of Moiar, and his arcane power, or Ashke, and her skill at arms and survival. When they died, a monument was erected over their tomb, wrought of aurora-infused crystal that shines with the compelling colors of the arctic sky.

Now, the Indhaar are still struggling with the residual effects of Kaior’s dreamweaving, constantly fighting distraction and a susceptibility to enchanting and draining magic. Their sky-cities remain, still held in the Aurora’s protective magic, but a few Indhaar have decided to seek out the rest of the world, learning of things not pertaining to the arcane. These few Indhaar have a rough journey, for they must trek beyond the arctic ice below the sky-cities to reach the rest of civilization.

Indhaar are tall, averaging six feet and four inches, but build compactly. Their skin is pale, and their hair is silver, white, or icy-blue, pale green, or a mixture of these colors. Facial features are fine, with purple, silver, grey, or red eyes. Their ears are pointed and rather long, and have some mobility, which is primarily used as an additional gesturing tool to add emphasis or clarity to conversation.

Most Indhaar are somewhat solitary, and have little desire to associate with other races, preferring their sanctuary in the sky to the harsh life of those below. Those who do seek the world are oddities, but their usual mastery of the arts of war or magic tend to make them exceptional, though often their motives are atypical from a human’s point of view.

Aging: Indhaar mature at a moderate rate, reaching adulthood at the age of about 30. While they are technically immortal, the Indhaar do feel some of the effects of time, and reach the following age catagories at these ages: Middle Age (200), Old (450), Venerable (1100). After reaching Venerable, the Indhaar feel no more effects of time passing.

I'd very much like feedback as to the balance of the abilities. I /think/ they're about balanced, but I'm not entirely sure.

captain_decadence
2006-03-09, 05:43 PM
Sounds cool, if strange. One thing is that you gave the noble class both a +2 to concentration and then everyone a -2 to concentration. Not sure if that was on purpose or not.

I think you should probably try to differentiate them from elves a bit more. While you say they are a seperate species, this could easily be a build for another elven sub-race (and believe me, we have enough of those). I think you should maybe do two different preferred classes, one for the nobles and one for the warriors. Maybe hex-blade or some other type of magic using spell fighter (though not paladin or ranger) and then sorceror for the nobles.

Ryshan Ynrith
2006-03-09, 05:47 PM
The Concentration thing was intentional, as is the spot/listen bonus of the Warrior Circle cancelling.

Ah, I missed the second favored class!

Hmmm...good point. I'll look into making them differ from elves more...

Wih
2006-03-09, 10:18 PM
Nice race, but they're a bit too powerful for an LA+0 race. Either getting +1 DC to all your spells, or +1 to ALL attack rolls...also not having to eat, drink, and not being able to die of old age...these things are worth a +1 LA.
Personally, I'd advise giving each Circle another +2 to a stat, and making them LA+1.

Ryshan Ynrith
2006-03-09, 10:40 PM
Hmmm...afraid of that. Okay, let's have a go at these...

Thanks for the constructive criticism!

The_Logic_Ninja
2006-03-09, 10:54 PM
"Doesn't die of old age," huh? That might be worth more than LA +1, total.

I mean, picture a high-level monk that's of that race. He takes Tattooed Monk (1) for the Ocean tattoo. He no longer needs to eat, drink, or sleep. If he picks up more Tattooed Monk levels, he can get the tattoo that stops them from aging ("bonuses still accrue, and the monk still dies of old age when his time is up"). He can also get that ability from regular monk levels.

So, this level 18-ish monk goes, and finds, like... a cave in a mountain in the middle of the desert.

Then he meditates for a thousand years. Not only does he probably get a whole lot of levels from a thousand years of Meditating and Attaining Enlightement, but if you gain an age category every 30 years or so, like humans... he gets 33 age categories. That's +66 to INT and WIS.

It's the least combat-intensive way of winning D&D evar!

(Note: this can also be done with a monk prestige class that makes you immortal, as opposed to unaging. Unaging + immortal + lots of meditation = win.)

Edit: +2 INT, +2 CHA, -2 WIS is definitely worth more than LA +1 with the other stuff. Mental stat boosts are "worth" more than physical ones.

Ryshan Ynrith
2006-03-09, 10:55 PM
Ah, need to mention aging catagories. Similar to the Elan, they only get three age catagories, like all the other races.

The_Logic_Ninja
2006-03-09, 10:58 PM
...you mean once you're Venerable you don't change age categories ever again?

Well, that puts a damper on my ideas for D&D Buddhas.