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View Full Version : Into the mines, we journey [3.5][Race][Deity]PEACH



Froogleyboy
2010-05-16, 12:17 PM
Molefolk

It has been six weeks since we began our adventure through these retched mines. The members of our group are dropping like flys. We are starving down here, and our provisions are gone. Though, today, we have had a streak of luck. We have finally stumbled upon a group of the legendary mole men! They are just as the stories say! When we make it out of here, we'll be famous! These horrid creatures are quite as I expected, they look like humanoid moles with long claws that I suspect are for tunneling through these deadly mines. They carry crude looking picks and shovels. I do find it odd that they have yet to notice us, or perhaps they have, and they are merely -

-Last entry in James Goad's journal of his adventures into the abandoned mines of Purgia. It is clearly incomplete

Molefolk, also known as "Mole men" (The term "Dirtfolk" is also used as a racial slur against them), are are a race of humanoid moles who have spent so long underground , they have adapted to life of squalor, devoid of light or life, in the deadly mines of Purgia. Many pity them, Most don't believe in them, all fear them.

Molefolk racial traits
Molefolk are around the size of a short human (usually 4 or 5 feet in height), and are humanoid in shape, but that's where the similarities end. They are covered in a thick layer of fur, keeping their ears and eyes out of sight. Though their eyes can be used to make out the difference between light and dark, they are otherwise blind. They have relatively short arms with large, powerful claws used for burrowing.

Strength +2 Molefolk have strong, powerful limbs from burrowing

Dexterity -2 Molefolk are slow and clumsy when not tunneling

Charisma -2 As Molefolk are an odd race, and are widely feared, they have trouble relating to other creatures and usually come off as menacing

Medium As medium creatures, molefolk have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.

Land Speed 20ft, and 10ft burrow speed

Blind Molefolk's eyes are covered in a thick layer of fur, rendering them mostly useless

Darkvision 5ft Though their eyes are mostly useless, they can see a little bit,but only in the dark

Tremorsense 50ft Molefolk use the vibrations of the earth as their eyes, as theirs are useless

Level Adjustment +0

Speak With Animals at will. (burrowing animals only)

Automatic Languages Dirtcode (A form of morse code used by kicking the ground), Dirtish, Undercommon Bonus Languages: Common, Dwarfish*, Gnomes*, Goliath*

Favored Class Fighter

Molefolk Society
Life in the tunnels is a harsh, unforgiving one. Thus, the Molefolk are just as harsh and unforgiving. A good example of this, is how one family will claim a mine tunnel and everything mined from it. If another molefolk that is not a part of that family, or a part of a family that said family has had a daughter marry into, the intruder will usually be killed. This is also the reason for arranged marriages (or, rather, the molefolk variation, which is a completely different topic). One family will have a tunnel with many high quality gems or metals, so another will offer up their best daughter to share to mining right.
Mining is the center of a molefolk's life. Most of the time, a family will have mined goods with them for centuries before selling them (if they sell them at all!)
This is not to say that molefolk don't have any source of entertainment. The molefolk culture is filled with art and music. Graphitti on the inside of tunnels, made from the paste of crushed biolumincesent mushrooms, is a common sight, and molefolk music is an odd, yet beautiful, thing. A common molefolk instrument is an ocarina made from clay from tunnel walls, and it is usually accompanied with Dirtish chants, akin to negro spirituals.

Lands
The most common Molefolk lands are the abandon mineshaft of Purgia, but they're have been reports of semi-aquatic molefolk living in sewers, but this is probably just a rumor.

Beliefs
Religion used to be large part of molefolk culture, but for the last century, their deity has been presumed dead by most, but the molefolk like to think he is just . . . gone

Relations
Many people have a deep hatred, or fear for molefolk. Though the molefolk are not entirely evil, they have fair reason for this fear. Back when molefolk where a not-so-rare sight, it was not uncommon for molefolk to raid human villages for slaves and food. But, after their deity disappeared, this has become a taboo practice
*if creature exist in setting

Froogleyboy
2010-05-16, 12:18 PM
reserved for deity

Lord Loss
2010-05-16, 12:21 PM
I'd give thme +2 to STR, seeing as they have powerful limbs because they burrow a lot. This would make them more powerful (they need a little power boost) and is flavorful.

Love the idea. I'm so adding these somewhere in my campaign world.

Froogleyboy
2010-05-16, 12:31 PM
I'd give thme +2 to STR, seeing as they have powerful limbs because they burrow a lot. This would make them more powerful (they need a little power boost) and is flavorful.

Love the idea. I'm so adding these somewhere in my campaign world.

Changed it

Lord Loss
2010-05-16, 12:37 PM
A few more qualms: give them Undercommon as a free language and expand their bonus languages to encompass more races which live Underground or mine. i'd add Dwarven, Golaith, Gnomish, Aquan and maybe a few others as bonus languages.

Froogleyboy
2010-05-16, 01:25 PM
A few more qualms: give them Undercommon as a free language and expand their bonus languages to encompass more races which live Underground or mine. i'd add Dwarven, Golaith, Gnomish, Aquan and maybe a few others as bonus languages.

I forgot to add that these are for a homebrew setting (That I will add when I have more stuff for it) that dosen't have gnomes, Goliaths, or dwarves

Doppelganger
2010-05-16, 01:53 PM
I like it. Sounds sort of like the evil cousins of the moles in redwall. Quick nitpick: you need to give them a blindsense range, or they can either A: not detect anything or B: detect every action taken in the world. I'd say about a hundred feet, as it's stronger than darkvision, but they're blind.

Froogleyboy
2010-05-16, 02:01 PM
I like it. Sounds sort of like the evil cousins of the moles in redwall. Quick nitpick: you need to give them a blindsense range, or they can either A: not detect anything or B: detect every action taken in the world. I'd say about a hundred feet, as it's stronger than darkvision, but they're blind.

Oh, thanks for telling me that
EDIT: fixed it

demidracolich
2010-05-16, 04:34 PM
You said blind sense but put blindsight, I think that would be overpowered for a +0LA, being basically 100ft darkvision and true seeing except better. There are very few blind monsters with blindsight to that range so I think its too much for a +0LA race.

Vaynor
2010-05-16, 05:17 PM
I think it might make a bit more sense to give them tremorsense instead, as you state in the ability description that they use the vibrations of the earth to see.

sciencepanda
2010-05-16, 06:35 PM
I think Terran would probably also make sense for a base language.

Djinn_in_Tonic
2010-05-16, 06:39 PM
A 40ft Burrow speed is to powerful for an LA +0 race, as it makes many obstacles meaningless. I'd reduce it to 5 or 10 feet, and state that they can only burrow through soil (not rock or other difficult to bypass materials).

Froogleyboy
2010-05-16, 06:42 PM
noted and fixed

The Tygre
2010-05-16, 07:31 PM
What do these guys look like? Do they come from any particular source?

Froogleyboy
2010-05-16, 07:47 PM
What do these guys look like? Do they come from any particular source?

They look like 1/2 mole 1/2 people, and they came from my head :P

The Anarresti
2010-05-16, 08:12 PM
Religion used to be large part of molefolk culture, but for the last century, their deity has been presumed dead by most, but the molefolk like to think he is just . . . gone
I like this idea, but, why? Is this going to be explained with the deity post? Why did they raid with their deity's consent, but it's now taboo without one? I have so many questions!!
I've always wanted to play an LA +0 blind race. But why, if they are blind, would they have graffiti in bioluminescent fungus? I think that if you describe their living spaces, you should put emphasis on the lack of any light and the complete disregard for color.
Secondly, if they only perceive through temorsense, how do they detect non-moving things, i.e. objects? Are the tunnels they live in so small that they always can have a hand on the wall at all times, or at least they know the area so well they can walk around without fear of walking off a cliff? I'd either make it blindsense, or give them temorsense 50ft, blindsight 5ft (this way adjacent characters don't get concealment. I'd also give them blind-fight as a racial bonus feat.
Thirdly, if they are so isolationist, why do they spend their time mining? You can't eat gems and minerals (or can they?), so those who make a living from mining need to sell their goods to buy food. With life in the tunnels being rough, you'd expect them to spend all their working time producing food.
But I love this race. Like the Morlocks from the Time Machine.

DracoDei
2010-05-17, 08:15 AM
Yes, definitely Tremorsense.

Froogleyboy
2010-05-21, 08:12 PM
I like this idea, but, why? Is this going to be explained with the deity post? Why did they raid with their deity's consent, but it's now taboo without one? That will be explained later


But why, if they are blind, would they have graffiti in bioluminescent fungus? I think that if you describe their living spaces, you should put emphasis on the lack of any light and the complete disregard for color. Tradition, It's just something they used to do from when they could see



Thirdly, if they are so isolationist, why do they spend their time mining? You can't eat gems and minerals (or can they?), so those who make a living from mining need to sell their goods to buy food. With life in the tunnels being rough, you'd expect them to spend all their working time producing food.
But I love this race. Like the Morlocks from the Time Machine.
They may be isolationist, but they still have a concept of wealth, and that is gems and gold, etc.

Froogleyboy
2010-05-21, 08:18 PM
UPDATE:
Well, looking at how my project is going, I won't be adding deities 'till all my races are done